CHAPTER 96: DRUNK - [100PS BONUS CHAPTER]

Joshua quickly took a sip of soda to wash away the strange taste lingering in his mouth.

Luther, still laughing beside him, didn’t even have time to react before Joshua suddenly raised a hand—his palm landing squarely on Luther’s face. Then the other hand came up too, pressing both against his cheeks.

Luther fell silent, staring at Joshua.

Joshua’s eyes were wide open, the corners flushed a strange shade of red. His eyes, already glistening, now looked so misty it seemed like tears might spill out at any moment. His lips—rosy and glossy—looked almost too wet, probably from the soda he’d just drunk. The faint scent of snow peach lingered in the air around him.

Whether it was Luther’s imagination or not, he could’ve sworn that the reddish tint at the corners of Joshua’s eyes was spreading.

"You!"

Joshua suddenly raised his voice, startling Luther out of his daze.

He froze, staring at Joshua, who was looking back at him with utmost seriousness. Just as everyone thought Joshua was about to say something profound, he suddenly closed his eyes—and his body went limp, collapsing straight into Luther’s chest.

Luther quickly caught him.

Joshua’s face was flushed, his lips mumbling something indistinctly under his breath, sounding faintly annoyed or uncomfortable.

Clearly, he was drunk.

Wait, did he even take more than one sip?

Henry’s calm voice came from the other side, "I told you not to let him drink."

There was always a reason for everything, apparently. But Leonard frowned at Henry. "How do you even know what Joshua’s alcohol tolerance is?"

Henry said nothing.

At that exact moment, Joshua suddenly stirred—he pushed himself up from Luther’s chest and sat upright.

He sat there blankly, eyes vacant and unfocused.

"Joshua?" Luther called, waving a hand in front of his face. Joshua’s gaze followed the movement... then stopped. His eyes fixed firmly on Henry.

"Brother..." Joshua murmured.

Luther didn’t quite catch it, but before he could ask, Joshua suddenly leaned forward, placing both hands on the table as he mumbled again, "Brother..."

From the look of it, he seemed ready to crawl right over the grill.

Both Leonard and Luther panicked and hurriedly pulled him back.

"Hey, Joshua, I didn’t expect you to start causing trouble the moment you got drunk!" Luther shouted.

But Joshua didn’t respond at all.

Soft, kitten-like sobs began to sound. Luther froze and looked over—Joshua was still staring at Henry, arms reaching forward as he whimpered through his tears, "Brother... brother..."

Henry frowned. He stood up and walked toward Joshua, reaching out to pull him to his feet.

Joshua immediately buried himself in Henry’s embrace, both arms wrapping tightly around Henry’s back. His body went limp, boneless, his fluffy head rubbing restlessly against Henry’s chest as he mumbled over and over, "Brother..."

"Joshua..." Justin muttered under his breath.

Luther shot up to his feet. "Henry! You can’t take advantage of Joshua just because he’s drunk!"

Leonard nodded furiously. "Exactly! He’s clearly up to no good!"

Luther gave Leonard a sideways glance—honestly, between Leonard and Henry, he wasn’t sure who was more up to no good.

Meanwhile, Justin watched the three of them and couldn’t help thinking: They’re all up to no good!

Then, all of a sudden, Joshua lifted his head from Henry’s chest. Both hands cupped Henry’s face, those watery eyes gazing earnestly up at him. And before anyone could process what was happening, under everyone’s stunned gaze, Joshua went on tiptoe and kissed the tiny mole beneath Henry’s left eye.

The sound of the kiss was far too transparent. Henry’s eyes widened in shock, and the others stood frozen, dumbstruck.

But Joshua didn’t seem to think one kiss was enough. He leaned in and planted two more on the same spot, smiling brightly. "Like you the most."

Like... you... the most?!

It was like a thunderclap exploding through the room.

The three onlookers stood there in stunned silence until Luther finally managed to say, "Joshua’s just drunk..."

Henry nodded calmly. "I’ll take him back to his room first. You guys clean up and get rid of bed head. I’ll take care of the rest tomorrow."

With that, he picked Joshua up and carried him away.

Justin slumped into his chair, still dazed. Joshua... likes Henry?

Leonard clenched his jaw, finding the whole situation utterly ridiculous.

Luther, on the other hand, kept things simple—Joshua was just drunk, that was all.

Even so, he couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling of leaving Joshua alone with Henry. But since they’d already divided rooms, if he said anything now, it’d make him sound kind of... suspicious.

After all, he wasn’t gay. Henry probably wasn’t either. Right—they were just roommates.

Once he’d cleared his thoughts, Luther looked at the other two and said, "Henry said he’ll clean up tomorrow. Let’s go to bed."

Leonard glanced at Luther and finally felt relieved—he could safely cross Luther off the competition list. That guy really did only see Joshua as a friend.

Meanwhile, Henry had already laid Joshua down on the bed. Joshua’s hands still clung tightly to the front of Henry’s shirt, his head buried in Henry’s chest as he mumbled incoherently.

Henry pressed his lips together and said softly, "Joshua, wash your face first."

Joshua, still barely clinging to reason, tried his best to climb down from Henry—even though his eyes refused to open.

Henry could only hold Joshua’s hand while supporting him at the same time.

"Joshua, spit it out! Joshua!"

He watched as Joshua’s mouth filled with foam, yet the boy stubbornly refused to spit, even closing his eyes as if he were already asleep. Henry sighed, then firmly squeezed Joshua’s cheeks until he opened his mouth...

At last, they managed to finish washing up. Henry laid Joshua back down on the bed.

Joshua buried his face in the pillow and fell asleep almost immediately, his soft hair spilling out over the blanket.

Henry suddenly leaned down and pressed a light kiss to Joshua’s hair. His voice, faint and almost swallowed by the darkness, whispered: "I love you the most, too."

As if in answer to Joshua’s words from earlier.

.

The heavy night carried a chill, and Joshua felt as though he were dreaming again.

In his dream... what was it about?

It was just an ordinary night.

Joshua was seventeen that year, though already a university student. He’d skipped grades—brilliant, talented—but chose to major in the arts. His teachers had tried many times to persuade him otherwise, yet his family had always supported his decision.

Even after entering university, Joshua still went home once a week.

As the youngest in the Adonis family, all he had to do was live happily; his older brother handled the troublesome matters of the family company.

"How’s your studying?"

Joshua’s older brother, Louis, stood beside him, glancing down at Joshua’s papers as he sketched and scribbled. His voice was low and calm.

Joshua startled slightly, instinctively gathering up the papers on his desk. He widened his eyes at Louis. "How do you pad like that?!"

Louis stared at him silently.

Just like Henry, Joshua thought to himself. Makes sense, though—Henry and my brother really are alike—two blocks of wood, both of them.

"Guilty conscience," Louis said slowly.

Joshua gripped the papers tightly, lips pressed together, brows furrowed—clearly on the verge of getting angry.

But in Louis’s eyes, his anger was utterly harmless. He looked more like he was about to cry than throw a tantrum.

Louis patted Joshua’s hair gently. "Go to bed early."

Joshua turned his head away, refusing to let him touch it.

It wasn’t until Louis’s footsteps reached the door that Joshua’s small, mosquito-like voice sounded: "Don’t tell Mom and Dad."

"You’re the only one who tattles, Joshua."

"Brother!" Joshua shot up from his seat, but the door had already closed.

He glared at the pile of papers on his desk, feeling both embarrassed and irritated, then threw himself onto the bed and rolled over twice in frustration.

His brother was so annoying!

Well... sometimes he was nice, but still—he was annoying!