Chapter 26

Yunlan woke up early. Usually he needed an alarm clock to wake him up, but sensing that he wasn't in his own bed didn't let him sleep late.

He looked at the man still sleeping beside him. Could it be different this time? He had always been accused of being too distant, he had been told many times that he didn't behave like a person in love.

Someone said he was as cold as ice, someone else said that he had an emotional detachment issue, while some people simply called him a bastard.

He had acted in the only way possible for him, but it had never been enough. Unfortunately, there wasn't much that he could do about it. Could it be different this time?

The day before he had smiled at Wei's good morning message, but only late in the evening he had realised that there had been no other communication between them after that.

He had welcomed Wei's invitation, he liked him a lot, actually he liked him so much that he almost regretted sleeping with him. If Wei decided he couldn't cope with his attitude, he would lose this man completely.

He wasn't used to this. He was handsome and people always courted him. This was the first time that he had felt such an attachment towards a stranger.

Now Wei wasn't a stranger anymore. They had gone too far.

He sighed and battled his eagerness to get up and out. That night Wei had begged him to stay for breakfast, he could at least do that, right?

He turned in bed many times, but it wasn't his bed, it wasn't his duvet covering him, and he wanted the familiarity of his own home.

Yunlan moved so much that Wei woke up. He threw an arm on the other side of the bed and found the presence of a warm, restless body.

Wei's eyes shot open and he turned immediately towards him.

"You're here," he said in a soft voice.

"Yeah." Hearing that sweet tone Yunlan felt guilty at his own thoughts. Wei sounded so happy to find him there that he felt ashamed of his eagerness to leave.

"Come here," Wei said now, and pulled him towards his naked body.

Wei went for a kiss before remembering that he hadn't yet brushed his teeth, so he turned it into a quick peck on the lips and moved on to his jaw, his neck, his shoulder.

Yunlan felt a thrill down his spine; Wei's lips brushing over his naked skin caused his body to fully wake up and respond accordingly; maybe he could stay a little longer after all.

They made love again until Wei's alarm clock told them that it was time to start a new day. Very reluctantly, Wei let him go and they finally got up.

"Have a shower while I make breakfast."

Wei suddenly remembered something and added, "I was out shopping yesterday and got this for you, in case you stayed over." He handed Yunlan the aftershave he bought for him and smiled before going into the kitchen.

Yunlan felt overwhelmed by his attentions. He went into the bathroom thinking that maybe he could shave here and use it, but after staring at the bottle for half a minute he shook his head and put it down. He took a quick shower and put his clothes back on. He turned towards the bottle again, curiosity written all over his face. What would have Wei chosen for him? He smelled the fragrance and smiled, then he put it back and joined him for breakfast.

"Eat something before you go," Wei said, then he went to the bedroom and came back with the pendant he had given him the night before.

"Don't forget this. I want you to keep it."

Yunlan put it around his neck hiding the pendant underneath his clothes. At least it wasn't noticeable, he would be the only one to know.

"I will," he said. What else could he say? Honestly, he felt rather uncomfortable but right at that moment he couldn't deny Wei that little favour. He decided that he would keep it for a while; maybe Wei would forget or take it for granted, and he would be able to take it off and keep it somewhere else.

Wei smiled and they ate their breakfast.

"Thanks for staying."

"My pleasure. It was indeed a good morning." It had definitely turned out to be the best good morning in a very long time. If ever.

Wei smiled again. He did that a lot these last two days.

When they had finished eating, he walked him to the door. Even a touch on the shoulder over the jacket caused them to shiver and think back on their morning activity.

Wei looked deeply into his eyes.

"We are connected now. If you're ever in danger, call Takeo. Please. It doesn't matter if you believe in him or not, call him and he will find you and help you."

Yunlan was speechless. Wei's expression was hopeful and pleading in equal measure, so he didn't find it in himself to argue. He just nodded and then he promised. He felt like it was a token of love, a test or something, and it confirmed his intention to keep his gift for the time being. He wouldn't fail him at such an early stage in their relationship.

They parted with a kiss and Yunlan went home to change. Soon he was at work and was too busy to think about his personal issues.

Measures were being taken to track down the missing people, and the hours went by quickly. None of them had used any document or credit card, nor had they contacted anyone; the only way to find them seemed to be for them to be spotted by someone or caught on camera somewhere. Ling had been working on his computer incessantly for the last three days.

Yunlan had barely eaten anything during the day and as evening arrived he began to feel hungry, which reminded him of the night before when he had dined with Wei, and then of that morning when they had done it again.

Eating both food and each other.

He checked the hour and saw that Wei would be getting home soon, maybe they could eat out today? That was what couples did, after all. Although they hadn't talked of what they were at the moment, Yunlan really saw only two possible ways: either become a couple or lose each other. He didn't think there was a way back to what they were before.

Some people could say that sex is just sex all they wanted, but the fact remained that it always changed everything. He took his phone to send Wei a message, but then Ling called him.

"It's working, I found one."

Ling's words made him forget about the text, there was work to do now. Yunlan rushed out towards his car, yelling for Ling to send him all the information. He wished he could finally get a step ahead in this troublesome investigation, people had already started blaming the police for doing nothing as if they had a magic wand or something.

This could be a very important step towards the end of this mess, and he rushed to confirm the person's identity.

He followed Ling's instructions keeping a line open with him, and reached the area as quickly as he could. Ling was following the target on the security cameras he was monitoring, and was able to tell Yunlan exactly where to go.

Yunlan saw him: the young man that was the last one to disappear and the most likely to be still close to home. He was wearing a light brown jacket and walking as if he was drunk.

Yunlan called out to him with no effect whatsoever. He put his phone in his pocket then ran forward until he was close enough to grab him by the arm. The man's legs kept moving but Yunlan pulled him back forcefully. The reaction was unexpected.

The young man fought back.

Yunlan backed off wondering if it was right for him to fight someone who seemed not to be in control of his own body. The young man was clearly not well. Yunlan saw the unfocused eyes, the puppet-like movements, and hesitated.

He let go of his arm but the man didn't keep walking away now that he was free. He advanced towards Yunlan and closed his hands around his neck.

It all happened very quickly. Yunlan abandoned his reserves and struggled to get him off himself, but it was proving difficult. The grip on his neck was really strong.

What Yunlan didn't know was that the Shadow controlling the young man had found a new exciting way to use the stolen body, and had no more intention of walking away.