Behind The Red Curtain | YiZhan ✓

59-The Love He Yearned For (3/3)

The leftover rain last night had flooded the streets, raising a sweet aroma of the freshly grown grass. Zhan breathed the polluted yet fresh air into his lungs before stepping back inside from the balcony.

He had just woken up but Yibo was nowhere to be found. While looking for him, he had ended up getting captivated by the sunrise, going outside to enjoy it.

Just as he stepped in, his phone started to ring. So he went and picked it up from the living room. "Good morning. Did you sleep well?" He couldn't help but smile at his morning wishes, his empty hand beginning to fidget with the hem of his shirt. "I... did. Where did you go so early in the morning?" Yibo sighed at the other end of the line, his breathing heavy as if he was walking. "Had to pick some things up from the office. After the whole key thing, i realised i had left some of my coats in there."

Zhan hummed, now sitting on the couch with his legs up. "You must be tired. Did you go out without eating?" Yibo chuckled. "That is why i did some shopping too. I'll be home in a bit, wait for me."

Zhan looked down, feeling his heart skip a beat. He hadn't heard such words in his life. To wait for someone to arrive in anticipation... was a wonderful feeling, making his heart become all fuzzy and soft. "...i'll be waiting."

An hour or so later, while dressing up, he suddenly heard the door beep open, causing him to rush to greet him. "Ah..." Yibo looked up to see his hair all wet, his legs bare and pale. He didn't take his time to grab the towel by the couch, and wrapped it over Zhan's head before softly massaging him in slow movements. "Don't just walk around with a wet head after a shower. And put something warm on... i should have some sweatpants in the other wardrobe-"

Zhan looked at him with big eyes, his lips later smiling. "I just wanted to say welcome back.." Yibo looked inside his eyes, his heart slowly raising. "Y-yeah...i'm back.." Zhan smiled, feeling fulfilled.

Yet moments later his smile fell upon remembering something. "Also, a-about last night..." Yibo raised his brows, waiting for his words. "...s-should i..."

"Hm?"

"You know.. wether i should give you back the favour.." Yibo tilted his head with a slight frown, wondering what he meant. His eyes then slowly went to his lips, watching as Zhan rubbed them with his finger shyly. "O-oh! That... but... i thought we agreed to not-"

"...i keep having a guilty conscience. It feels wrong to just let you do all these kind gestures with no return." Yibo swallowed, shaking his head. "It's... fine. I didn't do anything much anyways. Just acted on my own accord.. s-so.."

Zhan swallowed, wondering what he should do. Yet after seeing him with such a helpless look, Yibo ended up coming up with something random instead. "Why... don't you get me a flower instead?"

Zhan blinked. "A flower?" Yibo hummed, turning around, smiling to himself. "Yes... i think i'd really like a flower from you."

Zhan began having flattering thoughts and smiled. "If.. that's what you'd like then... yeah." Yibo looked back at him and chuckled softly.

"But- let's eat now because i'm starving. And have lots of clothes to wash too-" Zhan walked towards the door to look inside the bags. "What did you buy?"

"Just these-..."

And so the morning passed by, later came the night. Yibo was now washing the dishes while Zhan took the trash out. He quickly made his way downstairs, past the parking lot to the bins.