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

Chapter 110: Don't dismiss the little hat

Xi Zirui's first reaction is complete and utter panic.

His second reaction is an all-consuming rage.

"Let go of him right now," he shouts, his fingernails cutting crescent marks into the meat of his palms from how hard he clenches his fists.

Su Xueyi chuckles. "You know, I don't think I will." He nods backwards towards the people moving around the landing platform. "Now, how about you let me in so we can talk like civilized people without drawing too much attention. You might find that even worse for your friend here."

Xi Zirui considers his options and then steps backwards into the ship, his furious eyes never leaving Su Xueyi.

Su Xueyi grins and drags Han Yu behind him by the collar of the jumpsuit. Xi Zirui flinches when Su Xueyi's carelessness makes Han Yu's knees bump across the metal rungs of the doorway.

Inside the Irregular, Su Xueyi throws Han Yu against a wall with inhuman force.

Xi Zirui lets out an involuntary shout and rushes to his side, his heart hammering inside his chest.

He can't see any obvious signs of injury on Han Yu, but then again he wouldn't. 

"Relax, Androids don't break that easy," Su Xueyi says, smirking at him from his lazy sprawl on the pilot chair.

Xi Zirui shoots him a poisonous glare. "Then why isn't he waking up?"

Su Xueyi unclips something from his waist that looks like a large gas lighter and holds it between his thumb and forefinger. "Electric pulse, as efficient in Androids as it is in humans, apparently. He'll be back in a few minutes."

He shrugs. "Or not, I've never used it on an Android before."

Xi Zirui jumps to his feet, ready to throw himself at Su Xueyi and beat him into a bloody pulp. "Motherfucker, I..."

Su Xueyi points the electric pulse towards his face, not moving from the pilot seat. "You what, little starbird?" His smile turns sweet, his dimples denting his cheeks. "I'm the one with the weapon."

Xi Zirui falters, considering his options.

Finding them lacking, he backs away towards Han Yu, using his body as a shield to protect him.

Su Xueyi's eyes narrow in contemplation as he observes their actions.

"You know, Captain Xi, you caused me a lot of trouble the day you gave me the slip," he says, bracing his arms across the chair's back. "Had to file a metric tone of reports, and then find you anyway. My superiors don't take kindly to runaways, you see."

Xi Zirui rolls his eyes. "I'm devastated."

Su Xueyi chuckles, rubbing his temple with the muzzle of the electric pulse. "You know, I like you, starbird. If you weren't a criminal we could even be friends."

Xi Zirui doesn't dignify that with an answer, looking away from Su Xueyi.

"You were hard to find, I'll give you that," he chuckles fondly, as if he considers his chase for Xi Zirui an amusing game they played together. 

"I called the company you work for, gave them your ship's numbers, and they sent me a copy of your shipping manifesto and delivery route. Imagine my surprise when you didn't follow it."

Xi Zirui gives him a look of feigned shock. "Gee, I can't even fathom the degree of your surprise."

The corner of Su Xueyi's upper lip twitches upwards. "You're cute starbird, keep being cute and I just might take you out on a date after all this is said and done."

His teasing words fall on Xi Zirui like a bucket of cold water.

Su Xueyi doesn't notice his changed demeanor. "Have you ever seen the suspended waterfalls of Sigma-Rho? Breathtaking. You'll love it."

Xi Zirui lowers his eyes, trying to talk himself out of telling Su Xueyi to go fuck himself.

Su Xueyi shakes his head with an amused chuckle, wiping away thoughts of an holiday in Sigma-Rho. "Anyway, a deliveryman who doesn't follow his route can only mean one thing."

He pauses. "That he's a smuggler."

Xi Zirui shrugs. He has nothing to say to Su Xueyi.

It's Su Xueyi who hasn't yet run out of things to say. 

"Of course, that's not a surprise to me, you've tried to keep it hidden in our previous run-ins but you panicked this time. Since the records showed you were also handling the legal deliveries, that meant it was only a matter of time before I caught up to you."

He opens his arms wide, like a ringmaster showing all his prized animals.

"And that I did! Imagine my surprise, however, when I did a vital signs readying of your ship, to see if you had picked up any reinforcements on the way, but didn't get any readings besides your own."

Xi Zirui closes his eyes, letting his head thump against the bulkhead behind him.

Su Xueyi grins, enjoying every second of his despair. "You probably know where this is going..." He points towards Han Yu with the electric pulse. "I saw you leaving your ship, a great opportunity for me to spring my trap, but then, a few moments later, our little tin can buddy left right after you."

He chuckles darkly. "Pretty hard to miss the Android in those circumstances."

"Fuck you," Xi Zirui says, spitting out the words with as much vitriol as he can.

Su Xueyi smirks, and gets up from the pilot seat, his eyes never leaving Xi Zirui as he crosses the distance between them.

He squats down in front of Xi Zirui, their noses mere inches away.

"You don't understand the gravity of your situation, do you, Captain Xi?" He cocks his head to the side. "You can be executed for harboring an Android."

Xi Zirui returns Su Xueyi's probing look with a scowl, and says nothing.

Su Xueyi gives Han Yu an accessing look, his hands clasped between his spread knees. "Of course, there's only the matter of where you'd find an Android. There aren't many options, and I happen to know a regular buyer."

Xi Zirui doesn't know where this is going, especially when Su Xueyi rolls back the sleeve of his uniform, all the way to the elbow.

His underarm is smooth and unscarred. He draws the edge of a blunt nail over the muscle and a seam appears on the skin. He pries it open with his nail and Xi Zirui can see the bright mesh of circuits underneath.

"Me and Dr. Shen are longtime acquaintances." He nods towards Han Yu. "Something tells me he'd appreciate having his merchandise delivered."

"Han Yu isn't fucking merchandise," Xi Zirui says, pulling Han Yu against his side, trying to shield him from Su Xueyi's words. Hoping he isn't hearing any of it.

For the first time since this whole powerplay started, Su Xueyi frowns.

His eyes drift from Han Yu's lax features to Xi Zirui's murderous scowl.

Once he makes sense of the situation, the sunny smile returns to his handsome face.

"Oh, I get it, you switched him on out of curiosity and caught feelings because he's handsome, and cooks for you, isn't that it?" He chuckles darkly. "You know you're hot, starbird, it couldn't have been hard for you to find a real man to fuck."

Xi Zirui ponders the wisdom of spitting in Su Xueyi's eyes.

Su Xueyi pats him on the shoulder. "Aww, don't be like that. I know you don't like me much now, but we can get acquainted during the trip to Dr. Shen's."

"What the fuck makes you think you can ride on my ship?" Xi Zirui asks, getting up to his feet before being pushed back down by Su Xueyi's replacement hand on his shoulder.

"Starbird, you don't have a choice," Su Xueyi coos. "I'd hate to miss out on the commission from Dr. Shen, but as a Commander, I can turn you in to the UHN's peacekeeping force at any moment. You lose the Tin Can either way, but if we do things nicely you don't end up dead."

"What do you say?" He grins. "Do we have a deal, Captain Xi?"

Xi Zirui bites his trembling lower lip to buy himself some time.

He really doesn't know how he's going to get out of this one.

And Han Yu...

If only he had been honest from the start, maybe things wouldn't have ended up this way.

Su Xueyi clicks his tongue. "Stop stalling, starbird, it's an easy choice." He reaches forward to touch Xi Zirui on the cheek, running the pad of his thumb over his cheekbone. "I can look past your criminal activities, something tells me you're worth it."

Before Xi Zirui can bite Su Xueyi's thumb clean off, there's a sudden movement at his side.

With a roar Han Yu uses the impulse of his bound hands to throw himself at Su Xueyi and headbutt him violently.

Su Xueyi lets out a wet groan before crumpling to the floor, completely unconscious. A stream of blood gushes from his broken nose, pooling behind his head and staining the little hat sitting askew across his forehead.

"You don't have permission to touch him," Han Yu says, growling at Su Xueyi's unconscious form. 

Xi Zirui is so relived to see Han Yu awake and well that his only reaction is to pull him into a tight hug.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry," he says, whispering the words against Han Yu's neck.

Han Yu doesn't return the hug, and keeps staring heatedly at Su Xueyi's unconscious form. "That little hat makes him look like an idiot."