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It had started with a phone call from an old friend saying that his nephew was in a bit of a situation, and needed a place to stay for a few days. There had been an error with the system that booked housing assignments, he'd explained. His dorm room had already been inhabited when the Xue family had gone to help him settle in.
And so Mo Ran, who was only just starting his postgraduate degree, had essentially found himself homeless. Xue Zhengyong, knowing that Chu Wanning lived by himself in a large apartment near campus, had therefore wondered if he could, perhaps, house him very temporarily.
Chu Wanning had been wary — he lived alone for a reason, had left the staff accommodations because he couldn’t stand living so close to so many people, even though they all avoided him — but unable to deny his help to a friend in need. He’d emptied out one of his storage rooms, dumped the whole mess by his bed, and readied himself for a short imposition.
He’d met Mo Ran a few times in passing, of course, though he was more familiar with his cousin. He’d had attitude issues when he was younger, Chu Wanning had heard, but that seemed to be in the past. The young man was all smiles as he came in with his bags, though his grin dimmed somewhat as he took in his surroundings.
“This place is… nice,” he said, somewhat hesitantly. “Lots of space.”
Of course, Chu Wanning knew what his apartment was like. Cluttered and messy and embarrassing. So he’d shown him his room, pointed out where the kitchen was, and retreated to his office to work.
It was only for a little while, he’d told himself.
But five months had come and gone, and Mo Ran was still there. It was hard to resent him for it: between classes and assignments and his part-time job, he hardly had time to look for housing, and the university had been unable to offer more than a refund.
Chu Wanning should’ve been eager to go back to his quiet solitude, but in truth Mo Ran’s presence was hardly an inconvenience. Chu Wanning wasn't much of a cook. His apartment had a nice kitchen, but it was mostly used to store takeout and boil water for tea and instant noodles. It had quickly become Mo Ran’s territory. From the first day, he had wrinkled his nose at the empty boxes littering the counters, and offered to cook as payment for the favour Chu Wanning was doing him.
Mo Ran was good at cooking. He was attentive and didn’t make any more spicy dishes after the one time Chu Wanning had sweated through a bowl of mapo tofu, early on in their acquaintance. It wasn't the only thing he was good at, either: he did laundry like it was second nature to him. Picked up Chu Wanning’s dirty socks with only slightly raised eyebrows, vacuumed frequently, and even cleaned all the windows one sunny day (Chu Wanning hadn't been aware that that was something one had to do).
Chu Wanning was aware that he was awful, as roommates went. He was messy, up at all hours, and he’d seen Mo Ran trip over stray machinery parts. He wasn’t much of a conversationalist, and he had a temper. Mo Ran never complained, just smiled and said he was grateful to have a roof over his head. He was good-humoured and hardworking and sociable.
He was good company, too. They were both busy and kept odd hours, but on occasion they would sit close together on the couch and watch a nature documentary, or when Mo Ran was picking some ridiculous action movie with physics-defying logic which made Chu Wanning frown and huff. Mo Ran always laughed, when he pointed out that there was no earthly reason for that car to have exploded, or that the hero should have been dead ten times over. Mo Ran’s laughter was quickly becoming his favourite sound in the world.
On occasion Mo Ran asked him for advice on his schoolwork -- they may not have specialised in the same branch, he was still part of the engineering faculty. His questions were clever and showed insight, and Chu Wanning sometimes found himself wishing that Mo Ran were his student. Though that might have been unethical.
Especially considering that… the only issue that Chu Wanning really had with Mo Ran was that Mo Ran was...was… indecent. Would casually wander around the place wearing only a towel, droplets dripping from his hair and rolling down his muscular back.
And! Sometimes he didn't put a shirt on before he headed to the kitchen to get his coffee in the morning.
Indecent. Except not as much as the way Chu Wanning's eyes followed him, glued to that expanse of tan skin, and that the fact that he blushed and stammered and forgot where to look when Mo Ran stood a little too close to him to reach something on a high shelf and his shirt rode up a little, or when he used the pull-up bar he’d installed in his bedroom doorway, or — or —
It was a problem. A problem that made Chu Wanning snappy and irritable and had Mo Ran retreating with a confused expression. Every time Chu Wanning wanted to take back his words, he did, but it seemed futile. It was just how he was. (There was a reason no one had ever wanted him for a lover.)
That aside, their cohabitation went smoothly enough.
Sometimes, Chu Wanning’s experiments caused power surges (he’d once accidentally taken out half the block’s power grid). Mo Ran had quickly learned to make copies of the copies of his work, and where the breakers were located. It had never been much of an issue.
At least, not until the Incident. The Incident had been devastating for their electrical circuits, and, unfortunately, occurred the evening before Mo Ran was due to hand in the schematics for a major project. His laptop had not recovered from the damage.
Chu Wanning knew how hard he’d been working, hardly sleeping for the past few weeks. In the rush to finish and handle everything else, Mo Ran had forgotten to make backups. Had forgotten several days in a row.
Chu Wanning said he would pay for the damages, of course, but the harm was done. He’d been mortified, and the embarrassment had made him harsh and defensive. He might have implied that it was Mo Ran’s own fault for not being more diligent in backing up his files.
He’d never seen Mo Ran so angry, every part of his body radiating furious betrayal. But Mo Ran only took his fried laptop, packed a bag, and left with a slam of the door.
It had only taken minutes for the flare of irritation to fade and for Chu Wanning to start regretting his lack of empathy. Surely Mo Ran wouldn’t want to stay with him anymore now, and the thought brought unexpected pain. It was anxiety that drove him to the kitchen, the need to make something that could help fix things. That was how the wontons happened. They were left in plain sight on the kitchen table, covered up so they would stay warm. A pitiful excuse for an apology, but the only one he could think of.
When he came back, late into the night, Mo Ran had snarled at him to at least put his damn takeout away. And so the wontons languished in the fridge until the next time Mo Ran decided to clean it out.
Mo Ran did not move out right away, too concerned with catching up on his work. But the atmosphere within the apartment had irrevocably changed. Though his coat appeared and vanished and his dishes were left in the sink, Chu Wanning hardly ever saw him, and the apartment steadily inched back toward the state it had been in before Mo Ran had moved in.
He refused to let it happen, and increased his efforts to pick up after himself (he was an engineer, certainly he could master the use of a simple vacuum cleaner), but the difference was still striking. Chu Wanning really was no good at any of it.
Mo Ran’s anger did not dissipate, and he stopped asking Chu Wanning for advice entirely. That hurt perhaps more than being ignored for personal reasons. If even his expertise had lost its value for Mo Ran -- truly, there was nothing left between them. Even so, whenever they crossed paths Chu Wanning’s ridiculous heart beat a little faster.
Chu Wanning had never felt more lonely than in the two months that crawled by after that awful night. But then, one day, he'd found application papers abandoned on the kitchen table. The internship was a prestigious one. That company was the one that had truly launched Chu Wanning’s career; getting a foot in the door at Sisheng was nothing to scoff at. Very competitive, but it would be a great fit for Mo Ran. So he'd given some of his old contacts a call.
He had entirely forgotten about this event when Mo Ran barged into his room some weeks later, eyes wide and wild. Chu Wanning worried for a second that he’d caused another catastrophe.
But no, the power was still on, and he’d only been reading an academic journal.
Still, Mo Ran was standing before him, the strangest expression on his face. He simply stared at him for a moment before saying, haltingly:
“Professor Chu... you… You recommended me for the Sisheng internship?”
Chu Wanning’s mood brightened somewhat.
“You got it?”
Mo Ran nodded, and they shared a brief smile before Mo Ran’s brows creased again.
“But… you hate me.”
Chu Wanning was stunned.
“What?”
"You think I'm dumb, and I've been imposing and getting in your way for so long, and —"
Chu Wanning shook his head furiously.
“I— I may not have officially taught you, but we’ve spoken often enough that I know what you are capable of. And your other professors said that your work has been exemplary. And I don't think you're... in the way...”
“You’ve… talked about me to other professors?”
“Ah… for the recommendation. And to confirm why you needed an extension, that time.”
Mo Ran looked thoroughly shaken, and Chu Wanning looked down, unable to hold his gaze and the feelings he saw there.
“You..? I — thank you.”
The surprise made him look up. Mo Ran’s expression had softened like it hadn’t in a long time, and the relief in Chu Wanning’s heart was overwhelming. But there was still something…
Chu Wanning steeled himself, and asked:
“Are you… still moving out? The Sisheng offices are close by. It would be a convenient commute. You will be busy but — I can help more, be less messy.”
“You.. want me to stay?”
Mo Ran looked stricken, like his world had just rearranged itself.
“I thought… You want me to stay ?”
Chu Wanning nodded, feeling himself reddening, and Mo Ran’s grin brightened. He looked a little like he’d just found the answer to all the questions of the universe. Chu Wanning found himself unable to hold his gaze any longer.
“Okay! What should I make for dinner?”
Chu Wanning blinked, because surely it couldn’t be that easy? But in truth he’d long known that Mo Ran was a simple young man, loyal and devoted to those who treated him well.
After that, things mostly went back to normal. Even though he was busy with his classes and internship, Mo Ran took up cooking and cleaning duties again. Except there was one crucial difference: where Mo Ran had once recoiled and retreated whenever Chu Wanning lost his temper, he now stood his ground. Usually with a soft smile or placating words or even worse, with sweets. Whether Chu Wanning accused him of chewing too loudly or of being too sweaty after a workout, he readily apologised for any of his perceived sins. It was strange, and confusing, and usually effective, much to Chu Wanning's embarrassment.
This new side of Mo Ran only made the indecency issue worse. So much worse, because Mo Ran stood closer to him now. Reached up behind him to grab ingredients on high shelves, his firm chest brushing against Chu Wanning's back. Casually chatted with him while wearing nothing but a loose tank top and shorts which were really-- unnecessarily short. Chu Wanning had never paid that much attention to someone's thighs before.
There were some nights where it proved to be too much for Chu Wanning to handle, and he -- he -- did some things he did not usually do, knowing that Mo Ran was just down the hall, quietly humming to himself as he worked.
He usually was unable to meet Mo Ran's eyes the next morning, even more likely to snap than usual, but that too Mo Ran took in stride. Sometimes he acted strange in the mornings, too. Looked at Chu Wanning a few beats too long, almost as though -- as though he was looking for something. As though he was starving, and Chu Wanning was food. But that had to be his imagination.
Then one morning, as they were eating congee and after Mo Ran reminded him to pick up their dry cleaning after his classes, Mo Ran looked him in the eye, and said:
"Professor -- Wanning --" Chu Wanning started at the use of his given name, at the tone of his voice, the look that was equal parts anxiety and determination and something... warmer. "I have to tell you something."
And Chu Wanning somehow knew that his life was about to be upended once again.