Nothing New is Sweeter

Moats and boats and waterfalls,
Alley-ways and pay phone calls,
I've been everywhere with you.

We laugh until we think we'll die,
Barefoot on a summer night
Nothin' new is sweeter than with you

The next chapter of The world may be tiny but the heart's enormous is being difficult and I have a feeling I won't get much done until I get this out there.

There is not much that merits the rating in this chapter, yet, but keep in mind that the next chapter will be very much M-rated.

Here goes nothing.

For Leia, who held my hand through this.

One

In theory, after the ceremonies and the wine and everything else, there would be guests waiting for Yong Qi outside and he would need to go out and receive their congratulations in the form of more wine.

(Sometimes Yong Qi wondered whether the whole ritual of congratulatory wine was a thinly-veiled attempt to give bridegrooms a chance to get so absurdly drunk so that even if they didn't like their bride, what needed to be done would get done anyway. Assuming they didn't pass out before the event.)

Considering it was late into the night when everyone was in their proper places, however, and the guests have more or less drifted off by that point, Yong Qi did not at all regret losing that part of the wedding, nor the wine. He really would rather not be intoxicated on his wedding night, thank you.

So in the end, beside the wine with Xiao Yan Zi, he (and Xiao Yan Zi) only had another cup of wine, with the "thieves" who were spying outside their door, before shooing their giggling and smirking friends away.

They were left alone (really alone) for barely a few minutes, enough time for Yong Qi to realise, considering both of them likely slept little the night before (or at least, he knew he slept very little the night before due to the anticipation), have been up since the crack of dawn and gone through an extremely emotionally draining day, and the very late hour, that it was unlikely that anything more exciting than sleep was going to happen that night at all.

For an instant, he considered doing away with sleep altogether. Then, no, they were exhausted; the wine would make Xiao Yan Zi nod off soon, he could tell, and they didn't have the time.

Just as he told himself this, there was a knock on their door and the maids came in to help Xiao Yan Zi get ready for bed.

He watched, silently yet unabashed, as Ming Yue and Cai Xia first helped Xiao Yan Zi to wash the makeup from her face with a damp cloth. Yong Qi beheld her natural face, unhindered by the heavy makeup, and thought that she looked infinitely more beautiful.

Xiao Yan Zi, who, ever since the maids entered the room, had been staring at the floor in nervousness and embarrassment, chose that moment to glance quickly up at him. Their eyes caught for a moment and Yong Qi knew he was radiating his desire for her in that brief gaze. A beautiful red blush flamed her cheeks and she glanced away again, looking at neither him nor the maids. Yong Qi could not look away, however, nor could he hold back a rather impish smile to himself. After all, she was his wife now – how wonderful that sounded! – it would probably be odd if he did not enjoy the sight of her.

Ming Yue and Cai Xia sat Xiao Yan Zi and undid her hair. Yong Qi found himself biting the side of his cheek to stop betraying his desires as he watched waves of black hair fell down Xiao Yan Zi back. His hands were clenched behind his back to hide the fact that they were trembling with the want to run through the silky smoothness. It was with disappointment that he saw the locks plaited into a long braid. Though it was probably more practical, it would be rather uncomfortable to sleep with such long hair unbound.

Xiao Yan Zi was eventually led to sit neatly on the edge of the bed. Yong Qi didn't follow, though he did turn to look at her, sitting there, staring determinedly down at her hands clasped in her lap. It seemed like eons before the maids gathered up everything and silently left them alone again.

He was alone.

She was his.

His wife. His beautiful wife.

They were alone. Truly. For the rest of the night.

She didn't look up at him, though he could tell by the way her hands clenched that she was trying to not nervously twist them.

Yong Qi approached her, cautiously, because he knew if he moved too quickly, he would be lost. As much as he desired it, he had to make it perfect for her, as well.

He sat down next to her, but still she would not look at him.

"Xiao Yan Zi," he whispered, tilting her chin up with his fingers. She met his eyes finally, the beautiful blush still on her cheeks. He was rendered speechless for a moment, just basking in the sight of her. His wife. His Xiao Yan Zi.

"You are beautiful," he whispered, smiling. She blushed even harder, if that was possible. He leaned in, slowly as to not scare her, and placed a gentle kiss on her lips. The taste of her was exquisite, and he had to restrain himself before he scared her with how he truly wanted to kiss her. Thus, he only dared for the kiss to be brief, but it was still more passionate than any kiss they have ever shared and certainly longer than the kiss that their inconsiderate friends interrupted earlier. It made her gasp as he reluctantly and slowly parted from her, yet still resting his forehead against hers.

"That was nice," she sighed breathily.

He gave a rather shaky breath at the feather-light teasing of her breath on his face.

"Are you all right?" she asked, straightening, looking at him and sounding concerned at how tense he must seem.

"Yes," he breathed, "you just quite take my breath away."

"I didn't do anything," she said, puzzled.

"You are here, you are beautiful, that's enough," he said, still breathlessly.

She smiled and leaned into his arms again. Then she opened her mouth to…yawn.

Yong Qi burst out laughing.

"I'm sorry!" she exclaimed, horrified. "I – "

Yong Qi was still chuckling. Taking her hand and squeezing it, he said, "Don't worry about it. I know you've had a long day."

He brushed a kiss against her temple.

"But what about – " she asked, hesitantly.

She was nervous, despite her efforts to be otherwise. At least she was not acting scared. He would not wish her to be, not when tonight it would just be the idea of it. Then again, he could not entirely assume that she was completely aware of what tonight was supposed to entail.

"Xiao Yan Zi," he said softly, cupping her cheeks gently, so that she looked at him. "Do you know what to expect of this night?"

He hoped Ling Fei had thought to speak to her of it, so at least she would not be totally innocent on the subject.

For his part, it sufficed to say that a prince's education could be very thorough.

"I – well, I know of the…mechanics of it," she said in a voice that denoted she was speaking under some great duress.

There was something in the words and the way she said them that alarmed Yong Qi. She must have understood his expression, however, because she immediately said, "I don't mean – I mean, I've never…It's just that, when you are a servant, sometimes you…see things, and men do not always respect their maids' wishes – "

He took both her hands and looked at her seriously. "Xiao Yan Zi, please tell me no one has ever tried to hurt you."

She gave him a smile that held no pleasure that he had wished he would not have to see that day. "No, you need not worry. I would not have allowed myself to get involved with you at all if I could not give you what you deserve – "

"That was not what I meant!" he exclaimed. Surely she couldn't think he was simply asking for the sake of her virginity alone?

He forgot, sometimes, the life she lived before the palace, and how horrific it truly could be for a young girl without protection. He chose not to think of it, not because he didn't care, but because he cared too much. He was sure if he ever thought of her life before him, always under the power of men stronger than her, and if he had allowed his mind to wander, he would have come up with all sort of horrible scenarios that would have been impossible to ask her about.

His fear must show now though, because she placed at hand on his cheek and called gently, "Yong Qi."

He looked at her, so precious to him, and could not bear the thought.

"Thank you," she whispered.

"For what?" he asked, choked.

"For caring. I didn't mean to alarm you. Truly, nothing so bad had ever happened to me."

He nodded with relief, and took deep breaths to get his emotions under control again.

Still, even with what she said, whatever she was forced to learn by accident could never have been particularly pleasant.

"Xiao Yan Zi," he said earnestly, "I promise you, whatever you think you know, when there is love, affection and respect such as we have for each other, it will be nothing but pleasure."

She nodded, and smiled softly.

And this, he thought, was all the more reason to wait until they had the luxury of time and alertness. So, for now, he only leaned in, and brushed a gentle kiss on her lips.

"Don't be nervous or afraid," he whispered when their lips parted, "you have nothing to fear from me."

"I know."

"Though, tonight, perhaps sleep now?"

She looked up at him, startled, but then smiled sheepishly. "Sleep sounds good right now, actually."

Yong Qi chuckled.

"You don't mind?" she asked anxiously.

He shook his head, smiling lovingly at her. "It can wait. We have a life time together now. Right now, neither of us will ever keep awake tomorrow if we don't get some sleep."

Then, sliding off the bed and kneeling at her feet, he slipped her shoes off. It seemed like the safest place to start and it made her giggle.

He held out his hand and pulled her up to her feet. Then, stroking the collar of her gown with his fingers, he looked at her for permission. She seemed to take a deep breath, then nodded. He slowly undid the buttons on her gown, while she stared at somewhere in the vicinity of his shoulder. He only smiled at her bashfulness, however, and took in the sight of her from this angle – her dark, shining hair gleaming right under his eyes, a faint perfume wafting up, filling his senses…

The heavy gown was pushed to the ground, leaving her in a red blouse. Yong Qi gazed at the way her neck curved into the red silk and raise a hand to stroke the soft, smooth skin of her neck, which seemed to arc, causing her to look up at him.

Yong Qi gave her a gentle smile. His imagination would like to sweep her into his arms and place her on the bed, but his intellect told him that he loved her more than that, and that the reward of waiting now will be more pleasure than any swift consummation could bring.

She gazed at him for a moment, before a mischievous smile curled on her lips and she, in a moment of boldness, tucked a finger into the side of his belt at his waist and pulled him in closer to her. He allowed her this, and more, when she worked away at the button of his shirt and her small hands guided it off his shoulders.

For the sake of his own peace of mind that night, he forced his imagination back from thinking about the feel of her hands guiding another layer of clothing off his bare shoulders.

Yong Qi could see the way her chest rose and fell as she took deep breaths, looking up at him with a loving smile. They had never been this bare to each other before, though in reality both of them were still decently covered enough.

He leaned over and gave her a chaste kiss on the cheek, then another soft kiss on her lips. She drew her arms up and wrapped them around his neck, and his entire body seemed to suddenly become a thousand times more sensitive to her touch. He pulled her in by the small of her back and allowed himself to press his lips more ardently against hers, not enough to get himself lost in the passion, but just enough to satisfy his current cravings.

Somehow, he managed to guide her gently so that she lay down on the bed, with him next to her, a blanket over them both, so that they were entrapped in a cocoon of red fabric.

He turned and pulled her gently into his arms, resting his cheek against her soft hair. She snuggled up against his chest, the blanket almost covering the whole of her head, and he could not help but pull her closer, tighter. He could feel every curve that touched him through thin materials of their remaining clothings and it took all his willpower to only gently place his hand on her waist, and not dipping lower to slip under her shirt.

Tonight, he would keep it all chaste, as difficult as that seemed right then. It took him several deep breaths before he could speak in a tone that would not alarm her.

"Relax," he whispered, for she was as tense as he was, but probably for a different reason. "I'm not going to eat you, you know."

"It's just, this entire situation is so very new to me," she whispered, a bit muffled against his chest.

"I should hope so," he teased, and it made her give a nervous chuckle.

He pulled slightly away so he could look at her face. "I love you," he whispered.

Her expression seemed to melt into one of adoration. "I love you too," she said, smiling shyly. He ventured a slight kiss on her forehead, before whispering "Good night".

There were ceremonies the next morning that took what seemed like ages, but by early afternoon, they were free to spend the rest of the day however they wanted with each other. It was incredible, how on the first day of their marriage, they had to spend half of it in the company of others when all he wanted to do was to be alone with her.

"Are we done for today?" she asked as they made their way back to Jing Yang Gong. He resisted the urge to hold her hand in the middle of the garden though possibly no one could blame him if he did.

"Yes, thankfully."

They had reached the gate of Jing Yang Gong and he led her inside. She stopped in the middle of the hall, however, and looked around.

"What is it?" he asked.

She looked at him pensively. "I just realised I have no idea where anything is in this house. I think I know how to get from here to the study, and that's it."

Of course. She had never had chance to explore the house and was completely covered the night before being led to the bedroom. He chuckled. "Well, I can give you a tour, now."

The tour took a little longer than he anticipated because he could not help stealing kisses whenever they were free from the eyes of the servants, allowing his hands wander more than he previously dared. Xiao Yan Zi did not seem to mind, though he didn't think she could stop blushing. He also wasn't sure whether any of the servants caught glimpses despite his efforts to be discreet but he didn't really care. They were newly-wed, he was supposed to be all over his wife, especially considering the night before.

They passed the rest of the afternoon in each other's company until dinner came. He dismissed the servants from the dining room, allowing them to indulge in just each other's company. It was a rather more elaborate fare than he was used to, but it was hardly food that Yong Qi was hungry for, so he proceeded in making Xiao Yan Zi eat, much to her light-hearted grumbles.

After dinner, Xiao Yan Zi demanded that they played a game of weiqi.

It was not, overall, a great success.

Most of their exchanges went like this:

"Are you sure you want to make that move?"

"Of course! WHAT! No, I want to change my move." – At which point Yong Qi tried not to laugh and just let her change.

Or:

"Why on earth would you make that move?"

"It's called bluffing, Xiao Yan Zi."

"It's not bluffing if you tell me about it."

"Can you see what the bluff is?"

She pouted and stuck her tongue at out at him.

Or:

"Stop it!"

"Stop what?"

"Staring at me!"

He smirked. "Why?"

She blushed and squirmed in her seat. "It's weird," she mumbled, looking around the room, where there were only the two of them.

"We've been alone before."

"Yes, but not like this," she said, waving her hand around vaguely.

He smiled, but didn't say anything.

"Oh Heaven, stop it!" she said, blushing even harder now, burying her face in her hands.

Yong Qi laughed. "Xiao Yan Zi, there is something very wrong if I'm not staring at you right now."

Eventually, the entire game was abandoned, because even when Yong Qi was not remotely concentrating on the game, Xiao Yan Zi wasn't making much headway with it either.

"Yong Qi?"

"Hmmm?"

"Do you think we can do it again?"

"Do what again?"

"The whole thing with the veil and the wine last night."

"Again?"

"Well, it's just that I want to, just once, have my wedding veil lifted and not get the urge to scream because it's Er Kang standing before me, or spend the entire ten seconds it takes for it to happen the second time holding my breath, desperately hoping that it's you and nothing's gone wrong again. I want to feel happy seeing you, not relief that it's over. And to drink my wedding wine without ten other people looking in at us."

He smiled and was looking at her with such love in his eyes that she blushed again and looked away. He grabbed her hands and kissed them both, before place a finger on her chin, tilting her face up to look at him.

"I didn't realise you were quite such the romantic," he whispered, his face very close to hers.

"Well, tonight is sort of our real wedding night, right?" she whispered back.

He smiled and brushed his lips against her forehead softly, understanding what she was not saying.

Xiao Yan Zi insisted on going into the bedroom first and so Yong Qi ended up spending a few moments alone the in study. When he decided that enough time had passed for her to get ready, he entered the bedroom with a tray bearing the wine and two cups.

The room was softly lighted with candles and Xiao Yan Zi sat neatly on the edge of the bed, a red veil thrown over her head, but in the clothes she had worn that day, not the wedding clothes.

He placed the wine on the table in the middle of the room before approaching her. Sitting down beside her, he could hear a soft giggle. He took one of her hands and raised it to his lips, kissing softly. Then, still holding her hand, with his other hand, he reached over and in one sweep, drew the red veil away from her face.

Xiao Yan Zi looked up at him and smiled radiantly. For a moment, like the night before, he could only stare at her, feeling immensely blessed that she was here, and she was his. The difference was, tonight, it was just them in the room, and he could stare for as long as he wished without worrying that someone would interrupt or of embarrassing her.

Then, quite unexpectedly, Xiao Yan Zi leaned in, and placed her lips on his, kissing him hard. Taken off guard, his arm found way around her shoulder for support, but still, he lost his balance and fell back onto the bed, more or less with her partially on top of him. She placed a hand on his cheek while his arms slid down to her waist, but neither of them made any attempt to immediately sit up. It was only when their lips parted and Xiao Yan Zi opened her eyes and saw how close their faces were, that she straightened and sat up, a blush on her cheek but her eyes shining with happiness. Clearing her throat and tucking a nonexistent stray strand of hair behind her ear, she looked up at him shyly, smiling. Yong Qi could only smile back, and kissed her hand again.

To give her a moment to gather herself, for she did look rather flustered at her own boldness, Yong Qi stood up and poured them two cups of wine. Then, handing one to her, he sat down by her side again.

"I promise you, my love, Xiao Yan Zi, that in this life, my heart will only ever love you," he said.

She gazed at him with a loving smile for a moment, then held her cup out. Together, their arms entwined and they drank, savouring the sweetness of the wine that was the symbol of the start of their life together.

Chapter 2 to follow and complete in a few days.

PS: Oh, and this is, more than most, something I'd really appreciate comments on...I've basically already committed myself by posting this first chapter but there's a lot of doubt involved with this story and whether I should post the second which considering the subject and the rating, you can imagine why...so some prodding is appreciated...