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Quan Yizhen opens the box.
Inside lies an earring, well-worn and, at first glance, painfully ordinary. It lacks decorations or sparkling jewels, the red gemstone appears almost dull, plainer even than the unadorned tassels Quan Yizhen normally wears. It looks rather out of place inside the exquisite jewellery box.
Quan Yizhen can still recall the day he received the earrings, a brand new pair, their brilliant shine reflected in his own eyes.
"Happy birthday, Yizhen."
The gems glimmer beautifully in the sunlight, but the brightest thing in the room is his shixiong's smile.
Quan Yizhen wears them every day, even after his own ascension, even after everything goes wrong. Only when one of them is lost during a mission does he take the other off (he looks for the missing earring all day, and when the sun has set, he lights a fire in his hand to last him till morning, but his efforts are in vain). He places the earring inside the spacious box, where it seems smaller than ever.
Sometimes, when evening falls, he opens the box, takes it out and watches moonlight filter through it, dissipating in his palms.
He hears footsteps behind his back, which snap him back to the present.
"Yizhen?" a gentle hand touches his shoulder. "What are you—"
Yin Yu gives a soft gasp and leans forward.
"You still have them?"
"I lost one," replies Quan Yizhen.
"I thought..." A hint of sadness tinges Yin Yu's smile. "Well, honestly, I didn't expect you to keep them at all."
"Of course I kept them! They remind me of you. I wish I still had the other one."
"Ah... Of course..."
Yin Yu takes the earring in his fingers, and a complicated expression crosses his face, far too quick for Quan Yizhen to distinguish.
"We can get you new ones," he adds after a brief moment.
"Only if you pick them."
Yin Yu blinks, then smiles.
"Alright," he says, and in his smile there is a flicker of that long-lost light.
Quan Yizhen beams, taking Yin Yu's hand in his own. "Let's go now!"
Yin Yu lets out a chuckle.
"Let's go."