The First Proper Meal in Their New Home

The ceiling light cast a warm yellow glow over the kitchen, filling it with light.

The range hood rumbled softly, and hot oil sizzled in the frying pan.

Lu Yan stood at the stove, spatula in hand, stir-frying eggs with somewhat awkward movements.

Behind him was Aemeath's soft, delicate body.

Aemeath had followed through perfectly on her request in the living room. From the moment they entered the kitchen, she had hugged Lu Yan tightly from behind, locking her arms around his lean waist.

Her beautiful face was pressed flush against his broad back. Through the thin fabric of his sweatshirt, Lu Yan could clearly feel the soft rise and fall of her chest as she breathed.

The physical contact, both overwhelming and intensely sweet, made Lu Yan's movements grow somewhat stiff as he stirred the eggs.

"A-Yan, the eggs are going to burn."

Aemeath peeked out from behind him, resting her chin on his shoulder. Her warm breath brushed his ear along with the sound of her amused voice.

"Ahem..." Lu Yan cleared his throat awkwardly, then hurriedly tipped the chopped tomatoes into the pan.

The tomatoes and eggs tumbled together in the pan, and an enticing sweet-and-sour aroma instantly filled the air.

"I only know how to make the simplest home-cooked dishes."

As he stirred, Lu Yan explained somewhat uncertainly, "I never tried making anything complicated like ribs when I lived alone before."

"Most of the time, I ordered takeout. At most, I'd cook myself a bowl of noodles. You... don't turn your nose up at it."

"I wouldn't!" Aemeath immediately tightened her arms and rubbed her cheek hard against Lu Yan's back, as if protesting his self-deprecating words with all her might.

"As long as A-Yan made it, even noodles boiled in plain water would be the most delicious food in the world to me." Her muffled voice came from behind him.

Aemeath lifted her head slightly, gazing greedily at Lu Yan's focused profile, the fingers gripping the spatula, and the lines of his back muscles as they shifted beneath his clothes.

In the past, when she watched bustling crowds or looked at the lights in countless homes, she had felt that none of that lively warmth had anything to do with her.

But now, everything was different.

This man, who was washing his hands and cooking for her, this man who was clumsy even when chopping scallions, was hers.

Completely and utterly hers alone.

At the thought, the possessiveness in Aemeath's heart began growing wildly again, like a vine.

Unable to resist, she opened her mouth and gently bit Lu Yan on the neck.

"Hiss~" Lu Yan's body jerked, and the spatula nearly fell into the pan.

He looked back helplessly at Aemeath, who was gnawing on him like a kitten. "What's wrong? Are you so hungry you're going to eat me too?"

"I just wanted to bite you." Aemeath raised her chin, a dangerous yet captivating light flickering in her golden, starry eyes.

"I want to leave my teeth marks on you, so you know I've marked you, inside and out."

Faced with such a blatant yandere declaration, Lu Yan's heart did not race with fear. Instead, he felt an unprecedented sense of peace.

His deepest desire was to be needed so completely that there was no room for anything else.

"All right, bite me as much as you want. But wait until after we eat."

Lu Yan smiled and turned back, scooping the tomato and scrambled eggs onto a white porcelain plate before turning off the heat. "I just need to make some egg drop soup. Go wash your hands and get ready to eat."

"No, I'm staying right here on you until you finish the soup!" Not only did Aemeath refuse to let go, she wrapped her legs around him too, turning herself into a human pendant hanging from Lu Yan.

Lu Yan smiled helplessly and could only drag his sweet burden along as he struggled to finish making the pot of seaweed egg drop soup.

On the small dining table sat a plate of brightly colored tomato and scrambled eggs, a steaming bowl of seaweed egg drop soup, and two bowls of white rice.

Simple as it was, it was their first proper meal in the true sense since moving into the house.

Lu Yan and Aemeath sat facing each other.

"Try it." Lu Yan handed Aemeath a pair of chopsticks, a trace of anticipation and nervousness flashing almost imperceptibly in his eyes. "If it's too salty or too bland, you have to tell me."

But Aemeath did not reach for the chopsticks. She propped her elbows on the table and cupped her chin in her hands, gazing expectantly at Lu Yan.

Then she parted her cherry-pink lips and let out a voice sweet enough to reach his very bones:

"Ah~"

Lu Yan's hand froze in midair, still holding the chopsticks.

"I want A-Yan to feed me." Aemeath's eyes curved into pretty crescents. "My hands got sore from playing games just now. I can't even hold chopsticks steady."

"Didn't A-Yan say that, as the loser, he'd grant me any wish?"

It was a terribly flimsy excuse, but Lu Yan had no intention of exposing her.

He took a deep breath, suppressing the tingling sensation in his chest, picked up a piece of egg coated in rich red sauce, and carefully brought it to Aemeath's lips.

To keep the sauce from dripping, he held a tissue in his other hand beneath her chin.

Aemeath unceremoniously took the egg into her mouth, gently closing her lips around the tips of Lu Yan's chopsticks as well.

She chewed slowly, her eyes fixed on Lu Yan the whole time. The look in them suggested she was doing more than savoring the food; it was as though she were tasting a delicacy called Lu Yan.

"Is it good?" Aemeath's gaze made Lu Yan a little uncomfortable, and the tips of his ears began to burn again.

"It's good," she said indistinctly.

After swallowing, Aemeath nodded earnestly. "This is the sweetest tomato and scrambled eggs I've ever eaten."

"Tomato and scrambled eggs are supposed to be sweet and sour..." Lu Yan muttered, but he couldn't stop the corners of his mouth from rising as he picked up a piece of tomato and fed it to her.

For the next ten minutes, dinner became a completely one-sided feeding ritual.

Like an insecure child who needed constant reassurance to feel at ease, Aemeath took Lu Yan's attentions for granted.

After Lu Yan had fed her nearly half a bowl of rice, Aemeath suddenly snatched the chopsticks from his hand.

"Now it's my turn."

Without another word, she picked up a piece of egg with some rice and held it straight to Lu Yan's mouth.

"I've eaten already, so hurry up and eat too." Copying what he had done, Aemeath held her hand underneath. "Open wide, ah~"

Looking at the chopsticks Aemeath had just held in her mouth, Lu Yan couldn't help thinking of the words "indirect kiss."

Although the two of them had already shared a deep kiss that afternoon, using the same chopsticks under the bright lights still gave the moment a subtle intimacy that made his heart skip a beat.

Without any hesitation, he opened his mouth and ate the egg.

Watching Lu Yan eat the food she had fed him, Aemeath's eyes flashed with satisfaction.

"Good, isn't it?" Aemeath bobbed her head proudly.

"Mhm, it's good." Seeing how happy she was, Lu Yan found his own appetite unusually good.

They fed each other bite by bite, somehow making a plate of the most ordinary home cooking feel like an unparalleled delicacy.

There was no rule against talking at the table, only the crisp clink of chopsticks against porcelain bowls and the glances they exchanged from time to time.

The meal went on for a long while.

After they had finished the last drop of seaweed soup, Lu Yan stood up and began clearing the dishes of his own accord.

"Go rest on the sofa for a bit. I'll wash the dishes." Lu Yan deftly stacked the plates.

"No." Aemeath immediately followed him like a little tail and wrapped her arms around his waist from behind again. "I want to watch you wash them. I want to watch you every minute, every second."

"You..." Lu Yan shook his head helplessly and could only let her hold him as he washed the dishes at the sink.