CoP 31

Snowflakes drifted to the ground, silently melting into clear water.

A thin layer of white mist condensed on the window, and faintly, it seemed as if the sound of Christmas Eve bells could be heard from outside, but the air inside the room was quiet.

This night seemed to drag on endlessly.

Ji Ling felt his strength being drained bit by bit. He was very tired, yet he remained acutely aware. Sui Cannong’s features were sharp and deep, and he felt very close to him.

Sui Cannong’s movements were tentative, gentle, and careful. He would occasionally lower his head to patiently kiss away the tears from the corners of Ji Ling’s eyes.

Later, Ji Ling’s consciousness began to blur. He felt as if Sui Cannong had embraced him. Sui Cannong’s arms were strong, and his embrace was like a warm nest.

Ji Ling vaguely heard Sui Cannong calling his name.

Whether Sui Cannong called his full name or laughed and called him “Little Teacher Ji,” Ji Ling’s heart always raced.

He tried to respond, but the sound that came out was muffled. He didn’t know if Sui Cannong had heard, and he didn’t have the strength to respond again.

Ji Ling fell into a deep dream.

When he woke up, Sui Cannong felt unusually refreshed.

On a normal day, this kind of invigorating feeling usually only happened on a Monday without early classes or a Friday after work with no meetings.

Beside him, Ji Ling was still sound asleep. When he closed his eyes, his features took on a cold, serene beauty, though at the moment, he looked a bit tired.

Because they were unprepared, both of them had been a bit clumsy at first, but Ji Ling was very proactive, and they ended up fitting together surprisingly well.

Just a few weeks ago, they were still tentatively trying to kiss. Sui Cannong felt a bit dazed.

Sometimes, he felt that he couldn’t quite figure out Ji Ling.

Ji Ling gave off a very peculiar vibe. He seemed quiet and passive, but the occasional moments of initiative in their relationship always surprised Sui Cannong.

Sui Cannong knew the metaphor was a bit strange, but he felt that Ji Ling was like an egg. The outer shell was hard, but once you peeled it away, you found a completely different, soft, white interior.

Sui Cannong sat up and stared at Ji Ling’s side profile for a while before he finally came to his senses.

What should he do now? Sui Cannong’s mind began to race. Should he just sit here and wait for him to wake up?

No, should he buy him something to eat in case he was hungry when he woke up? But what should he order?

Ji Ling, who was lying in bed, was sleeping restlessly. He furrowed his brow slightly and turned over, causing Sui Cannong’s breath to catch for a second.

He stared at Ji Ling’s exposed shoulder and neck, hesitated, and then quietly moved to Ji Ling’s side, carefully tucking the blanket around him.

Sui Cannong stared at Ji Ling’s face for a while longer.

He felt the blanket was covering too much of Ji Ling’s face, so he pinched the edge and pulled it down a bit.

Not knowing what to do with his hands and feet, this was Sui Cannong’s current state.

The phone on the table suddenly began to vibrate and emit a notification sound. Sui Cannong, who had been lost in thought, snapped back to reality and realized it was Ji Ling’s phone ringing.

Afraid of waking Ji Ling, he quickly walked over and silenced the phone.

Even after silencing it, the phone continued to vibrate, so Sui Cannong glanced at the screen and saw it was the “Plan Master” app.

Without thinking, he swiped the screen and found that Ji Ling hadn’t set any password for his phone. The app opened directly, showing Ji Ling’s pre-planned schedule for the day.

It was the locations of several tourist spots and the names of a couple of restaurants, which Ji Ling had planned for the trip a long time ago.

Sui Cannong tapped the “X” to dismiss it, and Ji Ling’s schedule from the previous day popped up. Because he hadn’t checked in, the background of the plan had turned a deep gray.

He felt a bit amused, thinking that these little apps were becoming increasingly interesting.

Before Sui Cannong could react, another message popped up in the center of the screen.

[Reminder: Your long-term check-in plan “Did you take a brave step today?” has been unchecked for one day. Would you like to restart your plan?]

The last time Ji Ling stayed over at Sui Cannong’s place, he had seen this message. Although his heart still skipped a beat, Sui Cannong took a deep breath and was about to put the phone down.

But then he suddenly realized something was off.

He remembered clearly that the last time he saw this message was a few weeks ago, and it showed “five days unchecked.” Now it had changed to “one day.”

This meant that, apart from yesterday, Ji Ling had resumed checking in during this period.

Sui Cannong’s breathing became heavy, and his palms began to sweat.

Ji Ling had been spending time with him these past few days, and he seemed to be doing well. Why had he resumed checking in, and why had he restarted his plan?

Sui Cannong’s heart raced. He looked back at the phone screen, hesitated, and then tapped on the plan.

Since it was a long-term task, there was a small notes section below when he opened it.

Sui Cannong silently read the short line in the notes section.

[Time is running out, I can’t delay any longer.]

The hotel pillows were softer than the ones Ji Ling usually slept on, so when he woke up, his head felt as if it was buried in a soft cloud.

However, this comfort was fleeting. Ji Ling belatedly noticed the soreness in his lower back and found it difficult to sit up.

He blinked slowly.

He instinctively looked to the side and saw no one. The bathroom light was off. Ji Ling called out Sui Cannong’s name, but there was no response.

Ji Ling’s heart sank.

His head was dizzy, but he managed to sit up with some difficulty. After putting on his clothes, he heard the sound of a card being swiped, and the door was pushed open.

Sui Cannong walked in, carrying a lot of things.

Their eyes met, and then Ji Ling heard Sui Cannong say, “You’re awake.”

“I bought some food,” he said.

Sui Cannong turned around, placed the food on the table, and then walked to the bed. Ji Ling noticed he was holding a large bouquet of flowers in his other hand.

It was a bouquet of roses wrapped in newspaper, a bright, sun-like orange color.

“Didn’t you really want to go to the flower market yesterday?” Sui Cannong said. “I passed by and saw it was open, so I just wandered in.”

Ji Ling stared blankly at the large bouquet of flowers.

Actually, the reason Ji Ling wanted to go to the flower market was because he thought Sui Cannong liked flowers. But after some thought, Ji Ling decided not to explain.

He carefully held the flowers in his arms and said to Sui Cannong, “Thank you.”

Sui Cannong smiled at him.

Ji Ling really wanted to take a picture of the flowers, so he tried to get out of bed.

But as soon as he stood up, his legs felt weak. Fortunately, Sui Cannong, who was quick to react, immediately supported him.

Sui Cannong seemed to understand Ji Ling’s intention and handed him the phone on the table.

Ji Ling took the phone and noticed it was on silent mode. He was a bit confused but assumed he had accidentally hit the button the previous day.

When he wasn’t teaching, Ji Ling didn’t like to put his phone on silent because he didn’t want to miss any messages.

As soon as Ji Ling opened his phone, the “Plan Master” app popped up, and he heard Sui Cannong casually say, “I noticed you like to set plans.”

Ji Ling paused and nodded.

“Making plans can help clarify your thoughts and prepare in advance,” Ji Ling explained. “It makes things more efficient.”

Sui Cannong looked at him and nodded without saying anything more.

It was already close to afternoon, so Ji Ling thought for a moment and decided to delete the plans he couldn’t complete today.

When he put down his phone, he noticed Sui Cannong was still staring at his face.

Ji Ling felt his ears start to burn. He didn’t know where to look or what to say.

He hesitated and said, “Last night—”

“Ji Ling,” Sui Cannong said, “I want to talk to you about last night.”

Sui Cannong wasn’t smiling; his expression was serious. Ji Ling was taken aback.

Ji Ling hesitated but nodded.

“I said we could try,” Sui Cannong said. “But the level of intimacy we reached wasn’t part of my plan.”

Ji Ling’s heart skipped a beat, and his throat felt tight.

“I feel… the situation has changed,” Sui Cannong hesitated and continued, “I don’t know what you think, but in my eyes, this level of intimacy means we need to be responsible for each other.”

Ji Ling thought he understood what Sui Cannong meant.

In that moment, he felt a pang of sadness.

But after a brief silence, he looked up at Sui Cannong and shook his head.

“I understand,” Ji Ling said softly. “It was my initiative, so you don’t need to feel burdened. We can forget about last night.”

Ji Ling thought Sui Cannong would look relieved.

But instead, Sui Cannong’s expression became a bit strange.

“That’s not what I meant,” Sui Cannong said.

“What I mean is,” Sui Cannong said gently, “Ji Ling, you need to be responsible to me.”

Ji Ling blinked in confusion.

Sui Cannong continued, “Of course, our relationship is mutual, so I will also be responsible to you.”

“I remember you’ve been to my place once before,” Sui Cannong continued. “I think the space is quite spacious. We can tidy it up and add some new things. We can go shopping together.”

“I can leave the study for you to prepare your lessons, and I can work in the living room,” he added after some thought. “And I usually order takeout twice a week, but if you don’t like it, we can cook together every day.”

Sui Cannong met Ji Ling’s gaze and smiled.

“Ji Ling,” Sui Cannong said, “let’s live together.”