Chapter Text
In a world that’s so imperceptibly deceitful, Zhengting doesn’t trust anyone outside his little group.
When a boy lands on their doorstep though, he can’t seem to turn him away, despite every fiber of his being yelling this is wrong.
It’s funny because the world has gone to complete shit and no one should really be outside and alone by now, but there he was. The boy was clutching his side, his other arm keeping him steady against the doorframe. He rasps out a quiet “please” before falling into Zhengting’s arms and Zhengting’s not so heartless as to leave him to die on their doorstep.
His name is Zhenghao, he’s only a year older than Justin, and he’s also losing a lot of blood from the wound on his side.
“What got you, kid?” Zhengting asks him as he heats up a knife.
“It was a mutt.”
Zhengting winces, the mutts were terrible, ugly things. They’re height was from anywhere near his knee to his waist, but they were vicious in their attacks. Many people didn’t survive their initial attack.
Zhengting holds a cloth up to the boy, telling him to bite down before pressing the searing knife onto the gash on his side. The boy’s eyes bulge out and his jaw tightens as he screams into the cloth.
Zhengting works fast, wanting to finish as soon as possible, bandaging him up cleanly. Zhenghao has his hair matted onto his forehead by sweat by the end of it, his eyes damp with tears and Zhengting hands him a glass of water.
“Do you have a group?”
Zhenghao nods, gulping down the water like he hasn’t had any in a long time. “They should be somewhere nearby. I just got lost on my way back to base and I was attacked.”
“Can you find your way back?”
Zhenghao looks sheepish at this and Zhengting wants to groan. “I’m not quite sure.”
“Great.” Zhengting mutters under his breath, cleaning up the supplies he used. It was hard enough with seven of them living in one home he wasn’t sure how they’d fare with another one, not to mention the wound on his side.
There was safety in numbers but more responsibility in it too. He couldn’t afford to slip up, not with the creatures outside, on top of the twisted government.
“Do you remember anything at all about where your group can be located?” Zhengting asks again, trying to gather as much information as he can. Maybe if they drop him off somewhere, though Zhengting hardly believed that his conscience would let that happen.
“It’s a little hard to believe but,” Zhenghao pauses, as if gaging his reaction, he just nods in encouragement. “We’re located in the sewers.”
Zhengting freezes almost immediately. Fuck no.
Zhenghao sees this and seems to misunderstand. “I know it’s weird, but you have to believe me. We have a lot of people there, and it’s really safe underground.”
“In the sewers.” He repeats, his voice sounding hollow to his own ears.
Zhenghao nods, and Zhengting’s entire psyche goes to shit.
“Are you,” he begins, voice cracking so he swallows past the nonexistent lump in his throat, “are you part of that resistance group by any chance? The Incendiaries?”
Zhenghao’s eyes immediately light up. “You’ve heard of us? They’re going to be so pumped to hear this. We never thought we would get word out like this.”
“Right.” And his voice sounds weak, his brain emptying itself at the words. “You’re lucky it was the mutt that got you then, and not the government.”
“Zhengting? Who’s this?”
Wenjun steps into the house, the rest in tow. They had gone on a supply run, forcing Zhengting to stay behind because we’re old enough Zhengting, we don’t need you and your helicopter parenting.
“This is Zhenghao,” Zhengting says, clearing his throat and so abruptly straightening up he hits his hip on the table. He barely winces at the sharp pain. “I found him outside, he was attacked by a mutt.”
“Of course you did,” Chencheng says accusatorily, rolling his eyes but handing Zhengting the first aid supplies they had found anyways. “Only you would end up adopting another child while we were out.”
“We haven’t been gone for more than four hours.” Justin supplies, eyes narrowing at the newcomer. “How do we know he’s a good guy.”
“He’s one of them.” Zhengting says, trying to look uncaring as he packs the supplies away. Zeren triumphantly hands him a rabbit, an arrow shot through it, and he pretends like he’s appraising the meat carefully. “He’s from Xukun’s group.”
“You know Xukun?” Zhenghao perks up at that name, eyes wide and excited at the mention of his leader.
The room goes silent, and the boys end up exchanging glances, unsure what exactly to say at that. Xinchun speaks up first, lips pursed and brow furrowed in thought. “You can say that. We’re kind of old acquaintances.”
Zeren snorts. “Acquaintances, yep.”
“Don’t be sarcastic.” Zhengting shoots him a warning glance before turning back to Zhenghao with a contemplative look. “On the bright side, I think we can help you get back to your group, as long as the routes weren’t changed.”
“What’s on the not bright side?” Zhenghao asks.
Zhengting hums, pulling the arrow from where it was lodged into the rabbit’s body. “I don’t know how welcoming they’ll be. We didn’t really split on good terms.”
Suddenly, Zhenghao looks guarded. “Are you guys bad? Do you work for the government?”
“Nothing like that.” Now it’s Zhengting’s turn to snort, he hates the government as much as they did, he just didn’t want to die for that hate. “We just had a falling out of sorts. I guess you weren’t part of the group yet, then.”
“But this is great.” Zhenghao says anyway. “Now, I can get back. I’m sure you guys can resolve your issues. You did save me and all.”
“It’s not that simple kid,” Zhengting sighs, eyes, finally looking up from the rabbit to meet Wenjun’s. Wenjun only raises a brow at him inquisitively. “Xukun’s not going to be that forgiving. At least not when it comes to me.”
“What did you do?” Zhenghao asks, eyes narrowing as he look at Zhengting. He looks as if he’s sizing him up. How could someone like him, all lean muscle and delicate voice possibly hurt Xukun in any way?
“I don’t think Xukun would like it if I told his underlings about his dark past.” Zhengting refuses to think about the past himself. So that’s that.
“How soon do you think we can get me back there?” Zhenghao asks.
“It’s getting dark out. We’ll go tomorrow morning.” Zhengting sighs. It was better if they got this over with as soon as possible. “Can you walk?”
Zhenghao winces a little when he moves to get up and Zhengting second guesses the trip. “I’m good, I can make the trip.”
Zhengting notes his grimace from just standing up and decides that no he is definitely not good. “We’ll go next week when you’re a little bit more healed up.”
Before anything that could resemble a protest can escape his lips Zhengting shuts him up with a glare. “I know you’re from a resistance group, but you’re going to listen to me when I say that we aren’t going until next week. I don’t want you dragging us down if something happens.”
With that, he leaves to prepare the rabbit, Wenjun following behind wordlessly.
Justin pats Zhenghao on the back empathetically. “Don’t try to argue against it, he gets stubborn when it comes to putting anyone at risk.”
Zhenghao lets out a defeated groan. “Xukun’s going to kill me.”
“Oh trust me,” Justin laughs loudly, his entire frame shaking. “If you show up there with Zhengting, it won’t be you that Xukun will be looking at.”
---
A week passes without much of a hitch. Zhenghao blends into their group almost seamlessly, helping with the housework when he can. Soon enough he’s laughing along to Justin’s jokes and sharing secrets with Quanzhe.
By the time it’s time to leave, he almost doesn’t want to.
“Why don’t you guys just join our group?” He asks Quanzhe, eyes alight at the thought. “We’re fighting for a good cause.”
Quanzhe can only give him a wry smile and a consoling pat on the back. “It’s complicated. You’re going to have to ask Xukun or Zhengting if you really want to know.”
The thing was Zhengting avoided any and all conversation involving the Incendiaries, eyes growing distant as he closed himself off at the mention of it.
“You ready?”
Zhengting, Justin, and Xinchun were going while the rest stayed. As much as Zhengting didn’t want to go, it was better if he went in case anything bad happened.
Zhenghao hugs the rest of them goodbye, promising that he would see them again. Zhengting hoped to god that didn’t happen.
“Stay close,” Zhengting warned, mostly directed at Zhenghao. “We don’t know who’s watching and the mutts could come out at any time.”
They make their trek to the sewers as carefully as possible, Zhengting in the lead. The entrance he knew of was close, almost uncomfortably close, but he knew it was unlikely that Xukun still used it. It was on the edge of the city, away from the eyes of any other human and possible government agent that could lurk about.
It shouldn’t have taken then more than an hour to get there, but with Zhenghao slowing them down some it was becoming a longer trip than expected.
It only gets worse from there.
A mutt, hiding in one of the trees, lunges at Zhenghao and Justin being the boy that he is jumps in between the mutt and the other boy.
The ensuing events barely take more than a few seconds.
The mutt lays on the ground, dead. Justin was right beside it.
“Justin, god no.” Zhengting rushes forward, moving faster than he ever has in his entire life. Justin is breathing luckily, but the deep wound on his thigh make it so he’s losing a lot of blood after every second.
He rips a long strip of cloth, tying it on the wound before pulling Justin to his feet in hurried movements. “We have to get to the sewers.”
It’s a rush from there, Zhengting, practically carrying Justin the whole way. Luckily, they’re close and Zhengting pulls the metal entrance open.
Zhenghao blinks. “I’ve never seen this entrance before.”
“I don’t think it’s in use anymore.”
He drags Justin through the tunnels. Weaving through familiar pathways before they run into someone.
“Yue Yue!”
“Zhengting, what the fuck?” The older man takes in their appearance before understanding flickers in his eyes and he helps Zhengting, taking Justin’s other side. “Follow me.”
He leads them deeper into the tunnels before finally stopping at what could only be their makeshift medical bay, with multiple single beds lining one side. There wasn’t anyone there, Zhengting notes, before they’re dragging Justin into one of the beds.
Yue Yue works fast, faster than Zhengting, fingers nimble and light as he injects Justin with something then proceeds to work on his leg. “What brings you here?”
“We found him,” Zhengting points behind him with his thumb to where he knew Zhenghao would be, “injured outside our house. We were just bringing him back here when a mutt attacked and this idiot almost got killed.”
Yue Yue hums, eyes flickering up as he gives Zhengting a smile. “You remembered where we were.”
Zhengting laughs derisively. “How could I forget?”
“I missed you.”
Those words catch him off guard.
And it wasn’t like he didn’t miss them also because he did, so much, but he was determined to forget about them and their cause. It was easier that way.
“I missed you too.”
“Go let Xukun know you’re here.” Yue Yue tells Zhenghao with a pointed look that said you’re in trouble. “He’s been worried sick and searching for you everywhere.”
Zhenghao salutes before he slips out the door, running of to where their oh-so-righteous leader probably was.
“He’s going to want to see you.”
“I was hoping we could avoid that.” Zhengting rubs the back of his neck. Justin was pale, eyes shut in pain as Yue Yue bandaged his leg. Zhengting couldn’t help the worry that clawed at his chest. “I guess we’re not going to be leaving just quite yet though.”
He glances back, at Xinchun. “I should go back and tell the others.”
Xinchun meets his eyes and he sighs at what he sees there. “I’ll do it. You stay here.”
He wants to protest but Xinchun cuts him off. “Stop being a coward and running away.”
He hears a wheeze from behind him and he snaps his neck back to glare at Justin.
“He’s right.” Justin says. “You’ll have to face him eventually.”
Speak of the devil and he shall appear.
The door to the medical bay is suddenly swung open and Zhengting is on his feet immediately. He’s standing there in his black clothes, all straps with knives and guns and thick leather. His eyes scan the room once, glancing over Xinchun, Justin and Yue Yue before they zero in on him.
His eyes roam his figure, taking in the new scars, the harder edges before they go back to Yue Yue.
“What’s going on here?” There’s a coldness in his voice, and it feels like Zhengting’s been slapped in the face.
“Justin was attacked by a mutt trying to protect Zhenghao.” Yue Yue meets his cold tone with one of his own, but he smiles at Xukun as he raised his brows in feigned politeness, as if he was an unexpected but welcomed guest.
“Why were they with Zhenghao?”
The fact that Xukun doesn’t direct the questions at Zhengting makes him dig his nails into the palms of his hands in frustration. It was always heat and fire that he associates with Xukun, be it the flames of passion or the searing hot anger that boiled just under his skin.
“They saved him and brought him all the way back here.”
Finally Xukun snaps his eyes back at him, and Zhengting tries his hardest to meet his heated gaze with one of his own. “How did you find this place?”
“It’s only been three years,” Zhengting rolls his eyes. “I used the entrance that leads to the outskirts of town.”
Xukun snorts at that. “What reason do I have to believe that you would remember anything about us?”
Maybe it’s the overwhelming emotions that’s been plaguing Zhengting the whole day, or maybe it’s because Xukun can always push the right buttons to vex him just enough, but Zhengting snaps back. “We can’t all want to die, Xukun.”
Xukun strides forward, all narrowed eyes and clenched fists. “At least I don’t just turn a blind eye because I’m afraid of dying instead of helping people, Zhengting.”
He hasn’t heard his name come from that mouth in so long, and he wants to punch him in the face. Him and his smug tone and pretty mouth.
“Oh fuck you.” He spits out instead, taking his own step forward until they’re both in each other’s spaces. “You know I didn’t leave for myself. I couldn’t just let them die because of your cause, Xukun. Not everyone is a self-sacrificing moron.”
Xukun opens his mouth, looking like he wants to say something, before closing it again. Finally he decides on. “You can stay here until Justin is better.”
Zhengting nods, refusing to back down from Xukun’s gaze. “We’ll leave as soon as possible.”
Xukun doesn’t bother with a reply, leaving the room without another word.
Yue Yue whistles lowly. “That went well.”
“Considering their fights before,” Xinchun supplies, “that was actually pretty tame.”
Zhengting sags into the seat.
It had been so long since the last time they had spoken to each other, he would be lying if he said it didn’t affect him in some way.
He couldn’t let it though. They were only staying until Justin got better, and then they were going to leave and go back to pretending that they never knew each other.
He just had to make it through a few more days.
Then, he was never going to see Xukun ever again.