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Wang Jiexi loved cats. He hadn’t admitted this, nor given any indication that it was true but Fang Shiqian had seen him in the streets, in Tiny Herb’s garden, hand outstretched towards this or that cat, gently coaxing them closer, a soft look written across his face. And cats loved Wang Jiexi, they always approached him, nice and sweet, demanding to be petted, something that Wang Jiexi seemed to take great joy in.
He was watching Wang Jiexi carefully cradle one of the stray cats that had seemingly imprinted on him right now. Wang Jiexi had said earlier, to the cats, that he didn’t have favourites amongst them as they were fed, but Fang Shiqian knew this was a lie. Anyone who’d ever seen him with the cats knew that this one was his favourite, could see it in the way he’d scoop her up and coo quietly.
Imagine, Wang Jiexi, captain in his debut year, the Magician himself, cooing sweet praises at a cat. A cat that Fang Shiqian could see was in fact a kitten. Wang Jiexi was crouched down near the ground, with some kind of feathery toy in his hand, darting it back and forth across the ground for the kitten to chase and Fang Shiqian felt his chest tighten slightly at the scene.
Wang Jiexi seemed at peace, smile making his lips curl up as he hummed something under his breath and Fang Shiqian slipped away to leave his captain and his cat in peace.
Wang Jiexi’s jacket was wriggling. Everyone in the room had noticed, it was difficult to ignore the fact that the jacket was twitching and occasionally making a muffled noise, but everyone refused to acknowledge it. Fang Shiqian, in turn, was pointedly ignoring the looks the rest of the team were shooting him, he’d talk to Wang Jiexi about it when he was ready, and not a moment before.
Besides, he was already nearly certain he already knew why the jacket wouldn’t stop moving.
Fang Shiqian knew that it wasn’t nice but he enjoyed the way Wang Jiexi frowned slightly when he lingered after training, not exiting with everyone else. His gaze flickered to the jacket, which had gone still a little while ago before returning his gaze to his vice-captain.
“Can I help you Shiqian?”
“I’m cold, can I have your jacket?” It was blatantly bullshit, he knew it, Wang Jiexi knew it, whatever was hiding under the jacket knew it but Fang Shiqian refused to back down. Wang Jiexi might be resolute but he was stubborn and he wasn’t leaving until he had his suspicions confirmed.
He watched, still delighted, as Wang Jiexi’s brain seemed to stall for a few moments as he seemingly tried to figure out a way to deny Fang Shiqian’s request.
“You can’t, I’m also cold.” Fang Shiqian kept his face fixed in a mask of polite agreement, still staring at Wang Jiexi who seemed to realise that he wasn’t leaving and his shoulders slumped slightly in defeat. He seemed to wonder if he could put on the jacket and still hide whatever was underneath but then the jacket wriggled again and a tiny furry head poked out of the sleeve.
“Meow.” Said the head. Fang Shiqian couldn’t help but be smug at the confirmation of his suspicions and the defeated look on Wang Jiexi’s face. “Meow!” Said the head once more but more demanding this time. Fang Shiqian watched as Wang Jiexi seemed to move on instinct, carefully extracting the kitten and placing her on his shoulder where she kneaded at the skin there a little before settling, content with her new placement.
“What’s her name?” Wang Jiexi’s eyes widened in surprise and Fang Shiqian was proud of himself for continuously managing to surprise the other, something that seemed hard to do.
“Coriander,” the cat, Coriander, made another soft noise, this one sounding like a purr in response and Fang Shiqian wrinkled his nose at the answer.
“That’s a stupid name.”
“I found her in the coriander patch.” Despite his voice remaining even, Wang Jiexi seemed almost offended by his words, defensive of his name. Fang Shiqian rolled his eyes as he moved closer, reaching out one hand slowly towards the kitten. While she seemed completely uninterested in him, little head tilted up regally, she deigned to sniff carefully at his hand, and gently nudged her face against his knuckles after a few moments.
It was ridiculous, but Fang Shiqian felt a warm glow in his chest at the acceptance from the cat. The glow was soon snuffed out when Fang Shiqian was once again reminded of the height difference between himself and Wang Jiexi. He’d returned after the summer having had a late growth spurt and, after some subtle comparisons, had grown to be a centimetre taller than Fang Shiqian.
Fang Shiqian refused to admit that was the reason he’d pointedly ignored Wang Jiexi for three weeks after they’d returned after the summer outside of training and paperwork. It was petty and ridiculous, but Fang Shiqian decided that three weeks for each month Wang Jiexi spent away and growing taller was fair. He was, however, taking that fact to his grave, even if Wang Jiexi, being disgustingly perceptive, had likely already figured it out.
“Why is she inside?”
“I’m adopting her, she doesn’t have an owner so she can be the team cat.” Fang Shiqian tilted his head to the side, taking in the cat, mulling his thoughts over for a few moments.
“Then you should call her Tiny Herb.” Wang Jiexi’s uneven eyes were remarkably judgemental but Fang Shiqian didn’t take it back.
“Her name is Coriander, it’s on the forms.” After this, the cat mewled and Wang Jiexi scratched her head gently, stating that she needed to be fed, Fang Shiqian, not to be deterred, followed along.
“You’re being blind Jiexi, I always knew your eyes interfered with your vision,” Wang Jiexi took a moment to sigh silently, keeping his expression away from Fang Shiqian’s gaze, “and now I have definitive proof that your eyes make you blind, if she’s going to be the team’s cat then she should be called something related to the team-“
“Coriander is an herb and we’re Tiny Herb, do we need more-?”
“Don’t interrupt me.” Fang Shiqian flicked Wang Jiexi’s shoulder before continuing his tirade, “as I was saying, better to link the cat’s name to the team in a way you can’t ignore, so it’s always clear which team she belongs to!”
“Is that a cat?” Li Yihui stopped in his tracks, hand already stretched out as he murmured softly to the cat on Wang Jiexi’s shoulder. His face lit up when she sniffed lightly at his hand before purring gently, clearly unbothered when he gave her a little pet. “What’s her name?”
“Tiny Herb.” Wang Jiexi shot a look at Fang Shiqian who schooled his face into innocence.
“It’s Coriander actually.”
“But don’t you think Tiny Herb is better, Wang Jiexi said he found her in the herb garden, and she’s so little, Tiny Herb is a very good name for her.” To Wang Jiexi’s dismay, Li Yihui seemed swayed by Fang Shiqian’s point, nodding thoughtfully.
“You’re right, and then everyone will know she’s part of our team as well, that is a good name for her.” Fang Shiqian was physically radiating smugness and Wang Jiexi was fully aware that the moment Li Yihui left, he’d be verbally expressing his smugness as well.
“I’ll think about it senior.” Li Yihui cooed at the cat a little more before leaving them with a nod and Fang Shiqian continued to follow Wang Jiexi into the kitchen, still arguing the point about the names even as Wang Jiexi got out some cat bowls.
“See Senior Li thought that Tiny Herb is a great name for her, just look at her!” The cat in question had jumped down off Wang Jiexi’s shoulder to eat, emanating quiet purrs as she did so and Wang Jiexi got slightly distracted from the conversation by how cute she was. “-which means, are you even listening to me?!”
The smack at his shoulder jolted Wang Jiexi out of his trance and he turned his attention back to Fang Shiqian who was glaring at him. Wang Jiexi was abruptly reminded of the cat he fed that would hiss and glare whenever he petted him but didn’t move away from his touch and always melted into a puddle after a few moments of scratching behind his ears. While he knew that trying it on Fang Shiqian would likely end with him getting smacked or bitten, he couldn’t help but want to pat his vice-captain on his head.
“You were telling me I should call her Tiny Herb.” From the way Fang Shiqian’s eyes narrowed, Wang Jiexi had not guessed correctly.
“I was asking if you’ve told management.”
“Of course.” Fang Shiqian looked unconvinced and Wang Jiexi wilted a little under the stare, “I told them I had a good marketing idea.”
“They probably think you’ve got a sponsorship idea.” Wang Jiexi scooped up the cat once more and cradled her carefully in his arms, stubbornness written across his face.
“It’s a good idea, it humanises the team and she’s photogenic.” Wang Jiexi blinked when he realised that Fang Shiqian had taken a photo of him and the cat and appeared to be studying it intently.
“The cat is more photogenic than you.” Wang Jiexi thought that he should be more offended by that but he was distracted by the way Fang Shiqian’s tongue was poking out of the side of his mouth in concentration. “See look!” A phone was abruptly shoved in his face and it took him a moment to see what was on the screen.
[Image of Wang Jiexi cradling a cat in his arms. The cat is tiny and patting Wang Jiexi’s face with a paw. Wang Jiexi looks like he’s going to cry.]
Fang Shiqian ✓: Meet Tiny Herb’s newest member, Tiny Herb.
There was already an influx of comments below the post but Wang Jiexi was more fixated on the betrayal his vice-captain had just committed.
“Her forms are going to be outdated now.” Fang Shiqian blinked at him, seemingly needing a minute to absorb that before he laughed, patting Wang Jiexi’s shoulder in a faux apologetic way.
“You should have given her a better name to begin with then.” Fang Shiqian left after committing his great betrayal, leaving Wang Jiexi to mull over the picture and the flood of comments about his expression in the photo his vice-captain posted.
Ye Qiu ✓ : The great captain Wang laid low by a cat :oneautumnleafheh: :oneautumnleafheh:
Huang Shaotian ✓: Big-eyed Wang did you know that your team is already called Tiny Herb, did you forget this, did you forget this? Do you have no creativity when you name things, Wang Jiexi Wang Jiexi shame on you for giving your cat an unimaginative name, don’t you think she deserves better than this, give her to me, give her to Blue Rain, we’ll give her a better name and a better home, isn’t that a good idea, Wang Jiexi Wang Jiexi answer me or you’ll have to PKPKPKPKPKPKPK as penance and taste my blade!!!
Wang Jiexi swiped over to send a message to Yu Wenzhou, a request, request not a plea, for his friend to reign in Huang Shaotian before he sent any more messages. Yu Wenzhou sent back a little image of Swoksaar hitting Vaccaria on the head with his staff and Wang Jiexi wondered if Yu Wenzhou had got the image commissioned in order to mock him. He then dismissed the thought as nonsense, getting distracted by the multiple emails coming in about meetings with the advertising team to adequately capitalise on the new team pet.
Fortunately, they seemed enthused about the idea but Wang Jiexi still sighed at the prospect of sitting with Tiny Herb’s management team as they monologued about different opportunities. Tiny Herb- Coriander meowed from where she was sat at his feet and Wang Jiexi leant down to let her reclaim her spot on his shoulder.
He could get through the meetings if it meant he got to keep his cat, Wang Jiexi decided, scratching her behind her ears while she purred happily.
“Tiny Herb! Pspspsps!” Wang Jiexi wondered if, as the captain, he could ban his team from calling Coriander Tiny Herb. Fang Shiqian had his gaze fixed on his phone in a way that meant he was paying close attention to the scene unfolding before him and was laughing at him. His hair was hanging over his eye and Wang Jiexi told himself firmly not to get distracted by this.
Wang Jiexi had tried to introduce his new cat to the team as Coriander, but the entire team had already seen Fang Shiqian’s Weibo post, and Fang Shiqian had introduced the cat to them all as Tiny Herb. Wang Jiexi was aware that he was fighting a losing battle but he refused to give in to the forcible re-naming of his cat without a fight.
The name custom printed on the sides of Coriander’s food bowls was perhaps overkill, but Wang Jiexi found joy in the way Fang Shiqian’s face scrunched up at the sight of them, as if he were personally offended by the reminder that Coriander was not in fact named Tiny Herb. If Wang Jiexi was less dignified, he would have gloated over his victory. As it was, he gloated when he was alone in his room later, with only Coriander there to judge him.
Wang Jiexi had not expected Fang Shiqian to retaliate to the food bowls by buying a set of bowls with the words Tiny Herb emblazoned on the side, along with their team logo. When Coriander began using the bowls, Wang Jiexi found that Fang Shiqian was apparently willing to be less dignified as he had no qualms about openly gloating in the kitchen.
“There’s no shame in giving in Jiexi.” Wang Jiexi narrowed his eyes at his vice-captain, Fang Shiqian’s voice was calm and measured, as if he were offering the most reasonable solution to his problem, if it was ignored that Fang Shiqian had caused the problem in the first place.
Tiny Herb- Coriander meowed from where she was sat by his feet and Wang Jiexi used the fact that she wanted to be picked up to think over his answer to Fang Shiqian’s obvious bait. Fang Shiqian’s face told him that not only had his ploy been seen through, but that Fang Shiqian was judging him for having been turned into Coriander’s slave. Wang Jiexi was avoiding that topic as he was certain that he wouldn’t be able to win should Fang Shiqian play that card.
“There was nothing wrong with the name I chose.”
“Nothing wrong with it maybe, but surely with the way you pamper her, she deserves the best name.”
“And Tiny Herb is the best name?”
“Of course, we’re the best team, clearly naming her after the team means she has the best name, do you think it would be better to call her Tyranny? Or Excellent Era?” Fang Shiqian looked so visibly disgusted by the idea that Wang Jiexi had to hold in his laughter.
“You think Coriander is the same as naming her after one of our opponents’ teams?” Fang Shiqian’s expression conveyed clearly that he thought Wang Jiexi was either playing dumb, or was actually this dumb and that he couldn’t decide which was more likely.
“I gave her a better name, didn’t I?” Wang Jiexi shifted his focus to where the cat in question was nearly falling off his lap as she tried to press herself into his touch more firmly, eyes lidded shut as her tail swished back and forth contently.
“I guess you’re right.” Fang Shiqian’s gaze snapped to him, watching closely as Wang Jiexi continued to lavish Tiny Herb with affection, “Tiny Herb it is.” Wang Jiexi found himself captivated by the way Fang Shiqian’s face broke into a pleased smile, smugness radiating off of him.
“I knew you would give in eventually.” Despite the obvious gloat, Fang Shiqian refrained from mocking Wang Jiexi when he removed the first set of bowls from the kitchen. At least, he didn’t mock him in public. When they were alone, Fang Shiqian had no qualms about laughing at the fact that the bowls were no longer used. Wang Jiexi found that he didn’t mind, would never mind so long as Fang Shiqian kept grinning at him like that.
Tiny Herb seemed to feel the same way as she would cajole her way onto Fang Shiqian’s lap whenever she could, and Wang Jiexi couldn’t help but wish he could do the same.
Fang Shiqian was stretched out lazily on his bed, content to spend his time scrolling through his phone and occasionally sending a message to Huang Shaotian to rile him up. It was amusingly easy to coax Huang Shaotian into sending screeds of messages cursing him out, only to provoke him into doing it all over again by offering a single word response. Huang Shaotian was now demanding a PK but Fang Shiqian was distracted from sending his carefully crafted refusal by the intermittent mewling he could hear.
He opened his door and let out a sound that he would never admit to being a yelp when Tiny Herb bolted into his room and clambered onto his bed, curling up in the warm spot that Fang Shiqian had just vacated.
However, Fang Shiqian was not Wang Jiexi, meaning that not only was he stubborn, he also didn’t have Wang Jiexi’s glaringly obvious soft spot for Tiny Herb, meaning that despite the cat wailing like she was dying, Fang Shiqian felt no remorse at placing the cat onto the floor and reclaiming his spot.
Huang Shaotian was apparently offended by the gap of two minutes since his last message and the lack of Fang Shiqian’s reply and decided to begin his next screed of trash talk by complaining about Fang Shiqian’s hand speed and this prompted Fang Shiqian to type back a one-handed reply about how Blue Rain shouldn’t throw stones in that regard. He was eager to see what Huang Shaotian had to say about that.
Why one-handed?
Because his other hand was occupied trying to prevent Wang Jiexi’s furry minion from crawling back onto his bed to shed fur.
Tiny Herb continued to make betrayed noises as she attempted to evade Fang Shiqian’s efforts to keep her off his bed, but Fang Shiqian wasn’t weak like Wang Jiexi and he refused to budge, swapping between typing his replies to Huang Shaotian and fending off the extremely stubborn cat. Fortunately, Fang Shiqian was just as stubborn and he continued to do battle.
At one point, Fang Shiqian managed to catch Tiny Herb in mid-air as she made a truly spectacular leap for his bed at which point she went pathetically limp, as if he’d killed her. Which would have been more effective if she wasn’t light enough to hold one handed. Fang Shiqian sat himself up properly to look her in her eyes in order to reinforce his point.
“I am not Wang Jiexi. I am not weak to you making sad noises. You will sit on the floor and be good until he figures out where you’re hiding.” Tiny Herb blinked slowly at him before sneezing delicately and Fang Shiqian refused to acknowledge the way his heart softened slightly at that. “On the floor.”
To his surprise, the cat was seemingly convinced by his talk and Tiny Herb resigned herself to not winning bed privileges off him. Fang Shiqian mentally congratulated himself on his victory and sent Wang Jiexi a message informing him that his wayward cat was in his room, was refusing to leave and that she should be collected soon before he shipped her off to Blue Rain.
Apparently Huang Shaotian was willing to trade the PK if Fang Shiqian got him Tiny Herb’s Tiny Herb and Fang Shiqian considered it, if only to see what reaction it would elicit from Yu Wenzhou, and what trouble Huang Shaotian would get himself in.
Fang Shiqian was still mulling over the possibilities when he drifted off, phone slipping out of his fingers.
Wang Jiexi headed straight to Fang Shiqian’s room after his meeting ended. It wasn’t that he thought Fang Shiqian would actually ship his cat off to Blue Rain if he didn’t get there soon enough, but he couldn’t be absolutely certain that it wasn’t going to happen.
Hence the direct route to his vice-captain’s room.
Fang Shiqian had given him his door code a long time ago, stating that if Wang Jiexi was going to need his company so often then he should just have the code and stop forcing him to get up to let him in. Wang Jiexi still had the little scrap of paper that Fang Shiqian had scribbled the numbers down on and he suspected that if he were in one of those dramas that Fang Shiqian made them watch on planes, that hearts would float off him when he looked at it.
Wang Jiexi knew that if it were possible, hearts would definitely be floating off him at this moment but he was certain that his reaction was justified.
Fang Shiqian was curled up under a fluffy blanket, fast asleep, hair ruffled and brushing against his eyes, likely due to the fact that he was still shifting in his sleep slightly, and Tiny Herb was tucked up on his shoulder, curled up in the crook of his neck.
Wang Jiexi had his phone in his hand and was taking multiple pictures before he actively thought about doing it. Both Fang Shiqian and Tiny Herb snuffled in their sleep and Wang Jiexi wondered what he’d done in a past life to be blessed with this.
Once he’d determined that he likely had enough pictures, Wang Jiexi carefully removed Tiny Herb from her napping spot. It seemed as if she was going to protest and possibly wake Fang Shiqian, but she settled down once she realised who was daring to disturb her nap.
Fang Shiqian remained blissfully unaware of the near scuffle, and Wang Jiexi managed to escape with his cat without waking him up.
It didn’t save him from the multiple messages from Fang Shiqian complaining about fur on his bed, clothes and somehow in his mouth, as well as complaining about Tiny Herb’s lack of manners regarding not climbing onto someone’s bed when she had already been told the rules. Wang Jiexi allowed Fang Shiqian to maintain his dignity by not responding with any of the photos he’d taken, nor pointing out that for all Fang Shiqian’s complaints, there was no message banning Tiny Herb from his room.
Wang Jiexi thought that he could be forgiven for not noticing the theme of the gifts that Fang Shiqian kept getting him as everything he bought was useful in some way and he was simply touched that his friend had remembered him mentioning what he was hoping for.
The gardening tools came first, Fang Shiqian shoving a bag at him as they passed one another in the hall, vanishing before Wang Jiexi could open the bag or ask the reason for the gift. When he got the opportunity to open the gift, he was surprised and pleased by the addition of new tools. Perhaps he should have noticed the fact that the ends of the handles were engraved with little cat faces but Wang Jiexi was too busy being distracted by what he could plant to make the connection.
The little cups should have been a better indication of Fang Shiqian’s motive but Wang Jiexi was too enamoured by the little cat paw cups that he simply thanked Fang Shiqian for the gift, smiling when his vice-captain flushed before blustering something incomprehensible and making what he was likely calling a tactical retreat. Tiny Herb had made a lot of noise as he left that sounded remarkably like laughter and Fang Shiqian flicked one had dismissively, not turning back and petting her as she was clearly angling for.
Wang Jiexi was left with the task of placating her and so it was no wonder that he failed to draw the obvious conclusion.
The third gift had the dots finally connecting in his head as Wang Jiexi unwrapped the package to find an assortment of cat shaped chopstick holders. Some were posed as little loafs, others were lying back on their paws, others were sat up with the area for the chopsticks resting on their tails and Wang Jiexi was enamoured with them immediately.
Five seconds later, the realisation struck him.
“Oh. Oh. It’s all cat themed!” Fang Shiqian stopped dead from where he was walking away, stepped neatly over Tiny Herb who was rolling around in the tissue paper, to stand right in front of Wang Jiexi, an expression on his face that Wang Jiexi had come to learn meant that Fang Shiqian was re-evaluating his intelligence.
“You hadn’t realised.” Wang Jiexi, sensing that this wasn’t a question, remained silent. “It’s taken you over three months to realise what the theme of these gifts are-!” Fang Shiqian cut himself off to stare at Wang Jiexi incredulously a bit more, “everyone says you’re intelligent, I remember that Lao Lin told me that you weren’t stupid when I called you stupid, but you didn’t realise?”
“I didn’t make the connection no.” Fang Shiqian seemed to exchange an exasperated look with Tiny Herb, who was more interested in shredding the tissue paper than commiserating with Fang Shiqian over Wang Jiexi’s stupidity. “Why cat themed?”
“Because you’re a cat slave now.” Wang Jiexi blinked, “you pick Tiny Herb up to carry her around when she doesn’t want to walk and I watched you get off the sofa so she could nap on it, of course I have to buy you cat things to show you that you’re a cat slave if you’re incapable of seeing it for yourself.” Tiny Herb meowed from where she’d shredded the tissue paper as if she were agreeing with Fang Shiqian.
Wang Jiexi looked down at his cat chopstick holders for a moment, looked down at Tiny Herb who was twining herself around his legs and decided that he should get Fang Shiqian something too. Something cat shaped. To fit in with the theme.
Fang Shiqian took in the little package being offered with a look of suspicion written across his face but Wang Jiexi just kept his arm extended until Fang Shiqian accepted it. He unwrapped it and stared down at the shiny silver hairclip for a long moment, brow furrowing for a moment.
“Is this so you can prove that you now understand why everything was cat themed?”
“It’s for your hair, it’s a hairclip,” Wang Jiexi watched Fang Shiqian’s eyes narrow at him stating the obvious, “because your hair is in your eyes.”
“Where?”
“Let me show you?” Fang Shiqian tilted his head to the side for a moment, seemingly mulling over the offer before nodding, extending the hairclip back to him. Their fingers brushed against each other as Wang Jiexi took it and Fang Shiqian refused to acknowledge the faint flush he could feel on his cheeks.
Wang Jiexi stepped closer, clearly in Fang Shiqian’s personal space now, fingers gentle as he brushed back the longer strands of hair that kept drawing his eye. Fang Shiqian inhaled softly, eyes wide and his flush deepened, creeping down his neck as well. He held himself still as Wang Jiexi clipped the hair into place before he took a few steps back, cheeks red, and refusing to meet Wang Jiexi’s eyes.
“Thank you for the hair clip.” Fang Shiqian vanished down the hall before Wang Jiexi could respond but when he appeared for training the next day with the little silver cat in his hair, Wang Jiexi couldn’t help but smile, earning him another flush which only had his smile widening.
Fang Shiqian stepped out into the little garden that Wang Jiexi kept at Tiny Herb, seeking him out for his opinion on the new advertisements that the marketing team wanted to use. Fang Shiqian thought that the exclusion of Tiny Herb was stupid, every photo that had the tiny cat perched on Wang Jiexi’s shoulder or cradled in his arms, always generated much more buzz than any of the others.
He spotted his captain knelt down by one of his flower beds, seemingly weeding. Before he could catch Wang Jiexi’s attention, a large cat jumped down from one of the trees, using Wang Jiexi’s back as a landing pad, making him wobble slightly.
The cat then took the opportunity to meow loudly by Wang Jiexi’s ear until he twisted to pick the cat up, giving it scratches on its head, the mewls softening into loud purrs. Fang Shiqian hung back, not wanting to interrupt, taking in the sight of Wang Jiexi cradling a cat in his arms, face haloed in sunlight. He would have been content to remain out of sight if Wang Jiexi hadn’t spoken up.
“Ahh Fang Shiqian you’ve returned-“
“You named a cat after me?!” Wang Jiexi startled, head whipping around and Fang Shiqian would be more pleased by the fact that he’d thrown Wang Jiexi off his rhythm, if he wasn’t distracted by the fact that a cat had been named after him.
“Yes?” Wang Jiexi couldn’t decide whether Fang Shiqian was upset about a cat being named after him, or just shocked. He decided that Fang Shiqian would likely defend him if his vice-captain was in fact offended and didn’t retreat as he had initially planned to.
“Why?”
“He’s very cute? And I like him?” Wang Jiexi knew his cheeks were pink and he knew that he wouldn’t be able to pass it off as being caused by the sun. The sun was reflecting off of the silver cat clip he'd given his vice-captain and Wang Jiexi couldn't help but be distracted by this. Fang Shiqian had taken a few more steps forward, undeniably in Wang Jiexi’s space.
“You think I’m cute?”
“I do.”
“And you like me?”
“Yes.”
“Kiss me?” Fang Shiqian tilted his had up expectantly and Wang Jiexi leant in to close the final gap, arms sliding around Fang Shiqian’s waist instinctively. Fang Shiqian made a soft pleased noise, low in his throat and Wang Jiexi’s hold tightened, shifting for a better angle, thinking that nothing could be better than holding Fang Shiqian in his arms like this.
It might have been more romantic if Tiny Herb and Fang Shiqian weren’t sitting at their feet and wailing like they were dying as it was time for them to be fed. Despite this, Fang Shiqian didn’t break the kiss and Wang Jiexi promised himself that he’d make it up to his cats.
Later.
For now, holding Fang Shiqian close was the only thing that mattered, and from the way Fang Shiqian pressed contentedly into his hold, he felt the same.