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Carrying out missions requested by local residents or organizations was commonplace for the Astral Express crew. For Dan Heng himself, doing missions had become part of his daily routine. And he never considered it as something hard to do, as he could voice his opinion on whether he was capable of doing it or not. Having the option to accept or decline a mission was a blessing in disguise for the Nameless.
However, even though Dan Heng had carefully calculated his recent mission, he hadn't expected the results to be so draining for him. Three days of mission work in a village on the planet where the train had docked, who was requesting assistance to resolve a crisis among the community, was enough to make his eye bags double than usual. This was probably a new record for him—one worth recording in the data bank.
As soon as he arrived back on the train, he dragged his feet to look for Himeko in no time. He had to report the results of his mission to the navigator right away before his fatigue ate him. Since he didn't see the red haired woman in the Parlor Car, then it was likely that she was sipping her coffee in the Party Car.
He rushed to Himeko shortly after he opened the Party Car door. He quickly reported the mission and gave all the notes he had carefully written to the navigator. Once she was satisfied with the report and dismissed him, Dan Heng immediately dragged his body back to the archive room.
All the Astral Express crews were chatting in the Party Car when he talked to Himeko, and Dan Heng actually really wanted to greet them before he left again. Yet, his weary body was desperate to lie down on his thin mattress as quickly as possible. Even briefly, he remembered his teammates' worried faces—perhaps he already looked like a zombie.
Not even twenty minutes had passed since he was able to lie down and close his eyes, yet he had to wake up again and greet someone who decided to visit the archive room despite his tiredness. He reluctantly opened the door, revealing a very familiar gray haired man.
"Dan Heng! You look so terrible, bro."
"I know," Dan Heng yawned. "Do you need something?"
"Actually, yes," Caelus chuckled. "Can you come with me to my room?"
Dan Heng was way too exhausted to refuse, so he just let Caelus drag him to his own huge room on the second floor of the train.
As soon as the door opened, the cold air from the air conditioner directly greeted Dan Heng's tired eyes. Caelus gently led him to the center of the room, towards a large bed that could comfortably accommodate the two of them.
Dan Heng didn’t need to think twice to nestle himself in Caelus' bed—acting as if it was his own. And something hit him the moment he landed on one of the pillows. Ah, it was Caelus' scent. This was Caelus' bed, in the Caelus’ room, and everything about this room is so full of Caelus’ scent. Now he just realized why his mission felt much more distressed then it usually was.
Caelus approached and sat down next to Dan Heng. His hand gently stroked Dan Heng's head, who comfortably buried his face in his pillow.
"This is quite unusual of you. Did something happen during your mission? You look extra tired."
He tilted his face slightly from the pillow to get a better look at Caelus. Ah, this is what he had truly missed from his three stressful days. The absence of his mate, who always cared for him. His mate who always soothed him with his scent. His always loving and caring mate. His Caelus.
Dan Heng didn’t remember how long he had been zoned out until he felt Caelus' hand caressing his cheeks.
"What are you thinking?"
Dan Heng didn’t answer. He just let out a soft hum and leaned to the touch. He really missed every touch from Caelus.
But Caelus was a bit impatient on his side as he softly tapped Dan Heng's head. "As much as I know how tired you are, I'm still nosy, you know? Tell me what is weighing on your mind so I can ease your burden."
And Dan Heng chuckled. "Nothing much happened. It's just that the locals weren't very cooperative so everything had to be done by me and the headman only. The workload was heavy on physical and administrative tasks, so I was twice as tired as I should have been.”
A dramatic gasp coming out of Caelus lips. "Oh my poor Dan Heng! If I had known this, I would have come with you."
Dan Heng laughed again. "I don't think it's a good idea. You would just beat the shit out of everyone."
"Not really. It isn't a bad idea if you think about it."
Dan Heng hummed. How Caelus’ fingers gently moved around his head slowly lulled him to slumber. He might actually fall asleep if it wasn't the same finger tapping his head again.
"Hey, don't sleep just yet. Come sit up and let me massage your body. You mentioned about physical task, so let's make your body relax."
Caelus helped Dan Heng sit up and began massaging his body. He gently pressed Dan Heng's broad shoulders, which felt tense just by touching them. He then moved down to his back, gently stroking the right and left sides in a circular motion. He then returned to the top and rubbed the back of Dan Heng's neck. Finally, he gently squeezed both of his arms.
Truly, Dan Heng felt like he was in heaven. The aches and tension that had been lingering in his body slowly evaporated. He truly felt like he could fall asleep at any moment before he heard Caelus snap his fingers in front of his face.
"Not yet, sir Cold Dragon Young. You can't sleep with your body stinking like this. I know you haven't showered before coming home."
Dan Heng groaned lightly. It felt like he had been edged forever. He really wanted to sleep, but he loved this guy more so he obediently agreed.
"I'm gonna prepare the bath for you. Wait here, okay?"
And Dan Heng did. He patiently waited for Caelus right in his place, not moving even an inch. You could see an imaginary tail wagging behind him.
After minutes had passed, the bathroom door opened again, revealing Caelus behind it. He reached for Dan Heng’s hand and helped him stand up. He then brought his head closer to Dan Heng’s ears, dangerously close that the other man could feel the warm breath coming from his nose.
"I won't sneak in or peek at anything,” he whispered. “Because that might lead to something we both don't want, since you really need your rest, so enjoy your bath," Caelus winked at his words.
Dan Heng might be so tired right now that he could pass out in a blink, but he couldn't help that Caelus' words just went straight to his south. He quickly brushed it off and entered the bathroom—ignoring the mischievous giggle behind him.
One step into it and his senses were welcomed by a soft scent. He recognized it; it was the Parmenides bath soak. This was the only bath soak Dan Heng approved of, as the other soaks had stronger scent. Dan Heng didn’t visit Caelus’ bath quite often–compared to March, but it was enough for Caelus to understand Dan Heng’s preferred scent. The bathtub had been well prepared; he even put duckies to accompany Dan Heng's bathing session.
Dan Heng began to take off his clothes and fold them neatly before placing them on one of the shelves. He slowly submerged his body in the water. It felt so refreshing. After three days of stress and the hustle bustle of his mission, this was the best reward for his body.
Dan Heng would almost have fallen asleep if he hadn't heard a knock on the door.
"Dan Heng, you didn't fall asleep, did you?" Caelus's soft voice was muffled behind the door.
Who knows how many minutes had passed that Caelus was worried about him. Don't blame Dan Heng, the comfortable atmosphere wrapped around his tired body really invited him to close his eyes in the steamy room.
Maybe he was too busy regaining consciousness and didn't answer Caelus' question until the room owner continued, "Don't take too long, or you'll catch a cold."
Dan Heng nodded slowly–though Caelus couldn’t see that–and started to get out of the bathtub to rinse his body.
After brushing his teeth and washing his face, Dan Heng dried his body right away with a towel that Caelus had prepared. However, when he was about to put on his regular clothes back, he found a pair of pajamas lying on top of the toilet lid.
Yellow pajamas with trash cans pattern on them–this clearly belonged to Caelus. Dan Heng let out an airy laugh and then took the clothes.
The cold air from the air conditioner immediately hit him as soon as he opened the bathroom door. The significant difference in air made him flinch. But not only that. Caelus, who had been sitting playing a game, was now staring at him with an expression of disbelief, making Dan Heng want to immediately bury himself in the blanket.
"Dan Heng, you seriously want to wear that pajama?"
Dan Heng just rushed and nestled in the bed without answering. Yet, Caelus being the nosy person he is would never let Dan Heng away from the accusation.
"Hey Dan Heng, answer me. Do you secretly like this outfit?"
Dan Heng grunted before pulling himself out of the blanket and sitting up beside Caelus. He looked at the other deep in the eyes.
"You prepared it for me. It would be rude if I didn't wear it."
To be honest, Dan Heng actually never minded if he had to wear any weird clothes according to his mate’s taste. He wouldn’t refuse even if Caelus directly told him to put on the pajamas.
"I know you like it!" Caelus giggled, and it looked so beautiful for Dan Heng that he couldn't resist it.
chu
Dan Heng kissed Caelus’ lips softly–which put the latter in shock. Maybe Dan Heng was too drunk in his drowsiness, maybe he was just too tired for everything, but he swore that single peck felt so sweet. He would definitely do it again when he was awake and sober enough.
He plopped back on the bed, leaving the now flustered Caelus. His eyelids dropped again, too heavy to keep on another conversation.
And Caelus noticed it. He was about to protest; Dan Heng couldn’t just kiss him and call it a day, right? But he smiled as he watched Dan Heng slowly drift off to his sleep. Perhaps he was already in the dreamland.
So Caelus reached for the light switch to turn the lamp off, and tucked himself in beside the exhausted Nameless. He kissed Dan Heng on the forehead, buried the other’s head in his chest, then whispered sweet nothing.
"Good night, Dan Heng. Have a sweet dream.”