SMS CHAPTER 55

In the base lobby, KYM’s current AD and support were locked in an intense tug-of-war.

Yan Chengfeng snatched the suitcase from Zhen Ning’s hand.

“I’ll walk you out.” He took a deep breath, locked eyes with Zhen Ning, and forced a smile. “Did you book the car at the front door or the back?”

Zhen Ning held his gaze for a moment before answering, “The back.”

Yan Chengfeng carried the suitcase to the back entrance of the base. Once they arrived, Zhen Ning said, “You can stop here. The driver is just a block away.”

Yan Chengfeng replied stiffly, “…I’ll wait with you until the car gets here.”

Zhen Ning: “It’s fine. You should go back.”

Yan Chengfeng refused to let go of the suitcase. He gritted his teeth, nearly biting through his molars. “It’s fine. I’ll wait with you. I’ve got… plenty of time today.”

They exchanged a silent look before both averted their eyes in unison.

After a while, Zhen Ning glanced down at his phone again.

“The car’s already at the door,” he said, lifting his gaze. “I—”

Before he could finish his sentence, a sudden force yanked his arm hard. His eyes widened, and a second later, he was pulled into a warm embrace, almost scorching.

Yan Chengfeng held him firmly, locking him in place.

“I give up.” The alpha’s muffled voice murmured into Zhen Ning’s ear. “I give up, okay?”

The internal battle between KYM’s bottom lane duo had raged for an entire week, and in the end, the support player, Chef, suffered a total defeat.

“…How can your heart be this hard, Zhen Ning?” Yan Chengfeng’s raspy voice reached his ears.

He couldn’t hold it in anymore.

His stubbornness had only sustained him for so long, but deep down, he knew he couldn’t let Zhen Ning step out of the base’s back door and into that car.

This was the person he liked, his omega. Zhen Ning was about to enter his heat, and now he was telling Yan Chengfeng that he planned to go to some shabby hotel alone to “handle it”…

What kind of alpha could remain calm under those circumstances?

Yan Chengfeng had no idea how to execute Xu Hao’s ridiculous schemes. All he knew was that he had reached his breaking point, driven to the edge of madness by the unbearable anxiety clawing at him.

Not caring if anyone else might see, he wrapped his arms tightly around Zhen Ning’s waist, fueled by a mix of anger and desperation, refusing to let go.

As he hugged Zhen Ning with all his strength, he didn’t forget to kick the suitcase beside them with enough force to send it sliding far out of Zhen Ning’s reach.

His grip was so tight that Zhen Ning, struggling to breathe, finally managed to choke out, “Yan Chengfeng, you—”

Yan Chengfeng shouted, as if recklessly going all in, “D-don’t say anything!”

“…I give up.” He lowered his head against Zhen Ning’s shoulder and said aggrievedly, “I already said I give up. Isn’t that enough?”

Zhen Ning’s body stiffened slightly.

“I don’t know who you like. I didn’t dare ask directly. I tried to find out subtly, but I used the wrong approach.”

Yan Chengfeng anxiously explained, “I always seem to say the wrong thing, but I don’t know how to fix it. Whenever I see you, I just can’t speak properly. My whole heart is in chaos because I—”

He finally released Zhen Ning’s waist, giving him a moment to catch his breath.

Yan Chengfeng looked into Zhen Ning’s eyes and finally said the words he had been holding back—words that had burned in his heart for so long they threatened to melt him from within. “…I like you, Zhen Ning.”

Zhen Ning froze.

The first time the alpha said it, his gaze wavered, and he even stuttered slightly.

But once the words were out, he seemed to relax, his heart gradually calming. He even found the courage to meet Zhen Ning’s gaze, his expression becoming firm.

“I like you,” he whispered again.

“I don’t even know why I like you or when I started liking you. But I do… I just do.”

He gritted his teeth, as if speaking both to Zhen Ning and to himself. “I’m always thinking about you. I care too much about how you see me, about the fact that you left back then, about the people you’ve met over the years that I don’t know, about everything about you… But in front of you, I always have to pretend like I don’t care.”

Every word sounded like a complaint, yet every word was filled with care.

Somehow, in the middle of confessing, his words turned sharp. The more he spoke, the more wronged and frustrated he felt, his breath quickening—until, in the end, he just gave up, like a dejected big dog, and leaned back against Zhen Ning.

He didn’t dare meet Zhen Ning’s eyes.

“…You abandoned me once.”

He murmured, “You abandoned me once, and yet you’re always so cold, refusing to say even one more word than necessary. I always have to guess what you’re thinking… You were like this before, and you’re still like this now.”

“All that talk about future competitions, about mutual help—it was all just an excuse.”

He continued, “I’ve never liked anyone before. I never planned to like anyone. I’ve never gone into a rut because of any omega. It’s all you… It’s all because of you, disrupting the course of my life.”

He had wanted to keep up the tough act, but when his eyes met Zhen Ning’s, Yan Chengfeng’s voice softened again. He looked at Zhen Ning longingly. “And you, you—”

Yan Chengfeng couldn’t continue.

But his gaze remained locked onto Zhen Ning, eagerly waiting for a response.

He waited for what felt like forever, but Zhen Ning didn’t say a word. Only then did he realize that, during his anxious outburst earlier, he had shouted at Zhen Ning, “Don’t say anything!”

Yan Chengfeng squeezed Zhen Ning’s palm and said in a hoarse voice, “…Say something.”

After a long moment, Zhen Ning finally spoke. “Who taught you to say those words that day?”

Yan Chengfeng froze instantly.

He started playing dumb. “What are you talking about… I have no idea.”

Zhen Ning: “That kind of clumsy provocation tactic—it’s obvious you didn’t come up with it yourself.”

Yan Chengfeng hadn’t expected to be seen through so easily. He was embarrassed and annoyed. “That’s exactly what I wanted to say at the time! Believe it or not!”

Zhen Ning quietly stared at his face.

“…It was Xu Hao who taught me,” Yan Chengfeng surrendered instantly, muttering dryly. “He said if I did it this way, you’d definitely react. But who would’ve thought it’d be completely useless? In the end, I got tangled up myself. I haven’t even settled the score with that brat yet—”

Then he heard Zhen Ning say, “I can give you another chance.”

Yan Chengfeng was stunned. “What?”

“For some questions, I’ve had my answer prepared for a long time,” Zhen Ning said quietly, looking at Yan Chengfeng. “I’ve just been waiting for you to ask me yourself.”

“But this time, I don’t want something someone else came up with for you. I want to hear your true thoughts,” he added.

Zhen Ning’s short statement carried so many implications that Yan Chengfeng’s heart skipped a beat. His mind started racing, but he tried to keep his expression calm.

“Zhen Ning.” He could feel the tremor in his voice. “Y-you…”

Do you like me?

Am I the one you like?

When did you start liking me?

These were all questions he had wanted to ask countless times. But now, as he looked at Zhen Ning’s face, his thoughts suddenly drifted.

He stared blankly at him, and in the end, what came out of his mouth was: “…Do you really like eating tofu rice?”

Yan Chengfeng saw Zhen Ning pause. It was clear he hadn’t expected that question.

After a long silence, Zhen Ning finally said, “No, I don’t.”

Yan Chengfeng’s pupils dilated slightly.

He suppressed the fluttering in his chest, staring into Zhen Ning’s eyes, his mouth slightly open. After a moment, he spoke in a dry voice, “Then you—”

In the next second, he saw Zhen Ning blink and look away.

It was the first time Yan Chengfeng had ever caught a flicker of evasiveness in Zhen Ning’s expression.

At that moment, Yan Chengfeng felt completely disoriented.

He was both thrilled and stunned, grabbing Zhen Ning’s wrist. His mouth opened and closed repeatedly, but he couldn’t manage a single coherent sentence.

He was in disbelief—caught between confusion and joy, his excitement written all over his face.

“I… I honestly thought you couldn’t stand their twice-cooked pork! I even made sure to pick out every last bit of meat for you every time so you wouldn’t lose your appetite.”

Yan Chengfeng babbled, still tightly clutching Zhen Ning’s hand. Then, suddenly, something clicked, and his grin nearly split his face. “So it turns out… y-you liked me even back then—”

Zhen Ning: “…Stop talking.”

Yan Chengfeng: “When did it start? Was it the third time I took you to Ah-Jiang’s stir-fry place? Was it that time we went after watching the match—”

Once Yan Chengfeng got carried away, he completely lost all restraint, practically floating with excitement.

Zhen Ning didn’t want to hear another word, so he tilted his face up and silenced him with a kiss.

Yan Chengfeng froze.

It had been far too long since they had been this close. In that initial moment of the kiss, their breaths were unsteady, and Zhen Ning’s lips even trembled slightly.

Yan Chengfeng had seen the calm and composed Zhen Ning, and the distant and indifferent Zhen Ning, but he had never seen Zhen Ning this flustered.

He felt like his whole body was melting.

Moments later, he heard Zhen Ning, still breathless, murmur by his ear, “…You’re such a fool, Yan Chengfeng.”

Yan Chengfeng blinked in surprise. When the words sank in, a tingling sensation spread through his chest. He realized there was no point in asking any more questions.

He didn’t say anything. Instead, he cupped Zhen Ning’s face and kissed him again.

Because he had already received the answer he was looking for.

— Do you like tofu rice?
No.

— Then why eat it?
Because I like the fool sitting across from me, too busy devouring the meat.

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Author’s note:

Driver: Hello? Are you still taking the ride or not?