They were just about to leave the private room in the fusion place, when Lan Zhan held out his hand.

Wei Ying looked at it questioningly, but gave his up immediately, expecting Lan Zhan to walk out, but instead, Lan Zhan tugged on it, pulling him closer.

"I wanted to wait, but I cannot." He said, fire in his golden eyes.

Wei Ying had no warning, and no idea that Lan Zhan would capture his lips so suddenly. Their hands remained joined, and their lips fused together, tasting each other and the chocolate cake they had shared.

Wei Ying decided to throw caution to the winds and flung himself wholeheartedly into it, his free hand cupping Lan Zhan's face, trying to get even closer. Those soft lips were ever so pliant, tracing the outline of his mouth, and then that magical moment when their tongues collided and the fire that burned through their veins.

Who needed air when such a delicacy was here, ripe for the taking? Silken mouths rubbed together as tongues danced to the melody in their hearts, a song as old as time.

Lan Zhan's free hand had come around to cup the back of Wei Ying's head, holding him still so he could ravage that cheeky mouth.

Both of them were out of breath when they paused, neither wanting to let go. Wei Ying rested his temple at Lan Zhan's shoulder, gathering his senses. Was it normal to be so shaken with a kiss? He could hear his heart beating in his ears, like a chorus of heavenly drummers playing to a celestial rhythm.

"Wow..." He whispered. "Have you kissed anyone before?"

"No." Lan Zhan couldn't help but be smug about it. "Wei Ying is an expert, it seems."

"Not as good as you!" Wei Ying pretended to shove him.

"I have a request." Lan Zhan said, sounding calmer than Wei Ying.

But when Wei Ying looked up, he saw the fire still burning, but dormant for now.

"What is your request?"

Lan Zhan thought about it.

"If Wei Ying will permit it, I have two requests."

Wei Ying licked his lips, watching Lan Zhan's eyes follow his tongue. His mouth was suddenly dry.

"What is it?"

"Wei Ying must have breakfast with me, every morning."

"Every morning?"

"Mn. He shall receive payment in the form of a kiss like that for his efforts." Lan Zhan looked too proud of himself.

"And your second request?"

"May I date Wei Ying?" His golden eyes shone brightly, wanting this more than anything else.

"But isn't the breakfast thing the same as dating?" Wei Ying asked, trying to figure it out.

"Not at all." Lan Zhan replied. "Breakfast is breakfast. Dating is dating. Two things." He held up two fingers.

Wei Ying reached for his free hand with the two fingers, and brought them to his mouth. He kissed each one softly.

"Alright...but can we take it slow? I don't want to be scared....that it's too much." Vulnerability shone forth from those gorgeous silver eyes.

Lan Zhan let go of his hand and brought him into the circle of his arms, holding him tight.

"I have a demand." He said.

"Not a request?" Wei Ying leant his cheek on Lan Zhan's shoulder, feeling safe.

"Not at all. A demand."

"What is it?"

"If Wei Ying is uncomfortable in any way, he must say."

Wei Ying pulled back to look into earnest golden eyes.

"I only wish for Wei Ying's happiness. Nothing else. I will not make Wei Ying unhappy." He promised sincerely.

"Lan Zhan..." Wei Ying didn't know what to say. His hand came up to caress the soft cheek. "Isn't it too early to be making such statements?"

"But what if it's true?" Lan Zhan raised a brow.

"Well...I suppose it's alright then...it's just it seems a bit one-sided to me...that's all." He admitted.

"Is there any promises Wei Ying would like to make to me?" Lan Zhan suggested instead.

Like a fly trapped in honey, Wei Ying realised he had played himself.

"Um...can I think about it?" Besides, he was sure he was going to be late now.

"Wei Ying can write it down if he likes..." Lan Zhan smiled an even more smug smile.

"Like a love letter?" Wei Ying blustered out, terribly embarrassed.

"If that's what he wants to call it." Lan Zhan finished, taking hold of his hand and walking out of the cafe with him.

"The bakery is closed tomorrow." Wei Ying said, wistfully.

"I am working tomorrow." Lan Zhan admitted.

Wei Ying stopped walking.

"Lan Er-Gege! How could you? Tomorrow is Sunday. Surely you can take a rest tomorrow?" He had not whispered but they were both surprised when a third person joined them.

"My brother often works on Sundays." XiChen stopped next to them.

Lan Zhan sighed when he saw XiChen looking at their joined hands and God! He hated that smile.

"Ah, Mr. Wei...I hope you have not forgotten my order? I believe you have a package with my name on it? When I originally placed the order, I am sure I asked Madam Jin to include some chocolate rabbits." Lan XiChen was biting back an enormous grin.

He knew his rabbits were here, that Lan Zhan had taken them for his interference in their romance, and he knew Lan Zhan knew that he knew.

It really was a priceless moment.

Wei Ying was looking between the brothers, confused for a split second, and then looking at Lan Zhan's face, he also knew where the rabbits were.

"Lan Zhan has his own bunnies today." Wei Ying stared at Lan Zhan meaningfully.

"Ah...so you brought two packages today, then?"

"I ate them." Lan Zhan blurted out, looking incredibly guilty.

Wei Ying was looking at him as if he had grown a third arm.

"Too much chocolate is bad for you, Didi." XiChen carried on, as if he knew Lan Zhan was lying.

"When? I've been with you the entire time!" Wei Ying exclaimed.

"The entire time?" XiChen asked, trying not to laugh at the mortification on his brother's face.

To teach him a lesson, Lan Zhan pulled Wei Ying out of the building, more because he didn't want to lie any more than he had to, and he still wanted to ask Wei Ying something.

"Bike?" He demanded.

"Over there." Wei Ying was pretty sure he was being used by the brothers in some sort of contest involving his Shijie's chocolate bunnies, and it was too late to back out of that.

But Lan Zhan seemed upset about something else now.

They were standing by his old bike now, and because he was standing with Lan Zhan  right next to it, he could see how much of a bad shape it was truly in.

"Lan Zhan?" He asked. "Why are you upset?"

"Wanted to kiss Wei Ying again." Lan Zhan pouted.

For real.

Wei Ying was so delighted with him, he threw his arms around the startled man.

"Lan Zhan, you're so cute!" Wei Ying exclaimed loudly, not caring if anyone saw.

Lan Zhan hugged him back.

"I'd better go..." Wei Ying kissed his cheek, reluctant to go. "Come on, Lan Zhan. You have to let me go now." He wriggled a little,  trying to make his point.

Lan Zhan pointed to his other cheek, his golden eyes shining in defiance.

Wei Ying pouted, but did it anyway.

"I'll see you on Monday." He promised.

"With letter." Lan Zhan reminded him.

"I'll see. It might take me longer." Wei Ying giggled and got onto his bike, taking his helmet out of the covered basket.

Lan Zhan took it out of his hands and placed it on his head, tying it securely under his chin.

"Ride safely. Text me." He waited for Wei Ying to nod and wave, before setting off back to work.

***********

Lan Zhan found XiChen waiting for him outside his office, and remembered that he had left the two packages right on his desk.

XiChen was here to collect.

Lan Zhan went straight to his secretary's desk.

He never did that.

She was so flustered, she dropped an entire ream of paper.

Lan Zhan picked up the first thing his hands touched...which happened to be a calendar. He stared at it as if it was the most fascinating thing in the world.

XiChen cleared his throat behind him.

Lan Zhan knew he was waiting for him to enter his office...but that wasn't happening, not as long as the prize was out in the open.

"What about that report?" XiChen asked, itching to go in, but not able to because Lan Zhan was right there.

"What report?"

And Lan Zhan could not go in, because of the incriminating evidence lying blatantly obvious on his desk.

This was a stalemate.

Luckily, both were saved from any further action by a person carrying a message from their Uncle.

"Lan Qiren would like to meet you both in his office as soon as possible." The person said and fled.

Lan Zhan turned around and beamed at his brother, who smiled back in delighted defeat, as they walked together towards their Uncle's office.

***********

Lan Zhan managed to escape when their Uncle kept XiChen back for something. He eagerly entered his office and sat down, facing the two precious packages. The one with his brother's name, he ripped off the label and put it with the growing pile in his drawer.

Then, he turned his full concentration upon this one, turning it around in his careful, long fingers. It was wrapped in blue tissue paper and a white ribbon, with a tiny bow. Lan Zhan wondered if Wei Ying had packed it himself...because then, he was touching this item everywhere Wei Ying had. He suppressed the shiver of delight at that thought.

He grasped the two loose ends and pulled gently; the tissue paper fell away to reveal two chocolates bunnies, joined at the mouth. One was made from white chocolate with a blue ribbon around its neck and a tiny edible silver heart which reminded Lan Zhan of Wei Ying's beautiful silver eyes, and the other dark chocolate bunny wore a red ribbon around one of it's ears. When Lan Zhan turned them around, their were two hearts carved into the back with each of their initials.

These were definitely his favourite now, out of all the rabbits they had exchanged. Wei Ying had taken to sending him random bunny gifs everyday, from sweetly snuffling together, to even lovelier bunny kithes with twitching noses, playful, hopping bunnies and the fluffiest of fluffy buns. Lan Zhan wondered if he could love the sweet man any more...and it had only been three days since they had met...

Technically, it was a Saturday and he wasn't supposed to be in the office, but paperwork in all its glory had him returning to work. However, the seed of a worry had taken root in his mind and he decided to finish his work first at top speed, before starting his detective work.

Once his actual job was sorted and done with, Lan Zhan pulled out a new notebook and began jotting down all the facts he knew about Wei Ying's accident:

• Wei Ying was fifteen years old when it happened so in 2013

• Hit and run

• Coma for a few weeks

• Denver, Colorado

CCTV footage of the accident would be asking for a miracle, but Lan Zhan was going to think positively. First he had to find out where it happened.

The good thing was, he had gotten Wei Ying's permission; which should make things much easier.

And would the accident have made it to the news? Was it publicised in any way?

He needed an address above everything else, so he picked up his phone and sent a text to Wei Ying.

L: Good morning. 💙
Are you free?

Wei Ying replied immediately.

W: Yes, I am! Shoot. What's up? 🐇🐇

Lan Zhan smiled at his fast response.

L: What was your address in Denver? 💙💙

W: Oh...you're really going to do it...

L: I keep my promises. 💙💙

W: Okay, hold on, I'll send it.

Lan Zhan could tell Wei Ying was distracted because of the lack of emojis, but seconds later, he sent another message with the address.

Lan Zhan sent him a thank you and a gif of a bunny hopping in a meadow of flowers, and then he got to work.

Unfortunately, detective work was meticulous and tedious, and after three hours, surrounded by a neat pile of written notes, he didn't actually have very much.

"Didi?"

His brother's voice startled him from his computer screen. Lan Zhan looked up to see XiChen waving bags of takeout, and the smell alone made his stomach rumble. Of course, that made him think about Wei Ying and he snatched his phone from its charging port.

Ten messages.

Oh no...

Lan Zhan had been so absorbed in his task, he hadn't even heard the notifications of these. He was a bad boyfriend already...

Quickly, he opened their chat.

W: Lan Zhan? I think it's a crime for you to work on the weekends.

W: So I have an idea. I can understand the need to come in to work on Saturdays, but I think Sunday should be reserved for us.

W: You wanted us to date, so I thought it would be a good idea..

W: We can go somewhere tomorrow.

W: What do you think?

W: Let me see what I can think up.

Then there was a time gap of maybe twenty minutes.

W: I know what we can do!

W: Can we meet tomorrow morning at say, ten? I want you to know, I never get up before midday on a Sunday, but I'm going to make an effort, especially for you.

W: What do you say?

W: Lan Zhan? Are you ignoring me?

W: Lan Zhaaan???????

The last message was nearly two hours ago!

Lan Zhan fumbled with his phone, trying to press the call button.

He ignored the silently restrained laughter.

XiChen was having fun.

"Wei Ying! I'm sorry I missed your messages." He said, as soon as Wei Ying picked up.

"So you're not ignoring me?" There was a playful lilt to his voice.

"Never!" Lan Zhan stood up and went to the furthest point away from his brother.

"Okay, I'm going to let you off because I know you were working. But what do you think about my suggestion?"

"I want to go out with Wei Ying!" Lan Zhan almost stumbled over his words.

There was soft laughter both on the other side of the line and in his office. Lan Zhan faced the window and concentrated on the sounds in his ear.

"I actually miss you very much..." Wei Ying was saying. "To the point that I'm lying on my bed wondering why I never agreed straight away to your point."

"My point?"

"Breakfast is Breakfast, Dating is Dating."

"Mn. Miss Wei Ying too." Lan Zhan's mind was filled with Wei Ying lying on his bed in different positions. "What are you wearing?" He ventured.

There was a loud clearing of someone's throat behind him.

And a shocked silence on the other end.

And then his phone pinged...Wei Ying had sent him a selfie of himself, lying in a puddle of sheets and hugging a furry pillow. His long hair was like a halo spread out around his head, and he was surrounded by....Lan Zhan had to make the picture bigger to see properly, totally ignoring the choked off sounds coming from behind him.

Why was Wei Ying surrounded by scrunched up pieces of paper?

Another ping on his phone:

W: See? I'm making a real effort here. Your Love letter is going to be epic!

Lan Zhan had to sit down.

W: Shijie is here, gotta go! TTYL!

Lan Zhan turned to a red-eared brother.

"What does T-T-Y-L mean?"

"Talk to you later." XiChen was still smirking. "We should eat."

Then he saw the notes on the desk. "What are you doing?" He came around to Lan Zhan's side and saw the screen.

"I am looking at Wei Ying's accident. It happened nine years ago." Lan Zhan told him honestly. Then he filled him in with everything he had found out so far. "I am having difficulty in accessing some footages from that area." He admitted.

"Oh. This sounds like you need help." XiChen remarked at last.

Lan Zhan stared at him. Why did he have a tone? He narrowed his eyes at his brother.

XiChen stared back shamelessly.

"I would never ask for anything in return." He added, his smile widening when Lan Zhan unlocked his first drawer and pulled out one of the chocolate packages originally intended for him.

"Oh, look! It had a label." He said, pointedly.

"I found it like that." Lan Zhan replied, stubbornly.

"Didi, I'm happy for you, I really am." XiChen was saying.

"But?"

"But, I think we need an extra pair of hands. Let me make a phone call." XiChen put down the bags of food and the chocolate bunnies, moving them closer to himself when he saw Lan Zhan eyeing them.

"Lan JingYi? Yes, it's me. Can you come over? Yes, it's urgent. I know it's a Saturday.  No, I can't email you the particulars. It's...a sensitive issue. Okay...I'll let the security team know. Thank you so much." He ended the call. "He'll be here in ten minutes."

*************

Wei Ying threw away all the rubbish littering his small apartment on his way to open the door.

Shijie had brought him lunch, and he beamed at her smiling face.

"XianXian! Are you hungry? Look what I brought you!"

He let her in and heard more steps on his stairs, and saw Jiang Cheng.

"What are you doing here?" He exclaimed in a loud voice.

"What? You think I'm going to let A-Jie come here all by herself, in her condition?" Jiang Cheng shoved him.

"Aww! That's so sweet!" Wei Ying closed his door and jumped onto Jiang Cheng's back, hugging him from behind.

"Get off!" Jiang Cheng swung around wildly trying to get the Octo-Wei off himself, but Wei Ying was a pro at this and held on with his legs as well.

The scuffle escalated until their sister cleared her throat demurely.

Jiang YanLi's tapping foot stopped Jiang Cheng from trying to strangle his brother, and Wei Ying stopped trying to sweep his feet from under him.

"It's lunchtime, boys." She folded her arms across her chest as they attempted to sit at the table without washing their hands, and they hastily detoured to the sink.

"What's this?" Jiang Cheng picked up a scrunched up piece of paper.

Wei Ying, realising what it was, screeched his dismay and attacked again, but this time it was Jiang Cheng who had the upper hand.

"Why are you writing to Lan WangJi?" He burst out angrily. "Why are there love hearts all over this??"

Jiang YanLi squealed in delight.

"Really, A-Xian? Really? That's so lovely!" She was making googly eyes at him, and Wei Ying used her as a distraction to get his paper back from Jiang Cheng.

"None of your business, ChengCheng!" Wei Ying scowled at him, but smiled prettily for his sister.

He nodded shyly.

"Oh, my XianXian! You're finally in love! I can't believe it!" She came to gather Wei Ying up in her arms.

Wei Ying sniffed, blinking back tears and the warm scent of Lotus flowers and peony filled his nostrils.

"I'm so glad it worked."

Wei Ying's head jerked up at that.

"What worked?"

"Nothing..." Jiang YanLi let go of him and concentrated on dishing out the soup.

Wei Ying stared at her, and then it was as if a light went on above his head.

"You-! You...you arranged everything!" He pointed his finger at her.

"What? What did A-Jie do?" Jiang Cheng looked between the two of them, utterly confused.

"Shijie made me go and deliver cakes to the Lan building!" Wei Ying shouted.

"And you fell in love with the guy? How does that even make sense?" Jiang Cheng shouted back.

Someone on the other side of the wall started banging on it.

"Boys...that's enough." Shijie turned to face Wei Ying. "I'm sorry if you thought I was interfering...but I couldn't stand to see you living alone and while away your time, trying to get on with your life. After...after what happened...Well, I just want you to be happy. Nobody deserves to go through what you did." She wiped away an errant tear. "I won't apologise for why I did it though. Yell at me all you like, it won't change my mind that he's the best thing to happen to you since you moved here."

"Shijie...." Wei Ying whispered, returning to her welcoming arms. "I'm sorry! I know you mean well...I didn't mean to shout at you."

She stroked his long hair and Wei Ying was reminded of the caring hands of Lan Zhan doing the same thing to him just that morning.

"It's okay. Now, you must be hungry. Let's eat."

Wei Ying sniffed, and suddenly he was surrounded by the lovely fragrance of Lotus and pork wafting from the still steaming pot. Shijie was dishing out fresh bread to go with the soup. He hugged her from behind.

"I love you, Shijie."

She patted his hands and made him sit down.

"I know. And I love both of you." She told them.

They ate in relative peace until the food was finished. Shijie washed up while Wei Ying dried and Jiang Cheng cleaned the table. This ease with which they slipped back into the routine of their childhood put them in a relaxed mood, and Wei Ying was sorry to see them getting ready to leave.

Family was everything.

"Go and get the car, A-Cheng." She told him.

"But it's just outs-" He shut up when she glared at him. "Fine!" He scowled and stomped down the stairs.

Jiang YanLi took both of Wei Ying's hands in hers, looking deeply into silver eyes filled with love.

"Do you like him, A-Xian?" She asked softly, searching his face for the truth.

Wei Ying nodded.

"Then what are you struggling with?" She looked pointedly at his trash can, overflowing with scrunched up papers.

"He said he wants me to feel safe with him. Shijie, do you know, he gave me a lanyard that let's me go to visit him whenever I want to, and he told the security guys off because he thought they tried to stop messing to see him."

"A-Xian! That's so sweet!" YanLi told him, throwing her arms around him in glee.

"But then...but then, he asked me what I wanted out of our relationship, because it sounded a bit unfair, all the stuff he was doing for me or was going to do. So he told me say what I wanted...but I couldn't. I told him I'd write it down...but now that I think about it, everything just sounds cheesy. I can't do it." He sighed miserably.

"XianXian...don't overthink this. Honestly, it's not that complicated. Just write down what's in here." She placed her hand on his heart. "Don't worry about it being cheesy, as long as it's sincere. Okay?"

Wei Ying covered her hand with his.

"Okay."

He hugged her once more before she left, and then he went to get a new piece of paper to start over.

***********

Lan JingYi was chaos personified.

Lan Zhan stared disapprovingly at the mess on his floor and the rubbish littering his carpet and told it, "Are you actually any good?"

Lan JingYi beamed up at him from his low seat.

"Watch this."

He had found and magnified footage of a car speeding away from a specific location, after logging the different times to pinpoint when the accident had actually occurred. Now, Lan Zhan was staring at a clear number plate. He looked in awe at the young man, who flushed with pleasure.

"How do we find out who's car that is?" Lan Zhan demanded.

"Worry not, I have a Pal on the force." JingYi scrolled through his phone looking for him. He began furiously typing away with both thumbs on his phone.

"Aren't you going to call him?" Lan Zhan asked. He had a tone and he didn't care. This was about Wei Ying. Nothing else mattered.

"Nah. That's a waste of time. Then I have to make small talk." He mock-gagged.

Lan Zhan could relate.

"Look, he's found it already. The car belongs to a Xue Yang? Ring any bells?"

Lan Zhan shook his head.

"Doesn't matter, it's no trouble. These days, everyone has Facebook." He typed quickly. "Bingo! Look!" He turned his laptop so Lan Zhan could see.

The cover photo was of a young man with wild brown hair, streaks of vivid red and green running through it, and a crazy look in his eyes. He was posing with a large kitchen knife.

Lan Zhan already didn't like him.

"Pull up everything you can find on this guy, we are going to take him to court." Lan Zhan bit out, his fists clenched.

JingYi typed away in silence for a little while but then he paused.

"Er...Boss, there might be a problem with that. He's passed away."

***********

Wei Ying finished his letter and beamed, feeling really drained. It was late now, and his apartment was dark when he looked around. It felt like only minutes passed by since his Shijie and Jiang Cheng had left, but in reality, hours had passed by. He got up, yawned and stretched, closing his laptop.

And then the buzzer for his door rang.

It scared him, out of the blue like that, when everything was silent as it was. He did the lights, wondering who could be at his door. And because of the late hour, he hoped it wasn't bad news. Up till now, whenever there had been something wrong to happen, it was always at the oddest of hours.

He sauntered down his stairs, trying to delay the inevitable, switching on the lights as he went, comforted by the warm, yellow glow.

He placed his eye on the hole and looked out but there was nothing unless it was someone really short. His mind warred between fear and curiosity; the latter winning out. Wei Ying took a deep breath and opened the door.

On his doorstep lay a little square box, wrapped in brown paper and an ordinary string. But it was the name on top of the box, in very familiar writing, that had Wei Ying reaching for his phone to call the police.

It said, "To my Little Lotus! Did you miss me?"