Chapter Text
It was odd, returning to a house that was not his own this late into the night, when all his mind sought was the comfort of his bed after a very long work day.
As Blade tucked a hand into his pocket to find the keys to the door, he slowly trudged up the pathway to the house that he and Dan Heng now shared. Correction: begrudgingly shared.
After they agreed to the deal that Fu Xuan proposed, she wasted no time in getting everything ready. It made Blade suspect that she probably had everything ready even before she called for the meeting.
Blade quickly inserted the keys into the keyhole and turned it, wanting nothing more than to rush in and flop onto the couch and go to sleep. One good thing about working late though, was that Dan Heng should have gone to sleep already, so he didn't have to face him today—
The door opened to reveal a figure slumped over the dining table, peacefully asleep. His hair fell over his closed eyes, and his usually set and sharp jawline now held a soft vulnerability that Blade hadn't seen in years.
This man... Blade tsked internally, but he couldn't deny the picture that Dan Heng unintentionally painted right in front of his eyes, pulling at his heartstrings until it hurt. It hurt so bad that he wanted to tear it out of his chest, the same urge he had back when he laid in his arms during the audition, feeling his warmth through his lips touching his own.
It was cruel, the things that Dan Heng had inflicted on him ever since their lives crossed paths again.
Blade shut the door and turned away from Dan Heng's sleeping silhouette. He didn't want to have to deal with him and think about whether he should wake him up or leave him be just yet. So he turned on his phone as he took off his shoes, decisively going through the notifications that went unread during his work hours.
***
Two hours ago
alpha wolf (i lost a bet)🔒
@sw
@blade_priv @nilkafka explain. now. give me the tea.
(quote — Xianzhou Gossip ✔ @xianzhougossip: BREAKING: Dan Heng and Blade are moving in together?)
4 likes
kafka 🔒 @nilkafka
— replying to @sw
Oh yeah
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kafka 🔒 @nilkafka
— replying to @nilkafka
Bladie's actually living with him fu xuan's request
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kafka 🔒 @nilkafka
— replying to @nilkafka
That's not the right apartment though i can give u the address
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alpha wolf (i lost a bet)🔒 @sw
— replying to @nilkafka
send ill go interrogate all the juicy deets out of him
—
Xianzhou Gossip ✔
@xianzhougossip
BREAKING: Dan Heng and Blade are moving in together?
(photo — one photo was of Dan Heng entering a luxury apartment building. Another photo was of Blade walking out of the same apartment building, his identity recognisable despite the sunglasses over his face. The last photo is of a mover truck near the building with Blade standing right beside it.)
2,973 retweets | 1,799 quote tweets | 45.1k likes
Yuii @yuioo23
— replying to @xianzhougossip
WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK????
Blade is the best 🗡️🗡️🗡️ @blaaadie
— replying to @xianzhougossip
i may be a solo blade stan but i bet my everything that the both of them are held there against their will...
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theonlystan @renheng1
— replying to @blaaadie
or the both of them agreed to it u never know its not like the nwtr director can force them to live tgt
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Blade is the best 🗡️🗡️🗡️ @blaaadie
— replying to @xianzhougossip
...ngl
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hassan @hassanhere00
— replying to @blaaadie
the infamous solo blade stan and renheng stan interacting?! in a civil way too...
jy my no. 1 @jingyuanontoppp
— replying to @xianzhougossip
this is why i fucking hate gossip accs man like leave them be they are ppl with privacy
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jy my no. 1 @jingyuanontoppp
— replying to @jingyuanontoppp
and isnt it a stretch to say that they are moving in with each other? what if they just happen to live in the same building? maybe they're doing this under contract? you never know
||
dfdh @irelike112
— replying to @jingyuanontoppp
usually i get entertained by this acc but ngl giving other people the resources to dox them is going a little too far
oine @eialoine
— replying to @xianzhougossip
address now ill go save dan heng from that bitch
.
.
.
astral express unofficial chat
Caelus (your local trash collector no.2):
@dh bro wtf
[link — Xianzhou Gossip ✔ @xianzhougossip: BREAKING: Dan Heng and Blade are moving in together?]
March (march but 7th ver.):
?!?!?!?!?!?
March (march but 7th ver.):
is this real @dh
Stelle (your local trash collector no.1):
gasp holy shit just when i thought it could not get any worse (better)
March (march but 7th ver.):
LMAOOO right
Stelle (your local trash collector no.1):
@dh we need answers LKJSFAKJSD
dh is online
Me (dh):
no
Caelus (your local trash collector no.2):
i see
Caelus (your local trash collector no.2):
so you are indeed living with blade
Stelle (your local trash collector no.1):
how did that even happen ToT
Stelle (your local trash collector no.1):
stay safe tho ur gonna get doxxed like this
Me (dh):
it's fine the apartment building was blade's old house
Stelle (your local trash collector no.1):
?
Caelus (your local trash collector no.2):
?
March (march but 7th ver.):
?
Stelle (your local trash collector no.1):
wait now im just confused what are u doing at blade's old place
Caelus (your local trash collector no.2):
its so funny how xg managed to get the fact that ur living tgt but get the apartment wrong...
Caelus (your local trash collector no.2):
and despite knowing that u admitted too...💀
Me (dh):
1. i never admitted to anything
Caelus (your local trash collector no.2):
uk u cant lie with just a no dan heng 😁
Me (dh):
2. i was there because he claimed i left some stuff there that i should take away.
March (march but 7th ver.):
WHAT
March (march but 7th ver.):
he kept those things for three years straight???
Stelle (your local trash collector no.1):
very interesting.
Me (dh):
thats his problem its not like i kept his stuff
Caelus (your local trash collector no.2):
whatever you say amigo
March (march but 7th ver.):
actually i feel kinda betrayed dan heng :((( cant believe we found out through xianzhou gossip instead of frm you
Stelle (your local trash collector no.1):
fr >:
Me (dh):
dyt i chose to agree with this
March (march but 7th ver.):
i mean... its blade... so...
Stelle (your local trash collector no.1):
high probability of yes and no
Caelus (your local trash collector no.2):
ngl if ur ans was yes i would believe it
Stelle (your local trash collector no.1):
agree
March (march but 7th ver.):
agree
Me (dh):
.
Me (dh):
thanks.
March (march but 7th ver.):
<3
dh went offline
March (march but 7th ver.):
WAIT DONT GO OFFLINE YET TELL US THE REST OF THE DEETS
***
Dan Heng shut off his phone — yes, he had gotten a completely new one so that he could at least feed himself digitally through his private accounts — and placed it down onto the dining table, a sigh lingering at the corner of his mouth.
While he was certain that Fu Xuan wasn't the one who spread the news about the two of them living together, he should have known that paper could never hide what seems to be a growing fire[1]. Of course the news was going to get out. But he did not expect it to be found out so fast — after all it has only been a week since they both moved into the same house.
And what a long week it has been.
To Dan Heng, it felt like an entire century had passed ever since he started staying in this house. He had already started to wonder how many more centuries would have to pass before they would be able to boot themselves out of this mess.
But thank aeons that today's dinner was peaceful, for Blade was out late to retake one of the scenes in a movie that he filmed not long ago. Apparently the director wasn't too happy with how the scene was shot and wanted to try it again even though the film was deep in its editing stage.
At least, that was what Blade told him in the morning, when he was about to leave the house for work.
"So I'm going to be late today," Blade had finished his explanation as he wore his shoes, not looking at Dan Heng.
"You do know that you don't need to tell me, right?" Dan Heng said after a beat. "It's... not like I'm going to stay up for you."
We're not like that anymore. He wanted to say, wanted to remind him, but the words did not come. Could not come.
He could see Blade pause in his movements, his hands hovering over his boots. Then he heard him grunt, muttering, "Old habits die hard." Dan Heng was pretty sure that those words weren't for him to hear, but he heard them anyway.
And Blade was unfortunately right. Old habits do die hard. Because what, pray tell, what is Dan Heng doing sitting in the dining room with his computer, past the hours he was supposed to sleep, glancing at the door every so often?
He stared at his computer, at the thing that he had been working on for the past two hours. It's because I got work to do, he convinced himself. I would not stay up just for that man.
It had been an unspoken agreement between them a long, long time ago, that they would stay up and wait for each other until the other came home, back when they were together and happily living with each other.
But while Dan Heng could barely remember those days (or maybe he just did not want to), somehow his body still did, forcing him to stay up wide awake until a certain someone steps through that door.
He could almost swear that moving into this house was a whole new curse of its own, because he kept finding himself falling back into a rhythm that he lost three years ago. He couldn't believe that the gap of three years wasn't enough to make his subconsciousness forget.
But the both of them aren't dating anymore. The love they had for each other had crashed and burned, or rather, melted and moulded itself into hatred.
The Blade of today wasn't going to thank him for waiting on him. And the Dan Heng of today wasn't worried about his safety or whereabouts — on the contrary, everything would turn for the better if he crashed somewhere out there and got hospitalised in his very objective opinion.
Still, there Dan Heng sat, accompanied by the repetitive tick tick tick of the clock on the living room wall, the widening gap between its hands being a constant reminder that time was crawling further and further past midnight.
Not sitting here to wait. I'm sitting here to do work, his mind furiously supplied.
And not ten minutes later, Dan Heng gave up. His mind was far too sleepy to type out anything coherent. So he let his fingers leave the keyboard and pick up his phone again, scrolling through his messages and notifications as he put his head down onto the table for a mental break.
20+ unread messages from astral express unofficial chat
March (march but 7th ver.): WAIT DONT GO OFFLINE YET TELL US THE REST OF THE DEETS
March (march but 7th ver.): DAN HENG COME BACKKK
Stelle (your local trash collector no.1): come back tell us how reliving with him is like
Caelus (your local trash collector no.2): yea
Caelus (your local trash collector no.2): and what did blade ask you to collect bro
.
.
.
Dan Heng shook his head as soon as he saw these notifications pop up (or as best as he could with his head on the table), but couldn't help but feel an endearing smile tug at the corner of his mouth. It was very like his friends to bombard him with so many questions like that.
Unfortunately for them though, he wasn't planning on answering them, at least not straightforwardly. He would prefer not having to revisit the entire week all over again...
***
One week and two days ago
Himeko (himekojizi)
hi dan heng
kafka had just contacted me
she said that blade wants your number
The message had popped up on his phone while he was packing everything he needed for the next few months into boxes. One of his eyebrows instantly shot up as his eyes ran over the message. He didn't think that this request would be made until filming actually started.
After they broke up three years ago, Dan Heng swapped out his phone and number altogether, determined to erase Blade's presence from his life.
He couldn't bear the pain that choked his heart and burned his eyes with unshed tears every time he accidentally scrolled upwards in his photo gallery. He couldn't handle the way his throat clogged up every time he saw Blade's name hovering in the midst of his chats. He didn't want to feel temptation seizing his fingers every time he came across it, and risk succumbing to it.
He didn't want to click it open and scroll through their last, unfinished conversation again and again, each time weaving a different scenario of how it could have ended in his head. Even if he knew that there would forever be no ending to it, for they have ended before it could.
But in the end, even after buying an entirely new phone, he still couldn't bear to throw his old one away. So he locked it somewhere deep inside his closet, and threw away the key. Quite literally. He flung it down the drain.
Dan Heng had supposed that Blade did the same as he did and never contacted him ever again, for the phone never rang with the special ringtone that he had set for him. And if he did, well, the phone must have died before he could.
But why now? Surely it wasn't because of Nowhere to Run — they hadn't started filming yet. And probably not because of them moving into the same house — if it was he would ask in person when they had to inevitably meet again.
Himeko (himekojizi)
??
what for
i dont know
ill ask her
but dont feel pressured if youre uncomfortable with it i can refuse
sorry, but i don't know either — Forwarded
all bladie said was that he wanted to ask him to do something — Forwarded
Dan Heng stared at the chat. Ask him what? His thumb hovered over the keyboard, his brain hesitating to give a response. While Blade had wormed his way back into his life again through the casting of Nowhere to Run, Dan Heng wasn't sure if he was ready to see his name back in his list of chats again.
tell her no. He typed, yet he couldn't bring himself to press the send button. Then his offending thumb clicked repeatedly on backspace and typed out a whole new word instead.
Himeko (himekojizi)
fine.
you sure?
yea
just give it to her
That decision cost Dan Heng a whole three hours of screen time for he immediately shut off his phone after, not wanting to face the consequence of his actions just yet.
***
When he finally gathered enough courage to turn on his phone again, a new chat had indeed popped up amidst all his other chats.
Clicking it open, he found two curt messages. Straight to the point. Almost rude, if Dan Heng didn't know him and his straightforward nature.
unknown number (+XZ-23211200 | ren)
you still have stuff you left at my house from last time
collect them yourself.
...Maybe it was meant to be rude in the first place.
It was amazing how just two short statements from him could throw Dan Heng completely off guard. And he hated it.
How did Blade still have his things? They cut off all contact three years ago, and Dan Heng had long accepted that he wasn't ever going to get back the things that he lost in Blade's house. Because who in the right mind would think that their ex was going to keep their things?
A part of Dan Heng denied the text — it seemed fake, like it was a trick that Blade pulled to... to do what exactly? For Blade to go through the lengths of getting Kafka to contact Himeko just to play a horrible prank was pointless and not like him at all. Yet it didn't make sense to view the words as true either.
why do u still have it
found it in my closet when packing
take it away its taking up space
two days or im throwing it
fine
ill get it tmr
Geez. Dan Heng grimaced.
He then realised that he hadn't really found out what "it" was, but decided against asking him. Dan Heng wasn't willing to exchange more words with him than he already had.
Staring at the number marked as unknown on his phone, he wondered if he should register it and have his phone recognise it as Blade. But after a long moment of contemplation, he sighed and placed his phone down.
Maybe he really wasn't ready to see Blade on his phone again just yet.
***
One week and one day ago
The nostalgia that Dan Heng felt when he found himself standing outside Blade's apartment building wasn't sudden nor surprising. After all, it had followed him all the way from the second last turn he made on the road, its arms creeping up along his back and curling around his person to constrain his heart in unwanted longing.
The familiar sights that flanked either side of the road reminded him of the many times Blade had brought him back to his apartment, and yet this was the first time in five years that Dan Heng drove down this road alone. And it would probably be the last.
As he entered the apartment lobby and approached the front desk, he wondered why Blade asked him to come around and collect it himself instead of giving it to him when they moved in two days later.
He inquired the old lady who was manning the front desk on how to gain access into the main building. The old lady, who thankfully seemed to be unable to recognise him as the actor and much less know the history between the both of them, looked at him and asked, "Are you Dan Heng? Mr. Blade from the twelfth floor has been expecting you."
After a quick check of his ID, the old lady passed him a keycard. "Mr. Blade isn't at home right now, but he said to let someone called Dan Heng in to collect some things on his dining table. Once you're done, remember to return the keycard to me, okay?"
Dan Heng couldn't help but feel relief pool in his heart. So he didn't have to face Blade today. That's not too bad. He quickly thanked her before taking the keycard and finding his way to Blade's door on the twelfth floor.
He reached Blade's apartment in no time, and opened the door without hesitation, wanting to get this over and done with quickly. But hesitation did eventually hit him when the door swung open, revealing a painfully familiar hallway that led to the main living room.
While there were of course a few differences that the room had with the house in his memory, but ignoring the little different decorations it was as if nothing changed ever since back then.
Dan Heng slowly closed the door behind him and treaded carefully past the living room and into the kitchen, where the dining table was set up.
He could practically hear his heart pounding in his ears as he advanced through the apartment, trying not to stare too hard at his surroundings as he walked, afraid that if he stopped he would spot something and trigger a bittersweet memory. He wasn't too eager to watch the ghosts of Dan Heng and Blade dance to a long forgotten tune of love.
Finally, he reached the dining table, and found what Blade was offering to return. It was a myriad of items, really, all stuffed haphazardly into a box. It was almost as if the person who was packing the stuff could barely take another look at the things that he was shoving into the box.
Dan Heng peered into it, mostly finding his old clothes within the mess, and among them being a few small trinkets they shared in the past. But as he dug deeper into the box, he felt his hand touch something a little rough, a surface that was hidden deep beneath all the clothing.
He pushed the clothing aside to reveal a square canvas underneath, stuck inside the box at an awkward angle. Dan Heng gently fished it out, and was immediately hit with a familiar sight. In his hands he now held an artfully crafted painting, depicting a pond in the midst of a beautiful forest. In the pond floated a few pink lotuses, while the bank was scattered with red spider lilies, those of which seemed to stretch towards the pond, as if reaching for the lotuses.
This painting was painted by him, the Dan Heng of three years before. Painting had been one of his hobbies ever since he was a child, but after he started his career he rarely found the time to paint anymore. But this piece was a one-off, something that he painted for Blade for his birthday.
He could practically hear Blade's voice now, a replay of what he said when Dan Heng presented his gift to him.
***
Three years ago
"How much did this cost?" was Blade's first reaction, his eyebrows lifting.
"Seriously?" Dan Heng deadpanned, crossing his arms. "That's the first thing you say? No thank you, nothing?"
Despite his prompting, no "thank you" came. Instead, Blade gently set the painting onto the table and pulled him in. "Baobei[2], I love you for doing this, but also never spend millions on my birthday ever again. It has our flowers too — did you hire a professional for a custom painting?"
"You know, for all the things you said in the past about loving my art when I finally show them to you, you sure are horrible at recognising it," Dan Heng said into Blade's chest, sinking into his warmth.
He was quickly left cold as Blade pulled away from him, his eyes widening in surprise. "You painted this?"
"What do you think—" Dan Heng was instantly cut off when Blade pulled him in again, but this time Blade crashed his lips with Dan Heng's own, kissing him fervently until he successfully managed to steal Dan Heng's breath away. It was to the point where Dan Heng was convinced that he was planning to steal his lips away too, half-drunk on the taste of his boyfriend.
"What do I think of it?" Blade repeated after they finally broke apart. "I think that if I sell it, I would become a millionaire."
Dan Heng swatted him in the head, but there wasn't much he could do when he was still pressed to the table. "You better hang it on your wall and stare at it everyday."
"Yes, sir," Blade chuckled. "I can't sell it anyway. The art is as beautiful as its artist. I can't let someone else obtain something worth your beauty, right?"
***
One week and one day ago
It kind of hurt, knowing that Blade was returning it to him despite it being a gift and it being something already his. But Dan Heng understood. He would do the same if he was in Blade's shoes too. At least he stuck to his words and returned it to its owner instead of selling it off. So he swallowed the involuntary sting he felt and stuffed the painting back into the box.
Then, with an oddly heavy heart, he picked up the box and walked out of the apartment.
***
Six days ago
Dan Heng stood in front of his new house for the next few months to come, keys in hand and luggage by his side. His fingers fiddled with the keys nervously as he stared at the closed door, and swallowed, hoping to quell the heavy dread in his heart.
It was dumb, hesitating in front of the door like this. From what he heard, Blade had already settled in a few hours ago, which meant that he was already inside the house. Dan Heng wasn't ready to face him and the fact that he was going to be a persistent presence in his life for the large part of the year, but it was now or never.
With a deep breath, he shoved the keys into the keyhole and unlocked the door, and stepped inside the house before he could regret it.
He was immediately greeted by the sight of Blade sitting on the couch in the living room, watching the television. The other must have heard the door open, because he turned around to look at him.
"Took your own sweet time, didn't you?"
"Of course. I'm not excited to see you. Did that hurt your pride?" Dan Heng shot back, locking the door with a slam while taking off his shoes. They were barely one minute in, and they were throwing around jabs already.
Blade ignored his comment. "Look around the house yourself, I'm not touring you."
"And I would never ask," Dan Heng rolled his eyes and finally took his first real look at the house. Despite Fu Xuan's tortuous request, Fu Xuan definitely did not skimp out on the house. It was far beyond Dan Heng's expectations, really.
The living room had an open concept with a tall ceiling, with the huge glass windows and doors on the wall opposite to the front door showcasing the beautifully maintained backyard, complete with a pool. The kitchen hidden away on the far right of the living room was also equally spacious and clean.
There were quite a lot of amenities, such as a tiny, private gym on the first floor, and the study and dance studio for acting practices on the second floor. However, despite all these rooms there was one problem — a huge problem.
The number of bedrooms in his house added up to a grand total of one.
Just one. With only one king-sized bed.
What kind of house has a private gym and has only one bedroom?
Dan Heng could almost swear that Fu Xuan had one of the bedrooms made into the dance studio or the gym to fuck the both of them over.
After realising this devastating fact, he went back down to the living room, where Blade still sat. "What are we going to do about the bedroom?"
"What?"
"The bedroom," Dan Heng repeated, trying to keep irritation out of his voice. "There's only one. You can't tell me that we are going to sleep together in it." As much as they both knew that Dan Heng had meant it in a literal, innocent way, the way Blade's face subtly twitched meant that he definitely thought of something else.
Of nights long lost in shared euphoria... fuck. Dan Heng quickly put a halt to those thoughts.
"Don't flatter yourself, I'm not interested," Blade scoffed. "If you don't want to, you can take the couch then."
"And why should it be me who takes the couch?"
"You complained about the bedroom."
"You said that you weren't interested in sharing a bed," Dan Heng crossed his arms. This conversation was going nowhere, but he didn't want to discuss it further, so he threw out a solution. "...What if we just take turns everyday."
Blade shrugged. "Whatever you say."
"Also, we need to set some ground rules," Dan Heng continued. This was a topic that he had been thinking of discussing with Blade for the past few days. If he was going to be forced to live with his ex, they should at least set some boundaries. After their relationship, the both of them were not really... people who could peacefully coexist anymore.
A dry laugh. "You weren't this strict or bossy last time."
"I hadn't broken up with you yet last time," the sentence made its way out of Dan Heng's throat before he could think it over. It wasn't a long sentence, but those few mere words seemed to fill the space between them and thicken the air, stringing up so much tension until it cut and reopened old wounds.
So Dan Heng decided to take advantage of Blade's stunned silence and rub the salt in. "We ignore each other in this house. Don't talk to me unless it's absolutely necessary, and I won't disturb you. We'll do our own chores and do our own things as if we live alone. Our relationship is as messy as it is already, and we shouldn't complicate it more."
"Glad we think the same, ex-boyfriend," Blade emphasised as he turned back to look at the TV screen.
Dan Heng simply walked away, sticking to the newly set rules by not giving him the satisfaction of his reaction.
***
Three days ago
For the first time in three days, both their schedules were mostly empty for the day, so the two had to be confined in the house and within each other's presence. But since they were still actively ignoring each other, it didn't turn out to be too suffocating. They simply pretended that the other did not exist.
Luckily, the morning managed to roll by without a hitch, with Dan Heng lounging in the study for a good chunk of the time the sun took to climb to the highest point of the sky. He took his time to comb through script after script that Himeko had sent him — or rather, scripts that Dan Heng requested Himeko to send over.
With the filming of Nowhere to Run around the corner, there was really no point in reviewing the offers that came in recently since Dan Heng wouldn't have much time to participate in new projects. But he still asked for them anyway. It served as a good distraction from whatever was going on in this house (specifically, an entity called Blade).
He didn't know where or how Blade spent his time in the house that morning. All he knew was that he did not step into the study and disturb him. Good for the both of them.
However, that serenity that Dan Heng found that morning immediately broke when he ventured downstairs and into the kitchen to prepare his lunch only to find Blade already busy preparing his own. His heart groaned at the reminder of his presence in the house today.
Dan Heng could feel the other's gaze flick towards him as he stepped inside, then away. Returning the silent treatment to him, Dan Heng quickly walked past him to the fridge, collecting his ingredients.
It's okay, Dan Heng told himself. The kitchen was big enough anyway. If he timed his actions well enough, they could completely avoid each other—
"Didn't know that the kitchen disaster could cook," Blade's comment materialised out of thin air when he was just barely halfway through.
Dan Heng took it all back. There was no way they could avoid each other, not with this fucking idiot in the room. He must be really determined to die by Dan Heng's hand to come at him unprovoked. And unfortunately, it was working, because now he was contemplating whether to throw the kitchen knife at his face.
It was truly a miracle that no murder had been committed in the house by now.
"What happened to the ground rules we set?"
"It was a necessary thing to say. I was concerned for you. After all, I sure do not want to rush you to the hospital with severed fingers."
You should worry about yourself instead. I might accidentally cut off yours. Dan Heng had to bite his tongue to stop himself from providing a reaction. He wasn't going to stoop to his level. Thankfully, Blade had picked up his dish and walked out, leaving him alone in the kitchen.
Regretful, Dan Heng does concede to the fact that he didn't know how to cook that well three years before — usually it was Blade who cooked for the both of them.
But after they left each other Dan Heng had to finally pick up cooking for himself, and he dare say that his dishes were far better than the ones Blade had made back then.
Dan Heng spent the next thirty minutes of cooking in peace, then finally brought his meal out when he was done. He wasn't too willing to sit down at the same table with Blade and eat in awkward silence, and it had him contemplating whether to go up to the study. But upon seeing the man sitting in front of the coffee table to eat while watching a show, Dan Heng happily took his seat at the dining table.
He recognised the show that Blade was watching at first glance. It was a drama series that their mutual friend Jing Yuan participated in, one that Dan Heng had finished watching a few months ago.
Somehow, despite their disastrous mess of a relationship, Jing Yuan still kept contact with the both of them after Cloudcry's release, and even though they weren't as close as they were before, he was still a good friend.
Dan Heng figured that Blade was being a good friend and supporting Jing Yuan's series, so he didn't bother to question, and instead started on his lunch with a book in hand, trying to ignore Blade to the best of his abilities. And he did, even as Blade passed by with an empty plate in hand, apparently done with the episode and with his lunch.
Suddenly, he heard a familiar voice coming from the television. At first, he paid it no mind, focusing on his book. He was an actor with a wide network of friends in the industry after all, so it wasn't uncommon for him to recognise a friend's voice or two from shows and movies.
But as the voice continued to speak, his brain became more distracted from the words on the page and instead latched onto the words spoken, the scripted lines more familiar than the voice itself.
He immediately spun around to peek at the screen, and found his own face a few years younger staring back at him. Dan Heng froze, confused, as scenes of old played out across the screen.
"How much longer," the Dan Heng on screen whispered, his face pained. He slowly reached out, his sleeves flowing as he moved. "How much longer are you going to keep up that act with me?"
"An act?"
He was only shaken out of his stupor when he saw another familiar face enter the scene and replacing his own, the familiar face being one that he had to painfully face for the past few days—
Holy shit.
By some luck — or the lack of it — the streaming service ended up recommending Cloudcry Songbook, previewing the darkest stain in all of BL drama history and in both Dan Heng's and Blade's careers.
The words Recommending: Cloudcry Songbook hung over the most famous (and now infamous) scene that they both acted in years ago — the interlude to the first kiss scene in the show. Dan Heng couldn't fathom what had gotten into the mind of the person who programmed the "recommend" algorithm to be this way.
In a panic he abandoned his half eaten lunch on the table and dove for the remote control on the coffee table, determined to redirect the screen before the scene came to pass.
He knew he didn't have a lot of time — there were only two lines left. The only reason why he remembered was because...well, he retook this scene at least a hundred times, so naturally it stuck in his brain against his will.
He watched as the Dan Heng and Blade on screen drew closer in between their lines, their faces just barely an inch apart. Just as Dan Heng's fingers tightened around the remote control, Blade's face dove down to catch his characters lips—
Dan Heng repeatedly punched the power button on the control and managed to shut the television off before the two could kiss on screen.
With the living room cleared of any noise from the television, he could just barely hear a quiet grunt coming from the kitchen's direction. Instinctively Dan Heng turned to find Blade standing in the doorway, staring at the now blank screen.
His eyes were unreadable. Dan Heng couldn't tell what Blade was feeling. Relief? Shock? Disappointment — most likely not. But with the way that his eyes were a fraction wider than usual told Dan Heng that he probably witnessed everything that went down.
No words were exchanged between them even when Blade finally broke eye contact, abruptly turning around to head upstairs. Dan Heng didn't know where exactly he was going, but he was sure that it was somewhere that would put Dan Heng completely out of sight.
***
One day ago
No matter how hard Dan Heng tried, he just somehow could not shake off the jittery feeling as he and Blade approached the supermarket just a short distance away from his new home. He knew it was because of the man strolling alongside him, wearing sunglasses and a mask that concealed both his identity and his expression.
He couldn't stop thinking about how weird it felt, couldn't stop thinking about the last time they walked side by side like this. Why did he agree to go grocery shopping with him? They could have gone separately! Or taken turns!
Thinking back, it was quite childish, how they came to the decision of solving the problem of groceries together.
It started when Dan Heng wanted to make himself a cup of coffee, but when he opened the fridge to get the milk, he found that the shelf was empty.
"Blade!" He called his housemate's name as he emerged from the kitchen, finding the man on the couch swiping away on his phone. It felt weird, calling his name and talking to him after days of actively ignoring him. To think of it, the last time he ever called out to him was three years ago...
Dan Heng shook his head. He wasn't going to think about that right now.
"What?" The man grunted, raising his head to look at Dan Heng.
"We're out of milk."
"So? Get a new carton yourself," Blade said dismissively and returned his attention to his book. But Dan Heng wasn't letting him go so easily.
"Why should I? You were the last person to finish the milk."
"But I'm not the one who needs the milk right now. Why should I be the one to run down and get milk for you? Sorry, princess, but I'm not your maid."
Annoyed, Dan Heng tsked loudly, crossing his arms across his chest all the while trying to not let the nickname get to him. "You're not my maid, but you're my housemate. Have some responsibility. It's not just the milk you know. We are running out of ingredients."
"And what kind of housemate are you, asking me to go on a grocery run for you? Have some responsibility."
"Fine, I'll go with you, okay?" Dan Heng glared at him, then turned away to slip a mask out of a nearby drawer. He took one out for Blade and threw it in his direction. "You got nothing on this afternoon right? We'll go now."
So that was how the both of them ended up here, in the supermarket, pushing a trolley as they walked down aisle after aisle looking for what they needed.
He knew that they were quite an out-standing and odd pair, with heads turning every now and then to look their way. While the masks were concealing their identity to a certain extent, it was certainly attracting unwanted attention.
"We should split up," Dan Heng muttered. "Faster that way. And attracts less attention. You grab the fruits and anything else you want, and I'll get the vegetables and milk."
While he had proposed the idea mostly for the reason of attracting less attention, he knew there was also one other tiny reason why he did not want Blade to accompany him as they shopped.
It just felt... weird, in a way. Like deja vu for a time he could barely remember, back when they would happily do these things together. It felt too domestic of an act to be doing with his ex.
Luckily, Blade seemed to share the sentiment. "Fine." He left for the fruits section, leaving Dan Heng alone in the aisle. Dan Heng couldn't help but feel the tension in his shoulders disappear almost instantly.
A large part of his shopping experience was pretty uneventful, as he took his time picking out fresh vegetables and ingredients that would pretty much last them for the rest of the week. Then he headed to the dairy section to finally get the item that brought the both of them here in the first place.
Just as he was about to just grab two cartons of milk, chuck it in his cart and leave, he heard a girl's voice meekly call out to him.
"Um... hi, are you the actor Dan Heng...?" Involuntarily, Dan Heng made the mistake of turning around to see who the voice belonged to, and by the time he realised his mistake it was already too late.
"Oh my god, you're actually Dan Heng!" The girl squealed loudly the moment he made eye contact with her, and her scream made even more heads turn their way. A group of girls who stood a short distance away from them immediately ran over at the girl's shout — they seemed to be friends with the girl.
Dan Heng's heart dropped. Oh no.
"Dan Heng, Dan Heng, can you sign my phone, please!" One of them begged, and fished out their phone and tried to hand it to him. The other girls seemed to follow suit. "Mine too, mine too!"
"Ahhhh! He's so much prettier in real life!"
"I can't believe we're so lucky! Dan Heng, you live around here too?"
Dan Heng backed away into the dairy fridge as they pushed forward and invaded his personal space, but there wasn't much he could do since the group of girls surrounded him and blocked his way out.
"I'm sorry, but I can't sign anything right now. Please stop..." He tried to reject their requests as politely as he could, but none of them listened. Dan Heng helplessly looked past the girls to search for help, but the patrons of the supermarket seemed to be more interested in recording the dire situation instead.
"He told you to leave him alone, what do you not understand?" Suddenly, a voice cut through all the noise, his tone laced with distaste. Dan Heng could feel his heart skip a beat as he looked to his left to find Blade, carrying a basket with his eyebrows raised and looking very unamused. His gaze was sharp, almost unforgiving. "Or are you deaf?"
The girls instantly froze, then slowly backed away.
A few of them shot glares at Blade. "Why the fuck is he here?" One of them whispered, but loud enough for Dan Heng to hear. They must be those solo fans with a hatred for Blade.
However, Blade simply ignored them and roughly grabbed Dan Heng by the arm, and dragged him out of the aisle along with his cart. Dan Heng almost instinctively jerked his arm out of his seemingly rude grip, but didn't want to return and entertain those fans, so he stumbled after him.
As they walked, Dan Heng couldn't help but feel something bloom in his chest. It was oddly warm, a feeling between gratefulness, relief, and... pleasant surprise. If he didn't know any better, he would have thought he felt touched. But he stomped down on it. No way. Even though Blade did help him out and looked weirdly attractive while doing it—
What the fuck are you on? Shut up. He screamed internally. He should stop thinking about it altogether.
It was only when they were out of sight did Dan Heng yank his arm away from him. "You didn't have to do that. I could have solved it myself."
Blade snorted. "Yeah right. By the time you do, the sky would have turned dark already. Do you think I would wait for you until then to proceed with payment?
"By the way, for the thanks you forgot to give, you're paying for the groceries."
Dan Heng rolled his eyes, but didn't argue. As much as he didn't like to admit it, he did owe him one after all.
***
Present
Dan Heng was rudely woken up by the feeling of a jacket getting thrown over his back, albeit a little roughly.
"If you said that you're not going to stay up for me, at least be a little more convincing."
He peeled his eyes open to find his own face planted straight down onto the table, obviously having fallen asleep while trying to check his notifications. A tall figure towered over him, and within a squint or two he could make out red, dark eyes staring straight at him.
Dan Heng could almost see the question in those eyes, asking why? Why are you still up? Why were you waiting for me?
Shit. Embarrassment flooded his cheeks in the form of heat, instantly chasing his sleepiness away.
When did Blade get back? He didn’t hear the door opening at all.
He should have gone to sleep hours ago. He shouldn’t have stayed behind. They weren’t like that anymore. The both of them did not deserve each other’s care and consideration ever since they left each other years ago. And he was the one who had said that himself.
Dan Heng then shot up, shrugging away the jacket. “Don’t be delusional. I was handling some work affairs,” he muttered, slamming his open laptop shut for emphasis. “Now, if you’ll excuse me.”
He stormed upstairs, back to the bedroom, refusing to look back at Blade to see if his gaze lingered.
—
(Extras)
dh updates!
@danhengupdates
i fear it may be true, my solo dh stans...
- source: anon dm
(video — a video of Dan Heng getting harassed by fans in the supermarket, and Blade stepping in to get him out of the situation.)
(quote — Xianzhou Gossip ✔ @xianzhougossip: BREAKING: Dan Heng and Blade are moving in together?)
209 retweets | 43 quote tweets | 4.8k likes
Linu @linu112_
— replying to @danhengupdates
SHOPPING FOR GROCERIES TGT?!?!?!?!
|
lade (real) @bladeisladee
— replying to @linu112_
this doesn't prove anything tho they could have coincidentally shopped at the same place
||
Linu @linu112_
— replying to @bladeisladee
here's why your wrong:
1. they are wearing the same type of masks if that isn't a hint idk what is
2. didn't u see blade drop his stuff into dan heng's trolley at the very end of the video??
|||
lade (real) @bladeisladee
— replying to @linu112_
*you're
||||
Linu @linu112_
— replying to @bladeisladee
you know im right stay mad ✌️
wei ling | COMMS CLOSED @feedthebell
— replying to @danhengupdates
HOW ARE THEY NOT BEATING THE ALLEGATIONS THIS IS THE LAST THING I WOULD EVER THINK IS TRUE
pesi my love @pesiisthebest
— replying to @danhengupdates
@renheng1
|
theonlystan @renheng1
— replying to @pesiisthebest
OH MY LANNN??? MOOT THANK YOU FOR HELPING ME FIND THIS GEM???
.
.
.
—
theonlystan
@renheng1
LKSJDHFLKJASDF THERES JUST— SO MANY THINGS I CAN SAY ABOUT THIS VIDEO????
in thread 🧵
(quote — dh updates! @danhengupdates: i fear it may be true, my solo dh stans... - source: anon dm)
733 retweets | 376 quote tweets | 10.1k likes
theonlystan @renheng1
— replying to @renheng1
firstly, this is confirmation that they are living together????? LIKE WHO DOES GROCERIES TOGETHER UNLESS YOU DONT LIVE WITH THEM? what's even crazier is how they decided to go tgt instead of taking turns AAAA WHY ARE THEY SO DOMESTIC??
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theonlystan @renheng1
— replying to @renheng1
and dont u dare say its a coincidence did u see b throw his basket into dh's trolley like at the end of the vid THAT MEANS THEY ARE PAYING TGT. BUYING TGT. so they are LIVING TGT. for the first time in the history of forever xg didnt lie to us
||
theonlystan @renheng1
— replying to @renheng1
secondly, the way b backed up dh up so fast when he got harassed??? STEPPING IN, SCOLDING THE CRAZY FANS AND THEN PULLING DH AWAY??? LOOK AT B'S PROTECTIVE BODY LANGUAGE. SCREAMING CRYING THROWING UP???
we won omg we won
|||
theonlystan @renheng1
— replying to @renheng1
just kiss alr no one is going to qn u AAAAAAAAA
||||
theonlystan @renheng1
— replying to @renheng1
btw thanks to @/pesiisthebest for feeding me this!!
DH FRVR @danhengurmine
— replying to @renheng1
ngl wish i had this level of deluluness like did u forget that they are mortal enemies
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sealy @sealyunil
— replying to @danhengurmine
RIGHT like these rnhg shippers... tsk
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theonlystan
— replying to @danhengurmine
oh im sorry i didnt know mortal enemies defended each other and bought groceries together like that
lul @jokeaccdontperceive
— replying to @renheng1
ok side note like can these crazy fans f off or smth why they all gotta be like that smh
—
kms what is that vid 🔒
@bladefrvrfrvr2
have been a loyal blade fan and dh hater for three years... but how have the last two weeks really messed with my beliefs????
kms what is that vid 🔒@bladefrvrfrvr2
— replying to @bladefrvrfrvr2
and it's only been just a mere two weeks too...