QT: Don't fall in love with the Male Lead
Chapter 101: Don't run from the space cops

Xi Zirui jumps out of bed in a hurry. Fuck. Now what?

Han Yu gives him a concerned look. "Are we in trouble?"

Xi Zirui doesn't want to tell him that Androids haven't officially been produced in 60 years, and are illegal now.

The idea of telling a person they're illegal is absolutely revolting, he can't stomach doing that to Han Yu.

"Uhm, maybe...just to be sure, can you hide in the bathroom?" Xi Zirui pleads, pulling him out of the bed. "No matter what, don't come out."

Han Yu nods, following Xi Zirui's instructions, disappearing into the bathroom with one last look behind his shoulder.

Xi Zirui puts on the jumpsuit he wore during the day, and rushes to the pilot's cabin, where he finds the holo screen in front of the panoramic windows flashing with threatening red warnings.

"Put them through, put them through," Xi Zirui says, jumping into the pilot's chair in a hurry.

The alarms disappear only to be replaced with something much worse.

Su Xueyi's handsome face, taking up all of the screen.

"This is the UHN's peacekeeping vessel number 1459, I'm commander Su hailing the cargo ship Irregular, do you copy Irregular?" Su Xueyi asks, his stern face unflinchingly serious.

"Uh, here is the Irregular's captain speaking, copying," Xi Zirui says, pretty sure that he has just botched procedure for this kind of thing.

It's not like he has experience piloting a ship and being accosted by the space police.

Su Xueyi narrows his eyes at him. "Identify yourself."

"Xi Zirui, uh, sir," he says, pulling the zipper of his jumpsuit tighter against his neck. He feels like Su Xueyi can look into his soul through the screen.

"Thank you captain Xi," Su Xueyi says, not the least bit thankful. "Please disarm your ship's shields and prepare for a random inspection as per the UHN's legislation. I'll be boarding your ship in 5 minutes."

The screen goes dark as Su Xueyi cuts the transmission.

"I thought you said they didn't usually do these kind of inspections," Xi Zirui says, groaning up into the cabin's metal ceiling.

Ni Ni's voice echoes through the ship. "That doesn't mean never, Host."

If he had the time to spare he would curse her out.

"Just do what he said and disarm the shields." Sᴇaʀch* Thᴇ ɴ0velFɪre.nᴇt website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of nøvels early and in the highest quality.

Something flashes in the screen, and Xi Zirui feels a gentle jostle go through the ship as if something's bumping into it.

The next thing he knows the cabin's hatch door is sliding sideways and Su Xueyi is making his way inside the ship, through what looks like a prehensile sleeve connecting the Irregular to another ship.

Like Xi Zirui, Su Xueyi also wears a jumpsuit, but while Xi Zirui's looks plain and nondescript, Su Xueyi's has a row of insignia on the chest, and a crest on the right arm showing a row of planets with a triangular spaceship flying through them.

He's also wearing a little hat which makes Xi Zirui bite on the inside of his cheek to prevent himself from laughing in his face.

Apparently unaware of how silly he looks in his little hat, Su Xueyi strides into the Irregular as if he owns the place, casting judgmental looks everywhere, before finally coming to a stop in front of Xi Zirui.

"Captain Xi, we meet again," he says, the faint shadow of a dimple denting his cheek.

Fucking figures.

Of course this world's original also has history with Su Xueyi.

Trying to school his features into a semblance of neutrality, Xi Zirui smiles. "Always a pleasure."

That's apparently the wrong thing to say because Su Xueyi's face closes off, his sharp eyebrows almost meeting above his piercing eyes.

"Take me to the cargo hold," he says, taking black leather gloves out of his pocket and putting them on with a snap.

As his cargo hold is filled with contraband, Xi Zirui would rather not.

"Unfortunately the ship suffered a malfunction and the cargo hold is depressurized, I've had to shut the whole section off until I can get it sorted at the nearest station," Xi Zirui says rubbing the back of his neck.

Su Xueyi nods, amazingly, and takes out a datapad out of his other pocket, making note of Xi Zirui's account. "Very well, let me see the ship's system report," he smirks when Xi Zirui's eyes widen in panic. "It's procedure."

"Right, just a moment," he says, making his way up to the pilot's chair.

On the inside, he's screaming at Ni Ni, "You better make the whole screen shutdown as soon as I touch it."

With Su Xueyi breathing down his neck Xi Zirui can't stall for long, and can only bring up the ship's internal report as Su Xueyi watches expectantly.

No sooner have the ship's schematics shown up on the holo screen than the whole thing disappears, replaced by flashing text reading: "INTERFACE DOWN, PLEASE STANDBY"

Hiding his relief, Xi Zirui turns around on his chair with an expression of utter consternation plastered on his face. "This old tin can," he shakes his head with a theatrical sigh. "It's just one thing after the next."

Su Xueyi nods again, humming a little to himself.

Xi Zirui has a terrible feeling.

"Well, in that case, I really can't clear the ship for flight," he says tapping something on his datapad. "Please standby as we tow your ship."

Motherfu-

"Of course, Commander," Xi Zirui says, a pleasant smile stretching his lips painfully. "I appreciate the help."

Su Xueyi narrows his eyes at him one last time before turning on his heel, and leaving the Irregular the same way he came.

A few seconds later Xi Zirui hears a metal whir as the prehensile sleeve retracts back into Su Xueyi's ship.

He has very little time to act.

Jumping back into the pilot's chair, he buckles himself in and tells Ni Ni, "full throttle ahead, cloak us, hide us, shield us, whatever it is you can do to make him unable to catch on to us, do it."

"Host, the Irregular is, as Host said, a tin can, in order to escape the UHN's vessel we'll have to engage the warp drive," Ni Ni says, expecting Xi Zirui to know what a warp drive is from the combined three sci-fi movies he watched. "The stress might damage the ship."

"Su Xueyi is going to damage me!" he groans, and then belatedly remembers, "Wait! Han Yu! He might get hurt during the flight. Put me on the speakers."

Something clicks overhead and Xi Zirui takes it as his cue to say, "Han Yu, come to the pilot's cabin as soon as you can, it's urgent."

To Ni Ni he says, "Ready everything to get the hell out of here as soon as Han Yu gets here."

A few moments later Han Yu pokes his head inside the cabin. "What's going on?" he asks, mildly concerned.

Xi Zirui pats the chair next to his. "Strap in, we're leaving."

As soon as Han Yu clicks his seatbelt in place a deafening roar runs through the ship, the sound of massive thrusters being activated.

"Warp drive engaged," Ni Ni says, "Please brace."

The last thing Xi Zirui sees before being shaken as violently as laundry in a faulty washing machine is the red warning of Su Xueyi hailing him.

He doesn't even get to gloat before passing out in a starburst of blinding white light.

---

There's something soft under Xi Zirui's cheek, and something even softer running through his hair.

He sighs contentedly and nuzzles into the soothing touch, never wanting it to end.

Slowly, he becomes aware of a smooth voice calling out to him, "Xi Ziru-" he makes an herculean effort to focus on the words being said, "Does Xi Zirui require medical attention?"

Xi Zirui blinks away the dizziness clouding his mind, and realizes he's hugging Han Yu's waist and laying with his head on his lap, nuzzling against his bare thighs.

Unlike Xi Zirui, Han Yu is still in the same underwear he went to bed in.

And Xi Zirui's face is dangerously close to a very sensitive area.

He balks, and tries to back away, but Han Yu's strong arm holds him in place, keeping his cheek pressed into his thigh. "Xi Zirui shouldn't move too quickly. He just passed out."

Xi Zirui hums, overly conscious of the bulge inches away from his face.

He can't help remembering the last time he had Han Yu's cock down his throat. He doesn't think he's ever going to forget what Han Yu looked like as he said, "Open wide, Shizun", for as long as he lives.

His throat clicks, suddenly dry.

He misses Han Yu's touch, he misses touching his body, feeling it against his.

But things now are the most complicated they have ever been.

Xi Zirui doesn't even know if Han Yu is capable of wanting a relationship with him.

Let alone...

With a sigh, he pulls away from Han Yu, sitting back on his crossed legs and putting some distance between the two of them.

"I'm fine now, thanks for your help."

"Why did we have to run away?" Han Yu asks, giving Xi Zirui a searching look.

"Oh, I'm a smuggler I guess," he says, with nonchalant shrug. "Better if the police doesn't find out about the kind of cargo I'm carrying." He doesn't expect Han Yu to have a strong opinion on the matter of smuggling, or to look down on Xi Zirui for it.

He's right on one count.

"Am I one of the things Xi Zirui is smuggling?" he asks, eyes wide and guileless.

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