valathena



Recent bookmarks

  1. Public Bookmark *

    Tags
    Summary

    In the center of it all is a man…

    A man who is scrambling around a small convection oven on the counter, trying to scrape out the blackened remains of what Hua Cheng assumes were once cookies. He appears to be in his early thirties and, despite his frantic movements and creased expression, the first word that comes to Hua Cheng’s mind is: soft.

    His hair, a beautiful, earthy chestnut brown color, is pulled back into a loose bun on the top of his head. A few strands hang free, framing his face. He wears cuffed jeans and a cream-colored turtle-neck sweater that swamps his frame and falls down to his thighs, giving him a cozy, shapeless figure.

    or: Hua Cheng is a famous muralist who is losing his passion for art when he meets Xie Lian, single father to five-year old Guzi. Xie Lian is in the midst of opening a flower shop and Hua Cheng, instantly captivated by this man with warm eyes and a soft nature, offers to help.

    Language:
    English
    Words:
    143,612
    Chapters:
    20/20
    Comments:
    717
    Kudos:
    3,153
    Bookmarks:
    850
    Hits:
    83,454

    23 Feb 2026

  2. Rec *

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    Summary

    The Cursed Shackles are gone. Even so, Xie Lian has caught himself still wrapping bandages around his throat to cover what is no longer there.

    Hua Cheng notices Xie Lian's constant fiddling with his bandage wrappings, how he absentmindedly brushes his fingers along the bare skin of his throat when those bandages are off, and rolls his ankle when barefoot. The same spots his cursed shackles once rested.

    So he decides to help fix his beloved's problem.

    Language:
    English
    Words:
    2,320
    Chapters:
    1/1
    Collections:
    1
    Comments:
    26
    Kudos:
    2,098
    Bookmarks:
    299
    Hits:
    13,876

    23 Feb 2026

  3. Rec 3

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    Summary

    His stomach aches, and his head throbs in pain. Every time he confronts that past, every time he lets himself loose his death grip on the comfort of this fourth wall, he suffers. Sometimes, it even feels like he himself has become a character. Or maybe that’s his selfish desire, to be erased by the narrative, lost in the snow field between each letter, wandering forever, quietly, safely.

    Language:
    English
    Words:
    4,364
    Chapters:
    1/1
    Kudos:
    18
    Bookmarks:
    3
    Hits:
    109

    21 Feb 2026

  4. Rec 22

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    Summary

    “Huh, this bastard’s face really is wasted on him.”

    Joonghyuk's head is tilted left and right, really not great for his consciousness which has begun to slip further and further away. Kim Dokja is still musing low and thoughtless like a drone of rain in the background: “Jeez. If he wasn’t such an asshole, even I’d fall for him.”

    [Target [Kim Dokja]'s affection towards User [Yoo Joonghyuk] is currently 82. Keep up the good work, User!]

    Joonghyuk’s consciousness is shrinking fast but even then he has the awareness to question why exactly the affection stat is so stupidly high when Kim Dokja drops his face unceremoniously back onto the ground and leaves. Yoo Joonghyuk passes out and misses the entirety of the Absolute Throne’s demolition and Kim Dokja’s troublesome antics.

    Yoo Joonghyuk’s guide on navigating otome game affection systems when the target is the annoying conman who wants to be your companion, and also dodging constellations who now think you're a homosexual. (You are not a homosexual.)

    Or: Yoo Joonghyuk gets an otome affection system that shows him Kim Dokja’s affection stat. It's bizarrely high.

    Language:
    English
    Words:
    7,711
    Chapters:
    1/3
    Comments:
    18
    Kudos:
    131
    Bookmarks:
    22
    Hits:
    646

    21 Feb 2026

  5. Public Bookmark *

    Tags
    Summary

    Xie Lian stumbles across something in Ghost City.

    ---

    Later that night, though, when they’re naked in their bed together and lazily trading kisses, Hua Cheng decides to tease him about it again. “You know, you don’t need a novelty dildo stall,” he tells him, smirking. “Your husband is a shapeshifter.” And he changes out his dick for a bright blue one with ridges and a bumpy head.

    Xie Lian blushes, as expected, but he looks interested.

    Hua Cheng raises his eyebrows and grins. “Gege?”

    Language:
    English
    Words:
    1,817
    Chapters:
    1/1
    Comments:
    58
    Kudos:
    1,444
    Bookmarks:
    172
    Hits:
    14,657

    20 Feb 2026