Oh. My. Fate?! (BL, Volume 12, Part 2)

220 Do What Makes You Happy

While Qiu Ling spoke to Jinde to gain some perspective, Jing He stood at the gate leading to his garden, feeling torn. He didn't regret seeing Qiu Ling. On the contrary, just thinking of the few short hours they had been able to spend together, he felt ecstatic. It had been so long since they had been together and he had missed him so much. It should be even worse for Qiu Ling who had experienced the time while he was unconscious, making the wait even longer.

Of course, while he was privately happy, he also realized that he had broken the rules Tian set. Clearly, the supreme ruler had stated that he should not see anyone before he hadn't recovered because this would only hinder his progress. Certainly, this was true. But at that time, he simply hadn't been able to resist. Now, it seemed that he would have to live with the consequences and bear this state even longer.

Jing He sighed to himself and turned back into his palace. This was only a replica but it came with everything his real palace did. He walked further inside and chose a new robe for the day. Even though they hadn't actually slept all night, it just didn't seem right to continue wearing this one.

After quickly washing up and getting dressed, Jing He looked around for An Xin. He didn't know how long he would be here or whether there would be any warning before he had to leave s he shouldn't leave An Xin alone in the palace. The little flame heart couldn't be seen in its usual places though.

Jing He blinked his eyes and called out. "An Xin?" He didn't get a response and the familiar tapping of its little feet was missing as well. He furrowed his brows and walked out into the garden, wondering if An Xin might have run out. It wouldn't be impossible. Last night, hadn't he stood here when he opened the portal? The door had been left open all night and he actually wasn't sure if An Xin had jumped down after he crossed the portal or before. He only knew that it had taken the chance to leave his arms when he was embraced by Qiu Ling.

"An Xin?" He called out again while walking into the garden, looking between the plants. Still, he couldn't find even a single hair of the little flame heart.

Jing He hesitated but finally raised his hand and brought up a water mirror. In the past, he had only ever used these to look at himself. If you tried to spy on others, you usually wouldn't stay unnoticed. But as a fallen god ... it seemed that it was much easier. He tried not to think of the implications and simply used it to find out where An Xin was. When the little flame heart's image appeared, he could only stare at it dumbfounded.

An Xin was currently lying on Qiu Ling's lap, belly-up, its paws twitching lightly as it let the man rub his fur. Clearly, the two of them were in the Heavenly Emperor's study but an additional table had been added and there were documents lying on top which Qiu Ling was working through with one hand. He seemed a little absent-minded and from time to time, he sighed despondently.

Just then, steps sounded from outside and his uncle walked into the room. Neither of the two noticed that they were being watched through the water mirror, making Jing He feel odd. Still, seeing his lover, he couldn't bring himself to stop watching either. No, even after a night spent together, he didn't feel that it was enough. He still missed him. He still wanted to see more of him. He still wanted to listen to his voice, feel his warmth, and lie in those familiar arms, surrounded by Qiu Ling's scent. He ... didn't want to stay here alone.

"What's the matter with you today?" Qiang Yan could see that Qiu Ling was unnaturally listless at a single glance. Usually, even though the dragon king had seemed down since Jing He vanished, he was able to focus on his work and tell himself that it was only a question of time until his beloved would return. While he might not be happy about the long wait, he could look at it as a necessary evil and push through the day. Today though ... that didn't seem to be the case.

Qiu Ling looked up, put aside the brush, and sighed again. Then, he grabbed the unsuspecting little flame heart on his lap and raised it into the air. "Well, it's easy to tell yourself you just have to wait if the wait has been long, but it becomes so much worse if you taste a little sweetness in between."

Qiang Yan raised his brows at once. "Jing He ..." He had come to the Nine Heavens? And from the looks of it, that had been recent.

Qiu Ling nodded. "Last night. He suddenly appeared in front of me. I was almost suspecting that I was hallucinating for a moment." He gave a self-deprecating laugh because, honestly, it was true. He had wished to see Jing He so much that if he went to bed and suddenly saw him ... could that really be the truth? Wasn't it much more likely that he had fallen asleep and was having a sweet dream or that he had lost it because they had been separated for so long that he started to see things that actually weren't there? He was ... not entirely sure that this wasn't something that would happen to a dragon who somehow lost their partner. And even though Jing He wasn't truly lost, he also wasn't there. And that was something that definitely caused issues for a dragon as he had vividly seen with his own father.