Against the Algorithm

Chapter 54: Given, Not Owed

The lights in her apartment were low, casting a soft, amber glow over the room as the evening quiet pressed in, familiar and calming. Outside, the city hummed in its usual rhythm, but none of it reached her here—not the weight of expectation, nor the pacing thoughts about matches or university deadlines.

Yao sat curled on the couch, her phone resting in her lap as the last message to Jinyang blinked gently beneath her thumb.

We're back. Everything's confirmed for Saturday, Sicheng's father handled all the accommodations for everyone that wishes to come. Thank you for helping Ming Sheng and Lao K with the furry menaces.

Jinyang had replied almost immediately.

Of course. Just rest, okay? I'll handle everything else.

Yao read the message twice, her fingers brushing gently over the screen before she turned it off and placed it quietly on the table. Dinner had been quiet. She'd sat beside Sicheng at the island, the two of them eating side by side in silence that didn't feel heavy, just comfortable. It had been a long day, and neither of them had pushed for conversation. He had reheated the food while she got Xiao Cong settled. They ate with a kind of ease that only came from familiarity.

Now she had tucked herself into his side on the couch, her small frame folded into the space between his arm and chest. He had wrapped his arm gently around her shoulders, holding her close but never too tight, his fingertips tracing soft patterns across the fabric of her sleeve as she pressed her face into the curve of his neck. She wasn't crying. She wasn't even sad. But she was quiet in a way he knew meant everything was catching up to her—the weight of all she carried, the decisions she didn't want but had made anyway, the soft ache of exhaustion behind her eyes.

Sicheng said nothing. He simply tilted his head until his cheek rested against her hair and let his hand slide gently along the curve of her back. Her fingers curled into his shirt lightly, not out of fear, not even for comfort. Just... needing to be near him. She drew in a small breath, eyes still closed, and didn't say anything. Not a word. But the way she pressed her forehead just a little closer into the warmth of his neck, the way her shoulders finally began to relax against him—he felt it. She was looking for sanctuary. And with him, she always had it. His hand stilled, resting over her shoulder, and in the softest voice he only ever used for her, he murmured, "I've got you." She nodded faintly, the movement small against his collarbone. He didn't say anything else. Because she didn't need anything else right now. Just the stillness. The warmth. And the knowledge that she was held without being asked to be strong. That for tonight, just tonight, she could be quiet. And he would stay exactly where he was.

It was early afternoon when Sicheng stepped out into the back lot behind the ZGDX base—the one usually reserved for delivery vans and equipment storage, often ignored by the rest of the team. He wasn't expecting anything. Just some quiet air and a break between scheduled scrims.

Yue trailed after him, stretching his arms behind his head with a yawn that bordered on theatrical. "I swear Rui's new schedule is designed specifically to break our will," Yue muttered. "Even the caffeine's stopped working."

Sicheng didn't answer.

Because he'd already stopped walking.

Yue slowed too, blinking as he stepped up beside him.

And then—

They both saw it.

Not two cars like they had expected.