Su Yiran felt Ting Ge’s warm embrace, as if his psychological defenses had instantly collapsed. 

The tears he had desperately held back burst forth, wetting his eyelashes and a small patch of Gu Yuanting’s outer clothing. 

He began to sob softly, tears streaming down his face, his body trembling slightly.

Gu Yuanting held Su Yiran, who was crying so hard his body trembled, his mind blank, and feeling utterly helpless. 

He held him stiffly, awkwardly patting and comforting him: “There, there… there, there…”

Su Yiran’s crying only intensified with the comfort. 

Gu Yuanting’s heart shattered seeing him cry. 

He could only hold him, stroking him repeatedly, from his head down to his spine, helplessly repeating his soothing words: “There, there… be a good boy… Ranran… don’t cry… there, there…”

Su Yiran cried until he was tired. 

Eventually, he buried himself in Gu Yuanting’s arms, beginning to quietly whimper, letting out small hiccups. 

Gu Yuanting held Su Yiran and comforted him for a while longer. When Su Yiran gradually calmed down, his blank mind finally started to function again.

Su Yiran hadn’t fully recovered, still whimpering occasionally. He leaned against Gu Yuanting’s embrace, sobbing and saying intermittently: “…You, what are you doing… wuwuwu…” 

He cried, “You’re too much…” 

“How could you do this to me… wuwuwu…” 

He sniffled, and as he spoke, his tears started to flow more freely again.

Gu Yuanting held him, slowly patting and comforting him, silent for a moment. After crying for a while, under Ting Ge’s soothing, his emotions gradually calmed down, though his voice still carried sadness and a choke: “What exactly do you want…” 

He looked up at him, his face streaked with tears, as if washed by water, his eyelashes wet and still glistening with tears.

Gu Yuanting was silent for a moment, then cupped Su Yiran’s face with his large hand, wiping away the lingering tears. He looked at him, paused, then hugged him again, pulling him tightly into his embrace, slowly stroking his back.

“I’m sorry,” he said. His gaze, however, wasn’t on Su Yiran, but fixed on an unknown point in the air. 

He slowly said, “I… I’ve been a bit tired these past few days. Don’t take what I just said to heart. Don’t cry.”

Su Yiran wanted to look up at Ting Ge, but his head was held down. 

His small face was buried in Gu Yuanting’s chest, feeling a bit dazed. 

Gu Yuanting had made a new decision. He looked at Su Yiran in his arms, stroking his soft hair: “It won’t happen again, okay?”

 He had changed his mind. Su Yiran simply couldn’t leave him. And he simply couldn’t bear to see Su Yiran sad and crying. He stroked Su Yiran’s hair. Since it was like this, from now on… he would fulfill some of his “husbandly” duties and support him. 

It was just a matter of supporting one more person. Although, this meant he had accepted this “family” and the responsibilities that came with it. It also meant he no longer resisted but accepted Su Yiran, bringing him into his world.

Su Yiran’s emotions had stabilized, but he was still a bit confused: “But, why was it like that just now?” 

As he spoke, he felt wronged and sad again, his voice becoming tearful, “Why would you say such things to me…”

Gu Yuanting couldn’t bear his tearful voice. He stroked his hair, trying to be as gentle as possible: “Work wasn’t going well, I couldn’t control my emotions.” 

He paused, then softly called him by his pet name, “Ranran, don’t be sad, okay?”

Su Yiran clearly felt that Gu Yuanting’s voice was many times gentler than when they argued earlier. He believed him: “You’ve been very busy these past few days,” he asked, “Are you encountering a lot of difficulties at work?”

Gu Yuanting: “Mm.” 

He had previously disdained lying, believing the other person wasn’t worth lying to. Now, he realized he was wrong.

Su Yiran said, “Otherwise, why don’t you quit those part-time jobs? We can just open the shop together and continue our business. Wasn’t it great when we opened the bubble tea shop together in college?”

Gu Yuanting shook his head: “No.”

Su Yiran knew rationally that they still had mortgage and car loans, and elderly parents to support. They were still young; it was a time to work hard and strive. 

Moreover, he felt that Ting Ge liked things like stocks and finance, and was very talented in the financial industry. 

After graduating from college, he had once thought Gu Yuanting would go work at a financial company, but in the end, Gu Yuanting chose to open a shop with him, starting a business together, only occasionally dabbling in stocks and working as a nominal consultant for a financial company. He had always supported his decisions, and they had come this far together.

Gu Yuanting then said, “From now on, I’ll be quite busy.”

Su Yiran asked, “Then will you still open the shop with me?”

Gu Yuanting was silent for a moment: “No,” he said, fearing Su Yiran would be sad again, then added, “Occasionally, I can go to the shop to check on things.”

“Okay.” Su Yiran didn’t have much objection on this matter, “Are you officially starting work at that financial company?”

Gu Yuanting: “…Yes.”

Su Yiran thought this was reasonable and nodded without surprise. Although a little disappointed, he understood: “Then our shop just needs to hire two long-term employees.”

Gu Yuanting said, “Do as you wish.”

Having resolved the “root” of the problem, Su Yiran thought of the origin of tonight’s turmoil. The thought still made him feel uneasy: “So, do you still want to sleep in separate rooms with me?”

Gu Yuanting: “…No, we won’t.”

Su Yiran pitifully asked, “Then are you still leaving?”

Gu Yuanting: “…In a few days, I have to go on a business trip out of town.”

Su Yiran was stunned for a moment: “How long will you be gone?”

Gu Yuanting: “I don’t know yet… the company hasn’t decided.”

Su Yiran nodded, then immediately said earnestly: “But even if it’s because of work difficulties, you shouldn’t casually say… separate to me.” 

As he said the word “separate,” his throat caught, and his voice trembled slightly.

Gu Yuanting’s heart also involuntarily ached. He tightened his arms around Su Yiran, lowered his head, and looked at him, resting his forehead against Su Yiran’s: “I was wrong. I’m sorry.” 

“There won’t be a next time.”

Su Yiran saw that Gu Yuanting truly knew he was wrong, and being easily swayed, he forgave him. Then Su Yiran told him: “In the future, whatever happens, you need to talk to me about it. Don’t keep everything bottled up inside. You can also tell me about any difficulties you encounter at work.”

Gu Yuanting stroked Su Yiran’s head: “Okay.”

Su Yiran felt that their communication was thorough and the issue had been resolved. He truly relaxed and snuggled into Gu Yuanting’s embrace. The air became quiet. They held each other in silence for a while.

Su Yiran had cried for nothing, and gradually felt mentally exhausted, and a little hungry. He rubbed his face against Gu Yuanting’s chest and softly said, “Ting Ge, I’m hungry.”

“Hungry?” Gu Yuanting looked towards the kitchen. No one had cooked today, and there were no leftovers to heat up. “Shall we order takeout? What do you want to eat?” he said, reaching for his phone.

“No,” Su Yiran clung to Gu Yuanting, refusing, “I want to eat what you make.”

Gu Yuanting stiffened. He couldn’t cook. He looked at Su Yiran in his arms and finally said, “I’ll cook. What do you want to eat?”

Su Yiran said, “Just something simple, like egg-fried rice.”

“Okay.” Gu Yuanting got up and went to the kitchen. Although he had never cooked it before, he generally knew how to make egg-fried rice. 

He had expected to be clumsy in the kitchen, but unexpectedly, he was very skillful and natural, as if his body instinctively knew how much salt to add and how to control the heat. …It seemed the original owner knew how to cook.

Su Yiran leaned on the sofa armrest, chin resting on his arms, quietly watching Gu Yuanting in the kitchen making food for him. A faint scent of cooking oil wafted from the kitchen. Su Yiran’s heart felt settled and peaceful.

Gu Yuanting quickly finished the egg-fried rice, served it on a plate, and walked out of the kitchen with the plate, immediately meeting Su Yiran’s gaze. 

His large, clear eyes seemed to hold starlight, watching him calmly and gently, filled with unspeakable happiness and affection. Gu Yuanting was almost scorched by Su Yiran’s gaze. His heart suddenly felt tender and soft. He couldn’t resist Su Yiran like this to the point of being unable to meet his eyes. He awkwardly averted his gaze, walked closer with the plate, and placed the egg-fried rice on the coffee table: “…Eat.”

“Mm!” Su Yiran looked up and smiled at him, his eyes curving, revealing a shallow dimple on his right cheek. Gu Yuanting watched Su Yiran finish the egg-fried rice. This small plate was actually only half a bowl’s worth, so there was no fear of overeating.

After eating, Su Yiran casually handed the empty plate, still with rice grains clinging to it, to Gu Yuanting. He praised contentedly, “It’s delicious.” Ting Ge’s cooking had always been excellent.

Gu Yuanting took the plate and asked him, “Do you want more?”

“No, I’m full,” Su Yiran said.

Gu Yuanting looked down at the empty plate in his hand and understood. This meant he was to wash the dishes. …He walked into the kitchen and washed both the plate and the spoon, and also scrubbed the pot.

It was very late. Su Yiran, full, grew even sleepier. 

They brushed their teeth and showered one after another, then went to bed. The lights in the bedroom were off. 

In the already warm duvet, Su Yiran snuggled entirely into Gu Yuanting’s arms, hugging Ting Ge, and soon fell into a deep sleep. Gu Yuanting held Su Yiran in his embrace, gazing for a long time at his sleeping profile in the darkness. 

He suddenly felt a sense of unprecedented peace, for reasons he didn’t know.

Perhaps, he had a home.