After Being Resurrected, I Found My Arrogant Childhood Friend Had Become a Desperate Widower

[Seriously working on a backlog 😋]

[Shameless, master-of-switching-faces, gravity-based, secretly passionate guy x sour-faced, sharp-tongued but soft-hearted rose]

[Includes plenty of size and skin tone differences, probably some content people would call vulgar, and an age dynamic that shifts from younger-on-top to older-on-top]

High schooler Wen Lian transmigrates eight years into the future and finds someone visiting his grave.

The man at the grave is handsome and tall. Kneeling in the rain, he lowers his eyes and wipes the photo on the headstone.

Wen Lian: "..." Holy crap, am I seeing a ghost?

He reflexively offers the man a tissue.

The man turns around, and Wen Lian knows that strikingly handsome face all too well.

It's Zhao Ximing, his childhood friend. They've bickered since they were little and only recently parted on bad terms.

A burning, heavy gaze fixes unwaveringly on Wen Lian, deep and earnest.

Wen Lian feels completely uncomfortable. "...Are you crazy?"

The expected retort and taunt never come. Boundless silence stretches between them.

"Yeah." The man, reeking of alcohol, cups his face and murmurs, "Baby."

A scorching kiss, mingled with rain, lands hard on Wen Lian's lips.

Wen Lian: "..."

Maybe I really am dead, haha.

*

Eight years are enough to change the world.

But the one who changed the most was his childhood friend, Zhao Ximing, several years younger than him.

The once-defiant boy has transformed into a man of grace and power, so mature and composed that he seems ready to turn into an aloof Buddhist monk at any moment.

Wen Lian happens to overhear other people's opinion of Zhao Ximing these days: sinister, ruthless, and terrifying.

Confused, he looks at the childhood friend in front of him, who no longer argues or runs his mouth, treats him almost too well, takes him in without hesitation, gives him whatever he wants, spends money like water, and personally handles everything.

...How is he terrifying? It seems more like something's wrong with his head.

--He even changes the pants of a drunk Wen Lian, both the inner and outer ones.

That's a bit much! Straight guy Wen Lian tugs at his pants, trying to break the awkwardness with a joke. "Are you trying to be my dad? Haha--"

After a long pause.

"Then call me Daddy." The man speaks casually, his fingertips brushing Wen Lian's calf. "Big brother Wen Lian."

Wen Lian can't laugh anymore. "..."

Something's not right.

*

Wen Lian keeps feeling that something is off. Thinking he may be too dependent on Zhao Ximing, he decides to move out.

By chance, he gets in touch with another friend he hasn't seen in years. Wen Lian secretly packs his bags and calls a cab. Just as he wonders whether he should tell Zhao Ximing--

"Where are you going?"

A familiar voice comes from the driver's seat, casual and unhurried.

A reply arrives on his phone.

[Friend: Holy crap, I had no idea you were still alive. All news about you has been locked down tight. I couldn't find anything, even when I looked.]

[Friend: Have you run into Zhao Ximing? He's been crazy these past eight years, calling you his wife every day. You should stay away from him.]

[Friend: Otherwise, Lianlian, your butt's in danger :) I'll explain when we meet.]

The car doors lock, and the signal cuts out.

Zhao Ximing turns to look at him, his voice warm and gentle, yet to Wen Lian it feels as cold as the rain outside.

"I'll take you."

Wen Lian: "…"

Maybe he should just let him be his dad, haha.

[Bonus scene]

They used to be about the same height, but now Zhao Ximing can easily hoist Wen Lian onto one shoulder with one hand and toss him around for fun.

Wen Lian sighs. "...You're bigger than me now."

Zhao Ximing: "In every way."

"Want to find out?"

Wen Lian can't resist a challenge, brimming with confidence. "Come on! Are we arm wrestling, or--"

The next second, his legs are easily pried apart.

Wen Lian is defeated.

2026.2.19

Theme: Make the most of every moment of life