President Wang and Madam Wang arrived a little before eleven that night, their footsteps fast and voices tinged with worry were enough to stir Yibo from sleep.
His eyes blinked open just as the door to his room swung inward and his parents entered, one after the other.
Though his body still aches all over, heavy with discomfort in places he couldn't quite name, he stayed still and simply watched them hurry toward his bed, nearly stumbling in their rush to get to him.
There wasn't much he could do anyway, so he gave them a tired smile—one that didn't quite stretch far enough to reach his ears, but it was real all the same.
They were finally here.
That alone brought some warmth to his chest.
Then he remembered his Zhan-ge, who had been beside him when sleep pulled him under.
Yibo's gaze drifted away from his parents, scanning the room until it landed on a familiar figure slouched in a chair right beside his bed.
He smiled again, softer this time.
There he was leaning against the bed with his head resting on his arms, sound asleep.
Deeply asleep.
The kind of sleep that only comes after real exhaustion.
"Yibo, sweetheart. How are you feeling?" Madam Wang's voice brought him back, gentle and full of concern.
Her question pulled his attention away from the sight of his sleeping gege, and he turned to her with another small smile.
"Feels like I got tossed into a shredder," he admitted with a quiet sigh, his tone light but his words painfully honest. "Everything hurts, mama."
"Oh, darling," Madam Wang cooed, her voice trembling with emotion. "It's going to be okay. Not right away, but give it three to five days, and you'll start to feel like yourself again. I'm so sorry we weren't there when your heat started."
She sat down carefully on the side of the bed opposite Zhan, her movements slow and mindful so as not to disturb the sleeping man.
President Wang stood beside her, saying nothing for now, but his face was drawn and full of concern.
He seemed to trust his wife to say everything that needed saying, though the tension in his posture showed he wanted nothing more than to help.
Yibo simply nodded with a gentle expression.
"It's okay, mama," he replied softly, brushing away her guilt with just a few words.
Then, once more, his eyes wandered back to Zhan, resting quietly beside him.
"Shh," he whispered, holding his finger up to his lips with a slight grin. "Gege's sleeping. Don't wake him. He was the one who took care of me earlier. He must be exhausted."
The Madam let out a soft chuckle, her eyes warm as she smiled tenderly at Yibo.
"Alright, sweetheart," she said gently, her voice laced with affection and concern.
President Wang stepped forward, his tone calm but filled with worry. "Shall we head outside for a bit?" he asked.
Yibo gave a small, hesitant nod, clearly still a little dazed.
"I'm sorry if we woke you, son," Wang Yixian murmured as he reached out, his hand carefully cupping Yibo's cheek before brushing his hair gently in a fatherly gesture that was both protective and soothing. Beside him, Madam Wang softly took Yibo's hands in hers, her fingers wrapping around his delicately as she gave them a comforting squeeze, a silent way of letting him know they were there and that he wasn't alone.
"It's alright, papa," Yibo replied in a quiet voice, though the tiredness in his eyes made it clear he still wasn't fully alright. "You and mama should get some rest too. Why did you come rushing over instead of settling in first after your trip?" he asked, his voice reflecting concern for them even in his own weak state.
"Because we were worried about you," his father answered simply, as though there was no need for further explanation.
"I'm okay now," Yibo reassured, though his voice lacked its usual strength.
"Yes, you are. And thank heavens your gege was here. If he hadn't come for you so quickly, who knows what could've happened," Madam Wang said, clearly still shaken.
"I was afraid the school wouldn't let him take you home," President Wang added.
"Gege was really mad at the school doctor. He actually yelled at him," Yibo said, eyes wide as if still processing the memory.
"He was?" President Wang raised his brows, clearly surprised and a little amused at the idea.
"Well, he had every right to be. You were in pain and no one was helping you properly. If anything worse had happened to you, I swear I would've dragged that university to court myself!" Madam Wang exclaimed, her voice firm but full of love, her protectiveness flaring up.
"It's alright, mama. Really. I'm fine now," Yibo replied softly, the corners of his lips tugging upward in an attempt to reassure her, though he still looked pale. "You and papa should rest now, please. I'm pretty sure you were tired from work and travelling."
Eventually, after enough coaxing and gentle persistence, the worried couple finally agreed to go rest, trusting that Yibo would be fine for now.
Once the room fell quiet again and it was just him and his gege, Yibo turned his head slowly and reached for a spare blanket that had been folded neatly atop one of the pillows beside him.
Though his limbs still felt heavy and his body weak, he managed to pull the blanket over and carefully draped it over his gege's shoulders, his fingers trembling slightly from exhaustion but determined to keep his gege warm.
The suppressant was still working, keeping the painful waves of his heat at bay for now, and the relief allowed him to relax, his body finally giving in to the drowsiness that had been tugging at him. His breathing began to even out, and with the faint comfort of knowing his gege was right there beside him, protected and warm under the blanket he had given him, Yibo's eyes slowly fluttered shut.
The pain dulled into the background, the remnants of earlier discomfort slowly fading, and within moments, he was fast asleep again, a little more at peace.