From Bitter to Blissful: An Arranged Tale of Love

Chapter 12

He was sitting in the room lost in his thoughts but didn't feel calm Zhan took a cold shower to calm his nerves, he went to the bed trying to get the negative thoughts out of mind but no avail he continuously looked at the ceiling to reflect on his actions that made an innocent person into an envious, covetous person.
He was remembering the time when he was crying sitting in the doorsteps because he missed his mother he felt a gentle and sweet touch on his shoulder
"It's Alright ge, we are here for you, did you miss your mom so much" Yibo asked innocently zhan nodded his head crying
"Don't cry", he wipes his tears with little soft hands " If you want you can have mine, we can share her love but don't cry it makes me feel bad".
"Let's go I'll show you something". He took Zhan's hand and ran towards the empty ground a little far from their house.
The night sky was beautifully filled with stars and a bright half moon he pointed at a star near the moon shining brightly. "Ge, that's Aunt when you miss her we can see her here, you know mother told me that when people went to heavens they became stars". Zhan looked at him
"See aunt is smiling, mom also told me when the star twinkle it means he is watching at you smiling, now you too  smile at aunt she'll feel happy" he touched both sides of Zhan's lips and lift them upwards gently to make a smile, zhan smiled and Yibo jumped with happiness see ge you are looking beautiful now" he held Zhan's hand they both watched the sky for some time and went home holding hands.
A gentle smile hit Zhan's lips and he felt a little bit relaxed, he was tired so by this beautiful thought his eyes were closed and he went deep in the valleys of sleep.
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Zhan found himself in a vivid yet surreal environment,he stood on a cliff, overlooking a vast, turbulent sea. The sky was painted in hues of crimson and gold, the sun setting behind the horizon. The wind was strong, whipping through his hair and clothes, filling the air with a sense of impending doom.
As Zhan scanned the horizon, he saw Yibo standing at the very edge of the cliff, a serene smile on his face. Yibo's eyes sparkled with an ethereal glow, a mixture of warmth and sadness that Zhan couldn't quite explain. His heart tightened at the sight, an inexplicable fear rising within him.
"Yibo!" Zhan called out, his voice barely audible over the roaring wind. Yibo turned to face him, his smile widening as if nothing in the world could disturb his peace.
"Zhan," Yibo replied softly, his voice carrying an almost otherworldly calmness. "I'm glad you're here."
Zhan took a step forward, his instincts urging him to reach Yibo before something terrible happened. "What are you doing? Come away from the edge. It's dangerous!"
Yibo shook his head slowly, still smiling. "It's okay, Zhan. This is where I need to be."
"No, it's not!" Zhan shouted, panic creeping into his voice. He lunged forward, his hand outstretched to grab Yibo. "Don't do this! Please!"
In a sudden, Yibo turned back toward the sea and stepped off the cliff. Time seemed to slow as Zhan's fingers brushed against Yibo's hand, his grip slipping as Yibo began to fall.
"Yibo!" Zhan screamed, his heart shattering as he watched Yibo's form plummet into the abyss below. He fell to his knees at the edge, his arm still outstretched, his fingers trembling with the ghostly sensation of Yibo's touch.
Tears streamed down Zhan's face as he stared into the void, the agony of loss ripping through him. "Why?" he whispered, his voice breaking. "Why did you do that?"
The land around him began to fade, the colors bleeding into darkness. Zhan awoke with a start, his heart pounding in his chest, his breath ragged. The room was dimly lit, the remnants of the dream lingering in his mind like a haunting echo.
He lay back down, clutching his chest, trying to steady his breathing. The image of Yibo's serene smile and his fall into the abyss played over and over in his mind. Zhan couldn't shake the feeling that the dream was more than just a nightmare. It felt like a message, a warning, and he knew he had to find Yibo. He couldn't lose him, not like that. He got out of bed and went to the window, looking out at the night sky. The stars twinkled overhead, a silent comfort in the darkness. He took a deep breath, trying to calm his racing heart."It was just a dream," He knew that the fear he felt in his dream mirrored the turmoil in his waking life.He couldn't shake the feeling that Yibo was not here. He had to find him, to make things right between them before it was too late.With a determined resolve, Zhan got dressed and left the house, to find Yibo and set things right between them. He can't wait for the morning he took his car and hit the road not knowing whether he was going to the right place or not. He was driving the silence of the midnight and made his heart sink He can't think straight what he should do?
He was thinking about the places where Yibo can go he remembered the place where Yibo usually goes when he gets upset at something or fights with someone. Now after conversation with Haoxuan he started understanding Yibo's behaviour he remembered when Yibo first fought with boys at school.
Flashback
They went to the same school Zhan was the most genius top student of school but he never fought back the bullies that pranked him or degraded him he always tried to ignore them so they bothered him more.He never told anyone about it.
One day Yibo came to ask him for lunch but his class had canceled and zhan had no class at that time, when Yibo came zhan was standing between the class his notebooks all torn and his stationary was spread on the floor , three boys were checking his desk and all his stuff.
"You thief you stole my stuff, no one taught you that not to steal other things" one boy yelled
" Stop it, don't yell at him actually he has no mother to tell him what to do" the other said all boys started laughing
"Don't talk bad about my mother"zhan yelled
"Oh  sorry, don't make jokes or our genius will start crying" they laughed hard again
Zhan's eyes filled with tears and he tried to run away but one of them held his wrist tight
"Don't go out like this or others will think we did something bad with you, don't be a cry baby common". They clapped their hands and burst into laughter again and ran out he didn't see that Yibo was standing there, yibo wanted to go after him but he thought he would make him feel embarrassed because Zhan thought no one knew about his bullying. He went inside and started to gather Zhan's stuff the boys looked at each other and stand around him
"Hy little, what you think you are doing".
"Can't you see I'm gathering ge's stuff"he tried to ignore them
"And who do you think you are to do so, ohh are you his boyfriend" the boy asked incessantly
"See, I have told you before that he is a gay but you didn't believe me" the other boy said the latter Yibo looked at them with anger
"Don't ever talk about him this way or behave with him badly". Yibo clenched his fists
"What do you do if we talk badly"
"Chill buddy why are you feeling bad, tell me is he so good in bed" the other boy put his hand around Yibo's shoulder
Yibo landed a solid punch on his jaw that made him staggered backwards blood spattered from his mouth on the floor.The other lunged at Yibo with a chair he dodged it and grab the boy from back collar and hit his head on the table they were fighting when the staff came to stop them Yibo was standing in the center his chest heaving and his fists bloodied they took the boys to nurse and Yibo to principal's office. He got suspended for a whole week for his behaviour no one knew why he did that the bullies said that because they didn't take him in the basketball team that's why he beat them so hard. Yibo also didn't tell the truth because he didn't want to make Zhan embarrassed.
The next day when Zhan went to school he knew what happened after he left school yesterday. They spread fake rumors to their classmates that Yibo is Zhan's boyfriend and he took revenge for him. everyone was talking about it Zhan felt uncomfortable and went to meet Yibo. Yibo was sitting in his room watching something on laptop Zhan entered Yibo closed and stood up "ge, how are you? Did you not go
to school today"
"Why did you do that, why you beat them".Zhan asked
"Because...." he was about to say something then pause for a while
"That was not a good deal Yibo why you can't understand, you can tell me I'll help you join the team but you use violence. Why are you being more and more spoiled everyday?" Zhan yelled
"But I did it for you, they were talking bad about you" Yibo explained
"But you made me embarrassed, everyone gossiping about our relationship said you are my boyfriend, how ridiculous your little action made a big misunderstanding, how can I explain this now".
"Is it that embarrassing for you" Yibo looked at Zhan sadly but he was not looking at him or thinking about his feelings
"Or What, its not true we don't have feelings, how can we" zhan said
"Yes how can we", Yibo gave a bittersweet smile
"But what if someday I tell you I've feelings for you" Yibo asked looking at Zhan
"What happened to you, I don't have time for your silly jokes, remember to not do anything silly again I will not always be with you to clear you mess, you are going to middle school try to grow up". Zhan left after giving him a lecture
A tear fell from Yibo's eyes he swept it and sat on the bed he was happy to see that Zhan didn't know the real deal.
Zhan came out of the thoughts with his phone ringing continuously he looked at the screen its Mr. Xiao he picked up the call
" Where are you Zhan"
"I'm going somewhere, why are you asking, is everything alright" he asked with concern
"Come home now I'll tell you then, I'm waiting for you". he said he hung up
Zhan felt worried at his father's behaviour and drove towards his house.

(Hello everyone, it's almost the end of the story, it was my first work and I tried my best to do it in a better way hope you guys liked it. I am really thankful for your support, comment if you want me to improve something or what you like in the story I'll appreciate it. Thanks again for all your support and love 🥰❤️)