Yun Li opened the box to find a pair of ice-blue crystal earrings. She picked them up and examined them curiously, muttering, "I think I came here to celebrate your birthday."
Then, she took out the earrings and earnestly held them up to Fu Shize's earlobes, declaring, "It's your birthday, so this gift should be yours." Fu Shize didn’t have pierced ears, making it impossible to actually put them on him.
Fu Shize sighed helplessly, "All my gifts are yours."
Yun Li mimicked him, "All my gifts are yours too."
Few words from a drunk could be trusted, yet hearing this, Fu Shize still smiled. He took the earrings from her hands and asked, "Can you sit still for a moment?"
Yun Li nodded.
Brushing aside the hair by her ear, he noticed her ear was flushed and warm. Fu Shize gently pinched her earlobe.
It was his first time putting earrings on a girl, and he was far from skilled. The delicate skin of her earlobe seemed incredibly fragile to him.
Fu Shize proceeded with caution, focusing intently for a long time before finally, with bated breath, managing to secure the earring in place.
Yun Li remained perfectly still, obediently staying motionless even after the earring was in place.
"I only ordered a cake for you," Yun Li said, her consciousness seeming to flicker awake momentarily. "I didn’t get you a gift."
She repeated in disbelief, "I didn’t get you a gift."
"Didn’t you bring yourself back?" Fu Shize humored her. Yun Li blinked and asked, "Do you like it?"
"Mhm."
A knock at the door—likely the cake delivery. Just as Fu Shize was about to get up, Yun Li tightly gripped his collar, continuing her earlier line of questioning, "—Do you like me?"
The grip made it impossible for him to move.
Fu Shize chuckled, attempting to pry her fingers loose one by one, but as soon as he freed one, she stubbornly latched back onto the previous one. After a futile struggle, he gave up, leaning back against the sofa.
"Mhm, I like you."
Yun Li murmured, "I like you too."
Fu Shize replied, "I know."
Yun Li never let go of Fu Shize until she fell asleep. Only after carrying her to bed did Fu Shize notice his collar, which she had tugged open.
Red marks from her grasp were visible on his collarbone.
This room had once belonged to his grandparents and had been unoccupied for many years.
The house, which should have felt empty, now held her presence.
Fu Shize left a small lamp on, removing her makeup and jewelry for her.
Yun Li turned over, kicking the blanket aside, and Fu Shize tucked her back in. There were no traces of alcohol on her face; her long lashes rested peacefully over her eyelids. He gently touched the hollow of her eye and asked, "Can I have a birthday gift?"
Yun Li frowned slightly, turning her face toward him.
Her moist lips seemed to beckon him. Fu Shize leaned in closer and whispered to himself, "I’ll take that as a yes."
...
She saw the cake with her own eyes the next morning.
Yun Li woke up groggily, her head throbbing faintly. She pieced together the events of the previous night, recalling that her last memory was falling asleep in his arms.
Surely, she hadn’t gone out of her way to return for his birthday only to miss blowing out the candles.
The image of Fu Shize sitting alone on the sofa, lighting two candles while glancing at her—passed out beside him—filled her with guilt. She shouldn’t have had those two drinks just because she was feeling down.
Opening the fridge, she saw the cake wasn’t whole—two slices had been taken out.
She let out a sigh of relief.It must have been his birthday. Fu Shize wouldn’t have deliberately disguised a cake like that.
"Did you sleep well?" Fu Shize walked over to her, taking milk and eggs from the fridge.
He had been awake for a while, and a few buttons of his pajamas were undone, revealing red marks on his collarbone.
Yun Li couldn’t believe her eyes.
"Yeah, pretty well." She answered his question dutifully before hesitantly asking, "Your collarbone… Did I do that?"
Fu Shize: "Don’t remember?"
"……"
"Let me ask you something," Yun Li struggled to speak. "How did it happen?"
Fu Shize placed the warm milk in front of her and said casually, "Probably bit it."
"……"
Yun Li continued searching her memory, trying to recall just how far things had gone between them. There was a vague impression—after she fell asleep, her tongue had been stubbornly resisting something. She had raised her hands to push back, only for her arms to sink helplessly into the soft sheets.
Still dazed, Fu Shize remarked nonchalantly, "It’s fine."
This was beyond Yun Li’s comprehension. Afraid of getting into trouble, she blurted out, "That’s good."
Fu Shize chuckled.
Yun Li thought the matter was settled, but as Fu Shize was frying eggs, he suddenly turned to look at her. "It hurt a little."
"……"
Only when her lips ached from kissing did he finally let her go. While having breakfast, she glanced at her phone and saw a message Yun Ye had sent the night before: [Wish my brother-in-law a happy birthday for me.]
Yun Li: [Got it.]
Yun Ye: [It’s been twelve hours, Yun Li. What were you up to last night?]
Yun Li: [On a date ^^]
Yun Ye: [Haha.]
Yun Ye: [Friendly reminder: Dad said he’s coming to Nanwu to bring you a quilt. Time unspecified.]
Yun Li: [Shit.]
Taking a sip of milk to calm herself, Yun Li felt her hair stand on end at the news. Winter was almost over—this was clearly just an excuse to inspect his future son-in-law.
After breakfast, the two drove to a nearby supermarket to stock up.
Looking at the cart filled with common household items—like toothbrush cups and slippers—all bought in pairs, Yun Li was puzzled. "Didn’t you have these at home before?"
Fu Shize counted them off: "Couple slippers, couple cups, couple pajamas…"
Noticing her blank expression, he lowered his gaze and asked, "Problem?"
As he pushed the cart forward, Yun Li belatedly smiled and caught up to him, tightening her grip on his arm.
"Let’s get some frozen food." Yun Li walked to the freezer section. "We can stock up on dumplings—they cook fast."
Fu Shize rarely ate frozen food and asked, confused, "Don’t people usually make their own?"
"Well, you’re the one cooking now," Yun Li admitted honestly. "I want to lighten your load."
It seemed like this arrangement had been set in stone the moment they started living together.
Realizing how shameless that sounded, she quickly added, "If you get tired of cooking, I can make frozen dumplings for you."
"……"
Fu Shize said calmly, "Latest update from XianYun DiDa Sauce: Video—‘Cooking Porridge for Your Boyfriend: How to Make Crab and Shrimp Claypot Porridge.’"
"Yam and pork rib porridge, beef and egg drop porridge, dried scallop and shrimp porridge, black bean and brown rice porridge…" Fu Shize recited a few names from the series from memory before tilting his head to ask her, "I’m your boyfriend, right?"
Yun Li twitched her lips. "Yes, you are…"Fu Shize smiled expressionlessly. "I don't remember eating any."
"..."
Yun Li obediently walked to the grain and oil section, tossing a few bags of brown rice and oats into the shopping cart before moving to the dried goods area to add some seafood products.
After finishing their supermarket trip, Fu Shize changed clothes and left for work.
South Science and Technology University hadn't started its semester yet. After informing Fang Yuning, Yun Li returned to the company early.
Her internship at EAW had already lasted three months, most of which she spent doing miscellaneous tasks.
As an intern, her work wasn't fixed. She had helped out in many departments, gaining a rough understanding of the company's operations.
Planning to resign in April, Yun Li proactively applied to Fang Yuning to take charge of the spring recruitment work before leaving.
This was something the old Yun Li would never have volunteered for or been capable of handling well. Perhaps driven by her recent urgency to change her personality, she surprisingly wanted to give it a try.
Apart from commuting together, Yun Li and Fu Shize's daily life was rather mundane.
Occasionally, she would remember that Yun Yongchang was coming to Nanwu.
Without any concrete news yet, Yun Li hypnotized herself into believing nothing was happening.
"Teacher Xian Yun." He Jiameng, back from her annual leave, came over to greet Yun Li. "Colleagues say you've changed a lot recently?"
"Huh?" Yun Li looked up from her documents. "What's changed?"
"You talk and smile more now." He Jiameng grinned. "Who would've thought dating that icy person would make Teacher Xian Yun smile more? Did you catch it from him?"
Yun Li smiled. "Maybe I did."
Their chat didn't last long before it was time to leave work. Yun Li packed her things and waited for Fu Shize at the entrance.
Today was Valentine's Day. Yun Li and Fu Shize had agreed to film a drone video together about the history of classic drone models, with Fu Shize drafting and narrating the script.
Retrieving her collection of drones, Yun Li borrowed the empty space in front of his bookshelf to record their exteriors.
Her peripheral vision caught a black leather photo album in the cabinet. She took it out and flipped through it.
It contained Fu Shize's old photos.
Starting from his swaddling clothes days, many pictures featured a boy alongside him—likely the childhood friend he'd mentioned before.
Their smiles were similar, with pronounced double eyelids. One photo showed the friend carrying both their schoolbags, leading Fu Shize by the hand to the entrance of South River Garden.
Fu Shize appeared to be only four or five years old.
As Yun Li knelt there browsing the album, Fu Shize entered and asked, "The drone—"
His words cut off abruptly.
"I accidentally found this album just now. I saw lots of your childhood photos." Yun Li stood up, intending to hand it to him.
Fu Shize glanced at it, closed the album, and asked, "Shall we film now?"
He placed the album on the bedside table.
Yun Li's heart skipped uneasily before she finally responded, "Oh, okay."
Following him outside, she set up the camera to capture footage of the drones in the open. While operating the equipment, Yun Li silently glanced at him.
His expression was calm, his pupils reflecting the blue-tinted sky.
The man in the black overcoat overlapped with the youth in the Unique team uniform.
Yet remained distinctly separate.
Before they got together, Fu Shize had been like a rose in the wilderness—aloof and solitary. She had been the same, watching him from afar.The images in the camera froze several times as he moved with minimal gestures, the only motion coming from the drone weaving through the air.
Yun Li recalled that night during their camping trip—the reflective lake surface, his solitary silhouette. She had been close enough to sense his body warmth, yet an inevitable sense of distance remained.
"Lili."
Yun Li snapped out of her thoughts. Fu Shize was looking at her, the drone already back in his hand.
"It's done. Let's go eat," Yun Li said awkwardly. Fu Shize hummed in response and packed up the camera for her.
Mid-February, the temperature still lingered at minus three degrees. Fu Shize adjusted Yun Li's scarf and tucked her hand into his pocket.
His palm was slightly cold at first but soon warmed up. Once outside, the biting wind numbed every exposed patch of her skin—except for that single point of warmth radiating from their clasped hands.
Her mood, gloomy all day, finally lifted a little.
Fu Shize had reserved a table at a Western restaurant in the mall near South River Garden.
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