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"Oh, I need to go in a bit." The blonde would mutter, snapping out of the gaze Dan Heng held him in, though, still holding at the boys' hands in assurance that he had all the time in the world to pay attention to Dan Heng.
The other would tense up slightly, realizing how much he'd been staring at Luocha. He clears his throat in an attempt to sort his thoughts for now, letting go of his lover's hands. "A-Ah, right. You still have things to do, don't you?" Cheeks are still flushing a slight hue of red as Dan Heng averts his gaze. "You should probably get ready."
Luocha chuckles a little before snaking his hands down to Dan Heng's hips, causing the other to flush an even darker hue of red just by the smooth motion of Luocha pulling him closer to him. "That can wait, I still have ten minutes."
"We're in public, atleast watch where your hand is.." Dan Heng would splutter in a whisper. Even if they were a couple, he was still quite embarrassed by romantic things Luocha would do with him daily, often avoiding having to do anything else but hold hands in public. Luocha in response would pout at that, though, would respect his wishes once told off, not finding it strange at all.
As much as that was a nice trait Luocha possessed, Dan Heng would feel a little disappointed that the blonde wouldn't tease further. Although, how can he say that? He was literally the one who told him to stop anyways. But still, he couldn't deny he'd wanted to see Luocha's assertive side more. The man was always gentle when handling him, which is probably why he wished for Luocha to be more rough with him— They never even had their first kiss either because of Luocha's obedience. It was irritating.
"... Fine," Luocha would say, moving his hands to a slightly more appropriate area to touch Dan Heng— settling for a hug. "Is this better, then?" He would say in his ever-so charming voice that sent shivers down Dan Heng's spine, causing him to blush harder as he nodded, the familiar scent of lilies filling the air around him. As much as it was frustrating to deal with Luocha's obedience, it was nice to be engulfed in such a nice scent. It was comforting in every way possible.
"How adorable, it's unfortunate that I can't stay for longer right now."
"We're still meeting up later, remember?"
"Haha, I know, I know. It's just that it's so tempting to stay with you." Luocha would respond, letting Dan Heng press a hand up to his cheek, leaning into it. "Oh well, I suppose it could be my reward for working hard."
"... Sure." Dan Heng could only mutter. Such a small reward that was. "I can't wait." There's a hint of disappointment in his tone, but Luocha didn't seem to notice. What a relief.
And with that, Luocha finally pulls away, depriving Dan Heng of his warmth. "Well, I'll need to go now, I'll see you later." He'd say, smiling right at his lover as he pats him right on the head. "I love you, Dan Heng." He doesn't use any honorifics or titles to refer to Dan Heng that much ever since they've gotten close. The intimacy of those lines cause Dan Heng to avert his gaze in embarrassment and sadness.
"I-I love you too. You should go, now." He'd reply, crossing his arms as to try and act calm and collected. "I'll go meet up with you later, I'll just be roaming the city anyways."
"I'm looking forward to it, then."
And off the blonde went.
—
The plan was to have Luocha become more assertive.
So what was Dan Heng doing?
Currently seated on a bench, he skims through the book in his hands fairly quickly, trying to gather enough information to use for later. A guide for romance was definitely out of his normal interests when it came to books, but if it was guaranteed to help their relationship, it didn't hurt to atleast check it out, right?
The book contained many different advice on relationships and love in general— although it was written in a way that was so childish, it could pass on as a teenage girl's personal diary being sold as a book.
The advices ranged from how to get your crush to notice you, to how to have someone fall madly inlove with you, and hell, even to how to stalk someone without making it seem like you're stalking them.
There were a lot of questionable advices written in the book itself that even Dan Heng had to stop and wonder if this book was even worth borrowing in the first place. It just seemed like a scam, with how it was written, what was contained inside it, and even the author— There was no one credited for this questionable piece of work. That's how strange it was, to the point where no one wanted to be associated with the book itself.
Well, whatever. There was no turning back now, and he only had ample time before his meet up with Luocha. All he had to do was follow through with whatever the book said, anyways.
As he stops skipping through all the pages, he stops at a page— How to get your partner to become more assertive. Huh, exactly what he needed, how strange.
Before continuing on with the page, he stops to think— Is this really worth it? He's getting desperate over such a simple thing, and he's consulting a book. That hasn't happened in years at all.
But if it's for Luocha, then perhaps it didn't matter, right?
Oh well, as long as it is guaranteed to help him with his relationship, it's probably not a big deal.
Or so he thought…
—
"Ah, forgive me for having you wait, Dan Heng." Luocha would approach the dark haired male, a bouquet of lilies in his hand as his bright smile immediately greets Dan Heng.
Dan Heng notices him immediately, blush creeping up on his face. He missed Luocha so much, and it was only a few hours. "It's fine." He would murmur, gaze locking with Luocha's as he receives the bouquet of lilies, holding onto it. "You didn't make me wait long at all."
"If you say so, then." Luocha would chuckle, adoring how Dan Heng looked up at him with such curious eyes. "So, where would you like to go this time, my love?" He would reach for Dan Heng's free hand, caressing it slightly. The sudden action makes Dan Heng's ears turn red due to how gentle Luocha was with him. It was too much— but he had to follow through with what he read earlier.
"Well, I-I was thinking we could go to that restaurant that serves puffer goat milk along with cake?"
However innocent that suggestion was, it didn't match with how Dan Heng was right now, clinging onto Luocha's arm like never before. This was so weird, but it's what the book said— to be assertive, yourself.
"Oh? Are you alright Dan Heng?" The honeyed tone coming from Luocha is way too much, he knew something was wrong. "You've never clung onto me this much before."
"I've no idea what you're talking about." Dan Heng plays it off as nothing, averting his gaze. "We should go now, the restaurants will be closing soon, and I want to be able to eat something before then." He would demand of Luocha, gazing right back at his emerald eyes with such desperate and pleading teal ones. "Come on, dear."
"..." Luocha pauses for a moment once the pet name rolls off Dan Heng's tongue without fail. Oh god. Dan Heng could only think, is he cringing at this as much as I am? He would wonder, already dreading the reaction he was going to get. Though whatever Dan Heng had in his mind was far different from what Luocha reacted with, going back to how he was, smiling mindlessly at Dan Heng. "Of course, I can't keep you waiting, can I?"
It sounded innocent, but Dan Heng couldn't help but think it meant something more, with how much Luocha's smile unnerved him. But can he really reject Luocha? (no way)
"Let's go, then." The blonde would softly say, walking along the busy streets with his partner. "Oh, and be careful with those flowers, the petals fall off easily if you're not careful."
"Where do you even get these?" Dan Heng would question, observing how the lilies looked. "You always manage to find these types of lilies, but I've never even seen them anywhere else."
"Ahaha," Answered Luocha, "A good merchant never reveals his secrets."
So is there a secret behind your gentleness, too? Dan Heng would muse, raising a brow silently at that vague answer. Although, he wasn't going to bring it up anyways.
The walk to the restaurant was quite lively, with Luocha discussing everything that happened earlier, and Dan Heng listening intently. There were also some slight moments wherein the contact between them intensified, intimacy coming into play the more they got closer to each other during their walk. It ended with Dan Heng leaning against Luocha's shoulder, surprisingly enough.
Before they got to the restaurant itself, Luocha stopped in his tracks, turning his head to look at Dan Heng, who, in turn, looked up at him in confusion. ".. Why'd you stop all of a sudden?"
"Dan Heng," Luocha would begin, "I couldn't help but notice something."
"...!" Even though he didn't do anything remotely wrong, that phrase had Dan Heng tensing up in response. Did he notice something off about me? How? He would wonder to himself, perhaps he'd been a little too obvious.
"... What is it, Luocha?"
"There's something about you today,"
"... I have no idea what you're talking about."
"Are you sure?"
"I'm sure— what made you even say that?" Dan Heng was cornered, already getting even more embarrassed by the moment. Luocha knew what he was on about, he just wanted Dan Heng to come clean about it.
Luocha would pull away from Dan Heng, looking straight at him. "You don't usually cling onto me this much, you don't really like public displays of affection, remember?"
"M-Maybe I'm trying to get used to it."
"And the pet name?"
"I'm just trying out a good pet name, we're a couple now, aren't we?"
The way Dan Heng looked at him, trying to cover up his grand plan, was just getting worse by the moment. He was a nervous mess, and he was fidgeting so bad, he could already see the lilies in the bouquet starting to lose its petals.
"... Dan Heng,"
"....."
"Are you hiding something?"
"....."
With shaking hands, Dan Heng pulls him closer by his clothes, pulling the blonde into a surprise kiss, not caring if anyone could see them as of this moment. With cheeks turning scarlet, his heart pounds loudly in his chest, blocking out all sounds he might've been hearing.
He pulls away immediately, looking down at the ground, leaving Luocha dumbfounded by the sudden kiss that had just occurred, staring right at Dan Heng with slightly widened eyes.
"You're so frustrating." Dan Heng confessed in full defeat. "You're too— way too gentle with me. It's so frustrating. we haven't even had our first kiss in months, and I know I can't be mad because I'm the one who usually tells you to stop but I really just don't know how to initiate things, I just—"
Mid-rant, Dan Heng is stopped as he is pulled closer by his lover, grabbing him by the arm as he presses their lips together once more, leaving Dan Heng to stand still in shock and defeat as Luocha immediately deepens the kiss, not letting Dan Heng go, even for just a bit.
After a few moments, Luocha pulls away from Dan Heng, watching how breathless he was right now. Who would've thought their first kiss was going to be during a confrontation on the sidewalk? It was a mind blowing experience to recall, but it wasn't negative.
"... Is that better?" Luocha would respond after the minute-long silence. "Have I finally answered your request?" He's no longer smiling, infact, he looks a bit serious, staring right at Dan Heng with piercing eyes. He'd always been unnerving, but this was a new record.
Dan Heng would gaze up at him, unable to reply verbally, cheeks still red from what had just happened. He hasn't even fully processed it, it just stays there, in his mind, replaying like a cruel record player that haunts him the more he looks at Luocha. He could only respond with a nod, his parted lips becoming rather tempting to the blonde. Though, he restrains himself.
"... So that is what you wanted? For me to be bolder in this relationship?"
A nod signified that he was correct.
"I'm not good with acting like that, you know?"
".. You say that, yet you.." Dan Heng would splutter at that claim. "You're always teasing me with your words."
"I'm more verbal than physical." A sly smirk on Luocha's face, this is the first time Dan Heng had seen this side of him. It contrasted to Luocha's regular expression— polite, innocent. "Although I can try to be assertive, if that is what you really want."
"... Really?"
"Only if you kiss me again." Luocha's slyness sets Dan Heng off, causing him to furrow his eyebrows as he pouts. "You have got to be kidding me—"
"But I'm not," Luocha smirked, holding Dan Heng by the wrist again. "You want me to take the initiative, right?"
"You're sly— You just said you were no good at acting bold." Dan Heng frowned, blushing harder at that. Luocha could only chuckle at the reaction, tilting Dan Heng's chin to have him look at him.
"It's what you want, is it not?"
In surprise, Dan Heng looked at him for a moment, then nodded in defeat. "... You're insufferable."
"I know. But you still enjoy that side of me, do you not?"
"... I suppose I do." Dan Heng murmured, face flushing. ".. Just.. Come over here so I can kiss you already, we still have to go for dinner."
"Haha, alright, alright, fine, I won't keep you waiting anymore."
The spaces between them close once more, unsaid words being felt as the feeling of fullness engulfs Dan Heng's mind whole.
… He could never resist this man, can he?