Work Text:
The Boyfriend is Something That Exists
For as long as Shen Jiu has remembered, it had always been just him and his Yuan-ge all alone in a house too big for them. Their parents made their presence known through expensive gifts delivered by faceless personnel and a steady stream of money into Shen Jiu and Shen Yuan’s shared account. The only times Shen Jiu had ever seen their faces were on TV or through newspaper articles.
The person who tucked Shen Jiu into bed at night was Shen Yuan. The person who comforted him when he was upset was Shen Yuan. The person who celebrated every achieved milestone was Shen Yuan.
For as long as Shen Jiu has remembered, his family had always been just him and his Yuan-ge.
And that was why he reacted so badly to Shen Yuan’s boyfriend.
“Didi,” Shen Yuan said with a smile, introducing some tall, muscular man with fluffy black hair and a face so attractive it made Shen Jiu want to disfigure it, “This is my boyfriend, Luo Binghe.”
Shen Jiu nearly dropped the book he was holding.
“Boyfriend?” Shen Jiu asked numbly.
“Yes, we’ve been dating for six months now and I thought that since things were getting serious, I should introduce him to the family. To you.” At this, Shen Yuan looked a little nervous. “I hope… I hope you can approve?”
Shen Jiu knew that if he so much as expressed even the slightest bit of dislike to Luo Binghe, Shen Yuan would dump him. Shen Yuan, who was six years older than him and had been taking care of Shen Jiu ever since he was born, would always put him first.
Shen Jiu looked at Shen Yuan and, seeing how hopeful and nervous he was, how as the seconds dragged on resignation entered his eyes and snuffed the light in them out, he knew he could only give one answer.
“Of course I approve,” Shen Jiu said. “Besides, whoever you date isn’t my business.”
Shen Yuan’s eyes shone with relief. “Thank you, didi,” he said and that was the end of that.
However, Shen Jiu had lied. Whoever Shen Yuan dated was very much his business and he greatly disapproved of Luo Binghe. From the small dinner they shared together – that Luo Binghe cooked and it was the first home-cooked meal Shen Jiu had ever had in his life (that didn’t immediately send him to the ER) but that wasn’t the point – Shen Jiu learnt a few things about Luo Binghe.
The first thing he learnt was that Luo Binghe was an excellent self-taught cook. The second thing he learnt was that despite Luo Binghe being in university (which was where he met Shen Yuan), he owned a small but reputable company that was already making waves in its industry. The third thing he learnt about Luo Binghe was that he was perfect.
Shen Jiu didn’t mean it in a sappy way, like the way Shen Yuan said ‘[his] Binghe was the most perfect boyfriend in the word’ with a disgusting coo to his voice when he was describing Luo Binghe to Shen Jiu. No, he meant it in the way that Luo Binghe was so perfect that he was suspicious. Surely everyone has flaws, right? Things that they fell short at. But no, Shen Jiu, master of sniffing out weaknesses, could find no fault or error with Luo Binghe that would allow him to justify his own hatred of the man so that his brother could dump him.
But that just meant that either Luo Binghe had a deep, dark secret that he was very good at hiding, or that he wasn’t human. Shen Jiu felt that either scenario was equally likely and that whatever it was, Shen Jiu would dedicate his existence to revealing Luo Binghe for what he truly was. There was absolutely no way that he was going to let his brother get married to a liability!
-o-
The first thing he had to do in order to unmask Luo Binghe would be to engage in reconnaissance. No one could put on an act forever and Shen Jiu just needed Luo Binghe to slip up just once and it would be enough.
To Shen Jiu’s chagrin, Luo Binghe had no classes that day and hence spent the entire time glued to his brother in the most blindingly disgusting way possible. Cuddling up to Shen Yuan, buying things for him, shielding Shen Yuan’s body from the rude and pushy crowds, even hand-feeding Shen Yuan. And the most infuriating part was that Shen Jiu could find no fault in his behaviour! Luo Binghe was nothing but gentle with Shen Yuan, nothing but the best with Shen Yuan, and Shen Jiu would be hard pressed to find anyone who he thought would be able to treat Shen Yuan better.
And that just made Shen Jiu even angrier!
How dare Luo Binghe be the best fit for Shen Yuan! He wasn’t deserving of him! No one but the most hardworking, the most gentle, the most meticulous, the most loving partner was deserving of his Yuan-ge, how dare Luo Binghe fit the criteria Shen Jiu had painstakingly made! It was like his very existence served to make Shen Jiu’s blood pressure rise!
Shen Yuan was currently in one of his classes and Shen Jiu already knew that Luo Binghe would spend the entire time waiting outside the room of the lecture hall like a dog waiting for its owner to come home so he allowed himself to crouch in a corner to sulk and come up with another, better game plan.
“You’re… Shen Jiu? A-Yuan’s younger brother?”
Why. Was. He. Here.
Shen Jiu plastered a pleasant smile on his face – it wouldn’t do for Luo Binghe to realize that Shen Jiu was On To Him – and greeted Luo Binghe. “Luo-ge,” he said in a saccharine sweet tone. “I’m here to look for Yuan-ge. He left something at home and I want to give it to him.” Shen Yuan didn’t leave it so much as Shen Jiu having sneakily removed it from his bag but either way he was prepared.
“Oh, A-Yuan’s pencil case! It’s alright, I already bought him a replacement set but if you’d like, A-Yuan’s coming out of his class in one hour, forty-six minutes and eleven seconds. You could give it to him then.”
Unfortunately, Shen Jiu did not think that Luo Binghe’s words were even the slightest bit strange as he, too, knew the exact time Shen Yuan was going to leave the classroom right down to the second.
“Oh no, I couldn’t,” Shen Jiu said. “Besides, it’s dinner after this class, don’t you two have a dinner date or something? How could I get in the way?”
“A-Yuan has already told me that he spends dinner time with you,” Luo Binghe said. “I couldn’t take that away from the both of you.”
Fucking hell Luo Binghe was so earnest that Shen Jiu could find no flaw in his mask. Fine then. Fine! If Luo Binghe was going to play it this way.
“Why don’t you join us, Luo-ge?” Shen Jiu asked, because there was no way in hell he was going to let Luo Binghe go for even a second before he figured out what that beast was playing at. “If everything goes well, you’ll be part of the family too.” There, a hint of the concept of commitment! That was usually enough to scare most people away and it would definitely be enough to break through Luo Binghe’s farce.
Luo Binghe’s eyes were suspiciously shiny. “Thank you, Shen-di,” he said. He sounded emotional, which made Shen Jiu uncomfortable. Shen Yuan already had enough emotions on his own, why did he feel the need to find someone else to add in more emotions? “It would be my honour to join you and A-Yuan for dinner.”
Fuck. Maybe Luo Binghe was a tougher nut to crack than Shen Jiu had thought.
-o-
The Boyfriend is Picking Me Up From School
The school Shen Jiu went to was a school arranged by his parents. At a single glance it was obvious that this school was a school catering to children of the rich and famous, and Shen Jiu’s parents were both. It functioned less as a school and more of a training ground for future politicians, socialites, and the like to gather the connections they would need later in life. Shen Jiu’s parents were both well-known, respected, and influential in their respective fields, and hence it wasn’t odd that there would be people who would try to curry favour with him.
Well, at first.
It wasn’t long before Shen Jiu and the people in his school had an agreement: they would not bother him and he would not bother them. However, there was one person who did not entertain this agreement.
Liu Qingge was the largest pain in his neck.
In the beginning they were assigned as seatmates. As much as Shen Jiu wanted to say that he had hated the other at first glance, that he had already known the type of person he was from the very beginning, they actually got along fine. It wasn’t to say that they were friends or anything, but it was simply that they had an understanding.
Then, there was an incident where Shen Jiu had been targeted by a young lady from another family – and was it his fault that her boyfriend had straying eyes? – where he had been framed for secretly bullying said lady. Liu Qingge had expressed his distaste for Shen Jiu, saying that he didn’t like people who did dishonourable things.
Dishonourable your fucking head!
Shen Jiu didn’t bother with defending himself. He merely sneered and requested a change in the seating arrangements, and the two of them never interacted ever again.
A few weeks later, when the truth was revealed – and Shen Jiu wanted to roll his eyes; shouldn’t they have known by now that if he wanted to do any bullying, he would do it out in the open daylight? – Liu Qingge came up to Shen Jiu. Maybe it was to apologise or maybe not, Shen Jiu didn’t know, because he had been facetiming with his brother at that time and, when he caught sight of the look on Liu Qingge’s face when the brute laid eyes on his brother, he just Knew.
What else could Shen Jiu do except hang up the call before attacking Liu Qingge like a rabid animal?
Their relationship had been like fire and ice ever since.
-o-
“Don’t fucking follow me,” Shen Jiu hissed under his breath. Liu Qingge scowled back.
“I’m not following you,” he said. It was a lie, of course. Liu Qingge refused to be in the same place as Shen Jiu unless it was absolutely necessary, or if it was Friday, which was the day Shen Yuan usually picked Shen Jiu up from school.
Liu Qingge only had the chance to see his crush on Fridays, for under ten minutes, and most of the time he wouldn’t even talk. He would just stammer and steal glances at Shen Yuan until Shen Jiu herded his brother away. It would be hilarious if it wasn’t so pathetic, and also if Liu Qingge’s crush wasn’t Shen Jiu’s brother. Someone who jumped to conclusions based on rumours wasn’t suited to stand by Yuan-ge’s side. Shen Jiu wouldn’t allow it.
Even though he knew it was useless, Shen Jiu accelerated his pace, tried to shake Liu Qingge off his trail as he made his way to the school gates. When he saw who was waiting by the gates, however, he stopped dead in his tracks.
The person standing by the entrance was tall, had fluffy hair, was surrounded by his schoolmates, and was not his brother.
Luo Binghe’s expressionless and borderline icy demeanour softened when he caught sight of Shen Jiu. “Shen-di!” he called out, making all eyes turn to Shen Jiu.
“Who’s that?” he heard Liu Qingge ask and it snapped him out of his shock. Shen Jiu walked up to Luo Binghe and, with hidden disgust, tugged at his shirt.
“Luo-ge! You came to pick me up? Where’s Yuan-ge?” he asked.
“A-Yuan is…” Luo Binghe looked a little sheepish. Shen Jiu’s eyes narrowed but before he could do anything, like pull out the pocketknife he definitely didn’t keep on him at all times, Luo Binghe continued to speak. “He seemed to have eaten something strange in the morning so I told him to rest while I pick you up. He’s over there, in my car.”
Shen Jiu recalled that Shen Yuan had eaten some yoghurt in the morning. It was probably expired. Honestly, shouldn’t he have learnt his lesson by now?
“Oh okay,” Shen Jiu said. He then caught sight of Liu Qingge and an idea entered his head.
With a smile, Shen Jiu turned to Liu Qingge and said, “By the way, this is my brother’s boyfriend.”
The shock on Liu Qingge’s face made Shen Jiu’s heart warm.
-o-
“How many times have I had to tell you, always check the expiry date!”
“It only expired a day ago, I thought it should still be fine!”
“Expired means expired! Yuan-ge, this has happened enough times!” Shen Yuan sat before Shen Jiu in the living room, head bowed, as Shen Jiu once again lectured him. It was a common occurrence, much to Shen Jiu’s annoyance. “And dairy products! Aren’t you lactose intolerant?”
Shen Jiu heard a laugh off to the side and he couldn’t help but glare at Luo Binghe. “What?!” he snapped.
“No, It’s just nice to see that there’s been someone taking care of A-Yuan all this time,” Luo Binghe said. “A-Yuan has very bad habits when it comes to eating. Usually if I’m not with him, he skips lunch.”
Shen Jiu turned the full force of his glare back to Shen Yuan.
“Binghe!” Shen Yuan whined. “You promised not to tell!”
Oh, that made Shen Jiu see red.
“What else? Does he eat fried food? It’s bad for his stomach. He can’t eat more than thrice a week. Foods that are too greasy or oily aren’t good for him either. He had to take it in moderation. Too much caffeine is bad. And you have to watch his sugar intake, but not as much as his salt; Yuan-ge doesn’t exercise but still loves to drink those isotonic drinks and that might cause too much salt to be in his body and that’s not good for him,” Shen Jiu ranted.
“Didi, you don’t have to— Binghe, are you writing this down?” Shen Yuan sounded horrified.
“Well, Binghe has to take care of A-Yuan, since A-Yuan won’t take care of himself,” Luo Binghe said with a cheeky smile. Shen Jiu caught himself nodding in agreement and was horrified. Agreeing? With what The Enemy said? How low had he fallen?
“Wait,” Shen Jiu said. “We’re both lactose intolerant. Why do we have yoghurt in the fridge?”
“I like yoghurt,” Shen Yuan tried to defend himself. “Wait, didi, wait!” Shen Jiu had picked up a pillow and started smacking Shen Yuan with it. Before he could do too much damage, however, he felt an arm wrap around his midsection and pull him off. Caught completely off guard, it took a while for him to realize what was going on.
That Luo Binghe had picked him up with one arm! Effortlessly, too! What the fuck!
Shen Yuan’s face was red as he took in the sight. He licked his dry lips and oh no. Oh fucking no. Against all instincts, Shen Jiu stole a glance up at Luo Binghe to see that his eyes were dark and his gaze almost hungry as he looked at Shen Yuan.
Shen Jiu immediately started thrashing in Luo Binghe’s grip. He was dropped easily and without fanfare, and immediately scampered out of the room, far, far away to the other side of the house.
-o-
The Boyfriend is a Cheat
Black fluffy hair, check.
Tall muscular stature, check.
Shen Yuan? Not there.
Some random person hanging off the side of his arm in a flirtatious manner…? Well.
Shen Jiu swung his bag. “How dare you cheat on my brother, Luo Binghe you fucking scum?!”
-o-
The Boyfriend is a Cheat Has a Brother
“You’re not Luo Binghe,” Shen Jiu said.
“What the fuck did you put in your bag?” the person in front of him hissed, rubbing his head. There was a noticeable bump and it was turning a little purple.
“Nothing,” Shen Jiu lied through his teeth. There was a steel plate in his bag. Why? Sometimes it’s best not to ask unnecessary questions. “I’ll bring you to see the doctor.”
There was some silence as Shen Jiu supported the person’s weight. Then,
“You said Luo Binghe. You know my brother?”
“Yes, he’s dating my brother.”
This made the person double take. “You’re Shen Yuan’s brother?” He appeared to be doubtful. “Shen Yuan is so gentle and kind, and you’re…”
Ha. This person thought Shen Yuan was “gentle” and “kind”.
“I’m Shen Jiu, his evil younger brother,” Shen Jiu said.
“I’m Luo Bingge, the better Luo brother,” Luo Bingge said. Wow. Creative naming. “Since you’re Shen Yuan’s brother, I’ll give you a heads up. Shen Yuan is going to be mine.”
Wordlessly, Shen Jiu dropped Luo Bingge onto the ground.
-o-
“Ah, didi, you’re back!” Shen Yuan greeted him at the door. “Oh, you’ve brought a friend… wait, aren’t you Binghe’s brother?”
Just as Shen Jiu was about to shoot a glare at Luo Bingge and tell him to scram, Shen Yuan said, “I’m glad that the both of you are friends. It would break my heart if the both of you couldn’t get along.”
Shen Jiu immediately wrapped his arm around Luo Bingge’s shoulders. Or attempted to. For someone younger than him, that fucker sure was tall. “Yup! Bingge and I are best friends! Ha ha ha! Come on, Bingge, let’s go to my room!” He immediately dragged Bingge away before he could even say a word.
-o-
Shen Jiu re-entered his room to see Luo Bingge on his laptop.
“Your password is very guessable,” the pest said. Shen Jiu considered throwing the thing in his hand at Luo Bingge’s head but then decided against it. If Luo Bingge was to be rushed to the hospital, it would not be from under his roof. Plausible deniability and all that. Instead, Shen Jiu slammed his laptop shut and handed the item to Luo Bingge.
“Don’t invade my privacy,” Shen Jiu said curtly. Luo Bingge took the cold compress with a look of surprise before holding it to his head.
“Didn’t think you were going to give me first aid,” he said.
“You’re under my roof,” Shen Jiu replied with annoyance. “I wasn’t raised by animals.”
“And you’re pretending that we’re best friends because of Shen Yuan,” Luo Bingge continued. He then nodded his head towards Shen Jiu’s laptop. “Does your brother know that you’ve installed a tracker onto his phone?”
“Well,” Shen Jiu said defensively. “He’s got one on mine.”
Luo Bingge smiled.
“If you tell him, I’ll kill you, Luo Bingge,” Shen Jiu hissed. “I’ll fucking kill you. Don’t test me.”
“Then I’ll enjoy having dinner with you and your brother today,” Luo Bingge said smugly.
Shen Jiu had only known Luo Bingge for one day and he had already overtaken Liu Qingge’s spot in Shen Jiu’s murder list.
-o-
The Boyfriend is Celebrating My Brother’s Birthday
Like a piranha that had caught the scent of blood, Liu Qingge bit onto the idea of Shen Yuan’s boyfriend and did not let go.
“But are you sure he’s your brother’s boyfriend?” Liu Qingge asked, for the third time, in that hour, in that day. He was supposed to be sitting on the other side of the classroom. Shen Jiu wanted him to be on the other side of the school.
“Class is starting,” Shen Jiu said. Liu Qingge faltered for a bit before going back to his seat, but not before throwing one last searching glance at Shen Jiu. Shen Jiu looked out the window. They were two floors up.
He should be able to make the jump.
-o-
“But I’ve never actually seen the two of them together before,” Liu Qingge said and Shen Jiu was Done. Liu Qingge was clearly going to harp on the matter until one of them died (and it was not going to be Shen Jiu) or until he got solid proof that they were together and that Luo Binghe was not an actor Shen Jiu hired in order to throw Liu Qingge off (which, admittedly, Shen Jiu had done before).
“Tomorrow, 8pm. Shen Yuan’s birthday party. Eat dinner before you come over,” Shen Jiu said.
Liu Qingge stared at him.
“I’ll text you the address. Remember to bring a present,” Shen Jiu continued. “Now get the hell back to your seat or I’ll rescind the invitation.”
Liu Qingge got the hell back to his seat.
-o-
“Gege,” Shen Jiu said dully, gesturing to the boy standing next to him. “This is Liu Qingge, a classmate of mine.”
Liu Qingge stared at the ground. His ears were tinged red as he shoved a delicately wrapped present towards Shen Yuan with both hands.
“For you,” he said gruffly. Shen Yuan took the present with a smile.
“Ah, you didn’t have to,” Shen Yuan said. “But thank you.”
The red on Liu Qingge’s ears deepened. Shen Jiu was incredibly unimpressed.
Liu Qingge licked his lips. “You—” he began and then was instantly cut off when Luo Binghe entered the picture, sliding an arm around Shen Yuan’s waist like it belonged there. Shen Jiu was going to rip that arm off someday.
“A-Yuan,” Luo Binghe greeted, pressing a kiss against Shen Yuan’s temple.
“Binghe,” Shen Yuan greeted back, automatically leaning into the gesture. The both of them fit well together, like two pieces of a puzzle. It was utterly disgusting.
Beside him, Liu Qingge had gone incredibly still.
When Luo Binghe pulled away from Shen Yuan, there was a split second in which the way he looked at Liu Qingge was… odd. Hostile, almost. However, it was quickly covered up with a sweet smile as he looked at Shen Jiu.
Shen Jiu did not believe in that smile for even a second.
“Shen-di, perhaps you could help your friend to the refreshment table?” Luo Binghe asked.
“Classmate,” Shen Jiu corrected, before doing as Luo Binghe said. But it wasn’t because he was scared of Luo Binghe, he just didn’t want Liu Qingge any closer to his brother than necessary. He definitely wasn’t afraid. Shut up.
And besides, Liu Qingge had gone awfully quiet.
-o-
Liu Qingge didn’t speak until Shen Jiu had dragged him to the private patio area at the back of the house.
“Your brother really has a boyfriend,” he said quietly.
“Yeah. I’m not lying to you this time,” Shen Jiu said. He didn’t feel bad, nor was he concerned about Liu Qingge. He just felt… responsible. He was the one who brought Liu Qingge here, after all. “He’s six years older than you. It would never have worked out. There are also other fish in the sea, so as to speak. Of course, there are none as good as my brother but you’ll just have to make do.”
An odd sound came from Liu Qingge. It took a second for Shen Jiu to realize it was a chuckle.
“You’re not helping,” Liu Qingge said.
“I wasn’t trying to help,” Shen Jiu sniffed, turning away. “I was just stating facts.” Directly contradicting his own words, Shen Jiu pushed a can of his favourite soda towards Liu Qingge.
A long moment of silence, followed by the sound of compressed air escaping from a soda can.
“Thanks.”
-o-
The Boyfriend is not going to have a brother in the near future because i am going to—
Shen Jiu had never really been on the other end of blackmailing before. It was a new and novel experience. It also fucking sucked.
Spying on Shen Yuan and Luo Binghe while they were on dates wasn’t something new to Shen Jiu; he had done that a few times at the start in order to make sure that Luo Binghe wasn’t, say, a vampire in disguise trying to drink Shen Yuan’s blood. Or a werewolf. Or an alien. Or a malicious AI. However, spying on Shen Yuan and Luo Binghe with Luo Bingge was a different matter.
Shen Jiu ended up shoving Luo Bingge into a fountain half an hour in, drawing the attention of the very couple they had been spying on.
So, with spying out of the question, Luo Bingge turned to more outlandish ideas in order to get a feel of what Shen Yuan liked so that he could, in his words, “steal Shen Yuan from [his] brother”.
This ended up with Shen Jiu and Luo Bingge on a fake date, where Shen Jiu was to play the part of Shen Yuan and also the part of a guide as he explained Shen Yuan’s hobbies to Luo Bingge.
“You have to let him win,” Shen Jiu said in exasperation. They were currently in an arcade, playing the rhythm game jubeat. “You can’t just demolish him every time, you have to let him win a few times but not, like, obviously. He has to feel that he’s earned the victory.”
“That’s bullshit,” Luo Bingge said. “Why should I pretend to lose?”
“I don’t know, I’m not Yuan-ge. Personally, I hate people going easy on me,” Shen Jiu said. “But it’s what Yuan-ge and Luo Binghe do! If you can’t even do this, can’t even loosen the hold on your pride for such a small thing, then I won’t even let you close to Yuan-ge.”
Luo Bingge rolled his eyes. Shen Jiu briefly fantasized about poking them out.
“Ugh, I’m tired of this game,” Luo Bingge said. “Let’s play something else.”
“You wouldn’t even last fifteen minutes into a date with Yuan-ge. Die,” Shen Jiu said but, in truth, he was also getting tired of this game.
“What about that game over there?” Luo Bingge suggested. Shen Jiu glanced over at where Luo Bingge was pointing. It was a 4D horror game.
Shen Jiu had to hold back the grin that wanted to spread across his face.
“You’re on,” he said.
-o-
“You cheated,” Shen Jiu snarled. “You dirty fucking cheat!”
They were currently sitting in a nearby café, taking a break after ten rounds of the game.
“That sounds like the words of a sore loser,” Luo Bingge taunted.
“Give me another ten rounds and I’ll show you who the sore loser is,” Shen Jiu said.
“You’re on!” Luo Bingge laughed. “God, this is the most fun I’ve ever had.”
“This is the most fun you’ve had ever? What kind of life did you live?” Shen Jiu asked. Luo Bingge’s grin died down to a small smile, and then there was not even that.
“I… I’ve been training. I want to be better.”
“Better? Why?”
“All my life, I’ve been compared to my brother,” Luo Bingge said. “How I was not as smart as him, as talented as him, as charismatic as him… I’m always playing catchup to him.” He looked down at his drink, frustration clear in his voice. “When people look at me, they don’t see me. All they see is Luo Binghe’s younger brother. Everyone has always preferred him over me.”
Shen Jiu kept quiet, listening to Luo Bingge’s words.
“I didn’t really resent my brother for this too much because he was in the same boat. He was constantly being compared to someone else too, to our father. And in the eyes of others, he would always be Tianlang-Jun’s son. I thought that, we were kind of in the same boat, you know?”
“And then he met your brother. Suddenly, he was more than just Tianlang-Jun’s son, suddenly there was someone who saw him as Luo Binghe. Who was happy with him just being Luo Binghe. So I thought that if I were to date Shen Yuan, then maybe he would look at me the same way he looked at my brother. He would look at me and see more than just ‘Luo Binghe’s’ brother.” Luo Bingge gave a humourless chuckle. “Stupid of me, isn’t it?”
“Yeah,” Shen Jiu answered. “It’s stupid.”
“Ouch,” Luo Bingge scowled. “You really don’t pull any punches, huh?”
Shen Jiu raised an eyebrow. “Do I need to? Dating someone your sibling used to date is like, a recipe for disaster. Anyone would know it. And besides, you are more than Luo Binghe’s brother. The both of you are so different and if people can’t see it, they’re blind.” Shen Jiu took a sip of his tea.
“You say this,” Luo Bingge scoffed, but his eyes betrayed him as they gazed hungrily towards Shen Jiu. Desperately. “But you still prefer him, don’t you? Everyone does.”
“Fuck no,” Shen Jiu could not be more disgusted at the idea. “God, I’ll take you over him any day. He’s like… I loathe his very existence. If I had to choose between you and him, I’d choose you any day. I like you much better.”
“Why?” Luo Bingge unconsciously leaned forward.
“Do I need a reason? I just like you more.” Shen Jiu then seemed to realize what he was saying. “Not that I like you or anything. I fucking hate you. I just, you’re just, more… tolerable than that…” Shen Jiu tried to think up a word that best encompassed his abhorrence towards Luo Binghe and failed. He didn’t need to do so, though, as Luo Bingge got the message.
“Thank you,” Luo Bingge said quietly. His eyes were shining ever so slightly. Shen Jiu looked away in mild embarrassment.
There was a tense silence that reigned for a little while after that, both of them unsure of what to say next. Finally, Shen Jiu sighed.
“My nanny tried to kill my brother and me when I was six,” he said.
Luo Bingge stared at him. The sudden change in topic gave him whiplash. “What?”
“My nanny tried to kill my brother and me when I was six,” Shen Jiu repeated. Since Luo Bingge opened up a little to him, Shen Jiu figured he ought to do the same. Equivalent exchange or whatever. “She had been taking care of me since I was born and, before that, had been taking care of Yuan-ge since he was born. With our parents constantly absent from our lives, she was kind of a mother figure to us.”
Shen Jiu took another sip of his tea.
“She said that she considered us her own children, which is actually pretty fucking disturbing since she was ready to murder us in cold blood for, like, five million dollars. Did it through poison of all things, too. One day she said she cooked for us. In hindsight, it was pretty obvious; usually we cater from outside or we have a chef to cook for us, our nanny never cooked. But that day, she said she made dinner and wanted us to try it and, like the dumb kids we were, we believed in her.”
“You weren’t dumb,” Luo Bingge said. His voice was low, simmering with tightly reigned anger. “She was your caregiver. There was no reason for you not to trust her.”
Shen Jiu shrugged. “Well, apparently there was because after eating, the poison kicked in. I didn’t eat as much as my brother because, I don’t know, luck? Being picky as a kid? But it didn’t allow me to do anything but be conscious as I heard my nanny discuss our deaths over the phone without even a waver in her voice.” Shen Jiu took in a deep breath. “She didn’t care. She took care of us for twelve years, and she didn’t care.”
“People are fickle and easily bought over with money, fame, whatever. The point is, someone can treat you nicely and then stab you in the back without hesitation. That’s why I don’t understand. How,” Shen Jiu’s voice turned strangled, “how can Yuan-ge just… let someone into our lives like that? How can he… trust someone again? I… I don’t understand.”
“…Shen Jiu,” Luo Bingge began softly. Shen Jiu quickly blinked away the moisture in his eyes. Tears? What tears?
“It’s fine, I’m completely over it now. Save your pity,” Shen Jiu said. Luo Bingge looked at him. “What?” Shen Jiu snapped defensively. “I am over it! I went to therapy and everything.”
Luo Bingge pursed his lips but decided to drop the topic. “Where do you want to go to next?”
Glad for the change in topic, Shen Jiu took his list back out. “Let’s see, next on the list is like, some anime convention which means more sweaty crowded areas. It’s just another discomfort you have to handle if you want to even consider dating my brother.”
“No,” Luo Bingge shook his head. “I meant where do you want to go next.”
“Me?” Shen Jiu pointed to himself. “Wasn’t the point of this journey for you to figure out how to date my brother?”
A small smile played on Luo Bingge’s lips as he gazed at Shen Jiu. “Well, let’s just say I changed my mind.”
-o-
The Boyfriend is… Tolerable
“Yuan-ge, I’m going out again,” Shen Jiu said.
“With your classmate again?” Shen Yuan asked.
Shen Jiu shrugged. “Yeah. He needs to buy something for his sister and asked me for help.”
“I see. You’ve been going out more and more recently,” a wistful tone entered Shen Yuan’s voice. “You don’t really talk to me as much as you used to.”
Shen Jiu paused in the doorway. He? Not talking to Shen Yuan? Wasn’t it the other way around? The moment Luo Binghe entered the picture, all Shen Yuan ever cared about was him. How dare Shen Yuan say that it was Shen Jiu that wasn’t talking?
Unaware of the bomb he had inadvertently lit a fuse to, Shen Yuan continued talking. “You’re all grown up now… you don’t really need me anymore do you?”
Was this it? Was this how Shen Yuan was going to tell Shen Jiu that he was leaving?
“You’re one to talk,” Shen Jiu muttered.
Shen Yuan looked at him curiously. “What did you say?”
“I said,” Shen Jiu raised his voice. “You’re one to talk! You’re the one that doesn’t want me around anymore now that you have a fucking boyfriend!”
“Jiu-di!” Shen Yuan stood up from his seat but Shen Jiu was already gone.
-o-
The sun had already set long enough that the chill of the night was starting to seep into Shen Jiu’s bones. Still, Shen Jiu refused to go home to a house where the only thing he would be is a burden.
“There you are.” The last person Shen Jiu ever wanted to see appeared in front of him to gloat.
“What do you want?” Shen Jiu bit out. He didn’t care about appearing like a pleasant little brother anymore. If Shen Yuan was going to leave with Luo Binghe, then he no longer needed to keep up appearances to make Shen Yuan happy.
Luo Binghe sat down beside Shen Jiu. Shen Jiu turned away.
“I know you don’t like me,” Luo Binghe said. “I know you don’t like me, that you weren’t very acceptive of me in the first place, but I want to thank you for allowing me a chance to prove myself. I promise that I’ll do all I can to make Shen Yuan happy.”
Shen Jiu remained unmoved.
“I know that you will always come first for Shen Yuan,” Luo Binghe said. “And I’m okay with that. I won’t lie and say that I was happy with it, not at first, but I understand. You’re important to Shen Yuan and therefore you’re important to me. You will always have us for as long as you need.”
Shen Jiu hated this man. He hated how Luo Binghe always knew what to say.
“Fine,” Shen Jiu hissed out. “Fucking fine! If you want my approval so much, then you have it! Fuck you! I’ll be watching you like a hawk and if you don’t make Yuan-ge happy, I’ll fucking murder you, I’ll absolutely annihilate you.” Shen Jiu was not wiping tears from his face. “Now go and start your shitty happy family together or whatever, I don’t need any of you!”
He heard a sigh from behind him before a warm weight settled across his shoulders. It was Luo Binghe’s jacket. Ugh.
“I’m not taking A-Yuan away to start a family, Shen Jiu,” Luo Binghe said. “I’m asking for permission to enter your family, because I want you to be my family too.”
And what could Shen Jiu ever say to that?
-o-
The Boyfriend is Now My Brother-In-Law
“What do you mean they can’t make it?” Shen Jiu hissed over the phone. His perfectly styled hair and neatly pressed suit was almost about to come undone due to how much pacing he was doing. “It’s Yuan-ge’s wedding! You know, their first-born son?” A pause as Shen Jiu listened to the person on the other end of the phone. “I don’t want their blessings, I want their physical presence!”
“Shen Jiu, if you keep moving around, you’ll ruin your outfit,” Luo Bingge said, gently catching the arm that was about to hurl the phone out the window and massaging the tension out of Shen Jiu’s hand. “Shen Yuan-ge doesn’t seem to be too bothered by it. Besides, you’re here for him, and isn’t that enough?”
“Look, all I’m saying is if I had a child, which I won’t because children are annoying, I would be there for their wedding even if I had a mega-important meeting to attend. The people in the meeting would just have to wait! Fuck, I’d even be involved in the wedding planning process!” Shen Jiu had been incredibly involved with the wedding planning for Shen Yuan’s wedding. He was so involved to the point where he had probably been blacklisted from the company. “Also, let go of my hand.”
“Aww,” Luo Bingge pouted and batted his eyelashes in an incredibly annoying way as he pushed Shen Jiu’s hand to his face and nuzzled it. “But I like your hands!”
Shen Jiu could feel his blood pressure rising. Truly, who needed enemies when you had friends like these?
“Let him go,” Liu Qingge said from behind Shen Jiu. When had that guy snuck in? Sandwiched between two men that were, disgustingly, taller and prettier than Shen Jiu, Shen Jiu felt the need to slice their kneecaps.
“And I should listen to you because…?” Luo Bingge asked, a defiant set to the way he somehow gazed down at Liu Qingge despite them being of similar height.
“You should listen to me because I will get into a fight with the both of you, ruining my outfit, therefore ruining my brother’s wedding, therefore causing me to have to murder you two and dump your bodies in the river,” Shen Jiu spoke up.
The both of them stepped away from Shen Jiu upon hearing his voice, as if they were snapping out of a strange trance. They were being weird lately, especially when they were around each other, but as long as they weren’t panting after Shen Yuan anymore, Shen Jiu wouldn’t complain.
“Shen Jiu,” Liu Qingge said. “It’s time to go. The ceremony is about to start.”
“Thanks.” Shen Jiu made his way out of the room with Liu Qingge on his left and Luo Bingge on his right.
Like he said. Weird.
-o-
Shen Jiu was incapable of tears. His tear ducts had been surgically removed. No, he hadn’t been born with any in the first place.
Due to his blurry eyes, Shen Jiu did not catch Shen Yuan whispering into Luo Binghe’s ear while looking in his general direction, and hence was unable to avoid eating a face full of flowers.
“So, who’s the lucky person you’re going to marry?” someone asked him. They quickly shut up after a glare from Shen Jiu, still cutting and terrifying even with a halo of petals fluttering down around him.
“You know, they say that if you’re single and you catch a bouquet, you’ll marry the first person you dance with,” another, more thick-skinned person said. Shen Jiu rolled his eyes. As if there was anyone who wanted to dance with him in the first place.
-o-
Sitting at a corner near the buffet table, Shen Jiu’s view of his brother and his brother’s new husband was suddenly blocked when two people stepped up in front of him.
Liu Qingge and Luo Bingge were glaring at each other and an unsettling feeling started creeping up Shen Jiu’s spine. Then, as if it were rehearsed, they turned to Shen Jiu in tandem and Shen Jiu,
Realizes.
“Will you dance with me?” two voices say at the same time.
Fuck!!!
-o-
The Boyfriend is Something That Might Exist
“Yuan-ge, what would you do if I had a boyfriend?”
Shen Yuan’s phone slipped from his hands and fell onto the floor with a clatter.
“Boyfriend?” Shen Yuan asked numbly.
-o-
“He, he can’t have a boyfriend,” Shen Yuan said. “He can’t!”
“Jiu-di’s twenty-two,” Luo Binghe said with amusement. Shen Yuan did not appreciate how unhelpful he was being. “Weren’t we already dating when we were his age?”
“Yes, but he’s my baby brother! He deserves only the most hardworking, kind, understanding, loving partner! What if his partner doesn’t fit those characteristics? What if they do?!”
“A-Yuan—”
“I’m going to kill his boyfriend and there’s nothing out there that can stop me!”