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“How long has he been sitting there?…”
“He hasn’t eaten anything since breakfast…”
“Do you… think we should interrupt him?…”
“…”
“…”
The two girls were huddled together, watching their black haired friend from a distance. The man had been sitting on one of the comfortable seats of the express with one hand under his chin, the other resting on the table. He hadn’t spoken the entire day, only blankly staring out at the stars through the large windows of the parlor car.
“…Seriously… how does someone just sit in the same position for hours?”
“Doesn’t he feel sore?…”
“…”
“…”
“You go.”
“What?”
“Go talk to him.”
“Why me?!…”
“You’ve known him longer!…” the girl said as she nudged her shorter friend in the direction of the man.
“You traitor…!”
The pink haired girl cautiously approached the man. She just stood next to him for a few moments, he didn’t acknowledge her presence. She turned back to her friend, still standing in the corner, with an expression that screamed “What do I do now?!” Her friend facepalmed and pointed towards the man, making a tapping motion with her hands.
She lightly tapped his shoulder, finally breaking him out of his trance. He turned to look at her, “March, do you need something?” The girl gave him an awkward smile, “Uhm… Dan Heng? Are you okay?” He looked back at her with confusion, “Of course, why wouldn’t I be?”
“Well… it’s just…” she turned back to her friend for encouragement, the other gave her a thumbs up, “You’ve been sitting here all day… and you haven’t eaten anything either… is… something on your mind? You can talk to us you know?” she gestured for the other girl to come closer.
Dan Heng thought about it for a moment, “I… suppose it wouldn’t hurt to share it with anyone…” He looked up and saw the two girls squeezing on the seat in front of him.
“…”
“No, no, go on, we’re listening.”
“Right…”
He looked back out the window, “Today was my anniversary.”
The pink haired girl gasped, covering her mouth and stared at him with wide eyes.
The silver haired girl choked.
“wHAT?!”
“YOU HAVE A PARTNER?!”
“AND YOU DIDN’T TELL US?!”
“…Was” the man repeated, “Today would’ve been my anniversary, we don’t see each other anymore.”
The girl gasped even louder this time, “OH MY GOD, THERE’S SOMEONE YOU CAN’T GET OVER?! YOU’VE BEEN REMINISCING THE ENTIRE DAY?! THAT’S SO SAD!” there were small tears forming in her eyes.
“Calm down March, let him talk,” but she was also staring sympathetically at him.
“You… aren’t entirely wrong… I was just thinking about our last anniversary. The last one we ever spent together.”
——————————————————
A white haired man awoke to soft rays of sunlight pouring through the windows of their room, his arms still tightly wrapped around his lover in the same position they fell asleep in.
He gently combed through the other’s long black hair with his hands, which made the man stir slightly. Realizing the Vidyadhara had also awoken, he softly said in a loving voice he would rather die before letting his best friend hear of it, “Good morning, happy anniversary my love.”
The Vidyadhara smiled drowsily, still not fully awake. He murmured something unintelligible, before nuzzling against the taller man’s chest, one could only assume he had also wished his lover a happy anniversary. They wouldn’t have minded just staying that way the entire day, in each other’s arms.
*knock*
“Imbibitor Lunae, there is a message from the Realm-Keeping Commission, it seems urgent.”
Well that certainly woke them up. The shorter practically leapt out of bed, reaching for the clothing he wore on a daily basis.
“Imbibitor Lunae? Is everything all right in there?”
“Give me a moment.”
He hurriedly changed out of his sleeping robe, while his lover was internally cursing the existence of the Realm-Keeping Commission for so rudely interrupting their time together. Once he looked more presentable, he opened the door just enough for the attendant outside to hand him the letter. He thanked the attendant and told them to return to their position before shutting the door.
He opened up the letter and silently read through the details, they weren’t too pleasant. The white haired man, who’d just finished changing into his usual outfit, quickly noticed the Vidyadhara’s troubled expression, “Is something the matter? What do they need with you?” The dragon sighed, “My presence is required at the Realm-Keeping Commission urgently, I’m afraid it may take a while.”
“That’s fine, I shall await your return,” the man was upset, but it was his beloved’s duty, and he wouldn’t get in the way of that. “How long will it take?” “Possibly until nightfall,” he looked up at the man sadly, “I’m really sorry Ren, I know we had things planned, I’d put it off if I could but-“
He was cut off by the other man pulling him into a warm embrace, planting a light kiss on his forehead, “It’s not your fault. I understand. We can always reschedule.”
The black haired male smiled up at him, “Thank you, I’d like that.” They just stared into one another’s eyes for a while, before the taller spoke up, “Well, the earlier you leave, the earlier you’ll return, no?” “Right…” The two reluctantly let go of each other.
Ren held the bedroom door open for the Vidyadhara. They bid their farewells, and soon after, the man had disappeared out the front entrance.
Ren closed the door and sighed, one of the rare occasions they would’ve gotten to spend time together was now gone. He decided to just stay inside for the day and wait for his lover to return. He grabbed a book from the shelves and sat down in one of the chairs next to the window, perfectly content with the idea of reading his hours away.
Then he heard familiar heavy footsteps marching up to the door. Next second, it was slammed open, the perpetrator was a tall man with white hair similar to his own, though tied into a ponytail and much more messy.
“Jing Yuan, what the actual fuck.”
“Imbibitor Lunae said you’d be here, I didn’t fully believe him.”
“…What the hell is that supposed to mean?”
The man let himself in, closing the door behind him, he moved to sit in the chair across from Ren.
“Isn’t it your anniversary?”
“Yes?”
“Do you plan to just read the entire day?”
He was, but as if he would just admit that.
“Get to the point.”
Jing Yuan simply shrugged, “It’s your anniversary, your boyfriend just left for official business, and you’re not even going to take the chance to do something nice for him?”
“You…! Of course I was going to do something for him, just not right now!” He very much had no idea what he was going to do for him.
“Oh really? Tell me then.”
“…”
“You have no idea do you?”
“I…”
“You are such an unromantic person, you’re lucky he likes you,” he sighed sarcastically.
“Well… tell me what you would do in this situation.”
“Wow, just asking for answers? Very unlike you, I guess it’s true that they say love changes a person.” If this man wasn’t his best friend, he would’ve punched that teasing smirk off of his face by now; the idea was still very tempting…
“Just get to the damn point.”
“I’m just saying, you could get him some flowers, another small gift would be nice, maybe make him some food. Classic stuff.”
Ren was slightly confused, “But… apart from cooking, I do the other two quite frequently?”
“…”
“…”
“You do?”
Ren nodded.
Jing Yuan burst out laughing.
“I… never thought you’d be that kind of person! I retract my previous statement, no wonder he still loves you.”
“I am going to murder you.”
After Jing Yuan finally quieted down, he got up and opened the door, “Well, that’s all I wanted to say, I’m off. Dont you have some things to do?”
And then he was gone.
“…”
—————————
And that was how Ren found himself wandering the bustling streets of Central Starskiff Haven. He tried thinking about what he could get for his significant other, what he would want; he really couldn’t come up with much. The Vidyadhara never really asked for anything, it was usually Ren who would gift him whatever he deemed worth the dragon’s attention.
He found himself pushing open the door of a jewelry store. The old store owner greeted him, “Good afternoon sir, how may I assist you?” He honestly didn’t know, “I… I’m not too sure what I should be looking for…”
The jeweler looked at him kindly, “I see, may I ask who this is for? Personal interest, a relative, a friend or perhaps a partner?”
“Partner.”
“I see,” the old man approached one of the glass casings in the shop, he followed, “There are a few options I would personally recommend, such as this ring.” The centerpiece of the ring in question was a finely polished jade gemstone, embraced by intricate gold linings. The band too was made from finely crafted gold. It was perfect.
“Although, if those aren’t your inten-”
“I’ll take it.”
“Hm? Not even going to consider the other options?”
“I wouldn’t wish to trouble you any further.”
“Oh, it’s no trouble at all, really,” the old man laughed, “But if you insist, follow me to the counter.”
—————————
After that, he stopped by a nearby flower shop and picked up a small bouquet of peonies before returning home. He was just about to consider his next course of action, when he heard footsteps approaching his door once more; they didn’t belong to Jing Yuan this time.
Whoever he had expected, a certain blue haired sword master certainly hadn’t crossed his mind. Jingliu unceremoniously slammed open the door, just as her disciple had earlier that day.
“Master Jingliu?! What-”
She shoved a piece of paper into his arms.
“Jing Yuan mentioned you wanted to do something for your anniversary with Imbibitor Lunae. He said he had suggested you cook something for him. I know your culinary skills are… questionable, so I am lending you a recipe I inherited from my master. It is very simple, you cannot mess it up.”
“Uhm, thank… you?”
“You needn’t thank me.” She walked back out the door, but not before glancing at the small box he had set down on the table, “Strange, I always thought you’d decide on a more traditional approach, I suppose I was mistaken.” She shrugged in a way similar to Jing Yuan.
“What? …Wait, it’s not-“
Just as swiftly as she had entered, the woman had already gone.
—————————
The Vidyadhara had expected to return home to his lover’s handsome smile, and maybe even a flower or two if the other had gone out that day. He crossed the courtyard and opened the door to the main bedroom, finding nobody inside.
“Ren?”
That was odd. You know what was also odd? The sound of frustrated cursing coming from the kitchen.
He rushed over and was greeted by the sight of his beloved struggling to wrap a dumpling; oh, and the kitchen was a mess too, but that didn’t matter.
“Ren, what are you doing?”
The man looked up, his hair was tied into a ponytail.
“Huh? You’re back already? I thought you said it would take quite a while.”
“It was just an estimate, I finished up early.”
He glanced around the room, ”I didn’t expect to see you in here of all places.”
“That… I wanted to try and do something for you, Master Jingliu got word and came by, she gave me this jiaozi recipe.”
“As you can see,” he pointed towards the few disfigured dumplings on the table, “it’s not going too well…”
The dragon laughed softly, “That’s sweet of you, but you know you really didn’t have to-“
“I wanted to.”
“…”
“…”
“Then at least allow me to assist you.”
“Of course, my lord.”
“Oh shut up.”
He narrowly dodged some of the flour the dragon tossed at him.
—————————
After their small at-home dinner date, Ren lead the Vidyadhara back to their shared bedroom.
First, he gave him the peonies he’d gotten earlier in the day.
“They’re beautiful… thank you.”
Now, the ring… he’d have to clarify the intentions behind it, lest the other had the same misunderstandings as Jingliu did.
“My love, please do not be disappointed by what I am about to gift you.”
“Why would I-“
He took out the ring box from his pocket.
“Oh my- this is?”
“It’s… not. Or rather, it wasn’t purchased with those intentions.”
“I see.”
He slid the ring onto the other’s left ring finger. He held the Vidyadhara’s hands in his.
Under the moonlight, he made a promise he wouldn’t be able to keep,
“One of these days, I promise I shall properly court you. And when that day comes, I will get you the finest engagement ring the Xianzhou Luofu has to offer.”
“So please, wait for me.”
“…”
“I will.”
——————————————————
“We separated not long after, he never got a chance to fulfill his promise.”
“The flowers he gifted me have long since wilted.”
“And the ring… is long gone.”
He heard a sob and turned back towards the two girls. March was sobbing uncontrollably, Stelle was torn between “Awww!” and “Awww…”
“THAT WAS SO BEAUTIFUL AND SAD AT THE SAME TIME!” March was sobbing even more now.
Stelle slammed her hands down on the table and stood up with such force the chair tilted backwards, causing March to hit her head.
“WHERE IS THIS MAN?! WE MUST FIND HIM!!!”
“It’s not important anymore, that’s all in the past now.”
“He’ll never forgive me for what I did to him,” he said in a low voice.
“But…! You’re clearly not over him!”
“…”
“Maybe I want to be.”
————————————
Somewhere on the far side of the galaxy, a man stood atop a cliff, overlooking the city down below. The bandages adorning his body and his long black hair flowed in the wind. Behind him, his comrades were quietly discussing something with each other.
“We’re finished here.”
“Wonderful, how about we head into the city for dinner?”
“Seriously? Our faces are practically plastered on every wall.”
“Well, Bladie seems like he needs a break.”
The taller woman looked towards the man, who was still looking down at the city below.
“What is up with him today? He’s always like this, but not so… how do I say this… sad?”
“I am not sad, Silver Wolf.”
“Well look who finally decided to speak up.”
“I was simply thinking about past acquaintances.”
“Sadly.”
“No.”
“Alright you two, settle down. Bladie, any suggestions for dinner?”
“…”
“I… heard there was a food stall that specialized in making dumplings around here.”