Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“You’re late.”

“Hey, it’s two in the morning… I’d say I’m early,” Stelle retorted with a yawn. 

She sauntered across the brick pavement towards her friends, who’d already begun preparations without her.

They were gathered in the school plaza, right beside one of the buildings — perfect for the scene they were about to shoot. Beneath the golden lights of the lamp posts, everyone was busy setting up their equipment.

Stelle stopped right beside a man with black hair. To combat the autumn breeze, he wore a simple taupe sweater over a white long-sleeved shirt.

“This is the only time I’ll have campus to myself. Please be more punctual. You’re the star,” he said sternly.

Stelle nodded dismissively, resting her elbow on the man’s shoulder. Her woolen scarf tickled Dan Heng’s neck as she leaned in, her eyes locked on a certain co-star in the distance.

“Mhm, not like you would mind standing in for me.”

Dan Heng’s grip tightened on his clipboard, warmth spreading to his cheeks despite the cool weather.

“…Quiet.”

“You sure you don’t wanna trade?” she asked for what was probably the third time that week.

“No.”

“You know I’m gonna have to kiss him, right?”

Dan Heng shot his friend a glare that could slice through bone.

“Okay, okay. Your word, Mr Director,” Stelle shrugged, raising both hands in mock surrender.

Dan Heng grumbled in annoyance. So what if he did cast his best friend and the guy he harbored complicated feelings for in his own film? It’s not like anyone else could do it! From their perfect looks to the way they always brought along their own personal flair in every scene, they were the perfect onscreen couple. The best actors he had on hand. 

There was no one, absolutely no one, who could fit the role.

But as the screenwriter…

His understanding of the script was better than anyone else’s—

“You’re late-“ another voice cut in — lower, raspier — and it fumbled Dan Heng’s perfectly coherent thoughts.

He had heard the heavy footsteps approaching, but being caught up in his own mind, he’d neglected to remember how quickly someone of Ren’s stature could walk. When he looked up, his male lead had stopped right before them. One hand was hidden in the pocket of his jacket, while the other held a few sheets of stapled paper — Dan Heng’s script.

His eyes were narrowed critically at Stelle. 

“-…by twenty minutes.”

The girl met his gaze with a nonchalant wave of her hand. “Yeah, yeah. Your little boyfriend already called me out,” she said, patting Dan Heng on the shoulder.

Dan Heng tensed.

“I am not—“

“Then take it as a reminder,” Ren interrupted.

“Who are you two, my parents?” Stelle pouted, crossing her arms in a childlike manner as she passed them and strode over to where her pink-haired bestie was doing some final checks on the camera.

“You’re late!” they heard March exclaim, and Stelle audibly groaned.

“So I slept through my alarm, bite me!”

“Even Ren got here before you!”

“That’s different! He’s got a princess to protect out in the dead of night!”

A what.

“That’s…!” March raised a finger as if to retaliate, but glanced at the pair before pointing it at Stelle, “…Honestly a very good argument!”

Dan Heng’s clipboard nearly snapped in half.

Why was he friends with such insufferable people.

Ren turned back to him, the ghost of a smirk lingering on his lips. “Boyfriend? Is that what you’ve been feeding them?”

Dan Heng scoffed. “If you hadn’t interrupted, I would have disputed that.”

“Well, I couldn’t just let you.”

Had his brain moved just a bit slower, Dan Heng would have continued. Of course, he couldn’t now.

He looked up at Ren incredulously. What the hell was that even supposed to mean? The taller man raised an eyebrow, as if waiting for him to retort.

“Right…” Dan Heng said skeptically, not wishing to pursue the subject any further. “Do you have your lines memorized?”

“Just as you had commanded, your highness,” Ren replied, mimicking a bow with barely a quarter of effort. If Dan Heng was tall enough, he would’ve wiped that overbearingly attractive smirk right off.

“Save it for the screen,” he rolled his eyes. “We’ll rehearse in a bit. I’ll point out anything that needs to be fixed, then,” Dan Heng said, trying to step around Ren to escape this damned conversation. However, he should’ve known Ren wouldn’t let him off that easily.

“Not so fast.”

With both hands on his clipboard, Dan Heng was held back by his forearm. Ren’s hand was large enough that it nearly wrapped around his arm completely.

If those hands had reached for his waist instead…

“What? Is your brain so dull that it can’t comprehend a simple script?” he blurted before his mind could even process his own words.

Rather than be offended, Ren simply chuckled. “I’d tell you to cool off-” with a tug, he lessened the distance between them. He leaned forward, and he was at the perfect height for Dan Heng to strangle. “-but I’m still debating whether that blush on your cheeks is from the cold, or me.”

Instead of committing the crime he should’ve committed ages ago, Dan Heng physically recoiled, wrenching his arm out of Ren’s grasp as if he’d been burned.

“You—!”

Ren leaned back with an irritably smug look. “Come on. You don’t actually think the night can hide that lovely tint on your face, do you?”

Dan Heng nearly squeaked in horror. His heart felt like it was fighting to escape from his chest.

“Do you ever shut up?” Dan Heng glared, furrowing his brow.

Ren cocked his head, “If you direct me to.”

Without hesitation, Dan Heng smacked his clipboard against Ren’s chest. “Shut up.”

“Alright. But if you are cold, let me know.”

“I am not,” he said firmly, striding towards his makeshift crew.

“So it is me,” Ren chuckled under his breath, but it didn’t escape the director’s keen ears.

Dan Heng skidded to a halt.

“No—!”

“Hey, Dan Heng!” Stelle called, causing Dan Heng to turn in her direction instinctively. “Could you come here for a sec?”

“Looks like your expertise is needed elsewhere, director.”

The warmth brushing against his ear, that low drawl — a voice that sent shivers down his spine and kept him up at night.

Too close.

Dan Heng nearly jumped, his head shooting back quick enough to see Ren straighten up from where his lips must’ve been lingering just beside Dan Heng’s ear.

Ren was right in front of him, the distance between their bodies as thin as a pen.
In that moment, Dan Heng could barely stand straight. He took a deep breath to steady himself, but it didn’t help when what flooded his mind was the scent of the one person he couldn’t be around right now.

“I told you to shut up.”

This time, Ren did.

Glaring at him one last time, Dan Heng composed himself and went to where Stelle was waving him over. It was like he’d forgotten how to walk, but he willed himself to put one foot in front of the other. A part of him wanted to look back, just to see if that insufferably hot smirk had made its appearance, but he restrained himself.

“Sorry for interrupting your date… but uh, can you run me through this part again?” Stelle said.

Dan Heng opened his mouth to contest her remark, but decided to ignore it in light of the fact that they really were running out of time. He’d come back to that next time.

The campus plaza lay deserted under the night sky. With moonlight obscured by the first signs of autumn, the two’s path was lit only by a scatter of golden lampposts. A slow breeze swept fallen leaves into their path, swirling at their feet before carrying them away again. The scuff of their shoes against pavement filled the silence, accompanied only by hasty scratches of pen on paper.

The young woman kept her gaze lowered, her hair framing her focus as she scribbled away in her notebook, oblivious to her onlooker.

The man beside her matched her pace, watching her from the corner of his eye. His dark hair caught in the breeze now and then, merging into the shadows they left behind.

Suddenly…

“Hey!”

He snatched the book from her hands with a smirk, dangling it beyond her reach.

“Now your eyes on me.”

The girl rolled her eyes.

“Attention whore.”

‘W-Wait… that wasn’t what I wrote.’

The man also raised an eyebrow inquisitively — uncharacteristically. Still, he carried on.

“What’s got you so occupied, anyway?”

He lowered the notebook to his eye level, acting as though he was about to flip through it.

“Aw, HELL NAW.”

Dan Heng looked on in horror. He absolutely, definitely, 100% did not write that one.

The girl lunged for her book, but the man skillfully twisted it out of reach. She lunged again, and the man took a step back onto the grass, laughter glinting in his eyes.

“Give—“

A jump.

“It—“

A ballerina leap.

“Back!”

A stumble.

Then a yelp, and her face nearly met the wall.

The girl braced herself against the bricks.

Before she could even breathe, his shadow enveloped her. When she turned around, the man was right there in front of her, his body inches away from hers. She looked up, blinking in surprise. One arm was braced next to her head, the other holding her notebook by the corner, dangling it just within reach — but she couldn’t bring herself to even glance at it.

In a manner that seemed almost predatory, the man leaned in, his smile fading into what looked like a deliberately exaggerated scowl.

“You never could keep up...”

Dan Heng dragged his palm down his face.

He knew he shouldn’t have expected too much on their first attempt. But from what he knew about his friends’ skills, he hadn’t expected it to be such a disaster.

He pinched the bridge of his nose like he was seconds from getting a migraine.

“Stop. That’s not— Just stop.”

As if they’d waited ages for that four-letter word, the two actors instantly distanced themselves. Stelle gave an over-the-top shudder, while Ren’s eyes were on Dan Heng the moment he stepped out of the scene.

“Stelle, are you sure you have your lines memorized?”

The girl scratched the back of her head, grinning sheepishly. “Well, I may have forgotten one or two… so I kinda improvised. Sorry, boss.”

Dan Heng sighed and shifted his attention to the one whose eyes had yet to leave him, as though waiting for something.

“And Ren, it’s not… threatening. It’s supposed to be light. You’re teasing her, not trying to traumatize her.”

And from the look on Ren’s face, it seemed he got what he’d been waiting for.

“How about you show us, director?” he suggested, crossing his arms as he leaned against the wall.

A challenge.

“Sure,” said Dan Heng.

Of course, that was before his brain caught up to his mouth. It was already too late when it hit him, for he had strode onto the grass. Out of all the scenes in his script, this was the only one he definitely couldn’t demonstrate. Not because he didn’t know how to. Rather, it was the contents…

“Can someone stand in as the other character?”

He looked to Stelle. It had been an obvious request for her to play her role, but the woman avoided his gaze completely, looking off into the distance when there was nothing to see.

“Allow me.”

…and who would be volunteering.

Ren stepped forward, and Dan Heng just knew he was suppressing an annoyingly cocky smile. 

‘Why do I feel like I’m walking into a trap…?’

As Stelle gleefully stepped behind the camera so the two could take over, Dan Heng took a deep breath. With each step forward, he could feel regret bubbling before he’d even stepped into the fire.

He convinced himself that it was purely professional. Just blocking. Nothing more.

It was for the sake of his grades.

Apart from Stelle’s “improv”, Dan Heng hadn’t detected many issues with the first part of the scene. Therefore, he found it wise not to reenacting the entire scene. After all, he knew trying to hold something out of someone as tall as Ren’s reach would only end in embarrassment for himself.

“This is your part, so pay attention.”

Dan Heng retrieved the notebook and stood next to Ren. He used his own pencil and held it up to the pages, showing how he wanted Ren to wield the props for the demonstration. The other man was behaving well enough, getting into position exactly as Dan Heng had told him to.

“First, your timing. Try writing in the book,” Dan Heng directed.

Ren did, and without warning, Dan Heng yanked the book from his hands. The paper tore, and a line of graphite marred the page. Dan Heng scrunched his brow at Ren seriously, as if he was lecturing a child. “If someone did this to me, I’d stab them.”

Ren met his gaze, staring at him for a second before averting it. His shoulders shook slightly, as if he was holding back a laugh. From his perspective, Dan Heng resembled his grumpy yet dangerously adorable cat.

“What’s so funny?”

He shook his head, storing that thought in the back of his mind for a more suitable time.

“Nothing.”

Dan Heng was suspicious, but he carried on.

“Anyways… you should wait until she lifts her pen to grab the book. It’s a minor detail, but it means you don’t want to ruin her work.”

He flipped the page and held the notebook the same way the character should.

“And don’t just rip it out of her hands like you’re trying to mug her. A gentle tug is fine.”

He pressed the pencil to the notebook.

“Let’s go over it once.”

From the corner of his eye, Dan Heng could’ve sworn he saw Stelle make a sign with her hands, but he paid her no mind. He began writing utter nonsense, from alphabets to his signature. Even in those few seconds, he could feel Ren’s gaze on him, watching his every stroke.

It’s only because the character was watching him, he told himself. Regardless, he couldn’t help but swallow nervously, praying that Ren wouldn’t notice.

When the time was right, he lifted his hand, separating the graphite tip from the paper. 

What he expected was for the notebook to be pulled from his hands — not for his hand to be pulled instead.

Dan Heng stumbled sideways, right into the warm embrace of a man too handsome for his own good.

He looked up slowly, the situation barely registering in his mind.

Crimson eyes caught his, amusement glinting like a sharpened blade.

“I missed.”

It wasn’t an apology.

Chapter Text

‘I missed.’

But the curve of his lips said he hadn’t.

Ren’s words echoed in Dan Heng’s mind, polluting his thoughts and spreading through his body like an intoxicant.

A firm grip on his wrist, a gentle hold on his side; it felt like he was about to melt where they connected.

Dan Heng felt his mouth go dry at the way Ren looked at him. Pride, for pulling off this despicable stunt; amusement, for Dan Heng’s predictable reaction; hunger, and he didn’t dare to think further about what that entailed.

Heat crawled up his neck. Embarrassment, anger, and something far more dangerous stirred in his chest. His heart was trying to beat its way out of his chest, and he knew Ren could tell.

He always could.

Taking advantage of Dan Heng’s frozen state, Ren leaned down, his breath grazing Dan Heng’s cheek.

“Are you going to keep clinging to me…”

With his lips right by Dan Heng’s ear, his voice dropped to a whisper.

“Or should I take us somewhere more private?”

That was enough to wake the director from his daze. Without thinking, he shoved Ren away. Though it looked more like he was pushing himself off of Ren than it did him pushing Ren away from him. He turned sharply on his heel, his face so red it looked like he’d caught a fever.

He really, seriously, desperately wished that the ground would open up and swallow him whole.

“M-Moving on…!”

Ignoring the crew’s laughter and the crimson hot eyes burning holes into the back of his head, Dan Heng stepped around Ren towards the wall, nearly tripping over his own feet. He tried taking a deep breath, recalling some of the breathing exercises his older brother once taught him.

‘It’ll be useful for when an infuriatingly attractive man flirts with you in front of your co-workers. Or in your case, your classmates,’ is what Dan Feng had said back then.

Dan Heng was pretty sure he had been talking about that silver-haired man he was always calling. Actually, that guy also seemed to bear a striking resemblance to Ren… but he doubted that they were related. That’d be too much of a coincidence, wouldn’t it?

Anyway, it wasn’t easy having feelings for someone who seemed intent on giving him a heart attack. Unfortunately, that was his life.

“Stand over there,” Dan Heng told Ren, pointing at the wall.

Ren complied, getting into position without making any suggestive remarks — much to the director’s relief. But he should’ve known that silence was never a good sign.

According to his script, this was where the male lead should loom, arm braced above the female lead’s head, their faces close enough to tease the audience with an imminent kiss.

Dan Heng stepped in front of Ren, back straight, shoulders squared — very, very professional. His voice was deceptively calm as he put his hands on Ren’s shoulders and guided him back against the wall.

With Ren in place, it was his turn.

Just thinking about the proximity between them could make him blush. But since he was the one who’d written the scene, he was going to see it through.

Dan Heng closed the distance between them and braced a hand above Ren’s head.

Or… he tried to.

From behind them came the sound of someone failing to hold back a snort. It was Stelle, of course.

Ren’s gaze followed Dan Heng as he purposefully stretched his arm upwards, getting on the tips of his toes.

He couldn’t reach.

The man whose height Dan Heng had failed to take into account tilted his head slightly. He looked down in amusement with a slow, steady curve of his lips, like a predator analyzing its prey.

“Need a stool, director? Or should I give you a lift?”

Dan Heng nearly sobbed.

‘…I want to go home.’

He schooled his expression into one of pure resolve, as if he wasn’t painstakingly clutching onto the frayed threads of his sanity. Then, he settled his hand next to Ren’s head and looked up to meet his gaze.

“Focus.”

Ren chuckled, but he didn’t miss the silent, unwitting plea in those eyes. “How strict.”

Dan Heng’s brow furrowed. “The idea of knocking you unconscious is becoming increasingly enticing.”

Ren’s smile widened into a grin.

“Can you even reach my head?”

With a groan of pure I’m-done-with-your-bullshit, Dan Heng turned to leave.

But as soon as he turned his back, he felt Ren’s hand wrap around his arm. The feeling of déjà vu lasted for only a second before his back met the wall. The thud of a hand slamming into the bricks beside his head resounded in his ear.

He felt Ren’s warmth first, his presence looming over him like a barrier against the cold.

Then his calming scent, like an embrace by a crackling fire.

And then it was his voice, ghosting against Dan Heng’s ear like a summer breeze… that deliberate, smoldering drawl of his voice.

“You never could keep up with me.”

Dan Heng lifted his gaze slowly.

His breath stuttered.

His mouth went dry.

His heart hanmered in his chest.
For a moment, he forgot they were acting.

Forgot the crew.

Forgot everything except the man towering over him.

Ren’s face was only inches away from his own, every handsome feature he’d always admired from afar now right in front of him.

Dan Heng’s gaze flickered down to his lips, then up to the fiery eyes burning holes through his defenses.

So close.

Ren leaned in.

And he delivered his line so perfectly Dan Heng forgot he was the one who’d written it.

“I’m running out of patience…”

He felt Ren’s breath graze against his neck.

“…Dan Heng.”

The name that rolled off his tongue… Dan Heng barely recognized it as his own.

A shiver ran through his body.

Closer.

His eyelids fell slowly.

Closer.

He could almost feel Ren’s lips.

Closer.

He felt him.

Barely.

All those damned smirks, every despicable word, they all came from the lips just barely brushing against his. The lips he’d fantasized about every night, wondering how they’d feel on his own, if they’d feel good on his neck, on his skin, on him.

He didn’t even get a chance to answer the first question.

“Well?”

Dan Heng opened his eyes.

That feeling was gone, leaving a phantom of what might’ve been if Ren had leaned closer by a hair’s breadth.

Ren was still there, watching him with that omnipresent glint in his eyes.

Close.

But he wasn’t where Dan Heng wanted him to be.

“….Y-Yes. Like… like that.”

It’s just an act.

It’s just an act.

It’s just an—

Ren could feel the multiple pairs of eyes on them, watching their “act” from afar. He took a small step to the side, shielding Dan Heng from their unsolicited audience.

Nobody was allowed to ruin this for them.

Ren smiled as if he could see Dan Heng’s thoughts racing. The way his cheeks flushed, the tremble of his lips, the shock in his eyes — none of it could escape from the gaze reserved for Dan Heng and Dan Heng alone.

“You’ve got a vivid imagination, director.”

Dan Heng felt his chest tighten as Ren’s hand slipped behind him and cupped his neck, tilting his head upwards.

“Tell me… did you have someone in mind when you wrote this scene?”

You.

You. You. You—

The world seemed to blur around them, leaving only him and the one who knew everything about him.

Right then, standing in the middle of autumn…

Everything was hot.

Dan Heng’s heart raced, adrenaline coursing through his body. It felt like he’d just ran a thousand miles. He couldn’t tell who was closing the distance — maybe they both were.

Then he heard something. Someone, one of their friends.

Right…

They weren’t alone.

Before anything could happen, before he surrendered to his heart’s desire, Dan Heng raised a trembling hand. He only managed to gently settle it against Ren’s chest, as though he couldn’t bear to push him away.

“…Ren-“ he said, his voice barely a whisper.

The man stopped what he was about to do. He didn’t say a word as Dan Heng mustered the strength to speak, each shaky breath caressing his skin. Despite having longed for this for ages, he was still willing to wait. As long as it was Dan Heng, he could wait a lifetime.

Ren’s free hand found Dan Heng’s and held it gently, comfortingly.

Dan Heng swallowed hard.

He wanted it. Wanted it right now. But he didn’t want it like this.

“Not… Not now… please.”

Ren’s grip on Dan Heng’s nape lightened. His eyes lingered on Dan Heng’s face, but the director couldn’t bring himself to meet that gaze.

Ren slowly, reluctantly, let go of him and took a step back.

“So? How’d I do?” he said, crossing his arms as if nothing had happened. But Dan Heng could hear that his voice was softer, lacking his usual teasing tone.

“Your performance was… adequate,” he said as he walked past Ren, loud enough for their friends to catch.

Ren followed after him. “Adequate? Must I make your knees buckle for a ‘Well done?’”

Dan Heng rolled his eyes, but his ears were still pink. His heart was still in the moment, completely disregarding his brain’s commands to slow down.

That was too close.

It’s not that he hadn’t been dreaming of such a moment for… a while, but he couldn’t do it in front of everyone they knew. At least not yet. He didn’t want to remember it that way.

“Stelle, did you get that?” asked Dan Heng, once again exchanging places with his female lead.

“Yeah, yeah. Got it all up in here,” she said, pointing at her own head. Unbeknownst to Dan Heng, she pointed towards her pocket as well.

“Oh and uh— do I have to do the whole swallowing hard, lips trembling thing?”

Dan Heng nearly choked.

On the second take, everything was perfect. Too perfect. As if they hadn’t needed Dan Heng’s pointers to begin with…

“Cut!”

Dan Heng approached the camera to check the footage, while the two actors parted immediately. They didn’t actually kiss, but had leaned just close enough that the angle made it look like one.

“Damn, that was actually kinda hot,” Stelle said, fanning herself dramatically.

Ren cocked an eyebrow.

“Professionally hot,” she explained, patting Ren on the back.

Stelle then looked to where Dan Heng was stationed beside March, reviewing the footage and making sure the shot was perfect. She leaned over to Ren and whispered, “You think he likes seeing you like that?”

“He just likes seeing me,” Ren replied, his heart softening as he watched Dan Heng’s brow scrunch adorably in focus.

Stelle cringed before walking over to the crew.

“Well, director? Satisfied?” she asked, slinging her arm over Dan Heng’s shoulder.

“It was good.”

“It was great!“ March beamed, giving her a thumbs up.

Stelle smirked with pride. “Obviously, it’s me.”

Dan Heng sighed as the two girls started chatting with each other with him still between them. He looked up and saw Ren with his own friends. The three helped out as background characters, but it didn’t matter if they had any scenes, they always showed up to support the production.

As he watched them, specifically the tallest among them, he couldn’t help but feel a little guilty. Would Ren be upset at him for pushing him away like that?

“Dan Heng, are we done? I wanna go back to sleep,” Stelle said, snapping him out of his thoughts.

“Oh. Right… You guys can go now, thanks for getting up so early for this.”

March cheered and started packing up her camera, while Stelle lingered around to wait for her. Dan Heng went to say goodbye to Ren and his friends, but they left with the same number of people as when they arrived. Ren stayed behind, hands in his pockets as he watched the two shorter girls bicker while the taller one laughed until they were out of earshot.

That left him and Dan Heng alone.

Ren was the first to break the silence.

“Is now a good time?”

Dan Heng felt his chest tighten — he hadn’t expected it so soon.

He looked up at Ren and their eyes met, but he couldn’t hold it for long.

Before he met Ren, he had always prided himself on being ready for anything, from Stelle’s antics to March’s clumsiness. But with Ren? It was like all his brain cells collectively decided to make a total fool of him.

“Sorry,” he said, fidgeting with the hem of his sweater.

“What for?”

“For earlier. I was… a bit overwhelmed.”

Ren let out a low laugh. “You were shaking.”

Dan Heng rolled his eyes, but Ren’s comment had eased the tension in his chest. “Very overwhelmed.”

Ren shook his head. “There’s nothing to apologize for. I shouldn’t have cornered you.”

“But that’s not why…” Dan Heng mumbled before he could stop himself. Ren stared at him, as if he already knew what he wanted to say.

Dan Heng wanted to assess his expression, to see if Ren would laugh or tease him for something so simple. But when he looked up, he saw nothing but patience and a hint of affection in those crimson eyes.

“…I just didn’t want it to be an act,” he admitted quietly.

Ren turned to face him completely. “It wasn’t.”

“It was supposed to be.”

The man’s brow furrowed, thinking for a moment.

“Maybe I started off too strong… how about this?”

He stepped forward, closing the distance between them — without any pulling this time.

Once again, Dan Heng felt it. The world dissipating around them, the warmth creeping up his neck, and the flutter of his heart. And when Ren put his hand on the back of Dan Heng’s head and gently lifted, Dan Heng knew he would say it.

He briefly wondered if Ren would say something sarcastic, or if he’d already memorized a script beforehand — Dan Heng had, he just never dared to use it.

But what came out was just a few simple words.

Words even a toddler could say.

“I love you.”

And Dan Heng wouldn’t have had it any other way.

A rare smile graced his lips, the very one that first set Ren down this path.

“Should I… say something too?” Dan Heng asked, tilting his head slightly.

The glint of mischief that flickered in his eyes made Ren’s heart melt, but he didn’t let it show.

“You’re the screenwriter.”

Well, in that case…

Dan Heng reached up and gently cupped the other man’s cheeks. Ren responded by leaning in, letting Dan Heng close the distance. Their eyelids fell, their breaths mingled, and they let whatever felt right take place...

“I CAN’T TAKE THIS ANYMORE!”

They looked to their side. March was still there, hiding her face in her hands. She was very red.

“DAMMIT WHY’D YOU HAVE TO TALK?!?!” Stelled yelled, grabbing her by the shoulders and shaking her.

“THIS WAS A NICE, INTIMATE MOMENT! AND I AM INTRUDING!”sobbed the pink-haired girl before sprinting off.

“I’M A HORRIBLE PERSON!”

“DON’T FRICKING ABANDON ME!” Stelle cried, sprinting after her.

As they watched the two girls run off, Ren couldn’t help but sigh.

“Well, that was—“

He was cut off abruptly.

Time slowed as his lips connected with the one’s he’d ached for.

Dan Heng was on the tips of his toes, his eyes closed and arms wrapped around Ren’s neck as if trying to pull him down.

It wasn’t what Dan Heng had been expecting. For one, he had absolutely no idea what to do or how to do it, he just did — pushing their lips together awkwardly. You’d think he’d be better at something he’d researched for ages to depict properly, but theory wasn’t the same as practice.

The way his arms hugged Ren’s neck felt off, the position he stood in felt strange, and of course, their lips didn’t magically slot together like two puzzle pieces like he’d seen in movies or read in some novels.

Dan Heng was doing something right wrong, and it made his cheeks flush in embarrassment. But pulling back now would mean even more humiliation. He just hoped Ren would do something about it like he always did.

He could feel Ren’s lips on his, chapped from the cold but Ren all the same. He could feel Ren’s warmth against him, his hands finding their spot right on Dan Heng’s waist as if they belonged there — how come he got it right on the first try?! And finally, he could feel Ren’s lips curl into a smile against his.

Dan Heng’s eyes opened at that.

The man pulled away briefly, for nothing more than to mock Dan Heng’s pathetic excuse of technique.

“For someone directing a romance film, you have absolutely no idea how to kiss somebody.”

And then he did what he did best.

Steal Dan Heng’s breath away.

He hugged Dan Heng close, one hand on his lower back and the other behind his head, directing him on what to do.

The intense bubbling heat that had him feeling so uncomfortable earlier smoothed into a stable warmth, one that spread throughout his body and made him melt into everywhere Ren touched.

Dan Heng’s eyelids fell and he let out a content sigh, his lips parting instinctively and allowing Ren to take over from there. His hands reached up, tangling his fingers in Ren’s hair as naturally as breathing.

The writer within him tried to note down everything Ren did for future references, from every breath he took to every whisper Dan Heng barely caught. Regardless, he found himself forgetting all about it the third time their lips met.

It was like a hundred words were being said every time their lips connected, each one a cathartic culmination of two years worth of longing. His heart was pounding in his chest, and every small gasp was shakier than the last.

If Ren pulled back too far, Dan Heng would lean forward for more, as if he’d wake up from this dream if they stopped. It was like a moment that stretched on only for them.

With no one to interrupt this time, he was dizzy by the time Ren finally let him go with one last soft kiss. Dan Heng clung to him like a helpless kitten, his eyes still gazing at Ren’s lips as if still processing what’d just happened.

Ren smirked as he took in Dan Heng’s dazed expression.

“We’ll need to work on your skills.”

Dan Heng blinked.

“Well, I’m sorry I’ve never kissed anyone before,” he deadpanned.

“I could tell.”

The director rolled his eyes.

“So, was that my reward for two whole years of waiting?” the man asked.

“Don’t get greedy,” Dan Heng huffed, leaning against Ren’s chest.

Ren wrapped his arms around Dan Heng’s waist. “Wouldn’t dream of it, director.”

For a few seconds, they just stood there in comfortable silence, closer than they’d ever been. Dan Heng wasn’t sure if it was even real. In a few minutes, he’d somehow gone from pining like an idiot to… whatever this was. Was it supposed to happen so fast?

“Heng.”

“Hm?”

“Your hands are freezing.”

Dan Heng looked down. He wasn’t sure when their hands had joined, but now he was hyper aware of how large and warm Ren’s hands were compared to his.

“Oh. Maybe we should head inside.”

He gently detached himself from Ren’s arms to go pick up his bag.

“Need a jacket?” Ren asked.

“Don’t even think about it. You’ll catch a cold,” said Dan Heng, slinging his bag over his shoulder.

As soon as he was prepared to return to the dormitories, he felt Ren’s arm slide around his waist.

“…What are you doing?”

“Keeping you warm,” Ren answered, cocking an eyebrow as if it was obvious.

Dan Heng felt his cheeks burn. “Fine. But if someone sees us, I’m running.”

“I’ll just have to pursue you again.”