Chapter 19

The orange kitten stood up on its hind legs, little paws swiping at the air. Then it suddenly sprang up and clamped its teeth onto the feathered tip.
Duan Baisui drawled lazily, “Hey. That’s not how you play. You can’t bite.”
But the stubborn kitten stared at him with wide eyes and refused to let go.
“Let go. We’ll start over,” Duan Baisui negotiated with it.
The kitten backed up two steps, trying to drag the wand out of his hand.
“Gege.” Zuo Nian pushed the door open and walked in just then.
Duan Baisui turned his head. “You’re back?”
“Mm.” Zuo Nian squatted beside him and called, “Bai Xue, come here~”
The kitten hesitated for barely a heartbeat before releasing the feather wand and trotting straight to Zuo Nian.
It rubbed itself all over his legs, then flopped on the floor and exposed its soft belly, acting spoiled.
Zuo Nian scratched under its chin. The kitten closed its eyes in bliss, letting out a steady, rumbling purr.
“Bai Xue, be good. Not only do you have to like me—you also have to like Gege, okay?” Zuo Nian told it seriously.
Duan Baisui looked at him from the side.
Under the warm light, the Omega’s profile was soft and beautiful. Long lashes lowered, casting a small shadow across his lids.
He was so obedient it was almost unreal.
Perhaps sensing his gaze, Zuo Nian looked over too.
Their eyes met.
Duan Baisui’s heart accelerated for no reason at all. A tingling numbness spread from the left side of his chest, rushing through his whole body.
Zuo Nian didn’t stop petting the kitten. He gave him a shallow smile, eyes shimmering.
Duan Baisui dropped his gaze and looked away, smiling too as he asked, “You talk to it—does it understand?”
“It does~ Bai Xue is very smart~ Like Gege,” Zuo Nian defended the kitten, then murmured under his breath, “Not like Nian‑nian.”
Leaning back on his hands, Duan Baisui watched them.
He couldn’t remember the last time he’d felt this relaxed. It was as if his whole body had finally loosened.
“You’re smart too,” he said.
Zuo Nian wrinkled his nose. “Gege’s coaxing me again.”
“You can draw, you can make dolls, you can run a business. How is that not smart?” Duan Baisui said.
The kitten ran off after being petted for a while, leaping onto the cat tree.
Zuo Nian copied Duan Baisui and sat on the floor as well. “Actually… lots of people call me a fool. I know.”
Duan Baisui thought he was about to share grievances and was already thinking about how to comfort him.
But the next second, Zuo Nian changed direction completely. “They probably think I’ll be really sad, but I won’t. Because I saw online that ‘fools have fool’s luck.’ Nian‑nian might not be as smart as them, but Nian‑nian is very lucky.”
“Nian‑nian has Dad, Godfather, and Gege. You’re all so good to Nian‑nian. And now Nian‑nian is married to Gege,” he said, smile widening as his lips lifted. “So it’s fine if they call me a fool. Nian‑nian wants this luck.”
Duan Baisui had never had a heart‑to‑heart with Zuo Nian. He’d never really tried to understand him deeply.
He’d always known he was kind and pure.
Only now did he realize he was also optimistic and open‑minded.
Anything bad became something good once it passed through his mouth.
He didn’t trap himself in spirals, didn’t blame the world, and didn’t dump negative emotions on others.
Every second spent with him was light and effortless. The more you knew him, the more you were drawn in.
Unable to resist, Duan Baisui lifted a hand and ruffled the top of his head. “Most people who insult others do it out of jealousy. You’re good. You don’t need anyone to define you—just be yourself.”
Zuo Nian, like the orange kitten, enjoyed being petted obediently and hummed a pleased little sound. “Mm.”
On the evening of the fifth, when Duan Baisui got home from work, he found Zuo Nian packing.
Undoing his shirt buttons, he asked, “Where are you going?”
Squatting on the floor and folding sweaters into the suitcase, Zuo Nian said, “Going to America with Pretty Dad. Did Gege forget?”
Right—Ason had mentioned it on New Year’s Day.
He really had forgotten.
“What time are you leaving tomorrow?”
“Seven,” Zuo Nian said. “Fat Dad is coming to pick me up.”
“For how many days?”
“Not sure.” Zuo Nian scratched his head.
He checked the suitcase again, then tucked the bunny plush and the ugly doll inside too, muttering to himself, “America doesn’t have Gege. I have to bring you. Otherwise no one will hug Nian‑nian.”
Seeing he was basically done and didn’t need help, Duan Baisui took his pajamas and headed for the bathroom.
Just then, Zuo Nian stood up abruptly and called, “Gege…”
“Mm?” Duan Baisui turned back.
Zuo Nian’s face was bright red, as if he couldn’t quite bring himself to say it.
“What is it?” Duan Baisui pressed gently, encouraging him to speak.
Zuo Nian walked up and tugged at his sleeve, stumbling over his words. “Your shirt—the one you’re wearing right now. C‑can you… lend it to me?”
“What?” After his surprise, a possibility occurred to him. “Are you… going into heat?”
Zuo Nian had congenital gland malformation. As a child, he’d relied on injections and medication to keep his glands developing normally.
After adulthood, he’d needed surgical intervention to correct it.
But his body had been too weak. At first, doctors had all advised conservative treatment.
It wasn’t until last year—after his check‑up results finally met the requirements, and Left Jun and Ason found the most authoritative specialist—that he underwent corrective surgery.
The surgery had been very successful. Afterward, his body started producing pheromones normally.
Tests even suggested he was an A‑rank Omega.
That was while he was still recovering.
If his recovery continued well, there was even a possibility he could rise to S‑rank.
Even so, since the surgery, he still hadn’t experienced a heat.
Back then, Duan Baisui had secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
No heat meant they could go on living politely and peacefully, never having to complete a mark just because of instinct.
But asking for his shirt tonight—this looked exactly like nesting behavior before a heat.
It was common. All AO dynamics could show it. Nothing strange about it.
Only…
Did this mean Zuo Nian would need his pheromones and his mark to soothe him?
“I…” Zuo Nian looked at him. His hand slowly loosened on the fabric. “No. I just… I’m afraid I’ll miss you too much. So… um. If it’s inconvenient, forget it.”
…
“I’ll change and give it to you,” Duan Baisui said.
“Really?” Zuo Nian’s face lit up instantly.
Duan Baisui thought: whether Zuo Nian truly had the first signs of a heat, or whether he just wanted something to hold onto, as his spouse, he had no reason to refuse something so reasonable.
“Mm.”
“Thank you, Gege!”
Zuo Nian packed the shirt by itself in a dust bag and carefully placed it on the very top layer of the suitcase.
Late at night, curled in the quilt with his arms around Duan Baisui’s waist, listening to the man’s even, shallow breathing, he whispered, “Gege… Nian‑nian lied just now.”
He slept lightly, mind full of worries.
He was afraid of oversleeping, but also afraid that a loud alarm would wake Duan Baisui.
So a little after five, he got up.
He switched on the bedside lamp on his side.
The light was warm and dim, not harsh at all.
Duan Baisui still slept deeply. Those thin lids covered his usually cool, pale eyes, softening his sharpness into something gentler.
Moving quietly, Zuo Nian got out of bed, dressed, and washed up.
When he was done, he squatted beside the bed, staring at Duan Baisui with greedy reluctance, unable to look away.
Once he left this time, he wouldn’t see him for days.
The time difference was thirteen hours. With how busy Duan Baisui was, there might not even be a chance to video call.
Zuo Nian sighed softly.
He’d endured the torment of missing him too many times. Even remembering it now made his chest ache.
“Gege…” he murmured in a voice only he could hear. “Nian‑nian doesn’t want to leave you.”
In his sleep, Duan Baisui’s brow furrowed, as if he was having a bad dream.
Zuo Nian leaned down and, gathering all his courage, pressed a kiss to Duan Baisui’s forehead—then immediately pulled away.
The warmth of that touch made his heart skip. For an instant, his mind went blank.
Thankfully, Duan Baisui still didn’t wake.
Touching his own lips, Zuo Nian smiled secretly. “Gege… goodbye.”
The bedroom door opened and closed.
The person who’d seemed asleep opened his eyes.
He covered the back of his hand over his forehead, thoughts tangled and restless.
Night faded. Morning light slowly spread.
In winter, City A’s sky always seemed covered by a layer of gray—dull and heavy.