Zhao Lifei woke up the next day, in the same position she had slept in. She could’ve sworn she heard something in her sleep, a confession of some sort, but a majority of what was being said sounded muffled to her. She brushed it off, believing it was just a dream.

  She stretched like a lazy cat before snuggling back into his arms, a tiny smile on her face. Throughout the nights she had spent with Yang Feng, she had never experienced a single nightmare. The idea was so cheesy and cliche to her, but she did not care. Being in his arms felt safe, reassuring, comfortable, and everything alongside the word ’good’.

  She wondered if the rest of their mornings would be spent like this, forever and ever, entangled within each other’s arms. It was an unbelievable dream to her, but she was determined to make it a reality.

  Glancing up, she noticed Yang Feng was in deep sleep, his chest steadily rising. She laid her head on it a while longer, before growing bored of marveling the eight, solid rigids on his abdomen, tough as rocks. Ever so slowly, she climbed out of his arms, gently placing it back down, her body freezing on the spot when he groaned, his arms reaching to grab something. She quickly placed a pillow in his arms, watching as he relaxed, hugging the pillow, burying his head into it.

  She giggled at this scene, such a grown man like him, hugging the pillow like it was his precious teddy bear. She got out of bed and began to get ready for the day. She had finished showering and was tying the belt on the bathrobe when the door to the bathroom slammed open with a loud BANG! A frantic man was standing in the doorway, his eyes wide and crazed, in a panicked state until they landed on her.

  Zhao Lifei was confused by the sudden commotion. "What’s wrong?"

  Yang Feng’s heart was beating one hundred miles per second. He had woken up to find himself wrapped around a pillow and not his woman. He was instantly alarmed and shot out of his bed in a frenzied state to search for her, so fearful that she had disappeared into the night.

  Wordlessly, he crossed the distance between them, taking four vast steps before yanking her flush against him, his head buried deep into her neck. He hugged her with so much desperation, that Zhao Lifei was taken aback by it. Her arms came around him, settling on his mid-back, patting the area in an attempt to comfort him. She did not know what made him like this, but she knew that the first step was to calm him down.

  "What’s wrong?" She repeated, this time her voice was more understanding, patient even.

  Yang Feng did not answer for a while. He continued to hug her until the tremors in his body finally calmed down. Her scent, sweet and floral, flooded his brain, soothing all of his worries.

  ’She is here. She did not leave me. She is here. She did not leave me.’ He repeated the same phrases again and again in his head, squeezing her.

  "Don’t leave me."

  Zhao Lifei felt her heart melt into a puddle, swooning at this demand of his. No one had ever loved her to this extent so this sensation was foreign to her.

  Yang Feng’s arms became incredibly tight around her small frame, nearly crushing her. She did not answer him. It made him antsier—


  "Of course," She replied.

  Yang Feng breathed out in relief, his taut shoulders dropping. "I want it on paper."

  "What do you mean?"

  "Let’s go to the marriage bureau."

  Zhao Lifei opened and closed her mouth, quickly blinking, a perplexed expression on her face.

  "Your family will kill you for doing this without their blessings."

  "We don’t need blessings."

  She ran her hand up and down his back, reassuring him. She believed he was only saying these words out of his irrational fear, but she did not know his brain was no longer clogged. He was thinking properly. "Yang Feng, this is going too fast. You have to calm down."

  "I am calm," He pulled back to properly look at her. "Come with me to the marriage bureau."

  She thought he was joking and sarcastically retorted, "What happened to the old-fashioned bending the knee and proposing with a ring?"

  "All of it can come afterward. I’ll prepare the grandest one for you, even better than when I asked you to be my woman, but all of it takes time and preparations. A marriage registry does not."

  Zhao Lifei slowly shook her head, refusing. "This is all too soon……" She worriedly whispered.

  When she saw anger morphing within those eyes of his, raising hell with each passing second, she knew he was upset at her words. The air around them dropped below freezing point, a chill entering the warm and steamy room.

  She sighed at his temper and this time, she was the one to instigate a hug. She embraced him tightly, her face resting on his chest, guiding his arm back to her hips, "I like you very, very much, Yang Feng. We’ll get there eventually, but right now, we have to face the obstacles ahead of us. Hastily getting married will not do any good."

  She stood on her tippy-toes, holding onto him for support and tenderly pecked his lips, before one arm curved to the back of his neck, bringing his face closer to her as she kissed his five points: the forehead, the nose, both cheeks, his chin, and lastly, his lips.

  At first, she wasn’t sure if her method of appeasement was working, but when the air went back to normal, she knew she had succeeded.

  "Do it again." He hoarsely whispered, enjoying every moment with her.

  Zhao Lifei did not object. She did it again, this time kissing each place a bit longer than usual before slowly moving her lips against his, teasing him to which he obliged, never once forcing her to go faster. With hesitation and self-doubt weighing her down, she licked his bottom lip, seeking permission which he happily gave.

  She tried to mimic what he always did to her, moving her slick tongue against his, in a fight to dominate, and he finally allowed her to do so, a low growl rising from his throat as he grunted in approval, his fingers digging into her hips, his brain swirling with the idea of removing the annoying bathrobe separating him from her body.

  She pulled back, her face slightly flushed, the same light pink he had come to deeply love. "I’m sorry if it’s not as good as yours—"

  "It was absolutely fantastic." He grinned, cupping her face and diving in for another heated session. But before they could go any further than a simple kiss, she leaned back, watching as his face became gloomy again.

  She took his large hands, admiring how it completely covered hers. "I have a surprise for you." Guiding him outside the bathroom, she sat him on the bed before going to her purse and pulling out a small box. She walked back to him, allowing him to bring her to his lap. She was already used to this treatment and his constant desire to have her in his arms. Perhaps that was his way of feeling secure, just as hers was being in his arms.

  "What is it?" He curiously asked, leaning his head on hers.

  She opened the box, revealing the cuff links. "I brought these a while back, but couldn’t find the chance to give it to you."

  She showed it to him, an antsy smile on her face. She was worried he might not like it. The red diamond was nearly black, and in the center, there was a crimson hue to it. It was a small pop of color, very subtle and chic, but she knew he was always wearing dreary colors, where the darkest of red might seem like the brightest.

  "I’ll treasure it." He gingerly took the cuff links from her, his heartwarming. He decided to wear it every day.

  It was as if she could read his mind as she piped up and said, "Oh and don’t wear it every day. I’ll get you more if you like it."

  "Wear it to the birthday celebration, I think it will look nice against your black suit and coat."

  Yang Feng made a small, "En." He did not need words to express how much he enjoyed the gift. Instead, he responded by tilting her chin up to tenderly kiss her, cherishing every second of their loving kisses.