Cellphone Love Story

Group Chat: Xianzhou
[JL] @Jing Yuan
[Jing Yuan] Yes?
[JL] (File Attachment: worksheet 2.1.pdf)
[Ren] LMAO
[Feng] Lol.
[Foxian] this is bullying!
[Jing Yuan] (File Attachment: worksheet 2.1 answers.pdf)
[Ren] I bet it's all gibberish
[Jing Yuan] I would never!

Bringing the group chat back together 10 years after you all mostly ghosted each other:

Group Chat: Xianzhou Besties Reunited!!!
[JL] (Image Attachment: 927491649.jpg)
[Foxian] AWWW
[Ren] Haha
[Foxian] yanqing is so tall now
[Foxian] i remember when he was as small as mimi is now
[Foxian] jing yuan carried him in a backpack
[Jing Yuan] It was a baby sling.
[Jing Yuan] I did not put my child in a backpack.

Notes:

Hi everyone, it's Gwen! I also write for Genshin.

I have a confession: I don't like chatfics. I like them in theory, but to be perfectly honest I have so many pet peeves for chatfics that I end up disliking most I come across. I could probably go on and on about it... but I won't. lmao
Insane thing to admit given that I'm here, writing a chatfic.

Special thanks to Opal for beta-ing this fic and providing me with the title. We've written a couple of fics together, check out my dashboard.

Notes:

Foxian: Baiheng
The rest of the usernames should be pretty self-explanatory.
Pretend there's more people in the group chat: xianzhou and I just didn't write them in.

This fic does not contain 1:1 spoilers for canon content but will contain references to existing/leaked content for the High Cloud Quintet.

(See the end of the work for more notes.)

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Group Chat: Xianzhou

~~[Jing Yuan] Yeah I go to Luofu High!~~ (This message was deleted by Moderator [JL])

[JL] don’t post your school on an anonymous internet forum

[Jing Yuan] But you posted yours last week…

[JL] there’s like thousands of people in college but only a few hundred in high school

[Jing Yuan] Oh

[Jing Yuan] Sorry!

[Ren] For the record you shouldn’t be using your real name as your internet handle either

[Ren] It’d be very easy for people to find you

[Jing Yuan] Sorry…

[Foxian] stop scaring the kid!

[Feng] He needs to learn.

[Jing Yuan] I won’t do it again :(

[JL] but fr r u really still in high school

[JL] u did one of my uni engineering problems last week

[Jing Yuan] Did I do it wrong????

[JL] no

[JL] thats the worst part

[JL] you got it right

[Ren] LMAO

[JL] die

Group Chat: Xianzhou

[Ren] Guess what?

[Ren] (Image Attachment: shard sword.jpg)

[Ren] Finally finished this baby

[Jing Yuan] Woah!!!

[Feng] It looks great.

[JL] good job

[Foxian] AAA i wish i could see it in person!!!

[Jing Yuan] How many more do you have to make?

[Ren] Just have Cloud Piercer and Starfell Reverie left

[Ren] Then I can finally graduate

[Feng] Will you hold an exhibition?

[Ren] All art majors have to have one by their last year

[Ren] So yeah, probably

[Jing Yuan] Can we come???

[Ren] You dont even know where in the world I am

[Jing Yuan] Well I know we’re in the same timezone!

[Ren] Shut up

[Ren] That could still be anywhere

[Foxian] ahh no chance for me to be there then, i’m in a different timezone.

[Ren] I’ll pay for your plane ticket

[Jing Yuan] Wow we’re practically neighbors and I can’t come but she can?

[Ren] Minors aren’t allowed at my exhibition

[Jing Yuan] Rude!!!

Group Chat: Xianzhou

[Foxian] i got a new PC today!!!

[Foxian] (Image Attachment: my baby.jpg)

[Jing Yuan] Congratulations!

[Foxian] Thanks!

[Ren] Girls will get a whole new gaming PC setup to play the sims

[Foxian] shit u right

Group Chat: Xianzhou

[JL] @Jing Yuan

[Jing Yuan] Yes?

[JL] (File Attachment: worksheet 2.1.pdf)

[Ren] LMAO

[Feng] Lol.

[Foxian] this is bullying!

[JL] die

[Jing Yuan] (File Attachment: worksheet 2.1 answers.pdf)

[JL] how tf

[JL] are u so fast

[Ren] I bet it's all gibberish

[Jing Yuan] I would never!

[Ren] Why don't you do my homework Jing Yuan

[Jing Yuan] I'm not artistic like you…

[Ren] Art is a learned skill

Group Chat: Xianzhou

[Jing Yuan] I have to start thinking about college applications soon…

[JL] baby

[Ren] Baby

[Feng] ?

[Feng] Baby.

[Jing Yuan] :(

[Foxian] just don't go

[Jing Yuan] What did you do?

[Foxian] a bunch of internships

[Foxian] look at me now!

[Foxian] debt free and employed

[Feng] Lucky.

[Feng] I turned down my parents' offer to join the business.

[Foxian] why?

[Feng] Didn't like it.

[Ren] My parents were so pissed when I moved away to study art lmao

[Ren] They haven't talked to me in 3 years

[Jing Yuan] I'm sorry…

[JL] fuck em

[Feng] They don't deserve you.

[Foxian] oof

[Ren] It's okay, thanks

[Ren] I'm not bothered by it anymore

Group Chat: Xianzhou

[JL] @Jing Yuan

[JL] (File Attachment: worksheet 4.6.2.pdf)

[Ren] ?

[Ren] Lmao

[Ren] Do you even like your major

[JL] no

[JL] it sucks

[Foxian] Maybe you can change it?

[JL] i sank 2 years into this shit

[Foxian] bullying jing yuan isn't sustainable

[Jing Yuan] Sorry, I don't know this one…

[Foxian] rip

[JL] fuck

[JL] nvm

[JL] thx anyw

Group Chat: Xianzhou

[Jing Yuan] Can I ask a personal question?

[JL] what

[Jing Yuan] I don’t know what to do…

[Ren] What is it?

~~[Jing Yuan] What do you do if your family member dies?~~ (This message was deleted by Moderator [JL])

[JL] wtf

[JL] dont ask us ask your parents

[Ren] JL…

[JL] shit

Private Message: Jing Yuan and Ren

[Ren] Where are you?

[Jing Yuan] ?

[Ren] I’ll come pick you up

[Ren] We’re in the same city

[Jing Yuan] How do you know that?

[Ren] You posted your high school in the chat last time remember

[Ren] Give me your location

Private Message: JL and Ren

[Ren] Hey heads up I’m going to meet up with Jing Yuan

[Ren] We live in the same city

[Ren] I’m just going to help him out and be with him for now

[Ren] If he’s asking the group chat I don’t think he has anyone else he can contact right now

[JL] wtf

[Ren] Proof I'm not a creep

[Ren] This is my school id

[Ren] (Image Attachment: yingxing.jpg)

[JL] oh

[JL] wait a min

Group Chat: JY

([JL] has added [Ren], [Feng])

[Ren] ?

[JL] @Feng are you free now

[Feng] ?

[Feng] I’m in class…

[JL] backread XZ

[Feng] You deleted the message.

[JL] jy’s family member died

[JL] ren wants to meet him

[JL] i dont want him meet jy alone

[Ren] That’s fair

[JL] u go with him

[Feng] ?

[JL] same college

[Ren] Wait really?

[JL] skip ur class

[JL] poli sci isn’t real sci anyways

[Feng] Shut up.

[Feng] Ok.

[Feng] @Ren On campus right now?

[Ren] Yeah I’m in the Design building

[Feng] Be at the pick up point in 10.

[Feng] I'll drive.

Group Chat: Xianzhou

[Foxian] ? did something happen

[Ren] later

Group Chat: JY

[Ren] (Image Attachment: selfie.jpg)

[Ren] (Image Attachment: sleeping jing yuan.jpg)

[Ren] (Image Attachment: feng driving.jpg)

[JL] k

[JL] who died

[Ren] His mom…

[Ren] Picked him up from the hospital

[Ren] Driving to the police station now

[JL] accident?

[Ren] Heart attack

[JL] condolences

[JL] will b back nxt wk

[Ren] Oh you live here too?

[JL] feng n i took an intro course tgt

[Ren] Cool

Private Message: Foxian and Jing Yuan

[Foxian] i saw some commotion in the group chat.

[Foxian] are you okay? do you need help?

[Foxian] you don’t have to answer if it’s something personal…

[Jing Yuan] Hello.

[Jing Yuan] Something happened, but Ren and Feng are with me.

[Jing Yuan] We live in the same city.

[Foxian] how do you feel about them? how old are they? where are you now? is there anyone who knows where you are?

[Jing Yuan] They seem like nice people I think.

[Jing Yuan] They’re both in college. Ren is 23 in his third year and Feng is 20 in his second.

[Jing Yuan] We’re at the police station…

[Jing Yuan] They helped me call my aunt, but she lives in another city.

[Jing Yuan] JL also knows… they all study in the same college.

[Foxian] police station? oh dear

[Foxian] i hope everything turns out alright

[Jing Yuan] Thank you.

Private Message: Feng and Ren

[Feng] So, Yingxing, huh?

[Ren] Yes, Dan Heng?

[Feng] You left something in my car.

[Ren] Shit, what is it?

[Feng] A date.

[Feng] Want it back?

[Ren] You’re so cheesy.

[Ren] Sure.

[Feng] Also, please never tell Jing Yuan I hit on you after his mother passed.

[Ren] I’ll be sure to never mention it.

Private Message: Jing Yuan and Ren

[Ren] Hope you’re settling into your aunt’s place okay

[Jing Yuan] She’s very nice but I’m not used to being away from home…

[Ren] When I first moved to Luofu I was really homesick. I think it’s normal to have an adjustment period, especially since you’re dealing with a lot

[Ren] If you ever feel like visiting Luofu me and Feng can host you

[Ren] If your aunt doesn’t think we’re two creepy men

[Jing Yuan] Don’t worry, she said you two were nice!

[Jing Yuan] She’s calling me, I’ll talk to you later.

[Jing Yuan] Thank you again.

[Ren] Anytime.

Group Chat: Xianzhou

([JL] left the group)

Ren: ???

Foxian: Is she alright?

Group Chat: JY

[Ren] @JL are you alright?

[Feng] What’s wrong?

[Ren] She left the XZ group.

[Feng] I’ll text her.

Private Message: Feng and Ren

[Feng] She says she’s alright, she’s just dealing with a lot now and she would rather be offline.

[Ren] Good to hear she’s okay

[Feng] I wouldn’t say okay…

[Ren] ?

[Ren] Did something happen

[Feng] Final year

[Ren] Ah

Group Chat: Xianzhou

[Jing Yuan] But I can't decide which college I should apply for.

[Jing Yuan] There are so many…

[Foxian] well, you still have a while to think about it!

[Foxian] do you plan to go abroad?

[Jing Yuan] Only if I can get a scholarship.

[Foxian] that should be no issue for you!

Private Message: Foxian and Jing Yuan

[Foxian] have you heard from ren and feng in a while?

[Foxian] i’m used to all five of us being online at the same time and now the chat seems so lonely…

[Foxian] apart from everyone else but idk them

[Foxian] just wondering since you know them in real life

[Jing Yuan] We only really met that one time…

[Jing Yuan] And I haven’t been online that often too since my finals are coming…

[Foxian] no, no, it’s alright

[Jing Yuan] But you’re right, it’s been a while.

[Jing Yuan] I’ll text Ren

Private Message: JL and Ren

[Jing Yuan] Hey Ren, how have you been?

[Ren] Hi.

[Ren] I’m alive, don’t worry.

[Ren] Sorry I haven’t been online as much.

[Ren] Something happened to both me and Finn.

[Ren] F***.

[Jing Yuan] ?

[Jing Yuan] Who’s Finn?

[Ren] I’m using text to speech. It doesn’t register properly.

[Jing Yuan] You mean Feng?

[Ren] Yes.

[Ren] Listen, we both got in an accident. A bad one.

[Ren] I can’t use my hands.

[Ren] Finn hasn’t woken up.

[Ren] We won’t be online for a while.

[Jing Yuan] Oh no!

[Jing Yuan] Is there someone with you two?

[Jing Yuan] Is there anything I can do?

[Ren] Relax, we’re adults, we’ll be fine.

[Ren] You don’t have to feel obligated to return the favor from last time.

[Jing Yuan] It’s not an obligation, I’m worried about the both of you!

[Ren] It’s okay.

[Ren] I just have a lot to deal with right now, I’m sorry.

[Ren] I’ll talk to you when I can.

Notes:

(Covers the rise and fall of the HCQ in one chapter) bye everyone thanks for coming
Timeskip! We're not going to fast-forward 700 years. just 10

Notes:

Ok i've decided to be a little petty anyways. For every chapter I'll talk about something I find myself disliking in chatfics and what I do about it in my writing. If you happen to write chatfics and do these... well, just know that it's not a personal attack on your writing (and you're not the only person I've seen that has written these).

I dislike chatfics that have a huge cast of characters, for example (I assume the venn diagram of genshin and honkai fans is a circle) those chatfics that try to include Every Genshin Character that has appeared so far (and does so by just adding like 50 people into a huge group chat).
I feel like the general consensus with every story is that you can't have too large of a cast of characters and have everyone be given equal importance/speaking roles, because then it'd be too messy and no one gets anything done. But that seems to be ignored in so many chatfics I've seen.
Like, I don't know what's going on. Who's doing what? Am I just imagining 50 people crammed into a room yelling over each other? Is anyone getting character progression? Is there a plot and am I supposed keep track of who's where all the time? No group chat irl has everyone this active and present!
My current fic has a pretty small cast of... 5 main characters so I doubt I'll run into that problem. Although as I introduce more people, rest assured that i will NOT be adding everyone into the same group chat. I'll have separate group chats or individual private messages, and I'll make it clear who's talking to who, lmao.
I'd like to recommend "i got my thrill, now get me off of this ride" by yukimor, a genshin chatfic series that features a huge cast of characters (in typical everyone-goes-to-the-same-school fashion) but tackles it a lot more elegantly by having smaller group chats for everyone, and separate fics within the series that focuses on different plots bite-sized casts.
You still get the sense of everyone being in the same environment if that's what you're into, but different groups of people are doing their own thing and it's definitely easier to read.

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

Private Message: Foxian and Jing Yuan

[Jing Yuan] Ren sent me a bunch of stuff.

[Jing Yuan] (Image Attachment: camera718392.png)

[Jing Yuan] (Image Attachment: camera718394.png)

[Jing Yuan] (Image Attachment: camera718396.png)

[Jing Yuan] (Image Attachment: camera718398.png)

[Foxian] his art pieces???

[Jing Yuan] He didn’t leave any note.

[Jing Yuan] Or any return address…

[Foxian] oh dear…

Private Message: Foxian and Jing Yuan

[Jing Yuan] I graduated high school!

[Foxian] I’m so proud of you!

Private Message: Foxian and Jing Yuan

[Foxian] Hey, you live in Yuque now, right?

[Jing Yuan] Yeah, why?

[Foxian] Well I’m going over for a business trip soon, I was wondering if you have any recommendations for things I check out while I’m there.

[Foxian] No pressure to meet up!

[Jing Yuan] I don’t mind, I think it’d be fun!

[Jing Yuan] I won’t be able to host you though, my aunts just had their baby and they’re wary of strangers.

[Foxian] it’s okay! my job has put me up with a hotel.

[Foxian] are they alright with you meeting me?

[Jing Yuan] I think they did not like that I was talking to internet strangers, but they’re more understanding after Feng and Ren helped me.

[Jing Yuan] I miss them a lot…

[Foxian] did you ever find out what happened to them?

[Jing Yuan] No…

[Jing Yuan} Ren never replied me after that day, and Feng never replied me at all…

[Foxian] you don’t know their real names right?

[Jing Yuan] Well I know Ren’s real name…

[Jing Yuan] But neither Feng nor JL ever told me theirs.

[Foxian] you could do an obituary search.

[Jing Yuan] Oh…

[Jing Yuan] I hope I don’t find anything.

[Jing Yuan] Hold on.

[Foxian] well?

[Jing Yuan] Nothing.

[Foxian] Wherever they all are, I hope they’re doing alright.

Private Message: Foxian and Jing Yuan

[Foxian] i'm getting a promotion!!

[Jing Yuan] Let's celebrate!!!

[Foxian] video call 9pm you me virtual margaritas

Private Message: Foxian and Jing Yuan

[Jing Yuan] Wanna come to my college graduation?

[Foxian] absolutely

Private Message: Foxian and Jing Yuan

[Foxian] how's the new job?

[Jing Yuan] Exhausting…

[Jing Yuan] The hours are so long.

[Jing Yuan] I barely have time to myself.

[Jing Yuan] I feel like I'm neglecting Mimi.

[Foxian] at least cats are pretty independent…

[Jing Yuan] I guess…

[Jing Yuan] Well the pay is good at least…

[Foxian] how much do detectives get paid?

[Jing Yuan] Not enough I think.

[Foxian] get a raise

[Jing Yuan] I just started here!

Private Message: Foxian and Jing Yuan

[Jing Yuan] (Image Attachment: camera186931.jpg)

[Foxian] ???

[Foxian] is that a child

[Foxian] jing yuan where did you get a child

[Foxian] is that YOUR child

[Foxian] i know thats not your child you single ass

[Foxian] did you have a one night stand

[Jing Yuan] He was found on one of the scenes…

[Foxian] oh no

[Foxian] what's the plan?

[Jing Yuan] Bringing him to the hospital after we wrap up here.

[Jing Yuan] He's so small…

[Jing Yuan] I can't put him down.

[Foxian] are you texting me one handed

[Jing Yuan] I have many talents.

Private Message: Foxian and Jing Yuan

[Jing Yuan] Yanqing held my hand today.

[Jing Yuan] I actually cried at work.

[Jing Yuan] (Image Attachment: camera028361.jpg)

[Jing Yuan] Fu Xuan took a picture of us.

[Foxian] two cuties

[Foxian] any leads about him?

[Jing Yuan] We found his biological parents…

[Foxian] that doesn’t sound good

[Jing Yuan] I’m afraid it’s not.

[Jing Yuan] I’m taking care of him for now because I still have Qingni’s stuff from when Yukong and Caiyi came over.

[Foxian] i’m surprised your higher ups let you keep him

[Jing Yuan] Well, I told them that Yanqing might he crucial to the case.

[Jing Yuan] If we handed him to the orphanage now, it might interfere with logistics.

[Foxian] abusing your power there a little bit huh

[Jing Yuan] Well…

[Jing Yuan] At the very least we needed his DNA to identify his parents’ bodies, so that sort of counts.

Private Message: Foxian and Jing Yuan

[Jing Yuan] (Image Attachment: camera028584.jpg)

[Jing Yuan] Mimi curled up around Yanqing today…

[Foxian] oh my god

Private Message: Foxian and Jing Yuan

[Jing Yuan] I'm becoming a dad

[Foxian] like fr?

[Jing Yuan] Fr.

[Foxian] i knew it

[Foxian] your weakness to small cute things is unparalleled.

[Jing Yuan] How do you feel about being Yanqing's godmother?

[Foxian] i'll be honored.

Private Message: Foxian and Jing Yuan

[Foxian] my job is offering me a relocation to fanghu

[Foxian] you went there a year ago, right? how was it?

[Jing Yuan] I think my testimony might be skewed towards crime scenes.

[Jing Yuan] It’s a great city, and the food is nice.

[Jing Yuan] It rains a lot, though.

[Jing Yuan] Yanqing fell ill a lot more frequently there.

[Foxian] yikes

[Jing Yuan] Well, he’s at the age where he touches everything and puts his hand in his mouth a lot.

[Jing Yuan] But running out into the rain whenever I let go of his hand certainly contributed.

[Foxian] haha, he’s growing up so fast

[Foxian] did you buy that leash for him

[Jing Yuan] I’m not putting him on a leash!

Private Message: Foxian and Jing Yuan

[Foxian] (Image Attachment: housewarming3.jpg)

[Jing Yuan] The place looks great!

[Foxian] thanks!

[Foxian] there’s a bed for yanqing if he ever visits

[Jing Yuan] What about me?

[Foxian] sleep in the hallway

Private Message: Foxian and Jing Yuan

[Jing Yuan] I'm thinking of moving back to Luofu.

[Foxian] it's been a while since you went back

[Jing Yuan] I know.

[Jing Yuan] But Yanqing's older now.

[Jing Yuan] He was supposed to start that school in Zhuming earlier this year but I got pulled into that big case in Xuling, remember?

[Foxian] yikes

[Foxian] that serial killer?

[Jing Yuan] I'm glad it's over…

[Jing Yuan] But this isn't sustainable for us.

[Jing Yuan] I was homeschooling him for that while but he's missing out on the social aspect of school.

[Jing Yuan] It feels ridiculous that his only friends are his cousin and my colleagues.

[Jing Yuan] So I'm thinking of settling down somewhere permanently.

[Jing Yuan] And I did spend my childhood in Luofu after all. I suppose I'm becoming nostalgic.

[Foxian] have you applied to any schools?

[Jing Yuan] There are some elementary schools in Luofu I have my eye on.

[Jing Yuan] I'll have to take a pay cut to be stationary but it should be enough for just the two of us.

[Jing Yuan] I've already shortlisted a few rental listings.

[Jing Yuan] I haven't applied for a transfer but I doubt the Luofu department would reject me.

[Foxian] who would?

[Foxian] sounds like you have it all figured out

[Jing Yuan] Haha, I suppose.

[Jing Yuan] So when are you moving over?

[Jing Yuan] Yanqing could use a babysitter.

[Foxian] haha, very funny

Notes:

I didn't give Baiheng a definite job because I don't have too clear of a feel for her vibe yet, so I have it ambiguous.
Jing Yuan is a forensics specialist!
I have separate jobs planned for the other three and I'll be interested to know what your guesses are for them. I hope they'll be a fun surprise! We'll be meeting one of them next chapter, can you guess who will be reuniting with Baiheng and Jingyuan first? Hehe

Notes:

This is my next chatfic pet peeve, also brought up by my lovely commenter ethereon in chapter 2: I dislike it when chatfics try to "escape the medium" instead of embracing it, or so to speak. I'm not saying you can't do fun things with your medium/genre, but... let me explain:
I've seen plenty of chatfics that try to simulate character actions or real-time scenarios. Some common ones are including action tags like "person is online", "person is offline", "multiple people are typing..." etc. meant to simulate a traditional scene's actions of having people enter/leave a room or having multiple people in disbelief about to talk over each other.
Except the inclusion of these action tags are usually not consistent, and only when the author thinks it'd be funny. Like, "person goes offline" doesnt show up everytime someone leaves the chat, only when the author wants to invoke the imagery of this character abruptly leaving the room.
Another example is fics trying to portray something that no one would otherwise do irl to get information across, like having two characters next to each other text instead of talking offline (and thinking that if the characters say "why are we texting each other if we're next to each other" "idk lol" it'd be funny and subversive), or having characters live-narrate an entire scene to the groupchat (usually having another character explain they can't be present but want to know whats going on anyways). Once or twice and it might be clever, but it gets old really quickly.
Imo if you're writing a chatfic you just have to accept the limitations that comes with the genre such as the fact that you're not going to be able to portray offline actions in real time. The fun is finding ways to work around it within the medium, and I'm always delighted to see chatfics navigate it.
For this fic, I'm having tons of fun writing around offscreen interactions! My characters have plenty of things to say to each other offline and we get to learn about what happens through them referencing it during texts. In fact I'm making it more offline on purpose, for example in this next chapter you'll see I'm making Jing Yuan and Baiheng deliberately take a conversation they're having via text to a phone call so we don't get to hear what they discuss. LMAO you're going to have to earn the content as it comes up later. I'm hoping I've written it naturally in a way you'll discuss irl matters over text with your friends.
Chatfic recommendation: a fun Genshin chatfic "You Have One New Message" by IlluminanceinTales. There's only two characters bouncing back and forth but they have used the chatfic medium pretty well, imo. For example, instead of having a character continuously type "WHERE ARE YOU" "I CANT FIND YOU" "IM RUNNING EVERYWHERE", it's just represented by a long string of missed calls with very close timestamps. It just suits the medium so well.

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

Private Message: Ren and Jing Yuan

[Jing Yuan] It’s good meeting you again.

[Jing Yuan] What a coincidence, huh?

[Ren] You too.

[Ren] I can’t believe we’re both in the same city again.

[Ren] When did you move back to Luofu?

[Jing Yuan] Oh, just a few months ago, actually.

[Jing Yuan] I was moving around quite a lot for work beforehand, but since Yanqing is starting school soon, I’ll need to pick a city to settle down in. I want to give him stability.

[Ren] Right…

[Ren] I didn’t expect you to be a father…

[Jing Yuan] Haha, well, it has been 10 years.

[Ren] Right.

[Ren] How old is he?

[Jing Yuan] Oh, he’s 6.

[Jing Yuan] He’ll be turning 7 later this year!

[Jing Yuan] He’s starting a little late but I found a good school for him and I hope that won’t be an issue.

[Ren] I see.

[Ren] Are you married?

[Jing Yuan] Nope.

[Jing Yuan] It’s just me and Yanqing, I’m afraid.

[Ren] That must be tough.

[Jing Yuan] It has its ups and downs.

[Jing Yuan] But I love him dearly. I wouldn’t give him up for anything.

[Jing Yuan] I could talk about him for ages if you gave me the chance.

[Ren] He’s a cute kid

[Jing Yuan] He absolutely is!

Private Message: Foxian and Jing Yuan

[Jing Yuan] You’ll never guess who I ran into today.

[Foxian] santa?

[Jing Yuan] It’s Ren!

[Foxian] OMG

[Foxian] christmas truly has come early

[Jing Yuan] I brought Yanqing to the mall and he went to that anime store again.

[Foxian] LMAO for the sword displays?

[Foxian] i can guess where this is going

[Jing Yuan] When I caught up to him I saw him talking to someone and

[Jing Yuan] I’m so excited I can’t type.

[Jing Yuan] Call?

[Foxian] let me get a drink!!!

(Call lasted 1:01:59)

Private Message: Ren and Jing Yuan

[Jing Yuan] Hey!

[Jing Yuan] How do you feel about coming over?

[Jing Yuan] Yanqing was very captivated by your immense knowledge about model weapons.

[Jing Yuan] He loves the ones you made at home.

[Ren] Do you let him play with them?

[Jing Yuan] I was afraid to at first but turns out they're surprisingly sturdy.

[Jing Yuan] You made them really well.

[Ren] That's a long time ago

[Jing Yuan] It's still your work.

[Jing Yuan] Dinner? I can cook.

[Jing Yuan] What time are you available?

[Ren] I have varied hours

[Ren] I'll be busier next month

[Ren] Dinner is fine

[Jing Yuan] You never mentioned what you did for work.

[Ren] I'm a diva's errand boy

[Jing Yuan] Really?

[Ren] What do you do?

[Jing Yuan] I'm a detective.

[Jing Yuan] For now.

[Ren] Quitting?

[Jing Yuan] The hours are pretty intense. I can't expect Yanqing to keep up with me.

[Jing Yuan] It was still manageable when he could just follow me to work, but if he's starting school I need to keep a regular schedule.

[Ren] You bring him to work?

[Jing Yuan] He stays in my office usually.

[Jing Yuan] My secretary watches him.

[Ren] What kind of detective has a secretary…

[Jing Yuan] Haha, it's complicated.

[Jing Yuan] How does this Friday sound?

[Ren] Ok

[Jing Yuan] Any dietary restrictions?

Private Message: Ren and Jing Yuan

[Ren] (File attachment: kafka ticket 2 pax.pdf)

[Ren] Yanqing can come.

[Jing Yuan] ???

[Jing Yuan] Kafka???

[Jing Yuan] Holy shit. Those are impossible to get.

[Jing Yuan] Wait, is this an invite?

[Jing Yuan] Also, I’m not sure if 6 year olds and violin concerts mix.

[Ren] I work backstage

[Ren] My friends want to meet you

[Ren] Also I already got you 2 tickets so invite whoever

[Jing Yuan] Well then, I’ll definitely be there.

[Jing Yuan] I’ll invite someone.

Private Message: Foxian and Jing Yuan

[Jing Yuan] How do you feel about coming down to mine next week

[Foxian] some of us have lives

[Jing Yuan] (File attachment: kafka ticket 2 pax.pdf)

[Foxian] fk u fk u fk u

[Foxian] do NOT give my tix to anyone else

[Jing Yuan] I’ll clear the guest room

[Foxian] you better

Group Chat: Xianzhou Besties Reunited!!!

([Foxian] has added [Jing Yuan], [Ren])

[Ren] I can't believe you’ve done this

[Foxian] it’s so good to finally meet you in person

[Ren] Same

[Foxian] so like are you single

[Ren] Sorry, I’m not interested in women

[Foxian] well I am

[Foxian] im just asking

[Ren] Oh, sorry for assuming

[Ren] Yes I am

[Foxian] nice

~~[Foxian] do you think jing yuan is hot~~ (This message was deleted by Owner [Foxian])

[Ren] Isn’t he in this chat???

[Foxian] ye but don’t worry I have his phone hostage

[Foxian] he’s in the other room reading yanqing his bedtime story

[Ren] Well delete the message he'll still see it

[Foxian] fine you’re no fun

Private Message: Foxian a nd Ren

[Ren] Yea I do

[Foxian] LMAOOOO

[Ren] Don't tell him or I'll have you blacklisted from every Kafka concert

[Foxian] rude

Group Chat: Xianzhou Besties Reunited!!!

[Jing Yuan] ?

[Jing Yuan] Were you guys talking about me?

[Ren] Must’ve been your imagination

[Foxian] the wind is really strong today huh

Private Message: Foxian and Jing Yuan

[Jing Yuan] What was that deleted message about?

[Foxian] none of your business

Group Chat: Xianzhou Besties Reunited!!!

[Foxian] also like

[Foxian] you never told us how you got a gig for KAFKA

[Foxian] @Ren

[Jing Yuan] I'm curious too.

[Ren] Oh

[Ren] It's a bit of a long story

[Ren] Back when

[Ren] We were all still part of the old Xianzhou Group

[Ren] You remember I was an art major at Luofu Uni

[Foxian] yea

[Ren] Feng and I

[Ren] We got into a car wreck

[Ren] I lost contact with him after

[Ren] I injured both my hands and had to drop out of school.

[Foxian] yingxing…

[Jing Yuan] I'm sorry.

[Ren] It's ok it was ages ago

[Ren] As part of my physical therapy I learnt how to play an instrument

[Ren] I met Kafka and Sam while at a store

[Foxian] meet cute…

[Jing Yuan] Sam?

[Ren] Her publicist

[Foxian] what instrument do you play?

[Ren] I tried the flute

[Ren] I can't play it that well because of my injuries

[Ren] I don't perform or anything

[Ren] I'm just Kafka's personal assistant

[Foxian] you should play for us sometime!

[Foxian] aww

[Jing Yuan] Thank you for sharing that with us.

[Ren] Yeah

[Ren] Thanks for listening

Notes:

LMAO YOU GUYS REALLY WANT BLADE TO BE A CRIMINAL HUH
well guess what??? (pardons your Ren)
Of course, if at any point you're not sure what is happening offline, feel free to voice out in the comments! I'm interested to know what you all are taking away from this fic, and I'll answer questions about what I intended to portray as well.
Guess who's next ;)

Notes:

Chatfic pet peeve number 3:
This is somewhat related to both having a lot of characters and writing what fits the medium.
You know some chat fics that decide to do the thing where each character introduces themselves, and depending on the fic context sometimes they indicate what class/year they're in, their pronouns, etc? And similarly, in some fics the characters are all given unique nicknames, and the fic tries to tell you who's who by having said intro section, or alternatively a legend where they list all the actual names alongside the nicknames? Well... I'm sorry, you've lost me immediately. If I have to keep scrolling up and down/switch tabs to keep track of who is saying what, I'm not reading the fic.
It's even sadder imo when the author tries to give everyone a nickname but they're running out of ideas. You get a character like "osmanthus wine" who you immediately recognize but on the other end of the spectrum you have someone named "blue boy".
The thing is, I get it. I have been a part of group chats where people have fun quirky usernames that reflect their personality/gimmick and they change these usernames often. It's fun when you're in the community and you recognize your friends. But as the audience to your fic, I don't know these people. In no other story format would you choose to have all your main characters stand in a row and say their names one by one.
I love exceptions to the rule. A brilliant chatfic "a sniper shot through the heart" by cruellae (tinkabelladk) has an section of the fic where characters introduce themselves, and I enjoy this one because it drives the plot forward. It doesn't feel like you are simply going down a namelist, and I feel like it's a clever way to use what we expect of an intro section to showcase character dynamics.
Of course, omitting the intro section entirely...
What I'm doing for this fic is starting off with a small cast with very obvious nicknames/just using their actual names so if you have a basic understanding of these characters (which I assume you do, otherwise why are you reading a fanfic of them), you'll know who's who. Like, Baiheng is the only Foxian in the canon friend group they're in, so that's fairly obvious. Jing Yuan just uses his name, Jingliu uses her initials, and Ren/Feng are just Blade/Dan Heng's canon aliases.
For new characters, I like to introduce them one at a time, or in small groups. Just look at every story you've ever read. With the exception of school classroom animes where you do get a literal namelist, your protagonist would meet one to three new people at a time. There's no reason it can't be the same for chatfics.
Even for those animes, your protagonist usually chats with one or two people first. Have a few people online at one time and have them chat for a bit before adding another person. People come online at different times, that's normal. I highly advise against people doing the "@Everyone" thing and have like 30 people come online at once just to type a variation of "why did you ping me". It's very messy and it's only funny for a second.
I did introduce a new typing character in this latest chapter! It's not my first mention of them, but it will be their first time typing in the chat, so... we'll see.

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

Private Message: JL and Jing Yuan

[JL] Hello, is this Yanqing’s father? This is Jingliu, your son’s homeroom teacher. Apologies for contacting you over text but you missed my last two call attempts.

[Jing Yuan] ???

[Jing Yuan] JL?

[JL] Those are my initials. Is this Yanqing’s father?

[Jing Yuan] It’s me, Jing Yuan!

[JL] I am aware that is your name.

[Jing Yuan] No, I mean

[Jing Yuan] (Image attachment: screenshot.jpg)

[Jing Yuan] It’s me, Jing Yuan from Xianzhou!

[JL] wtf

[JL] luofu high kid

[Jing Yuan] That was 10 years ago!

[Jing Yuan] I see you didn’t save any of our old texts.

[JL] yeah cuz theyre from 10 yrs ago tf

[JL] why did you?

[Jing Yuan] Well, I like to look at them from time to time. You guys helped me out a lot.

[Jing Yuan] Anyways, what’s this about Yanqing?

[Jing Yuan] Sorry I missed the calls, I was in a meeting.

[JL] oh shit right

[JL] r u aware ur son brought a sword to class tdy

[JL] (Image attachment: 716379692.png)

[Jing Yuan] What?

[Jing Yuan] Oh my god.

[JL] isn’t this one of rens old pieces

[Jing Yuan] It is! You recognize it?

[Jing Yuan] He gave them to me.

[JL] cool

[JL] looks great in person

[JL] yq still can’t bring them to class tho

[Jing Yuan] I’m so sorry about that.

[JL] ive confiscated it

[JL] you’ll have to pick it up

[Jing Yuan] Sure, of course.

Private Message: Foxian and Jing Yuan

[Jing Yuan] Holy fucking fuck

[Jing Yuan] JL IS MY SON’S HOMEROOM TEACHER

[Foxian] BOY WHAT

[Foxian] ARE YOU SERIOUS RIGHT NOW

[Jing Yuan] I AM SO SERIOUS RIGHT NOW

[Jing Yuan] (Image attachment: screenshot920173.jpg)

[Foxian] NO WAY LMAO

[Foxian] CALL ME NOW

(Call lasted 00:56:24)

Private Message: JL and Jing Yuan

[JL] its policy to have 2 emergency contacts per child

[JL] u only have one

[Jing Yuan] Is it?

[Jing Yuan] You can add this one.

[Jing Yuan] (Contact: Qingzu)

[JL] wife?

[Jing Yuan] Oh, no.

[Jing Yuan] She’s my secretary. If I can’t be reached, she’ll most likely know where I am.

[JL] is that an appropriate emergency contact

[Jing Yuan] She’s really the only one within the city that I have, sorry.

[JL] k

[JL] no other parent?

[Jing Yuan] I’m starting to think this isn’t about emergency contacts.

[JL] we really do need 2

[JL] also today at lunch yq thanked me for being your friend because he says you don’t have many

[Jing Yuan] Wow.

Private Message: Foxian and Jing Yuan

[Jing Yuan] Hello

[Jing Yuan] Auntie baiheng

[Foxian] hi, yanqing!!!

[Jing Yuan] Did you know dad is friends with my teacher

[Foxian] no way!!!

[Jing Yuan] She is pretty

[Jing Yuan] She has white hair like mimi

[Jing Yuan] She likes swords too

[Jing Yuan] I shared mine with her

[Jing Yuan] She and dad are going out

[Jing Yuan] Without me

[Jing Yuan] Is it a date

[Foxian] who are you with?

[Jing Yuan] Auntie fu xuan

[Jing Yuan] She is making dinner

[Foxian] does she know your on your dad's computer

[Jing Yuan] Noooo

[Jing Yuan] Dont tell her

Private Message: Ren and Jing Yuan

[Jing Yuan] Hello

[Ren] ?

[Jing Yuan] What is your favoriate animal

[Ren] I like cats

[Jing Yuan] Me too

[Jing Yuan] I have a cat

[Jing Yuan] Mimi

[Jing Yuan] He is white

[Jing Yuan] And fluffffy

[Ren] How old is Mimi?

[Jing Yuan] I do not know

[Ren] Is your dad home?

[Jing Yuan] No

[Jing Yuan] He is out

[Jing Yuan] On a date

[Ren] I see

[Ren] I hope he has fun

[Jing Yuan] She is pretty

[Jing Yuan] She likes swords too

[Jing Yuan] She has white hair like mimi

[Ren] That's nice

[Ren] Who are you with now?

[Jing Yuan] Auntie fu xuan

[Jing Yuan] She is cooking

[Ren] What is she making?

[Jing Yuan] Dont know

Private Message: JL and Jing Yuan

[Jing Yuan] Hello

[Jing Yuan] What is your favoriate animal

[JL] Yanqing?

[JL] Where is your Auntie Fu Xuan?

[JL] Why are you on my computer?

[Jing Yuan] This is not your computer

[Jing Yuan] This is my dads computer

[JL] Yanqing, it's me.

[Jing Yuan] Who

[JL] Your dad, Jing Yuan

[Jing Yuan] I do not believe you

[JL] Yanqing!

[JL] Where is Fu Xuan?

[Jing Yuan] She is making dinner

[JL] I'm calling her.

[Jing Yuan] Noooooo

[Jing Yuan] Dkwgeisb29eueiwn

[Jing Yuan] This is Fu Xuan. Sorry about that, Jing Yuan. Enjoy your date!!!

[JL] This isn't a date!

Private Message: Ren and Jing Yuan

[Jing Yuan] I'm sorry about Yanqing.

[Ren] It's alright

[Ren] Did you have a nice time on your date?

[Jing Yuan] I did.

[Jing Yuan] But it wasn't a date.

[Ren] Well it's okay to be dating

[Ren] Being a parent doesn't mean you have to be celibate

Group Chat: Xianzhou Besties Reunited!!!

[Foxian] @Jing Yuan add her

[Jing Yuan] It's weird.

[Foxian] add herrrrrr

[Foxian] coward

[Jing Yuan] That's so unprofessional…

[Ren] ?

[Foxian] tell jing yuan to add his son's first grade homeroom teacher

[Ren] What?

[Ren] That's weird.

[Foxian] come onnnn

[Foxian] is she still with you? tell her i said hi

[Jing Yuan] No, I've already dropped her off.

[Ren] You went on a date with your son's first grade teacher?

[Jing Yuan] No!

[Jing Yuan] Fine I'll add her if it gets you to shut up @Foxian

[Jing Yuan] Please don’t misinterpret it @Ren

[Foxian] yay

[Ren] You don't have to

([Jing Yuan] added [JL])

[JL] tf is this

[JL] lame

[Foxian] JL I MISSED YOU

[Ren] JL???

[Ren] You're Yanqing's first grade teacher???

[JL] die

Private Message: Ren and Jing Yuan

[Jing Yuan ] We were simply catching up.

[Ren] Haha

[Ren] That's good to hear

[Ren] How has she been?

[Jing Yuan] Pretty good.

[Jing Yuan] She's quite passionate about teaching. She's really good with Yanqing.

[Jing Yuan] She took a leave of absence from college around the time we lost contact with her. She eventually came back to change her major to Education.

[Ren] That's good to hear

[Ren] Wow we all disappeared of the face of the earth huh

[Jing Yuan] I missed you.

[Jing Yuan] All of you helped me a lot.

[Ren] Missed you too

[Ren] Many times, I wondered what you were all up to.

[Ren] But I didn't think you'd want to talk to me again after I ghosted you all for so long.

[Jing Yuan] Nonsense.

[Jing Yuan] It's true that I was upset. But I was always more worried than angry.

[Jing Yuan] For a long time, Baiheng and I wondered whether you three were dead.

[Jing Yuan] If anything, I'm just happy to hear that you two are alright.

[Ren] I apologize

[Jing Yuan] No need.

[Jing Yuan] I'm just glad you're back.

Notes:

Well, I lied. There's actually two new typing characters. Fu Xuan's only there for a sentence, though.
Jingliu as... *drumroll* Yanqing's teacher! LMAO
I got some guesses for her along the variations of fitness instructor/martial arts teacher, which is so close.
No guys, I also didn't make her a criminal. I know it's essentially bait with Jing Yuan as a detective (honestly, a fic where he has to hunt everyone down is pretty hot) but that's for another fic.
Now we have... Dan Heng left! My beta Opal was amused when I told her about what Dan Heng's job would be. To be perfectly honest I don't think any of you would guess it, but I invite you to try.

Notes:

Hi everyone!
Honestly, the reception I've been getting for this fic is incredible... I'm in tears guys. Thank you all for being here.
Chatfic pet peeve #4: How chatfics can feel like they're lacking in the character's voice. Quite a number of you have pointed something like this out in the comments! As opposed to prose-fics where you might get action and descriptions, the only thing you get out of a chat fic is really the dialogue, so that really has to carry your fic. Sometimes characters' voices can start to feel the same, which isn't a problem limited to chatfics, but the fact that it's Only dialogue can make the problem more apparent. And it's not just the content of the text but also their typing quirks, like grammar, punctuation, etc.
I think the most common thing a fic writer does is to pick one character trait and exaggerate it to their only gimmick. I think I've seen a lot of (again, using Genshin examples) Zhonglis type in excessively formal paragraphs, or Fischls whose entire typing style is just the way she speaks in-game. These kinds of things aren't really an issue and tbh I don't have much of a suggestion for those too, because there only is so much you can do in a pure-dialogue fic. But it does get tiresome because you know when this character is cued up to speak it will only be this one gimmick.
I feel like the spiritual predecessor to chatfics are those "incorrect quotes" style content (you know what I'm talking about). Funny one-liners that are only vaguely about the character but is entertaining to imagine. And I feel like the slippery slope with a lot of chatfics are just that: characters spitting a bunch of one-liners back and forth so it feels like you're reading a stand-up routine script. Like, it's still funny to read because they're jokes, and I'm entertained, but... it's not saying much else, and the characters lose personality because the point of these incorrect quote one-liners is often written so that any character can be substituted to say those lines.
Well, one of the first things I did when writing this fic was to make a note on how each character types, lmao. I'm sure you can tell: I have Jing Yuan and Dan Heng as the most formal characters who use proper sentences with punctuation.
When Yanqing types, it's pretty obvious because "Jing Yuan" loses his formality and punctuation. He still keeps the capital letter at the start of the sentence because JY has auto-caps enabled like a nerd.
Ren is somewhere in the middle between formal and casual, and his main writing quirk pre-timeskip was not having any full stops at the end of his sentences. Although post-time skip the little detail I added for him (which I'm kind of proud of, but I have no idea if anyone found it relevant) is adding periods for him at the end of his longer sentences, because he's using speech-to-text. (His conversation with Jing Yuan immediately post-accident is all fully punctuated lmao). It's not really important because it doesn't come up but I giggle whenever I write it.
In my mental image Baiheng is really chill and she types entirely in lapslock, but with proper punctuation.
Jingliu strikes me as aloof and she can't be bothered to use punctuation at all... unless she's talking to Yanqing. Then she has to set a good example for the kid, and also make sure he can read it.
As for the content of what they're saying... I think that's ultimately for you, the reader, to judge whether I'm doing a good job of conveying their voices. We've seen Jing Yuan, Dan Heng and Ren in game already, with limited (official) information about Jingliu and Baiheng. Do you think I'm doing a good job in making them sound like themselves, albeit in an AU? Feel free to say it even if you think the answer is no. I may not change the current direction for the characters in this fic, but I plan to write more of them in the future. (I have a few wips coming up that I'm really excited about! My beta/cowriter Opal is often hopping around in the comments, say hi to her too!)
Sorry, no chatfic recommendation to demonstrate this specific point... I accidentally closed the tabs I was keeping open and no chatfic relevant to the portrayal of characters' voices comes to the top of my head.
Unless, of course, you wouldn't mind a bit of shameless self promo: I wrote a fic inspired by one of those 8-bit rpg video games, murder mystery style! It's for my main fandom Assassination Classroom (you don't need to have watched it to understand it, I think). It's entirely dialogue based, and while it's not a chatfic, I like to think I did a pretty good job at the characters' personalities. Here's the link for "New Game" by gwendee.

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

Group Chat: Xianzhou Besties Reunited!!!

[JL] (Image Attachment: 927491649.jpg)

[Foxian] AWWW

[Foxian] he’s so cute

[Ren] Haha

[Jing Yuan] Should you be sending pictures of children to anonymous group chats on the internet?

[JL] u added me here first

[JL] deal

[Foxian] yanqing is so tall now

[Foxian] i remember when he was as small as mimi is now

[Foxian] jing yuan carried him in a backpack

[Jing Yuan] It was a baby sling.

[Jing Yuan] I did not put my child in a backpack.

Private Message: Foxian and Ren

[Ren] Hey so

[Ren] Who is Yanqing's other parent?

[Ren] Just wondering.

[Foxian] LMAO

[Foxian] you should ask him

Private Message: Foxian and JL

[JL] who is mom

[Foxian] LMAO

[Foxian] u too huh

[JL] ?

[Foxian] i'm not at liberty of revealing personal information

[Foxian] just ask him if you’re curious

[JL] no

[JL] die

[Foxian] that’s not very first grade teacher of you

Private Message: Ren and Jing Yuan

[Jing Yuan] Would you like to come over?

[Jing Yuan] Yanqing has been asking non-stop about you.

[Jing Yuan] I'm afraid I'm losing my son to the cool sword maker.

[Ren] SHOCKED EMOJI the guy ren's been giggling at his phone over is MARRIED

[Ren] HOMEWRECKER

[Ren] just say the word

[Ren] ill be ya alibi

[Ren] ur wife wld never find out

[Ren] that ur gay n a cheater

[Ren] or ur husband wld never find out

[Ren] that ur alrdy gay but also a cheater

[Jing Yuan] Haha, hello.

[Jing Yuan] I'm not married.

[Ren] oh

[Ren] send pic

[Jing Yuan] Of me?

[Ren] ye

[Jing Yuan] (Image Attachment: camera103749.jpg)

[Ren] erm

[Ren] blocking u

[Ren] catfish

[Jing Yuan] Haha.

[Ren] pic with spoon on ur head

[Jing Yuan] (Image Attachment: camera103751.jpg)

[Ren] holyyyy shit

[Ren] send nudessss8w792nskek

[Ren] sjshka

(Call lasted 00:00:05)

[Ren] wkal s.akq

[Ren] I am so sorry.

[Ren] You didn't need to humor her.

[Ren] That was my colleague, Silver Wolf

[Ren] She's a child

[Jing Yuan] Haha, that's cute.

[Ren] She's literally a child she's like 23

[Jing Yuan] Well I'm just 4 years older than her.

[Ren] Oh my god

[Ren] Never say that to me again

[Ren] Yes I'm coming over

Group Chat: Xianzhou Besties Reunited!!

[Ren] (File Attachment: kafka ticket 3 pax.pdf)

[JL] what

[JL] kafka

[Foxian] omg i can't wait

[Foxian] @Jing Yuan

[Jing Yuan] Oh wow!

[Jing Yuan] I might have to take a rain check.

[Jing Yuan] I just got a new case earlier today and I don't know how my schedule will be in the next few weeks.

[Foxian] nooooo

[JL] rip

[JL] who died

[Ren] Jingliu!!!

[Foxian] jingliu!!!

[Jing Yuan] I'm afraid that's confidential.

[Jing Yuan] Don't worry, it'd be resolved.

[Foxian] this is ur first big case back in luofu with yanqing in school right

[Foxian] what's the plan?

[Jing Yuan] Oh, Qingzu will be picking him up.

[Ren] Again, what kind of detective as a secretary

[Foxian] oh jing yuan's no run of the mill detective

[Foxian] isn't that right

[Jing Yuan] Baiheng, please…

[Foxian] he's the DIVINE FORESIGHT

[Ren] The what

[JL] what

[Jing Yuan] Oh god.

[Foxian] he has left NO CASE UNSOLVED

[Foxian] NO STONE UNTURNED

[Foxian] no criminal will escape his all-knowing gaze

[Foxian] he will strike down upon them like lightning

[Foxian] do you think any normal employee gets to hop between cities multiple times a year

[Foxian] bring their kid to work

[Foxian] decide their own placement

[Foxian] the alliance is doing everything in their power to keep jing yuan employed with them

[Foxian] he'd be too unstoppable as a criminal

[Jing Yuan] Baiheng…

[JL] wow

~~[Ren] Hot~~ (This message was deleted by Sender [Ren].)

[Foxian] LMAO

[JL] skill issue

[Jing Yuan] Thanks!

Private Message: Foxian and Ren

[Ren] Fuck

[Foxian] LMAOOOO

Private Message: Foxian and Jing Yuan

[Foxian] thanks!

[Jing Yuan] Go away.

Group Chat: Xianzhou Besties Reunited!!

[Foxian] (Image Attachment: besties.jpg)

[Foxian] wish u were here @Jing Yuan

[Jing Yuan] Hello

[Jing Yuan] Auntie baiheng

[Foxian] yanqing!!!

[Foxian] where are you?

[Jing Yuan] Dads office

[Foxian] so late at night?

[Jing Yuan] He is out

[Foxian] working?

[Jing Yuan] Yes

[Jing Yuan] I miss him

[Foxian] aww

[Foxian] is there anyone with you?

[Jing Yuan] Auntie fu xuan is sleeping

[Foxian] awww

[Jing Yuan] Who is that

[Foxian] in the picture?

[Foxian] that's me, your teacher miss jingliu, and your dad's friend yingxing!

[Jing Yuan] Other one

[Foxian] oh, behind us?

[Foxian] the purple haired lady's name is kafka

[Jing Yuan] Kafka

[Jing Yuan] Pretty

[Foxian] AWWWW

[Ren] What

[Foxian] don't worry that's yanqing

[Ren] Oh

[Ren] Nvm

[Foxian] LMAO

[JL] lol

[Jing Yuan] Hello

[Ren] Hi Yanqing

[JL] hey

[JL] Have you done your homework?

[Ren] Jingliu typing a proper sentence, never thought I'll see the day

[Foxian] i'm so proud of how far we've come

[JL] stfu

[Jing Yuan] Yes

[Jing Yuan] What is stfu

[JL] I typed wrongly.

[JL] Don't worry about it.

[Ren] LMAO

[Foxian] LMAO

Private Message: JL and Ren

[Ren] By the way.

[Ren] I should warn you that silver wolf might try to contact you.

[JL] who

[JL] kafka’s pianist?

[Ren] Yeah

[JL] y

[Ren] She’s nosy

[Ren] She’s texted the others already

[JL] y lol

[Ren] You know I don’t like to text often because my hands ache.

[Ren] But since I started texting the other two more often, my friends found it suspicious.

[Ren] Silver Wolf tried to hack my phone

[Ren] By which I meant she stole it

[JL] no pw?

[Ren] More hassle than it’s worth.

[Ren] I have enough trouble with my hands already.

[Ren] Don’t want to lock myself out of my phone on a bad day.

[JL] right

[JL] dw

[JL] ill block her

[Ren] Haha you don’t have to

[Ren] She’s harmless

[Ren] My friends are just nosy

Notes:

Sorry, no Dan Heng this chapter...
But I do have a surprise! Someone guessed his occupation right in Chapter 4's comments! I won't say what it is here in case you don't want to spoil yourself (the next chapter will be dropping approximately 24 hours from now), but if you are eager to find out, you can go searching for it.

Notes:

Chatfic pet peeve #5! It's.... (drumroll) Internet slang. Wow, hot take, huh?
I have no idea how hot of a take this is, actually. But you can see I've tried to omit most internet slang from this fic, or at least limited myself to a minimal amount.
Internet memes and slang are pretty generation and culture-specific, and differs between not just age but also internet communities. Like the memes at the forefront of my brain are different from yours. Tiktok slang won't be the same as reddit slang. Even within one platform, there's so many subcultures and niches that the terminology may not be interchangeable. If you think a specific reference is pretty well-known that everyone should be able to understand it... chances are it's not as universal as you may think.
If you're writing for your own interest/to share amongst your peers and to capture your own time capsule of this era of internet, feel free to do whatever you want. If your favourite lingo makes you happy, use it! What's important is that you have fun with your own work and feel like it carries YOUR voice and YOUR personality. If you feel like your character is best represented with this specific meme... write it! And of course you can use your own discretion for what target audience you're aiming for.
But this is worth bearing in mind if you are writing for a wider audience or for the longevity of your work. If your fic (not necessarily a chatfic-only issue) is too internet slang specific, you may restrict a part of your audience, so it's up to you to decide what you want to get out of your fic.
Sometimes when I open a chatfic I can instantly tell that the author is a decade younger than me/runs in a different space on the internet based on how many acronyms I don't recognize. And like, I'm not going to google it. I don't wanna do homework for a quick read on my morning commute. The wifi on my train sucks anyways. Like what is ijbol. Please don't answer that question. I have no desire to know and that information will serve me no purpose.
As someone who has written their own meme heavy fics... I wouldn't recommend it. Meme trend cycles are really quick, and my own fics have aged poorly to my own eyes, I don't even want to know what my readers think of them.
For some context, in case you're wondering which boomer is preaching to you about these damn kids on the internet behind the screen: The consensus for my birth year is Gen Z, although I've noticed that generational metrics are pretty American-specific. Like, I read an article that said one of the decisions that went into deciding the Millennial-Gen Z distinction is whether you remember world events like 9-11, which... well, I'm not american. When I first learnt about 9-11 (11-9 for us non-americans) I was well into high school.
Even then, the development of technological literacy within the same generation can be really varied. The first iphone came out in 2007 but the accessibility/availability of those things differed a lot by your economy, community, income tax bracket, etc. I got my first phone in high school and you barely texted on them. I got my laptop a little bit later and that was really necessitated by how many of my assignments were moving online. But look at me now, I have a smartphone where I play Honkai: Star Rail on. How times have changed.
Speaking of age: Forgive me for my portrayal of Yanqing, he's supposed to be 6/7, but frankly speaking I have 0 idea how 6/7 year olds text.
As for today's fic recommendation... well I don't have chatfics specifically (I actually already ran out of chatfics in my bookmarks lmao) but since we're speaking about different internet spaces and platforms, here are two great mixed-media fics I really enjoy! "Japan v. Shigaraki (2237) SCOJ No. 4401" by Anubis_2701 (My Hero Academia) and "ad perpetuam memoriam " by redrobin1989 (Black Butler) are two really fun fics that play with multiple mediums for storytelling. Even if you don't engage with either fandom, I still highly encourage you to scroll through them and just be amazed by the creativity of it all.
Sorry, I hope today's commentary section didn't sound too preachy LOL

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

Private Message: Dan Heng and Jing Yuan

[Dan Heng] I’m really sorry about earlier.

[Jing Yuan] It’s okay!

[Jing Yuan] It’s nice to meet you for the first time, new friend.

[Dan Heng] Thanks.

[Jing Yuan] Amnesia, huh?

[Jing Yuan] That explains a lot.

[Dan Heng] Were you and I close in the past?

[Jing Yuan] To be honest, not really.

[Jing Yuan] We were part of the same online friend group, but all of us mostly fell out of contact in the past 10 years.

[Jing Yuan] But you helped me out at a low point in my life, and I’m really grateful for that.

[Jing Yuan] I’ll be happy to help you out if you’re interested in knowing more about your past.

[Dan Heng] Thank you.

[Dan Heng] I have weird flashes of memories sometimes, but I was never able to verify them.

[Dan Heng] Did we ever meet up in real life?

[Jing Yuan] We did. We lived in the same city at that point in time.

[Jing Yuan] It’s a funny story actually.

[Jing Yuan] My mother had just died of a heart attack.

[Dan Heng] That doesn’t sound like a funny story.

[Jing Yuan] I sent her to the hospital but I didn’t know what else to do after that, so I texted the group chat.

[Jing Yuan] You and Ren came down to help me.

[Jing Yuan] Ren’s another member of the group chat. You and him attended the same college together.

[Jing Yuan] I even stayed over at your house for a few days before my aunt could drive down and pick me up.

[Dan Heng] Oh, I see.

[Jing Yuan] Thank you very much. I don’t think I ever thanked you enough.

[Dan Heng] I don’t remember doing any of that.

[Jing Yuan] That doesn’t change the fact that you did it.

Private Message: Foxian and Jing Yuan

[Jing Yuan] You're never going to believe this.

[Foxian] i always have a bad feeling when you text me that

[Jing Yuan] I met Feng.

[Foxian] HOW DO YOU KEEP DOING THAT

[Jing Yuan] You know The Astral Express?

[Foxian] no

[Jing Yuan] It's the name of a series of paintings surrounding the themes of exploration in deep space by the artist Joachim Nokianvirtanen. True to its theme, it's currently a traveling exhibit touring the world before it returns to its home museum in St. Freya.

[Foxian] uh huh

[Jing Yuan] Feng is part of the traveling art curation team.

[Foxian] you are a stalker

[Foxian] lose my number

[Jing Yuan] I already have your address.

[Foxian] i'm calling the police

[Jing Yuan] Ring Ring

[Foxian] yes hi i have a stalker

[Jing Yuan] I'm in your closet.

[Foxian] come out then

[Jing Yuan] I like men.

[Foxian] love wins

Private Message: Ren and Jing Yuan

[Jing Yuan] I know I never asked about you and Feng…

[Jing Yuan] But what happened between you two?

[Ren] Oh, you’re finally curious enough to ask

[Jing Yuan] Were you waiting for me to?

[Ren] I figured you’d have found a way to get answers on your own.

[Jing Yuan] I considered that, to be honest.

[Jing Yuan] But I wanted to respect both of your privacies.

[Ren] Fine.

[Ren] So we got into a car accident.

[Ren] You know I had to drop out.

[Ren] Feng was still in a coma then.

[Ren] I had a lot of things to do. I had to move out of the dorm and find a new place, apply for disability, appeal for my visa, go for a second surgery.

[Ren] By the time I could visit again.

[Ren] Feng was gone.

[Ren] Doctors said he’d just woken up and left.

[Ren] Never contacted me or anything.

[Ren] Never replied to any of my messages.

[Ren] His phone was wrecked so maybe he got a new one or something and lost all my contact details.

[Ren] I tried going to his classes.

[Ren} Nothing.

[Jing Yuan] Oh…

[Ren] Ran into him a few years ago actually.

[Jing Yuan] What happened?

[Ren] Pretended like I never existed.

[Ren] I don’t want to talk about it.

[Jing Yuan] Yingxing…

[Jing Yuan] Can we meet up?

[Ren] You don’t need to comfort me or anything like that.

[Ren] It’s been years.

[Ren] He’s obviously gotten over me.

[Ren] So I’ve gotten over him too.

[Jing Yuan] Why don’t I pick you up at 7 for dinner.

[Jing Yuan] I’ll ask Qingzu or Fu Xuan if they're free to watch Yanqing for me today.

[Ren] Fine, you persistent little brat

[Ren] I bet they're so sick of you.

[Jing Yuan] Haha, they are.

[Jing Yuan] Anyways, see you later.

[Ren] You too

Private Message: Dan Heng and Jing Yuan

[Jing Yuan] Hey, Dan Heng!

[Jing Yuan] How have you been doing?

[Dan Heng] I’ve been fine, thank you.

[Jing Yuan] Can I ask you a question?

[Dan Heng] Sure.

[Jing Yuan] Do you remember anything about Ren?

[Dan Heng] The guy you said was my college classmate?

[Jing Yuan] You were in two different majors so I’m not sure if you two ever took a class together.

[Jing Yuan] But yes, him.

[Dan Heng] What about him?

[Jing Yuan] I wasn’t entirely truthful when I called him just your college friend.

[Jing Yuan] He was your boyfriend.

[Dan Heng] …Oh.

[Jing Yuan] Did you ever go to one of Kafka’s violin concerts and have a random man with dark hair yell at you?

[Dan Heng] I did…

[Dan Heng] Was that?

[Jing Yuan] That was him.

[Dan Heng] I remember that man. He was very upset when I said I didn’t know him.

[Dan Heng] Are you in contact with him?

[Jing Yuan] I am.

[Dan Heng] Can you help me apologize to him?

[Jing Yuan] You could do it yourself.

[Dan Heng] I don’t know.

[Dan Heng] I don’t think that’d be a good idea.

[Jing Yuan] It’s alright. I’ll pass the message.

[Dan Heng] Thank you.

Private Message: Ren and Jing Yuan

[Ren] About what you said

[Ren] About Dan Heng

[Jing Yuan] Do you want proof?

[Ren] No, I trust you

[Ren] It’s just…

[Ren] It's fine

[Ren] I'm over him

[Jing Yuan] Really?

[Ren] It's been years

[Ren] And it's not his fault

[Ren] I guess….

[Ren] It makes me feel better to know

[Ren] That he doesn't hate me

[Jing Yuan] Why do you think he would hate you?

[Ren] I don't know

[Ren] But when he never spoke to me again I thought he did

[Jing Yuan] I'm sorry.

[Ren] And I realize I did the same thing to you too

[Jing Yuan] I don't hate you.

[Jing Yuan] I'm glad we met again.

[Ren] Jing Yuan

[Ren] I

[Ren] Thanks for listening to me

[Jing Yuan] Always.

Notes:

Shoutout to ao3 user magiclettuce for being the first person to say the words "museum curator" in my comments!
And shoutout to... everybody who correctly guessed that Dan Heng was going to have amnesia... which was pretty much all of you!
You know, I was torn between this option, or for Dan Heng to be Dan Feng's younger brother (so having DF die in that accident, and for the team to run into DH later in life and adopt him into the friend group). I went with the amnesia route in the end, but baby brother DH has it's charms.
I figured, since Welt is canonically an animator... he might as well (almost) reprise his job in this AU.
Fun easter eggs for our Honkai Impact fans out here: Joachim Nokianvirtanen is Welt's real name and St. Freya is the institution he was a part of in HI3!

Chapter 7 Notes:

Chatfic commentary #6: what I like about chatfics. I've spent the last few sections being petty, and I still have a few criticisms to share, but since we have a few chatfic authors in the audience, I'd like to share some things I like about chatfics!
I like the relatively low barrier to entry for writing chatfics. I think it's a fairly simple writing format and style for writers to experiment with character dialogue and interactions without having to write too much prose. You can think of a funny premise for a few characters interacting and you jump straight into it incorrect-quotes style without needing to write too much set-up or worldbuilding, and I enjoy seeing the creativity and fun blooming from a chatfic that would otherwise have been intimidating to get into in a traditional prose fic.
And not everything demands a plot! I know one of the initial petty criticisms was that chatfics often don't have a central plot to anchor the fic in... but there's nothing wrong with an episodic format! Plenty of wonderful creative art like sitcoms, cartoons etc. have episodes with self-containing storylines that may have a vague outline through the series at best, but are equally enjoyable if you catch any single episodes. Long chatfics being like that is also fun because sometimes I just pick a random chapter and read it. I don't need to have read any of the previous chapters to understand the jokes for the current one.
I hope that everyone knows that despite my petty commentary I really love chatfics! I read them all the time. My favorite thing about chatfics is watching an initially unsure chatfic develop its own unique voice and message. I'm always delighted to see updates where the author slowly gets more confident in their character dynamics and plot crafting and they inevitably announce, oops guys this has a plot now! Yes! I love that!
Imo it's always more important to encourage novelty and creativity than to criticize. Fanfiction is not a product that demands improvement, it's an art medium for fun and expression, and chatfics are the epitome of them! We have authors writing chatfics just to have fun interactions with their characters, others who try chatfics to test the limits of the medium. There's space for everyone here.
Today's chatfic recommendation is... all! Spread your wings. Read a chatfic you think you wouldn't like and see how it makes you feel. The best fics are the ones where you can tell the author is having tons of fun writing it. The characters' jokes are earnest, their enthusiasm is charming. Leave a nice comment!
(Do NOT leave criticism, even if they ask for it! No one is really asking for it if they say so in a public space, they're just trying to protect themselves from insults hoping you'll be nice if you choose to leave negative feedback.) Don't intimidate writers into being scared or upset about sharing their work. If you think they're not doing a good job... are YOU doing better? Remember that if you want to read good quality fics, you need to welcome beginners into your space, and the only way people get better at writing is writing more.

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

Private Message: Foxian and Jing Yuan

[Jing Yuan] I have a great idea.

[Foxian] not another one

[Jing Yuan] Come on, it’d be good this time.

(Call lasted 00:23:18)

[Foxian] i don’t think that's a great idea

[Jing Yuan] I want what’s best for them…

[Foxian] thats so dad energy of you to say

[Jing Yuan] Well, I am one…

Private Message: Foxian and JL

[Foxian] i hate jing yuan

[JL] same

[JL] wait y

Private Message: Jing Yuan and WS

[WS] not cool old man

[Jing Yuan] Hello? Who is this?

[WS] rnt u some genius detective

[WS] figure it out urself

[Jing Yuan] Silver Wolf?

[WS] wait wtf

[WS] ure not supposed to actually figure me out

[Jing Yuan] Can I save this number?

[WS] ugh whatev i guess

[Jing Yuan] What is this about?

[WS] ugh u ruined my mysterious threatening presentation

[WS] 4 legal reasons not act a threat

[Jing Yuan] Were you attempting to simulate an anonymous hate comment?

[WS] sounds uncool when u say it

[WS] whatev

[WS] anywy

[WS] u have 2 make it up 2 ren

[WS] hes like super bummed

[Jing Yuan] I know I blindsided him by tricking him into that date.

[Jing Yuan] But he and Dan Heng used to have something special.

[Jing Yuan] I can’t bear to see all those years gone just because of an unfortunate circumstance and a misunderstanding.

[Jing Yuan] I’ve seen a lot of lives taken too early in my line of work. I don’t want people to die with regrets.

[WS] dude u r such a bummer

[WS] u sound like a sad old man

[Jing Yuan] That’s what I am, unfortunately.

[WS] sigh

[WS] whatev

[Jing Yuan] You’re right. I deceived him like that.

[Jing Yuan] Did he leave?

[WS] he stayed cuz he doesn’t wanna disappoint u

[Jing Yuan] I’ll apologize to him.

[WS] ugh u dun get it

[Jing Yuan] What’s wrong?

[WS] nvm

Private Message: Ren and Jing Yuan

[Ren] So…

[Ren] I stayed with Dan Heng at that restaurant you tricked us into going to.

[Jing Yuan] I’m really sorry about that.

[Ren] Whatever

[Jing Yuan] Your friend already scolded me about it.

[Ren] Wtf

[Ren] Who

[Jing Yuan] Silver wolf.

[Ren] What did she say?

[Jing Yuan] That you were upset because I deceived you.

[Ren] Anything else?

[Jing Yuan] You’ll be happy to know she was protective and unforthcoming about your personal worries.

[Ren] Right

[Ren] That’s good

[Jing Yuan] Is there something I should know?

[Ren] Not really

[Jing Yuan] How did it go?

[Ren] Fine

[Ren] He’s

[Ren] Different

[Ren] I guess

[Ren] We’re going out again next week

[Jing Yuan] Nice!

[Ren] Not like on an actual date or anything

[Ren] Just to catch up

[Jing Yuan] That sounds good either way!

[Ren] Yeah I guess

Private Message: Dan Heng and Jing Yuan

[Dan Heng] Back.

[Jing Yuan] Did it go well?

[Dan Heng] He’s…

[Dan Heng] Nice.

[Dan Heng] It was a little awkward.

[Dan Heng] Probably because we both prepared ourselves to meet you.

[Jing Yuan] Sorry…

[Dan Heng] We talked.

[Jing Yuan] Are you guys going out again?

[Dan Heng] Well…

[Dan Heng] Just coffee.

[Dan Heng] Not like a real date or anything.

[Jing Yuan] Well catching up as friends could be fun!

Private Message: Dan Heng and Ren

[Ren] Listen

[Ren] I know we met just because of Jing Yuan

[Ren] You don't have to feel obligated to talk to me

[Dan Heng] I did originally, yes.

[Dan Heng] I'm really sorry, I don't remember anything about our past.

[Dan Heng] But you seem like a nice person I could be friends with again.

[Ren] Alright

[Ren] We can be friends

[Ren] But I'm not really looking for a relationship right now

[Dan Heng] It's alright, neither am I, really.

Private Message: Foxian and Jing Yuan

[Foxian] do you feel proud of yourself

[Jing Yuan] Of course!

[Jing Yuan] It worked, didn't it?

[Foxian] is this what you want?

[Foxian] is this what they want?

[Jing Yuan] What I want is for them to be happy.

[Jing Yuan] I love them both.

[Jing Yuan] And I know all about missed opportunities and lives cut too short.

[Jing Yuan] I don't want them to regret anything.

[Foxian] ugh i can't even be mad at you

[Foxian] i love you jing yuan

[Foxian] but sometimes

[Foxian] i wonder how you're supposed to be this world renowned forensic specialist

[Foxian] if you are so fkin stupid

Private Message: Dan Heng and Ren

[Ren] You didn't finish your story

[Dan Heng] Right, where was I?

[Dan Heng] Remember you can't share details of any ongoing investigation.

[Ren] I'm not stupid

[Ren] You were telling me about the last round of interrogations.

[Dan Heng] Right.

[Dan Heng] March, Stelle and I were in the pantry when we heard a commotion outside.

[Dan Heng] Tensions have been high for a while ever since the rumor went around that Jing Yuan never left a crime unsolved.

[Ren] Is he really that good?

[Dan Heng] Allegedly?

[Dan Heng] We were making bets on who the culprit might be based on their reactions when Jing Yuan spoke to them.

[Ren] Did you win

[Dan Heng] No, Himeko did.

[Dan Heng] Anyways, we rushed out of the pantry. March brought her camera because, like I said, tensions were high. This wouldn't have been the first fight that broke out already because of accusations.

[Ren] Woah

[Ren] The museum crowd is intense

[Dan Heng] Everyone's passionate about their work there. An interruption like this put a lot of things behind schedule.

[Ren] You mean a murder

[Dan Heng] Yeah.

[Dan Heng] So, we rushed out, and it was none other than Jing Yuan in the middle of the commotion. One of the directors was yelling at him for disrupting their entire business.

[Ren] His employee is dead!!!

[Dan Heng] Right. No one was on his side.

[Dan Heng] We missed the first part of the argument.

[Dan Heng] But then Jing Yuan says, and I quote, "you're worth less than the weeds in my garden."

[Ren] Holy shit

[Dan Heng] And then the director tries to throw a punch.

[Ren] Oh my god

[Dan Heng] But Jing Yuan catches his fist mid-air.

[Dan Heng] And with a single hand he just twists the man's arm behind his back and shoves him up against the wall.

[Ren] That sounds hot

[Dan Heng] It was incredibly hot.

[Dan Heng] March took many pictures.

[Ren] Send

[Dan Heng] Unfortunately, the team made her delete it all.

[Ren] FUCK

[Dan Heng] But she managed to recover one.

[Ren] Why are you edging me like this

[Dan Heng] (Image Attachment: hoe my god.jpg)

[Dan Heng] I did not name the file.

[Ren] This is some HD 4K shit

[Ren] Compliments to the photographer and the subject

[Dan Heng] I'll thank March and Director Lawson for you

[Ren] Fuck off

Notes:

Fun fact: I think I've written (at least) two plot holes into this fic so far (might be more, but I myself only noticed two). I didn't do them on purpose or anything, I realized them after I published them, but no one has commented on them yet so... I'll be interested to know if anyone has noticed any!

Chapter 8 Notes:

Pretty busy day at work today so I didn't manage to type out my commentary piece during my break (which is what I've been doing for the past few days). Tell me something cool in the comments.

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

Group Chat: Xianzhou Besties Reunited!!!

([Jing Yuan] added [Dan Heng])

[Foxian] hi!!!

[Foxian] dan heng, welcome!!!

[Dan Heng] Hi, everyone.

[Dan Heng] Thanks for letting me join.

[Foxian] ofc!!!

[JL] who

[JL] oh

[JL] hey or whatever

[Dan Heng] Hello.

[JL] stop being weird

[JL] i ghosted everyone first

[Dan Heng] Did you?

[Foxian] she did!

[Jing Yuan] She did.

[Jing Yuan] And look where she is now.

[Jing Yuan] Yanqing’s homeroom teacher.

[JL] die

[Dan Heng] Yanqing? That’s Jing Yuan’s son, right?

[Jing Yuan] Yep!

[Foxian] the xianzhou reunited's baby boy

[Dan Heng] Who is his other parent?

[Dan Heng] Sorry if that’s a sensitive question.

[Jing Yuan] Haha, Yanqing is adopted.

[JL] what

[JL] @Ren

[Ren] ?

[Ren] In a meeting

[Ren] What

[Ren] YANQING IS ADOPTED?!

[Foxian] LMAO

[Dan Heng] You didn’t know?

[JL] no

[JL] @Jing Yuan

[JL] explain

[Jing Yuan] Lmao, you never asked.

[Jing Yuan] His parents were victims in one of my cases.

[Jing Yuan] I was temporarily taking care of him at the time.

[Jing Yuan] And I got attached, I suppose.

[JL] bitch i thought u had a one night stand n became a teen dad

[Jing Yuan] I would have been 21 if I had him…

[Jing Yuan] I don’t think that qualifies as a teen parent…

[Ren] oh my god

Private Message: JL and Ren

[JL] fkin idiot

[Ren] ???

[Ren] YOU DIDN'T KNOW EITHER

[Ren] YOU’RE HIS TEACHER

[JL] well ure tryna get into jy’s pants

[JL] shldnt this have come up already in ur terrible flirting

[Ren] Shut up

Private Message: Dan Heng and Foxian

[Dan Heng] Hi, Baiheng.

[Dan Heng] Hope I’m not intruding.

[Foxian] never

[Foxian] what’s up?

[Dan Heng] I have a question about Jing Yuan.

[Foxian] yea he's single

[Dan Heng] Oh.

[Dan Heng] I was going to ask about Yingxing and Jing Yuan, actually.

[Foxian] oh???

[Dan Heng] They were…

[Dan Heng] How were they in the past?

[Foxian] if you're asking if they were ever interested in each other 10 years ago…

[Foxian] well jing yuan was still a high school student when he met us

[Foxian] and you and ren were in college

[Foxian] as far as i know jing yuan did have crushes on both of you back then

[Foxian] but that makes sense since he was quite attached to you two

[Foxian] and if you two ever felt any way towards him then i can only commend your morals and common sense for never acting on it

[Foxian] but you and yingxing got together soon after you met so i can assume jing yuan was nowhere on your minds

[Dan Heng] I see…

[Dan Heng] How old was he?

[Foxian] not that much younger than us tbh

[Foxian] he's 27 now

[Foxian] so when you met he was 17

[Dan Heng] I know Jing Yuan and Yingxing fell out of contact for a while…

[Dan Heng] When did they meet again?

[Foxian] lmao you'll never believe this

[Foxian] earlier this year

[Dan Heng] That recent?

[Foxian] you'd wouldn't have guessed, right?

[Dan Heng] They seem to be good friends.

[Dan Heng] Yingxing goes over a lot.

[Foxian] well, that’s mostly yanqing’s fault

[Foxian] he’s obsessed with yingxing’s swords

[Foxian] yingxing’s been guiding yanqing on how to make his own

[Dan Heng] Swords?

[Foxian] yingxing used to be an art major

[Foxian] he was planning an exhibit about the xianzhou legends and he was creating a series of weapon designs for the high cloud quintet

[Foxian] before he lost contact with jing yuan, he packed up and shipped all his works over to jing yuan’s house. he never gave an explanation for it, but i imagine he could no longer bear to look at them.

[Dan Heng] I see…

[Dan Heng] Thank you for sharing.

[Foxian] you could ask them yourselves

[Dan Heng] I don’t know.

[Dan Heng] I feel like I’m intruding.

[Dan Heng] I don’t share the context or fondness for these memories that you all do.

[Foxian] dan heng…

[Foxian] are we making you feel unwelcome?

[Dan Heng] It’s not that.

[Dan Heng] I’m very happy that you are all willing to share your lives with me.

[Dan Heng] I just don’t think I can be who you all expect me to be.

[Dan Heng] I didn’t mean to dump that on you.

[Foxian] we’re not expecting anything of you, dan heng

[Foxian] it’s been a whole decade since we’ve met

[Foxian] we’ve all changed as people

[Foxian] jingliu and yingxing aren’t the exact same people from 10 years ago either

[Foxian] and even if you remembered any of us from the past, we wouldn’t be the same either

[Foxian] we invited you here because we want to share our new lives with you

[Dan Heng] Thank you.

[Foxian] is jing yuan being too pushy?

[Foxian] i will speak to him

[Dan Heng] It’s not that…

[Dan Heng] It’s just…

[Dan Heng] He did set me and Yingxing up on a date… and I think he hopes we’ll be able to work it out.

[Foxian] sigh…

[Foxian] he has good intentions… but he can’t see past his tunnel vision

[Dan Heng] I think he’s a little lonely.

[Dan Heng] Don’t you think Jing Yuan and Yingxing would look good together?

[Foxian] oh, dan heng…

[Foxian] they would, but…

[Dan Heng] I know Yingxing likes Jing Yuan a lot.

[Dan Heng] We spent our last date just talking about him.

[Dan Heng] Weird, right?

[Dan Heng] But I didn’t mind.

[Dan Heng] It’s good to see him happy.

[Dan Heng] Jing Yuan has also been very nice to me. I want him to be happy too.

[Foxian] oh…

[Foxian] sigh…

[Foxian] what am i going to do with you boys?

Private Message: Dan Heng and Jing Yuan

[Dan Heng] Can we talk?

[Dan Heng] About Ren.

[Jing Yuan] What is it?

[Dan Heng] Look.

[Dan Heng] You know we've been spending some time together.

[Dan Heng] He'll probably hate me for doing this.

[Dan Heng] But I like you both and I want the best for the two of you.

[Dan Heng] And like you always say, we should live without regrets.

[Jing Yuan] What is this about?

[Dan Heng] Jing Yuan, Yingxing likes you a lot.

[Dan Heng] And I think you like him too.

[Dan Heng] Am I right?

[Jing Yuan] What about you?

[Dan Heng] What's wrong with you?

[Dan Heng] Go and talk to him.

[Dan Heng] Cloudford 7pm tonight

[Jing Yuan] Are you sure?

[Dan Heng] I'll block you if you ask me that again.

Private Message: Dan Heng and Ren

[Ren] I wish you guys would really stop switching places with each other

[Ren] Jing Yuan's schemes are a bad influence on you

[Ren] It's not good for my heart

[Ren] Thank you

[Dan Heng] You're welcome.

Notes:

Hehe

Chapter 9 Notes:

Thanks for the fun facts everybody, I love them
Chatfic commentary #7!
To kick us off let me direct you to a lovely comment by Ikeru in chapter 8: they talk about so many things I agree with, such as the novelty of chatfic formats, especially those that can simulate platform functions for some really fun character interactions, like direct-replying in a group chat, multiple threads, etc. Some of my favorite chatfics/social media fics use work skins to show messaging/discord/twitter/newspaper layouts, like the fics I recommended in chapters 4 and 6. Imo these kinds of fun inclusions that still fit the medium's constraints can greatly elevate the fic's storytelling and immersion!
But of course, the issue with things like this is... accessibility on both the writer's and the reader's parts.
You may have noticed I didn't use any work skins in this fic. Simple reason is that I don't know how to code. Yes, I am aware that there are available work skins out there that people have made and shared, but you do still need some level of technological literacy to make it work, and I don't feel confident in being able to use them. Nor do I have the time, really. I'm not sure how long it takes, but I post these fics at the end of the work day and then I go to sleep.
On the reader's part, it runs the risk of being inaccessible to audiences who can't read non-standard fic formats either. Disclaimer for my lack of tech know-how (I have limited coding knowledge, I only took one basic course back in high school, that was a decade ago.)
For example, the use of work skins. Screen readers (that read html) are still able to read the fic when a workskin is being used, because the workskin often changes how the words are displayed (eg. the color and font of the words would be in CSS) but not the words themselves (html). However, if you're using a workskin as content in itself (ie. the workskin format is a twitter layout, telling the visual audience that these are tweets, but you don't actually say that within the words of the tweet itself, then it can be lost in translation.
The ao3 faq states that downloaded works don't retain their work skins either, so if you're looking to download your favorite chatfic, you should check to see how it looks.
And even if you try to stick to pure html (without a work skin at all), your work wouldn't be in full sentences and it may be hard to remember who is saying what if you can't go continuously back and forth (aka, like this fic).
If you add something like timestamps to your messages, it's usually the kind of thing that a visual reader can skim through or easily put at the side of their mind. However, how will it sound with a screen reader? Will the entire string of numbers and dates just be continuously narrated?
If the fic has a long string of nicknames and the author expects a visual reader to be able to continuously refer to the legend to refer to who's saying what, it may hard for someone who can't switch between tabs/scroll back and forth as easily. It may not just be a visual impairment, it may be a technological issue, a device incompatibility, etc. But either ways, it definitely restricts your audience.
I downloaded the chrome screen reader extension to try to read some of the fics I recommended, and they were completely incomprehensible, lmao. You can simulate the experience by just read the string of words continuously. Like the start of this chapter, it'd just sound like "private message dan heng and jing yuan jing yuan i never thanked you properly." Like that's just gibberish.
Granted, it might be because I'm not used to screen readers, but the format definitely doesn't feel very friendly to audiences/technology that cannot parse/represent the visual platform gimmicks.
Of course, the point of this commentary is not to discourage people from writing chatfics. I don't rely on any accessibility devices to read fics, so I don't have the understanding to give advice on what you can do to make your fics more accessible.
Accessibility is also often a systematic issue that can't be tackled solely via individual responsibility. For example, I try to use simple formats for my fics and avoid using interactive functions that would require a reader to go back and forth continuously. It's out of my hands if a device can't display the fic.
Of course, I encourage everyone to think about what they read or write. Even if you can't actively change a thing right now, it's always good to just consider the different layers of a routine you take for granted, and how people differently than you interact with the world, even in something as simple as a chatfic.
I hope this isn't too preachy again lmao

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

Private Message: Dan Heng and Jing Yuan

[Jing Yuan] I never thanked you properly.

[Jing Yuan] Shall we meet?

[Dan Heng] Sure.

[Jing Yuan] I don't think I've introduced you to Yanqing yet.

[Jing Yuan] Would you like to meet him?

[Dan Heng] That sounds lovely.

Private Message: Jing Yuan and WS

[WS] old man

[WS] glad u finally got ur head out of ur ass

[Jing Yuan] Haha, thank you.

[WS] ren moping was not fun

[WS] now that ure tgt i can tell u

[WS] cant believe u tried to set him up with dh

[WS] not cool

[WS] he was so excited 2 go on a date w u

[WS] kafka dressed him up all pretty

[Jing Yuan] Oh.

[Jing Yuan] That was my mistake.

[WS] yeaaaa

[WS] who gets back tgt w their ex these days

[WS] thats so lame

[WS] also can u fk him less hard pls

[WS] sam isnt here tdy and ren is supposed 2 b our heavy lifter but now hes useless

[Jing Yuan] Haha, I'll keep that in mind next time.

Private Message: March7th and Jing Yuan

[March7th] yoooo

[Jing Yuan] Hello, March.

[March7th] The express is having a celebratory dinner!

[March7th] Celebrating the end of the case

[March7th] Not the dead person

[March7th] Since you're Dan Heng's friend, you should come!

[Jing Yuan] Thank you for the invitation, that sounds wonderful.

[Jing Yuan] Will I be intruding on your private celebration?

[March7th] Nonsense!!!

[March7th] We're getting the others too

[March7th] Yukong already said yes!!!

[March7th] she and Welt are besties can you believe it

[March7th] Qingque and Sushang r coming too!!!

[Jing Yuan] That sounds fun. I'll certainly make time.

Private Message: Dan Heng and Jing Yuan

[Dan Heng] Hey, the Express crew is having a celebratory meal for the end of that whole fiscao. As the man of the hour, would you like to join us?

[Jing Yuan] Haha, March has already extended an invitation.

[Jing Yuan] I'd love to.

[Dan Heng] Oh.

[Dan Heng] I told her I'd invite you.

[Jing Yuan] She seems excited, it's cute.

[Jing Yuan] She reminds me of Yanqing.

[Dan Heng] Haha, she does.

Private Message: Dan Heng and Jing Yuan

[Dan Heng] Thanks for dropping me off.

[Dan Heng] Hope you get home safe.

[Jing Yuan] Thank you, you're very considerate.

[Dan Heng] You too.

[Dan Heng] How have you and Yingxing been?

[Jing Yuan] Oh, it's been wonderful.

[Dan Heng] That's great. I'm happy for the both of you.

Private Message: Dan Heng and Ren

[Ren] Hey

[Dan Heng] Hi.

[Ren] We haven't caught up in a while

[Ren] Coffee?

[Dan Heng] I don't think that's a good idea.

[Ren] Why not?

[Ren] Is this about Jing Yuan?

[Dan Heng] Of course not.

[Ren] We're still friends, aren't we?

[Dan Heng] Of course we are.

[Dan Heng] I just don't want him to misunderstand.

[Ren] Do you think he's that sort of person?

[Dan Heng] Of course not.

[Dan Heng] I'm sorry.

[Dan Heng] I'll be down to meet up.

[Ren] Nevermind

[Ren] You clearly don't want to

[Dan Heng] That's not true.

Private Message: Dan Heng and Ren

[Dan Heng] I lied. I'm sorry.

[Dan Heng] It is about Jing Yuan.

[Dan Heng] You and I did go on a few dates so I didn't want us meeting to be awkward.

[Ren] Why did you set us up in the first place?

[Dan Heng] You obviously liked him.

[Dan Heng] And you two have history together.

[Ren] So did we.

[Dan Heng] We shouldn't be talking about this.

[Ren] Why not?

[Ren] Are you running away again?

[Dan Heng] I don't know what you mean.

[Ren] Nevermind

[Ren] Whatever

[Dan Heng] I'm sorry, I don't understand.

[Dan Heng] If this is about me leaving you after the accident, I didn't know who you were.

[Ren] Shut up

[Dan Heng] I was scared too. I woke up alone without any place or direction in the world.

[Dan Heng] I don't think it's fair to expect the same things from me now as the Dan Heng who you once knew.

[Dan Heng] I'm very happy you guys are willing to accept me, but I can't be that person for you.

[Dan Heng] If there's anything I can do within my power, I would.

[Ren] All I want is for you to face your past

[Ren] It's a part of you, even if you don't remember it

[Ren] You were driving that night

[Ren] Do you remember?

[Dan Heng] No, I'm sorry.

[Ren] What do you feel about me now?

[Dan Heng] I can't answer that.

[Ren] We need to talk

[Ren] Please

Private Message: Jing Yuan and Ren

[Ren] Can I come over tonight?

[Ren] Can someone take Yanqing tonight

[Jing Yuan] I can ask Fu Xuan or Qingzu.

[Jing Yuan] What's wrong?

[Ren] Tell you in a bit

Private Message: Dan Heng and Ren

[Dan Heng] Ok.

[Dan Heng] You’re right. We should talk.

[Dan Heng] When and where?

Notes:

In the spirit of today's front notes, especially since there's been a lot of things happening in the past few chapters so far, let me give a brief run-down of the acts so we're on the same page:
Chapter 6
Jing Yuan meets Dan Heng for the first time at his work. It's implied that there was a case of mistaken identity, and that Dan Heng did something to Jing Yuan that makes him apologize afterwards. I'm not going to expand on it, that's up to your interpretation! (Some people have suggested he threw something/yelled at Jing Yuan).
Jing Yuan texts Baiheng.
Afterwards, Jing Yuan texts Yingxing to meet for dinner, during which time he explains in person that he has met Dan Heng, who had amnesia. This conversation was taken offscreen because Jing Yuan felt it was too important to say over text.
Then Jing Yuan texts Dan Heng again to tell him who Ren really is, and then finally texts Yingxing one last time as the chapter closes.
Chapter 7
Jing Yuan and Baiheng call, during which time Jing Yuan explains his plan to set Yingxing and Dan Heng up. Baiheng calls him stupid. It's implied that Jing Yuan's "plan" was to orchestrate a meeting where both Dan Heng and Yingxing assumed they would be meeting him, but ended up meeting each other.
Offscreen during the date, Yingxing texts Silver Wolf for help (but, as SW says to JY, he ends up staying anyways). Onscreen, Silver Wolf then texts Jing Yuan to scold him.
After that date, both Dan Heng and Yingxing text Jing Yuan to report on their progress, and then text each other to confirm that they're "hanging out as friends." And then Jing Yuan and Baiheng talk, where Baiheng rightfully calls him an idiot again.
Offscreen, Dan Heng and Yingxing meet up at least one other time, where Dan Heng tells a story about Jing Yuan at work. They part ways before Dan Heng finishes the tale, so Yingxing texts him onscreen for the rest of it.
Chapter 8
Dan Heng joins the new Xianzhou group (this new Xianzhou Besties Reunited chat is just the five of them, no outsiders if you don't count Yanqing on Jing Yuan's phone).
After Dan Heng texts Baiheng to confirm that Yingxing and Jing Yuan do in fact like each other, he texts Jing Yuan and tells him to use his brain for once. Dan Heng had a date/meeting with Yingxing that night (the text "Cloudford 7pm tonight") but he makes Jing Yuan switch places with him.
Offscreen, we can assume Jing Yuan and Yingxing have a good time, because afterwards Yingxing texts Dan Heng to thank him.
Chapter 9
This is today's chapter, I'm not going to tell you guys right away!

Chapter 10 Notes:

I... kind of ran out of things to say for chatfics already LOL. A good day for people sick of the extended authors notes.
Story Notes:
Chapter 9
Ren and Jing Yuan have started going out as of Chapter 8.
Afterwards, Jing Yuan meets up with Dan Heng (and introduces Yanqing to him).
Some time passes and the Museum case officially closes. Jing Yuan gets invited (by both March and Dan Heng) to the Astral Express's end-of-murder-investigation celebration. Jing Yuan then drives Dan Heng home.
Some time passes, Ren and Dan Heng are chatting and Ren asks if they can meet up to catch up.
After Dan Heng declines, Ren goes over to Jing Yuan's place to have an offscreen conversation with him (the contents of which you'll learn more about this chapter).
And then Dan Heng changes his mind and agrees to meet up with Ren.

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

Private Message: Jing Yuan and Ren

[Ren] Going to meet Dan Heng

[Jing Yuan] Call me if you need me.

Private Message: Dan Heng and Ren

[Dan Heng] I'm really sorry.

[Dan Heng] I shouldn't have done that.

[Ren] Why did you run?

[Dan Heng] I overstepped.

[Ren] Dan Heng, will you hear me out?

[Ren] I like you

[Ren] I've missed you, but

[Ren] I like you now too

[Dan Heng] You can't.

[Dan Heng] I don't remember anything we used to do.

[Dan Heng] The memories you thought you shared with me are with a stranger.

[Dan Heng] I'm sorry.

[Dan Heng] I don't want to intrude.

[Ren] Are you serious right now?

[Ren] You told Jing Yuan you don't want us to live without regrets.

[Ren] What about yourself?

[Dan Heng] I'm sorry.

[Dan Heng] I don't understand what you want me to do.

[Ren] Come talk to me dammit

[Dan Heng] I don't think that's a good idea.

[Dan Heng] You're with Jing Yuan.

[Ren] With Jing Yuan

[Ren] All 3 of us

[Dan Heng] I don't understand.

[Ren] Come over to Jing Yuan's.

[Ren] Tonight?

[Dan Heng] Can't. Meeting.

[Ren] Tomorrow night then

[Ren] Don't run away again

[Dan Heng] I'm sorry.

[Ren] If you were sorry you would come

Private Message: Jing Yuan and Ren

(Call lasted 00:14:30)

Private Message: Dan Heng and Jing Yuan

[Dan Heng] Jing Yuan?

[Jing Yuan] I know.

[Jing Yuan] See you tomorrow.

[Jing Yuan] It's nothing bad, I promise.

[Dan Heng] I'm sorry.

[Dan Heng] After everything you've done for me.

[Dan Heng] To open up your friendship and help me understand my past.

[Dan Heng] I never meant to come between you and Yingxing.

[Jing Yuan] I'm not mad.

[Dan Heng] You should be.

[Jing Yuan] I had known Yingxing had liked you back for a while.

[Dan Heng] He liked you first.

[Jing Yuan] Well, you know that's objectively untrue.

[Jing Yuan] But the truth is that we haven't been entirely honest with you either, alright?

[Jing Yuan] I told him it was okay if he wanted to kiss you.

[Dan Heng] I don't understand.

[Jing Yuan] I apologize, we should have talked to you first.

[Jing Yuan] I understand if you feel like I keep deceiving you.

[Dan Heng] You wanted Yingxing to cheat on you with me?

[Jing Yuan] Is it cheating if I've endorsed it?

[Dan Heng] Like an open relationship?

[Jing Yuan] I was thinking more of a closed relationship, just with 3 people.

[Dan Heng] I know what polyamory is.

[Dan Heng] You like me?

[Jing Yuan] Of course I do.

[Dan Heng] In that way?

[Jing Yuan] Well, less than Yingxing does.

[Jing Yuan] But you are very cute, Dan Heng.

[Jing Yuan] It's okay if you don't feel that way. You hardly know me, after all.

[Jing Yuan] But I would like to talk more about it.

[Jing Yuan] Are you okay to come over tomorrow?

[Jing Yuan] I'm sending Yanqing over to Jingliu's.

[Dan Heng] Ok.

[Jing Yuan] Wear something nice ;)

[Jing Yuan] Yingxing likes that black top of yours.

[Dan Heng] Ok.

[Dan Heng] What do you like?

[Jing Yuan] That same top with 3 less buttons.

Private Message: March7th and Jing Yuan

[March7th] you are SUCHHHH a menace

[Jing Yuan] Hello, March.

[Jing Yuan] Tell Dan Heng not to be nervous.

[March7th] he thinks u 2 are going to EAT him UP

[Jing Yuan] If all goes well, that's the plan.

[March7th] SCREAMING

Private Message: JL and Jing Yuan

[JL] asleep

[JL] (Image Attachment: 032749264.png)

[Jing Yuan] Thank you.

[Jing Yuan] I’ll come by tomorrow morning to pick him up.

[JL] k

Private Message: JL and Jing Yuan

[Jing Yuan] Can Dan Heng drop by to pick Yanqing up instead?

[JL] reason for absence?

[Jing Yuan] This isn’t school.

[JL] not handing a kid to someone not listed as their emergency contact

[Jing Yuan] This is embarrassing.

[Jing Yuan] Jingliu please.

[JL] no face no case

[Jing Yuan] I can’t walk.

[JL] doctor’s note?

[Jing Yuan] Please

[JL] k

[JL] lmao

[JL] telling bh

[Jing Yuan] Please

Private Message: Foxian and JL

[JL] lmao

[JL] (Image Attachment: 937294017.png)

[Foxian] LMAO

Group Chat: Divine Foresight

[Jing Yuan] Hi everyone, I can't make it to work today. Qingzu, if there's anything I can work on from home today, please email it to me.

[Yutie] Get well soon, boss!

[Qz] 👍

[Fu Xuan] Slacking off?!?!?!

[Fu Xuan] Can we steal Yanqing?

[Fu Xuan] I'm otw to work want me to pick up anything?

[Jing Yuan] It's alright, thank you.

[Jing Yuan] Yanqing spent the night away, I think he'll stay with me today.

[Fu Xuan] ?

[Fu Xuan] Was it date night yesterday?

[Fu Xuan] If you fell sick you'd pass Yanqing to me so your ailment must be non contagious.

[Fu Xuan] Did you get railed so hard you can't come in.

[Jing Yuan] I didn't agree to let you be my understudy for you to misuse your skills of deduction like this.

[Fu Xuan] LMAOOOO

[Yutie] Haha

[Qz] lol

[Qz] (Video Attachment: camera927391.mp4)

[Qz] She is laughing so hard the whole office can hear

[Yutie] Congrats boss!

[Jing Yuan] Please

[Fu Xuan] Are you sure you want Yanqing asking questions about the state you're in?

[Jing Yuan] Dan Heng has already gone to pick him up.

[Fu Xuan] THAT'S SO UNPROFESSIONAL OF YOU

[Jing Yuan] The case has already closed…

[Jing Yuan] And he's not implicated in any way…

[Fu Xuan] How far the mighty have fallen.

[Fu Xuan] Buy my silence.

[Jing Yuan] I'll treat everyone to a celebratory dinner?

[Fu Xuan] You already always do that.

[Jing Yuan] I'll let you pick the restaurant this time?

[Fu Xuan] Yessss

[Yutie] Might I make some suggestions?

[Fu Xuan] Yes come in let's blow through Jing Yuan's yearly bonus!!!

[Qz] @Jing Yuan emailed you

[Qz] @Fu Xuan @Yutie all you can eat buffet

[Fu Xuan] Obviously…

Notes:

Congrats to the boys

Chapter 11 Notes:

I have so many WIPs I want to write... (stares into hands)

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

Group Chat: The Astral Express

[March7th] HOW WAS THE SEX

[March7th] @Dan Heng

[Welt] March…

[March7th] Come on you’re curious too right Mr Yang

[Stelle] @Dan Heng

[Stelle] How’s the sex???

[Welt] Stelle…

[Dan Heng] It was great.

[March7th] Who topped???

[Dan Heng] Me.

[Stelle] HAH

[Stelle] @March7th you owe me $10

[March7th] Aww come on babe

[Stelle] Pay up

[Himeko] Oh… I see…

[March7th] shit mom’s here

[Stelle] Sorry, mom

[March7th] sorry, Himeko!!!

[Dan Heng] Sorry, Himeko

[Himeko] @Stelle I’ll transfer you later

[Stelle] Thanks

[Dan Heng] Wait, what?

[March7th] LMAO

[Welt] I’ll pretend I never read any of this...

Group Chat: Xianzhou Besties Reunited!!

[Jing Yuan] Hello

[Jing Yuan] Who is this

[JL] ?

[JL] yq?

[JL] Yanqing?

[Jing Yuan] Hello

[Jing Yuan] Yes i am yanqing

[JL] Where’s your dad?

[Jing Yuan] In his room

[Jing Yuan] With uncle yingxing

[JL] Where’s Dan Heng?

[Jing Yuan] Toilet

[Foxian] lmao

[Foxian] hi, yanqing!

[Jing Yuan] Hello auntie baiheng

[Foxian] what are you doing?

[Jing Yuan] Watching tv

[Foxian] aww what are you watching?

[Jing Yuan] Hi, Jingliu, Baiheng.

[Jing Yuan] I put some cartoons on for him, I hope it’s alright.

[Jing Yuan] Jing Yuan told me to give him his phone to play some games.

[Jing Yuan] But Yanqing came straight to the messaging app.

[Jing Yuan] Does he do this often?

[Foxian] yeah its fine

[Foxian] jing yuan has all his important stuff locked

[Foxian] yanqing likes to text people

[JL] is he rly 7

[JL] y can a 7 yr old text

[Foxian] well he is jing yuan’s kid after all

[Jing Yuan] I’ll pass the phone back to him then.

[Jing Yuan] Hello

[Foxian] hi yanqing!

[JL] Hi Yanqing

[Jing Yuan] What is your favouraite color

[Foxian] blue

[JL] Purple.

[JL] It's spelt "favourite", Yanqing.

[Jing Yuan] Ok

[Foxian] awww

Group Chat: JYDHYX

[Jing Ren] Is anyone free right now? I need someone to pick up Yanqing from school. His class ends at 1 today.

[Ren] What's up

[Ren] I'm hanging out with the band now

[Ren] I can do it if he can meet them

[Jing Yuan] Thank you so much.

[Jing Yuan] Yes, that'd be fine. I trust you'll be there.

[Ren] Of course

[Dan Heng] At work.

[Dan Heng] What happened?

[Jing Yuan] New lead on a current case.

[Jing Yuan] I can't ask my usual babysitters to step away from work now.

[Jing Yuan] This type of evidence is pretty time-sensitive.

[Dan Heng] How much extra do you pay them for babysitting…?

[Jing Yuan] Officially or unofficially?

[Jing Yuan] It's part of Qingzu's official duties since she was initially hired to be Yanqing's nanny. I pay Fu Xuan under the table.

[Dan Heng] You have the Alliance under your thumb…

[Jing Yuan] Haha.

[Jing Yuan] I'll send one of them to pick up Yanqing later.

[Ren] No problem

Group Chat: Divine Foresight

[Fu Xuan] @Jing Yuan go and fuck yourself.

[Fu Xuan] This isn't dms.

[Fu Xuan] Nevermind everyone needs to know what a menace you are

[Yutie] What happened, sis?

[Fu Xuan] You asked me to pick Yanqing up from your stupid boyfriend.

[Jing Yuan] Is he alright?

[Fu Xuan] Why was KAFKA there?!?!?!

[Qingzu] 👀

[Yutie] Omg!

[Jing Yuan] Oh, haha, that's Yingxing's boss.

[Fu Xuan] You're a meddler and I hate you.

[Yutie] What happened to never meet your heroes?

[Yutie] Or in this case, celebrity crushes?

[Jing Yuan] Well I met two of mine and it worked out fine for me.

[Fu Xuan] Neither of them are celebs you annoying scheming piece of

[Jing Yuan] Did you get her number?

[Fu Xuan] Yes.

Group Chat: Xianzhou Besties Reunited!!

[Jing Yuan] (Image attachment: camera018362.jpg)

[Foxian] aww

[JL] gross

[JL] dont u 3 have like a poly gpchat or smth

[Jing Yuan] We do!

[Jing Yuan] But we wanted to share this with you two.

[Foxian] it’s like i’m there!

[JL] dont encourage them

[Foxian] this will make big bucks on the black market

[Jing Yuan] I have your address.

[Foxian] psh i have my own address

[Jing Yuan] Knock Knock

[Foxian] whos there

[Jing Yuan] Me and

[Foxian] me and who

[Jing Yuan] Us <3

[Foxian] how you got two boyfriends and still out here texting me

[Jing Yuan] I’m a great multitasker.

[JL] wtf

Group Chat: JYDHYX

[Jing Yuan] (File Attachment: Pics.zip)

[Jing Yuan] Here are the rest ;)

[Ren] I was going to kill you if you had sent the rest to the xz group

[Jing Yuan] I wouldn't!

[Dan Heng] That is exactly something you would do, schemer.

Group Chat: Stellaron

[Elio] @Ren

[Kafka] @Ren

[WS] @Ren

[Sam] ☝️

[Ren] I’m coming

[Ren] Stop spamming

[WS] break up w ya mans

[Ren] No

[WS] den stop being l8

[Ren] Sorry

[Ren] I’m in the car

[Ren] 5 min

[Kafka] No time for a quickie, Yingxing…

[Ren] We’re driving!

[WS] who

[Ren] Dan Heng

[WS] boo

[Kafka] Shush, Sylvia.

[Sam] 👍

[WS] getting bck tgt w ya ex is still so tacky

[Kafka] If our dear Ren is happy, who are we to judge?

[WS] m just a hater

[Elio] I’m interested to see how their relationships develop.

[Elio] Yingxing has unresolved baggage with his past with Dan Heng that will be hard to address.

[Elion] Jing Yuan has a complex about the two of you and far more important priorities, like his son.

[Elio] Dan Heng is a free spirit with the least emotional connection to you both.

[Elio] I would love to write a script for a play with the three of you.

[Ren] Thanks for the support guys

[Sam] 👍

[WS] ure not welcome

[Kafka] You are welcome, Ren.

Notes:

Forgive me. Kafka and Fu Xuan together are kind of-
You guys get it, right? You see my vision. Girlbossing
I'm happy to announce that this fic is almost ending! I'm devastated that it is concluding, but the main plot of the fic was the trio's relationship and they're... together! Woo! Just one last epilogue self-indulgent chapter for me. I'll save the sappy stuff for the last chapter, but it's been a great ride with everyone!

Chapter 12 Notes:

Hi everyone! This fic has finally come to a close. it's been a long (checks dates) 2 weeks since we've started, and I'm really grateful for all the attention and support from everyone! We have one last chapter I've written just for fun and I hope this fic can end on a good note!
Also, the two plot twists (no one has commented on them, so either no one noticed or you all are just being nice, so thank you <3)
1. At the very start of the fic Jing Yuan gets his messages deleted by Jingliu, to which he says Jingliu posted her school on the chat last week. However later in the chapter Ren is surprised to learn that he and Jingliu go to the same school in the same city, which he should already know since she has allegedly already told them. Of course you can explain this away by saying that perhaps Jingliu sent that information during a time where Ren wasn't online and he didn't backread.
2. When Silver Wolf texts Jing Yuan for the first time (via Ren's phone), she acts like she has never seen him before. She was still clearly joking with the catfish comments etc, but to me when I wrote it, the conversation reads as if this was their first interaction/like she hadn't known what Jing Yuan looked like originally. But Jing Yuan already met Ren's colleagues in the previous chapter. This can also be explained away if you just take that entire conversation as a bit.
But of course these two are really just a product of my writing because I like to write scenes out of order and then piece them together afterwards lmao.
Let's say in this fictional modern AU polygamy is legal. Don't ask me questions for how this would work.

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

Group Chat: Xianzhou Besties Reunited!!

[Dan Heng] We've set the dates.

[Dan Heng] I'll be leaving on the 6th in two months.

[Jing Yuan] I'll miss you <3

[Foxian] wheres the next stop?

[Dan Heng] The Astral Express is headed to Fanghu. We'll be there for about half a year.

[Foxian] NO WAY

[Foxian] finally i'll be in the same city as one of you

[Jing Yuan] Hey what about me? We're in the same place half the time.

[Foxian] you only use me for free babysitting

[Dan Heng] We're just a city away.

[Dan Heng] We can visit each other on the weekends.

[Jing Yuan] <3

[JL] gross

[JL] lame

[Jing Yuan] Sorry you're single.

[JL] banning u from parent teacher meetings

[Jing Yuan] Are you texting during class?

[JL] its silent reading bitch

[Ren] What kind of parent teacher dynamic is this…

[Jing Yuan] I did your homework for two years.

[JL] i babysit ur kid

[JL] wat kind of teacher takes their student home w them

[JL] cuz their dad wants to go get railed

[Jing Yuan] I'll return the favor when you have a kid and a partner.

[JL] get fked

[Jing Yuan] I am ;)

[JL] die

[Foxian] ive had to suffer through jing yuan pining for these two stupid asses for 10 years

[Foxian] its your turn to handle it

[JL] bad

[JL] stop

[JL] ghosting again

[Jing Yuan] Yanqing will miss you… :(

[JL] dammit

-^-

Group Chat: Xianzhou Besties Reunited!!

[Foxian] (Image Attachment: danheng_1.png)

[Foxian] (Image Attachment: danheng_2.png)

[Foxian] (Image Attachment: danheng_3.png)

[Foxian] guess who's in fanghu!!!

[Dan Heng] Happy to be here.

-^-

Group Chat: Xianzhou Besties Reunited!!

[Ren] (File Attachment: kafka ticket 4 pax.pdf)

[Foxian] you always do this

[Foxian] some of us have lives

[Ren] Coming?

[Foxian] ofc we are!!!

[Dan Heng] I'll stay for the weekend.

[Foxian] i miss the days i have jingyuan's guest room

[JL] u can have mine

[Foxian] yay

[Jing Yuan] You two up for getting Yanqing one night for that weekend?

[JL] die

[Ren] Haha

-^-

Group Chat: HSS Club

[Bailu] Genshin tonight???

[Clara] Okie :3

[Bailu] I wanna try out my new Koko build

[Hook] NOOOOO

[Bailu] Stop playing Hutao then

[Clara] Who should I bring UwU

[Hook] grandpa geo

[Bailu] No

[Bailu] Diona

[Bailu] We can freeze team with Yq's Ayaka

[YQ] I can't make it, sorry.

[YQ] Dan Heng came back this morning…

[Hook] DO YOU NEED EARPLUGS

[YQ] Yingxing slipped me a new pair of headphones.

[YQ] Noise canceling, but at what cost?

[Hook] LOL

[Bailu] LMAO

[Clara] Hehe

[Clara] Family dinner tonight?

[YQ] Something like that.

[YQ] Practicing for my future role as ringbearer.

[Hook] YOOOOO

[Bailu] WOAH

[Clara] What?

[Bailu] YANQING HAS THE RINGSSSSS

[Hook] SELL THEM

[Clara] CONGRATS!

[YQ] NOT YET GUYS

[YQ] I'm hiding these in my coat for tonight I hope I don't drop them.

[Bailu] I hope you drop it

[Hook] I hope you kick it and send it flying

[Bailu] Into the ocean

[Hook] And it sinks

[Bailu] And is lost forever

[Hook] Like the imbibitor lunae

[Clara] They found the Imbibitor Lunae!

[Hook] No the other one

[Clara] There are two of them?!

[Hook] Yea the tree

[Bailu] Stupid that's the Ambrosial Arbor

[Hook] What's the difference

[Bailu] The Imbibitor Lunae is a PERSON

[Hook] THEY FOUND HIS CORPSE???

[Bailu] THEY FOUND THE STATUE IDIOT

[Clara] IL has been dead for 900 years…

[YQ] And they found the Ambrosial Arbor too lmao.

[Hook] THE DEAD TREE???

[YQ] THE DAMN STATUE DUMBASS

Group Chat: Xianzhou Besties Reunited!!

[Jing Yuan] Guess what?

[Foxian] what

[Ren] Guess what

[JL] what

[Dan Heng] Guess what?

[Foxian] WHAT IS IT

[JL] say

[Jing Yuan] No, you have to guess!

[Foxian] you're finally moving to fanghu

[JL] ure dying

[Jing Yuan] (Image Attachment: camera018361.jpg)

[Jing Yuan] We're

[Ren] Getting

[Dan Heng] Married

[JL] lame

[Foxian] AWWW

[Foxian] she's right that was really lame

Group Chat: Stellaron

[Ren] (Image Attachment: camera018361.jpg)

[Ren] He finally put a ring on it

[Ren] Been waiting 15 years

[WS] HOLY SHIIIIIIIIIIIT

[WS] din u say u got over ur ex 10 yrs ago

[Ren] Obviously I lied

[Kafka] I'm so happy for you, Yingxing.

[Sam] 🥳❤️❤️❤️

[Elio] Congratulations, dear Ren!

[WS] same

Group Chat: The Astral Express

[Dan Heng] (Image Attachment: camera018361.jpg)

[Dan Heng] I'm getting married.

[March] WOOOO

[Stelle] NO WAY

[Welt] Congratulations, Dan Heng.

[Himeko] Congratulations, Dan Heng! ❤️

[March] Who proposed?!?!?

[Dan Heng] Me.

[Stelle] Who did you ask first???

[Dan Heng] Same time.

[March] Video????

[Dan Heng] Yanqing has it.

[Dan Heng] I'll ask him for it.

Group Chat: Divine Foresight

[Jing Yuan] Hey everyone, guess what?

[Fu Xuan] You're getting married.

[Qingzu] Summer.

[Yutie] Beach.

[Fu Xuan] Of course, his husband likes the ocean.

[Qingzu] Honeymoon in Waterscape.

[Yutie] I was thinking they might go to Cloudford.

[YQ] Both, actually.

[Yutie] The Astral Express is moving to Zhuming next month… but they're settling back to St. Freya mid next year… so wedding the year after that?

[Fu Xuan] Kafka will be on tour then, so another year after that, I think.

[Qingzu] We'll tell the murderers to be on their best behavior that season.

[Jing Yuan] Thanks, everyone.

-^-

Group Chat: Dad³

[YQ] (Image Attachment: screenshot937391.png)

[Ren] How much?

[YQ] 1.5k

[YQ] Hehe

[Ren] You are joking if you think he'll agree

[Ren] He says, is that boy out of his mind

[Jing Yuan] For a fake sword?

[Jing Yuan] Make it yourself.

[YQ] It's real!

[Jing Yuan] Why do you want a real sword???

[YQ] Because the rest of mine are fake…

[Jing Yuan] If you wanted a real sword you should've gone for those martial arts lessons you made me sign you up for.

[YQ] That was years ago!!!

[Ren] Save up your allowance for it.

[Ren] I can't help you.

[YQ] @Dan Heng

[Dan Heng] Whatever Jing Yuan says.

[YQ] You didn't even bother to read!

[Dan Heng] I have no opinion on model swords.

[YQ] It's real!

[Dan Heng] Really?

[Dan Heng] If it's authentic, that price would be a steal.

[Dan Heng] Do you have more pictures?

[Dan Heng] We can get Himeko to appraise it.

[Dan Heng] Looks like it'd be a convincing forgery if it wasn't real.

[Jing Yuan] Dan Heng…

[Ren] Lmao

[Dan Heng] Oh, sorry.

[Dan Heng] It really does look like a good deal…

[YQ] Hehe thanks dad!

[Dan Heng] You're welcome, son.

[Ren] Wow

[YQ] You were no help, dad.

[Ren] I strive for excellence.

[Ren] By the way, Jing Yuan is crying because you called us dad.

[YQ] I've done that for years…

[Ren] Yes, but we're his fiancés now so it's different.

-^-

Group Chat: Xianzhou Besties Reunited!!

[Dan Heng] We've set the dates.

[Ren] (File Attachment: wedding invitation.pdf)

[Foxian] HELLO???

[JL] wtf

[JL] is this how u announce it

[JL] r u srs

[Foxian] WHAT SHE SAID

[Foxian] ARE YOU SERIOUS

[Jing Yuan] Boys…

[JL] dad voice

[Foxian] dad voice

[Dan Heng] Sorry.

[Ren] Sorry

[Ren] We were just so excited we had to send it immediately

[Dan Heng] Yeah, we can't wait for you to get home.

[Ren] You should clock off right now

[Dan Heng] Come home, honey…

[JL] psych warfare

[Foxian] a person could be dead you guys

-^-

Group Chat: Xianzhou Besties Reunited!!!

[Dan Heng] [Video Attachment: 19739176.mp4]

[Dan Heng] ?

[Dan Heng] March sent me this.

[Ren] Who tf recorded this shaky ass footage of our wedding

[Foxian] ehe

[Ren] YOU????

[Foxian] sorry!! i got emotional

[JL] lmao

[Jing Yuan] I think it’s lovely!

Notes:

Jing Yuan is right: this all has been very lovely!
A big thank you to everyone who has followed me on this journey! It's been great fun having you all along for the ride and I'm grateful that you let me share this with you.
I'll be writing more of these five now that they've taken over my brain! Hope to see you guys around!
I'm @gwendeeagain on tumblr.

Notes:

Thank you for trusting me with the torrential, unpredictable wrath of a chatfic I try my best not to let you down

I have a fun announcement!
Opal and I have published a new fic: prepare for trouble and make it double featuring the Trailblaze Mission 1.2 cast time-traveling to the past (the Xianzhou, 700 years ago!) and of course they're trying to find their way back... but where is everyone else?
We posted the first chapter a few hours ago and I'm really excited about it. I love time travel plots.
The main cast is actually... (drumroll) Dan Heng, Blade and Yanqing!!! But who's babysitting who?

Series this work belongs to:

Part 1 of Gwen's Magic 8 Ball (HSR) Next Work →

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Account Deleted on Chapter 4 Mon 04 Sep 2023 01:50PM UTC

Hired bodyguard?

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1. gwendee on Chapter 4 Tue 05 Sep 2023 01:16AM UTC
  
  What an idea ;) hot
  
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Loathesome_Sinner on Chapter 4 Mon 04 Sep 2023 01:59PM UTC

Maybe a biologist? Idk being a doctor would be too easy to guess.

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1. gwendee on Chapter 4 Tue 05 Sep 2023 01:16AM UTC
  
  LMAOO DOES HE HAVE BIOLOGIST VIBES????
  
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Nadejdaro on Chapter 4 Mon 04 Sep 2023 02:09PM UTC

Dan Heng as a biologist/biology teacher would be unexpected but make sense XD otherwise librarian/archivist bc obvious. I can't see modern AU him as a bodyguard
(The only other funny option would be him as a pole dancer bc of the *pole*arm skills XD)
Teacher Jingliu!!!! That makes so much sense I love it so much. Yanqing calling it a date 😭 single-handedly starting so much almost drama
Thank you for the chapter!!!!

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1. gwendee on Chapter 4 Tue 05 Sep 2023 01:22AM UTC
  
  LMAOO DOES HE GIVE OFF BIOLOGIST/BIO TEACHER VIBES??? well to be fair I made Jingliu a teacher too...
  HAHA the closest people have gotten to is archivist actually! It's related but I won't consider them the same job.
  Bodyguard... hehe that'd be hot but nope, not this.
  POLE DANCER SKHDKDJD
  Dkdjkdjd Poor Yanqing!!! He unknowingly almost ended his dad's relationships. Ren having a mini heart attack behind the screen
  Thanks for reading!
  
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FriendlyGamers on Chapter 4 Mon 04 Sep 2023 02:19PM UTC

(つ≧▽≦)つ

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1. gwendee on Chapter 4 Tue 05 Sep 2023 01:12AM UTC
  
  Thanks for reading!
  
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Not_zack on Chapter 4 Mon 04 Sep 2023 02:25PM UTC

I see a couple of people saying biologist/bio teacher in the comments so to add onto that, i propose that dan heng might be jingliu’s coworker as the biology teacher. I also theorize that the car crash caused him to develop amnesia, resulting in him having fragmented memories. I believe that jing yuan would recognize him during a parent-teacher meeting about yanqing or jinglue would send the groupchat a picture of her and the other teachers, leading to jing yuan or ren recognizing dan heng.

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1. gwendee on Chapter 4 Tue 05 Sep 2023 01:32AM UTC
  
  I see that too, I'm so confused, am I writing bio teacher vibes for him??? Lmao??!?
  Omg dan heng as jingliu's coworker... well, she would be the one to recognize him, presumingly, since they were friends in college too.
  Amnesia is a good guess! ;)
  Thanks for reading!!
  
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froglore on Chapter 4 Mon 04 Sep 2023 02:41PM UTC

thank u sm for writing this its so good!! i do love how ur doing chatfics it's much better than some I've read 😭😭

as for dan heng's job I do think him being an archivist or librarian makes sense, but if you think people won't guess it... maybe something silly like a train repairman?? or something with the express?? or maybe a writer

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1. gwendee on Chapter 4 Tue 05 Sep 2023 01:37AM UTC
  
  Ahh thank you so much! I'm trying to work with the medium... and making notes on what I dislike about other chatfics I've seen to write my owb.
  Archivist is the closest people have gotten, I think! And you're right, it does have something to do with the Express, haha
  Train repairman LOL
  Writer was my second choice for him! Well, specifically he was going to be in an investigative journalism team with the rest of the Express gang. But I changed my mind at the last minute lmao
  
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2. 1. injeong on Chapter 4 Tue 05 Sep 2023 06:05PM UTC
    
    Wait now I really want to guess what his job is ... archivist + the Express = a museum curator for a train museum?? It's the only thing I can think of lmao 😭 but he likes to teach us thinks in canon so maybe it might suit him
    
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  2. 1. gwendee on Chapter 4 Wed 06 Sep 2023 10:27AM UTC
      
      LMAO not quite, but... you'll see. I hope my idea makes sense LOL
      
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helloimnad on Chapter 4 Mon 04 Sep 2023 02:48PM UTC

aaaa an update!!!!!! 💕💕💕💕💕
JL not liking her previous major, taking a break from college and eventually switched to one shes actually passionate about made me so happy :'D I like your characterization of Ren. he feels so warm... 🥺
Also Yanqing texting everyone about Mimi 😂😂😂😂😂
idk why do i think dan heng would have either 1) a normal boring desk job or 2) something grand like a CEO
thank you for the update 🥰

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1. gwendee on Chapter 4 Tue 05 Sep 2023 09:00AM UTC
  
  Aaaa yes!! Hehe. Nothing wrong with switching majors until you find the right one, that's great actually <3
  Her in game vibe (based off leaks) feels exactly like that. She's back!!! (Still have no idea how she got back, but... I hope to find out soon.)
  Haha yay! I love this Ren too. I almost made him broody and sad... but I shall reserve that for another fic.
  Yanqing would bring Mimi to school if he could
  KDHDKJD A boring desk job... poor Dan Heng. Someone guessed accountant for the man.
  
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DreaMoon20 on Chapter 4 Mon 04 Sep 2023 03:08PM UTC

I say doctor. It could be any type though because I don't know how much the accident affected him other thing might not be possible also I would like it if he also adopted bailu and she would go to the same school.

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1. gay (Guest) on Chapter 4 Mon 04 Sep 2023 05:04PM UTC
  
  omgg yes... and then yanqing would be like 'yo dad can my friend bailu come over? her dad can drop her off' lmfao
  
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2. 1. gwendee on Chapter 4 Tue 05 Sep 2023 12:35AM UTC
    
    AHHH thats so adorable
    I'm devastated I started this fic before 1.3, I would've wanted to write in their adorable dynamic
    
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3. gwendee on Chapter 4 Tue 05 Sep 2023 12:34AM UTC
  
  Doctor! There are a couple of doctor guesses... does he give off the doctor vibe??? Ren started working in music because he used music during therapy. Did Dan Heng become a doctor because he recieved medical attention??? 😭
  Omg Bailu, that's so cute,,,
  
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K4z4n3 on Chapter 4 Mon 04 Sep 2023 04:07PM UTC

SO CLOSE.... I GOT THE TEACHE PART RIGHT THOUGH!!! OMG CRIMINAL HCQ AND JY DETECTIVE ALL IN A FC IM CACKLING SJBAAJANAJ THAT WOUKD BE SO FUNNY
THE QAY THEY SAID THEY WER EON A DATE??? SORRY BUT JL IS MY WIFE 😡😡😡/JKJK
DAN HENG.....OF 5 PEOPLE, 1 IS LEFT TO VOME BACK TI THE GC. WAHAHAHA NO LIKE IMAGINE IF HE HAS MEMORY LOST CUZ OF THE CSR CRASH???? YEAHHH ANGST IS A FLAVOUR 😍😍 BUT IT WOULD BE SO CUTE RELEARNING THINGS ABOUT YOUR OLD FRIENDS JSWHAHAHAHA
I stand by train worker DH cuz he's cute af 😡😡😋😋‼️‼️

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1. gwendee on Chapter 4 Tue 05 Sep 2023 09:04AM UTC
  
  THE TEACHER PART YEAH
  dkdgkdd omg....criminal HCQ hunted by jing yuan one by one... that's... essentially canon actually. LMAO
  LMAO yanqing is just out there spreading misinformation... freaking everyone out. come on, yq
  OF 5 PEOPLE 1 IS LEFT (sounds like a hitlist)
  EVERYONE HAS THE MEMORY LOSS IDEA well guess what. I'm about to tell you something. [Spoiler Redacted]
  Train worker dan heng is in fact cute as fuck. Watch out I will be writing it in the future.... probably
  
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2. 1. K4z4n3 on Chapter 4 Tue 05 Sep 2023 06:24PM UTC
    
    IM DO SMART FR FR/sarc
    TBH IT IS.... TBF IF YOU EVER MAKE A FIC ABOUT THAT THEN PLS MAKE DH THE CUTE CRIMINAL WHOS CHARGES ARE LIKE.... EXTRENE JUST LIKE IN CANKN <333
    HES JUST A BBY HE DOESNT KNIW WHAT HE IS DOING :(((
    (I STAND WITH ACTING INNOCENT YQ)
    Fr soynds like one tbh 😰😰😨😨
    GASPS NO WAY?!?!?!?!?!? THE SPOILERS OMG....
    I WANAN BITE HIN AND SQUISH HIM AND AND I WANAN SMOTHER HIM IN HUGS AND WAAAAMWEJWKWMW IM GOING TK EXPLODE
    
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literaldoe on Chapter 4 Mon 04 Sep 2023 04:42PM UTC

Honestly, i think dan heng would be something like an archivist, librarian or data architect..idk those jobs makes sense to me 🤷♀️ (or he's a criminal and nobody knows, jk dan heng wouldn't,,unless..?)
Anyways, i enjoyed this ty for updating^^

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1. gwendee on Chapter 4 Tue 05 Sep 2023 03:20AM UTC
  
  An archivist is the closest guess we have so far haha. A librarian/data architect would be really cool though!
  djhdkd criminal?!?? imagine if I let Ren and Jingliu go off scott free and made Dan Heng committ grand theft auto
  Ahhh thanks so much! Glad you like it!
  
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2. 1. literaldoe on Chapter 4 Tue 05 Sep 2023 05:52AM UTC
    
    That would be a mess but it sounds really funny (I giggled and I'm in school LMAOO)
    
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  2. 1. gwendee on Chapter 4 Tue 05 Sep 2023 07:00AM UTC
      
      KDHDKKD STUDY!!! pretend that jingliu is your teacher and she is disapproving
      
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Fintastica on Chapter 4 Mon 04 Sep 2023 04:51PM UTC

Yanqing realiIng that oh, his teacher is besties with his dad:

I prefer the lack of wveryone introducing themselves. Definitely feels more natural cuz fuck it if i know everyone in any of the groups im in! And the ones o do know is cuz we all use our regular names or its easy to check....

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1. gwendee on Chapter 4 Tue 05 Sep 2023 01:04AM UTC
  
  skdjdkd poor Yanqing, every child's worst nightmare...
  Ahh i agree! Having everyone jump straight into the middle of already knowing each other is my personal writing preference because I don't like writing intro scenes where a bunch of people are just awkward interacting for the first time.
  Ikr, I've been in tons of large group chats and I only really know like a small group in it (usually people online the same time as me), I wouldn't know everyone anyways
  
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2. 1. Fintastica on Chapter 4 Tue 05 Sep 2023 03:48AM UTC
    
    Yeah and its like....how many people are actually gonan reply to that "inteoduce yourselves"? Joined one for a peoject once and im lretty sure half the people didn't even bother lol
    
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  2. 1. gwendee on Chapter 4 Tue 05 Sep 2023 07:48AM UTC
      
      LMAO the only places I've seen "introduce yourself" have any effect is in discord group chats with a dedicated channel for it, or for new students/freshmen being added to a new group and they're afraid of being singled out for non participation
      
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Lunarlyssa on Chapter 4 Mon 04 Sep 2023 05:20PM UTC

I did not expect her to be a class teacher. Martial arts/Self Defence teacher, yes. This is coming from the one who said they’ve ‘sank 2 years into this sh!t’. So the gang’s all back together except for our probably amnesiac and out of coma(probably) Dan Heng.
P.S I have the urge to label Dan Heng as princess. Ooh, Yanqing finds out Dan Heng is still in the hospital and asks Jing Yuan if he’s the princess ‘Sleeping Beauty’

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1. gwendee on Chapter 4 Tue 05 Sep 2023 07:39AM UTC
  
  LMAO
  I almost made her Yanqing's martial arts teacher before deciding that I wanted her to try something new. Since she's a martial artist in a fantasy setting, she could be something else in a modern setting... well I still ended up making her Yanqing's teacher anyways so I'm not sure what I changed.
  Dan Heng? Where is he hiding? Floating in space perhaps?
  KDHDK WAIT THATS SO CUTE
  sleeping beauty dan heng... he's out princess....
  Being in a coma for 10 years would be rough....
  
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cookieswithmilktea on Chapter 4 Mon 04 Sep 2023 06:01PM UTC

Love this

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1. gwendee on Chapter 4 Tue 05 Sep 2023 12:27AM UTC
  
  Thank you!
  
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Sea_Bell on Chapter 4 Mon 04 Sep 2023 06:07PM UTC

Maybe Dan Heng works as a like the person who says things over a train like what station they are arriving at.

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1. gwendee on Chapter 4 Tue 05 Sep 2023 02:24AM UTC
  
  LMAO SHIT THATS SO CUTE
  I adore it!!! But I think those are automated these days 😭
  
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injeong on Chapter 4 Mon 04 Sep 2023 07:10PM UTC

This is so cute I'm this close to tears hhfhfhfjdhg
Jingliu is Yanqing's homeroom teacher!! The way she immediately dropped the professional text grammar when she realised it was Jing lmaooo aww
She recognised Blade's swords too that's sweet
Question is how did Yanqing get it to school without getting stopped lol
My heart warms every time I see Jing Yuan's interactions with Baiheng, the little timestamp of the call's duration says so much in a way that words could never 😭😭 I love her
And Yanqing calls her auntie baiheng!! I'm going to cry
The way everyone knew it was him xDD he's so precious aaaa
The messages between Jing Yuan and Blade at the end.. 😭😭 he really missed them,, so happy they're back together
Now I'm really excited to see what Dan Feng's up to
Blade turned out to not be a criminal (hooray!) so I wonder if Dan Feng will also accidentally run into them on perfectly legal business... unless?
Dan Feng = water dragon = marine biologist? One of the reasons he dropped off the face of the earth was because he was spending years on the ocean floor in an Octonauts style research lab and had no WiFi connection lol
Or maybe something like a secret agent... though that's probably unlikely
Or maybe like ... a prison guard? Canon Dan spent time in the shacking prison after all
Or an astronaut, might have bad WiFi in space, I can lowkey see him being an astronaut ... or an accountant ... idk I'm just throwing out every career I can think of lol
Looking forward to see what happens next! <3

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1. (Previous comment deleted.)
2. 1. gwendee on Chapter 4 Tue 05 Sep 2023 06:23AM UTC
    
    ???Im so intrigued. what about him has accountant vibes? It's all the archival analysis he does probably
    
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3. gwendee on Chapter 4 Tue 05 Sep 2023 06:22AM UTC
  
  JL is yanqing's teacher!!!
  Her typing in full sentences is so funny she hates doing it.
  I have no idea how he got the swords to school - maybe he's very sneaky. Maybe Qingzu took him to school and he successfully convinced her he needed it for a project
  Yanqing!!! He steals Jing Yuan's phone too often, everyone recognizes him already. I love writing him, he's so precious.
  Jing Yuan and Blade <3<3<3 indulgent ships hehe
  Omg Dan as a marine biologist is so good...I wish I thought of that now. PRISON GUARD thats so fun actually. I love it.
  AN ASTRONAUT- wait. mark that down. You're not correct but the themes are there.
  ACCOUNTANT?!?!?! Does dan heng do math-
  Hehe thanks for reading!
  
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vanille_reads on Chapter 4 Mon 04 Sep 2023 07:10PM UTC

WAAHHHHH SOOO CUTEEEE
i love yanqing <33333 baby is sooo polite when texting!!! blade and his' part is saurrr adorable!!!!! love that he HAS to mention mimi to everyone at least once
jingren's last convo is very sweet, oh the long-awaited closure ...
thankssss for the update

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1. gwendee on Chapter 4 Tue 05 Sep 2023 06:42AM UTC
  
  I love Yanqing too (totally unbiased) i agree!!! He's so baby!!!
  Blade humoring him and texting back!!! Yanqing has to tell everyone about Mimi it's not optional. you WILL learn about his cat
  hehehehe jingren my beloved <3<3<3 my indulgent ship. And dan heng is there too i guess
  thanks for reading!!!
  
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2. 1. vanille_reads on Chapter 4 Tue 05 Sep 2023 11:30AM UTC
    
    SCREAMS, looking back at the cmt section,,, i really did ignore dh’s ass while ppl is busy guessing left and right, THAT WASNT INTENTIONAL IM JUST TOO BRAINDEAD TO MAKE ANY GUESSES
    but yes,,, jingren,,, please indulge us more,,, i love themmmm
    (totally replying in the reverse order now lol) I LOVE YANQING!!!! (NOT BIASED AT ALL) i got excited when i realized you wrote quite a lot hsr fics already,,, jy and yq centric too!!! estate planning broke me and i cant wait to read the others as well 🥰
    
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  2. 1. gwendee on Chapter 4 Tue 05 Sep 2023 02:29PM UTC
      
      LMAOOO
      dan heng who? I only know Jingren
      I'm not gonna lie, out of the ot3, jingren is my favorite. I have so many thoughts about them.
      LKJk YANQING RIGHTS!!! LMAO i cried when you said "quite a lot of hsr fics". I've written 6. And then I realized that compared to a normal person, that's a lot. compared to my catalog of fkin... 119 assclass fics-
      A lot is relative, is all I will say.
      But yay! I love yanqing and jing yuan dearly. Hehehe
      
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    2. 1. vanille_reads on Chapter 4 Wed 06 Sep 2023 11:23AM UTC
        
        jingren is my all day everyday vibe, hengjing comes close second and hengren is ok 👍
        6 is a lot!!! 119 on the other hand…. i admire your dedication, assclass fandom is lucky to have you
        i look forward to more works from you 🥺✨
        
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      2. gwendee on Chapter 4 Wed 06 Sep 2023 02:11PM UTC
        
        HONESTLY. I understand you so much. Jingren is top in my heart. I love the ot3 in it's entirety... and I have so many possible dynamics cooking in my brain. Hehehe
        LKJHG thank you... for your validation... 6 is a lot (starts crying) it is! It is!!!!
        
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MiiyaNkhr on Chapter 4 Mon 04 Sep 2023 11:52PM UTC

I love how JingLiu was formal when she texted Jing Yuan then after she knows it's Jing Yuan, she just changes shshs I love it.. definitely how I texted my old friends lmao

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1. gwendee on Chapter 4 Tue 05 Sep 2023 06:44AM UTC
  
  KFHFKFK so true
  she can drop her customer service voice now, its just the bratty little kid she used to know from her college days
  
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ohmy_cats on Chapter 4 Tue 05 Sep 2023 01:41AM UTC

WILL I FINALLY FIND MORE DH ANGST

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1. gwendee on Chapter 4 Tue 05 Sep 2023 04:30AM UTC
  
  ;)
  
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2. 1. ohmy_cats on Chapter 4 Tue 05 Sep 2023 04:35AM UTC
    
    YYYYYYYIIIIIIIPPPPIIIIIII
    
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AimeeCrystalias on Chapter 4 Tue 05 Sep 2023 01:47AM UTC

I feel like Jingliu would be either an English teacher or a type of Science teacher if she wasn't a P.E/ martial arts teacher. Also LOVE THIS!!!! I love how cute Jing Yuan is here and I am excited to see 'Feng' back and have all of the be a happy family now^^. Can't wait for more. Also lol on the others thing its a date thanks to his son lol.

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1. gwendee on Chapter 4 Tue 05 Sep 2023 06:52AM UTC
  
  LMAO imagine her being an english teacher with the way she types. Jk she can. She has big english teacher vibes you're right
  Martial arts teacher... I almost made her one (maybe Jing Yuan signs Yanqing up for martial arts classes) but I was tryna wrack my brain wondering if Jingliu wasn't a fantasy sword fighting character what job would she have in real life? Apparently my brain just went with "Yanqing's teacher" lmao
  KDHDKKD poor Jing Yuan, Yanqing is just out here spreading false information to the others
  
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ikeru on Chapter 4 Tue 05 Sep 2023 01:59AM UTC

YANQING IS SO FUNNY HES SO CUTE, ESPECIALLY WHEN HE THANKS JL FOR BEING HIS DADS FRIEND LMAOOO
i can’t wait to see where this fic goes!! i’ve already said it in the last chapter, but i love the way you’ve written this :’)
(and i agree about the long list of names. whenever i see those i just close tab immediately ngl)

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1. gwendee on Chapter 4 Tue 05 Sep 2023 07:47AM UTC
  
  Yanqing is just glad his dad is not lonely!!! Before Yingxing, he can count all his dad's friends on the same hand, isn't that sad?
  AHH thank you!!
  HONESTLY what a mood. I do a quick scroll through but if I lose track of who's who I just... give up. Oops
  
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