Chapter Text
Xie Lian had never been in a relationship before. He simply never had enough time. When he was a high school student he was insanely busy taking accelerated courses while juggling being in the national junior badminton team and all of his energy was focused on improving himself. Things didn’t change much when he went to university. He continued to either be buried in his books or training day and night. It was already impressive that he could fit his closest friends Feng Xin and Mu Qing into his schedule.
After undergrad he played badminton professionally for a couple years then decided to go back to school to do postgrad education. By the time he had completed his double doctorate in ancient Chinese literature and Tang dynasty history, he was already well into his thirties.
Even though he never gave himself any pressure to find a partner, Feng Xin and Mu Qing began to express their concerns to him.
Mu Qing said quite harshly, “You won’t stay young and pretty like this forever, you know. And being a double doctorate virgin just isn’t as hot as it used to be.”
Feng Xin piped up. “Xie Lian, we’re worried about you. I mean…even if you aren’t ready to settle down, how do you deal with your…needs?”
Xie Lian stared back blankly. “Needs? I have enough to live on. Even without my inheritance, the postdoc stipend is quite adequate for my lifestyle.”
Mu Qing shook his head in irritation. “Feng Xin means your sexual needs!”
Feng Xin nodded enthusiastically, “Yea, what do you do when you get, y’know, horny?”
Xie Lian finally blushed. The rouge spread from the centres of his cheeks throughout his entire face. “I-I just leave it alone! Sometimes it goes away…” his voice grew rather small. “And sometimes I just have to clean up the mess afterwards!”
Mu Qing and Feng Xin stared at him in wonder. Finally, Feng Xin whispered, “You mean you never even touch yourself?”
Xie Lian was so embarrassed that even his ears and neck became red. “NO! I NEVER TOUCH MYSELF!”
He frantically looked away from his two friends after this proclamation because it seemed like such a crass topic to be discussing. Unfortunately, his eyes landed on the new figure who had just happened to pass by his bedroom. Xie Lian’s cousin Qi Rong could not help himself when he heard this riveting piece of intel about his otherwise perfect, untouchable cousin.
Qi Rong’s eyes sparkled with an unkind glee. “What was it that I just heard, Xie Lian-gege? You are this old and have never even been touched by a woman?”
Xie Lian cringed internally. Though he was not certain whether it was due to embarrassment that his meddling cousin had heard about his sex life (or lack thereof) or that none of what Qi Rong said was technically a lie. “I haven’t met a woman who I’ve connected with yet…” was Xie Lian’s tepid reply.
Qi Rong only laughed. “AHAHAHHAHAHA AND TO THINK THE PERFECT IDEAL GOLDEN CHILD OF OUR FAMILY IS ACTUALLY AN IMPOTENT HERMIT WHO HAS NEVER KNOWN HUMAN PLEASURES.”
Eventually Mu Qing and Feng Xin had to place Qi Rong into a choke hold so that his grating voice would finally simmer down. Before they forcefully tossed him out of Xie Lian’s room however, Qi Rong could not help sliding in one more snide remark.
“Maybe gege should go to the Crimson Rain Pleasure Clinic. Their sex therapists specialize in rejuvenating old men’s shrivelled, expired carrots…AHAHAHHAA!”
+++
A few days later, Xie Lian found himself standing outside said Pleasure Clinic. It wasn’t like Qi Rong’s words had thrown him off per se, but it had got him thinking about how he did sort of have a problem when it came to his bodily reactions. It wasn’t that Xie Lian was incapable of getting hard, it’s just that he never seemed to know what exactly triggered the infrequent episodes and what he was supposed to even do about it when it happened besides trying to sleep it away.
With a self deprecating sigh, Xie Lian stepped inside the building. To his surprise, the interior did not look as cold and clinical as he had expected. The walls were actually painted a sensual deep red, almost maroon colour, and there were classy brass furnishings around the room including along the frames of the sumptuously cushioned waiting room chairs along the borders of the receptionist’s counter. Xie Lian almost felt like he had accidentally stepped into a bar or a speakeasy of some sort.
He cautiously stepped up to the professionally dressed, nondescript man at the counter and gave him his name.
“I-uh-made my appointment a few days ago,” Xie Lian reminded him.
The receptionist nodded politely and said simply, “Please have a seat, Xie-xiansheng. One of our therapists will be with you shortly.”
Xie Lian twiddled his thumbs as he waited impatiently for the therapist. He had to admit he was a little nervous. Talking to his friends about his sex life was one thing, but today he would have to describe some of his most intimate concerns to a complete stranger!
Before Xie Lian could get too much further into his head however, he spied movement out of the corner of his eyes.
He looked up to see a tall and strikingly handsome young man striding toward him with a confident smile on his face. The man was wearing a set of vibrant red scrubs which seemed to accentuate his broad, muscular shoulders and slender, tapered waist exceedingly well. Somehow, despite the formlessness of those loose scrub pants, his legs still seemed endlessly long.
Xie Lian thought he must have been extra nervous about this appointment because after having seen the one who was supposed to be his sex therapist, his heart rate sped up even faster.
He quickly stood to greet his therapist. The young man kept smiling welcomingly at him and said, “Welcome, Xie-xiansheng. My name is Hua Cheng. I will be your therapist for today’s consultation. Please follow me to my office.”
His voice was surprisingly deep and soothing despite his youthful appearance. Xie Lian felt himself relax just a fraction.
As they walked toward the doors in the back, Xie Lian quickly told his therapist, “You can just call me Xie Lian. Xiansheng sounds a bit too serious, haha.” He hoped his therapist wouldn’t think he was being too forward.
Hua Cheng only smiled at him, saying, “Whatever makes you comfortable. I could even call you Xie Lian-gege if you’d like.” Somehow this suggestion made Xie Lian blush. He really could not explain why.
In the office, there were two comfortable chairs, presumably for him and Hua Cheng to discuss his issues, and there was a bed—no it was an examining table—that was covered in a silky red blanket.
Hua Cheng must have seen the deer in the headlights look on Xie Lian’s face because he chuckled. “Don’t worry gege, we will take things slow. Let me get to know you and help you feel comfortable first.”
Hua Cheng’s words did serve to calm down Xie Lian’s overactive imagination somewhat. He carefully sat down in the chair.
Hua Cheng sat across from him. The sex therapist’s toned arms rested comfortably on the sides of the chair and his mile long legs were also spread in a very at ease posture. Xie Lian internally noted how strange it was that Hua Cheng’s confidence felt so inviting to him.
“Okay, let’s begin, gege,” Hua Cheng said. “I’d like you to describe for me what it felt like the last time you were really turned on.”
Xie Lian immediately felt his cheeks grow hot and his palms become sweaty again. “I—I don’t remember.”
Hua Cheng only stared at him. His gaze seemed to say he could see right through him.
“Is that really true, gege?” Hua Cheng’s voice was low and there was a dark quality about it. He raised one unconvinced eyebrow at Xie Lian.
Xie Lian’s gaze fell to the floor in embarrassment as he quietly admitted, “It was two nights ago. I was—in bed.”
Hua Cheng hummed, “Go on.”
“I felt like there were people’s hands caressing my body, even though no one was there. It was like I needed someone to do something..!” Xie Lian felt tears teasing at the edges of his eyes. It felt both frustrating and liberating to be confessing this to someone.
Hua Cheng’s attentive voice guided Xie Lian along. “What did gege do about it?”
Xie Lian squeezed his eyes shut, mortified at having to walk through his actions. “I—I didn’t know what to do. So I flipped around on my bed. I didn’t touch myself.” He said that last part very adamantly, as if he had something he needed to prove.
Hua Cheng tore down his defenses in an instant. “Gege didn’t touch himself…but did gege only lie there on the bed?”
Even though the sex therapist’s tone had been kept carefully neutral, Xie Lian felt like Hua Cheng was skewering him on a stick and thrusting him into a heated kiln.
His entire face felt feverish. His heart was running a marathon. He almost whimpered out his admission.
“N-no…I wriggled my hips…it felt—it felt good to grind myself against my pillow.” Xie Lian thought he might faint. He waited for Hua Cheng to laugh at him or deride him. He felt so painfully exposed.
Hua Cheng did neither of those things. He only said, “Gege did very good.”
Xie Lian’s eyes shot up to stare at his therapist. He had expected for Hua Cheng to wear a look of disdain, but instead the therapist seemed very earnest and calm. Xie Lian felt more embarrassed now because of course Hua Cheng was okay with this. He was a professional!
Meanwhile Xie Lian was a nervous, beet red, tachycardic mess.
While Xie Lian was at a loss of what to say next, Hua Cheng’s indulgent smile took on a shadow of a smirk.
“Since gege seems so on edge, might I suggest a therapeutic massage to help you relax?”
Xie Lian’s usual instinct might have been to say “No thank you!” In fact, he really had not let anybody touch him in an intimate manner since he was a child.
Yet he reminded himself that he had come for a reason. He needed to find a more effective way of managing his biological functions. Hua Cheng was the professional here. He seemed to know what he was doing. Xie Lian convinced himself that he should just let Hua Cheng do his job.
When he stood up, Hua Cheng’s solid palm at his back, just above his waist, guiding him toward the bed—table damnit!—felt blazing hot.
He dared not turn around again to look at the therapist when Hua Cheng instructed him to remove his top before lying down.
Xie Lian wasn’t sure if he was imagining a pair of scalding eyes burning into his back as he slowly lifted his shirt and exposed his naked skin.
Xie Lian felt like every inch of his skin was prickling with heat, and Hua Cheng hadn’t even laid a finger on him yet.
The most horrifying part was that a familiar ache between his legs was making itself known as he went to lie face down upon the bed.
Xie Lian was thankful that he was lying on his stomach because in this position, his erection wouldn’t be so obvious. He recognized that it was counterintuitive to be shy about this in front of his sex therapist of all people, but he was still scared that his sudden, unexplainable boner might be too weird. He didn’t want Hua Cheng to think he was a creep from their first meeting!
“Are you doing okay, gege?” Hua Cheng’s velvet smooth voice easily dispersed his chaotic thoughts. “You seem to be tense.”
Xie Lian shifted on the bed in an attempt to loosen some of his muscles. Unfortunately, the movement only served to press his unrelenting prick further into the surface beneath him.
He couldn’t help releasing a quiet gasp as the inconvenient spark of pleasure alighted in his groin.
He immediately caught himself and hoped to whatever deity was listening that Hua Cheng hadn’t noticed.
Unfortunately, gods didn’t tread on Hua Cheng’s domain.
“Is gege getting worked up already?”
Xie Lian twisted his head to peer in Hua Cheng’s direction and he shivered when he saw the confident, knowing smile on the therapist’s beautiful, pale lips.
“Mn,” Xie Lian admitted. “I’m sorry! I don’t usually get like this so quickly! I never really know what causes it…it just suddenly…became like this.”
“That’s alright,” Hua Cheng reassured, “Maybe I can start the massage and you can just tune into how your body is feeling.”
Hua Cheng’s suggestion seemed safe enough, and Xie Lian allowed himself to tentatively relax again.
Soon after, he heard the click of a cap being opened and then Hua Cheng’s voice saying, “Sorry, this will feel a bit cold at first.”
Xie Lian shivered when he felt cool palms, covered with a slightly viscous fluid begin to press and gently run over his back. Hua Cheng’s hands were large. Xie Lian felt an unbidden mental image pop into his mind of how the therapist’s sexy hands would be able to easily lift Xie Lian and manhandle him if he wanted to.
Xie Lian almost moaned when Hua Cheng began to apply more pressure, kneading down on the corners of his shoulder blades and then knuckling down along the curve of his spine.
Hua Cheng’s talented hands were divine. Xie Lian felt almost euphoric. He hadn’t had such close and intimate touch like this for longer than he could remember.
The only thing that left him wanting for something just out of reach was whenever Hua Cheng’s hands would stop at his lower back, just an inch beneath his back dimples. It sent a particularly electrifying zing toward Xie Lian’s southern predicament.
Xie Lian unconsciously wriggled his hips, trying to prolong Hua Cheng’s touch down there.
“What do you need, gege?” Hua Cheng asked. His voice was tempting like honey. Xie Lian couldn’t help admitting his desperate want.
“I…feel something down there.”
Hua Cheng cooed encouraging sounds. “And what is that feeling?”
“G-good. I think I’d like some more.”
Hua Cheng placed his hands onto Xie Lian’s lower back again. It wasn’t quite low enough. Xie Lian tried to discreetly shift a little higher on the bed.
Suddenly, the weight of Hua Cheng’s hands disappeared completely. Xie Lian froze in place, wondering if the therapist had picked up on his indecent actions.
He needn’t have worried however, because Hua Cheng said, “Gege, I should give you a full body massage. If you’re comfortable, please take off your bottoms.”
Xie Lian tried to not seem so eager while ripping his joggers off. Once he got back into position, he felt his whole body thrumming with excitement once more. He wondered just what a full body massage at the hands of the handsome therapist would entail.
Hua Cheng took his sweet time warming up the new pump of oil he poured onto his hands. Xie Lian had to reign in his disappointment when Hua Cheng did not pick up in the same location he had left off. In fact, Hua Cheng started at Xie Lian’s calves. Although Xie Lian had initially been a tad dissatisfied, very soon he realized that Hua Cheng was indeed a pro. The therapist’s large, strong hands, gripped and squeezed his tense calves just right.
He rubbed out all the tension that Xie Lian had accumulated from his weekend badminton session with Feng Xin.
Hua Cheng’s hands gradually drifted higher. They gently nudged the sensitive spot behind Xie Lian’s knee briefly, before venturing upon Xie Lian’s thighs. If it weren’t for the small towel draped over Xie Lian’s bum, Hua Cheng could probably see the way Xie Lian’s hole twitched every time the therapist’s hands did something particularly intense and pleasurable.
Hua Cheng murmured in a soft voice that Xie Lian almost didn’t catch. “Gege, your thighs are so strong, yet soft. Perfect.”
Xie Lian knew that he was diligent about maintaining his form even after he stopped playing professionally, yet it still sent a thrill of delight through him to hear his therapist call him perfect.
Whenever Hua Cheng’s hands dipped more medially, toward the sensitive strip of his inner thigh, Xie Lian wanted to groan. He wanted to grip his therapist’s big cool hands and make Hua Cheng squeeze harder. He also wanted Hua Cheng to reach higher.
He let out an unexpected gasp when Hua Cheng massaged higher up. The therapist’s fingers were curled over as he confidently kneaded Xie Lian right over his ass!
Xie Lian spaced out for a moment before he eloquently said, “….uhhh…”
Hua Cheng didn’t stop what he was doing, but he did start to slow down.
“We have to make sure your muscles are loose everywhere. I normally allow the client to remove their towel completely so as to have more skin to skin contact, but since it’s gege’s first time, I figured the towel would be a better fit.”
Xie Lian’s incoherence was nowhere near a protest. His brain simply felt like mush beneath Hua Cheng’s sensual touch. Xie Lian thought he would go crazy from the way Hua Cheng began to grip and squeeze his two round cheeks. The foreign heat upon his ass made his cock leak like a fountain. He was glad there was another towel he was lying on. He didn’t even realize it, but he had started to quietly moan. Xie Lian was too immersed in pleasure to notice the heated gaze at his back which was trained upon that flimsy towel separating eager hands from his equally eager ass.
Hua Cheng gave his taught buns one more prolonged squeeze, before he began to push Xie Lian’s ass cheeks apart.
Xie Lian moaned at the slight breeze of hair that blew beneath the towel and teased along his naked perineum. He was so self conscious that he was glad Hua Cheng could not see the wild way in which his hole was undoubtedly contracting around nothing.
Hua Cheng hummed leisurely, as if this was something he did all the time. Xie Lian didn’t want to imagine Hua Cheng with anyone else at the moment. He focused on the way Hua Cheng’s hands grabbed his ass as though he owned it and shivered from the way Hua Cheng’s thumb would occasionally graze deeper between the crevice of his cheeks.
Xie Lian imagined his therapist pressing his thumb in even further, until it prodded against his winking hole. It was with these depraved thoughts of his therapist fingering his needy ass, that Xie Lian came with a surprised yelp all over Hua Cheng’s bed.
Xie Lian tried to valiantly collect his bearings, but he kept getting pulled back into waves of blissful complacence.
He only snapped back to attention when he heard Hua Cheng say, “It looks like we found something that turns gege on.”
There was a bright sparkle to Hua Cheng’s eye.
Xie Lian felt much too embarrassed to look directly at his attractive face. “Y-yes.”
The therapist smiled. “You did so well, gege. Will you come for your next appointment?”