The restaurant was lively. Steam rose from bubbling pots of shabu-shabu while trays of freshly grilled meat disappeared one after another under Cheung Qi's enthusiastic appetite.
Shen Jiu and Huan Zhan were arguing over the last slice of marinated beef.
Cheung Qi was pretending not to steal food from everyone's plates.
Everything was normal.
Except for Gou Feng.
The young man sat quietly among them, his chopsticks resting loosely in his hand.
His gaze was unfocused, lowered, but not on the food in front of him. It looked like he had been pulled into something heavier in his own mind.
Across from him, Huan Zhan, currently working on what might have been his tenth piece of grilled pork, paused mid-bite as he noticed him spacing out quite far too long.
He swallowed the food he was munching on and leaned forward slightly.
"A-Feng," he called casually,
"Still have a headache?"
The question immediately drew everyone's attention.
Cheung Qi paused mid-bite.
Shen Jiu looked up from his bowl.
All eyes turned toward Gou Feng.
The young man blinked.
For a brief moment, he looked as though he had only just returned to reality, then he smiled.
"I'm fine now."
Shen Jiu narrowed his eyes.
Huan Zhan wasn't convinced either.
Neither of them missed the untouched bowl of rice sitting in front of him.
The rice had long gone cold.
In fact, Gou Feng had barely eaten anything since they arrived.
Cheung Qi slowly lowered his chopsticks.
"A-Feng. If you're not feeling well, just say so."
Gou Feng shook his head.
"I'm really alright."
Cheung Qi ignored the answer entirely. His eyes swept over the young man's face.
Only now did he notice the faint shadows beneath Gou Feng's eyes.
His complexion looked paler than usual, and despite the smile, he seemed tired.
"Do you want to head back to the dorm and rest?" Cheung Qi asked.
"You can join us some other time."
Warmth flickered in Gou Feng's eyes.
He genuinely appreciated the concern.
Truthfully, he wasn't feeling completely well. The dull headache from earlier still lingered, throbbing faintly behind his temples, but it wasn't unbearable.
At least, that's what he told himself. Besides, how could he leave now?
It had been a long time since everyone had gathered together like this, and Hei Bao was coming. The man who had raised him, given him a home, and changed the course of his life.
Opportunities like this don't happen often. Missing it over a mere headache felt wasteful.
He could endure it. The discomfort would pass eventually.
With that thought, Gou Feng offered them a reassuring smile.
"Thank you, Ge Qi, but I'm truly fine."
His answer did little to reassure anyone around him.
Cheung Qi frowned, he could not help but think deeply.
Could their training and the disposal of Fei Nian's corpse have exhausted him that much?
It didn't seem likely. Fei Nian couldn't have weighed that much, and the training hadn't been unusually demanding. They had gone through the same routine countless times before. So why did he seem so drained today?
Just as he opened his mouth to ask, a familiar voice sounded behind them.
"Looks like I arrived at the right time."
Everyone turned, and saw Hei Bao stood a few steps away.
Cheung Qi's face immediately lit up.
Whatever he had been thinking about moments ago vanished from his mind.
"Well, well. This is a surprise."
He stood and strode over, grinning as he patted Hei Bao's shoulder.
"Be honest. Did you put a tracker on my vehicle?"
Hei Bao didn't even spare him a glance. Ignoring the question entirely, he walked toward the table.
The empty seat beside Gou Feng happened to be available, and without hesitation, he sat down.
Gou Feng then greeted him with a small smile.
"Ge."
Hei Bao nodded.
His gaze lingered at him. Longer than usual, and he noticed what the others had noticed.
The faint exhaustion beneath Gou Feng's eyes.
The slight sluggishness in his movements. The untouched food, and the faint crease appeared between his brows.
"Have you been sleeping well lately?"
The entire table froze at such words.
Shen Jiu nearly dropped his chopsticks.
Beside him, Huan Zhan choked on a piece of pork.
"Cough!"
He immediately grabbed his chest, coughing hard as his free hand fumbled for his cup of water.
Seeing the chaos, Cheung Qi burst out laughing.
"Easy there."
He smacked Huan Zhan firmly on the back.
"Don't die. We just got here."
It took a split second, but Huan Zhan finally grabbed his water and took several hurried gulps.
Neither he nor Shen Jiu paid any attention to Cheung Qi afterward.
Their eyes remained fixed on Hei Bao.
The concern in his voice wasn't imagined.
It was real.
And that was exactly what shocked them.
In all the years they had known Hei Bao, they had never heard him speak in such a gentle tone before.
Their pack leader, the same man who could make grown men sweat with a single glance, had actually sounded concerned.
The discovery left both young men stunned.
Meanwhile, Gou Feng seemed completely unaware of the effect he had caused, and simply smiled.
"Thank you for your concern, my lord."
The familiar title made something twist unpleasantly inside Hei Bao.
A strange irritation settled in his chest, that somehow he couldn't explain.
The words were respectful, yet the sound made him feel angry.
Before he could dwell on the feeling, he abruptly rose from his seat.
His sudden movement startled everyone.
"Continue eating." He said, gaze shifting towards Gou Feng.
"Come outside with me."
Without hesitation, Gou Feng also stood, and quietly followed behind him.
The moment the two disappeared from the table, Shen Jiu exchanged a worried glance with Huan Zhan.
"Where are they going?"
Huan Zhan shook his head.
"No idea."
A moment later, Shen Jiu lowered his voice even further.
"Do you think A-Feng will be alright?"
Huan Zhan glanced toward the restaurant entrance.
Honestly?
He wasn't sure.
Meanwhile, Cheung Qi calmly picked up another slice of grilled meat and dropped it into his bowl, completely unconcerned.
"You're both overthinking it."
The two younger men turned toward him.
Cheung Qi shrugged.
"Your friend was practically raised by him."
He popped a piece of meat into his mouth.
"If anyone here is least likely to be in danger, it's Gou Feng."
Seeing that neither looked convinced, he laughed.
"Stop creating problems that don't exist and eat. The meat's getting cold."
Outside, neither of them spoke. After leaving the restaurant, Hei Bao headed straight toward the parking lot, with Gou Feng following quietly.
The silence between them wasn't uncomfortable.
At least, not for Gou Feng.
Over the years, he had long grown accustomed to their pack leader's quiet nature.
The cool evening air greeted them, Hei Bao seemed lost in thought, and Gou Feng wasn't sure what to say.
A few minutes later, they reached the garage.
Hei Bao unlocked his car and climbed into the driver's seat.
Gou Feng automatically took the passenger side.
The familiar routine felt strangely nostalgic.
For several seconds, only silence filled the vehicle.
Hei Bao fastened his seatbelt, and Gou Feng did the same.
Eventually, curiosity got the better of him.
"Ge..."
Hei Bao glanced at him briefly.
"Where are we going?"
Surely they weren't simply leaving everyone behind?
Hei Bao started the engine.
"Home."
Gou Feng blinked.
"...Home?"
"My house."
Hei Bao's answer stunned him.
For a moment, he genuinely thought he had misheard.
Hei Bao hadn't done this in years. Not since Gou Feng turned fifteen.
Back then, whenever something weighed heavily on the pack leader's mind, he would simply drag Gou Feng home without explanation.
Sometimes they would sit in silence all night, and sometimes Hei Bao would drink until he could barely stand.
And Gou Feng would stay beside him with a book in hand, quietly turning pages while listening to increasingly incoherent stories.
To others, those nights might have seemed strange, but to Gou Feng, they were warm in a way he had thought was lost to him forever.
Now that he was an adult, he had assumed such simple comforts belonged only to childhood. But perhaps he had been wrong. The world, after all, was full of surprises. You never really knew what life had in store.
"You don't have plans after this, do you?"
Hei Bao's voice interrupted his thoughts.
It took Gou Feng a moment to answer, as the question felt oddly familiar.
"I..."
He lowered his gaze.
"No. I'm free."
Hei Bao simply nodded.
No further explanation was given, and the car pulled out of the garage.
The drive passed quietly.
Streetlights illuminated the roads one after another as the city gradually slipped behind them.
Gou Feng spent most of the journey looking out the window.
His headache still lingered. Though thankfully it had lessened.
Perhaps because he was no longer surrounded by noise. Or perhaps because being around Hei Bao felt oddly reassuring.
He wasn't entirely sure.
By the time they arrived, the sky had already darkened.
Gou Feng stepped inside the house and froze briefly.
Not a single thing had changed. The familiar entrance, the carefully arranged furniture, and the framed photographs hang on the walls.
Even the scent of the house remained unchanged.
For a moment, Gou Feng felt as though he had stepped backward in time.
"Sit wherever you want."
Hei Bao loosened his sleeves.
"I'll make dinner first."
That made Gou Feng look up sharply.
Dinner?
The word alone felt strange.
In the past, normally, Hei Bao would head straight for his wine cabinet, and the evening would end with several empty bottles and absolutely no proper meal.
Yet today…
"What?"
Hei Bao looked over his shoulder.
"Why are you staring at me?"
Gou Feng quickly looked away.
"Nothing."
Still slightly bewildered, he made his way toward the living room.
Almost unconsciously, he settled into his usual spot on the couch.
The same place he had occupied countless times years ago.