"Mo Fei, don't you dare!" Chen Yu yelled.
"Ahh, take that!" Mo Fei laughed as he pressed the buttons on the gaming controller, delivering the final fatality blow to Chen Yu's character.
On the screen, Chen Yu's fighter collapsed dramatically. The game ended.
Mo Fei won.
Again.
"Arggggg!" Chen Yu screamed in agony, clutching his chest as if he had just lost something precious.
Mo Fei giggled beside him.
After breakfast that morning, they had decided to spend the rest of the day playing games since both their schedules were free. Louis had already left earlier, finally giving them a rare peaceful afternoon.
Well.
Peaceful until Mo Fei started destroying Chen Yu in Mortal Kombat.
Chen Yu turned to him, deeply offended. "Since when did you become so good at Mortal Kombat?"
Mo Fei smiled mysteriously. "It's a secret." Then he reached for his phone, which was set up on a tripod nearby.
They had been streaming the entire thing live.
Mo Fei scrolled through the comments, amused. His fans were fully active and clearly enjoying the show. It had been a while since they had seen him livestream, and now their bias was suddenly crushing celebrity chef Chen Yu in a fighting game? They were not going to miss this.
"I didn't know Mo Fei was this good."
"Chef Yu, don't cry. Here's a tissue."
"Awww, I really wanted Chen Yu to win."
"Mo Fei is laughing too hard. He's evil."
"Chen Yu fighting for his life and losing with dignity? Never mind, there's no dignity."
"Mo Fei's thumbs are faster than my internet."
"Chef Yu, blink twice if you need rescue."
"Not the Prince of the Runway becoming the Prince of Fatality too."
Chen Yu glanced at the screen and frowned. "Tsk. Look how they fawn over your one victory."
Mo Fei laughed. "It was four."
"If I say it's one, it's one!" Chen Yu reached over and dragged his hair.
Mo Fei yelped.
"Ow, ow! You all are seeing this, right?" Mo Fei cried toward the camera. "My friend is a huge bully!"
Chen Yu's eyes widened. "How dare you slander me in front of your fans? Come here!"
Mo Fei immediately dropped the phone and ran. Chen Yu grabbed a pillow and chased after him around the living room.
"Don't touch me!" Mo Fei shouted, laughing as he dodged him.
"Come here, Feifei! Bring yourself here! How dare you beat me and slander me?"
Chen Yu chased him around the room, swinging the pillow with the fury of a man whose gaming pride had been publicly destroyed.
Eventually, both of them grew tired and collapsed back onto the sofa, laughing.
Mo Fei reached for his phone again.
"I totally forgot you guys were still here," he said, still laughing.
The comments were flying even faster now.
Mo Fei adjusted the phone and smiled at the camera.
"All right, guys. I need to clock out. I'll talk to everyone later. There's a bully beside me." Then he blew a kiss into the camera.
"Hey!" Chen Yu turned to him. "Who are you calling a bully?" He grabbed Mo Fei by the shoulder and pounced on him again.
Mo Fei quickly ended the livestream before the fans could witness his final moments. While they argued and wrestled on the sofa, the doorbell rang.
Both of them paused mid-chaos.
Chen Yu looked at Mo Fei. "You expecting anyone?" He was currently holding one of Mo Fei's legs.
"Nope." Mo Fei shook his head, then shoved Chen Yu off him.
Chen Yu fell to the floor with a thud.
"I win!" Mo Fei snickered, quickly running toward the door.
Chen Yu sat up, glaring after him.
Damn this small fragile body of his.
Mo Fei opened the door.
Sima Li stood outside, dressed in black trousers and a white flared shirt, sunglasses resting on his face. In both hands, he carried several bags.
Beside him stood Nil, who waved politely.
"Feifei!" Sima Li called happily.
Mo Fei opened the door wider to let them in.
Sima Li strutted inside with Nil following beside him, and Mo Fei shut the door behind them.
Sima Li took off his sunglasses. His gaze immediately landed on Chen Yu, who was still sitting on the floor.
Chen Yu scowled. "Ugh. Why did you let this mangy cat in here?"
Sima Li smirked. "Still sharp-mouthed as ever, Ratatouille."
Chen Yu's ears reddened with anger.
That name again.
Just because he was a chef, Sima Li had made it a habit to refer to him as the rat from a cartoon that could cook.
Mo Fei, however, was not paying attention to their war. His eyes were fixed on the bags in Sima Li's hands.
"What's in those?"
Sima Li lifted them proudly. "I brought goodies." He smiled brightly. "Someone very dear to me refused to drink with me…"
His eyes shifted toward the door, as if his glare could pierce through it and reach the apartment next door. "So I brought everything here."
Mo Fei shrugged.
Fair enough.
Nil walked toward Chen Yu, who immediately averted his gaze the moment he saw him.
"Chen Yu…" Nil's voice was low and soft.
Chen Yu stood up. "Kitchen. Now." Then he turned and walked away.
Nil silently made a quick sign of the cross in his heart before following him.
Sima Li watched them go, then turned to Mo Fei. "What's up with them?"
Mo Fei had already reached into one of the bags and pulled out a pack of chocolate.
"Who knows?" he said.
His eyes glittered as he caught sight of even more snacks inside. Whatever emotional battlefield was happening in the kitchen, it could wait.
There were goodies.
"Mm. Chocolate."
Chen Yu stood beside the marble kitchen counter, arms folded tightly across his chest as he stared at Nil.
Nil stood in front of him with the expression of a man who knew he had entered dangerous territory and had no choice but to survive it.
"Chen Yu," Nil pleaded softly, "please come back home."
For days, Chen Yu had been staying at Mo Fei's place.
Ever since they met at Zhen's fashion house, Nil had thought that after Chen Yu cooled down, he would return home and they would finally talk things through. But Chen Yu had not come back.
Worse, he had refused to take any of Nil's calls. They lived together.
In the past, they had experienced similar issues, Nil overworking, disappearing at odd hours, constantly being around Yichen because of work. Chen Yu had always been considerate enough to understand.
But this time, he was truly angry.
Nil still did not fully know what had triggered it, but his boyfriend was mad at him, and he could not stand it.
"No," Chen Yu said firmly.
Nil sighed. "Why not? We can settle this at home."
"Why?" Chen Yu raised a brow. "So you can run off again the moment Yichen sneezes? Not happening. I'm happy here. At least I don't sleep alone most nights."
Nil's expression softened.
"I apologized for that. But I can't just quit. It's my job as his manager to be there."
"So you're saying your attention will be fully mine if Yichen is out of the picture?"
Nil narrowed his eyes slightly. The way Chen Yu said 'out of the picture' sounded a little too threatening.
"Let me make it up to you," Nil said, stepping closer.
Chen Yu immediately turned his gaze away. "Not in a million years. You know that bastard uses you to spit on me. He does it on purpose, and you let him push me around you."
Nil closed his eyes for a brief second, then opened them again, he reached out and slid his hands gently around Chen Yu's waist, pulling him closer.
Chen Yu stiffened.
"Come home," Nil said softly.
"Not happening." Chen Yu tried to resist, placing his hands on Nil's arms and attempting to free himself, but Nil was stronger.
"Don't be stubborn," Nil murmured, brushing a strand of hair away from Chen Yu's face.
"I'm not stubborn. I just hate this." Chen Yu frowned, but his voice had softened despite himself. "It's not like we need the money. Just quit."
"But I love my job," Nil said.
Chen Yu looked at him sharply. "More than me?"
Nil stared at him, he shook his head, a soft laugh escaping him.
"Never."
That one word seemed to melt a small part of Chen Yu's anger.
Nil noticed it immediately. He leaned in, his breath brushing close to Chen Yu's ear.
"Come home with me," he whispered. "Please."
Chen Yu's body tensed. No matter how angry he was, it was useless in front of this man.
Completely useless.
He pouted and bit his lower lip, still trying to hold on to the last scraps of his temper.
Nil rested his forehead gently against Chen Yu's.
"I'm sorry," he said. "I made you upset. I'll work on my schedule, mm?"
Chen Yu looked away. "On one condition."
Nil's lips curved faintly. "Name it."
Chen Yu raised a fist. "I get to beat that punk."
Nil stared at him for a second.
Then he laughed.
Chen Yu was clearly trying to look fierce, but with his clenched fist and angry little pout, he only looked painfully adorable.
"Deal," Nil said.
Chen Yu finally gave in and hugged him. "Ahh, I've missed you," he muttered, rubbing his face against Nil's chest.
Nil wrapped his arms around him and held him close.
The woes of being a boyfriend.
One minute, there was thunder and a full rainstorm.
The next, there were rainbows.
But Nil would never replace this.
He would never have it any other way.
Chen Yu was his life.
And he was deeply, madly in love with him.