Back at the mansion, everything felt wrong.
Wenhao walked through the front door and the familiar hallways felt foreign. The servants bowed. The guards stood at attention. But nothing felt like home.
Ruifen was waiting in the living room. When she saw Wenhao, her face lit up and she rushed toward him.
"Wenhao!" She threw her arms around him. "I missed you so much. I was so worried. Are you okay? Did they hurt you? I was so scared when Xinyi told me what happened—"
Wenhao didn't hug her back. He just stood there with his arms at his sides and his face blank.
"I'm fine," he said. "I'm going to my room."
He walked past her and went upstairs without looking back.
Ruifen's face fell. She watched him go and her eyes filled with tears.
Xinyi walked over and put a hand on Ruifen's shoulder. "Give him time. He's been through a lot."
"But he didn't even—"
"I know." Xinyi pulled Ruifen into a hug. "He'll come around. He just needs time."
Ruifen sniffled. "Did you have lunch?"
Xinyi smiled softly. No..let's have lunch together. Just us."
Upstairs, Wenhao closed the door to his room and collapsed onto his bed.
He buried his face in the pillow and let the tears come.
He thought about his father in the hospital. The machines. The tubes. The way his hand had trembled when he signed the papers.
He thought about Zhenlong. The cold way he had walked away. The cruel things he had said.
He thought about the cinema room. The warmth of Zhenlong's shoulder. The softness in his eyes.
And then he thought about how none of it mattered because Zhenlong was a monster. A liar. A thief.
He cried until he had nothing left.
Meanwhile, in the Zhenlong mansion, the atmosphere was different.
Zhenlong was in his room. The curtains were drawn. The ashtray was full. Smoke curled toward the ceiling like grey ghosts.
He hadn't eaten lunch. He hadn't eaten dinner. He hadn't left his room all day.
He kept thinking about Wenhao. The look in his eyes when he called him a monster. The way his voice broke when he said there's nothing in you.
Zhenlong took a long drag from his cigarette and stared at the ceiling.
His heart had gotten soft. He didn't know when it happened. He didn't know how it happened. But it had happened.
And now he didn't know what to do with it.
He thought about Wenhao's laugh. His smile. His stupid complaints about body wash. The way he had clung to him during the horror movie.
He thought about the way he had felt when Wenhao said I thought you were different.
And he realized that Wenhao had been right.
He was different. But not in the way Wenhao had hoped.
Weeks passed.
Then months.
Wenhao graduated. It was a quiet ceremony. Xinyi and Ruifen were there.
Shen Wei had helped him through everything. The studying. The late nights. The moments when Wenhao wanted to give up.
"We're going to be late," Shen Wei said as he handed Wenhao his cap and gown. "We can't be late on our own graduation day."
Wenhao rolled his eyes. "We are the graduate. They'll wait for me."
"They won't."
"Okay, maybe they will."
Shen Wei shook his head but he was smiling. "You're impossible."
"You keep saying that. And yet you're still here."
"Someone has to make sure you don't self-destruct."
Wenhao grinned and pulled Shen Wei into a quick hug. "Thanks. For everything."
Shen Wei hugged him back. "Always."
After graduation day. Wenhao didn't waste time. He started university. He studied hard. He pushed himself. He didn't want to think about Zhenlong or the mansion or the cinema room.
But sometimes, late at night, he still did.
One night, Xinyi invited him to a banquet.
"It's a charity thing," she said. "Business people. Socialites. You need to network. It's important."
"I don't want to network. I want to stay home and watch TV."
"You can watch TV any night. This is important. You're a Liang. You have to show your face."
Wenhao sighed. "Fine.
The banquet was at a grand hotel. Chandeliers. Champagne. People in expensive suits and designer gowns. The whole thing was exhausting.
Wenhao slipped outside to the back courtyard. The air was cool and the stars were out and for a moment he could almost pretend he was somewhere else.
Then someone stood beside him.
Wenhao turned and his breath caught.
Zhenlong was standing there with a glass of wine in his hand. He was wearing a dark suit and his hair was pushed back and he looked just as cold and composed as he always did.
But his eyes were different. Softer. Uncertain.
Wenhao's heart started pounding. He started to walk away.
"Wait." Zhenlong's voice was quiet. "Please."
Wenhao stopped. He didn't turn around.
"I'm sorry," Zhenlong said.
Wenhao's eyes filled with tears. He turned around and shoved Zhenlong hard. The glass flew from Zhenlong's hand and shattered on the ground.
"I thought you were different," Wenhao said. His voice was shaking. "I thought you weren't a monster. But no. You took everything from my dad. Everything he built. You left him with one company. Why? Why did you leave that? Why didn't you take them all?"
Zhenlong looked at him. "I had no choice. Those were mine in the first place. Your father took them from us family years ago. I was just taking them back."
"Liar." Wenhao pushed him again. "Liar. Stop lying. Stop making excuses."
"I'm not lying."
"You are. You're a liar and a thief and a monster."
Zhenlong's jaw tightened. "Will you stop hating me if ....I return everything?"
Wenhao froze.
His heart stopped. His brain stopped. Everything stopped.
"You'll... return everything?"
Zhenlong looked away. His voice was quiet. Barely a whisper. "Yeah. I will. But on one condition."
Wenhao tilted his head. "What condition?"
Zhenlong hesitated. He couldn't look at Wenhao. "You'll... hangout with me."
Wenhao's heart started beating again. Fast. So fast.
"What?"
"Just... hangout with me. Sometimes. Not all the time. Just... sometimes." Zhenlong still wasn't looking at him. "I know I don't deserve it. I know I hurt you. But I can't—" He stopped and took a breath. "I can't stop thinking about you."
Wenhao's mouth opened and closed. "You... you want me to hangout with you that's it?"
Zhenlong finally looked at him. His eyes were raw. Vulnerable. "Yes..... I don't know why. I don't know how. But I do."
Wenhao's heart was pounding so loud he could hear it in his ears.
"Okay," he said quickly. "Okay. I'll do it. I'll hangout with you. Just return everything. Please."
Zhenlong blinked. "Really?"
"Yes. Really. Just... just return everything. And we'll... we'll see where it goes."
Zhenlong nodded. "Okay. I'll come visit your dad tomorrow. I'll sign everything back."
Wenhao was so happy he couldn't stop himself. He threw his arms around Zhenlong and hugged him tight.
Zhenlong froze for a moment. Then his arms came up and wrapped around Wenhao's waist and he held him close.
Neither of them said anything.
But neither of them wanted to let go.
The next day, Zhenlong showed up at the hospital.
He was alone this time. No Hua Cheng. No bodyguards. Just him and a briefcase full of documents.
Wenhao was already in his father's room when Zhenlong walked in. He had brought dinner. He set it on the bedside table and looked at his father.
Mr Liang was awake. His face was still pale but there was more life in his eyes than before. The doctors said he can discharge soon.
Wenhao didn't show how happy he was to see Zhenlong. He just stood beside the bed and watched.
Zhenlong walked to the bedside and set the briefcase on the table. He opened it and pulled out a stack of papers.
"These are the deeds," he said. "The properties. The business. Everything I took.."
Mr Liang's eyes went wide. "I... I don't understand. Why would you—"
Zhenlong glanced at Wenhao. A small smile touched his lips. "I had a change of heart."
He started signing the papers. One by one. His signature was neat and precise. He handed each page to Mr Liang to countersign.
Mr Liang's hands were still shaky but he signed them anyway. Tears were streaming down his face.
"Thank you," Mr Liang said. "Thank you. I don't know how to repay you. If you ever need anything—anything at all—you can ask me."
Zhenlong hesitated. He looked up at Wenhao and saw him secretly smiling.
Zhenlong smiled too. "I'll keep that in mind."
He finished signing the last page and stood up. "Well, I should take my leave."
Mr Liang nodded. "Thank you again. Truly."
Wenhao's voice came out quickly. "Dad, I'll see him out."
Mr Liang nodded and Wenhao followed Zhenlong out of the room. They walked down the hallway and into the garage. The space was empty and quiet and their footsteps echoed.
They walked close together. Close enough that their shoulders almost touched.
Wenhao was so happy he felt like he was floating.
Then Zhenlong stopped.
"I have something else for you too," he said.
Wenhao froze. "What is it?"
Zhenlong walked to the back of his car and opened the trunk. He pulled out a basket and set it on the ground.
Wenhao peered inside.
His breath caught.
A puppy. A small brown puppy with curly fur and big dark eyes. It looked up at Wenhao and wagged its tail.
"Omg," Wenhao breathed. "Omg omg omg. This is... so cute. So so so cute. What's its name?"
Zhenlong chuckled. "Look at his name tag."
Wenhao picked up the puppy gently and looked at the small silver tag hanging from its collar.
It said: GERALD.
Wenhao's jaw dropped. "Gerald? You named him Gerald?"
"After the crack. In the ceiling."
Wenhao burst out laughing. "You remembered? You remembered the crack in the ceiling?"
"I remember everything," Zhenlong said softly.
Wenhao looked at him and his heart was so full it might burst.
"Thank you," he said. "This is... this is the best thing anyone has ever given me."
Zhenlong's smile was soft. "You're welcome."
Wenhao held the puppy close and it licked his face and he laughed again.
"Gerald," he said. "You're Gerald...."
Zhenlong watched him with warm eyes. And for the first time in months, everything felt right.