Wei Qing discovers a new appreciation for kissing over the weekend. Kissing for its own sake, instead of a prelude to something more. It’s an odd throwback to him in high school, shyly looking over the heads of laughing classmates and being dared to kiss so-and-so, misinterpreting and going for the lips instead of the cheek like his straighter peers would have.
But ever since Gao Zhong and the mess he left behind when he lied and left, Wei Qing had forgotten just how many butterflies you could swallow, letting your hand brush against someone else’s, letting your eyelashes sweep your cheeks as you wait with bated breath for a brush of lips, and the flick of a tongue that might come after it.
Basically, he’s fifteen again.
And given that he’d seemingly peaked at around twenty, he’s not mad at it.
He likes the little pecks that he gets away with through the day, and the rarer times that Yue Fei reciprocates, landing dragonfly-light and chaste kisses against his temples and knuckles and the pulse-point of his neck. He likes the way Yue Fei chuckles and raises his hands in surrender when Wei Qing is so overcome by the little bits of innocent intimacy that his character gets trampled by robotic horses and sniped by loud little mechanical raptors. In fairness, based on his unique approach to gameplay, he was probably destined to die anyway. But it’s nice to be able to teasingly huff and turn his wronged eyes on his pseudo-boyfriend, instead of his own lack of planning and coordination.
Speaking of which-
He pauses on a charming screen of his character once more dead against a mountain.
“Yue Fei?”
“Want me to play for you again?”
“Ah? No, not yet, I’m definitely going to conquer these stupid buttons. No, I was wondering…” Wei Qing blinks at him, all shy innocence and more than a little expectation, like a kid who knows Santa will give them whatever they want but feels the need to well-behavedly ask anyway.
“Yue Fei, would you be my boyfriend?”
As soon as the words are out, Wei Qing loses his nerve and buries his face in a faux-fur throw pillow. The whiteness of it really creates an arresting contrast, with the bright pink of his flushing skin. Yue Fei appraises him. Very cute, very well-behaved.
So sweet that he’s drowning, despite being physically twenty-eight, and emotionally over forty. After all, no one’s ever asked him to be their boyfriend before. He missed out on that bit of socio-emotional learning, given that such bonds were the greatest sin where he grew up. And after? Eh, he was a bit too much of an iceberg for anyone to be deranged enough to try for him.
Not that he would have said yes to anyone but Wei Qing.
He gently pinches Wei Qing’s reddened earlobe, the smile in his voice wavering with emotion that he doesn’t expect.
“Yes, I’ll be Wei Qing’s boyfriend, if he’ll be mine.”
Wei Qing perks up and nods so eagerly that Yue Fei thinks he might have an Ancestor Bobblehead in his family tree. Yue Fei kisses him, this time deep enough to taste the trace of coffee still lingering on Wei Qing’s impressively active little tongue.
This is how it should be.
Wei Qing should always be this nervous with excitement, rather than dread. Yue Fei really doesn’t understand how Yang Wushe or Gao Zhong could bear to hurt this person who was so exceptional and deserving of cherishment. Like cutting down a thousand-year-old yew to make wooden coasters for some dive bar, it just didn’t make any sense.
Even if they break up tomorrow, Yue Fei wants Wei Qing to be able to feel these things without danger. Wants him to shine. The idea that anyone could look at his bright soul and easily stirred emotions and want to break him down, rather than lift him up– Yue Fei will never understand such malicious brain circuits.
But he doesn’t need to understand them; he just needs to keep Wei Qing bundled up and away from such nastiness. All the better if he can do it from the position of boyfriend, rather than assistant. He will always belong to Wei Qing but for now, at least, Wei Qing also belongs to him. His boyfriend.
With the benefits of his promotion, Yue Fei cheerfully becomes a human pillow, wrapping Wei Qing up and offering helpful suggestions and little pranks, as Wei Qing demonstrates his abysmal parkour skills, falling off all manner of rope bridges and getting turned around while fighting razor-jawed plesiosauruses.
He doesn’t even think they have those in this game, but Wei Qing is just that good at courting death. Yue Fei runs a tooth against Wei Qing’s conveniently-nestled neck. Eh, as long as the death-seeking stays digital, he won’t complain. Who knows? Maybe all this gaming will even unlock some of that situational awareness that his brilliant boyfriend has always been lacking.
Boyfriend.
The next time Wei Qing dies (lost to a flock of aggressive-as-fuck birds this time), Yue Fei pulls him backward and into a kiss that’s longer and deeper than any before it, only breaking apart when the whines from their interlocked mouths become too enticing to ignore. Yue Fei’s more than a little concerned that he’s the one moaning like he’s about to come undone.
“Be good.” He bids farewell to Wei Qing’s reddened lips with a bite, followed by a conciliatory kiss.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
“You started it.” He really, really did.
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Eh, there’s nothing wrong with a little spoiling, despite what he’d thought when he first returned to this existence. If Wei Qing wants to tease, let him tease, if he wants to take advantage, let him take advantage.
—
It’s Tuesday morning, and Wei Qing is sliding into a smoke-gray overcoat, looking every bit the part of a proper business tyrant, or at least a model pretending to be one. Yue Fei is to his side, checking his pockets for keys and cards and whatever else he keeps hidden in that neat peacock blue suit of his.
“Can I tell people at work?”
“En.”
“I mean, just if it comes up organically- wait, did you just say yes? Already? Without me even having to lose my progress and start over a few times to arouse your feelings?” Wei Qing was expecting more resistance. He had a whole stammering speech prepared, with contingencies and compromises.
Yue Fei calls for the elevator and kisses his forehead.
“We’re dating, why wouldn’t I let you say it?”
“Because I’m a giant whore and everyone is going to judge the shit out of you? And me, but I mean, I’m used to it-”
Yue Fei’s happy morning look is replaced with a frown. He pulls at Wei Qing’s hand, bringing him into his arms and looking down at him.
“Don’t say those things.”
Wei Qing’s eyes skitter away from Yue Fei.
“Even if I don’t say, other people will,” he sighs. This reputation of his is just too big. He knows that when they go out, people will make assumptions. Assumptions that will tarnish Yue Fei, which is something… Wei Qing really regrets, though not enough to regret being with him.
“Wei Qing, it’s normal to go a little wild. No one will say anything to your face. And whatever they say privately, we’ll make them eat back later.” Yue Fei kisses from one ear, across his forehead, and down to the other, as if imprinting a crown of love across Wei Qing’s furrowed brows. “If they talk at all. After all, you’ve been very diligent lately. People notice.”
I did.
To spend an entire weekend in a love bubble, and still think Yue Fei might be ashamed of him? The assholes that he had dated to give him these thoughts… Yue Fei keeps up with the kisses, featherlight but adoring. After all, as much as he wants to comfort Wei Qing, he’s not trying to accompany him into the office looking debauched.
It’s not shame that keeps him from re-reddening their lips, it’s pride: Pride that he has such a brilliant boyfriend, and an unwillingness to have people look at them and assume it’s a purely physical thing. He knows he has more hang-ups than he should about this, but he’s amenable to slowly untangling them, alongside Wei Qing.
Yue Fei is just tired to death of people misunderstanding his Wei Qing.
But honestly, seven months of clean living, a revitalized department, and a launchable product wrapped up in fantastic marketing? What exactly is there for people to pick at, except ancient and impolite history? And really, three years of fucking around is damn near cherubic, when you consider the lives that most in Wei Qing’s position would happily be living.
A rich second generation, a pretty boy second son who could collect a paycheck while just laying down and opening his mouth to be fed? What was a few years of wildness, taken against his diligence before and after that dive off the cliff? Who wouldn’t do the same or worse, if they were gifted with his life and cursed with his lack of restrictions?
By the time they reach Wei Securities, Yue Fei has thoroughly excoriated all of Wei Qing’s phantasmal critics. And naturally, just like whenever someone spends their time having silent arguments in their head, no critics emerge, and the argument remains an exercise in unnecessary preparation for non-existent conflicts.
Most of the staff really don’t have anything bad to say about this new Vice President Wei, and those who do will, of course, keep their thoughts to themselves. Otherwise, how could they still be employed? With rent skyrocketing and the marriage market more and more merciless, who would risk their future happiness on something as foolhardy as sharing opinions about their employer’s personal matters? No one! No one at all!
They wish their boss all the happiness and privacy in the world.
So much so that no one even notices anything different between Vice President Wei and Vice President Wei’s Assistant. In that whole first week of their nominal office romance, only Receptionist Xiao figures out the not-secret, and only because she catches Wei Qing planting a kiss on Yue Fei’s bicep when making a mid-morning snack in the shared kitchen.
It’s a nice, low-pressure chance to practice their coming out. Wei Qing jumps on it while she’s still frozen, clutching her packet of oatmeal and thinking about all the costumes that she hasn’t had a chance to finish. Ah, the accountant downstairs, will he miss their train rides together once she’s sacked?
—
“Ms. Xiao, please wait a moment!” Well, pretending to be blind is out, there is no way to play deaf either. Receptionist Xiao wonders if she can preemptively sign a secondary NDA. Walking in on assignations is rarely any kind of good thing. She keeps her head down, giving her a great view of Wei Qing and Yue Fei’s interlocking hands.
Wait, what? Not hiding?
She looks up, and sure enough, Boss Wei is smiling at her. Excited? Nervous? How can she possibly make the boss nervous? Clearly the one who should be nervous is her! Just look at how Yue Fei is staring, not threatening exactly, but terrifying focused. As someone who works very hard at being pleasant and nonthreatening, the human equivalent of a beige, cashmere sweater– it’s very scary, okay!
Still, first and foremost, she’s a receptionist! She has pride in her professionalism. She channels her most unflappable self, the kind that can ask someone peeing in the potted plants to please move, thank you very much. “Yes, Boss Wei?”
“Guess what?” Wei Qing waves their connected hands in the space between the couple and the ambushed Ms. Xiao.
“What?” She coughs. Still, with a hint so obvious, it would be crazy not to admit it, right? It… shouldn’t be a trap? “Boss Wei and Mr. Yue have discovered a new layer in their relationship?”
“Ah! What a good way to put it! So poetic, and exactly right! A new layer, right?” Wei Qing looks to Yue Fei for confirmation, and Xiao Meiling’s nervousness decreases significantly, at how soft Yue Fei’s eyes go when he looks at Boss Wei.
Part of being a good assistant, and good partner, is protecting your person. Xiao Meiling can appreciate that. Probably, Yue Fei was just evaluating the threat. Doing his job, just like she does hers. She smiles and bows and wishes the couple all happiness. She means it.
“And of course, I know what to say and when to keep silent!” Relationship news, like surprise parties, shouldn’t be spoiled by uninvolved people. She’ll be privately rooting for them though, and setting up new outfits for her now-canon cactus couple.
Once the two men leave and she goes to prepare her oatmeal, she discovers extra berries in the little packet.
What a great Tuesday!
—
Of course, the average worker has nothing on Wei Qiwan.
While the building itself might be sleeping on this new relationship, one idle perusal of the elevator logs is enough for a certain wound-too-tight brother to pick up on the changes in their relationship, and, like always, summon Yue Fei up. It’s not like he’s some great detective, but who told his little brother to push that man of his into the corner and nip at his chin like a little leopard? He’d be blind if he didn’t notice.
Wei Qiwan tamps down on his instinctual urge to annoy Wei Qing and politely invites Yue Fei up via email, instead of through the intercom he’d used to raise Wei Qing’s hackles last time. Yue Fei still chooses to share the message with Wei Qing before heading up.
Wei Qing puts on a calm front, but Yue Fei has been at his side long enough to know that this is probably a play for his benefit, rather than his true feelings. Yue Fei chooses to be late for his meeting with the big boss.
He makes them both espressos, but this time brings Wei Qing to the couch to sit with him, instead of keeping that professional distance that he’d once been so meticulous about. Pulls Wei Qing’s black-suited legs over his own, and lets the steam warm them up before pushing past that thoughtful but unnecessary mask that Wei Qing is putting on.
“He just wants to threaten me a little, for dating you.” No point speaking in riddles, especially when he’s trying to minimize misunderstandings between the three of them.
“Why would he care? And how would he know?” Wei Qing tuts but, perhaps remembering those bits of praise and closeness over the last few weeks, his anger is more muted, a shadow rather than a full-bodied monster. And shadows are easy to disperse.
“He cares because he cares. And he knows- eh, probably from the cameras in the elevator.” Yue Fei leans forward and bites Wei Qing’s chin, returning the misbehaved little nibble from the morning and reminding him of just what Wei Qiwan would see, if he was peeping on them and trying to take Wei Qing’s temperature after that little showdown at the pre-launch party.
Yue Fei is sure he’s right. He’d spent enough time with the man in his last life, monitoring Wei Qing and the enemies they chased after, to have no doubts as to the awkward ways Wei Qiwan would ‘check in’ on his sibling.
Why call him up directly and show concern when you can abuse your access to the company cameras instead?
Very on-brand.
So Yue Fei soothes one brother while no doubt stoking the ire of the other, trusting his knowledge of both to balance the two. It takes ten minutes, plenty of gentle caresses, and a second coffee (decaf this time, because honestly) before he judges that he’s on the line of how long he can make Wei Qiwan wait without truly angering him.
He must do his job well, because Wei Qing is a little less artificial, when he casually waves him off.
Don’t worry, I promise not to be seduced over to his side, especially since he surely just wants to threaten me with financial ruin, or strange accidents, rather than a promotion.
Yue Fei adjusts his cuffs and collar on the way up. Since he and Wei Qiwan aren’t that close in this lifetime, he tamps down on his impulse to make eye contact through the camera and scare the man. God forbid he become a new source of tension between the two of them. Talk about counterproductive.
The receptionist up here is really getting too used to seeing him.
He lets himself into the place, ready to be interrogated by the person that he’d once died with, and for. Ah, but to be interrogated as a potential brother-in-law, rather than a pure subordinate–
That’s an oddly arresting thought, even as he chastises himself for having it.
“What happened to not sleeping with him?!”
Evidently, Yue Fei’s not the only one interested in chastisement. Wei Qiwan isn’t being polite, so Yue Fei returns the favor, though he keeps his tone impressively even, long used to such displays of temper.
“I am still not sleeping with him-” Yue Fei lowers his eyelids, to hide his eye roll as Wei Qiwan motions to his computer screen, and the security suite present on it. “-but as of Saturday, we are dating. Yes.”
And since he can foresee an entire lifetime of this, of Wei Qiwan calling him in just to check on their physical status, Yue Fei cuts that off at the knees. Gotta subvert that security state when you can. Even if it’s the elder brother of the man you love, a brother that you even like when he’s not being a self-sabotaging idiot in the grand family tradition.
“And to avoid you asking me every week, and suddenly being furious when I one day refuse to answer-” Yue Fei coughs, trying very hard not to imagine such a day, “-I feel I should explain, that from now on, whether we sleep together or not, I will still not be reporting back to you.”
Yue Fei punctuates his declaration with a lifting of his eyes, finally looking at a clearly offended Wei Qiwan. Yue Fei shrugs. Acts more casually than he should, as the look and the atmosphere blend together with a hundred exasperated meetings from their last life.
“…Do you really want to know that kind of thing? Whatever happens between us, whether we break up tomorrow or fall deeper, it’s not for public consumption. That includes you.” Yue Fei cracks his neck. Softens. “But I won’t ever take advantage of him, or hurt him.”
“And if he hurts you?”
“Then he’ll hurt me. I’m not porcelain, and I’m not vindictive.” Don’t worry so much, Qiwan. I know that he’s out of my league, and I know that he has needs that I might struggle to meet. I’ve given myself preventative treatment.
He’s not sure that it will be effective at all, but he’s warned himself plenty that he might not be able to hold onto this brilliance. And if it fails… He’ll mourn, probably more deeply than he wants to admit, but he’ll never feel the need for revenge. At least, not against either of them. All his vindictiveness is already reserved for those monsters that once pulled Wei Qing to the edge, or stepped on him after he left.
His social worker would probably have a lot to say about the healthiness of this kind of self-sacrificing love, but for all his high-minded ideals, he hasn’t actually had to sacrifice anything, has he?
No, every struggle is the same as he’d complete as part of his duties. All their new relationship had given him is moderate anxiety and a lot of sweetness. Not a bad trade– From a harried assistant to a warm and protected partner, with plenty of time to relax across Wei Qing’s newly tidy social calendar.
“I still don’t like it.”
“I understand President Wei’s hesitation.” After all, dating the help was rarely something their class encouraged, even in this modern age when it was more tolerated. And for all the skills he’d worked to develop, he was still a nameless no-one Senior Wei had picked up as a subordinate for his son, not a marriage prospect. He hadn’t even gone to college.
“At least you’re not some little starlet. Bah, whatever. Take this as me threatening you, make them up in your own head.” Wei Qiwan taps his fingers and forces himself to show a little vulnerability as a reward for Yue Fei not trying to messily hide it.
“If you could not hurt him– that would be best.”
Yue Fei smiles at him and even bows as he leaves.
Author’s Corner:
Wei Qing is dismissive and self-destructive when it comes to his body, Yue Fei is reticent and self-sacrificing when it comes to his heart. Dad feels that both of them should work on that and cherish themselves a little bit more.
Wei Qiwan is a tree stump attempting to cultivate spiritual consciousness on a diet of tic tacs and tums alone.
At least they have one another.
“Imprinting a crown of love across Wei Qing’s furrowed brows” for some reason that particular detail got me right in the heart it’s so soft and tender and my heart is full of love for them 😭😭😭😍😍😍 And the tree stump is doing his best!! Go, tree stump!!!
Thank you for the update ❤️💯
Ahahah the little description of their character at the end of the chapter was so spot on ! So much fluff feed me more and thank you ~
Agreed I read it multiple times to imprint it on my brain cells lol
Why do i love these three guys so much 🥺🥺
I really appreciate Yue Fei’s attack kiss during Wei Qing’s game. It would have been understandable if he’d been passive and always let Wei Qing initiate their affections, but it can leave an opening for the person who did the chasing to always wonder if his lover is only there because he got caught. I hope this makes sense? Yue Fei is doing a fabulous job of reassuring his boyfriend that it’s equal on both sides.
please, im so soft. i Need the brohers to become close again
thanks for the chapter <3
In the Author notes, which Dad is author referring to? I remember Wei Qiwan thought himself We Qing’s single father. Just thought is kind of sweet 💖
This reply is suuuuuper late but hi, I’m Dad. 😂