Chapter Text
Yibo keeps his promise.
They go to Xiao Zhan’s hometown a few days later and are there early in the morning with the sun still not up in the sky.
The weather is chilly with the wind crisp as they get out of the car. Yibo makes sure to have his men stand and wait outside while Xiao Zhan opens the lock of his gate with the key his Alpha provided.
He enters and is greeted by his front yard leading to his house. It is eerily quiet without his roosters doing their morning crowing, or his chickens making their chirping sounds. His plants and trees seem like they’re still there which makes Xiao Zhan turn to Yibo in confusion.
“I have someone maintaining them,” Yibo simply answers, before herding Xiao Zhan to the house. “I don’t want you to catch a cold.”
The inside of his house is just as chilly as the outside. Xiao Zhan frowns. He turns on the lights and immediately goes to look for his portable heater. He never uses his centralized heater because it is too expensive.
When he finds the portable heater he brings it to the living room and looks around in bemusement when he notices that Yibo’s missing.
“Yibo?”
“I’m here..!”
Xiao Zhan goes out to the porch and finds Yibo sitting at the edge with his head tilted up.
“What are you doing?”
“Sun’s about to come out.” Yibo pats the space next to him. “Sit with me.”
Xiao Zhan does what he’s told, and is surprised when Yibo puts a thick blanket on his lap. It’s one of Xiao Zhan’s blankets. Yibo must have gotten it while the Omega was busily looking for the heater in the spare room.
“We’re gonna watch the sun come up?” Xiao Zhan asks.
Yibo turns to him, and the Omega can make out a smile despite it still being a little dark.
“It’s our favorite thing to do,” He says to Xiao Zhan. “We wait for the sky to lighten up. The first rays of sunlight would warm us up a little.”
“We don’t stare directly at the sun, do we?” Xiao Zhan teases.
Yibo lets out a snort. “Who does? I don’t. Not the one up in the sky, at least.”
Xiao Zhan makes a questioning sound, but Yibo does not elaborate. He looks up at the sky, his hands restless. It feels like something is missing.
“What else did we do? While we waited?”
“We drank green tea.”
Ah, that must be it then. Xiao Zhan thought as he fiddled with his hands.
“Alpha,” Xiao Zhan mutters. “Did we cuddle too?”
Yibo coughs and Xiao Zhan can barely hold back his smile.
“No. I don’t— I told you, didn’t I? I was just your didi back then.”
Xiao Zhan turns to Yibo. “Aren’t you my Alpha now? Hold me.”
He could see through the silhouette of Yibo how his throat bobbed. There is a fluttery feeling through the bond and in Xiao Zhan’s gut as the Alpha’s arm wraps around his waist. He leans closer to Yibo and nuzzles the side of his neck.
“No green tea to keep us warm. This would have to do, doesn’t it?”
“Yeah,” Yibo curtly replies. If Xiao Zhan couldn’t feel how jittery but happy Yibo was through the bond, he would have thought he was uncomfortable and mad.
“Keep me warm, Alpha.” Xiao Zhan coyly smiles as he hugs Yibo back.
After a few hours, Xiao Zhan asks if they can walk around town. Yibo reluctantly agrees, but Xiao Zhan can feel the Alpha’s discomfort.
Yibo’s men disperse before they start their little stroll. Xiao Zhan has a hunch that they’re all going to stand guard over different areas. Only two accompany them and they’re dressed more casually.
Xiao Zhan wonders if the others would also change clothes to blend in seamlessly.
“Let’s go?” Yibo asks, holding out his hand for the Omega to take.
Xiao Zhan smiles and takes his hand. “Okay.”
Xiao Zhan notices that it’s bustling more than usual the more they go around town. He turns his head to Yibo, his suspicion only increasing at the sight of his Alpha’s faint smile when he catches Xiao Zhan’s confused stare.
“Isn’t there a good place to eat here? Maybe a five minute walk?”
“Yeah.” Xiao Zhan grins, suddenly remembering Mrs. Fang’s little restaurant. But then he also remembers Mr. Ting whose restaurant is only maybe three minutes farther than the one Yibo’s thinking of. “Why don’t we go to my old friend? He used to order a bunch of produce from me.”
Yibo doesn’t answer right away. Xiao Zhan looks up to find the Alpha looking ahead with his usual stoic expression. Through the bond; he can feel a faint furl of uneasiness.
He eyes his Alpha curiously. He knows Mr. Ting isn’t fond of Yibo. Obviously, he isn’t considering Xiao Zhan remembers Mr. Ting’s the one who silently warned him back then of Yibo when the Alpha was conducting whatever secret meeting he was doing in Mr. Ting’s restaurant.
Not wanting the Alpha to feel unwelcome, Xiao Zhan shakes his head.
“Actually. I do miss Mrs. Fang’s dishes. We can go there.”
Yibo turns to him, looking bemused. But Xiao Zhan notes that the uneasiness from the Alpha is slowly disappearing in the bond.
“Sure. We’ll do that,” Yibo casually comments. Xiao Zhan sees him look down and fix his suit. But the Omega notices the fond smile on his lips. “We used to get take outs there too when you don’t feel like cooking.”
Xiao Zhan’s mind shows a scene of them both sitting down and eating their meal. Then Yibo suddenly blurts out of the blue;
“It’s good. But yours is always better.”
“Bo-di! That’s a highly reviewed place! Mrs. Fang is well known here. My cooking can’t compare!”
“I don’t need highly rated food. I am content with your cooking. They’re delicious.”
“Shameless!”
It’s another memory. Xiao Zhan thought. He stares ahead, ensuring his pace doesn’t falter. He feels the hand holding his give a light squeeze. It has him looking at his Alpha who stares at him with slight worry.
“It’s nothing.” He mouths even when his heart feels so bruised and raw like one touch will make him flinch away.
Every memory feels so precious when he remembers them. Even though they seem so minor. It’s like they’re precious polaroids kept hidden in a box and unearthing them is like reminiscing fond memories that you end up missing and getting emotional with.
It’s like Xiao Zhan is remembering details from the past that he probably fondly looked back on before he lost his memories. Or maybe memories that hurt because Yibo left, didn’t he? He left Xiao Zhan.
Unconsciously, Xiao Zhan tightens his grip on Yibo’s hand.
They spend a few days in Xiao Zhan’s home.
For Xiao Zhan’s part, it’s a way to recollect.
For Wang Yibo’s part, it’s to reminisce and recreate some memories that will help spark up some recognition in his Omega’s mind.
Sure, not everything is how it was before.
The place is quieter without the chirping and the crowing of the roosters as an alarm in the morning.
The produce is different from when Yibo left as it is planted for the season.
Parts of the house have been renovated due to the fire; Yibo completely tried to have it constructed as how it was from his memories, but he wasn’t that detailed about the house, not when it’s mere background in his memories of Xiao Zhan.
Lastly, the scent of his Omega has completely vanished.
However, despite the changes, Yibo only saw the opportunity in them.
He spends the first few days completely doing things he used to do with Xiao Zhan.
They do their morning routine of catching the first rays of the sun with tea in their hands. The only difference now is that Xiao Zhan sticks to him close, and Yibo gets to put his arm around him.
Then they get to harvest some produce and end up either cooking it or giving the rest to Yibo’s men. His men either take it to keep or give it to those who need it more. Yibo does not care what they do to it as long as it’s not thrown away.
Doing their routines does end up helping Xiao Zhan recover some memories. Yibo knows because he already knows the emotions that accompany it; Joy with a tinge of sadness.
It always leaves an ache in Yibo’s chest whenever he senses those feelings in their bond. As much as it makes him feel a tad elated to have that strong effect on the person he loves… It does leave a bitter taste in his mouth to know he’s the reason behind the melancholy that Xiao Zhan feels.
So he does his best to compensate by distracting the Omega with anything after he remembers.
He is sure that Xiao Zhan knows what he’s doing. Especially when Yibo feels gratitude in their bond whenever he successfully distracts his Omega.
They both sleep in Xiao Zhan’s room. They make love every night, and at times Yibo wonders what it’d be like if he had the same privilege back then. How heavenly it would have been, to get into Xiao Zhan’s bed and show the Omega how much he loves him.
This is why Yibo never forgets to savor everything and feels grateful to know now how it is to have Xiao Zhan in his arms. To know how their scents mix in the Omega’s room, and how right he was back then when he thought of how a taste of this would feel like consuming ambrosia and knowing what divinity is like.
A man like Yibo has no right to dream of living a long life. But having Xiao Zhan by his side is already a blessing that parallels the life of an immortal God.
Xiao Zhan who had taken him in, and nursed him back to health.
Xiao Zhan who has forgotten him, and yet still ended up coming back into his life.
Xiao Zhan, caged and wingless, still chooses to reconcile with Yibo by finding him in the library and asking to know more about the Alpha.
Xiao Zhan, his mate who wants to remember their past. Someone who, despite knowing the true unsavory side of Yibo’s life, still wants to stay with him, still willing to meet Yibo’s pack.
So, it is not presumptuous to think that Xiao Zhan is someone who completely knows him and accepts him.
Right?
Wrong.
It feels like a cosmic joke somehow. Or like the fates decided to snap Yibo out of delusions. Because somehow, the person who accidentally became the reason why he met Xiao Zhan, is the one who breaks everything apart.
Yibo is aware he’s playing with fire by heeding his Omega’s request to visit his hometown. This is why he took preemptive action by telling his men to never let Mr. Ting near Xiao Zhan. It would have been enough. If not then Yibo would have threatened Mr. Ting with his wife as a last resort.
He had everything covered until the attack happened.
Even with the tightest security, someone had enough guts to try and attack Yibo while he was walking around town with Xiao Zhan.
It resulted in hysteria and chaos. Amidst the screaming and people running around with panicked expressions, Yibo remained calm as he gave a gun to a petrified Xiao Zhan and had him guarded by a few of his men. He instructed them to go back in the car and make their way to the airport.
Wang Yibo then dealt with the problem.
There were several assailants. Most of them died from gunshot wounds in the heat of the battle. But the one who dared to directly attack him; Yibo deliberately kept him alive. It’s not only because he needed someone to interrogate. But it’s because he recognized the face of the man.
It’s Mrs. Chen’s right-hand man. It’s quite amusing because it means Mrs. Chen knows what Yibo has done.
It’s a step closer to his goal. Wang Yibo is initially elated, unaware of the impending doom coming his way.
“Keep him alive,” He said as he dialed the number of one of the people who could effectively make the man spill his secrets other than him. “Take him to our nearest compound. I’ll have Ziyi take over.”
Like a fool, Yibo tasted victory, because he was certain that soon he would have the answers that would lead him to where Mrs. Chen is currently residing after his divorce from Mr. Chen.
His joyful sentiments all come crashing down when he meets his Omega again. He finally reaches the end of fate’s little joke where he realizes he is the punchline.
What Yibo expected as a reunion of relief dies then and there when Xiao Zhan asks him a question that leaves him feeling cold with dread.
“Is it true? You took Mr. Ting’s son?”
Xiao Zhan’s heart aches. He’s initially in denial. Even when he noticed the guards vehemently trying not to get the Omega close to Mr. Ting who called Xiao Zhan’s name from a distance as the older man hurried to him.
Mr. Ting desperately yelled ‘That man! Mr. Wang! He took my son! I know it! I know it! Help him, please!’ And even when he’s suddenly stopped by two guards and dragged away; He still kept shouting the same thing over and over until it’s deeply engraved in Xiao Zhan’s mind.
It was such a pitiful scene, more so when it’s someone Xiao Zhan has been good friends with for a long time. Not only that but also Mr. Ting had been great friends with his parents.
It bothers Xiao Zhan to the point it stays with him throughout the ride to the airport even until he is back in the mansion.
It plagues him as he waits for hours for his Alpha to come back home. He sorely wants to hug him, wants to know he’s safe. But most of all he wants to ask Yibo if what Mr. Ting said is true and to be told no.
So, of course, when he hears that Yibo’s home, Xiao Zhan anxiously waits in their room. He sits by the edge of the bed and bites on his thumb to keep himself from jittering.
Yibo opens the door to the room, and Xiao Zhan sees the desperation in his eyes. Before he gives in to his impulse to run to his Alpha’s arms; he asks the question that’s been in his mind.
“Is it true? You took Mr. Ting’s son?”
The answer already speaks for itself through the bond.
“Take me to him.”
You would hate me. Yibo thought grimly. It’s an absolute truth. The moment he lets Xiao Zhan see Mr. Ting’s son, there is no way that his Omega will not see him as a monster.
The thing is, with how firm Xiao Zhan demanded, there is no way for Yibo not to say yes. So the moment his Omega said that he wanted to see Mr. Ting’s missing son; Yibo already felt resignation deep within his bones.
This is it. He thought as he nodded silently. He tells Xiao Zhan they have to go to a place here in Beijing to get to Mr. Ting’s son. This is where you’ll hate me. This is where it ends.
He prepares himself, even when cold dread gnaws at his insides, his face a mask of perfect indifference as they both silently sit together in the car, neither speaking a word.
He can feel the anger through the bond. Yibo can only dissociate himself, thinking back on their memories that he’ll keep forever in his mind like old photos that he could never relive.
He knows he has maybe gone too far— well, even if he did, there is no lick of regret over it. Not even now. Those who wronged Xiao Zhan do not deserve a peaceful life. He can still recall the bruises on his Omega’s wrists, and the wounds and minor burns on his skin.
How can Yibo let it go? How can he let it be? If he did it would have driven him mad.
When they reach their destination and they enter a small house, Yibo silently guides Xiao Zhan to a secret spot that opens a door to the basement. Xiao Zhan follows him, and Yibo is sure he is already uncomfortable with how dark and narrow the hallways are.
He can’t bear to check the bond when they finally enter the basement area that resembles a prison by how it is lined up with jail rooms.
Yibo keeps walking until they are at the very end and turns to face the jail room where Mr. Ting’s son is shackled. He looks beaten up, bloodied, and dirty.
Mr. Ting’s son looks up and wails for help when he sees Xiao Zhan. He hears the Omega gasp.
Yibo can see Xiao Zhan turning to him from his peripheral vision. He braves himself to take a glance and is greeted by the sight of his Omega looking at him with fury and disgust. He averts his gaze and keeps it on the man crying his heart out and pleading to Xiao Zhan as though he is nothing more than an innocent man who doesn’t deserve what is happening to him right now. Yibo’s jaw twitched, but he quickly kept himself in check.
“How could you?” Xiao Zhan breathes out.
“He ratted you out,” Yibo calmly mutters even when inside his heart is throbbing with an ache like no other at the unfairness of everything. “He’s the reason why they found you.”
“How would you know?!” The Omega yells. “They could have been asking him! He might just be answering questions!”
“So that’s why he received a large sum in his bank account a few days after your house burned down?” Yibo scowls. “He even admitted it.”
“It was for my mother!” Mr. Ting’s son cries out. “I needed it to pay for her hospital bills! I’m sorry! Please let me go!”
Xiao Zhan looks at the crying man with a conflicted look. But then he shifts his gaze back to Yibo with a glare.
“You didn’t have to do this.”
Yibo scoffs. “I don’t? So I’d just let him live peacefully after what he’s done?!” He can feel tears gathering up at the edge of his eyes. Why? Why don’t you get it? He wants to scream out in frustration. “He’s one of the reasons why your house burned down! Why you were attacked! How could I just let him be?!”
“He was just doing it for his mom,” Xiao Zhan reasons with tears already rolling down his cheeks. “What were you planning to do anyway? Kill him? I didn’t ask you to shed blood in my name!”
Yibo fully turns to Xiao Zhan and closes in on him. The Omega takes a step back like he is afraid of him. Yibo stops, devastated. He blinks and feels his tears slide down his cheeks.
“Xiao Zhan,” He murmurs weakly, his heart breaking. “I don’t take things lightly. He hurt you. That day— that fire. He could reason a million things to me. But it would never change the fact that it ended with you getting hurt,” He feels fury rising in him at the thought of when Xiao Zhan got injured. “I will never forgive him.”
“Well. You don’t have to,” His mate firmly says. “I do. Let him go.”
“Just like that?” Yibo lets out a dry laugh. “So easy to forgive. If my men weren’t there… Do you know what would have happened?”
Xiao Zhan looks more furious, his chest heaving. He stares at Yibo, unflinching. Even with tears wetting his face, he looks livid, his glare unfaltering.
“Didn’t it happen because of you?” Xiao Zhan asks so softly, and yet it feels like the biggest slap to Yibo’s face. The Alpha takes a sharp breath and stares at Xiao Zhan in bewilderment. Yibo opens his mouth, but no words come out. “You said it yourself. And yet I forgave you. Don’t I get a say in this? Don’t I have the choice? I’ve let you take a lot from me. But this? Give me this. It’s the least that you can do.”
It’s your fault. Yibo smiles wryly. Xiao Zhan could have just said that straight to his face. It wouldn’t matter anyway. It’d hurt all the same. You’ve already taken my life away from me. At least, give me a choice in this.
Yibo has never felt more like a monster than at this moment. Suddenly, he feels hollowed out. A vast emptiness eating him from the inside.
You’re a monster. Xiao Zhan should have, at the very least, told him that’s what he felt about Yibo to his face.
“You could have told me your grievances.” Yibo looks down at his hands. “I’ve taken a lot from you, haven’t I? What kind of heartless man I must have been to you. I took you away from your life. I’ve selfishly kept you locked up like a wretched thing afraid of anyone who might hurt you. But, in the end, the root cause of everything is me.” He looks back at Xiao Zhan in despair. “This all happened because I love you. Because I was too selfish. And still, I keep being selfish.”
Xiao Zhan’s glare softens into one of bemusement. He stares at Yibo but offers no words. Nothing to ease Yibo’s spiraling thoughts.
“What monster I must have been in your eyes.” Yibo shakes his head. He sighs in resignation. He feels so broken. “Fine. I’ll do it. It’s the least that I could do.”
He leaves after, his mind buzzing with negative thoughts. He goes out, unable to bear being there when he knows Xiao Zhan is disgusted with him.
Yibo doesn’t go back to the mansion at all after that. He stays away, resolutely keeping himself focused on the plan he’s been perfecting for the past few months.
If everything goes according to his plans then he will be able to avenge Xiao Zhan.
He’s already successfully undermined Mrs. Chen, one of the main reasons Xiao Zhan was in the crossfire of Mr. Zhang’s ‘revenge.’ It was Mrs. Chen who decreed the attack, knowing full well how to weaken a Head family through their heart.
‘It was Mrs. Chen! It was her! Mercy! Please! She had the same idea as my daughter!’
Mr. Zhang may have acted like a deranged man who is out to avenge his daughter, but he folds easily from torture. Yibo prolonged his life just so the man could feel pain until his last breath.
Meanwhile, it took months before Yibo successfully put a wrench between the Chen couple. Mistrust and infidelity eventually led to Mr. Chen filing a divorce and much more a severance of their bond.
Now that she’s not Mr. Chen’s mate, there won’t be repercussions in taking her life, much like when she did the same to Xiao Zhan when he wasn’t Yibo’s mate yet.
He can hunt her down and make her suffer before ending her life to his heart’s content. Her right-hand man just needed to sing her coordinates and it’ll all be over for her.
It’s another tally to the wrongs he’s done in the name of revenge for Xiao Zhan.
After that, will he even have the right to go back to Xiao Zhan?
If he doesn’t have the right, then it doesn’t matter if he never comes back.
What is the point? Yibo won’t have a home anymore and he never will.
Yibo does not come home after that night. He does not come home the next few days after. Haikuan is also missing, and Xiao Zhan is lost on who to ask what is going on.
He knows he messed up. He feels it through the bond. A bone-deep kind of loss and resignation coming from Yibo’s end.
Xiao Zhan can feel his eyes watering whenever he checks through the bond. Because he’s here. He is still here. Why is Yibo feeling as though he has lost him?
The Omega has poured all his feelings through the bond, wanting to communicate with his Alpha. He wants him to know that Xiao Zhan isn’t leaving. That he is sorry for saying something so hurtful. Even when it wasn’t his intention.
He was angry, yes. But it wasn’t the reason why he said those things.
The harsh words that came out of his mouth were true, but even if he was furious he would never say those to Yibo. Unfortunately, since he was overwhelmed and unable to find a reason for Yibo to let go of Mr. Ting’s only child; he said the only thing that would make the Alpha back off at that moment.
It was the ugliest choice. Xiao Zhan regretted it the moment Yibo walked away from him.
Now, hundreds of messages and calls later, Xiao Zhan is near to losing his mind.
He can’t bear it. He wants to fix the rift he has made. Because, somehow, there is this inkling that if he doesn’t do it soon then he might lose his mate forever.
Xiao Zhan, lost and desperate, goes to Yibo’s office to see if there is any clue he can find there. He checks the paperwork that appears to be legitimate businesses. He then checks the drawers.
It is a breach of privacy. He’s probably reading things he isn’t supposed to, deals that seem very confidential. Documents of illegal things like tons of firearms traded. Profiles of people that he isn’t sure if they are targets or possible hires.
He checks every drawer, all bearing the same old folders and office items. He unearths them and reads them carefully before putting them back to how they were before.
Then comes the last drawer to the right, and halfway through checking, he finds an envelope. Xiao Zhan takes it and opens it since it is unsealed.
What he takes out leaves him breathless.
It is a letter. It looks a little old and the top and bottom left corners are singed by fire.
Xiao Zhan opens it with shaky hands. His eyes sting with unshed tears the moment he sees a familiar stroke of writing.
It is—
Xiao Zhan reads the first paragraph, his hands shaking.
It is—
He reads through the second paragraph with his knees shaking until he is kneeling on the floor. His tears slid down his face incessantly, his breathing ragged.
It is the letter he has been dreaming about.
Xiao Zhan’s hands are trembling so much that the paper falls to the floor. When he looks down to pick it up again it is facing down, and his eyes catch on a writing that is his.
Wang Yibo. Come back. Talk to me.
Xiao Zhan feels faint when memories of why he’d written those words come pouring down his mind. He lay sideways with his eyes closed, wincing as images of forgotten memories came through like flood waves.
His mind feels like it’s going to crack. His body shakes, with tears and immense pain, Xiao Zhan does not even notice he’s lost consciousness.
“Laoban.” Yu Bin bows his head to Yibo. “There’s important information you must know.”
Yibo, who’s sitting in a chair in a quaint room, puts down his cigarette on the ashtray. He feels like shit and looks the part too. What with his bandaged arm, a wound closure strip over the cut on his eyebrow, and bruises all over his body but most prominently on the left side of his jaw.
Even when Mrs. Chen’s already divorced, she still has enough power from her family and the one she made of her own. Getting to her was tough. But it wasn't something unimaginable. Not when Yibo pretended he wanted to talk.
There was definitely talking. But more fighting and bloodshed. He knows Mr. Chen would hear about it. But he already prepared a letter that’s already been sent over.
A letter over his revenge for the attack on his current mate that happened before they were mates. Mrs. Chen isn’t with Mr. Chen anymore. There is no protection over her. But if Mr. Chen insists and he does something, Yibo will consider it a declaration of war. He knows the Chens aren’t ready for that. That’s why they used Mr. Zhang and made it seem like it was all Mr. Zhang’s doing and they only sent a bit of help due to their mutual agreement on helping the other when in need of it.
Yibo shakes his head. Not wanting underground politics to occupy his mind.
“What is it?”
“Your mate. He… wanted to let you know to meet him at his place. He said he’ll wait for you there.”
He takes in a sharp breath. He turns his head, glaring at Yu Bin. “Who let him go?!”
“Your brother. He sanctioned it. He got back from his mission and was back at the mansion when Xiao Zhan demanded to speak with him. They talked and after that he’d let him go and informed me to send you the message. He said he also had tons of bodyguards going with your mate. Both covert and overt.”
Yibo can’t help but roughly rub his face with the palm of his hand. He hasn’t touched his phone in days. He even had to close himself off of the bond as much as he could, not wanting to get distracted by his mate’s emotions.
The feelings are dulled. But he could still feel some of it. He knows what those emotions he felt were, but Yibo chooses to deny believing they were what he thought.
Because if it turns out he is wrong, then what would be left of him?
“Tell Haikuan to double his security. Book a flight back. The nearest one you could find,” He didn’t use his private jet much like when he couldn’t do the same to get to Guizhou to see how Xiao Zhan was doing after he heard the attack. Back then he couldn’t because it’d be too obvious how much Xiao Zhan meant to him. He couldn’t do the same now because it might tip off Mr. Chen. He didn’t need him to possibly complicate things. “Did he say why he wanted to go to Guizhou?”
Probably to go home. To stay there and renounce Yibo. He feels an ache in his chest at the thought of it and puts his only free hand against it.
A tender feeling creeps through, and Yibo knows it is Xiao Zhan. He closes his eyes and wills himself to ignore it.
It’s not real. He tells himself. You’re just slowly losing your mind. Why would he care about you? He knows what you are already.
Yibo immediately books a flight to Guizhou. It takes hours and hours of him mostly falling in and out of sleep and him waking up lulled into the warm embrace of tenderness through the bond. The Alpha, for the most time, feels his heart tearing up the moment he realizes what he is feeling.
He wonders if his Omega feels this way because he’s finally back to his real home. Somewhere that’s far away from him.
Even when Xiao Zhan wants to meet him. But then what if it is goodbye? What if it’s for Xiao Zhan to ask Yibo to let him go?
By now, Xiao Zhan should know Yibo will comply despite their agreement.
Wang Yibo feels as though life has taken its roots out of his body when he lands at Guizhou and even more as he takes a seat in the back of the car. By the time he sees Xiao Zhan’s home, Yibo feels the same defeat gnawing at him from the inside of his heart.
He almost feels barren as he stands in front of the gate with his men bowing at the sight of him. He goes in as they open the gate for him, his gait slow. His throat bobs when one of the bodyguards knocks on the house’s door.
The door opens to the sight of Xiao Zhan. Yibo’s heart aches. The Omega looks so beautiful even in a simple sweater and pants. He wants to hold him. Yibo wants to, knowing the ache in his body and heart will mellow the moment Xiao Zhan wraps his arms around him.
It doesn’t take time for Xiao Zhan to look up and see him. Yibo halts then takes in a breath and holds it as the Omega openly assesses him from head to toe with his eyes.
Xiao Zhan pulls the door open all the way and runs to Yibo who’s standing a few feet away from him. His heart felt like it would thump out of his chest the moment he saw Yibo and his injuries.
“What happened to you?!” He asks when he reaches his Alpha. His hands can only hover, not knowing where to put it. Yibo has too many injuries for him to take it all in at that moment. Xiao Zhan wants to ask, he wants to reprimand, but most importantly, he wants to comfort his mate.
All this time, Yibo has been hurt. And yet, what he felt through the bond was nothing but resignation. Was it so profound that the hurt Yibo was feeling from his injuries was drowned out?
“It’s nothing,” Yibo answers, averting his gaze.
Xiao Zhan’s frown deepens. “It’s not nothing. What happened?”
“My job,” the Alpha curtly replies. He obviously does not want to say more. “You wanted me here?”
The Omega blinks in surprise. He can’t help but feel off-footed because it seems like Yibo’s in a hurry to leave. Unlike him who wants to fully reach out and hold on to Yibo with despair and ask for him to never let him go.
“Did I ask for you during a bad time?” He asks even when all he wants is to beg for them to reconcile and plead for forgiveness for causing his Alpha so much pain. But Yibo looks so distant. He seems so far away with the cold look in his eyes that Xiao Zhan fears he will back away if the Omega tries to touch him.
The only thing that dissuades Xiao Zhan’s doubts is the emotions he feels in the bond. He straightens up and looks at the Alpha in the eyes.
“I want to tell you something.”
Yibo looks back at him. There’s a flare of confusion in the bond that quickly turns into despair. “Tell me something…” He sighs, briefly closing his eyes before opening them. “Okay.”
Xiao Zhan’s brows furrow. Yibo’s despair is different from the one he’s feeling. He doesn’t like it. He wants it gone.
“Let’s head inside.”
Surely, after this, they will come to an understanding. Xiao Zhan hopes so because he can’t bear the negative emotions stewing inside Yibo since he’s not delusional to think he isn’t the cause.
He did this to Wang Yibo.
Xiao Zhan tastes something bitter in the back of his throat. He can’t let Yibo know that he’s also spiraling so Xiao Zhan sucks it up and tries to not think about it.
Yibo sits down on a chair at the dining table and is told by Xiao Zhan to wait there.
When he comes back, Xiao Zhan gives him a paper folded in half. Yibo looks at it in confusion before taking it. He assesses the paper and notes that it looks a little weathered and there are odd spots that look like it’s been splattered with droplets of water that crinkled it. Curiosity surges in him, and he’s about to open it when the Omega covers his hand.
Yibo looks up to see Xiao Zhan’s flushed face.
“This is embarrassing.” The Omega confesses. “But I want you to understand. Maybe this is the only way for you to truly think I mean it.”
“I don’t get it,” Yibo says with furrowed brows.
Xiao Zhan shakes his head and helps Yibo by taking the paper and unfolding it himself before gently placing it in the Alpha’s hand so he can just go straight to reading it.
“You will.”
Yibo looks at the writing, pauses at the familiar handwriting of Xiao Zhan, and then begins to silently read.
You’re really not coming back, are you?
It’s been months. Months of waiting. You’re really just going to tell me you love me and then leave?
You’re such a bastard, Yibo. Confessing to someone… You’re supposed to say it to them and wait for their reply!
Where would I say my part now? Do I whisper it to the wind? Do I scream it? No. No? Then I should just write it on paper like you did, right?
I love you. You’re so stupid but I love you. Come home to me. Come home, Yibo. You have a home here. Let’s feed the chickens and harvest. Let’s plant and drink tea and wait for the sunrise by the porch.
I miss you so much. If you’re living a dangerous life then let me be that dream— that safe haven. Whatever it is. I’m not unreachable, Bo-di. You’re the one who I can’t reach now.
So come home. Come home, please?
Please come back home to me.
Yibo takes a deep sharp breath after reading, his eyes glistening with tears.
“Well… I guess it’s not as embarrassing when it seems like it’s done its job,” Xiao Zhan softly says. “Do you know where this letter is located?” Yibo shakes his head, and the Omega chuckles softly. “I buried it in an empty tin can of candies. I couldn’t bear to look at it after writing it. It was a mix of both mortification and hurt whenever I reread it… and I didn’t know how to handle those conflicting emotions.”
“There’s nothing mortifying about it,” Yibo says in slight disbelief before asking something that genuinely baffles him. “You… Is it true that you loved me then?”
“I loved you then.” Xiao Zhan covers the Alpha’s hand holding the letter with his hands once more. Yibo is surprised to find his hand is shaking. “I love you now.”
Yibo breathes in through his mouth, his chest heaving, his tears sliding down his face. Impossible. For Xiao Zhan to love him. A monster like him?
“I fell in love with you during those days you were with me here. That annoying didi who’d help me out with my harvest. You who were silent most times, but then teased me whenever you could. You who’d warmed up to me, smiling and shamelessly bantering with me.” Xiao Zhan’s smile wobbles, his eyes also glistening with unshed tears. “And then I fell in love with the man who took my freedom. The Alpha who kept me in his mansion because he was so hurt when he almost lost me. The man who’d do anything for me. My Alpha. My mate.”
He feels so confused, processing everything that his Omega is saying. Yibo looks at their hands as everything slowly clicks in his mind.
“You…” Yibo looks back up at Xiao Zhan. “Does it mean you remember?”
“Everything.” Xiao Zhan easily confesses. “Yibo. I waited for you. I waited so much. I wanted to yell at you so bad. You made your presence so loud in this house that when you left every day that passed by felt so empty without you. I slowly realized how much I love you as I waited. How I wanted to spend time with you… doing the same things over and over.” the Omega sniffles, his eyes red from the tears that finally slip down. Despite the obvious hurt in his eyes he still keeps his smile to Yibo. “Then I had to go and forget you, didn’t I? To only remember you as the rude Alpha. You should have told me at the hospital. I can’t believe you! You had to go and make a deal and mate me! Of course, I’ll end up knowing you in a different way where I know how you truly feel. You’re so unfair! Making me fall for you twice. Shameless! Y-You’re truly—” Xiao Zhan couldn’t continue talking as a sob came out of his throat, and then it descended to him fully crying.
Yibo is lost, not knowing how to comfort his Omega when he himself feels like his heart’s being torn apart and made anew. Twice. Xiao Zhan fell in love with him twice. He takes a shuddering breath.
He wants to do something but then Xiao Zhan stands up. Even though he is still crying, Xiao Zhan goes and carefully wraps his arms around Yibo’s shoulders.
“I’m so sorry about what I said before. I don’t blame you. I just said it so you’d set Mr. Ting’s son free. You’re no monster to me. You’re my Alpha. I love you and I’ll keep loving you.”
“But it is my fault,” Yibo replies without thought. “It is. And then I kept you anyway. So selfish. Why am I so selfish?”
“You know it’s the only way to keep me safe. Do you know how much I’ve dreamed of you? All black and blue and covered in blood?” Xiao Zhan whimpers. He pulls back, and his eyes roam all over the Alpha. “Just like now. I would go through so much to keep you from harm. I understand why you made that deal with me.”
“Zhan-ge,” Yibo weakly says. He sounds like a hurt child who has been told it wasn’t his fault all along. “I love you. I’ll love you no matter what. Even when you end up hating me.”
“There’s no point in thinking that when I can’t even hate you.” Xiao Zhan puts his palms against Yibo’s cheeks and starts raining soft kisses all over his face. “My Bo-di. My Yibo. My Alpha. I’m happy that you’re home.”
“So you remember everything?”
Xiao Zhan hums as an answer, and Yibo holds him tighter with his only fully functioning arm.
They’re lying in Xiao Zhan’s bed, basking in the silence of the Omega’s home, letting themselves find peace. Away from Yibo’s job, and away from the questions that Xiao Zhan needs to ask. Like where the Alpha has been and the entire story of Yibo’s revenge on his behalf.
For now, Yibo lays on his back without his coat, and Xiao Zhan lays on the Alpha’s good side, tucked against him, his head on Yibo’s shoulder.
“I do.”
“Everything?”
“Everything,” Xiao Zhan says. “Even that day of the fire.”
He feels the Alpha’s chest rising as he takes a deep and heavy breath.
“I’m sorry. For putting you through that.”
Xiao Zhan lifts his head and glares at Yibo.
“May I remind you; Who was the one who took you in?”
Yibo winced. “But I shouldn’t have overstayed.”
“I wanted you to stay. Even knowing you’re dangerous or a danger to my well-being. I could have shooed you away. But I didn’t.” Xiao Zhan huffs. “We’ve already been over this conversation. Let it rest, Alpha.”
Yibo looks at him for a moment before smiling at him in defeat. “Fine. If that’s what you want.
Xiao Zhan smiles in triumph. He then looks down, contemplating.
“To be honest… There is one thing you should be sorry about.”
“...What is it?”
“For getting injured so much,” Xiao Zhan directly says. “Do you know how much I want to hold you? Hug you? Let you know how much I missed you?”
I want to hold you so desperately. I want to wrap my arms around you so tightly that you won’t ever doubt how much I want you with me. He says those unspoken words in the bond. It’s despair. Xiao Zhan’s despair comes from both times Yibo left him without so much as a way for him to reach the Alpha. Don’t you dare ever leave me again. I beg you.
“Xiao Zhan,” Yibo whispers, pulling Xiao Zhan back to the real world. “I’m here. I’m not leaving.”
“You should really keep that promise,” The Omega croaks out. “Otherwise you’ll end up driving me insane.”
Yibo softly soothes Xiao Zhan. He apologizes a lot, maybe too much, to the point that the Omega reaches out a hand and gently cups the Alpha’s jaw.
“Just don’t do it again,” He murmurs. “I can handle a lot, Yibo. But not you leaving. With or without memories it hurts the same way.”
“Leaving you hurts too,” Yibo confesses. “It feels like leaving knowing you can’t go back home.”
Xiao Zhan nods in understanding.
“So don’t leave. Stay with me always. I’ll be your home. I’ll shelter you and do everything in my power to make you feel safe and loved. All you need to do is to stay close to me.”
“That sounds like something that came out of my dream.”
Xiao Zhan giggles, and his heart lightens up.
“I’m not an unreachable dream.” He tilts his head up and gives Yibo his biggest smile. ”I’m real and I’m here. I love you so much.”
Yibo smiles back at him.
“I love you too. So much.”
“Wait. I can call you Zhan-ge now, right? You won’t feel awkward about it anymore?”
Xiao Zhan turns flush red upon hearing Yibo’s inquiry. They’re in the kitchen with Xiao Zhan making soup for his injured Alpha who’s idly sitting in the small dining table’s chair.
He’s sort of aware that Yibo tries his best from calling him that. The Alpha never said anything outright but Xiao Zhan is sure he picked up the emotions in the bond whenever he calls the Omega ‘Zhan-ge.’
It felt awkward and unfitting back then. But most importantly it’s because… He was jealous. Which Xiao Zhan’s sure is the emotion Yibo couldn’t figure out because otherwise he would have asked right away.
“I’m your mate now, Yibo. Just call me something else if not my name.”
Xiao Zhan won’t ever say the reason behind his refusal to get called like that again is because of embarrassment.
The memory of him being jealous and differentiating himself from Xiao Zhan ‘The mate,’ and Zhan-ge ‘Yibo’s true love,’ is the actual factor why he doesn’t want Yibo to call him ‘Zhan-ge.’
It’s mortifying how he got jealous of his old self. Truly devastating how much of an effect Wang Yibo has on him with or without memories.
“But I miss calling you Zhan-ge,” Yibo replies, sounding cheeky. “Zhan-ge. Zhan-ge!”
“Brat,” Xiao Zhan grits out. “Do you want me to burn your food?”
He hears the Alpha’s hearty laugh.
“Okay. I’ll stop. What else do I call you then? Do I just say Xiao Zhan?”
Xiao Zhan makes a face at the soup. Yibo continues his tirade.
“My Omega?”
That one’s not bad. Xiao Zhan thought. He likes the slight possessiveness in it.
“Sweetheart?”
Xiao Zhan jolts.
“Oh?” He hears Yibo say, intrigued.
Xiao Zhan straightens up and mixes the soup vigorously.
“You old fashioned man.” Xiao Zhan grumbles, but his heart’s a traitor from the way it’s pounding against his chest. “Just call me however you like.”
The Alpha chuckles.
“I’ll think about it then.”
It’s on their way back home via plane when Yibo remembers something that haunted him for so long.
“That time of the fire…” He hesitates and looks at the Omega, wondering if it’s all right to bring up the topic of such a traumatic incident. When Xiao Zhan looks at him without an ounce of pain on both his face and through the bond, Yibo decides to continue. “One of my men who was going to help you. He said you were feral. And you… said something when he said I sent him there.”
Xiao Zhan looks thoughtful. “I actually don’t remember much after I went feral. Just snippets.”
Yibo nods, already expecting it. He feels a little disappointed but nothing can compare to how he has the Omega with him. He’s about to tell Xiao Zhan to forget about it when the Omega continues.
“I remember it though. I remember a man. I can’t remember his face. But I remember hearing your name from his mouth. It calmed me down. Knowing you might be back. That you’re coming home to me.”
The Alpha’s eyes brim with tears, and he’s sure the pain in his heart is evident in his eyes. Because Xiao Zhan looks as though his heart’s breaking as well when he sees the look on Yibo’s face.
“I…” Yibo stops. He doesn’t even know what to say.
The Omega gives him a rueful smile.
“Don’t say sorry. The only thing you need to be sorry for is leaving me and you already apologized.” Xiao Zhan closes in from where he’s sitting. He reaches out with a hand, gently tracing his fingers on the bruise on Yibo’s cheek. “Seriously. What happened to your face? What work was it?”
Yibo gulps. He averts his gaze and spills the truth. By the end of it, there’s a heavy disapproval swimming through their bond.
“Stop with this vengeance. I’m here. I’m alive. I don’t need you to avenge me when it only puts you in more danger. I want you alive and with me, Alpha.”
“It’s done anyways,” Yibo says. Well. Not truly. Not when Mr. Chen is still around. But he knows he’s toppled nearly all of the people involved with the assault on Xiao Zhan. It feels like a victory already. Mr. Chen will have his time too. But he’s still too far to reach with his blade. So Yibo knows he has to play the long game. The Chens are his family’s enemy, to begin with. It’ll be like hitting two birds with one stone the moment he succeeds with his machinations of being the man’s downfall. “You know how gritty my life is; How it’s smeared with blood from the beginning up until the end. Are you okay with that?”
“I wanted to be your escape back then,” Xiao Zhan says. “Now? I just want to be with you. I’ve killed men to protect my home. I have blood on my hands. I’m not innocent.”
“You remember that too…” Yibo can’t help but feel guilty. There wouldn’t have been any blood on Xiao Zhan’s hands had it not been because of him.
“Don’t you dare feel guilty,” Xiao Zhan says, cutting his thoughts off. “I will shed blood to protect my home; I will shed blood for you.”
Yibo flicks his gaze and finds himself mesmerized by the fire in his Omega’s eyes. Home. He’s Xiao Zhan’s home as well.
Love and lust burn through his heart and his lower stomach with that thought. He stares at the Omega with his mouth parted.
He sees Xiao Zhan take a sharp breath.
“Alpha.” The Omega purrs. “Don’t start now. We have a few more hours to go.”
“Then stop saying things like that.”
Xiao Zhan grins like a minx who finally found how to push the right buttons to make someone kneel. To make Yibo kneel.
“I will. For now…” Xiao Zhan sweetly says, his fingers moving from tracing the bruise on his cheek down his split lower lip and then his jaw to his Adam's apple. “Let’s sleep.”
Yibo nods even when he doesn’t even know how he’ll sleep.
They come back to the mansion with a lot of relieved smiles directed their way, especially from Haikuan who shakes his head fondly at them the moment they enter. Haikuan is standing at the end of the lines of maids and butlers who greet them with their heads bowed.
“I think I won’t have to guess you two made up already.”
“Brother,” Yibo says. “Did you know he got his memories back? Is that why you sanctioned him leaving?”
Haikuan shrugs. “I had a hunch. Xiao Zhan never said anything about regaining all his memories. The main thing he said is that he’ll go back to Guizhou to flush you out from wherever you’re hiding from him.”
Yibo turns to Xiao Zhan who looks at him with defiance despite the blush on his cheeks.
“It worked,” Is all the Omega says, much to the brothers' amusement.
“Flush me out, huh.” Yibo smiles at Xiao Zhan, looking mighty pleased with the idea. “So cunning. It’s beautifully done, sweetheart.”
“Shut up,” Xiao Zhan hisses. “Don’t use that pet name to tease me.”
How could he stop? Yibo wonders. When Xiao Zhan being teased makes him look so cute?
“Okay.” Haikuan stops them with a fond smile. “You two need some rest. Go. Go. It’s way past dinner time but there’s food reserved if you want some.”
“We ate already,” Xiao Zhan says. “I’ll go and take care of my husband. He definitely needs to get his wounds re-cleaned.”
Yibo blinks. He looks like his mind’s buffering.
“Husband?”
Xiao Zhan chuckles. “Well. Aren’t we? Mating is way above and beyond marriage by paper.” He then closes in and innocently looks at Yibo. “I won’t mind a proposal in the future though.”
Haikuan watches as Yibo nods dumbly, visibly in shock. The good kind. It’s a funny look on his brother.
He knows Xiao Zhan is in love with his brother already. But back then, without memories, the Omega still appears like he’s looking for his footing in his relationship with Yibo. He is still hesitant, and a little lost, but tries his best to make their relationship blossom.
Now, with memories, Xiao Zhan knows Yibo, knows sides of him that Haikuan doesn’t even know. He can easily invade Yibo’s space. He does things without hesitation because he’s already familiar with Yibo.
Haikuan puts a hand to cover his mouth, hiding his soft laugh. He wonders if Xiao Zhan felt jealous of his past self when he didn’t have his memories yet because of this very reason. Because he’s aware or has recalled memories where he could easily get through Yibo’s defenses like it’s nothing.
“Ah. Love. I wonder when mine will come,” He murmurs to himself as the pair goes up.
In truth, he already has someone in mind.
“Xiao Zhan…”
Xiao Zhan smiles at the Alpha as he gently palms him through his pants. Yibo’s breathing gets faster, his gaze drifting to the Omega’s hand that’s pleasuring him and letting out a moan.
“What is it?”
“I thought… You said you were going to clean my wounds?”
The Omega snorts. “No. I just did it a few hours ago. I’m fulfilling what we should’ve done on the plane.”
“Done on the— you wanted to do it there?”
Xiao Zhan tilts his head. “You didn’t?”
“Fuck.”
The Omega’s eyes lighten up then lust quickly darkens in it.
“You’re slipping up. When you feel better, maybe you can use that voice on me to make me do what you want?”
Yibo growls, his irises turning red.
“I thought you hated it.”
“When it’s used without my consent,” Xiao Zhan explains. “Not when I know you’ll use it. To make me kneel. To make me pleasure you with my mouth. Make me ride you.” He closes in and licks the Alpha’s parted lips. “Maybe we can do that now. I just need to prepare myself.”
Yibo closes his eyes and grits his teeth like he’s in pain before moving his head to capture the Omega's lips.
“You minx,” He says as he pulls away just to dive down so he can leave hungry marks on Xiao Zhan’s neck. He stops when he notes that his Omega has a headier scent of peach and sandalwood. “No wonder.”
Xiao Zhan tilts his head up, offering more of his neck. “What? Why are you stopping? Mark me.”
“You’re going into heat,” Yibo says, wondering why now.
“Fuck,” Xiao Zhan curses. He can’t be in heat right now. Not when his Alpha’s injured. “It must be because I’ve been away from you for a while. But you’re injured.”
Evolution is quite tricky. It has its ups and downs. Despite Yibo’s injury, Xiao Zhan’s heat is still triggered by the distressing separation that happened between them. But since Yibo is injured, it’s a heat that will be easy to sate.
There is also the option to take a pill to suppress it.
“It won’t be a bad one then,” Yibo says. “I’m sure we have a pill for it. Do you want one?”
Xiao Zhan takes his palm off of Yibo. “You’re injured. I don’t want to hurt you.”
“I can sate your heat. I just need to knot you once or twice.” He smirks at Xiao Zhan. “I can even use my Alpha voice if you’d like.”
The Omega softly moans at the thought, crystal blue slowly bleeding through his irises. He stands up and takes off his clothes.
“I’ll take yours off next,” Xiao Zhan says. “Sate me, Alpha.”
“Faster. Ride me faster.”
Xiao Zhan snaps his head up, letting out a loud moan as he hastens his pace, putting both hands on the Alpha’s bent knees. His thighs are burning from exertion, but it’s nothing compared to the feeling of Yibo’s cock hitting all his spots so good his scalp feels numb from the pleasure.
Yibo looks up at Xiao Zhan in awe with his dark eyes. His clothes are all taken off except for his long sleeve that’s been opened up and then left alone like that since he still has a sling on his other arm.
“So good,” Xiao Zhan breathes out. He lets out a wounded sound when he feels the Alpha’s knot forming.
“You want my knot?” Yibo asks with a low voice. Xiao Zhan nods his head vigorously. “Then try and take it in you, sweetheart.”
Xiao Zhan whimpers. Yibo’s going to drive him crazy with that pet name. It’ll also drive him more deeply into his heat.
He opens his eyes and stares down at the Alpha with lidded eyes.
“Command me, Alpha. Make me take you.”
Yibo moans, putting a hand on his waist. He keeps his gaze on Xiao Zhan as he says his command.
“Take my knot, sweetheart. Fuck it into you.”
The way his Alpha voice reverberates through his entire body is a revelation. Xiao Zhan keens as he does as he’s told, trying to fuck the Alpha’s forming knot into him.
Dangerous… Hisses that rational voice in his head. Xiao Zhan remembers how he used to respond to it. With memories back then; he’ll ignore it, wanting to still protect the Alpha. Without his memories; he still ignores it, wanting to be closer to the Alpha.
Now with his memories and being Yibo’s mate? He snaps his head back and smiles, letting the rational part of him know what he thinks by doubling his efforts to impale himself with his Alpha’s knot.
Fuck off. He responds.
“A- Ahhh!” He lewdly moans the moment he gets the Alpha’s knot in, basking in the feeling of warmth that fills him up next.
He whimpers when he feels himself come all over the Alpha’s toned stomach.
For the second time, Yibo lets Xiao Zhan ride him while he’s leaning against the headboard. The Omega looks so divine as he impaled himself on his cock repeatedly. He looks so beautiful with his face wrought in pleasure. Pleasure that Yibo’s giving to him.
When Xiao Zhan takes his knot, his hands go to his lower stomach, cupping his palms there with his filmy eyes staring at it in a daze.
If Yibo wasn’t injured he wouldn’t know what he’d do with that kind of sight before him. His Omega, looking so wrecked with sweat matting his bangs against his forehead, his skin shining especially between his thighs. His hands are on his lower stomach like he’s expecting it to take. Like he’s expecting he’s been successfully knocked up.
“Fuck.” Yibo snaps his hips up, watching in delight as his Omega moans wantonly.
“Alpha…” Xiao Zhan looks at him, sounding so satisfied. “I feel so full.”
Yibo is glad he’s injured as he snaps his hips up again. He’s sure he won’t be able to hold back.
Xiao Zhan wakes up safely tucked in Yibo’s side after his heat’s over. He sleepily looks around and notes that he’s been cleaned up. The realization fully wakes him and he sits up, noting that the Alpha also changed into cleaner clothes.
Yibo must have cleaned them both up despite his injuries. Xiao Zhan sighs, shaking his head at the Alpha’s hard-headedness. He already told him beforehand to leave all the clean up to Xiao Zhan after his heat is sated.
“You really are stubborn,” He says, gently caressing the sleeping Alpha’s face with his palm.
He looks at Wang Yibo with a tender heart. He thinks back to the days when he couldn’t remember his time with Yibo. How frantic he was to catch every minuscule memory. How he cried over some of them, wondering why he’d forgotten them in the first place.
It was an ache like no other. A longing he couldn’t decipher. It’s no wonder he used to be jealous of his old self when he couldn’t remember anything. Because he may have Yibo as his mate, as his Alpha, as someone who he got to know through their bond.
But he doesn’t remember that as much as Yibo called him his home; Xiao Zhan also ended up thinking of Yibo as his. That the reason why he kept trying and trying to grasp memories, and why his heart broke whenever he couldn’t, was because all along he wanted to come back home. Back to the person who he had forgotten was his home.
“Yibo. I’m here. I’m with you. I’m home.”
He leans down and places a kiss on the Alpha’s forehead.
Weeks later, when Yibo proposes to him while they are out on a date; the Alpha asks him a question when they get back home and are both in bed after making love to each other.
“Do you want to go back to your hometown?”
Xiao Zhan smacks him on the chest for the audacity to ask that question.
“Did you not hear me say yes earlier when you proposed?”
Yibo looks cowed by his reply.
“What I mean is if you want we can live there. I can leave everything to my brother.”
The Omega looks at his Alpha for a moment before sighing.
“I may not fully know what I signed up for when I said yes to the mating run. But now? I am fully aware. Living in my hometown won’t be safe even if you retire.” He lays his head on Yibo’s naked chest. “And don’t you say sorry again. I can already feel your guilt building through the bond.”
Yibo shakes his head. “Fine. But would you want to travel the world instead? I know I kept you in this mansion. Locked you up here for quite a while.”
Xiao Zhan thinks about it. “We can. I have a few places in mind. But if it’s not safe then I don’t want it.”
“I’ll make sure it’s safe.” Yibo wraps his arms around his Omega. “I won’t ever let anyone hurt you again.”
“How about we go to Paris then?”
Yibo chuckles. “Really? You’re already going for the most romantic destination?”
Xiao Zhan snorts. “Well. Sorry I’m being romantic after someone proposed to me.”
“Ah. Of course,” Yibo says with a smile. “It is my fault, after all. How could I ever dare blame you?”
“You’re teasing me again.” Xiao Zhan points out with a pout.
They went to a few places before coming back to China. Places that, of course, were safe and weren't the turf of any enemies. Two months after coming back; Wang Yibo and Xiao Zhan got married.
A month and a half after that, Xiao Zhan gets pregnant. A celebration is silently held in the Wang mansion for the baby shower months after the news.
Only Yibo’s packmates are invited.
Xiao Zhan, at this point, had gotten over his morning sickness. His belly is already showing. He had worn a comfy sweater and maternal pants.
Xuan Lu and Meng Ziyi hover over him, all three of them sitting on the sofa after dinner, asking him about his experience and showing him plenty of clothes and items they’re planning to buy for his baby.
At one point, Ziyi asks him a question.
“Remember when I asked you if you knew him back then? And then you answered me back with a question. You asked me; did he use to smile more back then?” Ziyi closes in with a fond look in her eyes. “You weren’t messing with me. He smiled more with you, didn’t he?” She turns her gaze elsewhere and then giggles. “I guess we can take this as a live example.”
“What?”
Xiao Zhan looks at where Ziyi turned her gaze for a brief second and sees the Alpha coming to him with a plate of dessert. There’s a faint smile etched on Yibo’s lips.
“These aren’t too sweet,” Yibo says as he gently presents the small plate to Xiao Zhan. “I put some fruits on the side. They’re kind of sour. Your favorite.”
Xiao Zhan shoots him an exasperated look. “Probably your son’s favorite. Definitely got it from his father.”
Yibo’s ghost of a smile blooms into something bright, making Xiao Zhan put a hand on his belly to keep himself grounded. Seriously. How can a smile be so blinding and heartrending?
“Our son can definitely inherit my taste in food. As long as he’ll look like you.” He hands the plate to Xiao Zhan and places a kiss on his cheek before putting a hand on the Omega’s belly. “Don’t get too fussy that you’ll disturb your mother, okay?” He murmurs. “Let me know if you need anything,” He says to Xiao Zhan before leaving.
“See what I mean?” Ziyi whispers beside him. “A full-blown smile that hasn’t been seen by us in more than a decade.”
“He’s definitely loosening up,” Xiao Zhan says, rubbing his belly.
What he doesn’t include is that Xiao Zhan specifically told Yibo to loosen up and let the pack know how he feels.
That way it’ll strengthen their bond.
“Laoban. We’ve successfully managed to weaken the Chens’ power enough in the West.”
“Good,” Yibo says as he takes a sip of cider juice. He refrains from drinking any alcohol, not wanting to be in the slightest bit intoxicated so he can do whatever Xiao Zhan asks of him efficiently. “How about Chongqing?”
“Very secure as always. It’s one of our turfs that doesn’t have much problem. Why were you asking about it?”
Wang Yibo shrugs. “My Omega wants to visit it definitely after giving birth. Maybe a year after our son is born. He said it’s where his mom was born. He wanted to show our son around.”
“Ah,” Yu Bin shares an amused look with Zhuocheng.
Haikuan then joins them as they all stand by the in-house bar. “Yibo. Are you ready to be a father?”
Yibo stares at Xiao Zhan who’s now talking to He Peng, all of them laughing about something. He stares at the pregnant Omega, wondering how someone beautiful could look even more beautiful during their pregnancy.
He thinks about Xiao Zhan after a few more months, giving birth and holding their son in his arms.
It makes him smile, his heart bursting with joy. It’s most likely the reason why Xiao Zhan looks his way, the open wonder on his face turning into one of mirth when he sees Yibo smiling at him.
“I think I am,” He softly says. “I know I’ll fumble a lot but Xiao Zhan is there with me. That’s all I need.”
His Xiao Zhan.
His unreachable dream.
A home he used to think he had no right to call his own.
Now he’s here with Yibo, and soon they will have a child.
What else could he ask for?
He is home.