The room was warm, furnished cozily with thick carpets, unlike a standard hotel suite.
Baldur glanced around before walking over to the beanbag chair by the large floor-to-ceiling window.
He settled into the comfortable spot, slightly narrowing his eyes as he gazed down at the resort scenery, feeling relaxed and refreshed.
Cohen poured a glass of warm water and brought it over to him.
He took it with a smile.
"Thanks."
"You're welcome."
He took a sip of water and watched as Cohen sat down on the carpet nearby, leaning against the sofa and picking up the tablet from the small table, showing no further intention to converse.
After a few minutes of silence, Baldur set his glass down and asked curiously, "Do you usually just stay at home? Doesn't your brother let you go out to work?"
Without looking up, Cohen doodled on the tablet with his stylus.
"I am working right now."
"Huh?"
Baldur got up and sat on the carpet too, glancing at the tablet before smiling.
"You're a painter?"
Cohen turned his head.
"An illustrator."
They were very close now.
Baldur could clearly see the fine hairs on Cohen's face and once again directly perceived how fair and beautiful Cohen really was.
It was a non-threatening kind of beauty, like the cold, clear moonlight hanging in the sky—bright, pure, evoking an impulse to possess it exclusively...
Sensing a hint of danger in the man's gaze, Cohen uncomfortably averted his eyes and went back to drawing.
Baldur's gaze lingered on Cohen's profile for a moment before lowering to the tablet.
His voice was deep.
"Could you draw a portrait of me?"
Cohen's stylus paused slightly.
"I'm not good at portraits."
"Then what are you good at drawing?"
Cohen held up the tablet.
"This kind."
On the screen was a view of the hot spring resort from this vantage point, but rendered like a scene from a comic—vibrant and inviting.
In the drawing was a small, chibi-style figure sitting cross-legged, holding a tablet and drawing; even the tablet within the drawing contained an identical image.
Baldur's eyes lingered on the chibi figure.
"You're good at drawing comics?"
Cohen nodded.
"Pretty much."
"Can you give me this drawing?"
He refused outright.
"No."
"..."
Baldur, who had sailed smoothly through his 28 years, felt a bit frustrated at being so flatly rejected for the first time.
"Why not?"
"My brother needs this for the website to promote the resort. I can't give it to you."
"Alright then."
He tapped the tablet with a finger.
"Then draw one like this for me."
Cohen took the tablet back, looked him up and down a few times, somewhat uncertain.
"You want a chibi image like this?"
Leaning against the sofa, the corner of Baldur's mouth quirked up.
"Yeah. Tomorrow's my birthday. Consider it my birthday gift."
Reading something odd in Cohen's expression, Baldur realized they were still practically strangers.
Asking for a birthday gift outright was a bit shameless.
He added, "I'm your brother's friend. You lived in B City when you were little. You might even have called me 'brother' back then."
Cohen hung his head.
"I did not."
Baldur stared at the top of Cohen's fluffy head, speaking casually.
"Didn't you leave B City to come here and stay with your brother when you were 18, after enrolling in university? You were old enough to understand things then. Haven't you heard of me?"
Cohen looked up.
"How do you know that?"
"Heard it mentioned in passing."
Back then, when Kerry graduated from university at 22, their father sent him from B City to Y City under the pretext of 'training,' to manage a struggling small company.
A year later, his full-blooded younger brother also gave up his spot at B University, enrolled in Y University, and both brothers left home far behind.
It caused quite a stir in B City back then.
The major wealthy families discussed it over meals, expressing pity for the highly capable Kerry, sympathy for the premature and frail Cohen, and quietly despising their kind-faced but cruel stepmother.
Baldur had heard Dave and the others complain about it a little, but he was preparing to take over projects abroad at the time and didn't pay much mind to other people's family affairs...
Seeing Cohen now, coming to Y City with Kerry seemed to have been the right choice.
He was well cared for.
If he had stayed in B City, with his easily-bullied demeanor, who knows how miserable he might have been.
Cohen didn't reply further and went back to his drawing.
Baldur glanced at the top of his head from time to time, subtly rubbing his fingers together, restraining the restless impulse stirring within him.
He leaned closer and asked, "Will you draw one for me?"
His voice was very close, his warm breath seeming to brush against Cohen's ear.
Cohen tilted his head slightly and whispered, "Okay."
Baldur smiled happily.
"Thank you, Cohen."
Cohen's ears felt warm.
"You're welcome..."
Baldur watched the pink tips of his ears, the smile in his eyes deepening.
Another long period of silence followed.
Cohen focused on drawing, while Baldur, sitting beside him, played on his phone, one arm casually draped on the sofa as if loosely encircling Cohen.
"Done."
Cohen let out a soft sigh and turned his head, his eyes seeming to hold starlight as he handed over the tablet.
"How is this?"
Baldur straightened up, looking at the tablet held in Cohen's hands.
"Let me see."
Cohen's eyelashes fluttered, and he softened his breath.
Baldur, as if unaware of his nervousness, looked at the drawing and raised an eyebrow.
"Quite likeness. You observed me that carefully in just the short time I sat here?"
On the tablet, a chibi figure was nestled in the beanbag chair.
From the clothing and posture to the slightly squinting expression, it was identical to how Baldur had looked moments before.
Cohen looked up, meeting the deep black eyes so close to his, and moved his lips.
"I..."
Baldur leaned back a little and laughed.
"You have a strong ability to capture a scene, and you draw very well."
Cohen lowered his head and saved the image to the album.
"Let's exchange WeChat."
Baldur held out his phone.
"Send me the drawing."
Cohen tapped the WeChat icon on his tablet.
"Okay."
Baldur scanned the QR code, sent a friend request, which was quickly accepted.
He soon received the image, enlarged it, looked at it for a while, saved it satisfactorily, and said sincerely, "Thank you. This is the best birthday gift I've received."
Cohen's finger, which was tapping the tablet, paused for two seconds.
He replied very softly, "Mm."
Baldur checked the time; it was almost noon. Just then, Dave texted asking if he wanted to go down for lunch.
He stood up.
"Time for lunch. Coming down together?"
Cohen remained seated.
"No."
"Aren't you having lunch?"
"Someone will bring it up."
Baldur chuckled, teasing without malice.
"Never stepping foot outside the main gate or the inner court, like a young lady raised in a secluded boudoir."
Cohen looked up, frowning and glaring at him.
Baldur put on his large black coat and reached out to ruffle the hair he'd been thinking about for so long.
"So you can get feisty."
The sudden touch made Cohen freeze.
Baldur withdrew his hand quickly.
"Leaving now."
Hmm, nice feel.
As soft as imagined.
The door opened and closed, leaving only Cohen in the warm room.
He stayed dazed for a long time before snapping out of it.
He pressed his lips together, lowered his head, and created a new canvas, but the stylus couldn't seem to trace any lines.
After a stalemate with himself, he finally slumped his shoulders in defeat and opened a private album.
Realistic, photo-like portraits popped up—of the man who had just been sitting beside him, but the aura emanating from his brow was even more flamboyant.
Cohen stared at the drawing, reached up and touched his flattened hair, and murmured, "Feels a bit mean."