Originally, Lu Guifan thought Jiang Ruotang might be having such a great time that he’d forgotten all about him—but now, Lu Guifan only felt a deep, overwhelming ache.

He suddenly understood why Jiang Ruotang always looked so happy and carefree during their video calls—because he never wanted to disturb Lu Guifan’s research. In Jiang Ruotang’s heart, all of Lu Guifan’s work and experiments were incredibly, incredibly important.

Lu Guifan lay down beside him, still in his clothes, gently wrapping his arm around him—careful not to use too much strength, afraid Jiang Ruotang might find it heavy. He just watched him quietly, intently.

Outside, the sky lightened to the pale blue of dawn, and birds began to chirp softly.

Jiang Ruotang stirred slightly, his lashes fluttering before he slowly opened his eyes.

Lu Guifan had always thought he lacked any artistic sensibility, but in that moment, it was as if he were seeing a rose that belonged only to him slowly blooming.

When Jiang Ruotang realized someone was in the bed with him, he startled, nearly springing upright.

But in the next second, Lu Guifan’s hand gently ran through his hair and over his ear—soft, reassuring. Even before Jiang Ruotang could clearly see his face, his body already knew who it was.

“Guifan, is that you?” Jiang Ruotang reached out toward him.

Lu Guifan pulled away the coat between them, allowing Jiang Ruotang to crash directly into his arms without any obstruction.

“I must be dreaming, right? I am, aren’t I? This is a dream, isn’t it?”

Jiang Ruotang buried his face in his chest, inhaling his scent deeply, his nose nuzzling against his chest like a lit match falling into a parched prairie—igniting sparks that seemed ready to reach the sky.

Lu Guifan pressed several kisses to his forehead. “What do you think? Does it feel like a dream?”

In the next second, Jiang Ruotang rolled on top of him, grabbed his collar, and kissed him like a storm. Lu Guifan was stunned—his heart pounding wildly.

Then Jiang bit his Adam’s apple—an action aggressive enough to be threatening, but Lu Guifan only felt his chest tighten and tremble. A long-harbored possessiveness surged like a starving beast.

He took a deep breath and said while kissing Jiang Ruotang’s cheek, “I’ve been on a plane for more than ten hours. I haven’t even showered yet.”

Jiang Ruotang trailed kisses from his chin back up to the corner of his eye, then tugged open his shirt collar and sniffed. It still smelled like the nostalgic scent of their shared body wash. “Shower? For what? It’s not like you worked out on the plane.”

Lu Guifan laughed at his words. The chuckle rumbled from his throat and chest, deep and magnetic—it made Jiang Ruotang’s heart itch.

“Did you bring any condoms?” Lu Guifan asked.

“How would I know you’d show up out of nowhere? I don’t have any,” Jiang Ruotang smirked while rocking on top of him. “Just hold it in.”

“I don’t think I can.”

“Well then… don’t.”

Jiang Ruotang said it with such boldness that Lu Guifan burst out laughing again.

And the result? Jiang Ruotang ended up with his face buried in the pillow begging for mercy.

“So you’re really here… I thought… I thought…”

“You thought what?”

“I thought I was dreaming.”

“Oh, in dreams anything is possible. In dreams, my Ruotang has infinite stamina. In dreams, you can do whatever you want to me, right?”

“Shut up!”

Lu Guifan needed to adjust to the time zone, and Jiang Ruotang needed to catch up on sleep. They slept through the entire day. Jiang didn’t even bother checking the countless missed calls on his phone.

It wasn’t until evening, when Jiang Ruotang woke up from hunger, that he finally reached for his phone. He saw missed calls from Professor Clavin, fellow art students, and even Professor Yang.

Everyone had followed up with text messages too.

Jiang Ruotang took a deep breath. He’d completely forgotten about his appointment with Professor Clavin and the others to play pickleball. He’d stood them up and then disappeared.

He quickly began replying to each message:
[Nothing happened. I’m safe. My boyfriend just arrived, that’s all.]

The replies came back fast. Everyone sent him warm reminders and understanding. Professor Clavin even told him to take a few days off to spend time with his boyfriend.

Professor Yang was especially delighted—wasn’t Jiang Ruotang’s boyfriend Lu Guifan? The long-awaited Lu Guifan was finally here.

What are you waiting for? Get over to M University and join our research!

Jiang Ruotang was still thinking about how to respond to Professor Yang when Lu Guifan, who had been watching him from behind the entire time, suddenly snatched his phone the moment he saw the message thread with Professor Yang.

He sent a voice message instead:
[Professor Yang, I just wrapped up a project. Please allow me a short break—to enjoy the joys of being human.]

Professor Yang replied:
[Sorry! Take your time. We’ll talk when the new semester starts.]

Jiang Ruotang turned around in surprise. This was the first time Lu Guifan had ever refused Professor Yang.

“I think I heard someone’s stomach growling. Are you hungry?”

Jiang Ruotang nodded.

“Is there anything in the fridge?”

Jiang nodded again. “There are also some seasonings I got from Chinatown.”

“Then go back to sleep for a bit. I’ll wake you up when dinner’s ready.”

Lu Guifan gently bit his nose, feeling a little guilty for going overboard after their reunion.

“I’ll help! Let’s do it together!”

Jiang Ruotang got up enthusiastically, but the moment his feet hit the ground, he winced with a scrunched-up face.

“Alright, I’ll cook. You rest. After dinner, let’s take a bath together.”

Jiang Ruotang nodded immediately.

Lu Guifan kept the meal simple: he cooked rice, stir-fried tomato and eggs, and made shredded potatoes with vinegar. No time for slow-braised meat, but the aroma alone made Jiang Ruotang drool.

He was carried out of the bedroom by Lu Guifan—embarrassing, yes, but with no one else in the house, Jiang was happily clinging to his neck.

The once-cold villa hadn’t felt like a home in months.

Lu Guifan looked at Jiang Ruotang’s puffed cheeks and found him unbearably cute—guilty, too, for never realizing how lonely Jiang must’ve felt.

They clung to each other all day. Eventually, Jiang Ruotang excitedly announced he wanted to take Lu Guifan on a drive.

Back home, traffic was always bad, so it was usually Lu Guifan who drove—smooth and gentle on the pedals. Jiang had always been well taken care of.

But now, in this foreign place, Jiang took the wheel with flair, turning the steering wheel confidently, even whistling playfully at Lu Guifan now and then.

That weekend, Professor Clavin hosted a small party at his home, inviting his prized students and a few well-known collectors and art connoisseurs.

He specifically invited Jiang Ruotang—and asked him to bring his boyfriend along.

Jiang didn’t fuss about himself, but carefully laid out all of Lu Guifan’s clothes on the bed.

“Is it because the clothes I brought don’t look good?” Lu Guifan asked.

But these were clothes Jiang had picked for him.

“No, you look great in all of them. Maybe we should go buy some plaid shirts!”

“You want me to pretend to be Cài Cài?”

“Huh?” Jiang blinked. “Wait, wait, Cài Cài’s style changed? Does he still have hair?”

“He does. Thick and lush. No worries.”

Jiang Ruotang patted his chest in relief, then finally picked the simplest, most modest outfit: a deep blue shirt, an old-fashioned black tie, and conservative slacks. The kind of outfit you’d expect in an office cubicle.

But… Lu Guifan’s physique was so good that the outfit exuded a simple elegance, perfectly embodying the “Less is More” philosophy.

Jiang Ruotang sighed. “Fine. At least you still have your black-rimmed glasses!”

Lu Guifan sighed too. “I’m not exactly universally charming.”

Jiang turned to look at him. “Don’t you trust my taste? You’d be scouted as a model—one of those who aren’t even allowed to wear socks.”

Lu Guifan smiled even wider.

They didn’t go empty-handed—Jiang brought a bottle of red wine. When they arrived at Professor Clavin’s house, Mrs. Clavin had transformed the garden into something out of Alice in Wonderland. Roses climbed the walls in full bloom, the air smelled of fresh mint, and squirrels darted among the trees.

Jiang Ruotang held the wine and chatted with others under the rose trellis.

Lu Guifan stood beneath the eaves, watching him.

Professor Clavin approached and said softly, “So this is you. Before you came, I’d never seen Jiang smile like that.”

“I want him to always smile like that,” Lu Guifan said.

“They call you his muse. Because you’re his Law of Gravity, his one-and-only Back View, the source of all his inspiration.”

Lu Guifan smiled. “Do I seem more ordinary than you expected?”

Professor Clavin shook his head. “He loves you, that’s all. And when all that love gathers in one place, it becomes infinitely beautiful and irresistible.”

“I feel the same,” Lu Guifan said softly.

Peel away all the equations and formulas, and at the end of thought—there is only you.