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Xie Lian had come to terms with being a naturally unlucky person very early in his life. At first, it seemed like everything came to him on a silver platter. But, the tallest always fell the hardest.
His bad luck was currently manifesting as the dark black clouds rumbling outside of the building, and the ice cold shards of rain falling from the sky. Of course, even knowing the forecast, he forgot to bring an umbrella. His thin cardigan was warm, but it wasn’t suited to keep the elements away. Typically, he would shoot his boyfriend a text, sheepishly asking if Hua Cheng was able to pick him up, but said boyfriend was away for work. He huffed a heavy sigh, hiked his tote bag further up his shoulder, and marched out of the sliding glass doors like he was heading into battle.
The world around him was dismal, and the only brightness came from old street lights and the reflections of headlights on the slick concrete. There was barely anyone on the sidewalk, and the people Xie Lian did pass by held umbrellas to protect themselves. Still, he met their pitying gazes with a big smile, and marched along with his hands over his head.
He was halfway home when he stopped at a crosswalk. The rain was falling harder, and Xie Lian was very much looking forward to the warm shower and hot tea that was awaiting him when he arrived home. Though he would have loved for Hua Cheng to be added to that equation, he supposed he had to settle for the next best thing.
As he waited at the light, he took in his gray surroundings. Tucked under a chain link fence at the edge of the sidewalk, in a little patch of bright green leaves, he found a red flower staring up at him. It was once part of a bundle, but the blossoms surrounding it were brown and wilted. Even the red one seemed on its last leg, as the little petals were a bit pathetic. Raindrops pushed it down everytime it managed to right itself. Xie Lian squatted down and plucked the flower, keeping just one hand over his head and the other curled close to his chest. He couldn’t help the smile that overtook his face as he crossed the street.
On their first (official) date, Hua Cheng had bought a bouquet of flowers for Xie Lian, matching the hue of the little thing pinched between his fingers. Those flowers were Alstroemeria, and the flower growing in a patch of wild grass couldn’t possibly be something as extravagantly named, but Xie Lian still found it beautiful. He was sure if it stayed alive until Hua Cheng came back, the man would be able to name it in no time at all.
By the time Xie Lian had arrived home, he was chilled to the bone, and the red flower had wilted just a bit. Shivering, he unlocked the front door, and was wrapped in warmth immediately. Black boots stood neatly in the threshold, and his forgotten white umbrella rested against a wet red one. Xie Lian didn’t notice, simply dropping his bag and removing his shoes. He gingerly took off his sweater, and with it in one hand and the flower in the other, made his way through the house. He could only hope he wasn’t trailing rain water after him.
Just as he rounded the corner to enter the laundry room, Xie Lian caught a glimpse of a red and black figure. Hua Cheng was in the kitchen, standing before the stovetop. Xie Lian abandoned the sweater just outside of the laundry room, and silently approached the man. It seemed he got back from his trip early, but that was a blessing in Xie Lian’s eyes. He stood behind his boyfriend, and gently tucked the flower behind Hua Cheng’s ear.
His boyfriend wasn’t easy to startle, so the taller man simply turned his head at the action. “Gege,” he said softly.
“Hi, San Lang. Welcome home,” he said softly, leaning up with a hand on the man’s shoulder to kiss his ear. “I’d hug you, but I’m soaking wet.”
“I wouldn’t mind,” Hua Cheng turned around fully, and Xie Lian found that the man was preparing tea. He laughed out loud as he was pulled against the warm chest, his feet off the ground for a moment. Hua Cheng kissed all over his face, punctuating the hug with a kiss to his lips before setting the man down. Then, he lifted his hand to delicately take the flower from behind his ear. “Azalea? Where did Gege find this?”
“On my walk home from work. I saw it and thought of San Lang. It’s a beautiful little thing, isn’t it?”
Hua Cheng nodded, and tucked the flower behind Xie Lian’s ear instead. He dragged his wet, brown locks behind his ears as well, to show his face completely. “If Gege likes them, then I’ll tear out the whole garden and plant these instead.”
“San Lang, I love our garden! Write about them in the next magazine issue, okay?”
“If that’s what Gege wants.”
Xie Lian smiled up at him, taking the flower once again. He held it between his thumb and forefinger. “What does it represent?” Xie Lian asked as Hua Cheng turned around to pour the tea.
“In floriography, I think it’s temperance,” he answered easily, adding sugar to Xie Lian’s tea. He turned back to the shorter man and offered the cup to him, which he immediately took. “But, in Chinese mythology…”
Xie Lian tilted his head, looking up at Hua Cheng as he blew the steam away from his tea. “Yes?”
“Oh, well, it represents womanhood.”
Xie Lian felt his face heat up, as if he wasn’t just walking through frigid rainfall. “San Lang…”
The man laughed and wrapped an arm around Xie Lian’s waist, pulling him closer. “Of course, it doesn’t only represent that. It’s also a flower known for thoughtfulness.”
“Well, I’m gifting it to you with that meaning in mind, then,” Xie Lian muttered, finally taking a sip of his tea.
“I would accept it no matter what meaning Gege attaches to it.”