The moment Jiang Yun stepped out of the airport, Beijing’s swirling snowflakes hit him head-on, chilling him to the bone. “Sh*t!”
He finally snapped out of it, shivering violently, turning to Yu Ting. “What the h*ll are you two up to? He just dragged me to Beijing out of nowhere!”
Remembering the look his mom gave him before he left—utter disappointment and disbelief—he felt more wronged than Dou E. “My mom thinks I’m the bad influence on him! I’m the one who got kidnapped, okay?!”
Yu Ting glanced at the long taxi queue outside the terminal. “It’s not a big deal. Let’s just find a car first.”
On the billboard outside the airport, the slogan read “Christmas is coming.” The whole city was steeped in festive cheer and lively excitement. Shen Shi stood quietly under the awning, travel-worn from the journey, yet showing no trace of fatigue.
Just as Yu Ting was anxiously opening his ride-hailing app, Shen Shi suddenly spoke. His voice was low and rough, as though it might dissolve into the whirling wind and snow at any moment: “…Yu Ting, did you see it?”
Yu Ting froze. It took him a full minute to grasp the hidden meaning behind those words.
It was as if, so long as he said, no, I didn’t see it, Shen Shi would turn around right there, leave Beijing, go back to Shanghai, and pretend this trip had never happened.
A faint ache welled up in Yu Ting’s chest. After a long silence, he finally said softly, “I saw.”
“Mm.”
At that, Shen Shi slowly nodded.
Even Jiang Yun, usually the densest of them all, could tell something was off. He didn’t dare make a sound, only strained his ears, trying to piece together what was happening.
The world around them was still and soundless. Snowflakes fell thick and heavy, layering the ground bit by bit.
Five minutes later, a G-Class Mercedes rolled to a stop in front of them. Its sleek, powerful shape gleamed faintly under the lights. The driver got out, respectfully vacated the seat for Shen Shi, and then quietly stepped aside.
Jiang Yun: “?”
Yu Ting: “?”
Then—“Bang”—the driver’s door slammed shut, loud as thunder. The window slid halfway down, revealing a glimpse of Shen Shi’s cold, sharply defined profile in the dim light.
He turned his head slightly; his eyes were dark and terrifyingly calm as he said simply, “Get in.”
Both men flinched. They quickly opened the doors and climbed into the back seat.
The car roared down the road. The reason a G-Class was a G-Class wasn’t just its roomy interior, it was its sheer speed.
As they drove, the streets grew emptier. When they passed through the commercial district, couples out for Christmas Eve dates still dotted the sidewalks, laughing and chatting. Their laughter mingled with the wind. Yu Ting sat on edge the entire way, terrified that Shen Shi, in a fit of rage, might just steer straight into someone.
After nearly an hour of driving, the G-Class finally pulled up in front of the hot spring resort in the southern part of the city.
It was the same place as before, its exterior steeped in Suzhou garden charm, lights glowing warmly against the falling snow.
Steam rose gently into the night, blurring the outlines of the buildings, lending the whole scene a quiet, dreamlike beauty.
The only difference was—this time, he was outside, and Ye Ran was inside.
In the very place he had once brought him, Ye Ran was now with another man.
Shen Shi’s fingers clenched around the steering wheel until his knuckles turned white, veins bulging under his skin, blood pulsing hard and fast.
It took him a full quarter of an hour before he exhaled a long, shaky breath. He closed his eyes, as if in pain; when he opened them again, all traces of turmoil were gone, only an impenetrable darkness remained in his gaze.
The car was parked under a tree not far from the resort entrance, shadows shifting faintly across the hood.
Shen Shi’s lashes lowered slightly, his loose black hair concealing whatever emotion still lingered. His fingertip tapped the steering wheel rhythmically.
Under Yu Ting and Jiang Yun’s increasingly tense stares, he unbuckled his seatbelt and stepped out of the car.
The howling wind hit his face instantly. Thick, heavy snow fell like torn cotton, casting a pale glow across the darkened world.
Yu Ting and Jiang Yun followed him out. The three of them stood together outside the resort entrance.
For a long time, no one spoke until Yu Ting finally asked, his voice stiff, “Should we… go in now?”
Shen Shi didn’t respond. His face was unreadable, expression flat.
Yu Ting, far more anxious than him, began pacing back and forth in the snow. The flakes were falling so heavily that in moments he was shivering all over. “Actually, we don’t even know which room Ye Ran’s in,” he muttered. “If we go in, we might not find them anyway. Maybe… it’s better to wait out here.”
At that moment, Jiang Yun finally understood what was going on.
He sucked in a sharp breath, his already trembling body now shaking uncontrollably. He stared at Shen Shi, then at the warm, inviting glow of the resort ahead.
“Holy sh—” He was struck dumb, stammering, “Th-th-this is… catching some—”
Before the word “adul—” could leave his mouth, Shen Shi cast him a cool, indifferent glance.
Jiang Yun immediately shut up, swallowing the word back down hard. Even so, he was utterly stunned, his mind barely functioning. What the h*ll… Shen Shi’s been cheated on? And he’s still protecting him?
Yu Ting, who’d seen plenty of things in his time, knew exactly how gentle and soft-spoken Shen Shi became around Ye Ran.
That mask of calm composure had been worn for far too long. Whenever he faced Ye Ran, his instinct was always to suppress, to restrain, to avoid frightening the little rabbit who had stepped into his snare.
A soft, well-behaved rabbit, with pure white fur. The kind that startles at the slightest noise.
The snow was falling harder now. Faint laughter drifted from inside the hot spring resort.
The gale swept through the night, hurling snow against the bare branches, against the still cars, against the silent figures standing beneath them.
The world was dark and heavy.
Thick clouds piled above like slabs of slate, stretching endlessly into the distance, blocking the light. In the dim glow, the only visible thing was the shadow in front of the car, melding with the trees.
Inside the G-Class, the heater hummed softly, and the radio played.
The weather forecast announced that the light snow would soon turn heavy. No one knew how long it would last. It urged all citizens still outside to return home as soon as possible.
Jiang Yun hadn’t dared to close the door. Fortunately, the heater was strong enough that he wasn’t freezing. He glanced at Shen Shi, who didn’t seem to feel the cold at all, and shivered for him instead.
“Shen Shi is…” He thought for a moment, then ventured, “…committing slow suicide?”
Yu Ting: “…”
Yu Ting was, for once, speechless. “What do you think?”
Jiang Yun sighed, realizing how dumb that sounded. He held his hands out to the vent for warmth and asked quietly, “When did he even get into a relationship? He’s that into someone?”
Because in his mind, Shen Shi, arrogant, proud, self-assured to his bones, was the kind of man whose partner would always be the one to compromise. How could he end up in such a humiliating position?
But life is unpredictable. No matter how composed and unhurried Shen Shi might seem, no matter how he always appeared to handle everything with ease, in the end he still looked like an abandoned, drenched stray dog, standing alone in the cold wind, waiting for someone.
Yu Ting sighed. “You didn’t see the way he…”
He thought for a moment, then added, “…the way he practically threw himself at him.”
Jiang Yun, though she hadn’t seen it, imagined it for a second and felt her scalp tingle. “With all due respect, I don’t really want to see it either.”
Yu Ting said, “We might as well just go in and find him instead of waiting out here.”
“What are you thinking,” said Jiang Yun, who was usually slow on the uptake but showed surprising sharpness in this regard, “you’ve never been in love, you don’t understand. When it comes to feelings like this—before everything is settled, of course you drag it out as long as you can.”
Yu Ting truly didn’t understand. “What’s the point of dragging it out?”
“It works,” Jiang Yun said. “Bet you anything, within five minutes, Shen Shi will take us back.”
Yu Ting: “?”
He let out a short laugh. “What are you talking about? Shen Shi clearly won’t stop until he—”
Before he could finish, the shadow merged with the trees suddenly moved. Under Yu Ting’s incredulous gaze, Shen Shi, his expression calm, got into the car.
Snowflakes melted in his hair, on his brows, and on his shoulders, leaving him damp, cold, and utterly disheveled.
His features were still strikingly handsome, his face sharply defined like it had been carved.
Yet now that face was bloodless, drained of all color. Even his dark brows and eyes were dusted with snow, dull and lifeless.
He sat in the driver’s seat, closed the door, and took his hands out of his pockets, holding them before the heater vents to slowly bring them back to life. His voice, low and hoarse as if unused for a long time, came out slow and rough.
“Back to Shanghai.”
Yu Ting blinked, lost. “Huh? You mean have Jiang Yun go back? I—I can drive him there—”
“I’m going too.”
Five minutes later, the car was cutting through silence toward the airport.
After the weather warning, only a few cars remained on the road.
Snow packed tight beneath the tires, crunching and squeaking as they rolled. Red lights glowed faintly through the swirling snow. The road to the airport was over an hour from the hot spring inn—on the way there it had seemed to fly by in a blink, but now the return felt endless, as if the road would never end.
At a downtown intersection, the light turned red and the car slowed to a stop. Unlike the outskirts, the city center was still bright and bustling; even with heavy snow, there were still couples walking hand in hand along the sidewalks.
Many shopfronts had hung Christmas decorations.
It was Christmas Eve tonight, and faintly, they could hear “Merry Christmas” songs playing from a milk tea shop.
The light changed.
Green.
The car shot forward, then, at the next intersection, suddenly turned around, speeding back the way they came—
The tall, heavy vehicle cut through the flying snow.
Flurries gathered in a curved layer on the hood. In the back seat, Yu Ting and Jiang Yun exchanged a glance, both helpless, but both relieved.
…Some things, you can’t solve by running away.
The return trip was astonishingly fast. In barely twenty minutes, they had stopped once more outside the hot spring inn.
The clock hand pointed straight to nine.
The place was just as peaceful as when they had left.
The Christmas tree by the entrance twinkled with lights, its little gift boxes swaying gently in the wind and snow.
Shen Shi saw a new message from his mother.
It was a photo.
The Shen family mansion had just finished dinner. Every child held a present, running around the living room shrieking. The TV played Barbie Princess; the kids who had fought all morning to watch Armor Hero were now pressed head to head, showing each other their gifts.
[Mother Shen]: “Be safe. No need to hurry back.”
From the look on Shen Shi’s face before he left, she already understood, this trip wasn’t for the hot springs, nor for Christmas Eve.
Her son had looked restless, uneasy like those children in the living room who had lost their favorite toy.
On this Christmas Eve, she hoped Shen Shi would find his own apple.
***
Soothing warmth surrounded him in the hot spring. Ye Ran’s heart suddenly skipped a beat. He opened his eyes sharply, realizing he’d dozed off half-awake for nearly half an hour.
The clock pointed to eleven.
They had already spent half a day at the hot spring inn.
His childhood friend, half-asleep, leaned against his shoulder. “Ranran, let’s just sleep here.”
A strange mix of urgency and tension churned inside Ye Ran’s chest, heavy and tight. He took a deep breath, trying to stay calm, and said quietly, “The beds here aren’t comfortable.”
An Yu rubbed his eyes. “Ah? Then forget it.”
He knew Ye Ran was particular about beds, he could sleep in a new place, but never soundly.
The two got out of the hot spring and went inside to change. They folded their damp robes neatly by the pool. The hot spring was clean enough that they didn’t need to shower again, but they could use the hotel’s body lotion and moisturizer just in case.
An Yu made Ye Ran use up an entire bottle of lotion, then pinched his arm approvingly. “Don’t you feel nice and soft now?”
The milk-scented lotion wasn’t too strong, subtle, only noticeable up close.
Ye Ran seemed distracted, but his movements were brisk. “Mm. Smells good.”
An Yu had used a rose-scented one. He liked anything bold and strong. After getting dressed, he inhaled deeply, satisfied, and followed close behind Ye Ran.
At this hour, finding a cab might be hard, but fortunately the inn offered shuttle service.
As long as you paid, the service would always find a way to improve.
“Merry Christmas Eve to you both,” the receptionist said with a sweet smile, handing them each an apple wrapped in a gift box. “We hope to see you again soon.”
At her reminder, Ye Ran booked a ride, then stepped out the main doors. As the revolving door turned, a blast of cold wind hit him in the face.
The warmth on his body vanished instantly. The biting wind swept past, carrying great flurries of snow like torn cotton, fluttering down around their feet.
Snow on the roadside had already piled up to their ankles. Ye Ran couldn’t help looking a few more times. For some reason, his heart began to pound faster and faster, more and more urgent—
A gaze, indescribable and sharp as if capturing prey, pierced through the whirling snow and landed firmly on him and on the childhood friend crouched beside him, playing with the snow.
“Wow, Ranran, look at this snowflake, it looks like a love knot…”
Ye Ran rubbed his eyes, his gaze starting to wander uncontrollably around him.
Holding the apple gift box in one hand, his fingertips quickly turned red from the cold. After a few seconds of hesitation, he stepped out from under the eaves and down the steps.
“Ranran?” his friend’s voice called from behind, full of confusion. “Where are you going? Did the car come?”
He turned his head slightly and saw, under the shadow of the trees across the street, a black G-Class.
“?” An Yu raised a brow. What’s with that G? Did it stall?
He wanted to call out to Ye Ran, but saw Ye Ran suddenly freeze mid-step. His back went stiff in the thick night. After a long pause, as if confirming something, he suddenly strode forward, crossing the street in hurried, frantic steps.
An Yu instinctively chased after him, opening his mouth—“Ran—”
He stopped mid-word. Across the street, from the shadows of the trees, a tall and slender figure stepped out.
Lean. Upright.
Covered in snow.
…
Ye Ran’s breathing trembled, nearly shaking.
He hadn’t expected to see Shen Shi here, nor to see him looking like this.
He quickly crossed the street, the snow-laden wind cutting at his face like knives.
The light was too dim; he couldn’t see Shen Shi’s expression clearly. He could only see the thick layer of snow resting on Shen Shi’s shoulders.
“Shen Shi!” he called, stepping toward him one careful step at a time, eyes squinting against the wind, his whole body shivering from the cold. “What are you doing here?”
Shen Shi seemed not to hear, unmoving. After a long moment, he finally lowered his head and looked at him.
He saw Ye Ran, standing against the dim light spilling from the hotel doors, brows drawn tight with worry, those always-gentle eyes flickering with light as he looked up at him, lips moving, seemingly saying something.
Shen Shi was silent for several seconds. Because he was deliberately shutting it out, he couldn’t make out Ye Ran’s words.
All he could hear was the howl of the snow-laden wind in his ears.
He had been standing here for two hours, in the freezing air, letting the cold dull the anger and restlessness in his blood.
And now, he could finally speak in a calm tone, ignoring that eyesore of a man over there, suppressing the jealousy rising in his chest, and gently saying to Ye Ran, “Merry Christmas.”
Ye Ran froze.
His eyes always gave away what he felt, just like now, as they curved slightly, soft and luminous, like the tiny lights on a Christmas tree.
And this time, Shen Shi clearly heard his voice: “Shen Shi, Merry Christmas.”
Sound returned to focus.
The wind no longer roared so harshly.
He regained control of his body but his gaze still lowered, never once looking at the other man. Under Ye Ran’s quiet gaze, he felt himself give a faint smile, then lifted a hand to touch Ye Ran’s hair.
Restrained, proper—just as the “three rules” between them had been clearly written.
He hadn’t broken them.
So Ye Ran wasn’t allowed to, either.
Within the term of that pact, they were to keep tangling like this.
“I should go.”
He withdrew his frozen hand, moved it in his pocket, feeling neither warmth nor familiar touch. His tone didn’t change at all as he said to Ye Ran, “See you next year.”
Then he turned and walked away, into the deeper darkness where the G-Class waited.
The handsome, gentle face, at the instant it left Ye Ran’s sight, turned pale and expressionless—
As if there was nothing left worth caring about. His face went blank; the five fingers hidden in his pocket clenched into a fist—tight, loosened, and tight again—taut with something on the verge of snapping.
Yu Ting and Jiang Yun shrank like two frightened chicks, watching as Shen Shi patiently finished speaking with Ye Ran, then without another word, headed straight for the car.
The scene was far beyond anything they had imagined— A perfect example of thunder loud, rain small.
They could only see Shen Shi’s eerily calm face and then the sudden movement from Ye Ran.
The next second, all three who remained in the snow widened their eyes at once.
…
Ye Ran’s body trembled with cold as he quickly caught up to Shen Shi, reaching out instinctively to tug at his sleeve. Shen Shi halted slightly at the pull, then after a long pause, turned his head just a little and asked softly, “What is it?”
His voice was low and chilled by the wind, almost hard to hear.
Ye Ran’s mind was blank, utterly at a loss.
A few seconds later, he stammered, uncertain, “That… that boy—he’s my friend.”
For some inexplicable reason, he felt Shen Shi was sad.
And that the reason for that sadness… was him.
Shen Shi paused, turning fully around, his downcast eyes dark and calm, as though patiently listening.
Ye Ran swallowed hard and continued, “His name’s An Yu. We grew up together, I’ve always thought of him like family.”
After a moment’s hesitation, he bit his lip, voice dropping to a whisper: “I really wanted to introduce him to you.”
Amid the wind and snow—
It felt as if the whole world had vanished, leaving only the two of them.
Ye Ran lowered his head, feeling a shadow fall over him.
Shen Shi bent down, his handsome but pale features magnified before his eyes.
Those dark phoenix eyes held a depth of emotion, like a whirlpool in the sea, capable of pulling him under. Then he heard Shen Shi’s voice, low and slow, just like the countless nights he’d softly said good night: “Ye Ran.”
“I understand.”
Ye Ran let out a quiet breath, the tight ache in his chest finally easing, his heart settling into a normal rhythm again.
His whole body visibly relaxed. Just as his fingers were about to let go of Shen Shi’s sleeve, Shen Shi’s cold, stiff hand turned and grasped his instead. With his eyes lowered, he gently pinched Ye Ran’s fingertips. Their hands were both freezing, yet the touch between them burned.
“Why do you need to explain yourself to me?”
Ye Ran froze, his heart leaping into his throat again.
Shen Shi lifted his eyelids slightly, those pitch-black eyes fixed on him as he said faintly, “We don’t have any sort of relationship. Why do you need to explain to me?”
“Because…” Ye Ran struggled to gather his thoughts, forcing himself to speak coherently. “Because…”
He saw Shen Shi’s hair stiff with frost, his clothes crusted with ice, and that rare, unguarded exhaustion on his face—something he had never seen before. His heartbeat grew frantic, pounding so fast it felt like it might burst out of his chest.
Then, suddenly, he closed his mouth. After a moment, he asked softly, “What about you? Why did you fly back from Shanghai?”
Shen Shi looked at him.
Ye Ran stood still, his hand still held by Shen Shi, his thin eyelids lowered. “Was it… to tell me Merry Christmas?”
Shen Shi: “No.”
Ye Ran blinked, listening as he said, low and steady, “Because I thought my boyfriend didn’t want me anymore so I came to see for myself.”
…As expected.
Ye Ran slowly exhaled.
He pretended to act natural, returning the grip on Shen Shi’s hand, meeting his gaze calmly, ignoring the faint burn on his ears, trying to look composed and unbothered.
“Then you don’t have to confirm anything,” he said. “I only have one boyfriend right now.”
Shen Shi lowered his eyes, a faint smile spreading in their corners.
Still holding Ye Ran’s fingertips, he asked softly, “So… I’m officially your boyfriend now?”
Ye Ran: “Mm. You are.”
Shen Shi: “Why?”
In Shen Shi’s eyes, Ye Ran’s thoughtful expression was reflected, his gaze deep and gentle, as if wanting to carve this moment into his memory forever.
It was, truly, the best Christmas Eve gift he had ever received.
Soon, Ye Ran’s quiet voice came again, carefully chosen words: “Because I like you.”
Shen Shi’s eyes darkened; his Adam’s apple bobbed once before he murmured, “Mm. I like you too.”
Ye Ran’s ears reddened as he continued his unfinished thought, “So even if we break up someday… at least we’ll have been together.”
“The process of being in love matters more than the result. I was too extreme before. I’m sorry.”
When those words left his lips, the world around them fell utterly silent.
…
“Hm?”
After a long while, Shen Shi curved his lips into a smile but there was no trace of it in his eyes. “Is that so?”
“Yes,” Ye Ran answered firmly.
Then he heard Shen Shi’s voice, colder than the wind and snow itself: “Baby, it’s our first day dating.”
A heavy shadow fell over him.
Ye Ran froze, dazed, caught in that darkness. Uneasy, he lifted his head to meet Shen Shi’s dangerous, faintly smiling black eyes.
“Isn’t breaking up already… a little too hasty?”
