The man who adores Kevin

None of them ever stay for long! It looks like I'll have to make them sign a contract from now on! If anyone dares to breach the agreement, I'll make them pay a penalty fee. Let's see who still dares to run off halfway through!

Hmph! That way, they won't keep leaving after just a short while, forcing the bartender to train new recruits all over again. Otherwise, he'd have to listen to the bartenders complaining every single day. While he had plenty of time to spare, it certainly wasn't meant to be wasted like this!

All the administrative procedures were such a hassle, too! Too lazy to waste any more time, he simply told the bartender to recruit another batch of newcomers. After going over all the necessary precautions, he dismissed the bartender.

To his surprise, before leaving, the bartender turned back around. With a very serious expression, he said to Kevin, "Boss, you should take better care of your health! Well then, I'll be heading downstairs first."

Eh? What on earth did he mean by that? These employees really were getting more and more cheeky lately! Kevin suddenly looked down and, with a sense of helpless dismay, discovered that several buttons on his shirt had somehow come undone at some point!

The marks on his body were completely exposed! No wonder the bartender had said such a strange thing! It turned out there was a reason for it after all! But to have the evidence of what happened caught red-handed like this—he didn't even know how he was supposed to face his employees anymore.

In a flurry of panic, Kevin hastily buttoned up his shirt, feeling too embarrassed to say a word. Fortunately, the bartender left right after speaking; otherwise, he wouldn't have known how to face his staff at all.

He just hoped the guy wouldn't go spreading gossip among the other employees! But there were no airtight walls in this world, and the bartender's discretion wasn't that watertight either. Coupled with the fact that their boss was usually very approachable, the staff frequently used him as fodder for their after-meal conversations.

Consequently, the incident spread across the entire bar in no time! Even the regulars knew all about it! The main point was that by the time the rumor reached Kevin's ears, it had mutated considerably.

It roughly implied that the boss had been played with so thoroughly by a woman that he couldn't even get out of bed! Kevin, who had finally managed to recover and wanted to go out for some fresh air, heard these various rumors about himself the exact moment he stepped across the threshold.

He hurriedly retreated back into his room, overwhelmed by a crushing wave of mortification! The thing he wanted to do most right now was to find a hole to crawl into and never see another human being again! To make matters worse, many of the hosts and hostesses working at the bar had sent over plenty of healing ointments for him!

Tempted to give it a try, he used a little bit, and the effect was actually quite good. Lying on the bed, he thrashed about in agony, twisting the bedsheets into knots. Ahhh! He just didn't want to live anymore! Why was he always the one who bore the brunt of these disasters?

Couldn't the universe be a little fairer? At least let him win the lottery just once! Kevin ruffled his originally smooth hair into a chaotic mess. He was truly at his wit's end! He never should have trusted those people to keep a secret!

Right now, he genuinely felt as though calling out to the heavens brought no response and crying out to the earth yielded no aid. He desperately wanted to just faint away and never wake up again. Having finally mustered the courage to walk downstairs, he ran right into the bigmouth who had sought him out that day the moment his foot hit the floor!

A surge of anger instantly flared up within him. He wanted to throw all caution to the wind and beat the guy up first before talking. But before he could even make a move, the other man spoke up: "Boss, is your injury feeling better? Why did you come down already? Here, let me help you!"

As he spoke, the man reached out a hand to steady him. Damn it! He wasn't a disabled person; who needed anyone to hold them up? Although he was going crazy on the inside, with so many people around, it was really not the time to throw a tantrum.

He had no choice but to grind his teeth and swallow his fury! Feeling utterly aggrieved yet forced to flash a smiling face to the very culprit behind his misery—one could only imagine how much pain he was in. If he had known this would happen, he never would have come out! Now look at this!

Everyone was surrounding him like he was some rare exhibit in a zoo, chattering away in a noisy discussion. He really felt like he had no face left to show the world. Heavens! Send down a bolt of lightning and strike these wretches dead!

It was now nighttime, and while the outside world was quiet, inside the bar it was the liveliest hour of the day, bathed in neon lights. The music was turned up to maximum volume. Sitting in a corner, watching this bustling scene, Kevin felt for the very first time that he was completely out of place here.

Holding a glass of club soda, his gaze went blank. He stared dully and listlessly at the water in his cup. At this moment, would Shangguan Han be thinking of him?

Even just a little bit would be enough! But so what even if Shangguan Han did think of him? He wouldn't even know it. Were people who suffered through loneliness in solitude always like this?

Would Shangguan Han also feel this sense of empty loneliness, or was he already used to it? He really wanted to ask him: Are you lonely? Would you want someone to keep you company?

He longed to return to his side and tell him how he truly felt. But love between them was destined never to be spoken aloud. He was hurt to the core! Yet what could he do about it? There was no other way; he could only endure it alone!

Perhaps his departure would make the person he loved feel a little more at ease, perhaps even a little happier. Then let them part ways! That way, if they ever happened to bump into each other in the future, they could still greet one another with a smile.

An employee walking past cast a look filled with intense curiosity at Kevin, clearly skeptical of the gossip. But the moment she caught sight of the marks on Kevin's neck, a flash of realization immediately crossed her eyes.

The indoor lighting was somewhat hazy as Kevin gazed toward the dance floor. He deeply regretted not making the interior design here more comprehensive. If he had stuck to his original plan, the spot where he was sitting should have been a blind spot!

That way, he could observe the movements outside while remaining completely unseen by anyone else. He wouldn't have to endure what he was going through now, with everyone who walked by stopping to stare hard at him! Just as Kevin was zoning out, a hand with distinct knuckles extended out right in front of him!

A refined-looking man bent over, leaning in close to Kevin, and said gently, "Would you care to dance with me?"

His gentlemanly demeanor instantly captured the attention of nearly every single man and woman in the venue. Kevin furrowed his brows tightly and said in a raspy voice, "I think you've made a mistake! I'm a man!"

Hearing his words, the man curved his lips into a smile! His entire being exuded a gentle aura; just looking at him made one feel he was deeply reliable. However, there was someone who vehemently disagreed with that assessment—and that person was Kevin, who was currently glaring fiercely at him!

Completely ignoring Kevin's glare, the man said softly, "I know you're a man, and men happen to be exactly what I like."

The man possessed a face of striking masculine charm, paired with an effortless, innate elegance. He was the perfect ideal in the minds of all women present! Yet, the moment he uttered those words, he deeply shattered the hearts of every single woman in the room.

Meanwhile, quite a few men secretly felt a surge of excitement! Kevin looked at the man before him, feeling intensely displeased. Taking advantage of the dim neon lights, he began to seriously appraise the fellow in front of him.

Tall in stature and handsome in appearance, the man's overall exterior was indeed quite good. But he still fell short of the fascination Kevin held for Shangguan Han. *Sigh!* Why did his thoughts wander back to Shangguan Han yet again?

Staring blankly at the man in a daze, he didn't notice that the surrounding noise had gradually quieted down. By the time Kevin snapped back to reality, the man was looking at him with deep, penetrating eyes. Giving an awkward, staged cough, Kevin said, "Ahem! I'm not interested in you."

With that, he hurriedly got up and headed toward the stairs. Seeing him leave, the man followed unhurriedly right behind Kevin, ascending the steps in his wake.

Halfway up, noticing that the man was still trailing him, Kevin turned around. Glaring coldly at him, he asked indifferently, "What are you following me up here for?"

There was a clear note of repulsion in his tone, but the man suddenly closed the distance. Trapping Kevin within the arc of his arms, he leaned in close. With his back pressed against the wall, Kevin widened his eyes, a rush of blood surging to his face from sheer anger.

His cheeks turned a vibrant, glowing red, making him look exceptionally alluring and bewitching. Yet he was completely unaware of it himself, reaching out to push against the man in an attempt to break free. But no matter how much he struggled, it was useless, forcing him to eventually abandon his resistance.

He lifted his head, glaring furiously as he demanded, "What on earth do you want?"

The man's actions triggered memories of his past ordeal! Fear involuntarily surfaced in his eyes, and his body gradually began to tremble uncontrollably! Although Shangguan Han had rescued him in time back then, that incident had still left a profound and lasting impact on him.

Memories began to envelop him, and he seemed to see those terrifying scenes from back then all over again. In an instant, he became utterly helpless, feeling like a drowning person constantly flailing their arms about!

Being treated like this by a man once again caused him to spiral into anxious thoughts. Noticing that something seemed amiss with Kevin's demeanor, the man quickly released him. He shook Kevin gently by the arms, trying to snap him out of it.

Yet no matter how he called out to him, Kevin's eyes remained vacant, and his body kept shaking incessantly. With no other option, the man scooped him up horizontally. Cradling him in his arms, he strode forward.

Spotting a female employee at the top of the stairwell, he flashed her a gentle smile before walking straight toward his own room without looking back. The female employee gazed enrapturingly at his departing figure.

Her soul had already followed the man away! Quickly unlocking the door, he found that Kevin was now curled up tightly in his arms—an entirely different state from his previous agitation.

Because Kevin was gripping his clothes so tightly, the two of them had no choice but to lie down on the bed together. Recalling Kevin's earlier reaction, the man couldn't help but suspect whether he had suffered brutal mistreatment at some point in the past.

Looking at him with a trace of heartache, he didn't know what to say. There were two kinds of people in this world: one appeared stubborn on the outside but was more fragile than anything on the inside, while the other seemed terribly frail on the outside yet possessed a vicious core.

Kevin clearly belonged to the former category. Looking at him made the man desperately want to shield him within his embrace and protect him from ever suffering any harm again. Gradually, Kevin slowly loosened his death grip on the man's clothes.

A slight sense of loss washed over the man, but that feeling didn't last long, for he suddenly caught sight of the numerous marks on Kevin's body! These were unmistakably left behind by another man!

Could the reason he was so terrified be that he had suffered abuse not long ago? How could there actually be someone in this world cruel enough to hurt him? It was simply unbelievable!

Plagued by deep confusion, he reached out and unbuttoned Kevin's shirt. Stripping away his clothing, he was greeted by the sight of mottled scars! Although they had all scabbed over, looking at them only made it all the more shocking.

He couldn't suppress a sharp intake of breath, and with trembling hands, he pulled down Kevin's trousers. The injuries on his lower body far exceeded his expectations! Scars of all sizes were scattered everywhere, along with ligature marks on his wrists and ankles.

Damn it! Carefully dressing him back up, the man could no longer keep his emotions in check. He genuinely wanted to drag out the person who had hurt him right this instant, and even tearing that bastard into eighty pieces wouldn't be enough to appease his hatred! Ever since he first laid eyes on Kevin at the bar, his heart had been tied to him entirely.