Love Gene Defect - Chapter 7

Ji Zhaoyuan never tells lies.

Unlike other autistics, who are unable to lie due to a pathologically strict adherence to morality and ethics, for him, it’s out of disdain.

When he answered Lin Yu, he was indeed preoccupied with his kitchen and his precious cast-iron pot. However, after driving some distance from campus, he generously spared a tiny sliver of worry for Chu Jiuge, fearing that the low-IQ biological organism might still be hungry.

In reality, none of the things Ji Zhaoyuan worried about had happened. His kitchen was safe and sound and Chu Jiuge hadn’t starved to death either. Instead, he was lounging on the sofa, gnawing on a chicken leg.

Upon seeing Ji Zhaoyuan standing in the doorway, Chu Jiuge quickly spat out the chicken bone he was holding in his mouth. He gave him a fawning smile. “Oh, you’re back?”

Since it was an obvious question, Ji Zhaoyuan decided that it required no answer and directly ignored it. He glanced at Chu Jiuge and walked straight over to him.

The man on the sofa looked as if he were playing ‘eagle catches chicks’¹. Both of his arms were stretched out as he leaned in front of the coffee table, futilely attempting to block Ji Zhaoyuan’s line of sight.

A golden-roasted chicken leg sat on a patterned white porcelain plate. Not just chicken, but there was also stir-fried rice cakes with double hot sauce and a blue glass bowl–which Ji Zhaoyuan had seen last Christmas at old Mr. and Mrs. Madding’s house fifty meters away–holding a vegetable salad, and also a bunch of grapes picked from who-knows-whose yard.

As Ji Zhaoyuan’s gaze swept over the food piled high on the coffee table, his once light brown eyes darkened behind his lenses.

“I was a bit hungry, so I just took a stroll along the road. I didn’t expect people in California to be so hospitable! Every house practically bestowed some food on me like alms.” Chu Jiuge smiled, his expression somewhat awkward, before plucking a grape and holding it up to Ji Zhaoyuan’s mouth. “Want one? It’s pretty sweet.”

Ji Zhaoyuan avoided his hand. He wiped off the moisture left on the corner of his mouth and asked in a cold tone, “Your English proficiency isn’t bad?”

“No, no, no.” Chu Jiuge waved his hands dismissively. “Those three girls next door are Chinese international students. Didn’t you know? They did all the translating for me; all I had to do was stand nearby and smile.” As if to demonstrate, he tilted his head at Ji Zhaoyuan and acted cute.

Naturally, Ji Zhaoyuan couldn’t interpret such a complex expression. Although somewhat perplexed, he didn’t dwell on it. “Since you’ve already solved your dinner problem, we can conclude our interaction here for today. Tomorrow morning, please be up before seven o’clock and I will drive you to register for language class.”

“Okay~” Chu Jiuge sighed and finished gnawing at the rest of the chicken leg. He looked at the grease on his hands and licked it off.

“I’m going to sleep now,” Ji Zhaoyuan said, practically through clenched teeth as he pulled out a tissue for the other man. “The trash can is over there. Don’t drop food scraps on the floor.”

“Hey,” Chu Jiuge began to smile. “Just a small correction: couldn’t that sentence be totally replaced with ‘Good night’?”

Ji Zhaoyuan simply looked at him and said nothing.

“Goood—Niiiiight—” Chu Jiuge said the words like a teacher teaching Pinyin to small children, exaggerating his mouth shape for each syllable. “Come on. Want to try?”

Ji Zhaoyuan pressed his lips together briefly and thought for a moment. Then he spoke, his enunciation clear and precise, “Good night.”

It was completely emotionless.

Chu Jiuge watched Ji Zhaoyuan’s back then shook his head. Immediately afterwards, he called out to stop the other man, despite Ji Zhaoyuan already being halfway up the stairs. “Oh, right, how many bedrooms does this place have?”

Ji Zhaoyuan turned around, frowning. “Two. The master bedroom and the guest room.”

“Then I guess it can’t be helped.” Chu Jiuge shrugged and spread his hands toward him in a helpless gesture. “The bed in the guest room is way too small. I’d either have to get amputated below my knees or fold myself in half just to lie down.” He raised his eyebrows as he spoke, a teasing smile curling on his lips. “Looks like I’ll have to bunk with you tonight.”

Ji Zhaoyuan looked down at him from his higher position for a moment, then, with extreme difficulty, nodded his head.

Upstairs, Ji Zhaoyuan lay down on the edge of the bed, occupying only a small portion of it. He held his arms over his abdomen, trying his best to avoid any physical contact with Chu Jiuge. This just made Chu Jiuge want to tease him more.

Chu Jiuge sat up and directly took off his pajamas. His movements were somewhat forceful, causing the vibrations to travel to Ji Zhaoyuan’s side of the spring mattress.

“What–”

Chu Jiuge interrupted him. He turned onto his side and hugged him, his calf lying across Ji Zhaoyuan’s leg. “I want a body pillow.”

He really does smell like sunshine and fresh oranges, Ji Zhaoyuan thought.

He recalled Dr. Adam’s requirements and further filled in his mental assessment of Chu Jiuge–body temperature slightly high, good physical condition, the type of body that looks lean with clothes on but is muscular underneath. He wasn’t too muscular, however. Just a thin layer was close to the bones, perfectly proportioned.

“You’re so cute!” Chu Jiuge exclaimed. Ji Zhaoyuan remained unresponsive, as if he were under a spell, so Chu Jiuge snapped his fingers in front of his eyes. “Will you let me hug you all night?”

Of course not! Ji Zhaoyuan pushed him away and nimbly jumped off the bed. He pulled a pillow from the wardrobe and tossed it at him. “Were you complimenting me just now?”

Chu Jiuge froze, his expression blank, for a second, before he burst out laughing. “Yeah. I was complimenting you on feeling good to hug. So comfortable!” He clicked his tongue, then teased, “How do you always manage to find the thoughts I’ve hidden deep down in my heart?”

Even Ji Zhaoyuan could tell that the remark wasn’t well-intentioned. Since it wasn’t truly a compliment, it didn’t fall under the category Dr. Adam had told him required silence. Therefore, he decided that he didn’t need to remain silent.

“Humans are gregarious social animals, so they will, to a certain extent, develop dependency on their own kind. Simultaneously, studies also show that liking to hold things while sleeping is a manifestation of lacking a sense of security. Therefore, I forgive you for your inappropriate behavior.” Ji Zhaoyuan lay down again, maintaining distance between them. “Furthermore, hugging produces dopamine.”

With uncharacteristic patience, Chu Jiuge waited for him to finish speaking before he finally spoke up: “Did you like it?”

“I need to sleep now.” Ji Zhaoyuan shook his head. “Higher dopamine affects sleep quality.”

Chu Jiuge smiled, leaning closer. “So, did you dislike it?”

Ji Zhaoyuan shook his head again.

“Alright then, just one more quick hug.” True to his words, Chu Jiuge hugged him quickly, letting go before Ji Zhaoyuan could even react. He snickered, pleased that he was successfully mischievous.

Chu Jiuge rolled over with his back to the other man, reaching out to turn off the bedside lamp. “Like I said, I’m thick-skinned, don’t hold it against me, okay? Go to sleep now~”

¹ A Chinese children’s game similar to tag. An ‘eagle’ catches ‘chicks’, brings them back to their ‘nest’ and they become ‘eagles’ in turn.