Behind the scenes of the Seattle roadshow, staff members surrounded Ning Yixiao, helping him clip on his microphone and straighten his collar. His phone vibrated continuously, messages from “Little Cat” popping up one after another. Karl glanced at it and quickly handed the phone to his boss.

[Hubby!]

[I skipped the exhibition after-party]

[So]

[My work finished]

[EARLY!!!]

Ning Yixiao found it a bit strange and scrolled up to check yesterday’s chat history. The screen had been filled with voice notes, each lasting fifty or sixty seconds. Looking back at the ones just sent, the contrast was stark. The former were incredibly long, drawn-out “meows,” while the latter were sharp bursts: “meow, meow-meow, meow-meow.”

It was as if they were sent by two completely different cats.

Ning Yixiao: 【Congratulations. But did something happen? Why are you sending messages like this all of a sudden?】

The replies popped in like bursting beans.

[Because Kathy said]

[Every time I’m in a manic phase, I send incredibly long voice notes and blocks of text]

[She said it’s really exhausting and frustrating to read]

[Especially when she’s busy]

[So I wondered if it’s the same for you?]

[You’re the busiest person in the world, after all]

Standing at the terminal entrance, Su Hui finished typing these lines and switched to Karl’s chat box to reconfirm Ning Yixiao’s upcoming itinerary and address.

Right on time, the car sent to pick him up arrived. He stepped forward quickly, pulled open the door, slid inside, and exchanged a few pleasantries with the driver. His phone vibrated.

【Oh】

In quick succession, it vibrated four more times.

【I】

【Really】

【Like】

【It】

Su Hui froze for a moment, staring at the screen. His heart felt as though it would burst with sheer delight and sweetness. The corners of his mouth curled up, then he pursed his lips to hide the smile. He read those few short words over and over again. Finally, he changed the contact name—which he had edited yesterday to [Husband (Separated)]—back to [puppy].

An accident on the highway leading into the city stretched what should have been a thirty-minute drive into a full hour. Instinctive impulses urged Su Hui to jump out of the car and run several times, but thinking of Ning Yixiao, he endured it.

By the time he arrived, the roadshow had indeed concluded. Highly experienced in navigating the venue, he expertly cut through the oncoming crowd to reach the backstage area, where he spotted Ning Yixiao. He was wearing a black turtleneck knit sweater layered under a half-unbuttoned white shirt. Around his waist was an Andy 26 belt—a gift from Su Hui—its chain glinting subtly.

That chain was actually Su Hui’s white gold diamond ear chain. The last time Ning Yixiao wore this belt, they were in a luxury hotel penthouse in another city. That night had been incredibly chaotic; Su Hui had lost one of his earrings and couldn’t find it anywhere. Later, he simply fastened the surviving piece to this belt, transforming it into a one-of-a-kind gift.

“Hubby—” Su Hui hurtled forward like a comet, caught securely in a solid embrace. He tilted his face up in Ning Yixiao’s arms, a sweet smile gracing his lips, his voice soft. “Did I give you a fright?!”

Yes. Yes, you did. Karl wiped the sweat from his brow, having almost called security.

Ning Yixiao looked down, a faint smile gracing his features as he spoke warmly, “Not really.”

“Not really? Seriously?” Su Hui narrowed his eyes.

“Mm. If you want to scare me, don’t send messages in advance.” Ning Yixiao leaned down to whisper against his ear, “I was looking for you the entire time I was on stage, right until the very end.”

His voice was very light, carrying a faint trace of grievance. Feeling a wave of guilt, Su Hui patted his back, explaining that the traffic had been terrible and that he had wished he could just fly over. After speaking, he buried his face back into Ning Yixiao’s chest, nuzzling him twice.

The staff had long since grown accustomed to this public display of intimacy. As they always did, everyone suddenly became intensely occupied with their work and scattered, giving their boss ample space.

_

After nuzzling him, Su Hui realized something was amiss—Ning Yixiao hadn’t wrapped his arms back around him. He pulled Ning Yixiao’s hand and guided it to his own lower back.

But Ning Yixiao countered with a question, “We haven’t seen each other in eighteen days. You finally arrive, yet you’re late, and it just ends like this?”

Without letting go, Su Hui rested his forehead against Ning Yixiao’s collarbone, murmuring softly, “I’m sorry… I’ve been so busy with the touring exhibition lately…”

“I don’t like hearing ‘I’m sorry.'” Ning Yixiao let out a long, heavy sigh. “I didn’t even tell you, but I’ve been sick for the past few days. I only started feeling a bit better yesterday, and I’m still not fully recovered.”

“What?” Su Hui immediately looked up, reaching out to touch Ning Yixiao’s forehead. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I didn’t want to disrupt your work. I’m fine, it was just a fever for two days.” Before Su Hui could respond, he offered another gentle sigh, “Besides, my birthday is coming up soon. Time apart really does seem to pass faster.”

Finally, he looked directly into Su Hui’s eyes. “Looking at it this way, you’re the one who is the busiest person in the world.”

Hit by consecutive waves of this gentle guilt-tripping, Su Hui felt utterly mortified. “It’s all my fault… As your partner, am I being too irresponsible?”

Suppresing his amusement, Ning Yixiao deliberately paused for a moment. “It’s fine. Just give me a small compensation—an active one.”

“Okay,” Su Hui agreed without a second thought. “What kind of compensation do you want?”

Ning Yixiao stared at him. “Nothing extraordinary. From now on, you listen to everything I say. How about it?”

That sounds far too easy, Su Hui thought.

Fifteen minutes later, sitting inside the car, Su Hui took back his naive assumption. The demands made during his previous manic phases had been relatively manageable—allowing Ning Yixiao to gently nip his cheeks, calling him “honey” in front of others, posting a photo of him on social media captioned [I love my husband], or letting Ning Yixiao draw cat whiskers on his face with lipstick…

“Where did this lipstick even come from?” Su Hui looked into the rearview mirror, examining the rose-colored streaks on his face.

Pinching the tip of his chin, Ning Yixiao turned Su Hui’s face to look directly at him. “On my way here, I saw a billboard advertisement and thought the color would look beautiful on you, so I had Karl buy one.”

Su Hui couldn’t picture himself wearing lipstick. “But…”

“Su Hui,” Ning Yixiao interrupted, raising an eyebrow. “Why haven’t you started executing my new command yet?”

His expression was perfectly calm, as though he hadn’t just issued an utterly ridiculous order.

Su Hui’s lips parted, then closed. He endured the embarrassment for a long moment before finally bracing himself to speak. “…Meow.”

“Can’t hear you,” Ning Yixiao said.

Glancing at the driver and Karl in the front row—both stiff-faced and desperately trying not to break character—Su Hui threw caution to the wind and let out a loud, resounding cry: “Meow!”

Ning Yixiao couldn’t hold back and burst into laughter.

“Good boy.”

“Meow.”

“Draw it out a bit longer.”

“Meow—”

There were many times when Su Hui genuinely believed Ning Yixiao was slightly unhinged, and now he was absolutely certain of it. There were very few people in this world who could successfully tease him into such deep embarrassment during a manic phase.

How can he be so wicked?

He pulled out his phone, typed a line, and showed it to him.

[How long do I have to keep meowing? Ning Yixiao, I want to speak human language now.]

Trying to suppress his laughter again, Ning Yixiao turned his face and mouthed to Su Hui, “But you’re a little cat.”

Su Hui suspected that Ning Yixiao was still running a high fever and his brain had completely melted. He lowered his head and started typing again.

[You are truly too wicked.]

Ning Yixiao remained entirely unfazed. “I didn’t make you stand on the stage of my roadshow, holding a microphone, and meow at the entire team. I’m already being incredibly kind.”

At that mental image, Karl fought even harder to maintain his straight face.

Su Hui wanted to bite him, but he couldn’t; he had promised Ning Yixiao absolute compliance.

“One last meow,” Ning Yixiao said.

Surprised that the cat-meow game was ending so quickly, Su Hui was delighted. He instantly complied with a cheerful, sweet sound: “Meow!”

“Good boy.” Ning Yixiao patted his face, checked his wristwatch, and glanced at the passing streetscape outside the window. Suddenly, he told him to close his eyes.

“This is a new command,” Ning Yixiao stated.

Su Hui obediently closed his eyes. He felt Ning Yixiao’s fingers brush against his skin, tracing his eye sockets before slipping a sleep mask over his face. His vision plunged into pitch darkness. Feeling a sudden lack of security, he instinctively reached out and gripped Ning Yixiao’s sleeve, only then feeling a semblance of reassurance.

“Don’t worry, I won’t do anything crazy here.”

The remark accurately punctured the strange fantasies swirling in Su Hui’s mind. Right, there were other people in the car, after all.

Room 2208.

In the darkness, every passing second felt drawn out. Su Hui kept a tight grip on Ning Yixiao’s hand, staying pressed close to him. Before long, he heard the car door click open. Cool air rushed in. Curiously, both the driver and Karl remained completely silent.

Fortunately, Ning Yixiao took his hand and guided him out of the vehicle. Lacking vision, Su Hui’s head bumped against the upper frame of the door—but there was no pain. He felt it; Ning Yixiao’s palm had shielded him.

He was led forward carefully, taking slow, hesitant steps. It felt incredibly strange. He could easily imagine the looks passersby might be giving him, but Su Hui didn’t particularly care. He was far more invested in discovering exactly where Ning Yixiao was taking him.

Soon, he felt a wave of warmth, accompanied by a subtle, elegant fragrance. It was a sensory cue that they had transitioned indoors. Driven by momentum, he continued walking forward, but was pulled back by Ning Yixiao.

“Wait a moment.”

“Oh…”

The wait wasn’t long. Su Hui gradually began to piece things together—for instance, Ning Yixiao guided him into a confined space because the scent of his cologne became much more pronounced, and he felt a sudden shift in gravity. It was an elevator.

Finally, a card reader beeped, and a door swung open. He was pulled inside, pushed gently against the wall, and his hands were raised. Both wrists were pressed together, held firmly in a single, large, powerful hand. Ning Yixiao’s kiss descended forcefully, leaving no room for resistance.

“Mph…”

The moment the tip of a tongue slid inside, Su Hui’s scalp went numb. His dry lips were quickly thoroughly wetted and thoroughly slicked. In the darkness, he even caught the sound of Ning Yixiao’s faint, muffled grunt right as their lips met. They hadn’t seen each other in far too long.

Heat surged, thickening the air. The frames of his glasses, which he hadn’t had time to remove, pressed uncomfortably against the bridge of his nose. The room was deathly quiet, his ears entirely filled with the wet sounds of the deep kiss. Ning Yixiao’s chest pressed heavily against his, stealing his breath, their two hearts colliding in a chaotic rhythm. He felt as though he were about to be completely consumed.

Just as the kiss bordered on total consumption, Ning Yixiao suddenly pulled away, remaining entirely silent.

Su Hui waited quietly for a brief moment, but couldn’t hold back from whispering, “Are we not kissing anymore?” He reached his hand out, wanting to grasp Ning Yixiao’s clothing, only to realize that the man had actually stepped back a short distance.

Ning Yixiao still didn’t say a word, seemingly teasing him on purpose. Even through the black sleep mask, Su Hui could practically feel Ning Yixiao’s expression and his unyielding, intense gaze.

I must look a complete mess right now. The lipstick marks on my face are probably smeared even worse.

“Yixiao…” He took two cautious steps forward until the tips of his toes bumped against Ning Yixiao’s leather shoes. Only then did he reach out his arms to wrap them around Ning Yixiao. “I want more kisses.”

Ning Yixiao spoke flatly, “Karl is still here.”

“Huh?” Su Hui froze, quickly releasing his grip as his face instantly flared red.

A soft chuckle echoed out, followed by a low whisper brushed right against his ear: “I lied.”

Ning Yixiao gently kissed his ear, opening his mouth slightly to bite down on the elastic strap behind his ear. The next second, the sleep mask slipped down his face, and his surroundings brightened.

Su Hui blinked, expecting the sudden light to sting his eyes. However, the illumination here was incredibly soft and considerate. He opened his eyes fully and looked around.

It appeared to be the foyer of a hotel suite. For some reason, it felt both entirely unfamiliar and deeply recognizable. Aside from the ambient scent, the air carried the faint, delicate fragrance of fresh-cut flowers.

Having completely removed the mask for him, Ning Yixiao held his hand and led him deeper into the room. To his astonishment, the suite was filled to the brim with peonies—their snow-white, intricate petals flushed with a hint of pink, arranged in lush clusters throughout the space.

So many out-of-season Icelandic gelatos?

“Guess where we are?” Ning Yixiao let go of his hand and turned halfway to look at him. “There’s a reward if you guess correctly.”

Su Hui surveyed his surroundings, walking back and forth with a bewildered expression. He felt Ning Yixiao was intentionally making things difficult for him, given his notoriously terrible memory. Besides, who knew if the “reward” he spoke of was actually a good thing.

“Um…” He hesitated, on the verge of saying he didn’t know. But when his gaze landed on the bed in the bedroom and the familiar pattern of the carpet, he stopped dead in his tracks. After thinking for two seconds, he fished his phone out of his pocket and checked the date.

“Today is the twenty-third!”

Ning Yixiao leaned against the bedroom doorframe. “Irrelevant answer. Reward canceled.”

“No, no, wait.” Su Hui immediately turned around, stopping right in front of him. “Let me answer again.”

“This is that hotel room from before—the one that was booked by mistake, right?” Su Hui felt unexplainably nervous, his heart pounding rapidly.

It was right here that they had reunited.

The corners of Ning Yixiao’s mouth curled into a slight smile, his gaze melting into profound tenderness. He leaned down, lightly pecking Su Hui’s lips. “Correct. Room 2208.”

“How do you remember it so clearly?” Su Hui nuzzled his nose against Ning Yixiao’s lips.

Ning Yixiao smiled. “It’s very similar to your birthday. On this exact day last year, when I heard Karl read out the room number, I noticed it.”

“Wow, really? What a coincidence,” Su Hui murmured.

“Mm. A beautiful coincidence.” Ning Yixiao wrapped his arms around Su Hui, burying his head into the crook of his shoulder, his cool nose pressing against his skin.

Every miraculous coincidence had occurred on that day. It was as though even God couldn’t bear to watch them suffer anymore, reaching down to turn the gears of fate to help this pair of lovers who had been separated for six long years.

“That day was truly agonizing,” the voice mumbled against his shoulder, the arms tightening around his waist. “When I heard your voice, I thought I was hallucinating—that it was just a cruel trick of my mind, too afraid to believe it. Seeing you lying on the bed, calling out someone else’s name… I was terrified it was you, but even more terrified… that it wasn’t.”

Su Hui’s heart throbbed with a sharp ache. He lowered his head to kiss the back of Ning Yixiao’s neck. The pain of that day had fallen as thick and heavy as the snow outside. After so many years, when he finally saw the person he longed for most, he too had assumed it was another hallucination.

“I thought he was coming back for his glasses…” Su Hui shook his head, hugging him tighter. “No, none of that matters anymore. Yixiao, don’t be sad. I only love you, always have. Even back then, when I misunderstood and thought you had received the letters but simply didn’t want to see me, I still felt incredibly lucky. Because I finally saw you again, saw with my own eyes that you were living well—better than we had ever imagined back then. I was… truly happy.”

Ning Yixiao raised his head, asking softly, “Were you really happy?”

Su Hui nodded, whispering, “Really.”

“You were also deeply heartbroken, weren’t you?” He gently caressed Su Hui’s cheek.

Faced with this question, Su Hui offered an honest nod.

So heartbroken.

During the days they were apart, he would frequently despise his own weakness and stubbornness, constantly wondering exactly which day would mark the moment he finally forgot about Ning Yixiao entirely. Yet, more often than not, he was plagued by fear. His terrible memory was completely unreliable. He was so terrified that on some distant day in the future, he would truly erase this person from his mind.

Yet on that snowy day, inside this very room, every shared experience from their past, every ounce of grievance and pain from their separation—every single memory and detail—had come rushing back like a violent tsunami the moment he laid eyes on Ning Yixiao.

This place was the site of his disaster, but it was also the starting point of his rebirth.

Su Hui scanned the familiar room, managing his emotions before offering a small smile. “It turns out you really shouldn’t revisit old places. Everything was perfectly fine, but arriving here makes me a bit sad.”

Ning Yixiao gazed at him silently for a long time. Finally, he leaned down to kiss his eyes, calling him “little cat” with exquisite tenderness.

“This suite is wonderful, and the room number is perfect. I like it very much.” He took both of Su Hui’s hands into his own. “Let’s overwrite the sad memories with happy ones, shall we?”

“Okay,” Su Hui agreed, leaning up on his tiptoes to press a kiss against Ning Yixiao’s forehead.

It felt like a sacred ritual—a ceremony of entirely surrendering himself. After the kiss, he took Ning Yixiao’s hand and pulled him toward the bed. From this moment onward, no matter what Ning Yixiao said or demanded, he would acquiesce and obey, accepting everything just as he had done earlier.

Sitting down on the edge of the bed, Ning Yixiao smoothed his hand over the sheets. He looked up at him. “The last time we were here, I ripped off your sleep mask very violently. It was incredibly rude of me. Did it scare you?”

Su Hui blinked, looking somewhat perplexed. After a two-second silence, he pointed to the black sleep mask in Ning Yixiao’s hand and asked, “Do you want me to put it on?”

Ning Yixiao laughed. Shaking his head, he removed his own glasses, picked up the mask, and slipped it over his own eyes.

“I’m returning the favor. Rip it off whenever you want, or leave it on if you prefer.”

Su Hui was stunned.

Fumbling through the darkness, Ning Yixiao caught his hand, guiding Su Hui’s palm to rest against his own face. He murmured softly, “Remember what I said earlier? You guessed correctly, so this is your reward.”

“No matter what command you issue, I will obey blindly. You can tease me however you like.” He gently nudged his nose against Su Hui’s palm, displaying a puppy-like affection.

His characteristically cool tone carried an entirely different kind of allure: “Do you want to?”

Su Hui’s heart skipped a few heavy beats. His mouth parted, wanting to say “yes,” but his throat felt too dry to produce a sound. Instead, he simply cupped Ning Yixiao’s face and leaned in to kiss him.

In moments like this, he was accustomed to surrendering all control to Ning Yixiao, because he craved the sensation of being utterly possessed. He loved the full, heavy ache of it, which felt identical to the sensation of a racing heart—an entirely addictive feeling. This was the first time the dominant role had been transferred to him; holding it felt like gripping a piece of red-hot metal, and Su Hui could barely maintain his grasp.

He was entirely unaccustomed to this role and thoroughly unskilled at it. The tip of his tongue slid inside softly, completely devoid of aggression. Yet Ning Yixiao proved to be incredibly compliant, cooperating to an absolute fault. He even kept his hands resting tamely at Su Hui’s waist, entirely well-behaved.

It felt completely novel. A strange sensation bloomed in Su Hui’s chest.

If he wanted to be dominant, he would have to learn it. He would learn it from the exact way Ning Yixiao usually treated him. Thus, Su Hui slid his fingers into Ning Yixiao’s hair, gripping tightly to secure his hold, attempting a more active, intense kiss. Amidst the blurred haze of the kiss, his consciousness began to drift out of habit, and he murmured mindlessly, “Am I doing well?”

Ning Yixiao let out a low chuckle, even deliberately using the tip of his tongue to nudge against his soft palate. “…You’re far too well-behaved.”

This response left Su Hui highly dissatisfied. It felt entirely like a provocation.

He attempted to reclaim the upper hand. Tightening his grip on his hair, his fingers even partially wrapped around the back of Ning Yixiao’s neck, forcing Ning Yixiao to tilt his face up to sustain the deep kiss. The moment he felt the man entirely melting into the sensation, Su Hui abruptly broke away.

Just like this very moment. Su Hui stared down at the handsome face obscured by the sleep mask, the wet lips that hadn’t fully closed yet, the faint traces of lipstick smeared onto his skin, and his heaving chest.

So this is what it feels like when you look at me.

“Are we not kissing anymore?” Ning Yixiao’s voice was thick with suppressed panting.

Pursing his lips, Su Hui practiced his new lesson, maintaining absolute silence. He knew better than anyone just how agonizing this kind of silence could be.

Barely thirty seconds passed before Ning Yixiao couldn’t endure it any longer, reaching his hand out in an attempt to find him.

But Su Hui slipped out of reach.

An empty hand only served to make the longing more unbearable.

“Little cat.”

It was a sign of submission. Su Hui’s ears burned, but he had no intention of letting him off lightly.

“You can’t call me that today. Not allowed.”

“Then what should I call you…” Ning Yixiao took a deep, ragged breath, shifting his terminology. “Baby?”

Su Hui let out a dissatisfied hum, offering a bit of encouragement: “Try again.”

“Wife…”

The corners of his mouth twitched upward, unable to hold back the smile. Fortunately, Ning Yixiao couldn’t see it. Pressing his fingers against his lips to flatten them, Su Hui kept his voice deliberately cool: “I don’t like it.”

Simultaneously, he took another step closer to Ning Yixiao, reaching out his hand.

“You are not allowed to touch me,” Su Hui commanded in advance. “No matter what I do, you must remain perfectly still.”

Perfecty still.

Ning Yixiao repeated the command internally, enduring the tension, yet unable to shut down his heightened senses. He could catch the lingering base notes of Su Hui’s perfume—a clean, aquatic scent—and hear the faint clinking of the diamond chain.

The metal buckle was unfastened, and the stiff leather belt slipped through the loops inch by inch, creating a sharp friction until it was entirely drawn out.

“I remember when I bought this, the sales associate told me the collection name for this belt was Bad Boy,” Su Hui’s voice drifted over softly, light as a feather. “But you ended up using it to bind my wrists that night.”

That wasn’t the only thing I did with it, Ning Yixiao thought.

“You requested it,” he defended himself instinctively.

Su Hui let out a soft laugh. “True, I was the one who asked for it.” He paused. “So, do you want me to issue a request now?”

Ning Yixiao aligned his wrists together, presenting them to him. “No.”

The expected retaliation did not arrive. Instead, he felt a sudden weight settle over the back of his neck. The leather belt had been draped over his nape. Ning Yixiao froze. Before he could react, he felt Su Hui pull the leather taut, looping it into a firm knot, before gripping the tail end and giving it a sharp, deliberate tug downward.

The sudden force pulled Ning Yixiao forward until he crashed directly against Su Hui’s chest—resembling a puppy whose collar had been snapped tight.

“Do you know what you should call me now?”

Ning Yixiao’s throat felt entirely parched. “…Master.”

A hand settled gently onto the crown of his head. The voice he heard was just as tender as the caressing motion:

“Good boy.”

It felt incredibly strange. But…

Ning Yixiao’s mind began to unravel. His high nose nudged blindly against his clothes, inhaling deeply until he located a patch of bare skin. He opened his mouth,企图 to nip him gently, only to be met with an immediate evasion.

“No.” It was the ultimate command, one that felt hardwired into a pet’s genetic code.

Thus, Ning Yixiao obeyed flawlessly, closing his mouth and quietly gritting his teeth.

In return, he heard Su Hui’s voice again, accompanied by a soothing, gentle stroke down his hair.

“No matter what command I issue tonight, you will execute it perfectly, without resistance or anger. Understood?”

Anger? He possessed a fair amount of confidence in his own emotional restraint; at the very least, he wouldn’t be provoked easily. Furthermore, Su Hui’s core nature was far too sweet and gentle. Even if he tried to push the boundaries, the extent of his mischief would likely amount to nothing more than a light tickle.

“Yes,” Ning Yixiao nodded, his voice steady. “I won’t be angry. You can do whatever you want.”

“Good boy.”