ABMSI Chapter 55

The moment the game machine beeped, Duan Wei lunged forward, hurling basketballs toward the hoop in a frenzy. The Alpha beside him wasn’t any slower, sinking each ball with pinpoint accuracy. The score shot up instantly.

Although it was their first time playing together, they were unexpectedly in sync—no fighting over the rim, no missed openings. The more Duan Wei played, the more he felt this guy was solid. Grinning, he said, “Not bad, bro!”

The Alpha had already taken a liking to this athletic Omega, and after playing for a while, he found Duan Wei even more interesting. He glanced at Duan Wei and said, “You’re pretty good yourself.”

The two were playing so intensely that they completely forgot about Fu Duqiu standing off to the side. His eyes were fixed on the counter, but his hands were far from idle. Despite being alone, his score didn’t fall behind at all—he was even playing more aggressively than when he’d been competing with Duan Wei earlier.

Passersby noticed how fierce the matchup was and stopped to watch. Before long, the small corner was crowded.

As the score tightened, Duan Wei suddenly realized that when he and Fu Duqiu had played one-on-one earlier, Fu Duqiu had gone easy on him. He threw several basketballs into the hoop in quick succession, trying hard to close the gap.

The Alpha beside him had clearly underestimated Fu Duqiu as well and was now fully focused, giving it his all.

No one knew how long it had been before the timer finally hit zero. Fu Duqiu won by a single point—one against two.

The surrounding onlookers stared in shock, wide-eyed. It was their first time seeing someone win a two-on-one match. This time, Duan Wei was truly convinced and defeated, bowing to the result. “Can’t beat you, can’t beat you—you’re definitely better.”

Fu Duqiu, however, didn’t say a word, nor did he show any joy at his victory. He picked up the things he’d left aside and prepared to leave.

Seeing this, Duan Wei also figured it was getting late and turned to say goodbye to the Alpha. But before he could speak, the Alpha stepped forward with his phone and said, “Can I add you on WeChat? Let’s play together again next time.”

Straightforward as ever, Duan Wei didn’t pick up on the hidden intention behind the invitation. He grabbed his jacket and was about to search for his phone when suddenly, footsteps approached.

The soft touch of a scarf landed around his neck—yet instead of warmth, it gave Duan Wei a sudden chill.

Fu Duqiu wrapped the scarf, which Duan Wei had tossed aside earlier, back around his neck, covering the faint trace of pheromone scent leaking from his gland. He said, “Let’s go home.”

As he spoke, he naturally stepped forward, using half his body to shield Duan Wei behind him, lowering his gaze just enough to look at the Alpha opposite him—an expression that needed no explanation.

But Duan Wei was standing at just the wrong angle and couldn’t see Fu Duqiu’s face at all. He kept rummaging cluelessly in his jacket. “Where’s my phone??”

Fu Duqiu’s eyes dimmed; he frowned, pulled his own phone from his pocket, and said to the Alpha, “He can’t find his phone, so add me instead.”

Before the Alpha could respond, Fu Duqiu tapped a few times and stepped closer. Up close, the height difference became obvious—Fu Duqiu was half a head taller, looking down to meet the Alpha’s eyes.

The onlookers who hadn’t left yet immediately sensed the subtle tension in the air. Meanwhile, Duan Wei remained completely oblivious. Hearing them, he nodded, “Sure, then you add him first. Next time the three of us can play together.”

“…” The Alpha paused, glancing at Fu Duqiu’s faintly threatening expression. After a moment, he said, “No need. We’ll meet again if fate allows.”

Then he turned slightly to look at Duan Wei, giving him a few lingering smiles before leaving.

Duan Wei waved goodbye, still confused. Watching the Alpha walk away, he muttered, “Why doesn’t he want the WeChat anymore?”

Fu Duqiu put away his phone and looked at Duan Wei. At first, he’d thought Duan Wei had been interested, too—only to realize the guy genuinely hadn’t thought along those lines. That realization eased his heart.

But then again, Duan Wei had always been hopelessly dense when it came to things like this. He never picked up on people’s feelings right away. Normally, that was a good thing—but now, Fu Duqiu wasn’t sure whether it was a blessing or a curse.

Seeing Duan Wei’s curious look, he sighed, feeling that certain matters were… a long battle. He shook his head and said, “No idea. Let’s go.”

“Oh.” Duan Wei answered in his usual dazed way and followed him out of the arcade.

Once they stepped outside, Duan Wei realized it was already close to evening. He reached into his pocket for his phone, and the screen lit up with several missed calls from Qiao Ying. He called back immediately, and as soon as the call connected, his mom’s voice blasted through the speaker:

“Where did you go??”

“Are you coming home or not?”

“As if it’s not enough that you went out on New Year’s Day, you stay gone the whole day—why don’t you just not come back for the entire year!”

Duan Wei wisely held his phone a little farther away. He waited until the roaring on the other end subsided before giving an explanation. At first, Qiao Ying didn’t listen to a single word—until Duan Wei mentioned that Fu Duqiu was right beside him. Her tone immediately flipped: “Oh, it’s Xiao Qiu? Good, good, good! You two have fun. Are you coming home for dinner? Xiao Qiu should come eat with us too!”

Duan Wei rolled his eyes at the ceiling, muttered a few words, and hung up. He’d gone out today mainly to cheer up Fu Duqiu and give him a bit of New Year’s ritual warmth. Now that the goal was mostly achieved, whether to invite him home for dinner depended entirely on Fu Duqiu’s wishes.

So he paused, looked over at Fu Duqiu, and asked, “Do you want to come to my place for dinner?”

He expected the guy to refuse—after all, showing up at someone’s house for New Year’s dinner wasn’t exactly routine. Unexpectedly, Fu Duqiu turned his head, eyes unreadable. After a long, steady breath, he smiled and said, “Sure.”

They went back the same way as before, with Duan Wei flagging down a taxi at the roadside. The car radio was blasting the festive song Good Fortune Arrives. The driver was a lively one—talking non-stop about everything from the weather to the Lantern Festival coming up at the lakeside beyond the suburbs, where a once-every-three-years New Year lantern fair would be held.

“A lantern fair?”

The moment Duan Wei heard it, he perked up. He’d never attended one. Never released a sky lantern either.

“Yep,” the driver chuckled. “There’ll be all kinds of lanterns—hanging ones, floating ones, ones you can carry. And they’ll have riddles! Solve a bunch and you’ll get some mysterious prize pack!”

Seeing Duan Wei’s eyes sparkle brighter and brighter, Fu Duqiu finally shed the gloom lingering on him and asked with a smile, “You want to go?”

“Of course,” Duan Wei nodded, already excited.

He sat under the warm yellow car light, which cast a soft glow over the top of his head. His scarf brushed lightly against his chin, making the already handsome features of his face look even livelier.

Fu Duqiu’s heart tightened. He turned slightly and said, “Then I can go with you—”

“And we can bring Little Yan and Xu Jianian too!” Duan Wei jumped in, unable to contain himself.

Fu Duqiu: “…”

At this point, he was starting to think that Duan Wei being oblivious to people’s feelings wasn’t a good thing at all.

The two chatted for half the ride with the driver. When they got out, Duan Wei still seemed reluctant to end the conversation. As they stepped inside the house, Father Duan happened to be dragging boxes into the living room.

Fu Duqiu greeted him politely and quickly took the boxes out of his hands. Duan Wei glanced at his dad and asked, “What’s that?”

“Fireworks from the school,” Father Duan said, smiling at Fu Duqiu. “Perfect timing. After dinner, you kids can set them off. There’s an open lot a few hundred meters to the right.”

“Okay,” Duan Wei replied.

Just then, the kitchen filled the house with the fresh smell of steamed fish. Qiao Ying placed the dish on the table, saw the boys come in, and beamed. “Quick, go wash your hands—dinner’s ready soon!”

“This time your mom cooked everything herself—healthy and delicious!” Father Duan boasted, earning himself a playful glare from Qiao Ying.

Duan Wei turned up the heater, shrugged off his coat and scarf, and led Fu Duqiu to the bathroom. Turning on the faucet, he said, “Have you noticed? Every time you come over, my mom cooks. She hasn’t done that in ages.”

“Auntie’s cooking is really good.” Fu Duqiu squeezed soap onto his palms and lathered it up.

“Of course. My mom’s a professional nutritionist.”

By the time they finished washing, all the dishes were on the table. The four of them sat down together in warm, festive harmony. Father Duan even brought out the treasured red wine, determined to have a good chat with Fu Duqiu.

Qiao Ying filled their glasses and raised hers. “Come, come—here’s to my son and Xiao Qiu. May the new year bring success, and may you both get into good universities!”

Duan Wei stood up and immediately rolled out his blessings: “Wishing my mom eternal youth and perfect health! And wishing my dad great fortune and good health in the new year!”

Fu Duqiu stood as well, smiling gently. “Wishing Uncle and Auntie a happy New Year and all the best.”

“Good, good, good! Wonderful kids!” Father Duan laughed so hard his eyes disappeared, clinking glasses with all three.

They sat again. Qiao Ying, seated across from Fu Duqiu, zealously piled food into his bowl. “Eat whatever you like, don’t hold back! Treat this like your own home.”

Fu Duqiu nodded, eating a bite of chicken. “It’s delicious.”

“If it’s good, have more!” Qiao Ying promptly dumped the rest of the chicken into his bowl—completely forgetting the old rule about not talking during meals.

Dinner lasted over an hour. Festive as always, Father Duan was in a great mood and got along with Fu Duqiu so well that the two got tipsy together. By the end, he was insisting on challenging Fu Duqiu to a round of Go.

Qiao Ying had to physically pry them apart before scolding her husband. Fu Duqiu sat a bit away, mildly flushed from the wine Father Duan had coaxed him into drinking—he wasn’t drunk, but he was definitely warm and hazy.

The table still gave off gentle steam. The ticking clock marked the late hour. Through the window, soft night blurred the view, and from afar came the faint crackle of kids playing with firecrackers.

Duan Wei had said something earlier before heading to his room. Mother Duan helped Father Duan into another. The living room, warm and cozy, now held only Fu Duqiu.

He sat there, taking in the peaceful scene, and an unexpected warmth rose in his chest. After all these years, this was the first time he had felt such simple, rare affection.

He closed his eyes, not knowing how long he’d sat there, before someone gently tapped his shoulder. He opened them to see Duan Wei—now wearing a fresh set of clothes, a warm yellow cotton jacket making him look soft and endearing.

In his hand was a giant plastic bag. He grinned. “Come on, I’m taking you to set off fireworks!”