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Fei Du had hated his father all his life, and the only moments he’d ever truly felt joy were when he could watch him suffer. But there was one thing Fei Chengyu had taught him one thing Fei Du would never forget.

People were divided into wolves and sheep.

Fei Chengyu had been proud to be a wolf. From Fei Du’s earliest years, he’d forced that same identity onto him. He’d reveled in power, delighted in his own strength and menace, in the knowledge that he could pick any sheep he wanted and destroy it without consequence. Just as he had done with Shi Nan.

Fei Du hated his father, and he hated the part of himself that tied him to the man. He despised the fact that he, too, was a wolf, and he’d spent his entire life trying not to be one. He would have ripped his own still-beating heart from his chest if it could have made him a sheep instead. He did everything he could to wear the skin of a sheep, even though, deep down, he knew he was just a wolf in disguise.

Luo Wenzhou was different. He was a sheep, but he lived like a wolf, radiating effortless confidence and quiet strength that made others want to follow him. Fei Du was no exception. He wanted to follow him, too. His gaze could barely tear itself away, especially when they met again after seven years. Time had been kind to Luo Wenzhou. He had barely aged since the first time Fei Du had laid eyes on him. He’d matured, like good wine, but hadn’t grown visibly older, and that only made it harder for Fei Du. He’d always known Luo Wenzhou was attractive, but now… now it took inhuman effort and focus to look away from him, to keep up with the pace of conversation, and Fei Du possessed neither.

Fei Du had hated being a wolf all his life. He’d dulled his claws and ground down his teeth, desperate to make himself harmless, desperate to rid himself of the ability to hurt someone even by accident.

He hated being a wolf.

But at that moment, at that exact second, when Luo Wenzhou opened the truck door to arrest the suspect, Fei Du was grateful that he was one.

His instincts reacted before his mind could even process what was happening. A flash of red, a blur of black, it all happened within a single heartbeat. A massive black wolf leapt from the truck’s interior, jaws wide open, teeth gleaming like knives. Fei Du threw himself between Luo Wenzhou and the beast in the blink of an eye, far faster than any human could ever move. Between one step and the next, his feet turned into paws, his face into a snout, and his suddenly expanding body tore through his elegant shirt. His entire form was covered in pale brown fur, like coffee with too much milk.

Luo Wenzhou was thrown to the ground by a powerful paw. The only injuries he sustained were a bruised tailbone and a wounded pride. His pupils dilated as a scene straight out of an action movie unfolded before his eyes.

He thought he was about to witness an epic clash between two wolves, but Fei Du didn’t even flinch. He didn’t raise a paw, didn’t bare his teeth. When the black wolf attacked, Fei Du simply stood his ground, shielding Luo Wenzhou. He didn’t dodge. He didn’t strike back. The other wolf’s jaws sank into his side, but Fei Du didn’t move.

He didn’t run.
He didn’t seek shelter.
He couldn’t because behind him was Luo Wenzhou.

Luo Wenzhou, the sheep who acted like a wolf but was still soft, fragile, and easy to wound.

Even if Luo Wenzhou had hated him when Fei Du joined the SID, even if he’d been irritated by Fei Du’s habit of following him around like a loyal pup, Fei Du still did it. He couldn’t take his eyes off him, afraid of exactly this day, the day something would happen, and he wouldn’t be there to protect him.

He wouldn’t have minded giving his life for Luo Wenzhou’s. Wasn’t that a fair trade? A wolf’s life for a sheep’s. What a pathetic story. Even if his wolf had claimed that sheep as his own, his partner, his destiny, Luo Wenzhou, was simply the one Fei Du wanted to protect. He wanted him safe, even if he never dared to claim him. He never wanted to possess him just to stand in the shadows, to watch from afar, and to know Luo Wenzhou was unharmed. That would have been enough.

But now, as another wolf’s teeth tore into his body, Luo Wenzhou could only watch, unable to look away as Fei Du’s light fur darkened, matted with blood, while the wolf still refused to move.

Even as pain wracked him, even as blood poured from his side, Fei Du stayed where he was, shielding Luo Wenzhou from the black wolf and from every other danger lurking in the truck’s dark interior.

He didn’t move until the police finally arrived, didn’t flinch when a hail of tranquilizer darts filled the air, didn’t even try to avoid the ones aimed at him as though he hadn’t expected anything else. He merely lowered his head and rested it on his paws when the black wolf collapsed under the sedative’s effect. Only when the other’s jaw slackened and released him did Fei Du stumble and fall to the ground. His chest rose and fell rapidly. He turned his head slightly, his large dark eyes finding Luo Wenzhou, who, watching him fall, felt as though he’d suddenly woken from a cruel spell, moving as if through water.

Officers rushed forward, restraining the black wolf’s massive paws and securing a muzzle around its snout. Once it was subdued, they turned toward Fei Du with the same set of tools, but Luo Wenzhou stepped into their path. The wolf’s large eyes blinked slowly, struggling against the sedatives meant to rob him of consciousness and strength. But Fei Du had never fought them in the first place.

Before the blood loss finally claimed him, Fei Du saw Luo Wenzhou drop to his knees beside him. He heard voices, heard Luo Wenzhou’s voice ordering them to call an ambulance, but he didn’t care. He simply closed his eyes, falling asleep with his nose pressed against his human’s thigh. He didn’t care about his own wounds or even his life, so long as Luo Wenzhou was safe.

Luo Wenzhou refused to let the officers muzzle Fei Du, and when the medics trained in handling shapeshifters arrived, they confirmed it wasn’t necessary. They discovered the wolf’s claws were filed down, his fangs torn out.

He was taken to the hospital, where Fei Du spent long months in a coma. The list of his injuries presented to Luo Wenzhou was longer than Fei Du’s tail.

After surgery, when Fei Du finally reverted to his human form, Luo Wenzhou sat by his bedside, unable to understand how it had happened. How could Fei Du be a wolf? How could he have been so gravely wounded? Why had he stepped in to protect him when he couldn’t even protect himself?

The doctor overseeing Fei Du’s case, a shapeshifter himself, spoke quietly to Luo Wenzhou. He explained that no one could have brought a wolf to such a state and lived to tell the tale. No one, except the wolf himself.

Luo Wenzhou spent months at Fei Du’s bedside, waiting for him to wake. When he finally did, Fei Du turned his gaze away, refusing to answer any questions. Luo Wenzhou had had enough time to conduct his own investigation; he already suspected the truth. So he simply wrapped his arms around Fei Du and pulled him close, letting him cry without asking or commenting. He knew Fei Du needed that far more than he’d ever be willing to admit.

Finally, when the storm of emotion had passed, Luo Wenzhou cupped Fei Du’s face in both hands and pressed his lips to his in a trembling, desperate kiss, the first kiss they both needed so badly.

“Don’t ever do that again,” Luo Wenzhou said, his voice heavy with grief. “Don’t get yourself hurt, not for me.”

Fei Du didn’t smile. He didn’t nod. He just watched Luo Wenzhou with that same careful gaze as always. He didn’t agree, didn’t swear, didn’t lie, didn’t tell the truth. He simply stayed where he was, breathing slowly in Luo Wenzhou’s arms. That was all he’d ever wanted, all he’d ever dared to want. Now he could die happy if it meant Luo Wenzhou would be safe.

He returned the embrace, burying his nose against Luo Wenzhou’s neck, tasting his scent on his tongue.

His partner.
His sheep pretending to be a wolf.
His beloved.

Fei Du was ready to do anything, honestly, anything, to make him happy.