"You... when?" Zheng Hao mumbled incoherently, seeing the picture of himself and his dad. After his father's death, he realised they didn't have many pictures together, so he was very regretful. How many times he wished to have some recent pictures of his father so that he could look at him when he missed him, and now, Xiao Yang granted his wish.
"That's not all," Xiao Yang announced and started to drag the arrow to show other pictures.
His father showing him how to iron correctly... examining a weird stain together... his father smiling to the camera while unaware Zheng Hao hanging the clothes... his father sleeping on the counter with his head leaning on his arms... his father and Xiao Yang posing to the camera, showing their beef noodles... his father taking a blurry selfie with Xiao Yang behind the work counter...
Zheng Hao was so emotional that tears welled into his eyes, blurring the images. He wanted to hug Xiao Yang and cry his heart out while begging him to give him the pictures, but...
Suddenly an ominous blue colour covered the pictures after a click sound.
"As you wish, I am deleting all, ge," Xiao Yang said coldly, and pressing and holding the shift key, he pressed 'delete'.
All the pictures disappeared, dragging the memories away with them, leaving the cruel whiteness as the only thing visible...
Everything was gone permanently...
"Now you know how it felt, ge," Xiao Yang said with a hoarse voice and left the kitchen, leaving frozen Zheng Hao behind.
.
.
The next three days, the duo didn't speak a word to each other. Xiao Yang always left the house earlier and Zheng Hao came back very late.
During those days, Zheng Hao was constantly down, but he knew he couldn't blame Xiao Yang for what he did. If he showed him some mercy when he begged that pitifully, then he wouldn't do that. Although their positions were different, Xiao Yang was still young and proud, so his cruel action was kind of understandable. Interestingly, deep in his heart, Zheng Hao was sure that Xiao Yang was regretful. Although the situation was hectic, he didn't fail to see how his hand shook when he clicked delete.
Still, one way or another, the harm was done and there was no going back...
On the fourth day, however, Xiao Yang finished the game of avoidance for a special event. That morning, he waited for Zheng Hao in the kitchen with a nervous aura.
As the latter didn't expect to see him, he flinched for a second, then he decided to ignore him, but Xiao Yang stood up from his chair and stood in front of him.
"Ge, tomorrow is your birthday and I want to celebrate it with you," he said directly, without beating around the bush.
Zheng Hao was in awe in the face of his audacity as well as his acute memory. He looked him in the eye, but didn't see anything other than sincerity in his hazel eyes. Still, he had no intention to pretend as if nothing happened three days ago.
"I will be with Li Hong." Well, that was a lie; he already told his friend that he didn't want any celebration.
"I want to join," Xiao Yang said with determination, "I have a very special gift for you."
Zheng Hao gaped at him with astonishment. From where his confidence was coming? How come he thought that he would let him join?
"If you let me join, you don't have to eat with me for a week," Xiao Yang said as if hearing his thoughts.
"Three." See, Zheng Hao was a businessman.
"Two."
"Deal." Hehe, beginner!
.
.
When Xiao Yang learnt Li Hong wouldn't make it, he felt an immense happiness in his heart. With dancing fingers, he typed a reply, asking where his husband wanted to go for his birthday. The second wave of happiness washed the younger man when Zheng Hao replied that he wanted to stay at home.
"Perfect!" Xiao Yang exclaimed with a grin and ran to his car, leaving shocked Ji Bo behind. He had a private party to organise!
After buying everything necessary, Xiao Yang came to the house, hands full of stuff. He placed the caramel cake and the white wine into the fridge, poured the take-out food into porcelain plates and set the table. He would like to place a candle into the middle, but Zheng Hao would probably eat that candle with anger. Nonetheless, Xiao Yang wanted to have some romantic atmosphere, so he brought his wireless speaker to the kitchen and found a soft Mandarin playlist from his phone. After connecting the devices, he put the speaker on the microwave. Then he took a shower and wore a black jeans and a red silk shirt. He gelled his slightly long bangs back and applied some face lotion and perfume. As the final step, he placed his gift into his pocket.
Voila, he was ready!
As expected, at seven, Zheng Hao came back home.
Seeing Xiao Yang all dressed up, he felt a slight tug in his heart because he had planned to tell him that he wanted to finish the celebration after dinner. Geez, why did he have to dress up that nicely?
"I already set the table," Xiao Yang said, bringing his wandering soul back, "or do you want to take a shower first?"
"Yes, I will take a shower first," Zheng Hao nodded and walked to his room. He didn't know why but he didn't want to look so shabby while Xiao Yang was so sparkling. Was it because he appreciated his effort? Wait, didn't he hate the guy? Geez...
After a short shower, Zheng Hao's mood was better. He even put on his favourite blue jeans and a white polo shirt. When he found himself presentable, he went to the kitchen where Xiao Yang was waiting for him.
Wow was the first word that appeared in Zheng Hao's mind after seeing Xiao Yang's preparation. He must really care about my valueless birthday, he said inwardly as he took the opposite chair.
"Eat up," Xiao Yang pressed him softly, "I am not sure if these are still your favourites, but..."
Unwittingly, Zheng Hao nodded, making the other beam.
Soft music, delicious food, good wine... it was actually a really nice celebration only if Xiao Yang didn't talk much. With great ability, he jumped from topic to topic, not minding his husband's lack of response.
Interestingly, no matter how much Zheng Hao tried to convince himself, he actually wasn't annoyed by Xiao Yang's babbling. He even found himself smiling from time to time, so he needed extra effort to keep his face expressionless.
"Now the cake!" Xiao Yang exclaimed when he cleared the table. With his trademark smile, he pulled the caramel cake out of the kitchen and no matter how much Zheng Hao argued, he put a silver candle on the cake.
Covering the small light of the candle with one hand, Xiao Yang walked to the table, "happy birthday dear ge... happy birthday dear ge..."
Zheng Hao couldn't help but softly chuckle at his antics. Somehow, it reminded him of the times he celebrated his birthday with his father, so he even blew the candle without a fuss.
Xiao Yang clapped enthusiastically and served the cake into two plates. Finally his dream came true! He was literally celebrating his beloved ge's birthday alone with him and the latter actually seemed very pleased! For the first time he was smiling genuinely after their marriage.
And after his gift, Zheng Hao's smile would surely get bigger.
YOU ARE READING
Utter Defeat
Romance[Completed] A one-sided love... an unwanted marriage... a bunch of misunderstandings... a lot of resistance... "You can resist all you want, but in the end, you will be mine." "Never." Never? That's too bold, isn't it?
