Chapter Text
Yut Lung Lee awoke as he would any other morning. Dark eyes fluttered open only to be greeted by his own elegant bedroom. Thin, delicate lips parted to release a small sigh, his arms reaching above his head in a stretch. The young man groaned, his slender fingers dancing across his silken bedsheets, across the pillowcase, and into the equally soft contents of his hair, all loose and collected in a pile beside his head. He combed through the tangled strands, twirling one around his finger. Another sigh, this time dreamy and longing as his mind wandered to the person he had fallen asleep next to the previous night — you.
Yut Lung wouldn’t go around trusting anyone to share a bed with him. But he hadn’t found himself protecting himself from wandering hands or inching closer to the other side of the bed when he was with you. No, quite the opposite in fact. He couldn’t get enough of the way you dragged your fingers through his hair, lightly massaging his scalp every so often. Perhaps simulating your touch was the soul reason he was tugging on strands of his own hair as he lay there, not willing to drag himself out of bed just yet. He internally kicked himself for not inviting you to stay the night sooner. Then again, how could he have known that your presence as he fell asleep would be absolute heaven?
Before his mind could drift any further into memories of you, possibly even lulling the young man back to sleep, Yut Lung caught a glimpse of the empty space beside him. His back became as straight and stiff as a board, sheets falling from his chest as he shot bolt upright in bed, hands feeling around for you. Had you perhaps been buried in the sheets due to restless sleeping? But no matter how much he destroyed his bedsheets in his search, you were nowhere to be found among them.
Yut Lung cursed the rapidly increasing beat of his heart. This was foolish, you wouldn’t just leave, right? Not after you had lulled him to sleep with your kind touch and even more heart-fluttering words. “I love you,” you had told him. Your eyes were so genuine as you said it, but could that have just been his own imagination — the desire to be loved as much as he loved you fooling his brain into creating false memories? The raven-haired boy bit his lip with worry. He’d send the guards to search for you. Perhaps you were in danger. If he could just get to you in time— Ah, what’s this?
The racing of Yut Lung’s mind screeched to a halt as soon as his eyes landed on a piece of fabric that was out of place. Among the now crumpled and twisted bedsheets, a flash of vibrant red stood out. His immediate reaction was to tear whatever it was from the mess of sheets and blankets, finding that somehow his robe got mixed in. He didn’t remember wearing his robe to bed last night, but the sticky note still attached to the soft fabric told him how it must have gotten there.
“In the kitchen. Meet me out there when you’re ready? :)”
With every word taken in, the ghost of a smile tugging at Yut Lung’s lips morphed into a full on goofy-looking grin. You must have left the red garment on the bed for him to wear when he woke. The young man donned the robe and pocketed the note you had left, exiting the bedroom and making a bee-line for the kitchen.
Even before Yut Lung arrived to his destination the sound of cups and what sounded like ceramic being shifted, clanking as they were moved reached his ears. More than that, a positively delightful smell wafted into his nose. The raven haired boy inhaled deeply, closing his eyes and reveling in the scent of sweet and savory blending together harmoniously. He felt an ache in his stomach, telling him to get some of the mouth-watering treats being prepared in the very room he approached. Yut Lung pulled open the kitchen door, and the sight before him warmed not only his heart, but his entire body as well. Perhaps that was the heat from the stove, though.
You were wearing one of his sweaters — the cream colored, cable knit one, the one you deemed the coziest of the bunch — and a pair of plain black shorts. You were standing at the counter, dunking teabags into a couple of mugs while food sizzled on a skillet atop the stove. Your hair was tousled, tangled in some places. Your eyes looked tired, but brightened as soon as you turned around and saw him walking through the door. You were absolutely astounding to the love-struck young man.
“Morning, sleeping beauty. Rest well?” You inquired, taking both mugs in hand. You padded over to Yut Lung, carefully extracting one mug for him to take, which he did gratefully. He wrapped his hands around the heated ceramic, inhaling the scent of herbs and sugar before taking a long swig.
“Wonderfully, thank you. I...hope I wasn’t too much of a bother last night.”
Your eyebrows knitted together above the rim of your own mug. You swallowed your gulp of tea and responded, “A bother? Yut Lung, trust me when I say you could never be a ‘bother’. I enjoyed my time here.”
The sudden crackle of oil in the skillet caused you to set your tea on the counter and bustle over to it, checking the contents to make sure nothing was burned.
“Where did you get bacon and pancake batter?” Yut Lung asked, peering around you to see a few strips of crackling bacon being flipped right next to a bubbling heap of tan-colored batter. “I certainly don’t remember buying that.”
“It was literally in the back of your pantry,” you laughed. “I thought you deserved to have some good ol’ fattening foods, and I wanted to be the one to make it for you!”
You began to load each strip of bacon onto a plate as they finished cooking. When there was no response from Yut Lung, you turned around to meet his confused gaze.
“You...ah, I see.”
“Do you not want it? I can always eat it if you don’t—“
“No, no. That is not the case. I...well, no one ever goes out of their way to treat me this way out of the kindness of their own heart.” The young man found himself fingering a particular strand of hair that just wouldn’t stay in place, feeling like a shy school girl in that moment, his eyes unable to meet yours with his admission. He only returned your gaze when something came poking at his lips. He was met with a piece of bacon held right at his mouth.
“I do. And I always will.”
Yut Lung parted his lips and you slipped a bit of the bacon into his mouth, allowing him to bite off as much of it as he wanted. He hummed in delight as he chewed, the savory treat filling his entire body with warmth.
“Also, bacon and pancakes may or may not be the only thing in your kitchen that I know how to make, so don’t flatter me too much.”
“I might just die of a heart attack if you keep this up.”
“Oh, shush!” You playfully whacked him with a towel. “At least I can actually cook, Princess.”
Yut Lung chuckled, watching the back of your head as you turned to check on the pancakes. You piled them onto the plate as they browned, creating a stack each separated by a glob of butter. Yut Lung’s stomach clenched as he watched you pick up the plate then grab his hand with your free one. You guided him out to the dining room and placed his food at the head of the table, pulling out the chair for him. You waited as Yut Lung carefully made his way towards you, pecking your cheek and nuzzling his nose into your hair before sitting down.
“You’re too kind to me,” he remarked, taking the fork you’d placed beside his plate in hand.
“No such thing, love!” You chirped.
As Yut Lung sliced off a good portion of a pancake you sat down in the chair closest to him, watching intently. Assuming you were waiting for commentary on your cooking, Yut Lung bit the food from his fork. He chewed slowly, savoring every bit of flavor with the knowledge that this wasn’t made for him by a paid chef. This was made by someone he loved. This was made by someone who loved him, as crazy and unbelievable as it sounded. That thought alone made the sweetness flooding his tastebuds even more delightful.
“So?” You spoke eagerly, forcing Yut Lung back into the present. “How’d I do?”
“Amazing as always, dearest.”
Your eyes shone at his words, sparking a flame in his heart. Yut Lung immediately dug in for a second bite, then a third and a fourth. You watched with compassion the entire time your partner stuffed his face in somehow the most elegant fashion you had ever seen. “So, what were you thinking of doing today?” You asked when the room got silent, only filled with sound of chewing and delighted hums of approval.
Yut Lung swallowed the bite in his mouth. Suddenly every little task and chore that he was meant to accomplish that day ran like a film in his mind. His entire body practically deflated, air exiting his lungs in a deep sigh. “Mmmn, I don’t know. I’m rather tired.”
“You didn’t do anything yet, though.”
“And yet here we are.”
“Oh, you poor thing. Can you stay awake long enough to feed yourself or do you need me to do it for you?”
Yut Lung picked up on the playful tone in your voice and held his fork out to you, pushing out his bottom lip in a pout. “Would you?”
You laughed, plucking his fork from his dainty hand and making good on your offer. You chopped off a slice of your own cooking and directed it towards his mouth. “Open up, your majesty,” you joked.
Yut Lung did as you asked with a little quirk to his lips as they parted. He made sure to properly chew and swallow before saying, “As I said, too kind.”
“Anything you wish, your highness.” You drawled with a lilt to your tone. You took your lip between your teeth, nipping at the skin there until you spoke up again, “All jokes aside, you do know I’d do anything for you, right?”
“I know,” whispered the young raven haired man at your side. He did know this, he knew it the second you agreed to spend the night at his home simply because he hated the idea of sleeping alone, just welcoming another nightmare into his unconscious mind. He knew this the moment he walked downstairs to find you happily milling about in his kitchen, the glorious scent of your own favorite breakfast foods wafting into his nose. Yut Lung knew how much you loved him, but sometimes it was hard to believe you weren’t just like everyone else in his life — cold, brutal, ulterior motive-having scum. But at the same time, he had to believe it when you did things like this. You haven’t even asked anything of him yet. Just his presence and his love was all you craved from him, and that was all Yut Lung wanted from you.
And he knew that you’d stay by his side, supply your love and affection to him like a drug until the day he died.
“And you know I love you, don’t you?”
“Of course I do, darling. I’d be a fool if I didn’t.”