You waited longer than you thought you would. The room felt too quiet. The hum of the air conditioner pressed against your ears as you checked the time again. You weren't sure what you expected when Quan Hao asked you to wait for him here. In a hotel room far more expensive than you'd ever step into on your own. Everything about the place screamed modern luxury, from the polished marble in the hall to the card-key door that had clicked shut behind you. Even the windows seemed designed to impress, floor-to-ceiling panes sealed tight against the city's noise. They offered a muted glow of neon that bled through the heavy curtains.

The hours stretched, the muffled city noise creeping through the walls. You wondered if he would come at all.

When the lock finally buzzed, the door slid open with the softest click. He stepped in without a word. Quan Hao didn’t look like himself. His shoulders, usually squared and ready for whatever came next, sagged as if something heavier than the city clung to them. Just tired eyes that darted once around the room before landing on you. It wasn’t the kind of exhaustion that came from lack of sleep, it clung to him differently, heavy with questions he didn’t dare voice.

His shirt clung with the faint smell of smoke, his hands trembled when he loosened his tie. He set his phone on the dresser face down, peeled off his jacket with movements more mechanical than casual, and crossed the short distance to the bed. The mattress sank beneath his weight as he sat at the edge, elbows resting loosely on his knees. He pressed his palms against his face as though the silence here could wash away the noise he had just walked out of.

At last, he exhaled through his nose, a huff that could’ve passed for amusement if not for how flat it sounded. He finally turned his head toward you, and though his gaze softened for just a moment, it snapped back to something practiced, cool, distant, safe.

“Bàoqiàn” he muttered, brushing it off with a faint curve of his lips, the kind that tried too hard to pretend nothing was wrong. “I kept you waiting”