Time flew by, and the day before Liang Wangyou’s birthday arrived.
Today, Liang Shijing didn’t head to the Chief’s Mansion, and Wen Yan got up early as well. Liang Wangyou slipped into his favorite white T-shirt, the one with a cute little sea otter printed across the belly. Freshly awake, he pushed a dump truck out from the Toy Room, loaded with all the other gifts he’d received lately.
“This one’s pretty. It’s for you.” Liang Wangyou rummaged through the pile and fished out a chibi-style matryoshka doll, handing it to Wen Yan. “There’s a baby inside—his baby. That’s me.”
Wen Yan smiled.
“This one’s childish. It’s from Father.” Liang Wangyou pulled out a magic trick toy next and offered it to Liang Shijing.
Liang Shijing snorted in disdain.
“Do you want it?” Liang Wangyou glared at him.
“Take it away.” Liang Shijing replied dismissively.
The three of them hadn’t planned to run into each other in the corridor. They had simply all risen at the same moment, their three doors swinging open together. The two adults wore matching sets of pajamas, while the child had dressed himself up just so.
“I’m almost reluctant to give it to you.” Liang Wangyou grumbled and chattered as he buried himself in the dump truck brimming with gifts, digging toward the bottom for something else nice for Wen Yan. His short arms and legs couldn’t quite reach, so he shoved his head in deep—his whole body teetering on the verge of tumbling inside. Wen Yan started to reach out to steady him, but Liang Shijing got there first and simply shoved Liang Wangyou right on in.
Liang Wangyou let out a shriek. Wen Yan fought back a laugh, wanting to scoop him out.
“Don’t bother.” Liang Shijing grabbed Wen Yan’s arm and tugged him along.
His father really could be childish sometimes. So at breakfast, Liang Wangyou kept up his complaints. The three chairs were always arranged in their usual stable triangle, facing one another—but today, Liang Wangyou dragged his chair right up snug against Wen Yan’s. Every slurp of porridge came with a mutter about Liang Shijing, until the man finally got fed up and shut him down with a single line.
“Make one more sound, and the Racing Team gets confiscated on the spot.”
“You wouldn’t dare.”
“Try me.”
“I’ll tell Wen Yan it was you who— ” Liang Wangyou slapped the table and shot to his feet.
“You wouldn’t dare.” Liang Shijing fired back.
“Try me.”
Wen Yan was utterly baffled. He had no idea what the two were even quarreling over, but just like that, they both fell silent in perfect sync. It was a rare family breakfast together, yet the tension between father and son hung thick in the air.
“Can’t you just let him win for once? It’s his birthday tomorrow.” On the stairs back to their rooms, Wen Yan murmured. Little Alpha was leading the way to grab his tablet, which held his carefully prepared schedule of activities for the day. Liang Shijing paused mid-step at those words. “Why don’t you tell him to let me win?”
“But tomorrow’s his birthday.”
“Then move my birthday up to today.”
“Liang Shijing, are you serious?”
“Do I look like I’m joking with you?”
“No…”
In any situation where the child was present, their dynamic naturally loosened up. But the child wasn’t in a loosening mood right now. Liang Wangyou whipped around to glare at them. “No sneaking in to peek.”
Liang Shijing’s face twisted in disdain, but he was too lazy to even respond. Wen Yan waited with him just outside in the corridor. Before long, Liang Wangyou emerged clutching the tablet, striking the perfect pose of haughty pride with an expression of utmost gravity.
“I hereby declare Liang Wangyou’s birthday party officially open!” he announced with uncontainable excitement.
“I hereby declare it successfully concluded.” Liang Shijing cut in, stone-faced.
Wen Yan: “…”
“No interruptions!” Liang Wangyou fumed. “First event of the party: hide-and-seek!”
Wen Yan genuinely feared Liang Shijing might refuse to play, so he latched onto the man’s arm, silently urging him to hold his tongue. Liang Shijing obliged, letting the grip linger.
Liang Wangyou’s little eyes flicked suspiciously back and forth between them as he pressed on. “For fairness, we’ll do rock-paper-scissors to decide who hides and who seeks.”
“He always throws scissors.” Liang Shijing muttered through clenched teeth. “We throw rock.”
“No.” Wen Yan whispered back in the same hushed tone. “It’s just a game. Why get so intense about it?”
“If he hides, we won’t even have to guess. We know exactly where he’ll go. Game’s over in a minute. He’s only got three activities planned today—less than half an hour, and we’re done. What do we do with the rest of the time? You want him happy, don’t you? Let him be the seeker.”
“Hey! No whispering in class!” Liang Wangyou was beside himself, stomping his feet in outrage.
Wen Yan clapped a hand over his mouth to stifle his laughter. He mulled it over and realized Liang Shijing had a point, so he shot the man a playful wink. Liang Shijing stared at him for several seconds before pointedly looking away, heedless of anyone else.
“You’re still laughing! Still laughing!” Liang Wangyou wedged himself between them, prying them apart. “You weren’t even listening to me!”
“Why not grab a megaphone while you’re at it?” Liang Shijing drawled, arms folded.
“Good idea.” Liang Wangyou latched onto it and spun to dash off, but Wen Yan caught him. “We heard you loud and clear. Rock-paper-scissors now?”
The three formed a circle right there in the corridor. Just before Liang Wangyou counted off one-two-three, Wen Yan caught the signal from Liang Shijing. Out came three hands of varying sizes in unison: one scissors, two rocks. Perfect.
“This round doesn’t count.” Liang Wangyou declared, chin tilted stubbornly upward.
Liang Shijing rejected it outright.
“No fair…” Liang Wangyou flung himself into Wen Yan’s arms, pawing at his leg with a whine. “Wen Yan, I wanna hide with you. I already picked out the perfect spot yesterday. Wen Yan… Wen Yan…”
“You were supposed to be studying yesterday.” Liang Shijing prodded. “Daydreaming about games in class?”
“I messed up, okay? Don’t yell at me…” Liang Wangyou’s fire dimmed for an instant before he clung to Wen Yan again. The omega was clearly buckling under the little alpha’s barrage of sugary pleas when the big alpha fixed him with a stern look—a clear no-betrayal warning.
“Wen Yan, wuwuwu, I wanna hide with you…”
“Wen Yan, Wen Yan, pretty please…”
Wen Yan was on the verge of caving to Liang Wangyou’s relentless wheedling when Liang Shijing cut in coldly. “Liang Wangyou, who taught you to break your word? A bet’s a bet. Understand?”
Liang Wangyou pouted, wrestling with it for ages. “Fine…”
He looked so heartbreakingly pitiful. The two adults had clearly schemed together, yet here they were, shoving the poor kid onto the moral high ground.
“How ab— ” Wen Yan barely got the words out before Liang Shijing clapped a hand over his mouth, eyes flashing a warning. Wen Yan nodded vigorously, signaling total loyalty to the cause.
“You only get three minutes! After that, I’m coming right out!” Liang Wangyou backed warily into his room and slammed the door.
“So, where are you hiding?” Wen Yan asked in a conspiratorial whisper.
“Back to bed for a bit.” Liang Shijing swept his bangs back and replied with perfect calm.
…This alpha was speaking with such confidence, treating the kid like an idiot?
Wen Yan turned on his heel and walked away. He planned to hide in the ocean ball pit at the amusement park—it was a natural hiding spot. He dashed over in a hurry and instinctively kicked off his shoes, since the play area required them off anyway. Then he thought better of it and clutched the slippers to his chest. The round balls burying his body felt nice and comfy, even if they poked at his back a little. Wen Yan kept count in his head. Three minutes were up, so Liang Wangyou had probably started searching by now.
Oak Bay had a total of thirty-six rooms. According to the game rules Liang Wangyou had set, no hiding allowed on the first floor, leaving twenty rooms across the second and third floors. If he searched them one by one, it would take quite a while. For some odd reason, Wen Yan found himself thinking that Liang Shijing’s arrogant plan to take a nap didn’t seem so unreasonable after all.
Ten minutes ticked by. On a whim, Wen Yan pulled out his phone and peered at the screen. Huh? A text from Liang Shijing.
Liang Shijing: Where’d you hide?
Wen Yan, on guard: You gonna rat me out?
Liang Shijing: I mean your phone’s on silent, but you think Liang Wangyou won’t just call around looking for people?
Wen Yan: You know he’s smart, yet you still call him dumb.
Liang Shijing: Haven’t mentioned the even smarter move yet. He might check the surveillance.
Wen Yan, shocked: He’s cheating!
Liang Shijing: Aren’t you?
Wen Yan: You forced me into it.
In the security room on the first floor, Liang Wangyou deployed his ultimate weapon: cuteness. He hugged the bodyguard’s leg tight. “Uncle, please, just let me see the surveillance! Pretty please!”
The bodyguard silently pulled up the feed for him.
“No third floor?” Liang Wangyou’s eyes went wide. That’s where the three of them had split up, in the third-floor bedroom area.
“The Chief said surveillance is off for ten minutes,” the bodyguard replied.
“…”
Liang Wangyou grumbled under his breath and bolted up to the third floor, heading straight for the amusement park. Of course he knew this was the best hiding spot—and he was sure Wen Yan would head here. As for his father… he didn’t want to think of him as a father right now.
Ocean ball pit—In the span of a mere ten-odd minutes, the omega and alpha had fired off dozens of texts back and forth. In a daze, Wen Yan caught a faint noise. He knew Liang Wangyou had come in, sneaking around. He quickly locked his phone and held his breath. Why hold his breath? He had no idea—maybe just for good luck.
“Wen Yan, where are you?” That clever little rascal Liang Wangyou called out the same line from different spots, making it impossible to pinpoint his location. More than once, Wen Yan thought he’d been found, only for the voice to drift overhead. Soon enough, the footsteps faded into the distance.
