Chapter Text
August 24, 2025
The drive home was quiet, as he cruised the solemn streets of the town – the people were completely unaware of the chaos inside the detective’s head. The drive back home from the hospital was a blur of neon lights and nagging doubts. He replayed the conversation with Shuai over and over again like a corrupted film reel.
“I ate it at the convenience store, I was already hungry from work.”
Something felt wrong. It was just a gut feeling at first – but as he probed the doctor, he confirmed his intuitions then and there. The words were too simple, yet it carried a heavy weight. Shuai’s story wasn’t just a simple loophole, it was a canon. The logic did not hold – and for a detective who had spent a year connecting threads in this goddamn case, this one felt wrong in so many ways.
After what felt like an eternity of a drive, he realized that he was already parked outside his apartment. The quiet hum of the engine vibrated against his fingertips before he finally turned the engine off and with heavy foot steps, walked towards the door.
As he tinkled with the keys to his apartment, he heard the faint music coming from inside. He opened the door and the smell of a sweet dish lingered in the air. His eyes darted towards the kitchen, as he saw Suowei tinkering with pans, his back facing away from him.
He walked towards the kitchen, making sure his boots made a sound so Suowei knew he was home. And as expected, Suowei turned, greeting him with a warm smile – his eyes lit up with a rare, bright spark of recognition.
“You’re home.” Suowei said, as he set down the spoon he was holding. “Good timing, I cooked food.”
Suowei’s voice softened the chaos inside Chi Cheng’s head as he tossed the keys on the dining table. He walked towards what Suowei was cooking. “You didn’t have to do that, Suowei.” he said, his voice dropping an octave as the sterile scent of the hospital was replaced by the aroma of Suowei’s cooking.
Suowei shook his head, as he resumed stirring, “I wanted to. I’ve been a freeloader for months – this is the least that I can do.”
Chi Cheng let out a soft laugh – and as they stood together in the kitchen, the warmth of the scene acted like a buffer against the chaos of the outside world. Although the meat looked charred, and the sauce had the consistency that suggested more enthusiasm than culinary experience.
“What exactly is this?” Chi Cheng teased as he took a closer look, took a whiff of the dish’s aroma, before reaching for a fork to try a piece.
“I… I relied on the recipe book…” Suowei looked back at the open recipe book, opened on a random page – braised pork ribs. Yet the one on the bottomed pot looked nothing like how it was supposed to. Chi Cheng was holding back a laugh, completely aware that he wasn’t in the place to laugh because he knew he would not be able to cook it either.
“Don’t laugh…” Suowei’s face turned red, completely embarrassed by his own cooking. But Chi Cheng took the fork and as the flavor hit his tongue – it was… quite frankly… terrible. It was overly sweet that he almost choked, making his eyes water.
“Oh.” Suowei’s lips trembled as he bunched the hem of the apron he was wearing. “Is it that bad?” his big glassy eyes looked at Chi Cheng’s, searching for any sign of approval, completely small and vulnerable in the oversized apron.
Chi Cheng forced a swallow with an effort, the excessive sweetness lingering on his palate. He looked down at Suowei, and as he noticed the younger man biting his lip, he could not help but think.
He looks… really cute. The thought flashed through his mind before he could even filter it.
He coughed slightly to clear his throat and he saw Suowei’s shoulders slump down. “Hey, don’t do that. I’m impressed you got this far. Most of the time, I don’t even know where the spatula is.”
Suowei playfully hit his shoulder as he tried to grab the fork from Chi Cheng’s grip. But Chi Cheng was too quick to throw his arm up to not let Suowei grab the fork from him. Suowei lost his footing as he fell on Chi Cheng’s chest, the contact sending electricity across his whole body.
“S-stop that… Let’s just order takeout…” Suowei said softly, a tiny smile fighting to return to his lips.
Chi Cheng noticed that his ears were now red, a deep crimson that matched the thumping heat radiating from their bodies. His grip tightened around Suowei’s waist as a soft chuckle escaped his lips. “Local? Thai?”
“Any is fine…”
“Or we can order braised pork ribs…” Chi Cheng teased, basking in the way Suowei got even more embarrassed as the seconds passed. Suowei pushed him, a playful smile painted across his lips.
“You’re just mocking me at this point… You’re mean…” Suowei pouted.
“Right, right. I’m sorry… I’ll order Thai food.” Chi Cheng laughed, before licking the remaining sauce from the fork which made Suowei pout even more.
With the kitchen left unkept, pots and pans on the sink – Chi Cheng and Suowei enjoyed takeout while talking about mundane things that happened at work and at home. As usual, Suowei talked about how he tried to keep himself busy, even attempting to cook even though he didn’t know how. And Chi Cheng talking about nonsense things that happened at work.
He didn’t bother to mention that he took the day to visit the doctor. He didn’t want to think about that during this moment. For tonight, he let himself share a nice meal with someone. It wasn’t that bad, after all. He watched Suowei finally relaxing around him, being more talkative as the days passed.
For the past two months, their relationship behaved like a pendulum. There would be nights like this, where it swung towards a domestic warmth. Chi Cheng knew the pendulum always swung back – he had seen it happen a dozen times already. Tomorrow, or maybe even later in the night, Suowei might suddenly turn into a wall of silence again.
Let it stay here. Chi Cheng thought, watching Suowei’s eyes crinkle with enthusiasm with every bite.
I hope the pendulum stops swinging tonight.
September 3, 2025
A month has passed since the sugary kitchen incident, the “normality” that Chi Cheng had feared would be fleeting had somehow hardened into a semi-routine.
Chi Cheng would wake up, hearing the rhythmic start of the day in motion. Suowei had started to wake up before him, tinkering pots and pans in the kitchen, or trying to navigate how to properly use the coffee machine – still making a mess, but this was now something that they laugh about in the early mornings.
“Morning.” Chi Cheng said, as he fixed his jacket, the sunlight peeking through the windows illuminating the metal on the badge. He took steps towards the kitchen table and laid out neatly was a plate of eggs, bread, a cup of hot americano, and a protein bar to take with him to work – a silent testament to the semi-routine they had forged over the past few months.
Suowei also started to go out alone, after a few discussions of being “bored” inside the house. Chi Cheng asked that he keep his phone with him at all times, making small updates on the errands he ran throughout the day. When Chi Cheng got home, Suowei was already there, waiting. Either in the kitchen as he tried out new recipes – or in the living room, with takeout food laid on the table.
This is nice. I could get used to this. Chi Cheng thought.
It had also been a month that Dollface just seemed like a whisper – still there, lingering in the back of his mind. The case hadn’t gone cold, but it didn’t die down either. It was just pushed back, muffled by the domestic hum of this new reality.
Suowei was also getting better. He seldom gets nightmares – and when he does, Chi Cheng already knows what to do. It’s like he had memorized Suowei. Every shift in his breathing, the way his fingers twitched – he already knew how to slow the pendulum’s swing.
“Don’t forget this,” Suowei said, holding the protein bar that Chi Cheng almost left on the kitchen table as he was stepping out the door.
“Right. Thanks, Weiwei.”
Weiwei. The nickname came out naturally one night when they were laughing while playing board games. Of course, Suowei was losing. He followed with a pout, and a certain pull made Chi Cheng lose voluntarily.
Weiwei. The nickname that sounded like it was meant to be a permanent fixture in the four corners of the apartment.
Suowei’s face softened at the name, a pink hue touching his cheeks. It was far from the hollow and trembling man Chi Cheng had first brought home.
“Take care, Cheng.” Suowei urged gently as he lingered by the door.
“Takeout tonight?” Cheng suggested as he opened the door to the driver’s seat of his car.
“Xiao Long Bao?”
“You got it. I’ll be home by 5:30.”
September 7, 2025
Sun was high up, beaming towards Chi Cheng. It wasn’t the eight in the morning gazing at him for the first time in a while, a rare day off, something that he never took. Something he never thought he needed.
Ever since he took the case, his head was in the game. No rest. No fun. Oftentimes, Chengyu teased him about it but he paid no mind, prioritizing this whole procession, willing it to end. The light at the end of the tunnel.
“And you might not see that light at the end of the tunnel if you don’t take a break.” was what he was told, pushed towards the office of the Chief of Police they hardly see to submit his vacation leave.
Now he stood in the middle of his living room, a broom in hand, wearing his shorts instead of his work pants. He looked around the house, his forehead creasing in a frown not knowing where to start. He never had to clean his place, mostly his sister handled these things back home. Or their mother. Chi Cheng was just put to the side and was told not to disturb them. And even at his current home, his sister visits him from time to time to tidy up.
It’s all up to him now. And Suowei apparently.
“You look like a lost child.” Suowei observed, a slight tinge of humor in his tone.
“I’m not sure what we need to do actually… I don’t do much house chores.” Chi Cheng confessed, but was still trying to salvage a bit of pride. The feared Detective Chief didn’t know how to sweep his floor.
“I can see that…” Suowei’s lips twitched upward, trying to hide a smile.
It was an awkward start, sweeping the minimal dust on the floor, changing pillowcases and couch covers. Every minute was a task done. Rearranging things that didn’t need to be moved, in truth, Chi Cheng was never home that much to actually have to clean up. But it was quite nice, him and Suowei moving around a similar space like it was normal. Like they have been doing this for a long time.
The house was filled with giggles while they fluffed the pillows, a light feeling bloomed in Chi Cheng’s chest. A certain wholeness he didn’t know was missing in him. Was it companionship that he craved? He didn’t want to dwell on it further for now.
All he knew was that whenever he heard the melodic small laughter he could draw out from Suowei, it seemed like angels were singing in his head. That whenever there was a twinkle in the younger’s eyes, Chi Cheng would always want to catch it. The flush on his cheeks whenever he felt bashful or grateful, so pinkish. That it made his face so alive, Chi Cheng drank it all up.
“Cheng…” a slight whine, blinking his doe eyes at him. Mesmerized by the tears that started to form in his waterline, his hand unconsciously reached out. “Something’s in my eye…! Wah!”
Chi Cheng caressed his cheek, drawing his face closer to him. “Let me see.”
“Ah…hngg…”
Suowei struggled a bit, blinking rapidly. His mouth pouted as the dust irritated his eyeball.
“Weiwei, I’m gonna blow it…”
“Hngg…okay…please, thank you.”
Fuck. That sounded good.
Mere centimeters away, Chi Cheng didn’t move immediately. The pads of his fingers brushed Suowei’s cheeks slow and deliberate, trying to memorize the feel of it. He could feel his breath puffing, waiting for him to do what he just said.
So pretty. Tears look good on him. How would it feel to lick-
“Cheng? It hurts…”
A wisp of air blew towards Suowei as he could finally open his eyes, the dust was gone. Too soon if you ask Chi Cheng.
“There you go. All good.”
And yet, both of them didn’t move away. They looked at each other and a beat passed.
“Chi Cheng?”
Reluctantly, the detective let go, scooting away from the heat of the younger’s body. He cleared his throat awkwardly, trying to avoid the other’s gaze.
“Uh… we’re done here… I gotta wash the car…yeah…”
Chi Cheng stood up and stalked out of the house leaving Suowei on the couch, twiddling his thumbs.
Suowei followed him out not long after. He already started the hose, water splashing out to wet the car.
“I brought the sponge and soap.”
Chi Cheng nodded at his housemate, not trusting himself to speak just yet. He let his mind wander a bit earlier, captured by the alluring beauty of Suowei. Maybe hosing down his car would reprieve his thoughts…hopefully.
“Thanks, I’ll scrub. Can you rinse it after?”
Suowei hummed in agreement, handing the pail to the detective. They started working quietly, scrubbing the not so dirty car, suds sliding off the windows, progressively getting them wet.
The younger one fiddled with the hose, trying to open it back up and hose down the vehicle that Chi Cheng was intently wiping. But it backfired, splashing the water directly to his face soaking his face and chest.
“Aaah!”
His white shirt clung to his skin as it got semi-translucent. Suowei stood there dumbfounded then his cheeks flushed immediately, embarrassment rushing through him. Who even accidentally sprinkle themselves with the hose? Him apparently.
“Pfft….”
Suowei looked up and saw Chi Cheng turning his back, his shoulders shaking in an attempt to stop laughing. He pouted as the attempt was futile and the detective laughed. As revenge, he aimed the hose right at him and let the water bathe Chi Cheng from head to toe.
“Hey!”
“Now we’re both wet!”
Chi Cheng then had a playful glint in his eye, reaching for the sponge and dipped it back into the pail. The soap splattered across and hit Suowei.
It’s war.
The wetness continued on as they continued to play with the water, forgetting the car in the middle. Laughs that floated under the bright sun sounded so carefree, as if there was no gruesome case to solve, as if no one was a victim of an assault. They weren’t detective and witness, they were just Chi Cheng and Suowei.
As the slowly stopped, tired from playing around, Chi Cheng started to tidy up. They finally were able to finish cleaning the car, but that also meant that they were damp all over. Chi Cheng could feel the breeze cooling them off but they certainly need to get inside and change clothes.
When he was about to tell Suowei to get inside, he saw him trying to wipe his face with his wet shirt futilely. The contours of his stomach contracted as the cold wisp of air blew. Chi Cheng gulped but couldn’t look away. His eyes travelled up, spotting the perking up of pinkish nubs. They were dainty even as they slowly hardened.
Suowei slowly put his shirt down, finished with wiping his face which didn’t really help much. Now his white shirt was almost see-through, he looked even more ravishing. The cloth stuck to his skin like a tease, as if saying Chi Cheng couldn’t touch but was tempting him enough.
The detective could feel the dryness of his mouth despite their whole drenched situation.
Chi Cheng, get a grip. You just haven’t gotten laid in a while. Yes. Yeah, that’s right… Yeah… Fuck… I think I need to clean my pipes.
“Cheng? Inside?”
“Huh?”
“Let’s go inside?”
September 9, 2025
The night was quiet and the house was dark. It was twenty past eleven, Chi Cheng’s sleep was interrupted for no reason other than his body wanted him awake. So he stood up and decided that maybe a glass of water would help him get back to sleep.
He dragged his feet towards the kitchen, his eyes still half closed. This was the last night of his vacation before he goes back to work, annoyed that he had to go back at all. The few days he had been home, spending time with Wei were blissful. Who knew not thinking of work does wonders?
Well not to his libido sadly. Against his better judgement, Chi Cheng had been… slightly distracted. Suowei was beautiful, so much so that it stutters the detective’s brain sometimes. The plump lips, the high flush on his cheeks. And his round as button eyes that seemed to beg for something every time.
Chi Cheng shook his head trying to not think about the guy he took under his wing. Stopping halfway through the kitchen, he then noticed the light filtering out of the bathroom door. Huh. Did Wei leave the lights earlier?
Forgetting that he was supposed to drink, Chi Cheng went to the bathroom to close the light. But what he saw inside made him be rooted on the spot. Breath hitching and heart thudding in his chest, his eyes stayed glued to the glorious view he just witnessed.
Suowei was sitting on the bathroom floor, legs wide open, no underwear in sight. His eyes were closed shut, his mouth forming an o as he panted.
Is he…?
“Ah….hmm….”
Chi Cheng could see the younger’s hand slide up and down his manhood, it was glistening with presumably lotion and pre-cum. The bottle laid down beside him confirmed it. It was Chi Cheng’s favorite and the thought of Suowei using that, gliding it on his shaft as pleasure racks up his body, sent an unmistakable heat in Chi Cheng’s stomach.
He couldn’t look away, and he didn’t want to. He watched Suowei fall apart, bit by bit.
“Ha….oh my god….yes….!”
He sounded so good. So divine in Chi Cheng’s ears. The moans spilling out of the other’s mouth, wanton with want, not even knowing he was being watched, it all went straight to Chi Cheng’s cock. He didn’t dare touch himself, afraid that he would interrupt the blessing in front of him.
“Hnngh…ha….mhmm… Cheng… yes…”
“Cheng… Chi Cheng… please….!”
When his name slipped out of those lips, red and swollen from being bitten trying to muffle his voice, Chi Cheng froze. Did he hear it right? Was it really his name he called out?
“More… Cheng…”
Fuck.
The detective then retreated back to his room, his water forgotten but the image of Suowei jerking off to the thought of him was burned underneath his eyelids.
September 10, 2025
The sun was high up, glaring towards Chi Cheng. It was the eight in the morning sunshine gazing at him for the first time in a while since vacation. Coffee in hand from his usual place, his routine started again.
Well… as much as he wanted to.
His mind was in chaos, not because of the case. No, he hadn’t touched that in days. It was that.
Chi Cheng barely slept because every time he tried to close his eyes, his mind supplied him with what could have been if he stayed.
What if I made him know I was there? Will he let me help him? Will he whisper my name in my ears? Will he finally open his eyes and look at me while he finishes?
Deep in his thoughts and imagination, the detective didn’t notice that he was standing in the middle of his office in a daze.
“Fucking hell.”