Chapter Text
Wei Wuxian gazed into the crowd of people as he slowly sipped his punch - unspiked, he noted. He was curious to analyze the changes this group had undergone in the last ten years, though he was quickly coming to the conclusion that no one had really changed all that much. Hairstyles and clothing trends were so drastically different, but the people remained constant nonetheless. They had all graduated high school ten years ago now, and yet everyone more or less gathered in their previous social circles, too afraid of social isolation to travel even a foot or two away from familiar faces for longer than a passing smile or courteous hello. Wei Wuxian was not so ignorant to admit that he, too, would most likely be exactly like that had he not been one of the ones cast out all those years ago.
The corner of his mouth twitched at the thought - at the irony of it. He had no right to say that he had been cast out when he all but threw himself into trouble. Honestly, he should have been more surprised that it hadn’t happened earlier.
He shook those thoughts away and continued lazily scanning the room from his dimly lit corner of the auditorium. At the punch bowl stood the tall and proud Jin Zixuan; just like back then, he was dressed impeccably, wearing more than Wei Ying’s entire net worth on his wrist alone. Wei Ying snorted. He was undoubtedly befitting of his infamous Peacock nickname. Wei Ying had read an article somewhere that said Jin Zixuan’s father had gotten caught up in a pretty dubious scandal that involved many mistresses and a ridiculous amount of money spent in clubs and casinos. Apparently, Jin Zixuan had come to the rescue and practically saved the entire family business from ruin.
Kudos to him for that, Wei Ying thought with an internal eye roll, though he probably could have done it without showing off and doing interviews with every news station and magazine in the city.
At Jin Zixuan’s side stood Wei Ying’s adopted sister Yanli and the moment Wei Ying saw her, his stomach dropped. She was absolutely glowing in her purple dress, which was so reminiscent of the pretty dresses she wore as a child and teenager that it made Wei Ying’s chest ache with the phantom pain of their childhood memories. It seemed to float down to the floor and had little golden flowers embroidered throughout to match her husband's tie, reminding Wei Ying that while she used to be his shijie, she was very much now the wife of Jin Zixuan, practically just a stranger married to a showy peacock. Wei Ying watched as she laughed at something the peacock had whispered in her ear, and any bitterness he expected to explode in his heart was unexpectedly absent. How could it not be? Not when she was clearly so happy and obviously loved by the man she had yearned for since before he could even remember. But even still, he made a mental note to avoid the punch bowl. If Yanli hadn’t called or responded to Wei Ying’s messages over the last decade, he wouldn’t bother her with his presence at this corny high school reunion.
Next, Wei Ying’s eyes traveled to the other corner of the room. He watched the snake-like eyes of Nie Huaisang dart from person to person, no doubt reading their lips, a skill he had mastered as early as middle school. He was lounging in a chair, gently fanning himself with a slight smirk. He probably knew enough secrets about every person in the room to ruin this whole event ten times over. He hadn’t grown any taller since high school, but he looked just as sleek and sly as he did the last time Wei Ying saw him. Up until their junior year, he and Wei Ying spent nearly every moment in school together, save for extracurriculars. Wei Ying had chosen to do swimming and music, while Nie Huaisang was more focused on art and gossip - and yes, gossip was an extracurricular according to him. This meant that Wei Ying knew exactly how cunning and downright maniacal Nie Huaisang could be if given the opportunity and reason. Probably best he avoid that area as well. Him and Huaisang had not dissolved their friendship on bad terms - it was actually all Huaisang’s brother’s doing - but Wei Ying wasn’t quite ready to test his luck just yet. Nie Mingjue had eyes and ears everywhere and was particularly nasty when it came to anything to do with his brother.
A loud thud from the center of the room drew Wei Ying’s eyes away from the cunning Nie to a red-faced Jiang Cheng, whose clenched fist on the table was no doubt the cause of the commotion. For a brief moment, Wei Ying thought that perhaps he had been spotted and that Jiang Cheng would finally make good on his promise to beat the shit out of Wei Ying if he ever saw him again. Wei Ying wasn’t too terribly afraid of his adoptive brother, especially not when one considered the fact that they had fought hundreds if not thousands of times as children and teens. Wei Ying knew how Jiang Cheng fought, but so did Jiang Cheng know Wei Ying’s fighting style as well. It would be an evenly matched fight.
Thankfully, Jiang Cheng, who was never one for being super aware of his surroundings, had not seen Wei Ying at all. Unfortunately, he had instead caught sight of Wen Ning and Wen Qing as they entered from the double doors on the side of the auditorium. The Wen siblings, who Wei Ying saw every Tuesday night for game night and therefore did not need to analyze for any drastic differences, looked extremely apprehensive.
Actually, that was a lie.
Wen Qing looked apprehensive, though she held her head higher than anyone in the room, practically begging for someone to say something. Someone as prideful and with skill and character to justify that pride as Wen Qing, regardless of the situation, wouldn’t be so bothered by a few judgemental stares. Wen Ning, on the other hand, bless his heart, looked like he wanted to crawl into his own skin. He could clearly feel the chilling silence in the room and no doubt heard the crash of Jiang Cheng’s fist hitting the table at their arrival. Regardless, he entered side-by-side with his sister, and together, the pair made their way to an empty table near the back of the room. Close to Wei Ying’s corner, but not close enough that anyone would spot him anytime soon. He wondered if they did that on purpose.
The only reason that they were here was that Wei Ying practically begged them to come so that he wouldn’t feel so alone. Maybe he should have considered their feelings more because right now, he was starting to regret calling in on this favor.
With a sigh, Wei Ying dropped his chin to his chest and closed his eyes. Why was he even here? He couldn’t talk to anyone he used to hang out with because they had all dropped him and moved on with their lives. Even his adoptive siblings hadn’t reached out to him in the ten years since he was kicked out of the Jiang house. He couldn’t blame them. In their eyes, Wei Ying had got caught up in the wrong crowd and made a decision that almost ruined his life. Why would anyone even talk to someone that they assumed had become a deadbeat anyway?
The sound of the auditorium doors opening drew Wei Ying out of his depressive spiral. The auditorium was already silent from the Wen’s arrival, but this silence tasted different. It had a new kind of buzz running through the undercurrents of the crowd. Curious as always, Wei Wuxian looked up, and immediately all he could think was, ah, I guess this is why I’m here.