Suo ran didn't sleep.The small apartment was silent except for the faint hum of the refrigerator and the distant sound of traffic filtering through the curtains.Every time he closed his eyes,it replayed.The warmth.The unsteady breath.The way Cai Lang's hand had held him like it was instinct rather than a choice.The kiss.And the name.An Xin.He rolled onto his side,staring at the pale ceiling illuminated by streetlights leaking through the window.Wondering if Cai Lang would remember.Wondering if he wanted him to...
Suo ran hadn't slept at all.
Meanwhile,Cai lang woke up with a headache and the wrong shirt.He sat slowly on the edge of the bed,rubbing a hand across his face before looking down at the unfamiliar clothes stretched across his shoulders.Not his.Not something he remembered putting on.His memory of the night before was fragmented.Flashes of alcohol then lian ziho laughing too loudly. He remembered they walk home.A warm shoulder beside him then nothing.His brows furrowed as unease settled heavily in his chest.
Downstairs,the morning light pouring through the apartment lobby windows was almost painfully bright.The floor reflected strips of sunlight across the room.Suo ran was already there,holding a paper cup of coffee between both hands.When the elevator opened and Cai Lang stepped out,both men froze.Suo ran's heart jumped. He remembers,he thought instantly.He has to remember.But Cai Lang only gave a brief nod."Morning." He didn't meet Suo ran's eyes for more than a second.
Suo ran felt something inside him sink." Oh." His fingers tightened around the cup. "Morning." Cai Lang adjusted the strap of his bag and finally said,"I'm heading out."Suo ran swallowed."...Okay."He wanted to ask.About the couch.About the kiss.About the name.About everything.But the words remained trapped somewhere behind his ribs.Cai Lang left without another glance.
At the front gate,Lian Ziho appeared,one hand in his pocket and sunglasses hanging from the collar of his shirt."There you are!"he said easily."I was looking for you."Suo Rran forced a smile."Sorry."Lian ziho glanced toward the building entrance where Cai Lang had disappeared."So how was Cai lang last night?He didn't embarrass himself too badly,did he?"
Suo ran froze and memory hit him instantly. Cai Lang leaning close.The warmth of his breath then kiss."He was...fine,"Suo ran answered after a pause."Just drunk."Lian Ziho laughed."That tracks."Then he tilted his head."You sure you're okay?" Suo ran blinked. "Why?"Lian ziho studied him for a moment."You look like you lost a fight with your own thoughts." Suo ran looked away. "Didn't sleep much."Lian ziho hummed but didn't push."Coffee?" Suo ran nodded gratefully.
They walked to a small café tucked between two bookstores.The smell of roasted beans and fresh bread filled the air.They sat near the window. Lian ziho talked about everything like Missions he'd hated.Food he'd regretted buying.A coworker who somehow managed to lock himself out of his own apartment three times in one week.Suo ran listened and even laughed once or twice,but his attention kept drifting back to the same thought. He doesn't remember.Or worse.He does,and he's pretending.
Elsewhere,Cai Lang stood before a large silent house hidden behind iron gates and old trees.The moment he stepped inside,the atmosphere changed.His father stood waiting in the center of the study,perfectly composed."You're careless!"his father said coldly.Cai lang's expression didn't change."I completed the mission."His father stepped closer then he slaped him without warning.
Cai lang's head snapped sideways.The sting spread sharply across his cheek. "You're distracted!" his father continued. "You're getting weak and emotional."Caiang slowly straightened.He didn't argue.He didn't react.But behind his calm expression, his thoughts drifted elsewhere.To Suo Ran.To the strange emptiness he couldn't explain."Stay away from him!"his father said."That boy is not part of your world." Cai lang's eyes flickered slightly."Why?"The older man's expression hardened."You don't need to know."Silence followed.Cai lang lowered his gaze."Yes."He left without another word.
On the way back,the city felt louder than usual.Cars rushed past and people crowded sidewalks.Neon signs flickered in shop windows then he saw them. Across the street.Outside a café.Suo ran sat by the window,sunlight brushing against his face while Lian Ziho laughed at something he had just said and suo ran smiled at him
Cai Lang stopped walking.His chest tightened and he said"He looks happy with him." Something sharp and irrational flared inside him.Then his father's voice echoed through his head.Stay away from him.Cai Lang looked away."It's better this way!"he murmured to himself before turning and walking home.
He stood in the dark living room for a long time before sitting heavily on the couch.His father's warning replayed over and over.How does he even know about Suo Ran?That thought unsettled him more than the slap ever could.His father never involved himself without reason.Which meant Suo ran was already on someone's radar.And that made Cai Lang dangerous to him.He lay down and stared at the ceiling.He didn't sleep instead,a memory surfaced.Fragmented but undeniable.Suo ran's face close.
Cai Lang's eyes snapped open.His heart immediately started racing."I..."His voice cracked."I kissed him." He sat upright, running a hand through his hair. He didn't remember how it started."No.."he whispered hoarsely.Then he laughed once without humor and covered his eyes with one hand.
"What were thinking Cai lang?! " He said.
Day and night came and gone but they didn't talk.Suo ran felt the distance immediately. Cai lang still appeared when necessary.But something essential had been pulled back.One morning,Cai Lang stopped him in the hallway.The corridor lights buzzed faintly overhead while morning sunlight spilled through the stairwell window."Suo Ran."Suo ran turned instinctively,his heart lifting before tightening again when he saw the controlled expression on Cai Lang's face."I wanted to apologize! "Cai Lang said.Suo ran waited."For last night!"Cai Lang continued."I drank too much.I wasn't clear-headed."
Suo ran's fingers curled slightly at his sides."That's it?"Cai lang hesitated imperceptibly before nodding."I won't let it happen again."He didn't mention the couch.He didn't mention the kiss.He didn't mention An Xin.Suo ran felt confusion sharpen into something painful."Oh."His voice came out quieter than intended. "Okay."
For a second,Cai lang looked as though he wanted to say more.His jaw tightened.His gaze lingered.Then he stepped back."Take care."And just like that,he was gone.Suo Ran remained standing in the hallway long after,listening to fading footsteps and staring at the empty space he left behind.Was it a mistake?Or something Cai Lang had deliberately decided to forget?
That night,Cai Lang sat alone in darkness illuminated only by the glow of multiple screens.Financial records, old mission logs and restricted personnel files.He followed every thread until one name appeared again and again.His father's network.The warning hadn't been personal.It had been strategic."Why are you involved?"Cai Lang murmured while staring at Suo ran's profile displayed on the screen.The realization chilled him.If his father knew,others would too.He closed the file abruptly.Staying away wasn't restraint anymore.It was damage control.
The next day, After watched them daily he noticed the difference immediately.They were walking home beneath rows of trees lining the sidewalk.The afternoon sun filtered through leaves above them,casting shifting shadows across the pavement. "You're quieter!"Lian ziho said."That's saying something,because you were already quiet."Suo ran smiled faintly."Just tired."
Lian ziho glanced sideways at him."Cai Lang?"Suo ran didn't answer.The silence itself was answer enough.Something twisted uncomfortably in Lian ziho's chest.He told himself it was concern.Just concern.When Suo ran laughed softly at something he said,Lian ziho felt relieved. When Suo an fell silent again,Lian felt strangely unsettled.This is normal,he told himself.He's my friend.So why did it bother him?Why did he suddenly want to stay closer?Why did he feel the urge to fill the empty space Cai Lang had left behind?Lian ziho shoved the thoughts aside before they could grow into something more. Feelings complicated everything.
That night,Suo ran lay awake once again but this time he wasn't replaying the kiss o r the name.He was replaying the apology because somehow it hurt more.It confirmed the one thing he hadn't wanted to admit.Cai Lang remembered enough to choose distance.And somehow,that hurt far more than forgetting ever could.