The first sliver of dawn, like a pale gold, nudged its way through the blinds, coaxing Yu Han's eyelids open.
Beside him, Li Hao slept with an almost ethereal stillness. His strong, usually commanding features were softened, and a blissful smile gracing his lips as if he were dreaming of sun-drenched meadows.
Yu Han couldn't help but marvel, with a soft ache blooming in his chest, at how this man, capable of moving mountains, could look so utterly, innocently beautiful in his slumber.
"How does he sleep like a baby?" he whispered to himself, a warm blush creeped up his neck.
He felt an overwhelming urge to simply watch him, to soak in this quiet, peaceful moment. "I could watch him sleep all day."
Li Hao stirred slightly, a subtle shift in his weight, his movement immediately pulled Yu Han back to the present.
He glanced at the bedside table; the digital clock glowed, still showing a respectable 7:00 AM.
Easing himself out of the bed with practiced quiet, Yu Han gently pulled the duvet higher around Li Hao's sleeping form.
His mind, however, was already drifted to Yang Zi. He padded softly out of the bedroom and peeked into Yang Zi's room, only to find it empty.
A sigh escaped him. "He's still not home!"
He reached for his phone, his thumb hovering over Yang Zi's contact.
He quickly dial, and the phone's unwelcome chime of "Switched off" echoed in the stillness.
"Damn it. Why would he turn his phone off?" but immediately he remembered,"Well, at least he's with Shi Wang. Shi Wang will be looking after him. If he were alone, I'd be a wreck with worry."
With the absence of Yang Zi, the responsibility of breakfast fell to Yu Han.
He ambled into the kitchen, a place he rarely commanded with culinary prowess.
Still, for Li Hao, he was willing to try.
He opened the refrigerator, his brows immediately furrowing in dismay. "What the...? Where are my precious eggs?" he muttered, running a hand through his hair. "I swear I stocked them right here last time."
He didn't know, of course, that his carefully purchased eggs had been devoured by Yang Zi and Shi Wang.
"What am I supposed to do now?" he grumbled, "Ughhhh I don't want to go in this cold weather."
But the image of Li Hao's contented face, and the desire to make him scrambled eggs, spurred him on.
He stole another glance back at the bedroom; Li Hao was still lost in his deep sleep. "Okay," he decided with a determined nod, "I'll be back in ten minutes."
He shrugged on Li Hao's oversized, wonderfully warm jacket, the scent of him clinged to the fabric, and he stepped out into the nascent day.
Minutes later, a persistent vibration disturbed the quiet of the apartment.
Beep...beep...
Li Hao's phone, lying on the bedside table, buzzed with an insistent rhythm.
He stirred, his hand blindly searching for the source of the disturbance, his eyes still heavy with sleep. "Hello?" he mumbled into the receiver.
Gang Zi's sharp, and booming voice, instantly cutting through the lingering fog of sleep, and jolted him fully awake. "Mr. Li! Where are you? I'm at your place, and Ms. Yuna is looking for you!"
"Gang Zi, for god's sake, don't disturb me when I'm sleeping!" Li Hao growled.
"Just tell me where you are," Gang Zi persisted,"I'll pick you up. We've got the office today."
"Ugh… I'm at Yu Han's apartment," Li Hao conceded, and his eyes. "Bring my clothes here."
Hearing this ,a mischievous grin, rippled through the phone. "Whoa, spent the whole night at Yu Han's, did you? Did something… happen?"
Li Hao's jaw tightened. "Shut the fuck up!" he roared, slamming the phone shut with a furious click.
He sat up, shaking his head to clear the remnants of sleep, his eyes scanning the room. "Where is Yu Han?" he wondered.
He swung his legs out of bed, and noticed his the absence of his jacket. He padded out of the bedroom, his gaze sweeping over the silent apartment. No sign of Yu Han. Even Yu Han's phone lay abandoned on the side table.
"Where the hell did he go?" Li Hao muttered.
Just then, a faint click echoed from the apartment's entrance. Li Hao's head snapped up, his eyes locking onto the doorway.
"Ahh! Li Hao, you're awake already?!" Yu Han stood there, he said while slipping off his slippers. In his hands, he carefully balanced a tray laden with eggs.
Li Hao didn't hesitate. He surged towards Yu Han, his earlier frustration melting away. "Where have you been? I was worried sick! You can't just leave without telling me!"
Yu Han blinked, and he was little flustered. "I… I just went out to buy some eggs. You were sleeping soundly, how could I have possibly woken you up?"
Li Hao reached out, gently taking the tray from Yu Han's hands. He stroked Yu Han's hair, "Okay, but next time, you have to tell me if you're going out like that."
Yu Han nodded.
"Is Yang Zi still not back?" Li Hao asked, his gaze drifting towards Yang Zi's empty room.
"Hmm, he's not in his room," Yu Han replied, "He must be with Shi Wang."
Li Hao's smirked deviously,"Yang Zi spent his whole night with Shi Wang. Hehe, it must be torturous for Shi Wang."
He knew that Shi Wang likes Yang Zi, and spending a night with him must be a great torment for Shi Wang as he couldn't act on his feelings for Yang Zi.
But he definitely underestimates Shi Wang!
Shi Wang, of course, would never act on them, and spending a whole night in close proximity to Yang Zi, with all his usual boisterous energy, must have been a special kind of torture for the more reserved Shi Wang.
Li Hao couldn't help but chuckle inwardly.
"Li Hao, why don't you go freshen up?" Yu Han suggested,"I'm going to make breakfast for you, okay?"
Li Hao's arms instinctively wrapped around Yu Han's waist, drawing him closer. He nuzzled against Yu Han's ear, he said in husky voice,"Thank you for the breakfast, Yu Han."
Yu Han giggled, "Go on, quickly! Or there'll be no breakfast for you!"
"Yes, Sir!" Li Hao responded with enthusiasm.
______________
[At Shi Wang's Home]
"Good morning, Yang Zi." Shi Wang's deep voice resonated as Yang Zi's eyelids fluttered open.
Shi Wang was leaning close, gazing directly into his eyes, a wide, and loving smile graced his lips.
The sight that greeted Yang Zi was indeed perfect: a beautiful morning, made even more so by the beautiful man lying beside him—a man desired by the world, yet currently his and his alone.
Yang Zi returned the smile, his own voice was deep and sleepy, "Morning."
Shi Wang leaned in further, and landed a soft kiss on Yang Zi's forehead. "I've made breakfast. Get up and freshen up."
But Yang Zi wasn't ready to let go. He wrapped his arms around Shi Wang's waist, pulling him closer, burying his face in Shi Wang's chest. "I want to sleep more. Just five more minutes, please."
Shi Wang chuckled softly, and stroked Yang Zi's back. "It's already late, Yang Zi. Don't you have classes to attend?" he gently reminded him.
"Ugh... I hate going to college!" Yang Zi mumbled.
Seeing his beloved's adorable struggle, Shi Wang's heart swelled. "Why are you so adorable, Yang Zi? I just want to keep you in my arms for eternity."
Yang Zi scoffed, as a faint blush warmed his cheeks. "I'm not adorable. You should get your eyes checked."
Shi Wang took Yang Zi's hand,and pressed a gentle kiss to his knuckles. "I've prepared clothes for you. Don't forget to wear them, okay?"
"You prepared clothes for me?" Yang Zi pulled back slightly, confused. "I was thinking of going home first to change."
"You can wear my clothes. There's nothing wrong with it," Shi Wang assured him. "They're men's fashion, perfectly suitable for you."
Yang Zi finally conceded, sitting himself up against the headboard. "Okay, okay, I got it."
Shi Wang then placed his hands on Yang Zi's slender waist, burying his face in the crook of Yang Zi's neck, his voice utterly soft, "We're a couple now. I'm truly happy." His heart felt on the verge of exploding. "Yang Zi, I'm so grateful you accepted me. I still feel like I'm dreaming."
Yang Zi leaned down to kiss his forehead. "Then I'm kissing you in your dream," he teased.
Shi Wang, for his part, remained nestled in Yang Zi's embrace, he shredded his usual formidable persona.
It was a rare, and vulnerable side that only Yang Zi ever witnessed, it was a quiet testament to the fact that even the strongest men crave for love and tenderness.
They were enjoying their sweet morning moments until they were interrupted by the insistent ring of Shi Wang's phone.
Ring....Ring.....
Yet, the sound seemed to have no effect on Shi Wang, who refused to move an inch.
"Shi Wang... your phone is ringing. Go answer it!" Yang Zi urged, trying to gently disentangle himself.
Shi Wang tightened his grip. "I don't want to."
Yang Zi gave a light tap to Shi Wang's head. "Go now," he commanded, his voice seemed dangerous now.
Shi Wang immediately shot up, running a hand through his hair in mock exasperation. "I'm going... I'm going."
Yang Zi used the opportunity to step out of bed and leisurely make his way towards the bathroom.
Meanwhile, Shi Wang quickly answered the call. "What now, Liu? Why are you disturbing me at this time?" he grumbled, his voice still thick with sleep but already shifting.
On the other end, his secretary Liu was full of professional enthusiasm. "Mr. Shi, when will you be arriving at the office?"
"At the usual time. What's wrong?" Shi Wang's personality had snapped into place, and transformed from a tender lover to a strong, and powerful CEO.
"I've investigated Mr. Li and his meeting with Officer Zhang, and I want to give you a briefing on it," Liu explained.
"Okay, I'll meet you in my cabin." Shi Wang hung up abruptly.
Liu, left with a dead line, sneered at the sudden hang-up. "Humph! No 'thank you' at all. What a waste of my energy!"
After a refreshing shower, Yang Zi emerged from the bathroom, a towel wrapped loosely around his waist. He walked over to where Shi Wang had laid out clothes for him.
"Fuck!" he muttered under his breath. "These aren't even my size. How am I supposed to wear these?"
But he had no other choice. He reluctantly put them on, the baby pink sweatshirt which was comically large, its sleeves dangling past his hands, and padded towards the living room.
Shi Wang sat there, who was just engrossed in a magazine, his own face printed on the cover page. Yang Zi settled beside him.Hesaw the cover page of the magazine , "You're so cool, huh?"
Shi Wang lifted his gaze, a soft smile returning as he took in Yang Zi's appearance. Yang Zi, sitting beside him, looked utterly adorable in the oversized baby pink sweatshirt.
Though its sleeves swallowed his hands, but Shi Wang saw no problem with it. As long as it was Yang Zi, even if he wore nothing at all, he'd be adorable in Shi Wang's eyes.
"I want to eat you," Shi Wang murmured, with a hungry glint in his eyes.
Yang Zi playfully landed a soft fist on his chest.
"I'm starving," he declared, and grind his teeth in exaggerated hunger.
"Then let's eat!" Shi Wang exclaimed dramatically, already rising.
On the dining table, Shi Wang had prepared a veritable feast, a multitude of delicacies covering every available space.
Yang Zi's eyes widened. "What the heck is that, Shi Wang? Did you invite a whole village to eat? Who's going to eat all this?"
"These are all for you. Why would I invite a whole village?" he answered innocently.
"This is too much; I can't possibly finish it all."
Shi Wang pulled out a chair for Yang Zi, with a loving smile on his face. "Eat as much as you want, okay?"