Work Text:
It was like fate. Like some sort of romance movie. It was the most exciting thing Guan Qing had ever seen during a shift.
The day had started as normal and as frustrating as ever, maybe a bit slower than usual. The most recent customer was at least exceptionally polite as he took his tea and sat down at an empty table, propping up a book to read while he enjoyed his afternoon. It was normal for old folks to settle in and read or write at the tables on weekdays like this, a few other people sat around in similar situations, so Guan Qing wouldn't have thought anything of the man usually.
And then he walked in.
He looked like a model or maybe a movie star. Walked like one too, cocky without being rude as he ordered. Like he just knew he wasn't to be messed with and no one was worth his time. It was honestly odd that he came into a little tea house like this in the first place. Even on the weekends they weren't exactly trendy.
And then, if life had been a movie, Guan Qing was sure what had happened next would've been in slow motion.
The polite older man had gotten up to grab a napkin, passing the model as he went.
And it was only because Guan Qing had maybe been trying to figure out if she could place anything she might have seen an older model with an eyepatch in (it was a very distinct look after all) that she noticed the way his expression softened in awe.
But the polite older fellow didn't notice, merely giving the model a kind smile as he passed before going back to his seat.
And Guan Qing was sure that would be it, they didn't appear to actually know each other in spite of the model's clear reaction. She thought the model would get his drink and leave their little tea house and maybe a few days later she'd figure out how this man was famous and get to tell her friends she met him once.
Instead it happened like this:
The minute the model got his drink he walked right over to the polite man's table– she was fortunate the table was close enough to her counter she could still hear– and took a seat.
"Would gege mind some company?"
Gege huh? Maybe they did know each other?
"I never turn down good company," the polite man smiled, closing his book.
"Then I'll endeavor to be the best company gege's ever had."
"And what should I call my company? If I'm your gege, should I address you as didi?"
Ah they didn't know each other then. That was really even more intriguing though! It was pretty shameless of Mr. Model to just waltz up to a stranger, call him "gege" and invite himself to his table. Then again, if he really was famous, maybe he was used to getting away with things like that.
"If you'd like. But I'd rather you call me San Lang," the model grinned.
San Lang... Guan Qing didn't know any celebrities who went by a nickname like that.
"Xie Lian," the polite man introduced himself.
"But you'd rather I call you gege?" San Lang teased.
"But I have a feeling San Lang would do it either way," Xie Lian grinned back.
Holy shit. Forget meeting some D list celebrity, Guan Qing was witnessing a love story! This was by far the most exciting thing that had ever happened during a shift.
Their conversations weren't necessarily super interesting in and of themselves. They talked about their jobs (Xie Lian taught martial arts, which had earned a very bold joke by San Lang about Xie Lian demonstrating some pins. San Lang was apparently not a D list celebrity but worked in translating, which had earned very genuine praise from Xie Lian and a small tangent of San Lang showing off how many languages he knew). They talked about their hobbies (Xie Lian had recently gotten access to a forge and was excited to learn how to make historically accurate weapons, which launched them both into a shared excited chatter Guan Qing couldn't keep up with. San Lang liked art, and had shyly shown Xie Lian a few things on his phone. Guan Qing couldn't see them, but based on how Xie Lian lit up seeing them they must've been great).
Those two topics alone, normal, trivial small talk, had prompted enough delightful and clearly engaged conversation to last them three hours.
Guan Qing had expected a boring, slow Thursday and instead she was watching two old men fall in love! What the fuck! that was so unbelievably cute!
And they clearly were on the same wavelength so quickly, like they were just meant to be together.
It was just in the way their eyes never left each other's. The way they clearly got excited about each other's excitement. They way they both so obviously never wanted the conversation to end and didn't mind the winding way their topics broke out more and more until Guan Qing, only able to half listen when other customers came in, was sure she had just witnessed True Love and one day when she found her special someone she wanted to be able to talk to them and look at them just like that.
But at about three hours in, her sneak peek into the beginning of what was sure to be a a beautiful love story ended, and the men cleaned up their table together, already making agreements to go walk around a bit since it was such a nice day.
Guan Qing had never felt so completely single and so completely sure that love was real and incredible in her life.
***
Guan Qing hadn't expected to see them again. It was a big city. Neither of them had been regulars at the tea house. It was sad that she'd never get to find out if they really ended up working out, but maybe it was better that way, better to keep the idea of their miraculous tea house meet-cute as a fantastical little anecdote so it could keep all the magic of true love for her.
That was fine. She had her own life to live, her own not-date to go on with Nen Xin who'd been listening to her excitedly tell her the story for the last several minutes.
But it seemed her opportunity to see their love story wasn't over.
"Da jie! Da jie!" She whispered as they sat down at their usual noodle shop. "It's them! The old men from this morning!"
Nen Xin looked over, only to snicker when she caught sight of Xie Lian and San Lang, still looking as absolutely hopeless for each other as before as they chatted over their dinner.
"What?"
"The old dude in the sweater with the guy with the eyepatch?"
"Yeah! They must've hung out all day!"
"Yeah probably, they're married."
"What?" Guan Qing looked over at them, laughing together like old friends, then back at Nen Xin. "No, I saw them meet this morning. They had to introduce themselves."
"Yeah, Xie Lian and Hua Cheng right?" Nen Xin smiled, clearly overly amused about spoiling the most interesting thing that had ever happened at the tea house while Guan Qing was on shift.
"...Xie Lian and San Lang."
"I go to Xie Lian’s martial arts classes and see his husband come in all the time to help with demonstrations. They're for sure married. As far as I know they've been together for decades."
"But..." It didn't really ruin the idea of them being a super adorable couple to hear they had spent years being married and were still going on cute dates like this but it did feel a little disappointing to know she hadn't been some background character in the start of a grand love story.
"Are you really mad at me for telling you?"
"No it's just. Less fun now."
"I mean personally now I'm more invested."
"Because you know them?"
"No, because they were for sure pretending not to know each other and that's kind of super cute? I wonder if they just do that every time they see each other in public when they weren't expecting to or something."
Guan Qing thought about that. Not a meet-cute, but Nen Xin was right that it was pretty cute still.
"Do you think they– oh shit."
"What?"
"I just made eye contact with laoshi."
Guan Qing looked up, feeling a bit embarrassed when she instantly made eye contact with Xie Lian and Hua Cheng too. Xie Lian waved, clearly still in the middle of a conversation with Hua Cheng that prompted another laugh from him.
"Go ask him." Guan Qing nudged Nen Xin's foot under the table.
"What?"
"You know him right? Go ask him why they were pretending not to know each other this morning."
Nen Xin rolled her eyes with a smile but stood up, grabbing Guan Qing's hand and pulling her over.
"Hey!" Guan Qing flushed.
"Hi laoshi. Sorry for staring." Nen Xin greeted.
"No problem, its good to see you.
"You too, I hope we're not interrupting?"
"No, it's fine, you know I always love talking to my students."
"My friend here served you both tea this morning and has spent the last half hour talking about how much she hoped she could have a meet-cute like you two, so I thought she'd like to meet her heroes."
This was betrayal of the highest order.
At least Xie Lian was blushing too now, though not as badly as Guan Qing probably was.
"Ah, you saw that?" Xie Lian scratched his cheek, sharing a shy smile with his husband who looked not the least bit embarrassed about someone having noticed their flirting.
"I hadn't realized you two were already married." Guan Qing admitted.
"It's a game San Lang invented. Every year we pick a day and we..."
"Pretend to meet again," Hua Cheng finished, his gaze so reverently fond.
"I guess it makes sense that you two instantly got along so well then."
"Oh, no we've always been like that," Xie Lian laughed. "What you saw this morning probably wasn't that different from how it really went."
"Sure it did, gege was my personal trainer back then. Our first meeting was much more distracting."
Xie Lian swatted at his husband with a laugh. "San Lang, you always make it sound so scandalous."
And maybe. Perhaps. Guan Qing could forgive the fact she hadn't been part of the start of their grand love story after all. Since she'd gotten to witness someplace sweet in the middle of it.
"We'll let you both get back to your dinner. I'll see you next week, Xie Lian."
Xie Lian waved, quickly falling back into a happy conversation with his husband as Guan Qing and Nen Xin headed back to their own seats.
"I guess I'm not mad at you for ruining my fun story then. Only because I still want a relationship like theirs one day though."
Guan Qing's gaze had already cast down towards the menu, so she missed the look Nen Xin gave her.
"That's a pretty high bar."
"What, you think I can't find someone who wants to go on a million first dates with me?" Guan Qing kicked her gently under the table.
"I didn't say that." Nen Xin kicked her gently back. "Anyways, what are you between, I'll order your second choice and we can split it."
Guan Qing flashed her a smile. "You're the best."
Across the restaurant Hua Cheng kept trying to feed Xie Lian from his own meal more than he ate himself, the two of them locked in such a furious battle to feed each other that they ate each other's meals more than they ate their own.
And if their waiter happened to see them playing like that think 'I want a love like that', well, that was just the effect the two of them happened to have on strangers.