Jerk, Stay Away from Me

Three years ago, after graduating from college, Zhou Ziyi embarked on a desperate search for work. His younger sister, Zhou Zihan, had a heart condition, and her medical bills were exorbitant. Orphaned from childhood, he and his sister lived with their uncle's family. Thankfully, they treated them well. His uncle was willing to lend them money, but it still wasn't enough to cover Zihan's medical expenses. Just as Zhou Ziyi was falling into despair, their neighbor, An Mingxu, arrogantly tossed him a contract. Zhou Ziyi picked it up and saw two huge words printed across the front: Keep. Perplexed, he looked up.

An Mingxu raised his chin and looked down his nose at Zhou Ziyi, saying imperiously, "A monthly salary of five hundred thousand, for three years. No kissing, no hugging, and definitely no sex. No romantic feelings, and no intimate contact. What do you think?"

Zhou Ziyi's smile faded as he calculated: six million a year, eighteen million over three years. It actually sounded pretty good. He wouldn't have to work, and he could pay for Zihan's treatment.

An Mingxu grew impatient and asked again. When Zhou Ziyi gave him an affirmative answer, he was very pleased. As he left, he reminded Zhou Ziyi, "Whatever you do, don't fall in love with me."

A year together was enough for Zhou Ziyi to fall deeply in love with An Mingxu. Or, rather, it was an illusion: An Mingxu had been a ray of hope in Zhou Ziyi's darkest hour, so of course Zhou Ziyi had come to like him out of gratitude. But he still remembered An Mingxu's words from a year earlier, "Whatever you do, don't fall in love with me," and had learned enough about life among the upper classes to understand the secrets behind their contract.

Over the three years they spent together, Zhou Ziyi tried to make An Mingxu fall in love with him. He also tried to stop loving him, to forget the help An Mingxu had given him.

Those three years not only extinguished Zhou Ziyi's ambition, but also destroyed his love for An Mingxu, leaving him utterly devastated.

Zhou Ziyi planned to leave with Zhou Zihan once the contract ended, moving somewhere no one would bother them so he could spend the rest of his sister's life by her side.

But one day, someone appeared before Zhou Ziyi and said, "Then let me be the one to love you." And when a donor match was found for his sister's heart transplant, Zhou Zihan finally realized how happy she could be. Zhou Ziyi, too, realized that what he had felt for An Mingxu had never been romantic love at all, but gratitude.

So one day, when he went with Huo Yuyao to visit Zhou Zihan after her successful surgery, he saw An Mingxu waiting at the hospital entrance. When An Mingxu came up to ask for another chance, Zhou Ziyi remembered that this man even existed and replied coldly, "You jerk. Stay away from me."

Character dynamics: A gentle top from beginning to end × a bottom who's good to the top, and thinks being strong is all that matters. (I'm not very good at summarizing their personalities, since people have all kinds of feelings and moods.)

A few things to know:

1. The top and the disposable bottom don't have any intimate contact. The author refuses to let the top be sullied by that scumbag.

2. The top doesn't understand love, and neither does the bottom, but they'll learn to find it together.

3. There's no getting back together with an ex here. At first, the top really did treat the scumbag like family and care for him. It wasn't romantic love, but the scumbag still got to benefit from that familial affection. (The bottom: Poor me, all I get is romantic love.)

4. The top may have it a little rough at first (really, I feel bad for him too), but from the middle onward he'll be extremely happy.

5. The younger sister, the uncle's family, and the bottom's family are all good to the top. In other words, apart from the scumbag's friends and family, almost everyone treats him well, to varying degrees.

6. Mutual pampering, with a strong bias toward the top. (Their feelings are mutual, but their actions are very, very biased toward the top. That's not to say the bottom doesn't get spoiled too; his feelings are also taken into consideration.)

7. Not everyone in this novel is gay. There aren't that many gay people in this world. The younger sister is straight and will have a love interest.

8. In my stories, both tops and bottoms get plenty of affection; they just have different preferences. Neither ever ignores the other's feelings. (But I love seeing the bottom spoil the top. Isn't it satisfying to pamper someone covered in wounds until he's all sweet and cherished?)

Please add this to your favorites! Comments are welcome, too. (Otherwise, I'll think nobody's reading and that it's just me, and I'll take my time instead of updating diligently.)

I'll alternate updates with the short story next door.

Updates will be irregular, but I definitely will finish it, because I love this story too. There's no way I don't love my babies.

Theme: The disposable bottom chases his ex through hell, while the true bottom wins the beauty's heart.