Zhuang Yiyun was stunned for a moment before reacting and caught him before he could sit back down.
He wanted a kiss, a real kiss, but when he thought that were in public, he restrained himself.
As soon as he let go, Yan Yan scooted closer, sitting right next to him, as triumphant as a cat that had successfully stolen some fish. All the negative emotions brought on by memories were instantly dispelled. Yan Yan had this ability; he made everything heavy seem light.
“Gege, you haven’t answered yet?” Yan Yan’s fingertips traced patterns on his hand.
Zhuang Yiyun indulged his little gestures, and gently shook his head. “How could I get tired? Yan Yan is both obedient and wild.”
He deliberately lowered his voice, his lips brushing against Yan Yan’s earlobe, sending tingles down Yan Yan’s spine.
Zhuang Yiyun’s gaze fell on Yan Yan’s ear, which had several piercings on its round, plump lobe. However, only one earring adorned it now—the one he had given him.
“I’ll consider it a compliment,” Yan Yan smiled, looking vivid and lively.
Since they were already talking about the past, Yan Yan nolonger had reservations. He asked the question he had been wanting to ask, “Why is your mother like this? It seems pathological.”
“It’s an illness… probably because of my birth. My mother rarely hit me, except when I asked about my father. It was like a sore spot. Grandma didn’t dare tell me, and later, I didn’t dare ask. But Uncle Xu told me some truths. He said that my mother had a wealthy boyfriend at the time. He kept saying he wanted to marry her but when my mother found out she was pregnant and told him, he ran away overnight, leaving only money for an abortion.”
“My mother was outstanding from a young age. Even though she came from an ordinary background, she was smart and beautiful. I heard many people pursued her, but in the end, she chose a scumbag. She couldn’t accept it and even fantasized that the man hadn’t abandoned her. Because of this, she refused to abort me, insisting on giving birth and waiting for him to come back to marry her. But how could he come back? The man disappeared without a trace. After I was born, she became a bit more clear-headed, but her temperament changed completely. When I was little, she didn’t even work, instead living in Grandma’s house and the three of us lived on Grandma’s pension. It was only after Grandma passed away that she pulled herself together and took me away from our hometown to start anew and establish her own business.”
“It wasn’t easy,” Yan Yan couldn’t help but say, “but her hitting you, I can’t accept.”
Zhuang Yiyun smiled and asked him, “Are you protecting me so much?”
“I’m protecting my husband, that’s only right.”
“If she treats you badly, I won’t accept it either.”
Yan Yan echoed, “Are you protecting me so much?”
“I’m willing to protect my husband.”
“You’re better at this!” Yan Yan gave him a thumbs-up.
Zhuang Yiyun squeezed his hand and returned to the main topic. “She sees her life as a failure. To her, I am both shame and hope. She hopes I live the way she wants. Everything she couldn’t accomplish, I must achieve. My life must be flawless. Isn’t it laughable?”
“It’s not too bad. Auntie Zhuang is lucky to have a smart kid like you. Otherwise, the child might have vomited blood from anger in elementary school, and would have been unable to care for themselves in middle school. After all, there aren’t many people like you in the whole country.”
Zhuang Yiyun’s gaze rested on his lips, watching him quietly for a while before saying, “I really want to know how much honey you put in your mouth.”
His words and gaze were blatantly flirtatious.
“Haven’t you tasted them already? It’s nothing new, you’ve already consumed the old flavors.” Yan Yan’s voice grew lower. He put his chin on Zhuang Yiyun’s shoulder, and the two of them looked sweet and affectionate.
For awhile, there was only silence. Yan Yan retracted his chin, playfully giving a little nudge against Zhuang Yiyun’s shoulder before moving.
“Why did your mother set us up for a blind date if she didn’t approve of me? My mother said it was your mother’s idea.”
“When I was twenty-six and had a stable career, she thought it was time for me to get married. In the template of successful people, a respectable marriage is necessary. So, last year, she nagged me about marriage all year long. If I didn’t reply to her messages, she would call; if I didn’t answer her calls, she would come to the house… I was annoyed and told her I was gay. She didn’t accept it and wanted to test me…”
Yan Yan’s mind worked quickly, suddenly understanding Zhuang Xian’s brain circuit. He asked, “Your mother thought I’m just a beautiful vase, and you definitely won’t be interested in me, so she set us up, right?”
Before Zhuang Yiyun could answer, Yan Yan sneered and raised his voice a bit, “Humph, how infuriating! So, it’s because she thought I’m not good enough that she arranged this.”
Zhuang Yiyun was about to console him, intending to say it was his mother’s perspective, but Yan Yan interrupted, “But it doesn’t matter. I don’t need her approval. As long as I have the certificate, she can’t do anything about it.”
Zhuang Yiyun couldn’t help but smile. Yan Yan, in his lively manner, didn’t need comforting.
He nodded, “Exactly, she can’t do anything. And she was wrong. My Yan Yan is the best.”
Zhuang Yiyun’s coaxing tone made Yan Yan a bit uncomfortable. He was about to scold him, but Zhuang Yiyun continued, “She’s my only family. I’ve been accommodating for twenty-six years. No matter how much I dislike or disapprove, I’ve tried my best to meet her demands. Marrying you was the first act of rebellion since I became sensible.”
“I’m thankful for my impulsive decision back then.”
Zhuang Yiyun looked at Yan Yan as if he were examining a rare treasure. His black pupils reflected Yan Yan’s face. They were devoid of any color but Yan Yan knew his face must be burning red.
“There won’t be anyone better than you in this world.”
“That’s too exaggerated. I have self-awareness…” Normally, he would have responded enthusiastically and arrogantly, but Zhuang Yiyun said it so seriously that he couldn’t bring himself to joke.
Zhuang Yiyun shook his head, his expression relaxed yet firm. “You are the best.”
“Your filter is too strong…”
“It’s not a filter.”
Yan Yan met Zhuang Yiyun’s gaze, and for a moment, he was transported back to the day of the sunset at sea, the day Zhuang Yiyun took the photo of him titled ‘Miracle.’ The pure soul reflected in that picture was how Zhuang Yiyun saw him.
It was so embarrassing; Zhuang Yiyun, a twenty-seven-year-old scientist, was so obsessed, almost like a teenager.
“Fine… I’m awesome?” Yan Yan couldn’t bear to let Zhuang Yiyun’s expectant gaze go unanswered, so he responded tentatively.
Zhuang Yiyun nodded in satisfaction. Then he took out a mint candy from his pocket and placed it in Yan Yan’s palm.
“Then, you’re the most awesome husband of mine. You’re even more awesome.” Yan Yan endured his embarrassment and coaxed back.
Forget it, let him be. It doesn’t matter if he bragged like this. His husband’s happiness was the most important.
Zhuang Yiyun’s large hand covered his head, gently and firmly patting it.
They spent the whole afternoon at the small church. Yan Yan helped Zhuang Yiyun tidy up both the inside and outside for Uncle Xu’s house. Uncle Xu wanted to treat them to a meal, but Yan Yan insisted on cooking. While he was washing vegetables, Zhuang Yiyun went to fold blankets for Uncle Xu. When they were alone, Uncle Xu showed Yan Yan some old photos. In one photo, Zhuang Yiyun was a little kid with a serious expression, looking cool.
Boring, he grew up too fast and was already mature and serious at this age, just like now.
At that moment, Uncle Xu handed him another photo and Yan Yan’s eyes suddenly went wide.
In the photo, a young Zhuang Yiyun was holding a large apple in his hands, standing beside a cassia tree in the yard, smiling sweetly. The apple was almost as big as his face and a vibrant red.
“My friend brought this apple back from Xinjiang. I picked the biggest one for Yiyun. His eyes lit up when he held it, and he couldn’t near to eat it.”
Yan Yan gently caressed the photo and suddenly asked, “Uncle Xu, can I have this photo?”
So, that day, besides gaining a lot of stories about the past, Yan Yan also received a photo—the most adorable and sweetest human cub in the world—Little Zhuang Yiyun.
Half of the weekend had passed. When they returned home, the remaining time was spent being affectionate and unreserved. Zhuang Yiyun wanted to take him out, but Yan Yan was unwilling. He even clung to Zhuang Yiyun when he wanted to go jogging. He clung to him, acted coquettishly and touched wherever he could. He just wanted to stick with him and not let go.
“You’ll be going to work tomorrow, and I’ll be going back to school. I’ll die if I’m apart from my gege for even a second today. I’ll die of thirst, hunger, and crying.”
“Nonsense.” Zhuang Yiyun couldn’t do anything with him, so he scolded him half-heartedly.
On Monday morning, Zhuang Yiyun dropped Yan Yan off at school. He drove directly to the dormitory building.
It was a time when there were many people on the road. As soon as Yan Yan got out of the car, he was immediately surrounded.
Zhuang Yiyun’s car had just left and he was about to walk toward the dormitory building when a junior rushed over to him. Yan Yan instinctively moved backward. Seeing her face turn red, he wondered if she was going to confess to him.
Unexpectedly, the junior stopped about two meters away from him, one hand covering her face, the other clenched into a fist, shouting at him, “Senior, may you and Professor Zhuang have a hundred years of happiness!”
After shouting, she put on a mask, and ran away excitedly.
Someone set the trend, and many fellow students followed, showering him with blessings like “happily ever after,” “flying together,” and “immortal couple.” Some even took the opportunity to yell, “Have a baby soon…”
With so many WeChat messages and the school’s official Weibo posting a clarification announcement, he guessed that everyone must know now, but he didn’t expect the situation after everyone knew would be like this. He wanted to play it cool, but he found it both embarrassing and blissful. In the end, he just thanked his way through, feeling like his public image had collapsed all the way.
As soon as he entered the dormitory, he met Hu Cong who was about to leave. Immediately the other party saw him, he circled around him.
“How did you walk in? Many people have been waiting outside the dormitory building for you these past few days!”
Yan Yan: “I just walked in. Why are they waiting for me?”
“They all had phones and cameras, claiming to be reporters from the school newspaper. Liars! They’re just CP shippers, waiting to capture photos of you and Professor Zhuang for the forum! Your popularity on the forum exploded. Even classmates are asking me about you and Professor Zhuang.”
Yan Yan: “…”
After a moment of silence, he picked up his book and asked Hu Cong, “Should we still go to the study room?”
“Of course, why not? If I can’t pass the exam, and you can’t get into graduate school, who will take responsibility?”
Yan Yan paused, then asked, “How did you know I wanted to take the postgraduate entrance exam?”
“We study together every day; I’m not stupid.” Hu Cong patted his shoulder. “Let’s work hard together, okay?”
“Let’s work hard together.”
“Honestly, you should be like this. Actually, we all used to think you were quite aloof. First, let me clarify, it’s not because you’re handsome. I don’t know how to say it, but everyone else has goals, yet you seemed carefree. Of course, you have the capital to be carefree… I don’t know what I’m saying anymore. Anyway, things are good now, good brother!” Hu Cong scratched his head, frustrated by his own lack of eloquence.
“Yeah, good brother.”
Yan Yan’s response left Hu Cong flabbergasted, and he excitedly put his arm around Yan Yan’s shoulder, dragging him out of the dormitory. For a moment, he forgot about Yan Yan’s sexual orientation.
Until… they reached the lobby on the first floor, where a group of cameras was waiting outside. Hu Cong’s scalp went numb, and he instantly regained his senses, moving three meters away from Yan Yan. Joking aside, if a photo of him and Yan Yan appeared on the forum… He recalled Professor Zhuang’s expression… He feared he wouldn’t live to see the civil service exam.
The two of them went to the study room together, maintaining a three-meter distance throughout. Yan Yan tried to call Hu Cong back, but he couldn’t.
“Why are you standing so far away?” Yan Yan asked.
“I’m afraid of getting beaten up by your husband.”
Yan Yan was utterly speechless and messaged Zhuang Yiyun.
Yan Yan: [You scared my roommate.]
Zhuang Yiyun’s reply came in the afternoon.
Zhuang Yiyun: [Should I apologize in person this afternoon?]
Zhuang Yiyun: [I’ve been busy all morning.]
Yan Yan: [In the afternoon?]
Zhuang Yiyun: [Class schedule photo]
Zhuang Yiyun: [I have class in the afternoon. I’ll pick you up after school.]
Yan Yan: [You make it sound like I’m in elementary school.]
Zhuang Yiyun: [Then call me “Daddy”?]
Yan Yan: [Get lost.]
Zhuang Yiyun suddenly unlocked a new gameplay. Later, he forced Yan Yan to say “Daddy,” but not on WeChat; it was in front of the mirror in the bathroom. Yan Yan’s slender waist was pulled into a remarkably flexible curve, swaying in the person’s arms.
Author’s Note:
In fact, the initial intention of writing this CP was very secondary: Zhuang Yiyun’s delayed rebellion encountered the unruly Yan Yan, so Yan Yan became the rebelliousness he could never shake off.
Their love story is also very idealized: Yan Yan can handle all of Zhuang Yiyun’s negativity and darkness, and Zhuang Yiyun can see all the pure and gentle qualities under Yan Yan’s wild appearance. They are not perfect, but they recognize and accept each other.
Daddy ~ lol