The dinner with Andrew was not the dreadful ordeal Wei had imagined. Somehow, now that he didn't feel exhausted anymore, he found the whole thing to be quite a lot of fun.
As they step into the house, after retrieving the car near the park, Wei got immediately assaulted by a very eager ghost anxious for them to keep their promise.
Wei had a smile on his face the whole time while he watched the enthusiastic figure of his friend floating all around the kitchen to prepare a full course meal for two while Yunlan waited in the living room watching tv.
Andrew made quite a mess, using every utensil at his disposal: cutting, boiling, baking. Not even children on Christmas day were so happy.
Wei didn't even worry at the amount of stuff that would need cleaning afterwards. After making sure that every stove was turned off and there was no risk of his apartment blowing up, he sat down. That night Wei and Yunlan ate a delicious dinner.
The kitchen was left in a state of post-war that would have taken Wei a very long time to clean, but luckily for him, DongMei was more than happy to help Andrew put everything in order.
After dinner, they retreated to Wei's bedroom where they could finally enjoy some time truly alone. The time they spent together, lying naked while talking about sweet nothing and joking, was just as enjoyable as the sex had been.
When Yunlan mentioned something about needing to go home, Wei didn't ask any questions. He didn't press for an explanation he knew wasn't necessary. He would let Yunlan have as much space and alone time as he needed.
The next days, Wei spent his leave working with Yunlan in ending the missing people case as quickly and efficiently as possible. Tracking down the people possessed by dark energy and getting rid of the evil Shadows was much easier now. It was overwhelming the amount of energy that rushed inside his body, he felt powerful, invincible, and his ghost friends were proportionally stronger as well.
What he did was sending all his friends exploring in search for humans tainted by dark energy. Wei and Yunlan would then drive there so that Wei could complete the process and make sure no trace of dark energy remained inside the bodies of the unfortunate victims. Yunlan then made sure that they were brought to a hospital where they would be looked after.
To Ling's annoyance, they tracked down all the missing people by themselves. It took a lot of time but they found every single one. Ling was rather put out by their blatant lack of consideration, to the point that Wei felt guilty about it. Yunlan didn't.
Wei also went back to the people in the hospitals that he had not been able to fully help before, and Yunlan was soon able to close the case with the satisfaction of his chief and the public.
Wei and Yunlan spent almost every night at Wei's apartment. Sometimes Yunlan would sleep there, other times he returned home, but Wei never pressured him.
Yunlan wasn't sure why they never stayed at his place. His mind went through many possible explanations that changed with time. Did Wei want to get him used to his own apartment? A bit too devious, Yunlan discarded it quickly. Was Wei uncomfortable in Yunlan's room? Maybe jealous of who might have slept there before? This was also discarded quickly, they weren't kids anymore, and it sounded ridiculous.
Finally, Yunlan noticed how Wei always looked around the room before starting to undress. He realised that he was probably making sure that they were truly alone. They always were, as much as Yunlan could tell, but for Wei it was different. Obviously. Yunlan started wondering who was he sharing a bedroom with at his own place. He recalled the first time Wei went there and his sudden interest for Korean names. A female ghost, then. Interesting.
Yunlan didn't mind. He quite liked Wei's apartment and he had to admit that it wasn't so bad to stay in a place where things seemed to get done by themselves. Now that Wei was stronger and didn't tire as before, he could make his friends happy more often.
Neither Wei nor Yunlan needed to do anything they didn't want to. Wei even bought an electric kettle for Andrew to use in the mornings to make him tea, and an espresso machine for Yunlan's coffee.
Yunlan would no doubt ask, sooner or later, maybe find out if Wei could lend her enough energy so he wouldn't have to tidy the room himself, but for now, he said nothing. After all, it was much easier this way for him. He had a place where he could enjoy Wei's company and another one where he could find the peace he needed. Perfect.
Yunlan was happy like this, he cherished his time with Wei, but he still felt the need to be alone at his own apartment sometimes. Whenever Wei woke up to an empty bed, he sent him a good-morning text knowing that Yunlan would read it and think of him.
And those days that he woke up into a warm bed, with an already awake Yunlan at his side, he could show him a good morning without needing his phone.
Day after day, Yunlan was getting rather used to seeing things moving by themselves, but Wei would never get used to all the people hovering around Yunlan. When they went out together, he showed a very possessive attitude and more than once Yunlan complained about it, but he secretly loved it.
During the day, though, Wei had his own work to think of. Once he got back to the company he discovered that he still had his job, but also a lot of catching up to do.
The amusement in Mr Song's eyes whenever he asked him about Zhao Yunlan prompted Wei to ask Yunlan exactly what had happened between them. Yunlan promised never to set foot at the company again after Wei promised to always answer his calls.
Wei settled back into his comfortable job, finding minor tasks to keep Jay happy while he concentrated on the more important issues.
Every day Wei sent Yunlan a couple of texts, but never insisted for Yunlan to make time for him when he had to work or needed some time alone. Yunlan appreciated that a lot. As much as he liked him, Yunlan still craved some alone time at home, just to be by himself, with his own thoughts. He couldn't help it, and was very grateful that Wei understood. For the first time, he believed it could really work, and that he would never be alone again.
In exchange, he tried not to run away whenever he woke up too early in the mornings.
~~~~~~~~~
"Excellent breakfast, Andrew. Thank you," Yunlan said one of those mornings that saw them having breakfast at Wei's house.
Wei's eyes had a sparkle in them now. Hearing Yunlan speaking directly to his ghost friends was something he wasn't used to, but that felt like home.
"What? It really was good!" Yunnan jokingly defended himself.
"Too bad there's no dessert in the house. I must remember to buy some chocolate today," Wei expressed his regret. He missed his dose of sugar, but maybe it was for the best. He might have to start exercising if he didn't get a grip on himself and his cravings. It had been a while since he abandoned his healthy diet for more energetic food.
"Are you still in need of desserts to keep you on your feet? I thought you were over that."
"Yeah, well, I don't exactly need it anymore, but a bit of chocolate now and then it's good for the soul."
He blushed at that, feeling very childish.
Yunlan laughed out loud. "Should I ask Gelan to watch over you during the day? I can already picture you going chocolate-hunting like a madman. Soon you'll need to have DongMei enlarge your clothes, or buy new ones."
Again that same sparkle in Wei's eyes, but Yunlan didn't have to ask for its reason.
"I never thought I'd see the day you would speak to my friends that easily. I thought you would never truly believe in them."
"Well, can't deny the evidence, can I?"
Wei chuckled, and Yunlan felt his heart melt inside his chest.
"I love you, Yunlan," Wei said, finally without interruptions.
"Of course you do! I'm just that loveable." Yunlan grinned, then leaned forward to kiss him.
"I've got to go now, if I can I'll see you tonight," Yunlan said standing up.
"Wait, take this before you go." Wei handed him another pendant.
Yunlan eyed it with a frown. "I thought you had taken care of all those nasty shadow-things. Why this?"
Wei looked at him with pleading eyes. "You still have a dangerous job. Please. I would worry all day long. I'll be more at ease knowing that if something bad happens, you can call Takeo to help you."
Yunlan sighed and took it, putting it around his neck.
"Thank you," Wei said sincerely.
"No, thank you," Yunlan replied before moving to kiss him again. He had barely raised his head that Wei circled his waist with one arm and brought him flat against his body. They looked into each other's eyes before moving in sync. The kiss contained everything that they were feeling inside, all the emotions that they couldn't see now that their eyes were closed.
They finally parted and Yunlan took a step back. "I must really go now."
Yunlan opened the door then paused. He turned around with an expression Wei had never seen before.
"For the record, I love you too," he said, then he went out without waiting to see the effect of his words.
Wei stood still, staring at the closed door, then he turned and watched LiLing float in the air in a delighted, ethereal dance that equalled that inside him.
He stood there watching her for several minutes, her light movements like a projection of his own soul. There was a second of guilt, while he thought of the years of sadness he had unknowingly imposed on her, but then his heart began to fly again, along with her.
I love you too, Yunlan had said to him.
Wei knew that day he would probably make Jay very happy, while he spent his time daydreaming over Yunlan's confession.
He reluctantly turned his gaze away from LiLing to get ready for work, and then he smiled thinking that as long as Yunlan loved him, he would see LiLing dance again.
The end ♡
There's going to be an epilogue, but the story is completed. I hope you liked it ♡♡♡