Yu Jin bent down to snatch the shoes from beside the bed and handed them over, glancing back at him. “Haven’t you noticed? Every time you call me that, I get all worked up.”
Yun Qi’s gaze drifted down along Yu Jin’s waist, then darted away in a hurry. Propping himself on the bed, he scooted to the edge, his face burning crimson. He slipped on his shoes and turned his back.
Yu Jin grabbed his phone from the bed, then pulled an outer jacket from the closet and shrugged it on. He hadn’t planned on staying the night in the first place, and what he’d changed into after his shower wasn’t pajamas. He packed up quickly and headed for the door, giving Yun Qi’s shoulder a pat. “Let’s go.”
Yun Qi smoothed down his hair and followed him out.
No sooner had they opened the door than Ms. Su’s voice drifted from the master bedroom. “You come home and start hollering? Yu Jin’s asleep—don’t wake him up.”
Yu Jin strode over to the liquor cabinet and called out at the top of his lungs, “Dad, Mom—we’re heading out.”
Su Yue and Yu Sheng emerged from their room. They watched as Yu Jin pulled two bottles of red wine from the cabinet, and Su Yue frowned. “It’s so late. You’re really going back?”
“The base has something going on tomorrow.” Yu Jin hefted the bottles. “I’ll take these two back for the guys to try.”
Su Yue said, “Grab a couple more.”
Yu Jin looped back and shoved the wine into Yun Qi’s arms. “Two’s plenty.”
That was when Yu Sheng noticed Yun Qi. The two men nodded in greeting. Yun Qi caught a flicker of surprise in Yu Sheng’s eyes and figured Yu Jin’s mother would handle the explanations. He simply nodded and said, “Uncle.”
Yu Sheng wasn’t as effusive as Su Yue. He just nodded back, and Yu Jin ushered Yun Qi out the door.
“Strawberries!” Su Yue called after them.
Yu Jin paused in the doorway. “I just checked the fridge—none left.”
Su Yue hurried to the fridge and swung it open. “They’re right here. I stashed them on the bottom shelf. Aren’t these several boxes?”
Yu Jin came back. “Not too many—I can’t carry it all.”
“Three boxes.” Su Yue thrust them into his hands and walked them to the door, with Yu Sheng trailing behind her like a faithful shadow.
Yun Qi was bent over changing his shoes when he glanced up and jolted at the sight of both elders there. But it made sense—parents doting on their son, who didn’t come home often.
Su Yue fussed over them. “You two need to come home more often. I won’t nag you with the Grand Tournament coming up, but once it’s over, swing by. Yun Qi, come have Uncle Yu cook for you. His food’s amazing—way better than what Captain Yu can whip up.”
Yun Qi nodded. “…Sure.”
Yu Jin finished lacing up his shoes, then turned to lead the way. “Get some sleep, Mom. Crow’s feet alert.”
Su Yue touched the corner of her eye and turned to Yu Sheng. “Do I have them?”
Yu Sheng averted his gaze. “Can’t really tell.”
By then, the pair had already stepped into the elevator.
Yu Jin cradled the strawberries while Yun Qi clutched the two bottles of red wine—no bags in sight. Yu Jin glanced back and saw Yun Qi pressed against the elevator wall, looking for all the world like he’d been wronged. He stepped closer and touched his forehead. “What’s on your mind?”
Yun Qi straightened up. “Nothing.”
“Uncomfortable around my dad?”
Yun Qi was quick to clarify. “It’s not Uncle. It’s you.”
Yu Jin thought back over the last few minutes—not much had happened. “I didn’t do anything, did I?”
“You didn’t?” Yun Qi bit his lip, and Yu Jin understood at once.
“Oh. The kiss. You’re mad.” Yu Jin held out one hand. “Want to kiss me back?”
The elevator dinged, and Yun Qi stepped out first, ignoring him completely.
Back in the car, the strawberries and wine were too delicate for rough handling, so Yu Jin stowed them on the rear seat. He slid into the driver’s seat as Yun Qi buckled his seatbelt. The moment Yu Jin pulled open his door, something hit him. “Shit, forgot the cat.”
Yun Qi suddenly remembered—they had come today specifically to pick up Tata. But then unexpected events had swept them both up, clouding their judgment. Yu Jin forgetting was one thing, but Yun Qi forgetting too? He felt a deep flush of shame.
Yu Jin said, “Stay in the car. I’ll go get it.” He pushed open the car door, but apparently still uneasy, he locked it behind him. Yun Qi could only watch through the window.
He sat waiting in the passenger seat. What on earth had the two of them been doing? They’d come back just to fetch Tata, yet they’d forgotten the cat entirely. No wonder he’d felt so uneasy when they left. Out of four people in the house, not a single one had remembered something so important.
Yun Qi rubbed his forehead. Passion had addled his brain, joy had overwhelmed him. Yu Jin was the same. Neither of them could have anticipated what happened that day.
After a short wait, Yu Jin returned cradling the cat. He opened the door, a handful of colorful fabric scraps in his other hand. As he passed Tata to Yun Qi, he said, “Ms. Su bought clothes for it.”
Yun Qi took the cat and settled Tata on his lap. He looked at the little outfits and said, “They’re adorable.”
Yu Jin climbed back into the car and started the engine. “It’s gotten too big. These won’t fit anymore.”
“I’ll try them on it when we get home,” Yun Qi said cheerfully. He set the clothes aside and stroked Tata, letting it nestle comfortably in the crook of his arm like a soothing embrace.
Tata let out a reproachful meow.
Yun Qi said, “The two of us today… we really messed up. We came back to pick it up and forgot all about it.”
“My mind wasn’t on it to begin with,” Yu Jin replied. “Forgetting was only natural.”
Yun Qi covered Tata’s ears. “Don’t say that in front of it.”
Yu Jin noticed the gesture and chuckled. “You really think it understands?”
“Of course it does,” Yun Qi said, hugging Tata close. “Animals are very perceptive.”
Tata, who hated car rides, craned its neck to peer around. Yun Qi held it tight. At this hour, traffic was light, so Yu Jin drove a little faster—but he knew his limits, and Yun Qi didn’t say a word.
At a red light, Yun Qi cracked the window to take in the view. Shanghai gleamed with glamour, especially at night. Yu Jin claimed the city lacked human warmth, but Yun Qi figured most thriving metropolises were the same—the air thick with the scent of competition. Carving out a life here meant a lifetime of struggle, with no guarantees.
Yun Qi turned back and caught Yu Jin staring at him. His gaze was dangerous, like a silver blade glinting in the dark. Yun Qi ducked his head quickly. Tata was drifting off on his lap, perfectly still. “Why are you looking at me like that?”
Yu Jin didn’t reply. He just kept staring.
When Yun Qi glanced up, the intense gaze hadn’t wavered. His voice caught. “You’re… scaring me.”
“Scared already?” A shadow of midnight desire darkened Yu Jin’s expression, though he held it in check as he looked at Yun Qi.
“Your eyes look like they’re about to devour me…” Yun Qi’s fingers tightened. The warm glow of the dashboard lights bathed his legs, turning Tata’s fur a soft yellow.
The light turned green, and they drove on.
Yun Qi thought back to their earlier talk. Yu Jin had said he knew—about the incident three years ago. Yun Qi still didn’t fully understand, so he seized the chance to ask, “What did you mean when you said you knew about what happened three years ago? How did you find out?”
Yu Jin didn’t hold back. “I’ve met your mother.”
Yun Qi was stunned. “What?”
Yu Jin glanced at him. He knew this would shock Yun Qi, but he had no intention of hiding it. He explained steadily, “When you broke up with me, you were sobbing your heart out. You think I’m a fool? That I couldn’t feel the pressure weighing on you? I knew someone had threatened you. While you were gone, I went to see your mother myself.”
Yun Qi didn’t know what to say. Yu Jin had met his mother? How had he even thought of that? She must have unloaded a torrent of ugly words on him. Back then, she’d been so furious she was practically dying of rage. Yun Qi had refused to even speak Yu Jin’s name. So they’d met behind his back.
“What did Mom say to you?” Yun Qi’s face went slack. He couldn’t picture the scene. She’d been so enraged she’d even threatened her own life. What on earth would she have told Yu Jin?
He didn’t dare imagine.
“Nothing much,” Yu Jin said. “Just told me to stay away from you. That’s all.”
Yun Qi shook his head. “No, she must have said more…”
He knew his mother. And he knew Yu Jin.
Yu Jin would give up anything for him. It wasn’t exaggeration to say that back then, if Yun Qi had asked him to forfeit a competition, he might not have hesitated. Yu Jin had loved him that fiercely—plunging in headfirst, leaving himself scarred all over.
“She didn’t say much,” Yu Jin said, gripping the steering wheel with a calm gaze. “She just laid out the pros and cons for me and urged us to go our separate ways. From a mother’s perspective, she wasn’t wrong.”
“So you’ve known the reason all these years and never came looking for me.”
“Your mother was in that state. If I’d kept pestering you, wouldn’t that have put you in an even tougher spot?” Yu Jin had hit the nail on the head. Indeed, if he’d clung to Yun Qi back then, Yun Qi would have suffered even more.
“Your mother wanted you to walk the straight and narrow—go to university, find a girlfriend, and live a steady, ordinary life. If that’s the path you’d taken, I think it would have been for the best, fulfilling her deepest wish. She even said that if she saw us together again, she’d kill herself. Did my feelings still matter then? They didn’t, Yun Qi. I couldn’t ask you to bear the weight of your mother’s life just to be with me. To me, family always comes before love. When parents resort to threats of suicide, we can’t simply ignore their well-being. What you said to me the night we broke up finally made sense to me later on. So go ahead—marry, have kids, live a normal life. Nothing else mattered. But what really pissed me off was when you got together with Lang Xian afterward. I thought it was real. I felt betrayed, wanted to get back at you, but I also didn’t want to get stuck in the past. Three years later, if you’d seen me still pining for you, how arrogant would that have made you feel? After agonizing over it, I decided the best approach was to ignore you completely. Then you showed up and asked me to buy you.”
The moment he heard that news, it was like something he’d been desperately craving was suddenly placed in his hands. In that instant, pure exhilaration drowned out every other emotion. Yu Jin had been over the moon inside, but his face betrayed nothing—that was the pinnacle of his acting skills.
Just listening to it all, Yun Qi could already feel the depth of Yu Jin’s grievances. In that moment, he was grateful that Yu Jin had met his mother; otherwise, shoving all the blame onto her would have painted him as utterly contemptible. No amount of retelling or explanation could compare to Yu Jin witnessing that insurmountable gulf with his own eyes and feeling its helplessness firsthand.
“That was… I had no other choice.”
