QT: Don't fall in love with the Male Lead

tw: workplace misconduct

Han Yu's eyes widen in panic, and his words catch in his throat.

Xi Zirui has him now.

He props himself on Han Yu's shoulders and grinds down on his lap, feeling him harden beneath his thighs.

He's glad that the long robes obscure his movements, otherwise he wouldn't be brave enough to do this in front of everyone else.

Thankfully, Han Yu is the one who has to face the photographer and his crew, since Xi Zirui has his back to them.

"Han laoshi, don't lower your head like that, we can't see anything," the photographer admonishes. Xi Zirui has to bite down on his smirk. "Xi laoshi, crane your neck to the side, Han laoshi, pull his collar down and pretend like you're going to kiss his neck."

Han Yu shudders and does as he's told, gripping Xi Zirui's robes with trembling fingers. Xi Zirui can feel his warm breath coming out in pants against the side of his neck.

He takes the photographer's words as an excuse to throw an arm behind Han Yu's neck and bring their chests together. "Good boy," he whispers into Han Yu's ear.

A full-body shiver runs through Han Yu's body, and he closes his eyes, teeth digging into his full bottom lip.

"Great, Han laoshi, keep that look," the photographer says, the camera's shutter clicking madly. "You are overcome with desire for him, it has to show in your face."

Han Yu mutters something under his breath that might have been a curse.

"Is he right, gege? Are you overcome with desire for didi?" Xi Zirui grinds his hips forward against Han Yu and watches in delight as his throat bobs.

Han Yu's only answer is the knitting of his sharp brows. He looks almost pained. Xi Zirui is unduly proud of himself for putting that look on his face.

They haven't even done anything and Han Yu looks wrecked already. Xi Zirui is starting to believe his bluster is all bark and no bite

"Let's change positions," the photographer says, and walks towards the side of the bed. "Xi laoshi, lay on your front facing the camera, Han laoshi, cover his back with your chest."

Xi Zirui is going to kill this insufferable little man, every time he manages to get one over Han Yu he finds a way to put him beneath him again!

Han Yu breathes a sigh of relief when Xi Zirui lifts himself off his lap, but when his body covers Xi Zirui's prone form he can still feel where he's hard against the back of his thighs.

"Xi laoshi, raise yourself on your elbows, look at Han laoshi over your shoulder as if begging for a kiss," the photographer says, stepping back a few paces and adjusting the focus on the lens.

Gritting his teeth, Xi Zirui obeys, extending his neck and looking backwards at Han Yu from the corner of his eyes.

Han Yu snakes one hand down Xi Zirui's waist and pulls him backwards, hips flush against his ass.

Xi Zirui feels Han Yu's warm breath ghost against the shell of his ear before he whispers, "Didi is a tease, will he take responsibility?"

He punctuates his words with a subtle forward snap of his hips, dragging his hard cock between Xi Zirui's cheeks. Even with two layers of robes between them it's too much. Xi Zirui's cheeks flame up.

He might have bitten off more than he can chew.

"How long until we're finished?" he asks the photographer, trying not to sound too desperate.

The photographer gives him a confused look and then looks down into the camera's screen, tapping a few buttons. "A few more shots should be enough, we have some great photos already. Xi laoshi and Han laoshi are doing very well."

That's not the compliment he thinks it is. They have been dry-humping through half of the indoors shoot!

One of Han Yu's hands tightens on Xi Zirui's waist and he uses his other arm as leverage to pull him up against his chest. Keeping one hand firmly planted on his hipbone while his other slides downs Xi Zirui's chest to cover the nipple he bared earlier.

The photographer doesn't even say anything, he just starts taking pictures, his mouth hanging slightly open.

Xi Zirui balances himself on his knees, most of his weight supported by Han Yu. He has no place to go now, he feels pinned in place both by Han Yu's arms and the hot length digging into the small of his back.

"What is didi going to do about this?" Han Yu whispers, swaying his hips forward minutely, making his meaning clear.

Bite it clean off! Xi Zirui shouts inside his own head.

Instead, he cranes his neck to the side and glares at Han Yu. "If gege wants me to make him come in his costume in front of all these people, I can make it happen," his eyes narrow into slits. "I just don't know how gege is going to explain himself to the costume department."

Han Yu freezes, understanding dawning on him.

Xi Zirui chuckles at the idea that Han Yu got so overwhelmed that he forgot the logic conclusion to his own threats.

It's almost sweet.

"We can pick this up later in my hotel room," he says, almost mouthing the words into Xi Zirui's neck.

Ah, wouldn't Han Yu like that?

Xi Zirui brings up one hand and tangles it in Han Yu's wig, pulling his cheek down against his neck so he can speak directly into his ear. "Nothing I saw today convinced me that gege knows what he's doing."

He releases Han Yu at the same time the photographer shouts, "That's a wrap! Good job everyone."

Xi Zirui pries Han Yu's arms away from his body with a relieved sigh. Those are the first words the photographer say that don't make him want to smash his camera in two.

---

He gets changed in a hurry, and when one of the stylists offers to take out his wig for him, he thanks him with a grateful smile, even though he knows he'll probably have to go through hours of pain tomorrow to put it back on.

Xi Zirui leaves the set without seeing Han Yu again, and while he kind of wishes he had the time for one last, parting quip he's glad he won't have to see his face until the next day.

Assuming he doesn't plan to surprise Xi Zirui in his hotel room to prove him wrong about his last comment.

Su Xueyi is waiting for him outside the pavilion leaning against the sleek electric car with his arms crossed in front of his chest.

He smiles when he sees Xi Zirui approach and opens the passenger door for him. "How was the photoshoot?" he asks, once Xi Zirui sits down and buckles his seat-belt.

"Tiring," the understatement of the century, but he doesn't need to pain Su Xueyi with the details of his workplace misconduct. "I'm sorry you had to wait here."

Su Xueyi flashes him a dimpled smile. "It's no problem, I know how to keep myself entertained."

It's just a random comment, but the way he says it makes Xi Zirui feel as if there's some hidden meaning behind his words.

They're almost reaching the hotel when Su Xueyi asks, "Do you want to go straight to your room, or do you want to go somewhere to eat?"

Xi Zirui gives him a puzzled sideways glance.

It seems he's surrounded by presumptuous men. He and Su Xueyi have lunch together once, and now he thinks it's a standing appointment?

Ah, but Su Xueyi so nice, surely he doesn't mean it like that. Maybe some of Han Yu's rudeness rubbed off on Xi Zirui while they, well...rubbed off on each other.

"Sorry, I'm so tired, I'm just going to order some room service and crash," he says, smiling apologetically.

Su Xueyi nods in understanding and parks the car. Xi Zirui's people-pleasing nature compels him to add, "Some other time, maybe."

"Sure, whenever you want," Su Xueyi says, his smooth, deep voice gives Xi Zirui the impression that he's talking about more than dinner.

Ugh, this is all Han Yu's fault, he made Xi Zirui horny and now he's thinking that everyone is coming on to him.

He just needs to have a bath, jerk off, and pass out, in that order.

---

First order of business crossed of his list, Xi Zirui leaves the bathroom toweling his hair dry. His skin is still warm and faintly pink from the heat of the water and he feels drowsiness creeping over his bones. He might skip over the second order of business and skip straight to the finish line.

Ni Ni has other ideas.

"Host, congratulations on increasing your public perception by another 10 points! Please keep up the good work and remember not to fall in love with the Male Lead Actor!" Ni Ni chimes, sounding as excited as her computer generated voice and her personality settings allow her to.

If public perception rose, that can only mean one thing. He logs into his dummy weibo account feeling faintly queasy.

He expected to see Han Yu's cheesy line being quoted around. And it is, albeit with some artistic license.

Instead of, "How many people have lived and died without ever being in the presence of someone so alluring?," the version circulating around weibo claims Han Yu said, "Now that I've seen the alluring vision of didi in wedding robes, I feel like I can die fulfilled."

As ridiculous as what Han Yu originally said is, the weibo version is something only a character in a book would say.

But that's not what has everyone in a tizzy. In fact they're using Han Yu's misquoted comment as flavour text for the blurry photos of their photoshoot.

He thought the official photos might have leaked, but that's clearly not the case. Whoever took these photos did it from the outside looking in.

The photos were taken from behind one of the pavilion's windows. Thy're blurred by the film of a thin waxpaper window pane, and in some shots there are people in front of Xi Zirui and Han Yu.

The worst part is that the blurriness makes them more suggestive. He and Han Yu are reduced to a collection of intertwined limbs, squirming on red sheets.

One of the photos shows him sitting in Han Yu's lap, his robes having rode up to expose his calves. The official shot will most likely be a close up, or only show them from the waist up, but this photo makes him look as if he's so dizzy with passion that he just couldn't help himself and had to climb on Han Yu's lap.

He can't stand to look at the photos. They look too intimate, almost private, he can scarcely recognize himself.

Xi Zirui turns off his phone with a groan and throws himself face first on the bed. He wonders who took the pictures, and how the security team didn't catch them.

He must drift off because he comes to with the sound of someone knocking at his door.

Letting out a miserable groan he makes his way to the door, expecting to see either Su Xueyi or Han Yu on the other side, considering no one else would be thick faced enough to disturb him at this hour.