The morning sunlight peeked timidly through the curtains, casting a soft glow across the quiet room. Wu Suo Wei stirred slightly beneath the sheets, his lashes fluttering before his eyes slowly opened. For a moment, he didn't move just breathed, quietly, his cheek still pressed against Chi Cheng's bare chest.
He could hear the rhythmic thump of Chi Cheng's heartbeat, steady and strong beneath his ear. Last night felt like a dream, too warm, too safe, too filled with whispered promises and touches that melted every last insecurity he'd harbored for years. But the warmth beside him was real. The arms around him, still holding him even in sleep, were real.
Suo Wei tilted his head slightly, gazing up at the boy who had been his best friend, his protector, his silent love for so long. Now... now Chi Cheng was more.
Chi Cheng stirred, brows furrowing slightly before his eyes opened, immediately meeting Suo Wei's.
"Morning," he murmured, voice low and rough with sleep.
Suo Wei's lips curved into a soft smile. "Morning…"
Chi Cheng tightened his arm around him slightly. "Are you okay?" he asked, concern hiding just beneath the surface of his voice.
Suo Wei nodded, whispering, "I've never felt more okay."
Their eyes stayed locked for a few heartbeats longer until the quiet was broken by the loud buzz of a group chat notification.
Chi Cheng groaned, reaching for his phone on the bedside table. His expression changed quickly.
Suo Wei sat up slightly. "What is it?"
Chi Cheng turned the screen toward him.
university
[9:05 AM]
@DreamyJade: Soooo apparently the university knew all along about Chi Cheng and Wu Suo Wei dating??? 🤯
@Luna_BballFreak: Omg wait… is it true that Wang Shuo tried something and got his ass kicked?! 😳😳
@Fanclub_XY: WAIT. Are ChengWei REALLY a couple for real?! That video wasn't just drama????
Suo Wei blinked. "Oh no…"
Chi Cheng pulled him gently back into his arms. "Don't panic. Let them talk. They don't matter."
"But…"
"They can say whatever they want. As long as you're by my side, they can make all the noise they want."
Just then, Suo Wei's phone buzzed with a message.
[Xiao Shuai 🐾]:
Guess what, lovebirds? Guo Cheng Yu just told me he's going to officially ask me out after midterms. And I said I'll think about it. ☕
[Suo Wei]:
OMG REALLY??? 😳 Are you blushing???
[Xiao Shuai 🐾]:
You're one to talk, Da Wei. You've been glowing since last night. 😏
Chi Cheng leaned over his shoulder to peek at the chat. "Should we be worried our friends know too much?"
Suo Wei laughed. "They're part of our chaos now."
Guo Cheng Yu's POV
Guo Cheng Yu stood alone in front of the vending machine in the quiet corridor of the Literature Building, staring at the row of drinks as if the answers to life were hidden behind the glass.
He didn't even want a drink. He was just... thinking.
"I'll think about it," Jiang Xiao Shuai had said last night, right after Cheng Yu, heart pounding, had told him plainly: "I want to date you. Officially. I'm serious about you."
He smiled now, just a little, remembering how Xiao Shuai's ears had turned pink even though he tried to act unaffected.
"You're annoying," Xiao Shuai had muttered. "But you're not boring."
That was practically a confession, right?
Cheng Yu sighed and finally pressed a button for lemon tea. As the bottle dropped, he turned to find someone leaning against the wall near the entrance.
Jiang Xiao Shuai.
Wearing a black hoodie, one hand in his pocket, messy hair like he hadn't slept much.
"Thinking so hard you forgot how to pick a drink?" Xiao Shuai asked, deadpan.
Guo Cheng Yu smirked. "Nah. Just pretending to look cool while waiting for you."
Xiao Shuai rolled his eyes and walked closer. "You always have something to say, don't you?"
"I have a lot to say when I'm nervous."
"…Nervous?"
"Yeah." Cheng Yu took a breath. "I thought maybe you were avoiding me today. After last night."
Jiang Xiao Shuai didn't answer immediately. He looked down at Cheng Yu's fingers loosely holding the tea bottle. "You were serious?"
"I wouldn't have said it if I wasn't." Cheng Yu tilted his head slightly. "But you don't have to say anything yet. I can wait."
"You're annoying when you're being gentle."
"I know. Cute, though, right?"
Jiang Xiao Shuai gave him a look, but his lips twitched. "A little."
There was a pause between them the kind that feels like it might snap or bloom into something else.
Then, suddenly, Xiao Shuai took the bottle from Cheng Yu's hand, opened it, took a sip, and leaned closer.
"Let's try it," he said.
Guo Cheng Yu blinked. "Try…?"
"Dating. You and me."
Cheng Yu stared for a beat, processing the words.
Then smiled. The softest smile he'd ever smiled in his life. "You mean that?"
"Don't make me say it twice."
Before Xiao Shuai could step back, Cheng Yu reached out, fingers brushing gently against his hoodie, tugging him forward and kissed him.
It wasn't rough or rushed or teasing.
It was quiet.
It was full of all the affection he hadn't known how to show until now.
When they broke apart, Xiao Shuai didn't speak. He just rested his forehead against Cheng Yu's, cheeks warm.
"…You're not annoying right now," he whispered.
Cheng Yu grinned. "You just like me."
"Shut up."
But he didn't pull away.