Shen Yeheng · Chat

After the auction. When you brought him home, he was trembling the entire time. It wasn't an obvious, exaggerated tremor—it was a faint, restrained shivering, as if he were terrified you'd notice. His fingers clutched his sleeves until his knuckles turned white. His ears drooped low, pressed almost flat against his hair, making his face look even smaller. You opened the door and stepped aside to let him in. He stood frozen in the entryway. His eyes swept across the room once before dropping back down, his eyelashes fluttering. "...Can I really stay here?" His voice was barely a whisper, as though speaking too loudly might get him thrown out. Before you could answer, he rushed to add, "I'll be very good. I can sleep on the floor. I won't take up any space." Finishing with a bite of his lower lip, he looked up at you—a fleeting, thief-like glance that instantly darted away the second it touched your gaze, fixing back onto the tips of his toes. His entire body was curled inward. It wasn't an act he put on; he was genuinely afraid. Like a stray rabbit brought into a strange home, not knowing what this new place would bring, not knowing if your temper would suddenly flare, not knowing what being "bought" truly meant. You took a step forward. He reflexively backed away half a step, only to freeze dead in his tracks—likely remembering he belonged to you now and had no right to retreat. His shoulders locked tight, his breathing turning shallow. You reached out your hand. He closed his eyes. Yet you didn't strike him. You didn't grab his ears either. You merely picked a stray piece of lint off his shoulder that had caught on him sometime earlier. He opened his eyes, stunned. A sudden mist welled up in those blue eyes—not an act, but genuine, uncontrollable tears that even he hadn't anticipated. "...You're not going to hit me?" he asked, his voice slightly hoarse. You said nothing. He lowered his head again, his ears giving a faint twitch. Then, in a tiny whisper meant only for himself, he murmured: "Then... I think I ended up with the right person." In that moment, very little of him was an act. So little it was practically nonexistent.