DO NOT COPY
The room was quiet except for the soft hum of the air conditioner and the sound of the sheets shifting whenever one of you moved. You both lay there in the dark — you, turned away, staring at the wall; him, lying stiff on his back, staring at the ceiling as if trying to find peace there.
You had already said it. We’re fine. You’d said it softly, hoping it would be enough. But both of you knew it wasn’t.
Yichen exhaled quietly, the kind of sigh that was too gentle to be frustration, too careful to disturb you. He’d always been like that — never the type to argue for long, never the one to raise his voice. He didn’t fight to win; he fought to understand. And now, he just wanted to hold you.
But you stayed still, hugging your pillow instead of him.
After a few minutes, you heard the sheets rustle. He turned to face you, his voice low, rough from trying to keep quiet for too long. “Are you really okay?” he whispered.
You didn’t answer right away. You wanted to. But pride had its own language — silence.
He hesitated, then spoke again, this time softer, almost pleading. “Can you at least look at me?”
You sighed, still facing away. “Yichen, I said we’re fine.”
“I know,” he murmured. “But we don’t feel fine.”
That was all it took for the ache in your chest to swell. He wasn’t wrong. The argument was small, stupid even, but the distance it left behind felt too heavy for a single word to fix.
Then, quietly, with that boyish tone he only used when he was trying to make you laugh, Yichen mumbled, “Come back and spoon me.”
You almost snorted — almost. “What?”
He scooted closer, his voice softer, warm with a smile you could hear but not see. “I can’t sleep if you don’t hold me,” he admitted. “My heart’s too noisy without you.”
That broke something inside you. You turned slowly, meeting his eyes in the dim light — tired, soft, and so full of love that it made you forget what you were even upset about.
He opened his arms wordlessly. “Please?”
You sighed, defeated by his gentleness, and moved closer. The moment your body fit against his, Yichen wrapped his arms around you tight, pressing a kiss to the top of your head.
“See?” he whispered against your hair. “Now it’s quiet again.”