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Lan Xichen couldn't stop reminiscing about the day he accidentally heard someone's voice. A low, vibrating, extremely sexy voice singing a song he knew well. He could still remember the lyrics.
The world was on fire
No one could save me but you
It's strange what desire will make foolish people do
And I never dreamed that I'd knew somebody like you
And I'd never dreamed that I'd need somebody like you
And I wanna fall in love
When he entered the auditorium, there was a microphone in the middle of the stage, but no one was at it. He remembered running out into the hallway, but he couldn't tell who had just left the auditorium a moment ago.
Since those events, two weeks had passed of Lan Xichen's relentless search for the owner of the muttering voice. Two weeks during which Jiang Cheng had repeated to his friends that he could not sing.
He had never believed in his voice because Wei Ying was always better at everything. It used to annoy him, but now he could say he was used to it. He just stopped trying to stand out.
He had lost a bet two weeks earlier and it was up to him to check that everything was wired properly in the auditorium. They also had to match the voice to the background, so Nie Huaisang and Wei Ying persuaded him to sing.
If he had known Lan Xichen had heard him, he might have tried to change colleges, or at least given up helping with plays and other performances that allowed him to be seen.
"Why don't you use your family to find your siren?"
"A mermaid?"
"And what else would you call someone whose voice hypnotizes you and you can't think of anything else?"
"Guangyao is right, though I wouldn't look for any fish."
Lan Xichen stood in the company of his friends, not caring that by his enchantment with the stranger, Nie Mingjue had further reason to tease Jin Guangyao, with reciprocity.
"Mermaids, not fish. Do you even have a little imagination, or just muscles?"
"As I recall, mermaids used to devour sailors. Do you want Xichen to end up miserable?"
"Or would he want to be eaten?"
"Sucked out sooner."
"Wh-what?"
Lan Xichen glared at them, feeling himself getting redder in the face with each passing moment. He covered his eyes with his hand, trying to calm himself down, trying to remember the rules he usually followed.
"Seriously Xichen, take advantage of the family business and announce the casting."
Nie Mingjue crossed his arms over his chest, leaning sideways against the wall of the corridor, glancing casually after the people passing them.
"Unless you'd rather we spread the word that you're looking for the owner of the mysterious voice that sang a fortnight ago... What was it?"
Jin Guangyao asked while raising his eyebrow in a clear gesture of doubt.
'No, no... I'll think of something... Maybe I'll actually try to use the family business'
Lan Xichen finally replied, clearly not convinced by the idea.
Nevertheless, after another two weeks, the college corridors were adorned with posters made by Nie Huaisang, who had heard from his brother that the great Lan Xichen had a crush on someone he hadn't even seen.
"A-Cheng! What if it was you he heard then?"
"Focus on connecting everything, Wei Ying."
"Aye! You need to check the microphone. Sing"
"No"
"Jiang-xiong, someone has to check it while we plug in the equipment"
"I said no"
Jiang Cheng felt that another moment and he wouldn't last. He didn't feel comfortable preparing the auditorium for Lan Xichen's quest for love. Yes, he was jealous, and he knew how childish that feeling was since they hadn't had many opportunities to talk.
He might have been able to believe that the older student was indeed looking for someone to join a music label as a new talent if it weren't for the revelations Nie Huaisang had brought. As a result, he only felt worse, but twitched when someone joined them.
"How about I check the microphone then?"
A gentle smile appeared on Lan Xichen's face as usual. He was followed by Nie Mingjue, holding a guitar in his hand, and Jin Guangyao with a list of people who had signed up for casting.
Jiang Cheng could only nod his head stiffly, feeling his heart beating wildly in his chest at being so close to a student who was knocking him off his feet with his very person, which did not escape Nie Huaisang's attention.
The boy ducked behind his phone, poking Wei Wuxian lightly, then they both started calling out to Jiang Cheng to stay by their side if the cable connection needed to be fixed. The boy nodded again, waiting for the older students to start rehearsing.
What he hadn't expected was that Lan Xichen would choose a song that he himself had sung a month earlier. He stared at the student, feeling like kissing him, here , now, immediately.
The moment Lan Xichen sang the chorus, Jiang Cheng could clearly sense that the emotion was not merely played out. On top of that, the pleasant, warm sound of the guitar played by Nie Mingjue created an extremely intimate atmosphere.
"How's that?"
Lan Xichen's warm voice broke through Jiang Wanyin's thoughts, causing him to furrow his brows slightly.
"I prefer a more rock sound."
"Why don't you sing?"
"No... I don't sing."
There was something in Jiang Cheng's momentary hesitation that prevented Lan Xiechen from fully focusing on the audition. Of course, as he expected, none of the newcomers were the mysterious owner of the vibrating voice.
He involuntarily thought back to the younger student who had a low voice that matched the one he had sung months earlier. Was it possible that Nie Huaisang's friend was the one he was looking for?
No, after all, he claimed not to sing. Then why did he seem disappointed with his own answer? Why was he hesitating?
"Xichen! Wake up! Have you found him?"
"No, it's none of them."
More days passed, during which time Lan Xichen hung around the auditorium more often as the younger students plugged in equipment, trying to make sure they weren't always aware of his presence. He hoped to test his theory and hear Jiang Wanyin sing.
He didn't succeed once, so he began to spend time with them, helping to prepare the auditorium for each performance and speech. He got to know the boy better and better, who definitely stood out strongly from the others.
Unfortunately, he never heard the charming voice again and slowly gave up in his search and attempts to make Jiang Cheng sing. Until Valentine's Day came, when Nie Huaisang commanded the radio station.
You could get any song by special request. So what was Lan Xichen's astonishment when suddenly, unannounced from all the college's speakers, that voice rang out. That vibrating, purring, special one.
He didn't hear his friends calling after him, he didn't care about the rule about not running as he rushed with his breath towards the room from which the radio station was controlled, where the microphone was located.
In front of the microphone sat Jiang Cheng, absorbed in his own thoughts, drawing something in a sketchbook. He was singing and clearly unaware that the microphone was on. He raised his head when he sensed someone's presence.
"Lan Xichen?"
"So it was you."
Before Jiang Cheng could ask what it was about, anything to say, he felt the older student's warm breath on his lips, losing himself a moment later in a kiss.