Lan Zhan loved Christmas.

He loved the sound of jingle bells, the Christmas songs which probably became annoying to others, but they were always playing in some form or another in his home on the run up to Christmas.

He had a fire burning in the fireplace, Christmas candles lit all over the house, a new wreath hung outside on his front door, stockings filled with presents and of course, the all important Christmas tree.

His home smelled like Christmas too, with cinnamon and spice, vanilla and sandalwood.

He had a specific routine too, when it came to this most special of holidays.

Exactly on the first day of December, he would pull out his plastic tree from his garage and find all the ornaments they had accumulated during the years, and then spend the rest of the day decorating it and finally, finally at the end of the day, when it was just beginning to get dark...he would switch the lights on.

It was a magical time indeed.

As he pulled out his first ever bunny ornament, he thought about his mother.

She loved Christmas too, out of all the holidays and her infectious love had filtered down to him too.

She passed away after spending their eighth Christmas together.

They used to bake together and Lan Zhan treasured her recipe books. She had a special one for Christmas time and Lan Zhan was going to start baking from tomorrow.

There were lots of bunnies on this tree now, including the tree topper, a black and white pair of bunnies, one with a red ribbon and the white one wore a baby blue one. It had long since become his favourite ornament, and so he gave it the most prestigious place of honour, right at the top.

Throughout the years, his uncle and his brother gave him ornaments to add to this tree. It wasn't the same one as the one he used to decorate with his mother, because he had made sure XiChen received it for a specific reason.

He wanted to buy a bigger one.

That's why his tree took all day to decorate, and twelve days after Christmas, it would take the whole day to dissemble.

But Lan Zhan didn't mind at all.

He found it rather therapeutic, meditative almost. There was something calming about unwrapping the ornaments one by one from the tissue paper he saved, and rewrapping them when Christmas was done.

Today, he was rather proud of himself because he had finished a little earlier than expected. Normally he would switch on the lights at exactly four pm. That was twilight in these winter months and the anticipation was built to just the right amount.

Lan Zhan looked at his watch.

15.45.

Fifteen minutes early.

His finger hovered over the power socket.

He had never, ever switched it on early before.

He dithered for a bit, still in two minds and then, because it was the season of miracles, he felt a breath of air on his cheek.

It felt like a kiss from his mother.

He was so startled that his finger pressed the switch and the entire tree lit up.

It was beautiful...simply marvellous.

Lan Zhan stood back in awe and love.

This first moment was always magical, taking in the splendour of this, his creation.

And it lasted for all of one minute.

Suddenly everything went dark.

The only light in the room came from the candles he had already lit, and the crackling fire spitting out sparks now and again.

For a moment, Lan Zhan thought he must have blown a fuse.

What else could explain this? But then he happened to glance outside and saw the entire street in utter darkness.

It was a power cut.

Lan Zhan wasn't sure what to do, in those first few minutes.

He wasn't prone to panicking and his phone still had good battery usage left, so he called the electric company.

After half an hour waiting for the recorded messages to stop and be able to talk to an actual person (because if his call was so important to them, why weren't they picking it up in the first place??) and then finally he was able to report the matter.

Fifteen minutes later, his doorbell rang.

Lan Zhan frowned.

He wasn't expecting anyone; all the presents had arrived already and were stacked under the tree.

Maybe it was a neighbour needing help...?

He went to the door holding a candle.

And then nearly dropped it.

There, on his doorstep, was the most beautiful man Lan Zhan had ever seen.

His kind silver eyes were already crinkling at the edges and then...and then he smiled!!!

Lan Zhan's poor heart didn't know what to do!

It was already running a sprint and now it felt like a choked up engine, stuttering and starting in his chest.

"Hello!" The beautiful being spoke.

Lan Zhan was still trying to catch his breath. It wasn't fair! Surely he wasn't expected to...talk to him??? How was that even possible??

So Lan Zhan nodded.

Nodding was safe.

"There's a power outage in your local area and we thought we should let you know, it should be fixed in a couple of hours." His smile somehow became brighter.

His voice....it was like hot chocolate.

With marshmallows.

And sprinkles.

And bunny rabbits.

He was so cute!

The way he scrunched up his nose ... it was exactly how Lan Zhan imagined a bunny would do it.

So Lan Zhan nodded again, deciding that was the safest option.

And then...the beautiful man stepped closer.

Lan Zhan stopped breathing.

"So....it's nothing to worry about." The beautiful man added.

It might have been unnecessary but Lan Zhan wished he would stay and talk some more.

Anything.

"Thank you." He finally replied.

The stranger's lovely silver eyes widened momentarily.

And then he nodded too.

There were a few moments of them just looking at each other.

And then there was an awful shout.

"Come on, idiot! I told you, you don't need to tell everyone that! They'll figure it out when nothing works!"

That uncouth, grating voice which dared to interrupt this heavenly moment belonged to a man dressed in purple overalls. He was waving at this beautiful man to call him away ... away from Lan Zhan!

Lan Zhan hated him.

"At this point you're just bothering people!" The angry grape stomped off.

The beautiful man turned around back to face Lan Zhan and winked.

"Don't mind him. He's my brother..." the beautiful man leaned in to whisper conspiratorilly, "but I think he's adopted!"

Lan Zhan's lip turned up in a smile.

The beautiful man was so pleased, his smile could have lit up a whole town.

"There! Isn't that so much better? I made you smile!"

Lan Zhan was so flustered, he stopped doing it.

"Well...I better go. I have to do the other side yet." The beautiful man shrugged and bounced off the porch.

Lan Zhan was just about to call out to him to be careful because his porch step was broken...but it was too late! The beautiful man went down like a sack of potatoes.

Lan Zhan was so shocked, he was outside and helping him up in an instant.

And now he was dusting him off.

"Ah...it's okay Handsome Gege...I'm fine, I'm fine." The beautiful man turns around to look at what tripped him up. "That needs fixing."

He turned back, tapping his nose.

"I am sorry. I have been meaning to get it fixed." Lan Zhan replied.

He had never picked up a hammer in his life!

And now he was talking to this beautiful man!

His heart did that funny thing again.

"If you like...I can come back tomorrow and fix it for you?" The beautiful man was shyly looking back at him...as if he couldn't believe what he had just suggested.

Lan Zhan sure as hell couldn't believe it!

The beautiful man wanted to come back!!

"Mn. I can pay you." And then his ears went red.

Lan Zhan was only thankful that it was dark and the beautiful stranger couldn't see how embarrassed he was.

"Oh..." the beautiful stranger laughed. "For you, Handsome Gege...I'd do it for free. It's my day off tomorrow." He pulled out his phone and handed it to Lan Zhan.

Lan Zhan took it and stared back, a little mystified.

He really was beautiful.

His long hair was tied up in what must have been a tight bun before but now tendrils had escaped, framing his lovely face. Lan Zhan was completely captivated, under his spell.

"Um...you can put your number in...if you like." The beautiful stranger was saying, smiling shyly some more.

Lan Zhan looked in his hands and realised that's why the phone was there!! Of course!! He wanted to bury his face in the snow that was predicted next week.

Quickly, he typed out his number.

The beautiful stranger was still smiling adorably at him...if anything, it was getting broader.

"You're supposed to give it back now, Gege." The stranger held out his hand. "So I can make up a handsome name for you. It's just so I can let you know when I'll be dropping by."

Of course!

Lan Zhan nearly dropped the phone in his haste to give it back. He felt like a total idiot in the face of this beautiful man, the epitome of loveliness.

His phone rang then and he fumbled trying to open it. It took a few tries...and he thought the beautiful man would be laughing at him, but there was only the excited smile on his face as he spoke into his own phone.

"My name is Wei Ying...if you want to save my number." He was saying.

Lan Zhan heard him in his ear too and realised that he had just been called by that beautiful stranger...no...by Wei Ying!!!(!!!!!!) Just so he could...save his number.

He did that immediately, privately adding 💙 🐇 💙 next to it.

Lan Zhan looked up to find Wei Ying still looking at him, expectantly.

"Your name, Gege? Unless you prefer Handsome?"

"Shameless!" Lan Zhan muttered under his breath. He thought it was low enough not to be overheard but from the way Wei Ying was smiling at him now, unfortunately that mischievous grin said it all.

"It's Lan Zhan." He said, after clearing his throat. "And you may arrive at seven." He knew he sounded prim and proper, but he couldn't help himself. He felt it was the only possible response he could have, in return for being teased.

This seemed to delight the naughty imp even further because another laugh escaped from his utterly kissable lips.

Where had that thought come from? Lan Zhan was shocked.

And then frightened, because Wei Ying looked equally shocked.

Wait....he hadn't said that out loud, had he???

"Seven? Seven, Gege? You don't mean in the morning?" He sounded horrified. "As in the A and M??"

"Mn." Lan Zhan thought he'd recovered remarkably well.

"I don't think I have ever been awake that early in my life..." Wei Ying looked lost in thought. "Do people actually get up so early? What do you do then? You're supposed to be cuddling in bed with your significant other...aren't you?" The cheeky look was back, with a little uncertainty in those silver eyes.

God, they were so expressive and Lan Zhan wondered if he was going crazy, because he was imagining looking into them, just before Wei Ying was kissed. What would they look like then? Would they turn darker?

Lan Zhan wanted to know.

For research purposes....

"So...can I come a bit later?" Wei Ying was asking.

Wasn't that a private question?

Lan Zhan was confused until he realised Wei Ying was talking about something else entirely, based on time.

"Wei Ying can come when he wants." Lan Zhan said, without thinking.

And then his ears burned.

He hurried inside and closed the door before he embarrassed himself further.

*********

The next day, Lan Zhan woke up at five.

He checked his phone once more.

The emojis were still there...the ones Wei Ying had sent him back, telling him that he would arrive around midday.

He found himself smiling into his meditation.

He was still smiling when he made breakfast.

And he was still smiling as he cleaned his home, dusting around the place.

And then he had a thought.

Wei Ying didn't want to be paid.

So maybe Lan Zhan could make him something...as a thank you.

Instead.

That was a fantastic idea.

He looked at his watch.

Except...it was just past eleven.

Lan Zhan had never moved so fast!

He switched on his oven and then decided on what to make.

An hour later, he was looking at twelve beautiful bunny shaped iced cookies. Six were chocolate with red icing decorations and six were a golden brown with pale blue icing. He hoped Wei Ying would like them.

His ears were attuned to his phone so when he heard the sound of sawing, he was confused at first.

He opened his door and tried not to clutch at his heart.

Wei Ying was there!!!

Wei Ying...wearing no shirt... was there, calmly sawing another piece of wood to replace his broken step.

He was obviously hot...well, obviously, but temperature wise too, even though it was beginning to get a little chilly...because there was sweat.

Running down his body.

On that chest.

Lan Zhan closed the door with a slam.

Oh. My. God.

Now what?

He was mortified.

There was no way Wei Ying hadn't heard him....what should he do?

Should he pretend he hadn't seen anything?

Could he say it was the wind?

Lan Zhan had been completely unprepared for the sudden bolt of desire that shot through his body.

He was still shaking!

But he made himself open the door again.

Wei Ying had put his shirt back on.

Lan Zhan was heartbroken.

"Er...hi!" Wei Ying rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. "Um...sorry...I get hot working."

"Mn. Wei Ying. Hot." Lan Zhan said.

So he nodded too.

As if that was making it any better.

A part of his brain was vaguely registering what a disaster he was.

Wei Ying beamed at him then.

"I thought I would get started...seeing as you wanted me here at seven..." He said.

"Mn. Want Wei Ying." Oh God, why couldn't he stop talking??

Lan Zhan was going to take a vow of silence. That was the only cure.

"At seven." He quickly added.

And then, because his brain wasn't working, he handed the cookies to Wei Ying and ran away.

The door closed behind him with a thud and Lan Zhan knew he was never going to see Wei Ying ever again.

The beautiful man was going to decide that Lan Zhan was a nutcase and never ever cross his street again.

There was a squeal outside the door Lan Zhan was currently leaning his back against.

He couldn't stop himself from looking in the peephole to see what was going on.

Wei Ying was clutching the paper bag to his chest, a half eaten cookie in his hand, and pretend swooning.

It was A-D-O-R-A-B-L-E.

And then he looked back towards the door and Lan Zhan caught his eye.

It made him drop to the floor, banging his knee against the door but that pain was nothing compared to the one in his heart.

*******

The next day, Lan Zhan woke up to a text message.

WY: Oh my God!! Lan Zhan, those cookies were so good, my ShiJie wants the recipe!! Is it OK for me to drop by after work tonight? I have a late shift today so it'll be around seven?😍💯

WY: oh...you must be asleep! Don't worry, we can chat in the morning. I'll keep an eye out!👀

So Lan Zhan thought long and hard.

About his reply.

After about five failed attempts of deleting and retyping, he finally settled on his answer.

LZ: Yes.

LZ: That is acceptable.

LZ : 😊

He thought the emoji was a rather modern and exciting way to convey what he felt rather than just words.

And so what if the happy thrill of excitement settled in his heart for the rest of the day....

Tonight, he was going to see Wei Ying again.

*********

Lan Zhan was all ready for the evening.

He had copied down his mother's recipe in neat calligraphy adding his notes.

And then he decided to bake some muffins.

These were extra special Christmas muffins.

Made from deep, rich chocolate, there was a surprise in every one. Lan Zhan decorated the outside with powdered icing sugar and a small piece of flake chocolate.

He couldn't wait for Wei Ying to get his lips around this treat!

At exactly seven in the evening, his doorbell chimed.

Lan Zhan wasn't hanging around the hallway, pacing.

No, he absolutely wasn't...

He opened the door, vaguely wondering if his imagination had made Wei Ying appear more attractive than he actually was...

No.

If anything, Wei Ying looked even more beautiful tonight.

He was wearing a red and black scarf wound twice around his neck and a matching bobble hat. And...a Christmas jumper. It had lights on it.

And a rude message...a double meaning about reindeer and mistletoe...

Lan Zhan's gaze shot up to laughing silver eyes, still pleasantly crinkled.

"Good evening, Lan Zhan. Thank you so much for doing this."

Lan Zhan could feel his ears getting hotter. His heart was a lost cause at this point, to say nothing about his blood pressure.

Was this normal?

Why was it that every time he saw Wei Ying, he thought he was having a heart attack?

He forced himself to remember his manners.

"Good evening, Wei Ying. Please...would you like to come inside?"

Surprise, bright and beautiful bloomed on his rosy cheeks, and he grinned even wider.

"Yes, please!"

Lan Zhan loved his voice.

It was musical, and an ideal representation of the man himself.

Lan Zhan moved aside to let him in.

Lan Zhan had never been a teenager in theory, but right now his inner person was squealing and doing cartwheels.

It seemed like a reasonable thing to do.

Wei Ying was inside his home.

His HOME!!

Wei Ying took his shoes off and entered the living room.

"LAN ZHAN! Oh my god!!! Look at that tree!!! Did you decorate it yourself?"

Wei Ying went on and on, gushing about how beautiful it was, and then! Then he saw the bunnies.

That was it.

He plonked himself down on the floor and sniffed.

Lan Zhan had been following him in at a leisurely pace but Wei Ying's shout had made him hurry to see what was wrong.

He crouched down in front of Wei Ying and was shocked.

"Wei Ying! Why are you crying?"

Sure enough, there were silvery tracks going down his round cheeks and distressing Lan Zhan even more.

"B-because...I.. I'm...s-so h-happy!" He hiccuped.

Lan Zhan whipped out his white handkerchief in a split second, hoping it wasn't too forward of him, and wiped Wei Ying's beautiful face.

"Lan Zhan..." Wei Ying sounded breathless. His fingers wrapped around Lan Zhan's wrist. "Wait....are those little bunnies? Omg...they're sooo cute!!! Lan Zhan! You're so cute!!!" He lay on the floor and closed his eyes dramatically. "I'm going to open my eyes now...because I must be dreaming!!"

Lan Zhan was incredibly chuffed.

His chest came out a little bit too, as he preened.

Internally.

"Lan Zhan...you have to pinch me..." Wei Ying said.

Lan Zhan looked shocked.

"Why?"

"Because that's the only way I can believe this is real...that you're real!" He wailed.

Lan Zhan smiled at him.

"I have something better than pinching Wei Ying." He helped him sit up. "Would Wei Ying like to try some hot chocolate? And muffins?"

Yes...Wei Ying would definitely like to try some.

He followed Lan Zhan into his lovely warm kitchen, where the smell of baking was still in the air.

Wei Ying sniffed hungrily, appreciating the mouthwatering aroma.

"My ShiJie also loves to bake at Christmas time. Say Lan Zhan? Um...." Wei Ying blushed.

Lan Zhan wanted to take him into his arms and never let him go. He looked so casually wonderful, his hair loose and wavy framing his lovely face.

He looked all kinds soft.

"Mn?"

"What are you doing for Christmas?" And then the rest of his words gushed out like an unblocked drain. "WhatamIsaying?IbetyoualreadyhaveplansandIshouldn'thavesaidanything."

"Is Wei Ying inviting me?" Lan Zhan couldn't believe himself either.

His mouth was finally working alright.

"Yes." Wei Ying said in a small voice. "If you want to...that is."

"I want to." Lan Zhan marvelled at the words coming out of his mouth in a coherent manner. But then he remembered, Christmas lunch was usually spent at his uncle's home. He looked disappointed.

Wei Ying's expression sank with disappointment too.

"You can't...can you?"

Lan Zhan shook his head.

And then he had a brilliant idea.

"What about the next day? In England, they call it Boxing Day. It is still a Christmas holiday. What about spending it together?" Lan Zhan was shaking.

Wei Ying's face lit up like his stunning Christmas tree.

"Omfg! That's a great idea! You're so clever, Gege." Wei Ying was staring at him in such a way, Lan Zhan wanted him to look that way at him forever.

He became flustered and busied himself pouring hot chocolate out in two mugs. He decorated them with marshmallows and sprinkles and then pushed Wei Ying's mug towards him.

Wei Ying was making all the right kind of noises after taking a sip.

Lan Zhan, flushing with pleasure, put one of his muffins on Wei Ying's plate.

"That's so beautiful." Wei Ying was looking up at him, his silver eyes dazzling through the dark lashes.

"There is a surprise." Lan Zhan confided, proud of his creations.

"Lan Zhan...you're spoiling me." Wei Ying said, smiling back. "I wonder what it could be." He then regaled Lan Zhan about the time his brother thought it was a good idea to hide a small coin in the Christmas pudding their ShiJie had made, and a distant cousin, Jin something had broken his tooth. "It was funny for everyone else." He finished, giggling.

Lan Zhan thought he had a delightful laugh.

It made him think of all the good times in his life, the moments spent smiling and being with the ones he loved.

"Wei Ying deserves to be spoiled." He replied, enjoying the way Wei Ying's face had a rosy blush as his eyes sparkled.

He watched, taking a sip from his own mug, as Wei Ying took a bite out of the delicious muffin. He held his breath as Wei Ying chewed, savouring the rich chocolate texture and then he saw the moment when Wei Ying realised what the surprise was.

"White chocolate? Lan Zhan...I think I might be in love."

Lan Zhan was at that exact moment, taking a sip out of his hot chocolate and of course, it went down the wrong way.

He was choking, eyes streaming while Wei Ying patted his back trying to make him feel better.

"With your cakes." He finished, still smiling after Lan Zhan had possibly ruined the best moment of his life.

***********

He did not see Wei Ying for another week.

Every day was spent at first, eagerly looking at his phone, hoping for a text. A message...anything.

He wondered what Wei Ying was doing, whenever he thought about him, at any given time. He worried that he had frightened off the lovely man by choking, and hoped that wasn't the case.

And then...his light bulb blew out.

He went to get a ladder and just stopped, as the light bulb in his head went off.

He could call Wei Ying! He could say...he did not know how to change the light bulb...or he could say...he didn't have a ladder...

Those were both very good reasons to call him!

So Lan Zhan opened his messaging app.

LZ: Dear Wei Ying...

Oh no...he'd accidentally sent that.

And before he could delete it, Wei Ying was typing something out.

WY: Hi!! What's up?😃

LZ: I need help.

WY: What's wrong? Are you okay? I'm at work now but I can make an excuse!😈

LZ: I'm okay. It's an electrical problem.

He didn't want to say that it was just a light bulb that needed changing...because what if Wei Ying wouldn't come all this way just for that?

And, he lamented, he wasn't sure where Wei Ying would be coming from.

They had talked about lots of things when Wei Ying had come over the last time...well, Wei Ying had talked while Lan Zhan was mooning over how lovely he was.

WY: ???

LZ: It can wait until after work. Don't worry.

WY: But I'm worried about you! ☹️🤧😫

LZ: No need. It is not an emergency. I can wait. 😉

His words sounded robotic so Lan Zhan thought the emoji warmed the message just enough.

WY: LAN ZHAN! DID YOU JUST WINK AT ME? 🥹🥹🥹

Lan Zhan dropped his phone.

His brother chose that moment to call him.

Lan Zhan: "Hello, Xiongzhang."

Lan XiChen: "Hello Didi! What were you doing? I hope I haven't caught you at a bad time? You took a while to answer..."

Lan Zhan: "Yes, Xiongzhang...I am currently in the middle of something..."

He didn't want to say exactly what...it wouldn't do to tell an older sibling who liked to tease, that he was talking to someone he really liked. Plus the additional questions...Lan Zhan was already cringing at the thought.

Lan XiChen: "Oh? Alright then, I'll keep it short."

But he didn't.

They had to discuss the menu for the Christmas day lunch and what they each were bringing, and what worked with what dish until they managed to hash out the entire menu.

Lan Zhan: If that's all, Xiongzhang.

Lan XiChen: *laughs. "I'm sorry for keeping you from...?

Lan Zhan: " Goodbye, Xiongzhang."

He ended the call, sighing because it took forever.

He was scared to look at his phone because he had basically ghosted Wei Ying.

He counted to ten and went to messages.

WY: Lan Zhan?

WY: Lan Zhan...are you there?

WY: I'm coming as soon as work finishes!

WY: That's in exactly two hours...🙂☺️

Lan Zhan looked at his watch. That was half an hour ago.

And just enough time to make something....

***********

Lan Zhan was at the door by six.

With his eye glued to the peephole.

He looked down for one second, one second and Wei Ying was right there!

Lan Zhan opened the door quickly.

Wei Ying came in straight away and took his hands in his own.

"Are you alright, Lan Zhan? I was so worried but then Jiang Cheng was being a lady dog about letting me go and I couldn't get here fast enough!" He said, all in one breath.

Lan Zhan's brain had short-circuited.

"Lan Zhan?" Wei Ying was looking at him anxiously now.

"Mn?" It was all he could manage for now.

"So what was the non-emergency, then?" Wei Ying was asking.

Lan Zhan thought he should have better preparation for the times he was going to meet Wei Ying. It simply wasn't fair!

How was he supposed to cope with brain malfunction, heart palpitations and shortness of breath and have Wei Ying touching him?

He was astonished that he hadn't passed out yet.

And now, Wei Ying was never going to come back, because he would have correctly assumed Lan Zhan was a basket case.

Headed for the loony bin.

He just remembered Wei Ying had asked him a question.

"Take your time, Sweetheart." Wei Ying added, having now ascertained that there wasn't a crisis at hand, his warm silver eyes were sparkling with mischievous intent.

Lan Zhan was pretty sure he was in love.

"Light bulb." Great. He manages to say two words.

At least they were relative.

"Light bulb?" Wei Ying asks, a slight frown on that beautiful face.

Oh no! This was the part where Wei Ying would work out that it was a ruse, all because Lan Zhan had a crush on him...

No...it was definitely more than that.

"Oh! You mean you need me to change a light bulb for you! Of course! Show me where it is! Lucky for you, I carry spares in the van I totally didn't steal." He laughed, and suddenly, just like that, everything was okay.

Wei Ying liked to talk.

Lan Zhan loved to listen to him.

"Did you know, Lan Zhan? I was reading this scientist's report and they discovered that part of our brains can be compared to prehistoric lizards? And did you know that it's this part which controls what we want and need? It was fascinating." Wei Ying was saying.

Right now, lizard brain sounded good.

It was the perfect explanation of why Lan Zhan wanted Wei Ying.

He had been trying and failing to make sense of it all.

Lizard brain sounded correct.

When he finished, Lan Zhan held the bag of marshmallow pudding towards Wei Ying, feeling a little bit shy.

"For the non-emergency." He added.

"Lan Zhan! Did you make these especially for me?" Wei Ying was making heart eyes at him.

Lan Zhan didn't know what to do with that.

"Mn. Do not share with the lady dog." He said, sternly.

Wei Ying had left in peals of laughter, and promises.

********

It became a thing.

Every time something happened in Lan Zhan's home, he would invariably text Wei Ying.

They began messaging frequently now, and Lan Zhan woke up every day feeling excited and eager to look at his phone.

He was learning what all the emojis meant too and which ones to avoid. Which ones were 'safe'.

But after Wei Ying had fixed a light fixture in his porch, mended his gate when it wouldn't close properly, sorted out a plug socket (which Lan Zhan had unscrewed himself and "lost" the screws thereafter) and now everything was working fine....the problem was, Lan Zhan was running out of excuses to call Wei Ying over.

He wanted to ask him out.

Dating.

It was a frightening prospect...but Lan Zhan wanted to do that with Wei Ying.

Desperately.

The only thing was, Lan Zhan didn't know how to start that particular conversation. There was nobody he could ask about the etiquette of asking someone as wonderful as Wei Ying if he would ever consider going out on a date with Lan Zhan, and if it wasn't for the massive problem of no-thoughts-in-brain whenever Wei Ying was around, Lan Zhan was sure he would have found a solution by now.

Today, his microwave wasn't working.

Wei Ying was coming in the evening.

Lan Zhan had gone all out now: he had baked mince pies, strawberry tarts, chocolate cookies, his trademark bunny sugar biscuits, complete with icing on top, and more marshmallow puddings.

The door bell rang a little earlier than six, and as Lan Zhan went to open the door, he thought it was unusual of Wei Ying to cone early. In all the times they had arranged to meet, Wei Ying was either exactly on time or a little late.

And then he found out that it wasn't Wei Ying.

It was his angry lady dog.

The purple grape.

Jiang Cheng was scowling anyway, but from the moment Lan Zhan opened the door, his glare intensified and it turned into a horrible frown.

"Why do you keep calling my brother here?" He demanded.

Lan Zhan went blank.

There was no way in hell he was going to tell this man anything, not before he was able to talk to Wei Ying.

In the distance, they heard the screech of brakes as a vehicle came to a stop.

Two vehicles.

Jiang Cheng didn't care.

His brother had been coming out to this address way too often for it to be something innocent and he was going to get to the bottom of it.

Right now.

He pushed his way in and grabbed the front of Lan Zhan's jumper aggressively.

"Hey you! Let go of my brother!" A familiar voice said.

It was Lan XiChen.

Lan Zhan, while mortified that his brother was here to apparently save him, used this opportunity to stamp on Jiang Cheng's feet, making him let go.

And then, while they were both shaken and one was in quite a bit of pain, Lan Zhan heard the best voice in the world.

"JIANG CHENG! WHAT ON EARTH ARE YOU DOING HERE?"

Wei Ying had arrived!

Lan Zhan almost sank to the floor in relief.

"I WOULDN'T HAVE TO COME HERE AT ALL, IF YOU WERE STRAIGHT WITH ME!" Jiang Cheng yelled back. "I WANT HIM TO TELL ME WHY HE KEEPS ASKING YOU TO COME HERE! THERE'S NO WAY HE ISN'T HIDING SOMETHING!"

"HOW DARE YOU! LAN ZHAN JUST HAS A LOT OF PROBLEMS IN HIS HOUSE. IT'S AN OLD BUILDING, YOU KNOW!" Wei Ying defended him.

And now Lan Zhan felt terribly guilty too.

He had been having a lot of problems with his home...some of them contrived. And now Wei Ying was getting in trouble with his family, all because of him.

"Is that true, Didi?" Lan XiChen said, covertly standing in between the lady dog and his own baby brother.

Lan Zhan couldn't lie now.

He looked down, ashamed of himself.

"I think you both need to leave us alone." Wei Ying said quietly.

Lan Zhan heard two pairs of footsteps walking away, and then the sound of his front door closing.

He was still looking down when another pair of feet came and stood toe to toe with him.

This was it.

Now he was going to have to tell Wei Ying the truth.

Wei Ying...just by being near him...was making Lan Zhan feel lightheaded. There was a certain lotus flowery fragrance that surrounded him at all times, and Lan Zhan loved it.

Maybe this might be the last time he was going to smell it.

The thought made him incredibly sad.

And then, to his horror, a drop of water fell on their shoes. His slippers, and Wei Ying's shoes.

And another.

And another.

He wasn't sure where this water was coming from.

And then, Wei Ying gasped and pulled him into his arms.

"Sweetheart! Don't cry. I made them go away." He soothed, holding Lan Zhan tightly.
"I'm so sorry my brother shouted at you. He's just always been overprotective...that's all, but it's no excuse."

"He's right." Lan Zhan said.

His nose was pressed right up against warm, soft skin, and his lizard brain wanted.

"I know." Wei Ying giggled.

Lan Zhan could not process that.

"Mn?"

"Well...the truth is Lan Zhan, I really like you. In fact...it might be something more than that. And I was trying to figure out a way to ask you on a date...with me. I was going to buy you flowers and everything but Jiang Cheng got here before me and scuppered my plans."

Wei Ying carried on talking but Lan Zhan wasn't capable of listening to anything past the date part.

"Yes." He whispered. And then louder: "YES! I will go on a date with Wei Ying!" He said eagerly with every ounce of sincerity in his body.

"You will?" Wei Ying looked awed about that.

"Yes." Lan Zhan also nodded in case Wei Ying didn't understand. And then he added, "I like Wei Ying too. Very much."

"Really?" Wei Ying squealed.

To Lan Zhan, it was the best sound in the world.

"Alright then, shall we go on a date now?" Lan Zhan asked, feeling bolder by the second.

"Now? But I'm not dressed for a date!" Wei Ying looked distressed about that.

"I am not going on a date with Wei Ying's clothes." Lan Zhan said primly, taking his hand and leading him into the kitchen. "And date can be here. Just us." He added.

He showed Wei Ying all the treats he had made.

Wei Ying's beautiful silver eyes went wide as he saw how much of an effort Lan Zhan had made for tonight.

He sidled up to Lan Zhan and put his arms around Lan Zhan's neck.

Lan Zhan thought his heart was getting better with practice because it was beating fast but not out of control. In fact, if he put his hands on Wei Ying's hips and held him closer, it was becoming quite tamer.

"How about you show me the problem with your microwave and then we can go to town on pastries?" He said, bringing his lips ever so close to Lan Zhan's mouth.

Lan Zhan walked them backwards to the microwave and plugged it back in.

"Fixed."

EXTRA BONUS

Exactly one year later, Wei Ying and Lan Zhan hosted Christmas Dinner at their home as a married couple for the first time. And they had some good news to share with their families.

When the time came to make a toast, Wei Ying went and stood next to his handsome husband, and wrapping an arm around each other's waist, they announced that they were going to adopt a little baby boy in a few weeks' time.

Everyone clapped and toasts were made congratulating the happy couple. ShiJie had tears in her eyes as she came to hug both of them.

Lan Zhan loved her as much as Wei Ying loved her too. She had become a regular visitor to their home and Lan Zhan loved cooking with her. Together, they traded recipes and experimented on different things in the kitchen, and they had the best tasters around to help in that department.

Jiang Cheng was convinced Lan Zhan had broken his toes but then Lan XiChen had convinced him it could be sorted out over dinner which turned into a few dinners, and before Jiang Cheng knew it, he was also engaged to be married soon.

Uncle Qiren smiled and handed them a bag.

"Well then, these will come in useful." He added.

Wei Ying put his hand in the bag and pulled out a vast assortment of baby clothes.

"Yes." He said, tears of happiness leaking from his eyes as he hugged the old man.

Lan Zhan gave him the white handkerchief with the little bunnies and then, in front of everyone, he kissed his Wei Ying.

And then, as their lips left each other, Lan Zhan felt a cool gust of air touch his cheek, right where his mother used to kiss him.

THE END.

A/N

MY DEAR BEAUTIFUL READERS,

This is a Christmas gift for all of you. As you know, I've been having lots of power cuts recently and I was inspired by that as you will have read!

This is also to celebrate this book has reached over 200K, so thank you very much for your continued support and your lovely comments, I read every one.

Happy Christmas and enjoy lots of chocolates!!

Charlie