Chapter Text
Lan Wangji has been living his life in a routine. And his routine goes like this.
He wakes up at 5 AM every day and goes for a run for 30 minutes. He sets things up beforehand to keep himself on track whether it’s a timer on his watch or a reminder on his phone. After running, he goes straight to the shower and does his morning skin routine. He does things automatically as he uses a cleanser rich in Vitamin C, then uses a gentle liquid exfoliator and finishes it off with an SPF 15 moisturizer. After finishing, he meditates and does breathing exercises to go with his calm mornings. He would then prepare himself a cup of Jasmine tea and get the vegan peanut butter overnight oats he prepared in his mason jars the night before.
On weekdays, he would usually just wear one of his sky-blue bunny-printed jumpers paired with grey sweatpants, sit at his desk, and work the rest of the day. Since he works as a copyeditor in their family company named GusuLan Publishing Inc., he doesn’t have to physically go to work and interact with many people.
His uncle and his brother seemed to settle with this arrangement after months of convincing him when he was just starting to enter the workforce.
But, every Saturday, his routine is a bit different. He would reward himself (his uncle would be disappointed that he came up with this self-indulgent rule) by eating breakfast at a small cafe near his apartment. The cafe is located only a few blocks from his apartment and can only accommodate a few customers at a time, which is convenient for him. He can’t deal with large crowds anyways.
So, Every Saturday, at 8 AM (sometimes he would arrive as late as 8:20 AM so as to give time to the employees to prepare), the moment the cafe opens, he would enter and order his usual Lavender Chai Tea and any available vegan breakfast like banana pancakes or some apple cake with cinnamon custard.
The thing is, he likes his routine and his set of rules. The boundaries his uncle has built for him have been his comfort zone. And, little disruptions in his equilibrium would turn him into a messy and chaotic human being which would definitely dishearten his uncle. It’s inconvenient from an outsider’s perspective but it’s what he’s used to and you can also say that it’s an excuse to divert his attention off himself.
The more rules he sets up, the less he has to worry about himself from other people.
The moment he enters the cafe (at exactly 8:15 AM), he would usually greeted by regular employees who have known him for some time. Two of the regulars are Nie Huaisang and Wen Qing who are both nice enough to smile and welcome him every Saturday and are considerate enough not to bother him on his alone time.
But, there was no greeting from both of them today. Instead, he was greeted by a cheerful and energetic man who was setting up the tables. The man’s hair is tied in a half-bun with a red ribbon but short strands of hair still fall over his forehead and temples. This man is beautiful. He observes the crinkles at the corner of the man’s eyes and finds them attractive. His eyes disappear the wider he smiles and his smile is so contagious that Lan Wangji surprises himself by smiling back.
It wasn’t even a full-on smile because that doesn’t suit his stoic face. It was a very small and subtle smile, a smile that wasn’t noticeable, a slight curve on the corner of his lip. When he realized what he did, he quickly averted his eyes and looked for something familiar, recalled his routine, and saw Nie Huaisang by the counter. He sighs in relief.
“Good morning! I’m assuming I’ll get you the usual?”, Nie Huaisang asks.
“Mn, thank you”, he replies.
“Oh, in case you’re wondering, Wen Qing is studying full-time now so that guy over there will take up her job. His name is Wei Wuxian.”, Nie Huaisang says as he taps in his order.
He looks at Wei Wuxian and sees him still setting up the tables. Nie Huaisang doesn’t follow up on the small talk and he feels a hint of upset. He isn’t sure if it’s about Nie Huaisang finding Lan Wangji intimidating and hard to approach or the way he discontinued to tell more about this Wei Wuxian guy. He decides to ignore his thoughts and straights to his usual spot at the cafe.
Since it was early in the morning, only a few customers were at the cafe. So, just after waiting for less than 10 minutes, he sees Wei Wuxian carrying his Lavender Chai Tea toward him. He bumps a few chairs along the way but still arrives with the tea safely.
“Hi, here’s your tea.” Wei Wuxian sets down the tea, the straw, and the fork and knife for his pancakes later.
Wei Wuxian, he observes, is more good-looking up close. He now notices the shade of golden honey-brown eyes he has, the piercings on both his ears (2 on the right and 3 on the left), the small fox pin on his uniform, the calloused and long fingers he has, and finally, the mole on his bottom left lip.
“Mn. Thank you.”, he says.
He feels Wei Wuxian still standing beside his table. He looks up and stares at him questioningly.
“Uhmm~ haha… uh.. can I get you anything else?” Wei Wuxian says awkwardly while clutching the tray in his hands.
“No. Thank you.”, he says rather dryly.
“I’m Wei Wuxian but you can call me Wei Ying. It’s my first day here and Huaisang told me that you’re a regular here on Saturdays?”
He’s not really sure where Wei Wu- Wei Ying is going with this conversation but he entertains him anyway. Another action he surprises himself with.
“Mn. I’m Lan Wangji. Good luck on your first day, Wei Ying.”
Wei Ying. Somehow, the name slides off his tongue with such ease and familiarity.
“Ohh.. haha.. well then, I’m gonna go and get your pancake!”, Wei Ying says as he goes to the counter upon hearing Nie Huaisang call for him.
Lan Wangji grabs his tea and sips it. Weird. Not the tea, but his morning. He feels that he should be bothered by the events and with this new guy, but he feels calmer than expected. He eyes Wei Ying again, and observes him carrying orders and giving them to people. Wei Ying makes small talk with the customers he serves and would leave the customers with satisfied faces.
After some time of eyeing Wei Ying and occasionally working on his laptop, Wei Ying finally gets the pancake and is now walking again towards his table.
“Hi, it’s me again”, Wei Ying says as he sets down the plate. Smile as inviting as ever.
“Mn.”
Wie Ying doesn’t leave right away again. He stares up and looks at Wei Ying questioningly.
“Ah, I’m sorry, Lan Wangji, I’m probably ruining your morning by being weird, but… uh.. Hahaha..”
Lan Wangji raises one of his eyebrows, urging Wei Ying to go on and continue. He’s now nervous, he should probably leave as fast as possible after he eats and not let this man ruin his routine. The fact that he’s conversing with a complete stranger right now is something that needs to be processed right away. But, there’s something about the warm and inviting smile this man has. It feels like Wei Ying wanted to genuinely know him.
This thought should scare him. Is someone wanting to know him? Impossible. With how often people say that he’s unapproachable, cold, and condescending, he would rather keep his distance and be content with himself. He has his uncle and brother, he doesn’t need anyone else.
“But… You’re really beautiful.”
He chokes. He didn’t expect that at all. He’s stiff and forbidding. He’s unfriendly and withdrawn. He’s… not beautiful. Wei Ying must’ve been observing him as well (a thought that he would also delve into later) and he is sure that what he sees is wrong.
So, he quickly packs up his laptop, asks for Nie Huaisang to pack his pancake for takeout, and mutters under his breath,
“Ridiculous.”, leaving a dumb-founded Wei Ying in the corner of the cafe.
Lan Wangji runs out of the cafe an hour early and finds himself not following the routine he has set up for himself that day.