Chapter Text
The next time both Qin Jiu and You Huo showed up at the apartment at the same time was a starry night two months later.
You Huo came in through the window again this time, and wasn’t surprised in the least when he saw a half-naked Qin Jiu sitting on the bed, pressing a bloodied cloth to a wound on his stomach. It was a gash, but it bled quite a bit, leaving a trail of blood from the apartment’s front door to the bedroom.
You Huo jumped into the bedroom, wincing slightly as the movement pulled at cuts all over his body.
Qin Jiu looked over at him and raised a eyebrow. You Huo looked horrible. He was covered in cuts and scrapes, of course, but he was also covered in so much blood that there was no way all of it was his. His eyes flicked to a wound at the base of You Huo’s skull, dripping blood down the back of his neck.
As Qin Jiu watched, a single drop of blood traced its way down You Huo’s neck, slowly slipping down to his collarbone, then finally under his shirt, blooming like another flower against the already stained fabric. Somewhere in the back of Qin Jiu’s mind, an unfamiliar but not unwelcome urge emerged. For some god-unknown reason, he really, really wanted to trace his tongue down the same path that the droplet did. Subconsciously, Qin Jiu bit his lower lip, imagining sinking his teeth into You Huo’s neck, right where that blood had left a pale red trail.
But then You Huo moved towards the bed and Qin Jiu blinked, coming out of his daze. You Huo sat next to him, leaning back against the headboard. There was barely room for both of them to sit comfortably, so You Huo’s knee ended up knocking against Qin Jiu’s, who pushed back almost subconsciously.
He looked over at You Huo. “How’s the back?”
You Huo shrugged. “How’s the foot?”
Qin Jiu shrugged and reached for a new roll of bandages, feeling blood soak through the one he was holding to his wound at the moment. But You Huo smacked his hand away, and Qin Jiu shot him a scowl. “What.”
Qin Jiu felt a hand on his shoulder, then it was Qin Jiu’s turn to fall back on the bed as You Huo ripped his shirt off, straddling him.
Qin Jiu’s breath caught for a second before a crooked grin grew on his lips and he waggled his eyebrows. “Darling, I know I’m hot, but—”
You Huo’s lips curved and in a swift motion, he uncapped a bottle of antiseptic and poured it over Qin Jiu’s midsection.
Qin Jiu’s eyes widened as his voice trailed off in a choked grunt. He glared at You Huo and hissed, “Fuck you.”
You Huo simply climbed off and sat back on the bed, dabbing antiseptic onto his wounds in a more humane way, with a cotton ball. Qin Jiu stared at him in disbelief for a few seconds, then rolled his eyes and sat up gingerly, reaching for a new bandage to wrap his wounds.
After his wounds were neatly wrapped, Qin Jiu stood up, walking to the apartment’s minifridge to check for food. He’d told 922 to drop some food off in case they had to use the place again, so he opened the door expecting 922’s usual level of culinary expertise. A home-cooked meal he could heat up, some meat he could grill in a few minutes, or even just a package of microwaveable dumplings.
Popsicles.
Fucking milk popsicles.
Qin Jiu stared at the three scant popsicles decorating the fridge’s freezer compartment, then grabbed two popsicles and swore under his breath to send 922 on a wild goose chase in the middle of some cow dung-infested field. Qin Jiu walked back to the bedroom and tossed You Huo one of the popsicles, tearing the other one’s wrapper open and biting into it.
You Huo caught it and unwrapped it in a smooth motion, wrapping his lips around it in a way that Qin Jiu could only describe as obscene.
Qin Jiu stayed by the door and leaned on the doorframe, watching You Huo type away on his phone as he held the creamy white popsicle in his mouth.
Every now and then, You Huo would move one hand back to the popsicle, holding it and sucking it, occasionally licking its sides to catch any milky drips before they fell.
Qin Jiu felt something stir low in his belly as he saw You Huo blow out his cheeks, then suck them in to hold the popsicle in place. Qin Jiu’s fingers tightened on the popsicle in his hand. Something cold and sticky dropped on his bare feet, and he looked down to see white drops on his toes, falling like raindrops from his own popsicle. He cursed under his breath, giving the base of his popsicle a quick lick to stop any more drops from falling.
Sighing, Qin Jiu straightened and his eyes naturally settled back on You Huo…..
….just in time to see his eyes flick away from Qin Jiu and back to his phone, lips curling almost imperceptibly as his tongue flicked out to lick a milky-white drop off the corner of his lip.
Qin Jiu stared at him.
That little fuck.
You Huo pressed his popsicle against the inside of his cheek and Qin Jiu almost broke his popsicle’s stick.
He knew what he was doing that whole time.
Qin Jiu’s eyes narrowed and he opened his mouth to say something but at that exact moment, You Huo picked up his phone and started talking to his second-in-command, Chu Yue. Qin Jiu could only watch with narrowed eyes as You Huo got up, pulling on his shoes and jacket.
But that bastard couldn’t stop it there.
You Huo looked right at Qin Jiu and gave his popsicle one last, thorough, audible suck before tossing it into a bin by the bed. Then, like he hadn’t just single-handedly given Qin Jiu a raging boner, he brushed past Qin Jiu and walked out of the apartment, slamming the door shut behind him.
Qin Jiu stared into space for a second, then exhaled a helpless laugh.
Fuck.
***
It took another month for enough nonsense to happen that You Huo and Qin Jiu found themselves back at the apartment, one on the bed and one in the bathroom, silently washing the traces of blood off their skin.
You Huo, shirtless with hair dripping wet, walked out of the bathroom and raised an eyebrow at Qin Jiu, who was applying burn ointment to his forearm. “Burning’s a new one.”
Qin Jiu rolled his eyes, not looking at You Huo as he answered. “I like to seek new thrills in life.”
You Huo snorted and walked across the room to grab a towel for his dripping hair. As he walked past the bed, Qin Jiu’s eyes discreetly flicked up, never leaving You Huo’s unclothed torso and unfortunately clothed ass until the latter turned around, heading back for the bed. Qin Jiu turned his eyes back to his arm.
You Huo sat down on the bed next to him and looked over at him. Both of them weren’t as hurt as they usually were when they showed up at that apartment, meaning the atmosphere wasn’t as tense as it usually was. But Qin Jiu’s eyes were clouded over, and it was clear from the mechanical way he applied the ointment that his mind was thinking about the events that had led him here. “What happened?”
Qin Jiu finally looked over, clearly surprised that You Huo cared enough to ask. “Some idiots decided to break away.”
You Huo raised an eyebrow, leaning back against the headboard. “They decided to go against you? Willingly?”
Qin Jiu snorted, blowing on his arm before tossing the empty ointment packet into the bin. “Idiots, all of them. And you?” Qin Jiu nodded at the scrapes decorating You Huo’s bare upper body.
You Huo shrugged. “Territory dispute.”
Qin Jiu raised an eyebrow. “Only scrapes?”
You Huo let a corner of his lips curl up. “Of course.” And Qin Jiu’s lips twitched as he remembered who he was talking to.
Wincing slightly, Qin Jiu peeled his shirt off. There were more scrapes there — nothing substantial like the gashes that now showed as scars on his torso, but still signs of a fight.
You Huo’s eyes trailed down to Qin Jiu’s abdomen, seeing the bumpy lines crisscrossing his defined muscles. The words left his mouth before he could call them back.
“Do me a favor.”
Qin Jiu looked over, raising an eyebrow. “A favor? Why should I?”
You Huo scowled at him. “You won’t even ask what it is first?”
Qin Jiu rolled his eyes and leaned back against the headboard as well. “Alright, then. What is it?”
“Your place is close to Venom’s HQ, right?”
Qin Jiu nodded, looking at the scrapes on You Huo’s forearms. “What, you want me to beat them up for you?”
For some reason, the words slipped through You Huo’s ears and travelled straight down to his stomach, lighting a fire deep in his abdomen. His heart did a funny jumping thing as he answered simply, “Yes.”
Qin Jiu’s lips stretched into a grin. “What, you think I can do a better job than you?”
You Huo felt his lips curve as well. “No, I just like seeing you work for me.”
Qin Jiu raised an eyebrow at that, turning to face him fully. “So you want me to be your dog?” He smirked. “How about I give you a bite?”
You Huo narrowed his eyes. “I put down dogs who bite me. Still want to try?”
“Sorry, I’m not into that.” Qin Jiu walked around the bed until he was standing in front of You Huo, then leaned down. “How about I press you down instead?”
You Huo scoffed. “An obedient dog would kneel before asking for something.”
And Qin Jiu knelt.
Eyes twinkling, he took You Huo’s hand. “Like this?” Still holding You Huo’s gaze, he lightly bit You Huo’s index finger.
The fire in You Huo’s abdomen grew. His heart beat harder, his breaths came faster—
You Huo slipped his finger deeper into Qin Jiu’s mouth.
Qin Jiu’s eyes darkened.
You Huo’s gaze never left Qin Jiu’s as he pushed his finger in a fraction more—
Then there was a hand on his chest pushing him back and he was lying on the creaky bed, Qin Jiu’s face hovering over his.
You Huo took his finger out.
Qin Jiu held himself up on one hand, bringing the other up to tilt You Huo’s chin up. His voice was different now, not playful like it’d been earlier. “Don’t start something you can’t finish.”
You Huo simply raised an eyebrow. “You think I can’t make you finish?”
Qin Jiu’s grip on his chin tightened.
Qin Jiu looked at You Huo, at his reddened ears, at skin flushed from adrenaline, and at that something other than coldness in those amber eyes.
And Qin Jiu knew he was going to regret this.
“Can I kiss you?”
You Huo grabbed the back of his neck and pulled him down.
Qin Jiu let out a sharp grunt as his arm buckled, but he held himself up on his elbow, letting his body rest on You Huo’s as their lips met. He moved his hand down from You Huo’s chin, tracing a trail of fire down his chest until his fingers finally rested on his stomach. He felt You Huo’s muscles clench under his touch and smiled faintly against his lips.
You Huo’s fingers wrapped around his hair, tightening with every movement of Qin Jiu’s hand against You Huo’s abdomen. Suddenly, You Huo tilted his head further up, biting Qin Jiu’s lower lip hard enough to draw blood.
Qin Jiu’s eyes flew open and he looked down to see You Huo trace his tongue across his teeth, licking away Qin Jiu’s blood.
Qin Jiu opened his mouth to say something, but You Huo’s hand found its way to the base of his throat and suddenly words didn’t work anymore. You Huo tightened his grip slightly and pulled Qin Jiu down, crashing their lips together once more.
Qin Jiu managed to squeeze a word between kisses. “Naughty.”
You Huo tightened his grip on Qin Jiu’s throat. “Shut up.”
Qin Jiu smiled against his lips, letting his hand trail to You Huo’s waistband “This okay?”
You Huo nodded, leaning forward to trail his lips to Qin Jiu’s neck as Qin Jiu busied himself with slipping You Huo’s pants off.
Qin Jiu’s lips tilted in a crooked grin. He moved down You Huo’s body, leaving a trail of kisses on his way. As he met You Huo’s lower stomach, he skipped over his groin, reaching down to You Huo’s knees and kissing upward, leaving patterns of desire along You Huo’s inner thighs. He looked up from between You Huo legs, lips curled in a way that made You Huo want to suffocate him between his legs.
Qin Jiu then leaned closer to him, biting the waistband of You Huo’s underwear. Then, in a move that made You Huo’s heart jump, he looked up at You Huo, meeting his eyes and raising an eyebrow in a clear question of permission.
You Huo nodded and lifted his hips slightly in response, breath hitching as he felt Qin Jiu slowly pull his underwear down and toss it to the side.
As he felt Qin Jiu’s mouth close over him, You Huo closed his eyes, a shaky breath escaping his lips as he let Qin Jiu take him to heaven.
***
The sun was slowly making its way into the sky by the time Qin Jiu and You Huo finally lay on the bed, panting as they stared up at the ceiling. Their chests heaved, sweaty and sticky limbs throws over the other.
Qin Jiu was the first to move. He nudged You Huo with his foot. “Go clean up.” You Huo scowled, turning away from him, and Qin Jiu shoved him harder. “Are you going to make me carry you?”
You Huo grumbled louder but finally got up, heading to the bathroom and slamming the door shut. As soon as he left, Qin Jiu just stared at the ceiling, his mind running at a million miles an hour. He grabbed his phone and called 154, holding it to his ear. “I need names.”
154’s distrungled voice came through the phone, hoarse and clearly pissed off at being woken up at three in the morning. “What? Boss, it’s 3 in the fucking morning—”
“I said names.”
A groan and some shuffling, then, “Who?”
“I heard A’s group got stuck in a shitshow today.”
“Yeah, I heard about that. Apparently, Venom frauded Obsidian on a territory agreement and aren’t renegotiating or giving it back.”
“Mn. Now, I asked for—”
“Names, yes, yes, I know.” Some more shuffling, followed 154’s reply to a muffled male voice in the background. “Yeah, Boss’s going crazy again.” An exhale, then 154 was back to talking to Qin Jiu. “Boss, it was led by Venom’s second, Fang.”
“Got it. Is that 922 with you?”
“Yeah, why?”
“Nothing.” Qin Jiu’s lips curled. “Remember to use protection.”
Hearing the bathroom door open, Qin Jiu quickly hung up to 154’s sputtering just as You Huo walked out, a towel wrapped around his waist. You Huo’s eyes narrowed as Qin Jiu threw his phone onto the bed. “Who was that?”
“My wife.”
You Huo scoffed and lay back on the bed, picking up his phone. “So what, you’re having an affair?”
Qin Jiu winked and got up, heading to the bathroom next. “Why, want to wear a dress, my mistress?”
You Huo threw a pillow at him, and Qin Jiu dodged with a short laugh as he went into the bathroom.
You Huo watched the bathroom door close and the lock click, then held his phone to his ear.
“Names.”
Chu Yue’s shaky breathing came through the phone’s speakers. “Fuck, Huohuo, it’s 3 in the morning—”
“The Ravens had a rebel faction split off today.”
“Wha—” You Huo waited as Chu Yue talked to someone on her side, followed by rigorous texting.” “How did you know?? Our spies only just found out.”
“Doesn’t matter. Who turned?”
“Why, you want to recruit them?”
“No.”
“Good. It was the southwest contingent that defected. What’s his name, Sae.”
You Huo nodded. “Reschedule today morning’s meeting wit hte Beijing Group or handle it yourself.”
Chu Yue, still drowsy, made a confused noise. “Eh? Huohuo, you’re busy again? Doing what?”
“Business.” You Huo hung up and leaned his head back against the headrest, thinking. The southwest contingent, huh…
A curse exploded from the bathroom as Qin Jiu opened the door, scowling and sticking his head out. “You ass, you took both the towels?”
You Huo simply shrugged, enjoying the infuriated expression on Qin Jiu’s face.
Qin Jiu glared at him. “At least pass me that robe.” He pointed to a robe hanging in the closet on the other side of the room.
You Huo didn’t bother looking up. “Get it yourself.”
Qin Jiu’s sputtering was like music to his ears. “You—I’m naked!”
This time, You Huo did look up, coolly meeting Qin Jiu’s eyes. “Nothing I haven’t seen before.”
Qin Jiu’s scowl deepened, but he stalked out of the bathroom and snatched the robe, wrapping it around himself. You Huo’s eyes followed him, only flicking back to his phone when Qin Jiu finished tying the robe and walked back to the bed.
You Huo finally turned his phone off minutes later and went to sleep. Behind him, he heard Qin Jiu doing the same, as both of them slept facing away from the other.
***
In the morning, You Huo woke up to the sound of shuffling clothes and sheets, then soft footsteps as Qin Jiu silently left the apartment. Not wanting to deal with morning-after business or any other messes their interaction would cause, You Huo pretended to sleep until he heard the front door close again.
***
It didn’t take long for You Huo to find Sae, a tall and lanky man with brass knuckles wrapped around his hands.
Looking up at the sight of You Huo walking up, Sae straightened with a crooked smirk “Ah, Boss A. I didn’t expect to see you around these parts.” He nods for his underlings to handle You Huo, then turned back to his map, clearly ignoring You Huo.
You Huo walked right up to him and kicked him squarely in the back.
Sae yelped, falling forward and hitting his head on the wall. He turned with an enraged expression, yelling, “What the fuck was that for?!” You Huo met his eyes coolly, hearing Sae’s lackeys grab steel pipes and baseball bats behind him.
Sae stood up to his full height, cracking his neck and knuckles. “You may be a big boss, A, but you’re very, very stupid to have come here alone.”
You Huo didn’t even spare him an eye roll, throwing a punch straight at Sae’s face before he could see it coming.
Three minutes later, You Huo walked out of a small alleyway into the parking lot of a big department store, dressed in a black turtleneck and jeans. Spotting a familiar black car, he got into its back seat, nodding at the red-haired woman already sitting there. As soon as the door closed, Chu Yue turned to look at him, frowning. “Why did you deal with Fang and Boa alone? I could’ve helped.”
You Huo frowned. “What?”
“Don’t play dumb. 021 just told me that Fang came crawling to HQ, begging to sign a land return agreement. He was too scared out of his mind too say who beat him up, and I didn’t have anything to do with it, so who could it have been but you?”
You Huo’s frown deepened as he stared out the window. “Start an investigation into it. I don’t need someone playing vigilante and causing more problems.”
Chu Yue nodded and sent a few messages, then gestured for the driver to start the car. “If you weren’t dealing with them, then where were you all this time? Your knuckles are all battered.”
You Huo watched the scenery fly by. “Just playing with some pigeons.”
Chu Yue sighed and turned back to her phone. “Of course you were.” She looked over, as if noticing something about him for the first time. “Should i turn off the air conditioning?”
You Huo looked at her, confused. “No. why?”
Chu Yue nodded at his shirt. “You’ve started wearing turtlenecks. Did Huohuo’s winter come early this year?”
You Huo scoffed and turned away, ignoring Chu Yue’s laugh-riddled justification. “What! It’s not like you got all hot and heavy~”
You Huo ignored her, continuing to stare out the window even as the tips of his ears flushed red.
***
One hour ago, in the city’s central district, Venom’s territory.
Qin Jiu, freshly showered and changed, sauntered up to Venom’s headquarters, knocking on the building’s front door. A low-rank member ran up, terrified, opening the door for him. “Y-yi-ge, what brings you here?”
Qin Jiu ignored him and walked through the compound, heading straight for the office of Viper, Venom’s leader.
Qin Jiu admired the workmanship on the door, complete with engravings of snakes around the hinges. Then he stuffed his hands in his pockets and kicked open the door, interrupting Viper and two of his girlfriends in the middle of something…..hot and heavy.
Viper scowled, whipping around to glare in the direction of the door. “Who the fu—” His eyes landed on Qin Jiu and grew wide. He quickly climbed off his girl, wrapping a blanket around his torso in a attempt to preserve some dignity. “Yi-ge, what are you doing here?”
“Where’s Fang?”
Viper’s brow furrowed. “Fang? What do you want with him?”
Qin Jiu cracked his knuckles, smiling warmly. “I just need to have a little talk with him.”
Viper hesitated and Qin Jiu raised an eyebrow. “Unless…you want me to pass the message on to you instead?”
Venom didn’t wait a split second before selling his second-in-command out. “Training room in the back.”
Qin Jiu nodded at him and, without a backward glance, walked out around to the training compound, a broken-down old building riddled with gunshots, gashes, and burn marks. It wasn’t hard to find Fang there, punching a dummy to within an inch of its life. And for some godforsaken reason, Fang was wearing a leopard-patterned training suit that was gaudy it hurt Qin Jiu’s eyes.
Qin Jiu coughed, standing in the doorway.
Fang paused his assault on the dummy and turned, scowling. “What?”
Qin Jiu nodded at the dummy. “Having fun?”
Fang kicked the dummy away. “Why, want a go?”
Qin Jiu grinned and entered the compound, rolling his shoulders and wrists. “I wouldn’t mind that.”
By the time he left, wiping the blood off his hands with a tattered piece of leopard-patterned cloth, Fang wasn’t even able to scream for a medic.
Humming something horribly off-tune, Qin Jiu bought a croissant on the way to his main office, walking through the back door and sitting at his desk with a loud, dramatic sigh.
As soon as the sound left his mouth, his door flew open and 154 walked in, already frowning. “Boss, were you in the southwest quarter earlier this morning?”
Qin Jiu tilted his head, stuffing a good half of his croissant in his mouth. “No, why?”
922 walked in, dragging a tall, lanky man with a large bird tattoo visible under his tattered clothes. His face was covered in bruises, and a footprint clearly marked the small of his back.
Qin Jiu frowned, looking down at the man “Sae?”
154 leaned down and grabbed Sae’s hair, pulling his head up so he could see Qin Jiu. Sae’s right eye was so swollen he could barely open it, and his four front teeth were missing. Qin Jiu looked to 154 for an explanation, but he just shook his head. “He refuses to talk.”
Qin Jiu stuffed the last of his croissant in his mouth and walked over to Sae, squatting down in front of him. Using a pen, he gently pressed on Sae’s swollen eye until Sae winced and cried out.
“Will you talk? Or do I have to beat you up until your ugly mug looks even more like a squashed pumpkin?”
Sae’s eyes widened in fear and he sputtered, saliva flying through the gap in his teeth. Qin Jiu frowned, leaning back to avoid the spittle, and Sae stopped, swallowing hard. “It—that—he told me he’d kill me if I told you.”
Qin Jiu raised an eyebrow. “And what if I told you I’ll kill you if you don’t tell me?”
Sae’s mouth flapped, clearly terrified, and Qin Jiu sighed, standing up. He walked back to his desk, sitting down and kicking his legs up onto his desk. “Take him away.”
922 nodded and dragged him off. 154 looked after them as they left, then turned back to Qin Jiu. “Boss, do you know who could’ve done it?”
Qin Jiu played with his pen. “Must be some big honcho, if Sae’s just as scared of them as he is of me. Look into it.”
154 nodded. “Anything else?”
Qin Jiu shook his head, and 154 walked out.
When the door closed behind him, Qin Jiu unbuttoned his shirt and looked down to see scratches and bites all over his chest. A smile played at his lips as he touched a particularly deep bite.
“That little kitten. How adorable.”