Work Text:
“Bro, you gotta help me! I think someone’s going to kill me!”
Shen Yuan looked up from his textbook. Shang Qinghua had his hands planted on the desk across from him, a frantic light in his eyes. Usually, Shen Yuan would welcome a distraction from studying, but this looked like a lot of trouble, and he had an exam tomorrow…
“Keep your voice down, this is a library,” Shen Yuan his attention back to his book.
Shang Qinghua sobbed and hurried around the desk, pulling up a chair to sit close to Shen Yuan.
“Come on, bro!” He hissed. “This is serious!”
A quiet cough came from where the librarian was tidying up, eyebrow raised. The librarian nodded towards the group study rooms, not many were in use right now. Shen Yuan motioned an apology and dragged Shang Qinghua into one of the available rooms and closed the door.
“Okay, start from the top,” Shen Yuan crossed his arms.
Shang Qinghua took a crumpled paper out of his pocket. “You remember when I started getting weird notes on my car? Well they got worse,” he handed the note to Shen Yuan.
The handwriting was harsh and a bit jagged, “You have beautiful eyes. I would like to keep them on me.”
“Ohhh, what the fuck…”
Shang Qinghua sobbed again. “They wanna rip my eyes out and keep them!”
Shen Yuan folded the note and sighed. “I bet this has to do with that VRchat. I told you—“
“It definitely doesn’t!” Shang Qinghua looked offended. “It’s completely anonymous. There’s no way at all to find out who I am in real life!”
“I just mean, people leave a shocking amount of personal information public,” Shen Yuan hefted his backpack into the table. “If you maybe missed something, like work, school, hometown. Anything could have been used. Now sit down and help me go through the flash cards.”
—
When Mobei Jun had joined Eternal VRchat it had mostly been out of extreme boredom. With such low expectations it was hardly a surprise that they had been exceeded. A couple days after joining he was about to abandon the venture when A-Hua had dropped into his lap. Not literally, the animations didn’t allow for that, but it had been fate, he was convinced.
A-Hua was meek on the outset, initially fairly annoying. But the occasional snide or cutting remark had kept Mobei Jun interested. And he kept coming back.
It was about two months before Mobei Jun decided to find more about A-Hua. It didn’t take much, twenty-two year old Shang Qinghua had his Facebook linked to his Eternal account. Third year student at Cangqiong Shan University working on a major in accounting and finance with a minor in literary arts.
Fortune smiles on Mobei Jun, Cangqiong U is in the nearby city, the campus only a bit over forty minute drive for him. And what’s more Shang Qinghua’s closest friend it Shen Yuan. Mobei Jun only had one person he would consider a friend, Luo Binghe. And Luo Binghe had known Shen Yuan’s family for a long time, since childhood. From what Luo Binghe said he was pretty sure they were engaged. This was the opportunity he needed to get closer to Shang Qinghua.
Mobei Jun began to ingratiate himself more with Shang Qinghua online, eventually striking up an online romance. But he wanted to move it offline. Soon. So he turned to the only person that he thought could help him.
“You could leave notes for him to find,” Luo Binghe suggested.
“Where? In his house?” Mobei Jun thought that might be moving too fast, but maybe that would show his interest?
Luo Binghe stroked his chin, “Hmm, no, I think that may be moving too fast. Maybe on his car.”
—
The first time Mobei Jun left a note on Shang Qinghua’s car he waited until his target had gone to class. Mobei Jun tucked the note under the windshield wipers, then retreated to a cafe nearby to watch.
Several hours later Shang Qinghua reappeared. He found the note.
“We will talk soon,” followed by Mobei Jin’s cell number.
Shang Qinghua looked around, confused, then checked his car for something. Not finding it, he looked at the note again, then stuffed it into his pocket.
After Shang Qinghua had driven away Mobei Jun was satisfied, and left, too.
—
The next note wasn’t planned. Mobei Jun had gone into the city to pick up a new keyboard that was out of stock in his area. He was just getting out of his car when he saw Shang Qinghua parking a couple rows away.
Quickly grabbing a pen and paper from his glove box he scribbled: “I saw you while we were parking. Call me,” followed my his number again.
Mobei Jun didn’t have time to wait to see Shang Qinghua’s reaction this time, but he was sure the other man would like it.
—
Mobei Jun isn’t entirely sure why Shang Qinghua hasn’t called him yet, but he’s not about to give up. The next note is simple enough. After staking out his target’s favorite coffee shop, he is rewarded for his patience when the other man walks in.
Watching Shang Qinghua tap away at his laptop for a while, eventually Mobei Jun has to leave for work. Finding Shang Qinghua’s car he leaves the next note.
“It’s not everyday I see someone like you. I will see you again.”
—
According to his Facebook, Shang Qinghua is going to be at an artist market festival today. Therefore, so is Mobei Jun.
Shang Qinghua is with a group of friends, including Shen Yuan. Mobei Jun has no chance to approach. But he’s sure Luo Binghe will be displeased to know his betrothed is letting other men touch him. Two of the men may be the older brothers, one looks like Shen Yuan, the other simply gives off that aura. A third is objectively gorgeous, but also too close. He will report back.
Mobei Jun was happy to trail behind the group and listen to Shang Qinghua laugh and chat with his friends. But he promised his father he would assist with some minor home repairs, so he, again, cannot stay as long as he wished.
Tracking down Shang Qinghua’s car was a bit difficult this time, but he succeeded. He thinks maybe some sort of GPS device would help in such situations.
“I saw you walking today. I was walking behind you.”
—
The next time they meet in Eternal VRchat A-Hua is noticeably distressed. They talk about nothing in particular for a while before he brings it up.
“Are you okay? You seem a bit distracted,” Mobei Jun wished he could touch his virtual boyfriend.
A-Hua shook his head, “No, it’s nothing, probably.” He sighed, “Maybe it is something…”
Mobei Jun waited for him to continue. He could imagine the face behind the avatar, eyebrows knit together, mouth in a tight frown.
“I just- well, how do I put this? I think someone’s stalking me?” A-Hua looked down. Mobei Jun thought he must be fidgeting with his hands.
“What makes you think that?” If someone was stalking his A-Hua, they would have to be eliminated. Quickly.
“Ah, well, just that… I keep feeling like someone is watching me all the time. And they keep leaving creepy— they keep leaving things for me to find.”
Mobei Jun tried to get more information about this stalker, but A-Hua seems to have said all he’s willing to.
Oh, well, Mobei Jun will have to be on the lookout for the stalker next time. And “convince” them to leave his precious A-Hua alone. Permanently.
—
For the next two and a half months Mobei Jun left Shang Qinghua notes on his car every couple days. Ever vigilant, much to his chagrin, he had yet to lay eyes on this stalker.
Mobei Jun tried periodically to get more details, but aside from the occasional off-hand comment, A-Hua was tight lipped.
He and Luo Binghe had been thinking that maybe Shang Qinghua hadn’t been understanding the notes. They were going to go over a new strategy today. Mobei Jun had planned to pitch putting the notes in Shang Qinghua’s home again.
Pulling up to Luo Binghe’s house he was surprised to see a car already in the guest spot. Mobei Jun parked on the street instead. He had a key to the house, so he just went inside. He could hear someone talking in the dinning room, it sounded like Shen Yuan.
“… really worried he could get hurt,” Shen Yuan was saying. “I mean, what kind of weirdo leaves such creepy notes on someone’s car?”
Mobei Jun froze.
“Creepy?” Luo Binghe asked. “How so?”
“‘Your skin is so smooth. I want to be in it,’ ‘I watch you while you sleep, sometimes,’ ‘I will keep you from everyone else,’ Binghe, do you see what I mean?”
“O-oh, uh, yeah… really creepy…” Luo Binghe sounded embarrassed, Mobei Jun understood, they had come up with the notes together.
A long silence filled the space, Mobei Jun could hear Luo Binghe shift nervously.
“Binghe,” Shen Yuan said flatly. “What do you know about these notes?”
“I was leaving them,” Mobei Jun surprised everyone, including himself by speaking. He stood in the doorway, not making eye contact with either man sat at the table.
“What? Who are you?”
“He’s my friend, I told you about him, Mobei Jun.”
Shen Yuan looked between Mobei Jun and Luo Binghe in disbelief.
“Why?” Was the strangled question that left Shen Yuan, he was stunned.
“I met him in Eternal. We hit it off, so I went looking for more information. His Facebook is linked in his profile,” Mobei Jun didn’t know why Shen Yuan’s face darkened at his explanation, but it made him a bit worried.
“So you just, what? Decided to scare him?”
Mobei Jun shook his head, “No, no, we’re dating online, and I wanted to date offline, too.”
Shen Yuan looked incredulous. “You’ve got to be kidding me…”
Luo Binghe didn’t like being ignored by Shen Yuan for so long, “It was a good idea, little notes to show intent, what else could he have done?”
“I don’t know, maybe try talking to him?” Shen Yuan was being sarcastic, Mobei Jun could tell. “It wasn’t romantic. He thought you wanted to skin him and wear his skin like a suit. To be honest, so did I.”
“I will make my notes more obvious, then,” Mobei Jun stated. This was an easy problem to remedy, “Do you have any suggestions? Would it be better to leave them in his bed?”
“Oh, my fucking god…” Shen Yuan buried his face in his hands.