Fateful Consequences: A Guardian Story

Zhao Yunlan leapt into his car and immediately plugged in his phone.  He spared a quick glance at his screen after he started the engine.  A missed call from Shen Wei.  Damn it.  He could not even imagine what the man was going through.  He thought about calling him back, but he doubted the 2% battery would last long enough, and waiting for it to reach a viable level of charge would only take time he was not willing to give.  He backed up his 4x4 with a screech of tyres and shot out of the car park.

Twenty minutes later, he was hammering on Shen Wei's front door.

"Wei, it's me!  Let me in now."

He heard the lock click, but the professor did not appear.  He took hold of the handle and pushed.  The door opened easily.

Shen Wei was stood in the middle of the lounge, a glass of wine in his hand.  It was clearly not his first.

You're drunk," said Zhao Yunlan, cautiously.

"Not quite," the other man replied.  "Do you know, I've never had more than two glasses of wine before.  I can't decide if I like how it makes me feel or not."  He frowned.

The detective smiled as he moved forward and took the glass out of the tipsy professor's hand.

"Why don't you analyse the experience in the morning?" he suggested.

"Ah yes, the morning," Wei sighed.  "He will probably call me again in the morning.  You need to catch him, Yunlan.  Because...because...he's such an ass!"

Despite the seriousness of the situation, the police chief burst out laughing.  He couldn't help himself.  He had never heard anyone describe a cold-blooded murderer as an 'ass', and he certainly would not have expected it to come from the strait-laced professor.  But his laughter died in his throat when he glanced up and saw Wei looking at him intensely, his head tilted to one side, cheeks flushed, and eyes wide open.  It was so innocent yet so incredibly captivating at the same time.

Throwing caution to the wind, Yunlan closed the gap between them and pulled the other man in.  Looking down, he scrutinised every angle of the face gazing up at him, even though he already knew it as well as his own.  He felt Wei's breathing quicken, and as the man's lips parted to speak, he quickly bent down to cover them with his own, pulling back after a brief but intense moment.

"What did I do wrong this time?" Shen Wei asked, breathlessly.

"Absolutely nothing," Yunlan admitted, his voice hoarse.  He took the professor's arm and led him across to the wall, pinning him between the cool paintwork and the warmth of his chest.  He searched for Wei's lips again, hungry to take whatever the other man would willingly give, and he was rewarded when he felt the person trapped in his arms melt into him.

Shen Wei gasped when he felt Yunlan's tongue run lightly over his bottom lip, and the police chief took the opportunity to fully explore the professor's mouth.  Without realising what he was doing, Wei wrapped his arms around Yunlan's neck.  At the same time, he felt two hands circle his waist, pulling him even closer if that was possible.  Their hearts were now hammering frantically against each other, and the younger man felt a sudden rush of heat sweep through him.

Yunlan had lost all sense of reason.  The sheer blissfulness of this moment, of the person in his arms responding to his affection, was like nothing he had ever experienced before.  As he moved his lips to Wei's neck, he pulled the man's shirt free of his waistband and slipped his hands under the material, wanting to feel the warmth of skin underneath his fingertips.  He felt the professor tremble slightly at his touch.  It was enough to send Yunlan crashing over the edge, but some small part of him resisted in that final moment before he succumbed to temptation, knowing that he would be taking advantage of the man when he was not thinking clearly.