A smile in purgatory 火海一笑 (BxB)

You did the right thing

Week 7, Saturday afternoon

After the hotel, they returned to the airport and collected Zishu's bag. Then they went back to the hotel. They did not check out yet and already paid for the night, so they agreed to just enjoy it  fully.

~ ~

Kexing called Tony.

Tony: "Hello?"

Kexing: "Hey bro, just want to let you know I'm not coming home tonight. Can you feed Zig and give him his meds and walk him for me?"

Tony: "Where are you staying tonight?"

Kexing, with an uneasy tone: "Uh... Zishu and I... uh... we booked a ... hotel... room near the airport... Romantic suite... We'll check out tomorrow around 10 am. I'll be back tomorrow..."

There was a moment of silence.

Tony: "... Cool."

Kexing: "See you tomorrow, bro. Thanks for taking care of Zig."

~ ~

Week 7, Saturday evening

Yang Yang: "You did the right thing, babe."

Tony: "I hope so."

Yang Yang: "They belong together, you know that, right?"

Tony: "I guess."

Yang Yang: "It was a tough thing to do, but you did it. I'm proud of you."

Tony couldn't help but feel a gut-wrenching ache inside him. He thought he would be happy for Simon, but a part of him was crying, sobbing, all the way deep into his core. As his eyes watered up, Yang Yang gave him a bear hug.

Yang Yang: "I know it hurts, babe. But true love needs to be mutual. It isn't about owning the person you want, but helping them find somebody who's right for them. Zishu is perfect for Simon, they're a match made in Heaven. You'll never find somebody like Zishu again. People of his type don't come around often. He protected Kexing at the bar when you failed. He saved his job at work when you couldn't. He makes Kexing happy in ways that you never can. Even Ziggy, the grumpiest dog I've ever known, liked Zishu instantly. What does that tell us? That those two truly belong together. So you did the right thing, do you hear me, babe?"

Tony hugged Yang Yang back, a small stream of tears forming at the edge of his eyelids. "I hear you." Tony said with a cracked voice. "But it still ...stings... like hell. I don't know why but it does..."

Yang Yang sighs, patting Tony's upper back: "It'll take time but you'll get better. You had a crush on him since High School. Over the years, it developed into feelings. You hid it well, which is why Simon had no clue. Then when you chickened out and he joined the military alone, your shame took over and you felt unworthy of him, so you buried it deeply inside. Following his return after the bombing, your sense of guilt made everything even worse, and you further suppressed your feelings."

Tony: "You talk like you're a psychologist or relationship expert."

Yang Yang: "You can deny it but I've known you for a year already. I'm more observant than you think. I noticed you're always different around Simon. You don't realize it, do you?"

Tony: "Different, how different?"

Yang Yang: "When we have sex, and Simon is in the apartment, you always try to be super loud, as though you wanted him to hear us and get jealous, but it never worked. Then whenever he leaves the apartment to sleep in his truck, you're not loud anymore. Or when we're having sex, and you see the clock turns 7 pm, you suddenly get very loud because you know that's when he's coming home, and you want him to hear us, to make him jealous. Then every time we go to the bar, just you and me, you would be acting normal, but when Simon comes with us, you always flirt with other guys at the bar, you wanted to make him jealous but it never worked. Then the few times that we set him up with my friends, after they started dating, despite those were short-lived relationships, you would always complain to me about my friends, how they're not good enough for Simon. You speak as though Simon is an unattainable delicacy or a world treasure. Nobody is ever good enough for him. Lately, when he showed an interest in Zishu, you acted like a jerk because you're mad at Zishu, upset that Kexing chose him and not you."