Wei Ying stared at his husband and pouted.
"I don't want to go to sleep. Not yet. I'm not tired." He lied.
"Then, what does Wei Ying want to do?" Golden eyes searched his, trying to find a clue.
"I want to sit. There." Wei Ying pointed to his lap.
Ears pink and hot, but Lan Zhan smiled up at him and opened his arms. Wei Ying wriggled into his favourite position and snuggled closer, relishing the strength of the arms holding him in place.
"When did you start doing handstands, Lan Zhan?" Wei Ying entwined their fingers together and kissed their joined hands.
"Five."
"When you were five?" Wei Ying wondered what he had been doing at that age. Oh yes...that was just after his parents had left him, and...he shook his head of the bad memories. No, he was not going to be sad, tonight.
Tonight, was the first night in so long, that they were alone. Together.
And Wei Ying was determined to enjoy it.
"How many did you have to do?" He whispered against the smooth neck.
"Fifty."
"Fifty? But you were so young..." Wei Ying was shocked.
"Training. Uncle said ten for every year."
"So you were five, just a baby, and...fifty?" Wei Ying kissed his jaw.
"Mn." Lan Zhan felt along his back for the familiar and beloved red ribbon. The silk felt cool against his fingertips.
"What do you think of, when you think of fifty?" Wei Ying asked him, settling himself more comfortably.
"Half of one hundred. Punishment for breaking one rule in Cloud Recesses."
"Really? And what is the punishment?" Wei Ying smiled, thinking he was going to have to change a few things.
"Fifty times writing out the rules."
"I bet you didn't ever have to write them out." Wei Ying beamed at him, delighted with his smirk.
He reached up and kissed him enthusiastically.
"But Lan Zhan, do you know what I think of, when I think of fifty? I think of you."
Golden eyes looked puzzled, deepening when he saw Wei Ying's smile become brighter.
"I think of fifty as a whole number. Not as a stepping stone to a hundred, but whole and complete by itself. And," Wei Ying reached up to kiss his nose," if I put a two in the middle of them, it makes five hundred and twenty. Say it out loud." He prompted.
Lan Zhan did.
"I love you too." Delighted once again, Wei Ying captured his lips, this giddy feeling refusing to dissipate.
Lan Zhan held his face with warm hands and carefully kissed him back.
Whe they broke apart, Wei Ying continued to smile at him.
"Mn?"
"You make me happy."
Lan Zhan blushed.
"Like, all the time."
Lan Zhan blushed some more, but now he hid his face in the crook of Wei Ying's neck. Wei Ying kissed his hair, lovingly.
"So I think, we should give fifty some love in return. What do you say?"
"Mn. What does Wei Ying want to do?" He would never tire of asking him that. He leaned back to look into silver shining eyes.
"I want fifty kisses a day, I want fifty hugs a day, I want to release fifty lanterns, high up into the mountains of Gusu." He stretched his arms up above them. "I want fifty spoons of ice cream, maybe not every day," he grinned, thinking on the fly, "fifty different flavours, fifty wishes to come true. I want everything. With you." He threw his arms carelessly around Lan Zhan's neck.
"Fifty too small. Need more." Lan Zhan kissed him again.
"But my poor lips..." Wei Ying started to back track.
Lan Zhan bit him.
"Fifty bites. Fifty times we..."
"No!" Wei Ying covered his mouth quickly.
Maybe he had made a mistake...
"But Wei Ying said-" Hot lips spoke against his fingers.
Shivers broke out all over his body, and Wei Ying had to close his eyes.
"I know I said that, but-" he opened his eyes to find Lan Zhan pouting now.
"Promise is a promise." He wouldn't look at him.
"But Lan Zhan! Please, think of my body!"
"I am thinking of your body." Lan Zhan pouted some more.
"Not like that!" Wei Ying wrapped his arms around him. "Please, mercy!"
"Two days?" Lan Zhan looked at him hopefully.
"That's still twenty five!" He shook his head. "I'll be dead by the end of the week!"
All traces of mirth left his face. Lan Zhan held him so tightly, he couldn't move. And then he realised what he'd said.
"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have-"
Lan Zhan kissed his lips, preventing him from speaking. Wei Ying felt the warm salty tears on both of their faces. He tried to break away, but desperation wouldn't let Lan Zhan let him go.
Gasping, Wei Ying held on until he felt himself go limp. Lan Zhan hugged him again.
"My love. I should not have said that." He whispered.
"Mn." The sound was full of hurt.
"Please forgive me?" Anxiously, he looked up into golden eyes brimming with pain. "Aiyish, Lan Zhan!" Wei Ying kissed his eyes and the tears still making their way down his cheeks. "Let me add to my list?"
"Mn."
"Fifty times, I want to kiss this." Wei Ying kissed the tip of his nose.
Lan Zhan smiled.
Encouraged, Wei Ying smiled back and continued.
"Fifty times, I want to make you smile. Fifty times, I want to make you promises."
Lan Zhan kissed his forehead warmly.
"Fifty times, I want you to kiss me there." He was utterly serious, and now, his tears flowed over. "Fifty times, I want to tell you I love you. And fifty times, to tell you that it's not enough. That fifty lifetimes won't be enough."
This time, it was Lan Zhan's kisses that stopped him crying.
"Wei Ying is loved." Lan Zhan held him closer.
They sat like that far into the night.
******
A/N
I just checked on Wattpad and guess what? The first book in the series has reached 50K.
Mind blown.
So I know I keep saying it, but it's really hard for me to believe. That so many of you have read it and continue to do so, well, it is my honour to find such gracious and lovely readers.
I have a whole new family of Wattpad friends who enrich my own life, and this chapter is a gift for all of you. Did you guess the theme?
See if you can count how many times fifty is mentioned? Sort of like a treasure hunt...
Anyway, the number fifty got me thinking. I asked some of my friends :
edzooc8r
WangXianLovingLotus
RovenaNatasha
ManuAndhale
What the number fifty represented to them. I didn't want it to be age related because I don't think that part of it is so important, and their combined answers were of fifty being part of the way to a hundred, like I suggested in the chapter.
But when I Googled it (best buddy) it came up with this:
50 means personal freedom, or more like an expression of personal freedom, without resistance from inner self and others.
I loved it so much, I thought, why not create a whole chapter about it?
We should all be free to pursue whatever we want to (as long as it's not a criminal offense) so today, please take a step forward. Pick something especially for you, and do it.
We nearly always forget to look after ourselves, but you know what?
Not today.
I love you all.
May the Universe shower you with unconditional love forever.