Captured By The Cold Detective (BL)-Chapter 399: Flowery Hills

’Don’t twitch, eyelids!’ Mu Yuze prayed desperately as he felt the tip of He Juan’s fingers on his brow, going down across his cheek before he pinched Mu Yuze’s ear between his fingers – the ears which had surely turned bright crimson by now.

Damn it! Mu Yuze cursed under his breath. He could control his breathing and eyelids, but there was no way he could stop his heartbeat from reacting to He Juan’s touches. And as expected, he heard the man chuckle followed by a gentle tweak on his nose,

"Have I told you before that you’re not very good at acting, Xiao Ze?"

Mu Yuze snapped his eyes open with a glare, only to freeze in shock when he found He Juan’s smiling face right beside him. S–So close! How did they—

"Seeing that you’re sleeping so well, I was going to lower the seat so that you can lie more comfortably," he eased back and spread his hands helplessly. "Alas, who knew that I would end up getting distracted by our Mu Yuze’s handsome face?"

"W-What are you..." Mu Yuze sputtered out, at an utter loss of words. He really could not handle it when He Juan threw him sudden compliments like this. It made him feel like his whole body was going to explode from the wild and frenzied butterflies in his stomach. He could tell that He Juan meant nothing by that, but how was he supposed to control his traitorous heartbeat when the man was being so sweet and gentle?! It was so damn unfair!

Throwing his gaze out of the window, he belatedly realized that the car had pulled up on the side of the road, where a path opened up on the side leading to a small hill. "Have we arrived?" He looked around and saw that there were no cars around aside from theirs. What were they doing here?

"Yes," He Juan turned off the engine and opened the door. "Let’s go, Xiao Ze."

Mu Yuze was still confused and a little disoriented due to the amount of sleep he had earlier, and it was not until He Juan opened the backseat door and took out a bouquet of sunflowers that he had a slight inkling on what they were doing here.

"How long have I been asleep?" Mu Yuze rubbed his eyes as soon as he was standing stably on his own feet. He couldn’t believe that he did not notice it when He Juan stopped by to purchase flowers.

"You literally passed out during our entire journey here," he chuckled softly. "Didn’t you sleep last night? Should we take a raincheck today?"

"No," Mu Yuze bit out, trying to ignore how warm his ears were. "We’ve come all the way here, so let’s just go up."

The path was wide enough for both of them to climb on, and seeing how there was only a thin layer of snow on the ground, Mu Yuze reckoned that He Juan’s men must have cleaned them all up recently. They began to climb the hill side by side.

"Hmm..." He Juan commented with his eyes narrowed. "Why do I have a hunch that you already know what we’re here for?"

Mu Yuze resisted the urge to roll his eyes as he tugged the scarf higher to cover his nose and mouth. He Juan had not even tried to hide it, would it be so stupid of him if he failed to realize anything? However, to humor the man, he still asked in a deadpan tone,

"We’re here for Kitty, aren’t we?"

"Bingo!" He Juan reached out to ruffle his hair, grinning. "Goodness, how can our Mu Yuze be so smart?"

Mu Yuze let out a snort. It was He Juan who had promised him first that he was going to bring Mu Yuze for a visit. But since they moved to Yuyang, the man had gotten so busy that he couldn’t bring himself to say anything. But he knew that He Juan couldn’t have forgotten about it. Not only because he was a man of his words, but also because this was Kitty – the cat whom they loved from the bottom of their hearts.

It did not take long for them to reach the top of the hill. Mu Yuze had no idea where He Juan found this place from, but the view was absolutely breathtaking. Maroon colored tiled roofs leaned up neatly in front of his eyes, with hazy smoke drifting out of the chimneys. The air was crisp, and the clear sky looked like it was within reach.

Their footsteps made crunching sounds on the ground as He Juan led him to a tiny mound where Kitty and her kitten were buried. "We may not be able to see it because it’s winter now," He Juan said as he placed the bouquet down on the ground. "But when spring comes, this hill will be surrounded by butterflies and flowers. Poppies, daisies, buttercups, clovers..."

Mu Yuze could almost see those small and colorful flowers growing out of the soil underneath his feet. "It will be so beautiful..." he whispered, his nose turning sour.

"Hmm... you’re right."

He swallowed past the lump on his throat as he stared at the fresh mound in front of him. His eyes were quickly turning blurry and he blinked it away, causing a droplet of tears to roll down his cheek. "She will like this place very much, won’t she?" He sniffled.

He Juan hummed again, gentler this time. "She’s a very playful cat. She will enjoy chasing butterflies here."

Mu Yuze couldn’t help the wet laughter that escaped his lips. When He Juan’s arm draped around his shoulders, he let himself fall into the man’s embrace as his tears seeped into the man’s coat.

"That’s why..." He Juan told him gently as he continued to mourn for the loss of a precious friend. "You don’t need to feel guilty anymore for her death, Xiao Ze. She was happy when alive, and Gege will make sure she is happy too in the afterlife."

Mu Yuze nodded, his eyes landing on the sunflowers on the ground. It truly suited her, for she was akin to a little bundle of sun that brought them warmth and happiness.

***

"Look at you," He Juan pulled out a few pieces of tissue and handed them over to Mu Yuze for him to blow his nose. "You’re crying so hard. Aren’t you tired of being a little bunny?"

"I don’t know..." Mu Yuze cleaned his face and dumped the soiled tissues on the mini trash can beside his feet. Even after they had left the hill and got back into the car, Mu Yuze still couldn’t stop his tears from flowing. He could already tell that his eyelids would swell into walnuts when he woke up tomorrow. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

Helpless, He Juan grabbed another piece of tissue and helped him dab his teary eyes. "Why are you such a crybaby? What should Gege do to make you stop crying? Hmm?"

Mu Yuze peered up at the man through his damp lashes and sniffled. Perhaps it was the melancholic mood, or perhaps it was because his brain was soaked too long in tears, he blurted out the words without realizing,

"Hug me...?"