Work Text:
Cheng Xiaoshi cracked his eyes open, cool light seeping through the bedroom windows. From his bunk, his line of sight was directed straight towards the glass, a view of the world outside that was blanketed in increasing layers of snow. Coloured lights shone through the snow that they were burrowed in, like light dispersing through a prism. It almost looked like snow cones.
Huh. Colorful lights… CHRISTMAS!
Yep. Cheng Xiaoshi was wide awake now. In an instant, he shot up, and practically fell out of his bed in the process. Scanning the room, it seemed that Lu Guang had already left, the upper bunk empty, and faint chatter floated from downstairs. With a little more than the average level of excitement, he swung out of the room and scampered down the stairs to the living room where the sight of Qiao Ling and Lu Guang conversing greeted him.
All around the common area strings of decor that they had set up the previous day hung from every corner, lights and lines of poorly cut paper streamers taped onto the walls. Brightest of all was the tree that stood in the corner, decorated with more strings of light and paper, as well as ornaments, a few of which were handmade (and dented after being chucked at a certain someone's poor head).
“Ah, Cheng Xiaoshi!” Qiao Ling called out. “Come here and try the special bubble tea!” She held out a drink which, compared to normal bubble tea, was paler and seemed to hold powdered sugar and a layer of something charred on top. And was that… biscuit crumbs?
“Really, even on Christmas you're getting bubble tea,” Cheng Xiaoshi mock sighed. “Oh dear, Lu Guang,” he continued, throwing himself onto Lu Guang who had been sipping his drink quietly on the couch. “Qiao Ling's a bubble tea addict!”
A hand went down on his head. “Just take it and be grateful!” She huffed. “It was a good deal too.”
“Yea, yea,” he waved her off, taking the drink. “Thanks, jie jie,” he added with a teasing tone. “Merry Christmas you two,” he smiled, pulling them both into a hug with both his arms.
“Merry Christmas,” they both sounded.
As he placed the drink down, his eyes drifted towards the boxes lying under the tree, shiny and vibrant. “Is it gifting time?”
“Yes, yes,” Qiao Ling answered. “Let's go open them up, you impatient child.”
Two presents in yellow wrapping paper were handed to Cheng Xiaoshi. “Here,” Qiao Ling said, handing them over. Ripping off their wrapping, Cheng Xiaoshi discovered a game he'd been wanting and a figurine of his favorite character from Slam Dunk.
“Aw you guys!” he beamed. “You both know me so well.”
“Well, you're an open book,” Qiao Ling stated. “Now it's my turn though,” she sing-songed. Opening up two red presents, she revealed a pink bubble gun and a box of beauty products. “Hah, maybe you guys do use witchcraft. How'd you know what I wanted?”
“Secret~” Cheng Xiaoshi trailed off. “Now it's your turn Lu Guang!” He pushed over two presents, one wrapped in a metallic ocean blue, and another in a matte baby blue.
Opening them with careful hands, peeling off the tape holding the folds down, revealed the latest volumes of one of Lu Guang's favourite manga he had yet to buy and a soft plush animal of a cat. “Ah. Thank you,” Lu Guang mumbled, covering his mouth and looking away.
Tilting his head downwards, Cheng Xiaoshi was met with the sight of glassy eyes. “Eh?! Are you ok?!” he gawked.
“Hey, hey, c'mon it's Christmas don’t cry,” Qiao Ling tried, reaching a hand out to rub Lu Guang's shoulder.
Lu Guang seemed to jump at the contact, quickly rubbing his eyes, forcing away the emotions they held. “Sorry. It appears I got emotional,” he apologized. “Thank you.” A pause. “I love you both.”
“Aww, we love you too!” Cheng Xiaoshi exclaimed, embracing Lu Guang in a full hug.
Qiao Ling quickly joined in, “Yea we do! You really are a sappy old man at heart.”
The snow outside continued to saunter down.
-----[🍲]-----
“Cheng Xiaoshi! Hurry up you snail, we're gonna be late!”
“Hold on!” Cheng Xiaoshi shouted back, pulling on his shoes while hopping on one leg, before finally jumping out the door.
Lu Guang stood in his turtle neck, coat wrung tightly around him, and eyed the bags in Cheng Xiaoshi’s right hand. “Is that everything?” he asked, taking some of the bags into his hands to ease the load off Cheng Xiaoshi before he turned into the leaning tower of Pisa. The snowfall camouflaged well in his hair, Cheng Xiaoshi thought to himself, only for a moment.
His eyes scanned over the bags. “One, two, three, four, five, si…” he trailed off. “Yup! That's it!” Cheng Xiaoshi skipped ahead, holding his hands out to catch the falling snow that would inevitably melt in seconds after landing on his palms. Behind him Qiao Ling huffed to herself, breath forming a small cloud from her lips, clinging her puffer jacket closer to herself.
Like that, like them, the three walked under clouded skies and on frosted streets till a glowing sign shone through the mist of flakes. Muffled festive music sounded from within the building and as Qiao Ling pushed open the door an unmistakable scent wafted through the opening and right towards Cheng Xiaoshi.
“Hot pot!” Cheng Xiaoshi stretched his arms up in celebration. “You have no idea how much I've been craving this A’Guang,” he said, leaning towards the other.
In a booth at the corner of the restaurant, two familiar figures waved them over through the fog of steaming hotpot and shuffling bodies.
“C'mon Cheng Xiaoshi, don't get distracted. We'll get our own hotpot so stop standing about,” Qiao Ling dragged him forward. “Xu Shanshan! Dong Yi!” she shouted out while waving a hand.
Cheng Xiaoshi and Lu Guang quickly followed, taking their seats by the table, bags in tow. The pair eyed the bags but Cheng Xiaoshi raised a hand, “Ah, ah, ah, you know the rules, meal first and then gifts,” he fake chided.
“Since when were you one to scold others Cheng Xiaoshi,” Xu Shanshan huffed. “Aren't you the only child here,” she teased. Both Lu Guang and Dong Yi were needed to prevent the two from fighting. Either way, when all had settled down, the group eventually ordered, opting for two broths and an array of dishes.
The spice was in perfect balance with the other flavors of the broth, the meat to die for, and the taste of salty vegetables and tofu bursting in Cheng Xiaoshi's mouth. “Mm, now this is a real Christmas meal,” he let out a pleased sigh.
“Ok big back,” Qiao Ling teased, earning a laugh from Xu Shanshan. At Cheng Xiaoshi's offended expression, she simply shrugged, a smirk on her face. “What, you've been talking about hotpot non-stop ever since we made plans.”
“No I haven't!” he denied. “Right Lu Guang?” he asked, though not truly a question, turning towards his partner.
“Well,” Lu Guang started. “You have been.” A short and simple answer. Then, he simply turned back to his bowl of food, ignoring Cheng Xiaoshi's incredulous expression.
Cheng Xiaoshi only huffed and continued stuffing his face with food, though with a little more… aggression, this time.
“Anyways, how've things been going for you three?” Dong Yi asked, an innocent question, but with everything the trio’s been through in the past few months, they all let out world-weary sighs. Dong Yi noticed and immediately backtracked, “Not well, I guess? It's ok we can just leave it.” He's a good guy.
“We heard about the hospital,” Xu Shanshan interjected. “Are you both alright now?” she questioned, waving a finger between Lu Guang and Cheng Xiaoshi.
“Yes, we've both recovered fine,” Lu Guang replied. “I don't think Cheng Xiaoshi’s recovered from hospital food though,” he quipped. A shocked noise sounded from his side. And it continued that way. Peaceful. How Lu Guang wanted, needed, things to stay this way.
Once every dish was thoroughly cleared, at last came the time for their gift exchange. Cheng Xiaoshi didn't exactly have many friends besides Lu Guang and Qiao Ling, with Xu Shanshan and Dong Yi as the closest friends he'd made through university. So every year they made an effort to meet up, even if briefly, during Christmas to keep connected.
“Alright, Xu Shanshan, I can see your prying eyes. Here are your gifts,” Cheng Xiaoshi rolled his eyes as he handed over three bags, each of which contained an array of beauty products and cute tops and were met with squeals. Then were Dong Yi's gifts which ranged from vinyl of his favourite artists to old movie DVDs, which he accepted gratefully, thanking the trio.
Next was their turn to receive, starting with Qiao Ling, who received some accessories, then Lu Guang who got some books, and finally Cheng Xiaoshi who received some cute figurines, one of an action hero and the other of an animal playing basketball. He was absolutely gonna treasure these. The air was warm despite the descending snow outside. It was something he'd begun to notice and appreciate even more after all that went down. He hoped times like this wouldn't end.
-----[🥟]-----
“Let me-”
“Nuh-uh, tsk tsk tsk. Noodles are my thing,” Cheng Xiaoshi interrupted, continuing to prepare his noodle broth.
A huff sounded from beside him. “Your noodles are just ok,” Lu Guang retorted, crossing his arms and averting eye contact. Cheng Xiaoshi only smirked. Liar.
“Whatever you say.” Cheng Xiaoshi began to add the egg noodles. “Don't you have dumplings to cook anyways?” he questioned, stirring the pot gently. Lu Guang eyed the bags of groceries they had bought on the way back before finally grabbing them and moving to another kitchen counter.
The door announcer sounded. “How're things going?” Qiao Ling beamed, stepping past the arch to the studio's kitchen, golden light seeping through the open gap. Her face brightened at the smell of good food and the sight of a neat dinner table. “I guess it's time I join in, I suppose.”
Qiao Ling placed her own bag of groceries down, each pull of her hand out of the bag revealing more and more sweet ingredients. It was almost tradition for them to all eat dinner together on Christmas night, each cooking a dish, before joining Qiao Ling's parents later on. It was their special thing. Qiao Ling grabbed herself an apron, a pink one with a matching chibi animal like Cheng Xiaoshi and Lu Guang's, Cheng Xiaoshi having bought them after passing by their display on a walk.
“What's our landlady making this time?” Cheng Xiaoshi asked, eyeing her ingredients. Sweet rice flour, sugar, butter, and fillings.
“Heh, a winter solstice classic, tang yuan of course!” she exclaimed. “I have to make the things your poor soul can't make after all.”
“Hey! I could make them if I wanted to!” Cheng Xiaoshi huffed, before continuing to slice the chicken and vegetables with newfound passion.
“Not as good though~” she teased. “What dumplings are you making Lu Guang?” she asked, shifting her attention towards distinct white hair.
“Beef dumplings,” he responded, short, focus tied to rolling out and cutting the dough.
“Mmm, it's ought to be good,” Qiao Ling complimented. “I can just smell it.” Lu Guang was, after all, a good cook.
“First time I'm agreeing with you tonight,” Cheng Xiaoshi joined in. “Unlike you, I've had them multiple times,” he smirked. “Special privileges.”
Lu Guang mumbled something under his breath, rolling minced meat into balls.
Cheng Xiaoshi's ears perked up. “What was that?”
“It's not special.”
“Oh c'mon, you love spoiling me,” he cooed while sprinkling salt into the bubbling pot and adding chicken bones, along with other broth bases.
Qiao Ling huffed, “Who'd spoil a brat like you?” Cheng Xiaoshi threw noodle water at her. “Hey! Stop it!” she shouted trying to avoid the oily broth. “See this is what I meant!” It stained her clothes. “Ugh, you're insufferable.”
“You love me anyways.”
By the time they finished their dishes the orange and golden light had all but disappeared, replaced by the moon's cool light in the deep blue of the night sky.
“Ahh finally!” Qiao Ling sighed in relief, leaning back in her chair, tang yuan laid out in front of her, as Cheng Xiaoshi poured the noodles into 3 colored bowls. From beside him, Lu Guang carried a large bowl of dumplings that let off soft wisps of steam, placing it gently in the middle of the table like a centerpiece.
Before either of them could get a word out, the clack of two bowls against a wooden surface sounded. “Dinner is served! The main course of the new and improved boy's dormitory noodles made by yours truly!” Cheng Xiaoshi announced. “Lin Zhen really taught me a lot last time we came by. You'll easily see I'm the best cook here,” Cheng Xiaoshi boasted before going to grab his own bowl.
“Correction, Lin Zhen is the best cook. Not you,” Qiao Ling replied. Despite that she immediately grabbed a huge chunk of noodles with her chopsticks and downed it, letting out a pleased noise.
“Hah! You can't deny the pure tastiness of this dish!” Cheng Xiaoshi exclaimed, sitting down at the table. “Anyways, let's eat!”
“The noodles are really good Cheng Xiaoshi,” Lu Guang spoke up from beside him, covering his mouth.
Cheng Xiaoshi beamed. “Soo, down for the noodle shop idea now?” he teased.
“No.” A quick response. “Like I said, if you do, I'm leaving.”
Cheng Xiaoshi gasped, “You wouldn't dare.”
“I wouldn't.”
The snow still hadn't stopped, but it really didn't matter anymore.