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Lan Xichen only comes to slowly. His vision is swimming and even a lot of blinking does only so much for him. He closes his eyes again, counting to ten inside his head, and then opens them again.
That is better.
He isn’t in his own room, but he has been inside this room often enough to know that it’s Jiang Cheng’s couch he’s laying on.
“Fuck,” Lan Xichen mutters, and even that faint sound sparks an intense headache.
“Good, you’re awake,” Jiang Cheng says, and though he tries to sound annoyed, Lan Xichen can see how worried he was.
“What happened?” he asks, through the pounding in his head, and he’s glad when Jiang Cheng hands him a pill with a questioning eyebrow.
“Yes, please, my head is killing me,” Lan Xichen mumbles and takes the pill.
He pushes himself up, turns around so he can lean against the backrest and only then does Jiang Cheng press a glass of blessedly cool water into his hand.
“So, what happened?” Lan Xichen asks after he swallowed the pill and Jiang Cheng sits down on the table in front of him.
“You fainted—straight into my arms. You know, if you wanted my attention you didn’t have to go to such extremes.”
Lan Xichen knows he’s blushing, of course he is, but he decides to not focus on the second part of Jiang Cheng’s answer. There will be a time to freak out over this later.
“I fainted?” he asks and Jiang Cheng nods.
“You’re exhausted, Xichen. The position as CEO is killing you.”
“It’s what I was trained for,” Lan Xichen gives back, because he cannot disappoint his uncle.
He cannot.
“Maybe,” Jiang Cheng allows. “But no one ever thought you’d be a teacher on the side as well,” he says and Lan Xichen can feel how the blood drains from his face.
No one should know about that. He worked so hard to keep it a secret, even from Jiang Cheng, who knows more about him than maybe even his own brother.
“How do you—,” he starts but he can’t bring himself to finish the question.
It doesn’t matter how Jiang Cheng knows. The only thing that matters is that he probably told Lan Qiren and his uncle will be more than disappointed in Lan Xichen. He will be furious.
“Whatever it is you’re thinking, stop it,” Jiang Cheng says and gently taps Lan Xichen on his forehead. “You’ll get wrinkles like this.”
“Did you tell my uncle?” Lan Xichen wants to know, even though he is already resigned to the answer.
“I did not,” Jiang Cheng says and then jumps when his phone rings. “No offense, but your uncle is one persistent asshole,” he conversionally tells Lan Xichen before he picks up the phone.
“What?” he snaps and Lan Xichen can hear his uncle on the other end of the line.
“Is he awake yet?” Lan Qiren asks and Jiang Cheng sends one long look at Lan Xichen, before he answers.
“No. And like I said before, I’m going to tell you when he does wake up,” Jiang Cheng tells him and then simply hangs up.
Lan Xichen can only stare.
“You just hung up on my uncle,” he mutters and Jiang Cheng rolls his eyes.
“He’s been calling me every half hour ever since he heard you fainted. He will not listen when I tell him I’ll call him once you’re awake. It gets really bothersome.”
“He’ll be angry,” Lan Xichen mumbles, because he’s been trained for this.
It should be easy for him to lead the company, no matter if he teaches for a few hours a week or not.
“He’s concerned. Worried. He already said he’s going to cut your workload, if that is what’s causing this,” Jiang Cheng tells him and Lan Xichen looks at him.
“But it’s not. It wouldn’t be so bad if I just quit teaching.”
“Why don’t you?” Jiang Cheng wants to know and Lan Xichen feels unhappy just thinking about abandoning his students.
“Because I love it. Because I love teaching, and I love my kids, and they are so eager to learn, so curious and attentive. I can do so much good by teaching them.”
“Tell that to your uncle when you finally admit to your second job,” Jiang Cheng suggests, but Lan Xichen shakes his head.
“He won’t understand.”
“He will,” Jiang Cheng says with confidence and Lan Xichen frowns at him.
“How do you know?”
“Lan Qiren knows you’ve been unhappy. He’s not stupid, you know, and he loves you. He will understand, but you have to tell him the truth. Maybe Lan Wangji can pick up a few of your duties as CEO, he’s been trained for that just as you. Share the burden, so he can continue to be in bliss with Wei Wuxian and his rabbits but you also get to teach.”
“Do you really think it’s that easy?” Lan Xichen asks and Jiang Cheng shrugs.
“Why wouldn’t it be. Your family loves you. They don’t want you overworked and unhappy. Together you can find a solution.”
“Together, huh?” Lan Xichen mutters and wonders if maybe this thing with Jiang Cheng could be as easy as that, too.
If only he dared to make a move.
“How’s your head?” Jiang Cheng asks and Lan Xichen nods slightly.
“Getting better,” he gives back.
“You need sleep,” Jiang Cheng tells him but Lan Xichen is barely listening.
Jiang Cheng has said that there were other ways to get his attention. Maybe—maybe Lan Xichen can dare to make a move.
“You said I don’t have to go to such extremes to get your attention,” Lan Xichen says, just barrelling through his embarrassment and Jiang Cheng seems honestly taken aback.
“Yes?”
“Does that mean I do not already have your attention?” Lan Xichen dares to ask, and he’s holding his breath until Jiang Cheng’s face goes soft with his smile.
“Xichen, you always have all of my attention,” Jiang Cheng gently tells him and Lan Xichen can feel himself blush.
It doesn’t help with his headache, but it barely matters.
“Do I?” he asks, almost under his breath, because he can barely believe this, but Jiang Cheng just cups his face in his hand.
“Yes, always. What you’re going to do with it is up to you, though,” Jiang Cheng tells him and maybe he has been waiting for Lan Xichen for a while already.
Maybe he has waited long enough.
Lan Xichen captures the hand still cupped around his cheek in his own hand, and presses a kiss to Jiang Cheng’s palm, before he uses it to pull Jiang Cheng closer as he leans forward himself.
Their first kiss is barely more than a brush of lips, but it makes Lan Xichen bold, so he presses in again, and Jiang Cheng meets him easily.
Lan Xichen rests their foreheads together when they part and Jiang Cheng chuckles slightly when his phone goes off again.
“And now you’re going to be this brave with your uncle, too,” he says as he hands Lan Xichen the phone.
Lan Xichen stares at it for a moment before he turns his eyes back to Jiang Cheng.
“Being brave with you is easy. With him, I don’t know if I can,” Lan Xichen admits and Jiang Cheng kisses the corner of his mouth again.
“I’ll be here,” he promises. “And you’re always brave.”
Lan Xichen waits for long enough that Lan Qiren hangs up again, but he knows his uncle. He will call again.
“Okay,” he agrees, when the phone lights up again. “With you,” he says to Jiang Cheng and then he accepts the call.
It’s time to be brave and honest with his uncle too. It might even be easy, with Jiang Cheng by his side.