Completely Captivated - Chapter 1

I had just finished showering and was humming a song when the Young Master, who shared my dorm room, walked up to me and suddenly said, “I think I might like men.”

The news hit me like a bolt from the blue.

I was so shocked I could barely react. Staring at him blankly, I asked, “H-how could that be? D-don’t talk nonsense.”

The tall, handsome young man remained as cool as ever. He lowered his head slightly and took a deep breath against my neck. “You smell so good. I looked it up online. If you think another guy smells good, that means you’re gay.”

Being sniffed like that made me a little uncomfortable, but his words also made me instantly indignant. “I-I think you smell good too, Young Master. I’m not gay.”

Because of my stutter, I always tried to keep what I said as short as possible.

The Young Master raised an eyebrow. “Is that so?”

He moved closer again. Without realizing it, I backed up until I was pressed against the wardrobe door.

Gu Jilang was so much taller and broader than me that his body completely enveloped mine. “Actually, I’m not sure either.”

At those words, the heart lodged in my throat slowly settled back down. I said with great conviction, “You aren’t. You’re not.”

If he truly liked men, then we were doomed.

That would make him a pervert. Even I was often mocked just for being a little stutterer.

If the Young Master was gay, wouldn’t that mean he had a defect just like mine?

I was terribly old-fashioned—possibly even less able to accept it than Madam Gu and the rest of the family.

Besides, the Young Master and I had met plenty of people our age from his social circle. Some of them would fool around with anyone and led especially messy lives.

I looked up at him with pleading eyes and said in all seriousness, “It’s the body wash. It smells good. Here, smell.”

The Young Master’s Adam’s apple bobbed. He hooked a finger into the collar of my T-shirt, bent his head, and inhaled deeply.

Why did this look so strange?

But if I thought it was strange, wouldn’t that mean I thought the Young Master was strange?

So I kept a straight face and did my best to look perfectly open and proper.

The tip of his nose brushed beneath my collarbone. When I could no longer keep from squirming, he finally raised his head. “It really does smell like the body wash we normally use.”

My eyes lit up. “Right? Right?”

He smiled as he gazed into my eyes, then wrapped an arm around my waist and sat down in the chair. “But I still need you to help me make sure. Will you help me, Xiaobao?”

He pulled me down onto his lap. I tried to stand, but his arm lay across my waist, holding me fast. I did not dare struggle, either. That would make me seem far too sensitive.

With my whole body taut, I asked, “I will. H-how do I help?”

“I want to desensitize myself.” The tip of his nose rested just below my earlobe. His scorching breath instantly turned my ear red. “By doing certain things that cross the usual boundaries, I can find out whether being with a man disgusts me or whether I like it. Then I can desensitize myself further.”

Could that really work?

It sounded unreliable to me, but in the end, I nodded. The Young Master was trying so hard to overcome this. I could not pour cold water on his efforts.

“W-what do we need to do?”

Just then, someone suddenly twisted the doorknob. I jolted and shot to my feet.

Gu Jilang let me go as I rose.

Our other two roommates came in. Seeing how flustered I looked, one of them teased, “What happened? Did you do something bad to your Young Master?”

The usually expressionless Young Master Gu merely gave a faint smile.

They only ever dared to tease me about harmless things. Around the Young Master, they kept their distance and treated him with a certain wary respect.

My expression grew troubled.

Something bad had happened. My Young Master might like men. If I told them, it would scare them to death.

Depressed, I shook my head.

That night in bed, I pulled out my phone and browsed those kinds of discussion posts for a while.

I even paid for a consultation with a psychologist.

I was worried sick, yet the person on the other end only told me to keep an open mind.

I suspected an AI was answering me.

In the end, I made a burner account and followed the Young Master’s social media account—Gu the Poser.

I was the one who had come up with that nickname.

Following a trail of tiny clues, I discovered that he had watched a few videos.

After thinking it over, I sent him a message.

【Hello. I’m gay. I saw that you’ve become confused about your feelings for a male friend. I have a great deal of experience and would like to analyze the situation for you and help guide you back onto the right path.】