ACBAM 77: Like

Gu Weiyang stood by the window, smiling as he looked at him. “Dr. Su.”

Su Shijin’s steps faltered slightly. “Mr. Gu.”

Although they had video-called a few times over the past few days, meeting in person still felt different.

Gu Weiyang was wearing a black shirt today. Because of the heat, he had undone the top two buttons, revealing some skin. The cuffs were casually rolled up to his forearms and his left ring finger was wearing a ring, though Su Shijin couldn’t recall when he had put it on.

It had been almost half a month since their last meeting and the feelings Su Shijin had buried deep inside slowly began to surface. It was like bubbles in a shaken bottle of soda water—small and delicate—spreading from his heart and eventually catching in his throat, making it hard for him to speak.

“What’s wrong? Come on in.” Gu Weiyang took a few steps forward, inviting Su Shijin inside. He pulled out a chair from the round table and politely gestured for him to sit.

Once Su Shijin was seated, Gu Weiyang sat across from him, watching his expression. He couldn’t help but feel that Su Shijin seemed colder than before, which made him a bit uneasy.

From the moment the slip of the tongue about the airport left his mouth, Gu Weiyang had actually begun to regret it.

He could have brought up the matter of his friend seeing Su Shijin in F City at a more appropriate time, but instead, he had blurted it out just when Dr. Su had returned.

No wonder Dr. Su’s expression was so unpleasant now. He probably thought that Gu Weiyang had known about his presence in F City all along but had kept quiet, waiting for the right moment to expose the lie and make him uncomfortable.

“Su…”

Just as Gu Weiyang was about to say something, a knock sounded at the door.

When Su Shijin entered earlier, the door had been left slightly open. A waiter, holding a menu, stood at the entrance and gently knocked. With a professional smile that revealed eight teeth, he asked, “Good afternoon, may I take your order?”

Su Shijin subtly exhaled, letting the bubbles of his emotions dissipate. He spoke softly, “Let’s order first.”

Gu Weiyang had no choice but to swallow his words and focus on ordering first.

The waiter placed a menu in front of each of them, handing one to Su Shijin and the other to Gu Weiyang.

The menu was thick, and when opened, it revealed the dish names along with elegant pictures that made everything look appetizing.

Gu Weiyang flipped through the menu a few times and ordered the house specialties. “Curry fried Thai shrimp, Tom Yum seafood soup, and Thai pineapple fried rice.”

Once the waiter had written down the order, Gu Weiyang handed the remaining choices over to Su Shijin. “Take a look and see if you want anything else. Feel free to order, even desserts—let’s get two portions of those.”

Su Shijin lowered his gaze and skimmed through the menu. After a few seconds, his finger tapped the dishes he wanted. “Curry fried crab, green papaya salad, and coconut sago pudding. Let’s start with these.”

“Okay, your order will be placed right away.” The waiter took the menus back, and soon after, he knocked and entered the room again. He placed the order receipt on the table, bowed politely, and exited the private room.

As the door closed, shutting out the noise from the hall, the room fell into a silence so profound that even the sound of a needle dropping could be heard.

In the end, it was Su Shijin who broke the silence.

“Mr. Gu,” Su Shijin looked at the alpha in front of him and slowly spoke, “You know I lied, right?”

Gu Weiyang was taken aback for a moment. He hadn’t expected the conversation to head into this topic so soon. He shook his head and said, “No, it’s not that. A friend of mine happened to be traveling in F City. He saw our marriage certificate in my social media feed…”

Su Shijin understood then—being found out had just been a small, accidental chance.

If it hadn’t been for that friend, as long as Su Shijin kept quiet, Gu Weiyang might never have known in this lifetime that he had once lied under the pretense of a work trip.

“I’m not trying to question you,” Gu Weiyang said steadily, keeping his emotions in check, “but if you’re willing to tell me the reason, I don’t think this will become a barrier between us.”

Su Shijin sat across from Gu Weiyang, not answering, just quietly watching him.

There was no doubt that the alpha’s appearance was outstanding. Even with Su Shijin’s discerning eye, he couldn’t find a single flaw on that face.

Su Shijin had never observed Gu Weiyang so carefully before. Now, as he looked at him, he found it strangely fascinating. It was as if he could just gaze at him the entire day without ever feeling bored.

Su Shijin couldn’t help but silently sigh—being in love really was a strange thing.

Gu Weiyang, feeling uneasy under Su Shijin’s gaze, asked, “Is there something on my face?”

“No,” Su Shijin shook his head.

“Then don’t look at me like that, you’re making me a little nervous,” Gu Weiyang said, feeling a bit flustered.

Su Shijin let out a light laugh. “Alright.”

Yet his gaze remained unchanged.

As Gu Weiyang sat there, nervously contemplating whether he had shaved properly, Su Shijin took a sip of water and slowly began, “The decision to use a work trip to F City as an excuse is something I thought about for a long time before I made up my mind.”

Before Gu Weiyang could respond, Su Shijin continued, “Mr. Gu, you might not believe what I’m about to say now. You might think I’m just making up an excuse because my lie was exposed but the truth is, even if you hadn’t found out I went to F City, I had already planned to come back and explain everything to you honestly.”

At Su Shijin’s words, Gu Weiyang straightened up and quickly said, “I’ll believe you. As long as you explain, I’ll believe whatever you say.”

If Tan Zhao had been here at that moment, he would have definitely scolded Gu Weiyang for being hopelessly in love. The other party hadn’t even started explaining yet and he was already so eager to believe.

If this were happening online, the netizens would probably roast him to no end.

Love-struck fool! Doormat!

Even Su Shijin was momentarily stunned. It was the first time an alpha had believed him so unconditionally and for a moment, he didn’t know what expression to wear.

“You’re not afraid I might be lying to you?” Su Shijin asked.

Gu Weiyang thought for a moment before answering, “I don’t think you have any reason to lie to me.”

Su Shijin looked at him, puzzled. “Why?”

Gu Weiyang smiled lightly. “Given your personality, if you just wanted to go out and have fun, you wouldn’t bother lying to me. You’d probably just tell me directly. So, I think there’s something you’re keeping to yourself, something you’re troubled by.”

“Troubled by something…” Su Shijin thought to himself that it wasn’t quite that serious.

He didn’t even understand where Gu Weiyang’s trust in him was coming from.

“Even if there is a reason, I still did deceive you,” Su Shijin couldn’t help but say.

Gu Weiyang said, “I choose to forgive you.”

Su Shijin stared at him, speechless.

“But I haven’t explained yet.”

“Then I forgive you anyway,” Gu Weiyang said, as if he had already made up his mind, no matter what Su Shijin was about to say.

Su Shijin furrowed his brow, feeling that Gu Weiyang’s mindset wasn’t quite right.

“Mr. Gu, if you have this attitude, I won’t feel happy about it,” Su Shijin said, his expression gradually turning serious. “You can’t throw away your principles just because you like someone.”

Gu Weiyang’s eyes reddened, and his hand, gripping the cup, tightened slightly.

“Dr. Su, I just want to believe you,” Gu Weiyang said, his voice tinged with a hint of grievance.

“I know,” Su Shijin softened his tone. “But you should at least hear my explanation first, then decide whether to believe me, instead of believing unconditionally before I even explain.”

“But if you like someone, isn’t it supposed to be about believing in them without conditions?” Gu Weiyang countered.

Su Shijin was momentarily stunned. He felt that Gu Weiyang had a point but his reasoning was too extreme.

Thinking about Gu Weiyang’s past experiences, Su Shijin felt it was understandable that he was a bit extreme when it came to matters of trust.

However…

“But if I like you and you deceive me, I would still doubt you. In that case, do you think my feelings for you wouldn’t be real love?” Su Shijin continued.

…

Gu Weiyang blinked in confusion. “Huh?”

Su Shijin thought he hadn’t heard properly, so he repeated, “If you deceive me, I will start to doubt you…”

“Wait, no, hold on.” Gu Weiyang interrupted, almost standing up in shock. “Did you just say you like me?”

Su Shijin froze for a moment.

Did he just say that? 

Did it really slip out?

“Is… is that just an example?” Gu Weiyang asked, looking at his expression, suddenly feeling like maybe he was reading too much into it.

How could Dr. Su like him?

A person like him… apart from his looks and money, he had no other merits…

“You’re right,” Gu Weiyang said, his tone a bit hoarse, “There really is no standard for liking someone. My previous words were too extreme… But when I say I like you, it’s because I want to believe in you with all my heart. Is that so wrong?”

He sat back down, a look of quiet dejection in his eyes, sounding almost like he felt a little wronged.

“I think everyone has their own way of liking someone. I just… I just want to believe in you…”

Gu Weiyang lowered his head, his fingers gradually tightening around the cup.

Compared to Su Shijin deceiving him, what hurt him more was the thought that Su Shijin might consider his feelings to be wrong. That was far harder for him to accept.

This meeting wasn’t supposed to be about these things. Gu Weiyang took a deep breath to calm himself and looked up. “It’s okay, you don’t need to take what I just said to heart. You—”

Halfway through his words, Gu Weiyang realized that, at some point, Su Shijin had moved from across the table and was now standing next to him.

Gu Weiyang froze, looking up at the omega standing beside him, and stuttered, “You… you can just say what you want.”

No, why did Dr. Su suddenly walk over?

Did he think Gu Weiyang was being melodramatic and extreme, then was planning to slap him to snap him out of it?

Could he please not slap him? He still had a meeting to attend when he got back to the office.

Just as Gu Weiyang’s mind was racing to figure out how to politely suggest that Dr. Su move somewhere else to slap him, the omega in front of him suddenly leaned in and hugged him.

?

???

Gu Weiyang: Huh?

What?

What’s going on?

This hug was even more shocking than a slap across the face!

“Su… Dr. Su?”

“Don’t speak yet.”

Su Shijin could feel his heart beating just a bit faster than usual. It was the first time he had so actively embraced an alpha and it made him feel a little nervous.

“I think, given your state just now, you might not be able to take in what I’m saying,” Su Shijin closed his eyes for a moment, adjusting his words. “It’s not that you can’t take it in, it’s just that the topic might drift too far. I think I need to bring the conversation back on track.”

Gu Weiyang was held in his arms, the faint scent of the omega filling his senses. His head felt a little dizzy, and he instinctively nodded. “Ah.”

What topic?

What were they even talking about just now?

It seemed like he had momentarily forgotten, unable to recall anything.

Su Shijin gently patted his back, offering reassurance. “The things I said earlier, they weren’t just examples.”

Gu Weiyang blinked. “Ah.”

What things? What examples?

What example did Dr. Su just mention?

Oh no, it felt like his brain just crashed.

Dr. Su smells so good.

No, wait! Get a grip! What was Dr. Su about to say again?

“I want to say that, after this time apart, I’ve come to realize my feelings for you,” Su Shijin’s fingers, resting on his back, curled slightly, betraying his calm exterior and revealing the nervousness inside.

Gu Weiyang’s mind slowly began to turn. “Feelings?”

Thinking about his current actions, could it be? Could it really be!!!

“I think I like you.”

Gu Weiyang: !!!

“It’s not because of the pheromone influence, it’s just because I genuinely like you.”

Gu Weiyang: !!!!!

Su Shijin slowly released his hold, looking down at Gu Weiyang, who was staring at him with wide, disbelieving eyes. He nervously bit his lip, a faint blush appearing on his usually calm face. “You… don’t believe me?”