France's first snow came especially late that year.
Because of the time difference, the photos Xie Yanci sent arrived at around seven in the morning.
Snow blanketed the streets of Paris. The avenues were mostly empty in the early morning, and a thick layer of snow covered the classical buildings.
It seemed Hong Kong City had never seen snow.
Xu Shi lowered his eyes, swiping through the photos one by one.
The snowy scenery unfolded before him until a face suddenly appeared on the screen.
The Alpha held a tiny Siamese cat, his deep-set eyes curving slightly as he crouched in the snow for a selfie.
Red scratches from the kitten were still visible on his neck.
Xu Shi burst out laughing.
His slender fingers tapped the screen: [Who said you could sneak yourself in? I wanted to see the scenery, not you.]
Xie Yanci replied almost instantly: [Does it look good?]
Xu Shi: [No.]
Xie Yanci: [I meant the kitten.]
Xu Shi: [Neither you nor the kitten looks good.]
Xu Shi: [And this stupid snow doesn't look good either.]
Xie Yanci: [...Oh.]
"Hahaha." Xu Shi laughed aloud without realizing it.
Watching "Typing..." flash at the top of the screen, he suddenly realized that teasing his serious, old-fashioned husband was rather fun.
Winter in Hong Kong City was still cold and dry. Xu Shi looked up at the glaring, pale sky.
He suddenly realized he was quite happy.
Ding-
A new message popped up.
[Xie Yanci]: The kitten will be sad if you say that about it.
"Photo.jpg."
His words made Xu Shi laugh so hard he couldn't stop. With trembling fingertips, he opened the photo.
In it, Xie Yanci was firmly covering the kitten's ears. The wedding band on his ring finger was particularly conspicuous.
"Hahaha..."
Xu Shi closed