Chapter Text
The moment Xie Lian entered the park, his eyes immediately found Hua Cheng in the crowd—sitting alone on a bench, tapping his foot on the sidewalk and staring straight ahead, clearly lost in thoughts. Just once glimpse of him was enough for all the confidence Xie Lian had gathered inside himself to vanish.
Now that he thought about it, how could he have acted so boldly as to say “You won’t kiss me until we get to know each other better?” when Hua Cheng had been flirting with him the other day? Was he drunk (drunk with love) to say such shameless things out loud, things that now made his cheek grow hot just at the mere thought of them?!
Xie Lian let out a sigh, using all his willpower not to run his hand through his hair, lest he destroy the hairstyle Shi Qingxuan had worked on so hard. And, as much as he would appreciate a moment longer to get a hold of himself (and stop thinking about the cheeky texts Hua Cheng had been sending him, teasing him mercilessly), he, unfortunately, didn’t have any minute left to spare. He didn’t want Hua Cheng to think he didn’t care, being late for their first date.
He slowly approached him, quickly realizing that the longer he looked at Hua Cheng, the harder it was to look away. He was even more handsome now that he was wearing normal clothes, and his long, raven hair wasn’t tied back with a hairband—it was loose, beautifully framing his features and somehow emphasizing his slightly boyish nature. Moreover, as the distance between them shortened, Xie Lian noticed something that made him choke on air:
Hua Cheng brought a bouquet of flowers.
And you must know that no one had ever given Xie Lian flowers before.
His heart, beating incredibly fast, was about to leap out of his chest with nerves and fondness. Did people always feel this way on dates?
Xie Lian took yet another deep breath, having finally approached Hua Cheng, who still seemed to be lost in thought. Only when he cleared his throat lightly did Hua Cheng snap out of some kind of trance; his face immediately brightened when he realized it was Xie Lian.
“Gege!” Hua Cheng said cheerfully and he stood up, towering over him. The bouquet of flowers he held rustled as he—rather unconsciously—pulled it closer to his chest, his hands clenching slightly. “It’s good to finally see you.”
Xie Lian craned his neck to look Hua Cheng in the eye—his single obsidian eye that was sparkling with affection and happiness like a hundred little stars. He really seemed happy to see him, Xie Lian realized with a fond smile on his face.
Also, did the height difference—Hua Cheng was at least a head taller than him—have a strange effect on his heart? Definitely yes. He swallowed hard, instead trying to focus on the fact that they met and were able to spend some good time together. Not on how attractive Hua Cheng was.
“San Lang,” Xie Lian greeted him back with a shy smile and tucked a strand of hair behind his ear, revealing his flushed cheek. Unfortunately, the chilly weather didn’t soften the blush that had been on his face for some time. “Have you been waiting long? I’m sorry.”
“No, no!” Hua Cheng immediately denied, smiling fondly as his gaze swept over Xie Lian’s figure. “Gege is perfectly on time. Here.” He handed him the bouquet, his hands brushing against Xie Lian’s. “I hope you like it. I didn’t ask what your favorite flowers were, so I chose something simple, ah…”
Red roses. Red like Hua Cheng’s leather jacket. Red like Xie Lian’s face.
“I love them,” Xie Lian murmured, burying his face in the flowers to inhale their wonderful fragrance and hide the love-dovey smile blooming on his lips. “Thank you.”
Seeing his positive reaction, Hua Cheng seemed a little more relaxed. “I’m glad. Shall we?” He asked quietly, offering Xie Lian his arm, which the latter shyly accepted. After wrapping his arm around Hua Cheng’s, Xie Lian gave him a light hug and they walked slowly into the park. “I hope I don’t smell like old frying oil,” Hua Cheng chuckled to break the ice—if that was even necessary, since they both seemed comfortable in each other’s presence. “I didn’t work today, but washing off that smell is usually quite a hassle.”
Hua Cheng actually smelled nothing like old oil. The scent of his cologne was really pleasant—not too strong, but noticeable. Was it jasmine, Xie Lian wondered?
Having realized he had momentarily drifted off—what more, actually appreciating his date’s scent!—Xie Lian shook his head and looked at Hua Cheng with a tender smile, hoping his steady voice left no room for doubt. “Not at all.” And then, before he could blurt out something like “You smell wonderful, San Lang!”, he decided to change the subject, steering this conversation into safer waters. “So… have you been here before, San Lang?”
A small smile, almost mischievous, suddenly tugged at the corners of Hua Cheng’s lips. It took him a moment to say anything, as if he were lost in thought again. But then, instead of answering the question, he said apologetically, “Forgive me, gege. I’m afraid I didn’t catch what you had just asked. Please, say it again?”
Xie Lian raised an eyebrow, looking at him suspiciously—what had distracted him just now? “San Lang? Are you not feeling well?”
“I’ve never felt better than I do now, gege,” he replied easily, a soft chuckle escaping his lips. “It really sounds better when gege says my name in person than over a text.”
Xie Lian gasped, his heart skipping a beat. This man, really! “You are such a tease, San Lang,” he murmured and hugged his arm more tightly.
At that, Hua Cheng chuckled again—it was like music to Xie Lian’s ears.
“No, I have never been here,” Hua Cheng shrugged, fully aware of Xie Lian’s earlier question. “Truth be told, I have little time because of work and classes. But don’t get me wrong, gege,” he paused to look at Xie Lian, his expression turning serious. “That doesn’t mean I won’t make time for you. I’m willing to sacrifice sleep or–”
“San Lang, you can’t!” Xie Lian interrupted him, terrified at the thought of stealing Hua Cheng’s precious sleep time. Of course he would love to see Hua Cheng whenever he had the chance, but his health was more important than his selfish whims. “You work and study, and that’s so admirable. I would never let you sleep less because of me. I’m sure… we will figure it out somehow. You know,” his expression turned shy, “you don’t have to steal glances at me on campus anymore. I would be happy if San Lang… talked to me there too.”
Hua Cheng’s lips parted slightly, and his mask of confidence seemed to crumble to pieces as the tips of his ears turned a light shade of pink. “I just wanted gege to know I think very seriously about him,” he murmured quietly.
Hearing this, Xie Lian could no longer pretend that the question that had been bothering him since they exchanged numbers didn’t matter. He stopped in his tracks, prompting Hua Cheng to do the same, and suddenly buried his face in the roses again, his heart pounding loud in his chest. “San Lang?” Xie Lian asked hesitantly, peeking at him over the bouquet. “What are we to each other? Friends, or…?”
At first, Hua Cheng seemed surprised as his obsidian eye widened noticeably. He then scratched the back of his neck and searched for the right words—all the while maintaining eye contact with Xie Lian. “Well, this is a date. And we’ve gotten to know each other a bit,” Hua Cheng admitted, smiling fondly. “I know gege is an amazing cook, even though I haven’t had the chance to try his food yet. I know gege is very empathetic and helps anyone who asks him for advice. I know gege is good at calligraphy and martial arts. I know gege likes to play badminton with his friends in the evenings; I’ve seen him on the court many times.”
Hua Cheng continued for a while, passionately listing the little things Xie Lian liked or not. Some of them were things Xie Lian hadn’t shared with him—they were Hua Cheng’s own observations from the past few weeks.
Meanwhile, without breaking his monologue, Hua Cheng gestured to a nearby bench so they could rest for a moment; he even encouraged Xie Lian to sit close to him, their legs brushing each other. His warmth, as Xie Lian had realized long ago, was very comforting.
“I know there’s still a lot I don’t know about you,” Hua Cheng admitted bashfully, resting his hands on his legs and looking up at the sky, observing the clouds above their heads. “And I don’t want to find out right away. If gege allows it, I’d love to discover new things over time, as we... grow closer?” he asked hesitantly, turning his head towards Xie Lian to look into his eyes.
“Is San Lang asking me to be his boyfriend?” Xie Lian asked hopefully, nervously clenching his hands on the reddish foil tightly wrapped around the bouquet he was holding.
“Ah, gege,” Hua Cheng chuckled, that adorable dimple of his appearing on his cheek. “You know I’m the romantic type. I couldn’t ask directly.”
Xie Lian turned towards him, accidentally bumping his knee against Hua Cheng’s thigh. His eyes, honey-warmed, stared into Hua Cheng’s obsidian iris. “Does San Lang expect a poetic answer from me?”
Hua Cheng bit his cheek, pondering the answer. “No.”
“Then yes, San Lang,” he reached out to take Hua Cheng’s hand, squeezing it tightly. “Yes. Hundreds yes.”
“Is my knowledge of gege enough,” Hua Cheng visibly swallowed, his Adam’s apple bobbing up and down—Xie Lian’s eyes were immediately drawn to that movement like moths to a light. “To kiss him?”
Xie Lian blushed, but nodded, nonetheless.
Careful not to crush the flowers in Xie Lian’s lap, Hua Cheng moved his body closer to Xie Lian; he rested one hand on the back of the bench, and gently cupped Xie Lian’s cheek with the other. It didn’t matter that they were in a public place, surrounded by people of different ages—what mattered was them, their obvious desire and mutual attraction written all over their faces.
Hua Cheng moved his face closer, and so did Xie Lian; their lips were so close to each other that their warm breaths mingled, but then—
Xie Lian panicked.
“San Lang!” he exclaimed, squeezing his eyes tightly shut, afraid to bear Hua Cheng’s hungry gaze, or worse, his disappointed expression. “I–I might not be very good at this, okay? I’ve never… kissed... anyone,” he admitted quietly, almost in a whisper.
Better to confess it before disappointment sets in, no?
But to Xie Lian’s surprise, disappointment he was fearing never came.
“Neither have I, gege. Why are you so worried about it?” Hua Cheng asked, stroking Xie Lian’s cheek with his thumb and looking at his face with a frown.
“You never have…? But I thought San Lang was popular…”
“Oh? That’s interesting,” Hua Cheng grinned when Xie Lian blinked in confusion. His hand, previously touching Xie Lian’s cheek, now rested on his thigh—not too close to his private parts to consider it inappropriate, but definitely comforting. “Pray gege tell me why exactly I am popular? Because I don’t think people should be interested in such a selfish dumbass like me–”
“Something tells me that San Lang is fishing for compliments now,” Xie Lian murmured, unable to stop the smile that began to spread across his face.
“You were the one who started this, gege,” Hua Cheng pointed out, playfully raising an eyebrow. Although he undoubtedly wanted to tease him—his mischievous nature had taken over again—his smile remained tender, and Xie Lian knew he could spend hours just looking at that curve of his beautiful lips.
Hua Cheng’s comment, too, prevented any awkwardness between them.
“Don’t worry about it, yeah? I hope our first kiss will be extremely awkward so we can laugh about it later,” Hua Cheng said, closing his eye and leaning in again, albeit slowly—just in case Xie Lian changed his mind and had a chance to avoid the kiss.
Xie Lian didn’t change his mind. The moment their lips met, he felt as if time had stopped, and his heart exploded with warmth. Their first kiss was anything but awkward; it was a delicate, almost hesitant touch of lips against lips.
That feeling was enough to send a shiver down his spine and raise goosebumps across his skin beneath the fabric of his sweater. Xie Lian involuntarily let out a quiet sigh, and Hua Cheng, afraid that he had done something wrong, pulled away.
“Gege?” Hua Cheng frowned and took Xie Lian’s hand in his, raising his eyebrows in surprise. “Your hands are so cold, and I swear they haven't been like this before. I didn’t want to say anything earlier because I think gege’s white sweater is very cute, but you are definitely underdressed for this weather.”
Then, before Xie Lian could protest, Hua Cheng leaned back completely, took off his red leather jacket, and pushed it into Xie Lian's hand.
“Gege will break my heart if he doesn’t accept it.”
“San Lang…” Xie Lian whispered and tightened his fingers on the jacket he held on his lap. He knew that as soon as he put it on, the scent of Hua Cheng’s cologne would envelop his body and, hopefully, soak into his own clothes, so that when they parted later that evening, a part of Hua Cheng would stay with him.
“Here, let me help you,” Hua Cheng said tenderly, taking the bouquet from Xie Lian’s hand and placing it on his own lap. He then helped him put on his jacket and made sure it fit him well. “Better?”
Xie Lian nodded, enamoured, the color of the jacket matching the shade of his cheeks.
And then, Hua Cheng, as if he couldn’t hold back, lifted Xie Lian’s chin with his finger and suddenly closed the distance between them again, slotting his lips with Xie Lian’s. The kiss, though still without tongue, grew more passionate with each passing moment. Hua Cheng, although inexperienced, was a quick learner and knew how to angle his head or nip at Xie Lian’s lip to elicit a certain reaction or sound from him.
These sounds were the reason why Xie Lian pulled away, having realized how loud he actually was and, even worse—that he couldn’t stop making them, even though they were still in a public place!
“S-San Lang,” Xie Lian hid his face in the flowers. “I’m cold. No, I’m hungry! I…” he groaned, embarrassed. What was he even saying? Not only could he not control what came out of his mouth, but it was even more difficult for him to think clearly!
He wanted to sink into the ground, but Hua Cheng, on the other hand, found his behavior endearing.
“Gege is so cute when he’s shy,” Hua Cheng teased with a chuckle and pulled him into a tight embrace, smiling. “If gege is hungry, we can go eat something. But please, gege, have mercy on your poor San Lang and choose something other than Mcdonald’s.”