"Already gave up on making it up to me?" Xiao Yang asked in a teasing manner coating his disappointment through the phone. He came home, expecting dinner, but his husband wasn't at home although it was already seven.
"Oh, I was about to call you, today I will be late."
"Why?"
"A ballet school brought fifty costumes to be cleaned," Zheng Hao answered without a hint of annoyance.
"Okay," Xiao Yang replied and hung up.
"Just okay?" Zheng Hao murmured to his already disconnected phone, "you should still be angry, ha?"
Well, he was partially right, Xiao Yang was still a bit resented, but he wasn't the type to turn his back to someone who needed some help, let alone this person being his beloved husband.
As a result, one hour later, he made a grand entrance to the dry cleaning store with sandwiches and coffee.
"Xiao Yang?"
Smiling, Xiao Yang put the food on the marble counter, "you should have called me earlier."
"You didn't have to..." Zheng Hao was touched, seeing the food. If Xiao Yang continued like that, he had a good potential to fall in love with his forced husband. Damn...
Xiao Yang ignored him and unpacked the food, "it was the fastest I could get," he said and handed the sandwich then the coffee to Zheng Hao.
They ate alongside a small chit-chat, then Zheng Hao rose to his feet to continue his work, but seeing Xiao Yang following him, he blocked his path.
"Don't you have assignments? Go home, I will come later."
"I have a better idea," Xiao Yang smiled allusively, "let me help you here, then you help me with my assignment. Do you still remember the assignment you helped for the first-half? Prof. Ma's?"
Zheng Hao nodded.
"He said we all screwed it up and gave us another chance to correct the paper, so I need help for the other half."
"First, go home and make the changes according to the professor's feedback, then I will check it."
Xiao Yang rolled his eyes, "I did it already, any other objection?"
Zheng Hao opened his mouth, but closed it again as he couldn't find anything else. Helpless, he dropped his arm and walked in with smirking Xiao Yang on his tail.
It was actually super good to have the younger man help him because he pretty much knew everything about dry cleaning. Zheng Hao always thought that Xiao Yang was just idling in the store to get close to him, but no. The last two incidents showed him that he really learnt the key points from his father. As a result, he felt highly apologetic towards Xiao Yang for his prejudiced thoughts. Apparently, he never bothered to see beneath the surface, to really know about him...
"You are surprisingly good at this," Zheng Hao complimented him with a genuine smile as he wanted to get rid of some of the emotional burden in his heart.
Xiao Yang placed the steam iron on its dock and turned around to look at his husband, "really?"
Why was he so happy to hear about it? It wasn't something to be proud about for a rich young man, right?
"Yeah...?" Zheng Hao muttered with clear confusion on his face.
Xiao Yang's smile widened with the affirmation, "uncle should be proud of me, right?"
Zheng Hao was aghast, was it why he was so happy? If he was that happy because of making someone else's father proud, then his own father must have been problematic, no?
"You don't think so?" Xiao Yang asked with a faltered smile, seeing his husband was silent all of a sudden.
Zheng Hao shook his head vehemently, "I believe he watches you from heaven with a proud smile."
"Thank you," the emotional man answered with a hoarse voice and turned his back to his husband to hide his tears.
Understanding his surge of emotions, Zheng Hao patted his shoulder and returned back to ironing.
The duo worked together for two hours until Zheng Hao grabbed Xiao Yang's arm and pulled him to the front.
"That's enough for today, let's go now."
"But it hasn't finished," Xiao Yang argued, but Zheng Hao was deaf to his objection. Calmly, he switched off the machines and organised the cleaned dresses, then he climbed down the stairs and dragged his forced husband out.
"Shall we eat before we go home?"
Xiao Yang's steps halted and his body stiffed, "shall we just go home?"
His reaction didn't escape Zheng Hao's notice. He took a step forward and looked at the other in the face, "what's wrong? I thought you like eating out."
"I do, but..."
"But...?"
Xiao Yang heaved a sigh, "the last time we ate out, your ex appeared, so I don't want to take that risk again."
Unexpectedly, Zheng Hao burst into laughter, his shoulders moving with the movement.
Although his unusual laughter was music to Xiao Yang's ears, he took offence by the reaction. Placing his hands on both sides of his small waist, he said "what's so funny?"
Holding his stomach, Zheng Hao said "other than Yang Zi, I had only one girlfriend."
Okay, it was good to know his husband's ex list wasn't crowded, but still, what was so funny about it?
Seeing Xiao Yang was still frowning, Zheng Hao explained "that other girlfriend was in the elementary school! Imagine her recognising me from the blue t-shirt I wear, hahaha!"
That made the magic, Xiao Yang also burst into laughter. Like madmen, they laughed together in front of the store on the empty street.
"I love you, ge."
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?
