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Chapter Text

Lan Wangji had woken up at exactly five in the morning and for the first time in the last ten years didn’t immediately get up to begin his morning routine. 

Instead he sat there looking at the ceiling thinking of the person who has been hunting his dreams for the past few weeks. Wei Ying, of course. Ever since that night on the roof in one of Cloud Recesses’ buildings. 

Wei Ying had smiled with ease— and what a beautiful smile it was, Lan Wangji felt his heart skip a beat when he caught a glimpse of it for the first time, the sound of his laugh engraved in his brain.

Lan Wangji felt this intense unknown feeling in his gut every time he thought of Wei Ying. The pink curve of his mouth that tortured him , his plush lower lip, those raven gray eyes with their special little glint, his high cheekbones that tinted red whenever he got embarrassed.

Oh, he could go on and on about everything that sent him to an early grave about Wei Ying but exploring that spark in his gut was a very deep dive into the unknown and he didn't know if he could handle this right now. 

So he forced himself to get up and prepare for another long day of enduring Wei Ying’s presence without succumbing to a heart attack

Lan Wangji walks in his uncle’s class, the first one to get inside as usual. He situates himself and prepares his desk in front of him while the rest of the students also come inside. 

His entire body tenses when he hears that voice that has been daunting him for days, basically scream— “JIANG CHENG!! Let go of me you idiot!” 

“Oh now you want to be left alone? Why didn’t you think about that befo—”

“A-Cheng we’re going to be late for Old-Man-Qiren’s class, he’s going to make a lecture out of it and I don't wanna hear it so just wait until we’re dismissed ah?” Replied Wei Ying who was now finally coming into class, his brother and Nie Huaisang trailing a few steps behind. 

“Who’s your A-Cheng?” Said Jiang Wanyin, his displeasure being extremely visible by his massive frown. Wei Ying just gave him a little smirk and moved towards his seat, while Shufu got up from his seat, an indication that the lesson was about to start.

To Lan Wangji’s displeasure he felt his eyes being naturally drawn towards Wei Ying as he sat down. Today the part of his hair— raven black falling down his shoulders, always looking so soft even if they were a bit tangled,so much that Lan Wangji for some reason always yearned to pass his hands through it and untangle it himself— that he usually tied in a higher ponytail was tied significantly lower, framing his face differently than usual. It drove Lan Wangji only mildly insane— and he really couldn't come to terms with the fact that such a small change was so noticeable in his eyes.That every detail about Wei Ying just felt so… important. 

While he was fuming in his little bubble Wei Ying turned around with one of his usual radiant smiles that put the sun to shame. “Lan Zhan!” He whisper shouted. 

Lan Wangji, basically fighting against every fiber in his body, managed to keep looking straight towards his uncle, who was speaking and Lan Wangji should have been paying attention to, and didn’t turn his body so that it looked like he was giving Wei Ying any attention. 

“Lan Zhaaaaan! Lan ZHAN! Lan Wangj?” Wei Ying increased the volume of his voice every time he repeated Lan Wangji’s name and Lan Wangji was fairly sure that his uncle had already heard him but didn't bother to stop him, at least not just yet. Traitor.  

“Lan Er-Gege?” He said and Lan Wangji could hear the grin he had on his face. If he was fighting every fiber in his body before, now he was going mental. If he hadn’t spent years studying self discipline he would’ve screeched at the top of his lungs right then and there. 

He turned around giving Wei Ying the most scandalised look he could master, hoping some higher deity in this world would take mercy on him and either erase Wei Wuxian from existence or shove him in his arms. Neither seemed like a bad idea at the moment. 

Wei Ying looked all but deterred by the wide eyed glare Lan Wangji was sending him and just continued to half whisper towards his direction. 

“Lan Zhan, do you know if we are going to be paired at today’s sword training? Please say yes, I can’t spar with Jiang Cheng again, it's getting boring, I don't even want to imagine having to fight Peacock and Nie-xiong will just fool around all the time! I can’t tell on him obviously what kind of a friend would I be—” Wei Ying basically rambled with a weird look on his face, between deep in thought and disappointment. 

“—Plus, you are the only one who can match me, and I know it goes the other way around too, so what do you say? Care for a match with me? I’m sure you could tell the instructor to change the pairs around a bit if we don't end up together. Everyone will listen to Second Young Master Lan, no?” 

If Lan Wangji liked to lie to himself he would say that sparring with Wei Ying was boring, that it felt just like every other spar he ever had and leave it at that. But he was too self-conscious for that so he acknowledged the burning desire to exchange blows with Wei Ying again. 

Wei Ying was right, he was indeed the only person that he had fought with before that could match him. Well, perhaps other than his brother. The only person that matched his age, that is. And Lan Wangji had probably never felt adrenaline like he did when their swords clashed. But that was a whole different conversation. 

Lan Wangji was about to respond and say something about how he shouldn’t interfere with the way the instructor decides to guide his lesson, even if he had the power to do so— which was ridiculous because why was he ready to disturb his uncle’s lesson just to respond to Wei Ying— but his uncle decided it was time to shut Wei Wuxian up before he managed to open his mouth. 

“Wei Wuxian! When will you stop talking, it’s one thing not to pay attention in class and another to annoy your classmates about it!” 

“Lan-Xiansheng! It’s not my fault your lectures are so boring I dream about getting out of here. I needed some motivation to get through the lecture without dying out of boredom, you know. Knowing I would get to spar with Lan Zhan later would be enough!” Replied Wei Ying with a little giggle, indicating that he was just riling his uncle up to get himself thrown out of class. 

Uncle was pinching his forehead which meant that he already did not want to continue this conversation, which also meant that— “Wei Wuxian get out of my class! Library pavilion, copy the Book of Conduct 100 times, Wangji, supervise him.” 

Wei Ying looked all but content to leave this class. He smiled, getting up immediately, walking away as fast as possible without it being considered running. He sent Lan Wangji a look when he reached the exit, stopping his frantic walking to turn his body to the side towards Lan Wangji. He was waiting to be followed. 

Lan Wangji had never gotten a stronger urge to glare at his uncle before.

As expected Wei Ying wasn’t taking this seriously at all. He had spent the last thirty minutes singing songs Lan Wangji had never heard before, probably ones originating from Yunmeng, sitting in his seat with the most atrocious posture Lan Wangji had ever seen, barely actually copying anything. 

There is no way he would be able to finish even one whole copy of the book before it was time for sword practice that neither he nor Lan Wangji were allowed to miss. Wei Ying must know that, that's why he’s been messing around all this time. 

It’s infuriating. Lan Wangji should’ve been doing something about it, it was his duty as a supervisor. He was there to make sure Wei Ying was getting his work done, that’s what supervisors are supposed to do. 

But his stupid mind decided to take its fill of staring at Wei Ying instead. Hearing him murmur melodies while twirling a strand of his hair between his fingers. 

Wei Ying looked up from the paper in front of him, staring up at Lan Wangji with a little grin and a glint in his eyes, which only meant trouble. Lan Wangji averted his gaze looking down at the book he was (half) reading all this time. 

Wei Ying got up, picking up a paper from the desk with him. To Lan Wangji’s disquiet, he started walking towards his direction. 

“Lan Zhan, here!” Said Wei Ying and extended his hand with the paper towards him. Lan Wangji hesitated for a moment before taking it from Wei Wuxian’s hand. 

He looked down at it just to be left utterly speechless. It was a drawing of him. Wei Ying drew him. Wei Ying. Drew a portrait. Of him. He looked at the painting like it had offended him personally. 

“Ah, wait” Wei Ying sat down next to him and took the paper from his hands before Lan Wangji could protest. Then used the brush in front of him and drew a flower next to Lan Wangji’s ear in the drawing. It looked like a peony. 

Now, Lan Wangji was officially losing it. 

“What do you think? Does it fit Second Young Master Lan’s standards” Said Wei Ying, grin never leaving his face. 

“Boring” Said Lan Wangji because he really didn’t know what else to say.

“Ayah, Lan Zhan I’ve heard enough ‘borings’ from you can you say something different for once or at least add some more words to it” 

“Utterly boring” 

Wei Ying giggled— giggled, heavens help him — “Lan Zhan! You’re so funny, has anyone ever told you you're funny” 

No one, had in fact, told him he was funny before and hearing it from Wei Ying sparked that weird feeling in his gut again and he really could not deal with this right now. 

He had to get out of here, away from Wei Ying and his stupid smile— which was now turning into Wei Wuxian biting his lip while smiling which was his last stroke. 

He averted his gaze, picking up that book he had left next to him again, trying to occupy himself with something. He opened on a random page not really caring about it, just needing to find a way to escape Wei Ying.

At first he wasn’t really comprehending what he was looking at but a little huff from Wei Ying got his brain to work again and he realised he was staring at a picture of two very naked men who were— “Wei Ying!” 

He dropped the book and got up staring at Wei Wuxian with wide eyes, trying to make sense of this whole thing. All Wei Ying did was burst into laughter. 

“Yes yes yes! It's me” 

Lan Wangji picked up Bichen as Wei Ying extended his hand trying to stop him. 

“Lan Zhan! Calm down, you don’t have to be ashamed of this, there’s no way you haven’t read a book like this before, I don't believe it.”

He didn’t know why he was reacting like that, he should’ve just confiscated the book and dragged Wei Ying to meet his uncle to receive his punishment. 

But something felt very weird inside of him. Maybe it was this new found desire he had for Wei Ying that everything that involved indecent acts and Wei Ying unlocked a fantasy of his. 

It didn’t help that Wei Ying had chosen to show him cut-sleeve porn. That alone gave him some kind of hope. He had never dwelled on it for too long, not wanting to step into that territory but… he didn’t know if Wei Ying was interested in men at all. 

And he wasn’t really ready to know, if he was being honest. Either answer could send him into his grave: if Wei Ying didn’t like men, he would have to shut off his feelings, even forcibly so. It wouldn’t do any good to like somebody who could never like him back. 

On the other hand, if Wei Ying did like men that meant he would technically have a chance with him. Obviously liking men didn’t equate to liking him too. But his stupid heart dared to hope for the possibility even now that he wasn’t sure. Knowing Wei Ying liked men as a fact without forcing a confession out of him at the same time could only make this worse.

“Go outside” He said, feeling like he was losing all of his sanity by the second. 

“Ah? Lan Zhan put your sword down, fighting for no reason is forbidden, as an inner disciple you surely know that” 

Lan Wangji did, in fact, not put his sword down. Instead he grabbed that book and ripped it into pieces. It felt like putting a stop to all of his weird internal monologuing about Wei Ying’s sexual orientation. Heavens, it sounded silly even to his own brain. 

“Lan Zhan! No no no no!” Wei Ying let some moans of despair out between his words which only killed Lan Wangji a little bit more. 

“Get out”

“You ruined it!—” Wei Ying caught a ripped piece of the now destroyed book “— Everybody says that you are a nobleman, the most virtuous of all and you’re here talking to me like that? How unbec—” 

Lan Wangji started pointing his sword at him 

“Fine! Fine Lan Zhan I’ll piss off. No need to escort me out!” Wei Ying was finally leaving. Finally letting Lan Wangji breathe normally. Letting his heart beat at a normal pace. 

Lan Wangji just stared at the now empty Library Pavilion. Everything felt weirdly empty without Wei Ying. Well, empty was probably not the right word. More like dim, like Wei Ying carried all the brightness the place had with him once he left. 

Was he delirious…. He should really talk to his brother sometime. 

Sword practice, probably Lan Wangji’s favourite class. At least before Wei Ying. Before him he meditated, got through the basic forms to warm up, had a duel with another one of the senior disciples or sometimes helped the junior disciples if the instructor asked him to. 

But now he had to endure existing around a sweaty, disheveled Wei Wuxian who very easily won every duel against anybody but his brother like it was the easiest thing to do. A Wei Ying who smiled around like this was the best thing he had ever experienced. A Wei Ying who just looked so free, fighting and jumping around like water. 

Today his brother had insisted to attend the class and see for himself the person who claimed to fight with Lan Wangji on a rooftop in action. He still remembers the amused look Xichen had sent him when Wei Ying announced that he had been “attacked by Second Young Master Lan before he even properly set foot in Cloud Recesses.”

“Young Master Wei could pair with Wangji today, no?” Said his traitor of a brother, looking at the instructor seeking approval and Lan Wangji didn’t quite glare at him but he came close to it. 

Xiongzhang had caught wind of his infatuation with Wei Ying. Lan Wangji hadn’t exactly tried to hide it from him, after all he couldn’t quite remember the last time he managed to completely hide his feelings from his brother. 

But that also meant that he was now vulnerable and his brother had something to tease him for. This was going to be a long day. 

“Of course, Zewu-jun.” Said the instructor tilting his head down to a half bow. 

Xichen sent him a small smile and turned his gaze towards Wei Ying. 

“Unless Young Master Wei doesn't agree?” Lan Wangji narrowed his eyes at his brother who of course didn't ask him if he wanted to fight with Wei Ying, letting it be implied that Lan Wangji would naturally have no objections. Oh this was going to be a very long day. 

“Ah, Zewu-jun is so generous, making my best dreams come true! Of course I’ll fight Lan Zhan again.” Said Wei Ying, smiling as usual while Jiang Wanyin rolled his eyes so far up they could bulge out. 

“This again.” He said with a sigh sending a half hatred glare at Wei Ying. 

Wei Ying turned to look at his brother, his smile looking overly forced now. In a way that screamed “shut up”. 

Then proceeded to basically run towards Lan Wangji’s direction. 

“Lan Zhan! We’ll finally get to fight together. Come on, don’t look at me like that, you have to be even a little excited” He said and winked at Lan Wangji. Before he dies he’ll make sure to leave a note next to his body declaring that it was all Wei Ying’s fault. Because he is sure no monster will ever come close to killing him as much as Wei Ying is. 

He just walked to the area they were supposed to be fighting in, hoping a hole would open up and swallow him on his way. 

They stood opposite of eachother swords already out of their sheaths. 

“So, Lan Zhan, first to draw blood?”

“First to get the other to yield.” 

Wei Ying sent him a small smirk with a huff and surged against him. Lan Wangji managed to block just in time and turned to strike back as well.

They fell into a rhythm, exchanging blows one after another. It became obvious that the one who would win would be the one who would manage to find an opening first. 

Their fighting styles were quite literally the opposite of eachother. Wei Ying’s was more flowy, signature to the Jiang sect whereas Lan Wangji was more steady, his moves more calculated. 

Wei Ying had understood early on that it would be hard to move Lan Wangji, he was more so trying to lure him out and find an inconsistency to strike than break his defence. While Lan Wangji knew he couldn’t follow Wei Ying with his offence, so his best shot would be to tire him out or get him frustrated and find the right time to strike. 

“You know, Lan Zhan, I was waiting for so long to have a duel with you again and you’re really not disappointing me! I knew Second Young Master Lan—” Wei Ying sent a strong hit towards his way, grunting as it was delivered “— Would exceed my expectations.” He finished, sounding a bit out of breath. 

Lan Wangji sent his sword towards Wei Ying’s torso causing him to duck down with a spin, his sword ready to strike low but getting blocked by Lan Wangji’s foot on the hilt. 

“Come on, Wei-Xiong!” Said a voice which sounded like Nie Huaisang.

Wei Ying got up again with a full smile on his face. Lan Wangji didn’t give him time to recover. He started swinging his sword towards Wei Ying driving him around the practice ring, only to be met with Wei Ying deliberately walking backwards the corner of the ring while blocking his blows, spinning around at the last moment before getting trapped and hitting Lan Wangji’s back with the hilt of his word. 

Lan Wangji, being forced to take step forward because of the impact, decided to use the foot that was now foreward to turn around and swing against Wei Ying after he felt his hair lightly brush against his neck, meaning that Wei Ying had spun round and Lan Wangji would meet his sword, not his neck which was, well, the last thing he wanted to do. 

To his surprise as he turned around he saw Wei Ying lower his body to slice at his knees.

He realised he was basically trapped: he was too close to the fence of the ring which meant he couldn’t back out because Wei Ying’s sword would still reach him, he didn’t have enough time to jump high enough to jump over Wei Ying and if he jumped enough to avoid Wei Ying’s sword Wei Ying would be able to stand up and strike with enough force to knock him over. Blocking the sword with his foot was also near impossible as he wasn't as close to the hilt as he should’ve been to pull it off. 

So he picked the only solution that would stop Wei Ying from taking a point against him and jumped high enough to avoid the blow. Wei Ying striked sideways with his elbow on Lan Wangji’s hand just some centimeters away from his sword hilt as Lan Wangji fell down causing him to almost lose his grip on the sword. 

Then Wei Ying striked with his foot towards his abdomen causing Lan Wangji to fall on his knee and pointed his sword against his neck 

“Yield.” His voice, sounding uncharacteristically low and raw. His neck must’ve been dry from all the harsh breaths he had to take the past few minutes. If Lan Wangji didn’t have a sword pointed against his neck he most likely would’ve gasped at the sound of it.

Lan Wangji did the only thing he could think of: He extended his hand, reaching Wei Ying’s knees and made his sword hilt strike with his qi causing Wei Ying to yelp and fall basically on top of him, the strike and the unconventional fall made Wei Ying’s hand that held the sword fall on the side to try and find balance, giving Lan Wangji time to raise his own sword against Wei Ying’s neck but not enough to be let off the hook. 

They now both had their swords against each other’s necks, which wasn't what really mattered to Lan Wangji right now. 

He was too focused on the fact that they were so close he could feel Wei Ying’s breath against him. He could count his eyelashes from this proximity. And as if Wei Ying had searched through his wildest dreams—“Lan Zhan, yield.” he whispered and leaned even closer. 

Lan Wangji felt the metal of Wei Ying’s sword’s blade scrape his neck as he stared at Wei Wuxian’s parted lips. 

He felt his own sword touch Wei Ying’s neck as he leaned even closer in return like a man possessed , which drove his attention towards it. He saw Wei Ying’s adam’s apple bob as he swallowed, which was…, way too much. So much that he drew a sharp inhale and fell back like he had been burned. 

“I yield.” He said, looking at the ground, trying to escape Wei Ying. 

“Eh, good one Lan Zhan.” Wei Ying laughed shakily and his eyes did a funny thing as he stood up, taking some steps back to get away from Lan Wangji to a more appropriate distance. 

“Wei Wuxian! Get over here.” Said Jiang Wanyin. Lan Wangji looked up at that seeing a scandalized Nie Huaisang who was opening and closing his mouth, looking at Lan Wangji then at Wei Ying every time he opened it, looking like a fish. 

A Jiang Wanyin who looked like he was about to murder his brother, his own brother looking at him utterly amused, his eyebrows raised up on his forehead and a few dozen people clapping and congratulating Wei Ying. 

Wei Ying walked towards his brother and Nie Huaisang while putting his sword back in its sheath. 

“Wei-Xiong what was that!” He said, covering his mouth with his fan. 

“Yes you idiot, when they say duel they don’t mean make out session! I’m going to break your legs the moment we step foot in Yunmeng…..”

Lan Wangji felt the voice fade as he walked away from the training field, he really needed to talk to his brother. 

Lan Wangji opened the doors of the dorm to be greeted with a Jiang Wanyin chasing his brother around a table and a Nie Huaisang trying to separate them without getting accidentally punched in the face by either of them. 

Lan Wangji also saw five or so jars of Emperor’s Smile on said table. The room basically reeked of alcohol which was already making him a bit dizzy. Not to mention that none of the people in front of him looked sober. 

Lan Wangji also saw that the room was a mess. Papers over the floor, clothes left at the most random places possible, one of the jars of alcohol had fallen off the table, probably because of all the running around it, dripping down the floor. Lan Wangji could make a list of all the rules that they had broken. 

Wei Ying ran to the bed nearby while the other two chased after him, taking one of the robes that had been messily abandoned on the bed and throwing it straight at his brother's face. 

“You—” Said Jiang Wanyin after dodging. Nie Huaisang was trailing behind him, trying to stop him from running after Wei Ying.

“Me?” Wei Ying smirked up at his brother, already taking a defensive pose behind the bed. 

“I’m going to break your legs you idiot!” He started running after Wei Ying again, much to Nie Huaisang’s displeasure who looked like he was ready to knock both of them out.  

After some circles around the bed they ended up with Wei Ying half sitting on the bed, Jiang Wanyin trying to reach his neck with his hands and Nie Huaisang holding him back. 

“What are you doing?” He finally interfered, stepping in the room. 

The three of them forgot about whatever they were doing and got off of each other, straightening up. 

“Ah, Lan Zhan, what a happy coincidence! Since you are here, why not share a drink with us?” Wei Ying got off the bed with an apologetic smile that quickly turned into a brighter one as he approached him. 

“Alcohol is forbidden in Cloud Recesses.” He said as impassively as possible. 

Wei Ying opened and closed his mouth once looking unsure of what he wanted to say. “Come on, don’t be so rigid.” He ended up replying with a disappointed voice and a pout— which was way too cute and Lan Wangji was entirely too weak— and grabbed Lan Wangji’s robe’s sleeve between his middle and index fingers, tugging at it a little.

“You three, go to the punishment chamber to be disciplined.” He replied before he could do anything dumb like kiss Wei Ying’s pout off his face. 

“The what?” Wei Ying said pointedly then retracted his hand quickly and turned around to face his brother and Nie Huaisang with an obviously fake smile. 

To their credit, they caught the memo quickly enough and fell down on the bed, acting like they passed out from the alcohol. 

Wei Ying turned back to face him. “Ah, you see Lan Zhan, they are too drunk to walk. Why not sit down with me and have a drink!” Wei Ying finished with a smirk.

Lan Wangji turned around and started walking towards the exit. He needed to report all this to his uncle. He told Wei Ying so. 

Jiang Wanyin and Nie Huaisang ran out of the room running with their hands on their mouths, like they were ready to vomit. So much for not being able to walk. 

Before he could step out of the room he felt his body freeze and a hand touch him on his shoulder. He tried to walk again and realised he didn’t have authority over his body. Wei Ying must’ve put a talisman on him. 

Wei Ying inspected him a bit and then waved a hand in front of his face a couple of times. And if he was in any other situation he would’ve found it cute but right now he was a bit too focused on getting his body to work. 

“Lan Zhan?” Asked Wei Ying and when Lan Wangji didn’t answer, he smiled in victory while putting his hands on his waist, looking more like a proud mom. 

Then remembered his situation and turned around quickly to close the door behind them, giving Lan Wangji some time to panic freely. Sure they wouldn’t get away with it, the talisman’s effects would wear off and he would talk to his uncle about this. What he was worried about was what Wei Ying might try to do while he was in this state.

Making his fears come true, Wei Ying sat on the chair next to the table with the jars of Emperor’s Smile. “Lan Zhan, come, sit here and have a drink.” 

Lan Wangji didn’t have any other choice. His body automatically walked itself next to the table. He needed to tell Wei Ying how much of a bad idea this was. He had never drunk alcohol before, there was no way he would be able to take it well.

He was also about to violate one of his clan’s rules, even if it’s outside of his control. He would have to be punished about this too. 

He sat down even as his brain was screaming for him to stop, took the cup Wei Ying had left in front of him and drank it all in a single sip. Wei Ying looked amazed just by the fact that the talisman actually worked that well.

“Lan Zhan? How does it feel, isn't it good?” 

 No, it didn’t feel good at all. He could feel it already kicking in though, he was getting overly dizzy, this wasn't a good sign.

“Lan Zhan?...Lan Zhaaaan?” 

Lan Wangji fainted. 

When he regained his senses again he was lying down on a bed and Wei Ying was sitting down next to it rambling about something but Lan Wangji was still too out of it to understand what it was that he was saying.

Something about how Second Young Master Lan was swaying to his rhythms. Anyway it didn’t really matter. 

Wei Ying turned to him. “Lan Zhan, call me Wei-gege.” 

“Wei-gege.” he said in his daze. He heard Wei Ying giggle above him.

He then saw Wei Ying trying to touch his forehead ribbon, that got him to react alright. He wiggled to the side, not letting Wei Ying come in contact with it.

“What’s wrong?” He asked when Wei Ying retracted his hand.

“FInally some reaction! You forehead ribbon is tilted” 

His forehead ribbon was tilted. That’s not right. He scrambled up quickly trying to fix his ribbon with his hands. 

“Lan Zhan, it’s still tilted, let me help.” Wei Ying tried to touch the ribbon again. He slapped his hand away. 

“Do not touch it.” Wei Ying let his hand fall down and shrugged, getting back to drinking his Emperor’s Smile. 

Lan Wangji fiddled with his ribbon a little bit more. 

“Lan Zhan, it’s still not right. Just let me fix it for you, why are you acting like that?”

“The forehead ribbon is sacred. Other than family and significant others, nobody can touch it.” He explained. 

“Significant others?” Wei Ying perked up and sat on the bed next to him laughing. 

“Why are you laughing?” 

“I’m laughing at you Lans and all your rules. You’re so rigid and arduous. No woman will ever marry you, you’ll stay alone forever.” 

“That’s alright.” 

“You don’t want a wife?” Wei Ying looked at him curiously. 

“No.” 

“Would Second Young Master Lan prefer a husband then?” Wei Ying was obviously trying to tease him but, well, lying was against the rules and he wasn’t exactly sober right now. 

“Yes.” 

That made Wei Ying pause. He let out a nervous laugh. “Well that’s good to know! I would’ve tried to entice you to visit Yunmeng once the lessons finish by telling you about beautiful maidens. Guess I should find you beautiful young masters instead.” 

“You won’t have to search a lot.” He replied, just blurting out whatever came to mind. He really should never touch alcohol again. 

“Ah?” Wei Ying looked at him with wide eyes, stunned. 

“I am saying, you will not need to search a lot to find beautiful young masters from Yunmeng.” 

Wei Ying started laughing again, this time more hysterically, like he couldn’t believe what he was hearing. 

“Lan Zhan, I really shouldn’t have made you drink any wine. But anyway, wife or husband nobody will marry you if you’re that upright you know. Are all Lans like that? Is your father like that? Your mother must be so bored, Lan Zhan.” 

“I don’t have a mother” 

“That’s impossible, you didn’t come out of thin ai— oh.” Wei Ying looked away from him, staring at the wall on the opposite side of the room and took another sip out of the jar of alcohol he was holding. 

“Me neither. My parents died when I was four… you would think I’d remember something but nope. All I remember is being chased by a bunch of dogs. Well, I do remember one thing, I was riding a donkey and my mother was beside me. My father was laughing in front of us, my mom must’ve cracked a joke…” 

He looked down at his feet for a moment. “Lan Zhan, here is to us!—” He raised the jar in the air “— May we never forget what is worth remembering, or remember what is best forgotten, bottoms up!” 

Lan Wangji really wanted to kiss him right at that moment but not even the wine was enough to give him courage to do that. 

Lan Wangji fell to his knees in front of his uncle and his brother. 

“Wangji is at fault. Uncle, brother, I shall be punished.”

“Xiansheng, Zewu-jun, it is true that we disobeyed the rules and got drunk but, Lan Zhan, he didn’t…” Wei Ying interfered.

“Nonsense! You haven’t even received your punishment yet and you want to make more trouble? Do you think that just because your mother is Cangse—” 

Wei Ying gasped next to him. “Xiansheng, you knew my mother?” He was ignored. 

“Wangji, Young Master Wei isn’t part of the Lan clan but you are. And you are aware of our principles.” Said his brother. 

“Wangji recognises his mistake and will accept any punishment.”

“Zewu-jun! It’s all my fault, I made Lan Zhan drink, if anyone should be punished it’s me. It’s all on me.” 

Lan Wangji wanted to protest, other than the fact that this was also his fault, he didn’t want Wei Ying to get punished more than he already was going to be because of him. 

“Wangji recognises his mistake and will accept any punishment.” He repeated. 

“What is wrong with you? Do you want to be punished for no reason?” 

“Wei Wuxian, as the head of the group, shall be hit 300 times by the bastinado as punishment. Same with Lan Zhan” Said his uncle, and Wei Ying turned to look at him like he was ready to protest. 

“The rest shall be hit 50 times” 

Lan Wangji felt the bastinado hit his back and bit his tongue to stay in place and not make a sound. 

Lan Wangji loved the cold springs. He visited often to meditate and calm his mind. It was a very beautiful place, very idyllic, very calm. 

He had gotten out of his robes, the water did a better job at soothing wounds when it came in direct contact with the skin. 

He tried to meditate but his mind wasn’t peaceful enough to let him get to that point. He was thinking of all the things that had happened the past few weeks. His life had turned upside down ever since Wei Ying appeared in it. It was like he had added color in his monotonous world. 

He hadn't felt like that since before his mother’s death. 

He heard steps behind him. Someone was coming this way. He turned around and saw Wei Ying running down the path towards him. How did he get in, only inner disciples can have access to this place.

When Wei Ying reached him he had expected to be bombarded with his usual rambling that he had grown to love. But instead, Wei Wing situated himself against a tree and stared at him with wide eyes.

Well, he wasn’t what Wei Ying was staring at, more like his naked torso. Suddenly he became too conscious about the fact that he was naked from the waist and up. 

Wei Ying seemed to recover pretty fast though. “Lan Zhan, you knew such a place like this and you didn’t share?” 

“How did you get in?” 

“Zewu-jun let me.” Wei Ying replied with a smug smile. He made a mental note to murder his brother.

Wei Ying started walking towards the lake while taking his outer robe off. Lan Wangji almost told him how ‘shameless’ he was but he remembered that he himself was pretty indecent. And no matter how cold the springs were he felt warm to his core the moment Wei Ying took off his outer robe. 

He took his shoes off too and was ready to disrobe even further but Lan Wangji wouldn’t be able to handle that so he just said, “The springs are very cold, it’s best you keep the robe on as it’s your first time coming here.”

Wei Ying seemed to think about it for some seconds and then shrugged and dipped his foot in the water only to jump back at the contact.

He looked at Lan Wangji like he had betrayed him with his mouth open and foot hanging in the air. He looked like a scared cat and it was the cutest thing Lan Wangji had ever seen. 

“LAN ZHAN! Are you insane? Do you want to kill me? Do you want to kill yourself? How are you standing in there?”

“It promotes healing.”

“It promotes freezing to death!” 

Lan Wangji felt the corners of his mouth twitch a bit. Wei Ying was so ridiculous. 

“Ah! And now you’re smiling. How many ways are you going to find to assassinate me today huh?”

“Wei Ying…” He felt his ears getting hot. Heavens he was probably in the coldest place in Cloud Recesses and his ears were getting hot . What was Wei Ying doing to him? 

Wei Ying laughed and slowly let his foot get in the lake, even though he shivered. 

“Lan Zhan, this place… it’s so pretty, I knew you’d be an admirer of beauties.” Wei Ying did a funny thing with his eyebrow at that.

Lan Wangji paused. Surely Wei Ying couldn’t be talking about himself, trying to make an innuendo but memories of him telling Wei Ying that he “didn’t have to search a lot to find beautiful young masters from Yunmeng” flooded him. Maybe Wei Ying was messing with him after all. 

To make matters worse Wei Ying, now fully into the lake, started walking towards him, his inner robe pooling around him. 

Wei Ying looked up at him questionally when he reached a distance that was bordering on inappropriate. Lan Wangji was too weak to stop him. 

“You know, Lan Zhan. You didn’t have to let yourself be punished, it was my fault after all. Now that I think about it I also owe you an apology for getting you drunk.” 

“I was at fault too and… I did not want to let you get punished in my place.” 

Wei Ying’s lips parted and he averted his gaze for a moment. “Ah, Lan Zhan… Well, at least you should let me apologise for using that talisman on you, I shouldn’t have done that. I was messing around— I swear!— I wasn’t even sure it would work. If I knew you couldn’t hold your liquor at all I wouldn’t have done it. I apologise.” 

“There is no need for apologies between us” He meant it, he didn't expect any “sorries” from Wei Ying. The way he didn’t expect any “thank yous” either. It felt like they were too close for that, somehow. 

Wei Ying turned to face him immediately, completely taken by surprise. “Ah, Lan Zhan, you can’t say things like that. I can feel my heart fluttering like I’m some lovestruck maiden.” 

That was a weird analogy to make considering their proximity and their state of undress. Lan Wangji was sure he had died and was now ascending to some heaven. And when his ancestors ask him how he died at such a young age he would point at Wei Ying and they all would nod in understandment, because surely nobody could expect him to survive this conversation. 

“Don’t tease.” Was all he could master to say. 

“I’m not teasing you.” Wei Ying took another step forward.

He looked so inviting, his lips parted, his inner robe half open, his head was tilted to the side too. He was practically begging to be kissed and Lan Wangji almost did lean in at that moment but then a feeling of dread washed over him. 

What if he was wrong and this wasn’t what Wei Ying wanted, what if Wei Ying saw him as a friend, what if he ruined their friendship just because he couldn’t control himself. 

He took a few steps back and sank into the water. “You should stay here for a few hours if you want the springs to have an effect on your wounds.” 

Wei Ying blinked a couple of times, then drew a sharp breath and nodded frantically. “Yeah, I can do that.” Then walked back to find a rock to situate himself on. 

Lan Wangji dipped his head even lower until his ears were touching the water. 

Lan Wangji was sitting on the ground making his lantern. Usually he would put enough effort to make it look decent enough and then just release it with his wish. This year though Wei Ying had insisted that they should make and release a lantern together. At first Lan Wangji had just told him that he was “used to doing this alone” and kept on making his lantern. 

But now Wei Ying was presenting him a lantern he had apparently made for him. 

“Look, Lan Zhan, do you like it?” 

Lan Wangji looked at the bunny Wei Ying had drawn on the lantern. It was very pretty, Lan Wangji had noticed Wei Ying’s talent with drawing when he gave him his portrait back in the Library Pavilion. This was further proof. 

He felt a smile come to his face. Wei Wuxian made a lantern for him. He wanted to release the lantern with him. It felt oddly fulfilling. 

Wei Ying laughed. “Lan Zhan! You’re smiling.”

Yes, he was. He felt… happy. It wasn’t a first but it had been a while since he truly had felt something like that. 

“Come on, we have to release it.” Wei Ying exclaimed, too happy to get a laugh out of him. 

Lan Wangji looked around, everybody was getting up from the floor with their lanterns in hand, ready to release them. Wei Ying scrambled up with the lantern in hand and smiled at Lan Wangji. 

“Come on, Lan Zhan,” 

Lan Wangji got up as well and they both walked towards the end of the cliff in front of them. 

Wei Ying used a talisman to light it up, then they put both their hands under the lantern and released it slowly, making sure it would go smoothly up in the air. 

Lan Wangji felt a little giddy on the inside. It was the first time he had shared a lantern with someone who wasn’t his brother, it felt oddly comforting to know that Wei Ying was the one to be doing this with him.

Wei Ying clapped his hands together and closed his eyes. “I, Wei Wuxian, wish to be able to always stand with justice and live with no regrets” 

Lan Wangji stared at his side profile and felt his heart skip a beat. He felt this weird feeling inside of him, he had felt many unknown feelings with Wei Ying around. Ones that consumed his whole being. 

But this was unlike anything else he had felt before, he thought he might burst with it. The desire to kiss, hug, anything Wei Ying washed over him with so much power he could kneel down with it. 

This was love. He was in love.

He heard people murmur in the background, all hoping for different things. He realised he hadn’t wished for anything, way too consumed with the realisation. But it was alright, he had everything he wanted at arm’s length. He thought he might look at it again, to remind himself that it was there. He was there. 

So he stared at Wei Ying for a moment, and another, and another.

The next day, he was walking back to the Jingshi after sword practice. As he reached the front porch he saw a silhouette leaning at one of its columns. 

Said silhouette turned around to look at him. 

“Lan Zhan! You’re here.”

“Wei Ying?” Why was Wei Ying here? Actually, how was he here? Who told him Lan Wangji lived here? 

As if Wei Ying could sense his confusion, “I wanted to talk to you so I asked your brother where I could find you and he told me to come here. Sorry if I straddled you.”  

Lan Wangji inclined his head encouraging Wei Ying to elaborate as he reached the porch as well. 

“So, you know me and the JIang will go back to Lotus Pier in three days so I was thinking if you… would be willing to maybe come to Caiyi town with me, as kind of a goodbye party or something. But if you have something else to do or if you don’t want to come it’s totally alright I’ll just..” 

Oh.

He had forgotten that Wei Ying would have to leave at some point, that he wasn’t here permanently. It hit him like a bucket of ice cold water. 

“Wei Ying, I would love to” 

“Ah? That’s wonderful, we can go now or…” 

“I will take my pouch with money and then we can go.” 

“Yes yes, of course.” Wei Ying smiled at him and he couldn’t fathom how he would have to let go of him in two days. 

“So, Lan Zhan, where are we going! You’ve lived here all your life, surely you know the best places to visit.” 

They were already walking through a crowded street in Caiyi. Lan Wangji didn’t particularly enjoy the hustle and bustle of such streets, he had grown up in Cloud Recesses after all. The noise overwhelmed him most of the time, making him focus all his attention towards finding a way to escape this and find a more quiet place to be in. 

He preferred to have his brother by his side in situations like these, he was way more comfortable in a crowd than he was. He didn’t have to worry about vendors approaching him either if Xiongzhang was around, he would talk in his place. 

It was the first time another person other than his brother had bringed him this kind of comfort. 

“What would Wei Ying like to do?” 

“Hmmm, well I have to try some sweets or street food before leaving Gusu. Don’t you think so?” 

“Mn.” 

“Aren’t I lucky, I can find that everywhere! Well then, tell me what is best to try?” 

Lan Wangji ended up buying him a little bit of, well, everything. He was half sure Wei Ying was going to get out of Caiyi sick because of all the sugar he had consumed in the last hour or so. But he couldn’t exactly bring himself to stop treating Wei Ying to more. He looked way too enthusiastic to try each one of them. His eyes sparkled every time Lan Wangji presented him with another candy to try. It was cute and he wanted Wei Ying to enjoy himself.

“Lan Zhan! What is that? It looks spicy, please tell me it’s spicy.” 

“It’s chou doufu, it is considered very spicy.” 

“Ah Lan Zhan, I need that, it’s been months— months!— since my mouth has tasted something spicy. I swear you Lans are torturing yourselves with how bland your food is. When was the last time you put sauce in one of your meals, Lan Zhan? Actually, no I don’t want you to answer that, I don’t think my ears are ready for the answer.” 

Wei Ying caught Lan Wangji’s sleeve and started running towards the stall, dragging Lan Wangji with him. Normally Lan Wangji would stiffen under such an action but it was Wei Ying, so he couldn’t possibly protest. 

“What would these Young Masters like to order?” 

“Ah, a portion of chou doufu, unless you want some too, Lan Zhan. Even though I don’t think you would like spicy food.” 

Lan Wangji shook his head.  

“Lan Zhan, this is perfect! I feel like i had been dead all these past few months in Cloud Recesses and I’m now getting reborn. Look, it has chili sauce and lotus seeds! This is the best thing to happen to me in Gusu, well, after meeting you of course.” Wei Ying winked at him while shoving another tofu in his mouth, basically throwing himself on Lan Wangji’s side while also throwing his head back to show just how much he enjoyed those chou doufus.  

Lan Wangji felt like he should've been used to Wei Ying’s antics at this point but his heart never failed to beat faster whenever he teased him. 

A young girl holding a basket full of flowers sitting at the corner of the street turned to speak to them in the Gusu dialect. “Young master! Would your sweetheart want some flowers?” 

Lan Wangji didn’t know how he managed to stop his jaw from dropping but he was internally thanking every entity out there that had let him keep his face straight. 

“Lan Zhan, what is she saying?”

Lan Wangji blinked a couple of times. “She asked if you want to buy flowers.” 

“Oh really?” Wei Ying lit up immediately and took some steps forward. 

“Hello, pretty-jiejie! How much do you sell these for?”

The girl laughed. “Just three coins for a bouquet, five if you want a basket,” she then turned to look at Lan Wangji with a glint in her eyes and he could already smell that whatever she was going to say was going to fuck him sideways. “Your sweetheart is very pretty, Young Master! I think these pink ones will suit his hair the best.” 

Fuck him sideways it did. 

Wei Ying turned back to look at him again, his hair falling around and the girl wasn’t wrong. The flowers would look good on him. 

“Lan Zhan?” He raised an eyebrow, waiting for him to translate. 

“Three coins for a bouquet, five for a basket.” He blurted out the most coherent sentence he could form right now. 

“Are you sure that’s all she said? She talked too much just to say that.” Wei Ying narrowed his eyes in an exaggerated way, meaning that he was teasing again. 

“I am recapitulating.”  

“Oh really? Or are you intentionally not letting me know exactly what she said?” 

Caught, he just averted his gaze and waited for Wei Ying to finish buying the flowers, hoping his red ears weren’t visible. 

“Lan Zhan, guess what I got!” Well, flowers obviously. 

But before he could reply with anything Wei Ying rushed over and hooked a red flower behind his ear, pushing the stem in his hair. 

“Look, I even got us matching flowers. You look good in darker colors, Lan Zhan! Well, I’m sure you would look good in anything…” 

Wei Ying opened his hand and gave him a blue flower—a bellflower, Lan Wangji recognised it— out of the bouquet he just bought. “Come on, put it in my hair, won’t you?” 

Lan Wangji didn’t know what to say. Actually, what talking, he didn’t know how to function. 

Wei Ying inclined his head, waiting for the flower to be placed on his ear too. He looked so eager and Lan Wangji basically on auto-pilot, put the bellflower behind Wei Ying’s ear, receiving a giggle in return. 

“Now you look like my drawing of you.” Wei Ying whispered, and it hadn’t occurred to him how close they were now, he could feel Wei Ying’s breath against him, his hand yet to fall from Wei Ying’s face.  

Lan Wangji barely suppressed the shiver that ran through his spine. 

“Lan Zhan, wanna go sit by the river and watch the boats or, well, we could rent one. That’s even better!” Wei Ying pulled away from him, turning his head towards the direction of the river. 

“Mn.” 

Wei Ying was only happy to lead the way. 

They did end up renting a boat because Wei Ying insisted that “Second Young Master Lan would be too cruel if he denied him this on his last days in Gusu” 

They had settled in and Lan Wangji decided to take the oar. Wei Ying was still eating the longxusu he bought on their way to the boats so he couldn’t row the boat. 

Wei Ying had half lain on the boat. On hand supporting his weight, his head thrown to the side causing his hair to follow the motion and fall on the side as well, exposing his neck.

A devastating sight for a Lan Wangji who had been trying not to bump into a boat that was coming towards their way. 

They had fallen into comfortable silence as they continued their little trip throughout the river, passing by many other boats, the riverside filled with small shops.

At some point Wei Ying had asked Lan Wangji to approach one of them so he could buy some loquats for him as he was convinced he secretly liked them and had stubbornly refused them last time he offered him some. 

Well he wasn’t wrong. 

“Lan Zhan, think you can get us somewhere more private?” 

Lan Wangji was a bit confused at the request but complied and rowed them to a more isolated area and stopped the boat, waiting for Wei Ying to elaborate on why he wanted to get them in a secluded place. 

“So, I wanted to give you something, Lan Zhan…” He turned around and scooted over next to Lan Wangji. 

“I saw this and thought it would suit you so I bought it for you. You can take it as a parting gift or something but I just— I don’t know, I just want you to have something to remember me by!” He smiled looking confident even though he sounded like he didn’t know if this was accepted. Whether he was overstepping or not. 

Lan Wangji gaped at the hairpin Wei Ying was presenting him. It was silver, its end resembled a crescent moon with small blue markings carved on it, two small blue pearls hanging off its base, linked with silver chains. 

It was elegant, it looked expensive but not ostentatious, definitely something he would like to wear. 

“So, Lan Zhan, do you like it?” 

And Lan Wangji— Lan Wangji might have just bursted into tears on the spot. He was now officially convinced that the universe shaped Wei Ying just so he could torture him. He didn’t know what sins he had committed in his previous life but he must have been a really bad person to deserve this. 

Lan Wangji took it in his hands and inspected it. It was very beautiful, it seems like Wei Ying could already guess his tastes. Although he didn’t necessarily dislike wearing headpieces he still didn’t enjoy heavy, bulky things sitting on his head. 

This one was just right. “Could you put it in my hair?” 

“Ah?... Oh! I could but I’ll have to get your headpiece out of it first.” 

“Go on.” 

Wei Ying laughed a bit shakily and took the hairpin out of his hands then gestured for Lan Wangji to turn around so he could work with his hair. 

He turned around and seated himself in front of Wei Yings knees. He almost gasped when Wei Ying’s hands touched his scalp. The last time someone had done his hair for him must have been his brother when he was seven, trying to teach him how to do his hair on his own.

Wei Ying’s touches were feather-light as if he was worried Lan Wangji would pull away at any moment now. Well, no promises, he was dying a bit internally but tried to shove it down. After all, he brought this onto himself. 

Wei Ying removed his headpiece and added the hairpin in his hair, his hands might have been shaking but Lan Wangji wasn’t sure if he had imagined that or not. 

“I’m done, it doesn’t look the best though, I’m warning you! I’m not good at this. Shijie had to sit down and teach me how to do a half bun— a half bun because I couldn’t make a decent one. ” 

Lan Wangji turned to look at his reflection in the water. Wei Ying was right, it wasn't the best but he couldn’t bring himself to care one bit about that. 

It complimented him, he thought. “Thank you.” 

“There’s no need for thanks. Didn’t you say we shouldn’t apologise to each other? Well we shouldn’t thank each other either!”

“Wei Ying is right” He turned around and looked at Wei Ying again who was biting his lower lip while looking at his hands who were playing with his robes.

“Wei Ying?” 

Wei Ying looked up at him again and leaned his head to the side. 

“The flower stands out even more now, you’re covered in blue and there’s this red thing peaking out of your ear! Well, I’m the one to talk, I’m sure the blue looks ridiculous on me but it’s alright, at least it’s evident that we are matching. Now that I mentioned it, what did that woman say when she sold us the flowers? She must have said something embarrassing—” 

Wei Ying was rambling, Lan Wangji had noticed that he tended to do that when he was embarrassed and just felt the need to do something with himself. 

This time Wei Ying was leaning in as he kept talking, he didn’t seem like he was noticing it. 

“— because your ears got red, sweetheart? What does that mean?” 

Lan Wangji’s eyes widened a bit at the sound of Wei Ying saying “sweetheart” and that must have given Wei Ying some clues.

“Ah? So is it a bad thing, hmm no I don’t think she would’ve called me an asshole or something if she was trying to sell her flowers to me. Then it must’ve been something else… sweetheart? Lan Zhan! Tell me!”

Lan Wangji just lowered his gaze, refusing to elaborate. There was no way he could’ve explained this to Wei Ying without combusting into pieces.

But then Wei Ying smirked and slowly raised his eyebrows, giving him a look similar to the one he had given him when he managed to make him look at that book with erotic art in the Library Pavilion. Lan Wangji wondered if he had time to make a butterfly out of qi and make it go to his brother and inform Xiongzhang of his upcoming death.

“Unless, she was calling me something sweet instead? Did she assume that we were a couple? Was she calling me your lover? Lan Zhan!” 

“Wei Ying…”

Wei Ying giggled. “ Sweetheart?” He teased but that was it, the barrel had overflown. 

Lan Wangji leaned in and smashed their lips together. 

Wei Ying’s eyes widened and his entire body froze, he didn’t kiss him back nor pull away. Seemingly too surprised to do either of the two. Lan Wangji pulled back a little, their lips still touching, thinking if he had time to just disintegrate on the spot. 

Wei Ying pulled back a little too, looking completely lost. 

“Lan Zhan, what are you…” 

As if he knew. 

Lan Wangji leaned in once again, pulse hammering in his ears, and Wei Ying gasped as their lips were brought together again. This time Wei Ying reciprocated. Lan Wangji was kissing him with intent now, very clumsy as it was expected. He hadn’t even thought about doing this with someone before Wei Ying, who lightly grazed his lower lip with his tongue sending a shiver down his spine and this semi new feeling of arousal in his gut.

He had fantasized about kissing Wei Ying—he was ashamed of the fact still— but nothing compared to the real thing. Being able to feel Wei Ying’s mouth against his, having him gasping against him, feeling like his scent was enveloping him.

Wei Ying’s hand fell on his chest, pulling on his robes while his own hand slided behind Wei Ying’s neck, pulling him forward.

Lan Wangji was certain he was ascending to godhood.

As if Wei Ying suddenly regained his consciousness he pushed at Lan Wangji’s chest and made a surprised sound like a whine as he pulled back again. 

“Lan Zhan! What are you doing?”

“Do you… want to stop?” he asked, uncertainty clear in his voice. He probably should be saying something else but his brain was basically just screaming “I kissed Wei Ying” over and over again. 

Wei Ying opened and closed his mouth a couple of times, his eyes still a bit wider than usual.  

Then he started giggling hysterically. “Lan Zhan are you alright? Did you eat something that made you sick? Are you teasing me?”

Lan Wangji frowned. “No.”  

“Lan Zhan, are you even hearing yourself? Do you even like me that way?”

“I do.” 

“I mean… you know, like like me” Wei Ying said pointedly with a little shake of his head as if Lan Wangji wasn’t understanding what he was trying to say. 

Lan Wangji just leaned in and kissed him again because he didn’t know what else to say to get Wei Ying to believe him. Wei Ying complied easily, tilting his head to the side to deepen the kiss. Then jerked back again. 

“We are on a boat, in the middle of a river, you really chose to do this here, Lan Zhan! Literally anybody could see us.” 

If he was being honest he couldn’t care less about people potentially seeing them but if Wei Ying felt uncomfortable he would stop, of course. 

“Does that bother you?” 

Wei Ying laughed. “Well, Lan Zhan, I’m not the one with a reputation to uphold, if you don’t mind then I don’t either.” 

Oh, good. 

Lan Wangji crushed their lips together again, this time Wei Ying had no complaints, closing his eyes and tilting his head up shuffling closer to Lan Wangji. He could feel his own hands moving on their own accord, running down Wei Ying’s arms then slowly reaching the devastating dip of his waist. 

Wei Ying opened his mouth some more, letting their tongues brush, sending shivers down Lan Wangji’s spine. He tried to use his tongue more, because whatever just happened made him want to burst out of his own skin. Wei Ying probably agreed with him, because somehow their lips slid open together. 

Wei Ying pushed more against him, he could feel Wei Ying’s nose brushing his cheek. And as if Lan Wangji’s heart wasn’t beating hard enough, Wei Ying started sliding away from his mouth slowly lowering his head towards his neck. 

He groaned as Wei Ying’s tongue slid over the dip between his chin and his neck, he could feel his smirk against him. Which was strangely arousing.  

Wei Ying moved lower with open mouthed kisses and stayed at a spot close to the middle of his neck, nipping at his skin.  

“Lan Zhan, can I…” He sounded breathless, his voice muffled by Lan Wnangji’s skin. He could feel Wei Ying shape every word against him and it was destructive for his sanity, which was hanging on by some thin threads at this point.

He wasn’t really sure what Wei Ying was asking permission to do but he doubted there’s anything he could do right now that would repulse him so he just nodded hoping Wei Ying would get the memo.

What he wasn’t ready to feel was a mouthful of teeth to bite his skin. He made an embarrassing noise, closer to a whine than anything else and raised one of his hands to grab Wei Ying’s hair, needing something to ground him. 

He felt Wei Ying groan against his skin as he let go of the flesh he was biting on, leaving small kisses at the same place like an apology. 

To his disappointment Wei Ying pulled back, not quite letting them have an appropriate distance but their bodies weren’t smashed together anymore. 

“So, does that mean we are… a thing now?” Wei Ying asked as he pushed some of his hair behind his ear, biting his lower lip which was now plush from all the kissing, glinting with saliva which was also his own. He almost leaned in again. 

“Unless you don’t want this” 

“No! I do, I do Lan Zhan. I’m just not good at this okay.” 

Lan Wangji let himself smile a bit as he left another peck at Wei Yings lips who looked like he was ready to burst out laughing again. 

“Me neither.” He replied. 

Wei Ying laughed and fell in Lan Wangi’s embrace again. 

As much as Lan Wangji loathed to believe it, Wei Ying was leaving today. He didn’t want to get out of his bed, he had technically already overstayed on it, staring at the ceiling, lost in his thoughts. He had barely slept all night, too busy lingering on all the memories he had of Wei Ying. 

He was sure the lack of sleep would catch up to him at some point during the day but that was alright. Maybe the exhaustion would take his mind away from Wei Ying’s upcoming absence. 

He was ready to start his routine but then he noticed a shadow moving through his window, on the porch. That was weird, it was way too early for non-Lans and he couldn’t think of a reason for somebody to be seeking him at this hour. 

He opened the door of the Jingshi and stared at a Wei Ying who had apparently managed to be up at five thirty in the morning. He looked a bit disheveled, he could also see some dark circles peeking under Wei Ying’s eyes. He was obviously not used to waking up this early.

“Wei Ying?” 

“Ah, I know I probably scared you but I just wanted to kind of say goodbye… you know. Privately.” He stared at Lan Wangji’s clothing or, well, lack thereof. A bit funny considering they had spent the last two days groping each other at every private moment they got. 

Lan Wangji opened the door and stepped in the Jingshi waiting for Wei Ying to follow. It was now the second time Wei Ying was getting in here, Lan Wangji had invited him over yesterday as they needed some privacy to do the groping, and Wei Ying’s shared dorm wasn’t really the best place for that. 

Lan Wangji kissed the life out of Wei Ying the moment they closed the door behind them. 

“Lan Zhan! Calm down, just who kisses like that at five in the morning” Wei Ying giggled at him. 

“Wei Ying…” 

“Yeah okay, I will miss you too but don’t worry I’ll find a way to drag you in Yunmeng! I promise.” 

Wei Ying circled his hands behind Lan Wangji’s neck while situating himself against one of his dressers. 

“Mn.” He leaned in and kissed Wei Ying’s earlobe as his hands came around his waist. 

“You know, I was thinking who’s going to break the news to Old Man Lan? I swear your uncle will hunt me down and kill me once he finds out I’m deflowering his precious nephew.” 

Lan Wangji ignored his musings for the sake of kissing Wei Yings neck, which he had found out was pretty sensitive. 

“Lan Zhan! You animal, I came here to bid you farewell and this is how you’re treating me? I’m wounded.” 

Lan Wangji pulled back and came face to face with Wei Ying again. He tilted his head to the side and smiled softly up at him. Lan Wangji would never get tired of his smiles. He had gotten very few that were similar to this one so he made sure to savour it as much as he could. 

“Okay, on a serious note if we want this to be a thing we can’t hide forever.”

“Mn.”

“Hm.. Well, unless you show up in Yunmeng with gifts in red crates and your brother by your side asking for my hand, Madam Yu will murder me if she finds out. But the rest will probably be fine, Shijie will be delighted, Jiang Cheng will threaten to break my legs and then get over it and Uncle Jiang will just, I don’t know, at least he won’t kill me about it.” 

Lan Wangji frowned a bit. “We will figure it out.”

“Of course we will!” Wei Ying replied with a peck on his lips. 

Lan Wangji was already mourning all the days he had spent with Wei Ying the past few months. He was going to find an excuse to visit Yunmeng, he will make sure of that. Well, his brother would probably let him go for no reason at all (other than wanting to visit Wei Ying) if he asked for it but he was sure his uncle and his elders would be sour-y about it. 

“Well, Lan Zhan, I’ll have to go back before Jiang Cheng starts to get suspicious about all the time I’m spending away from my sect today and starts questioning things. I don’t want to spring this on him without Shijie around, I don’t even think he will believe me if I tell him I’m involved with Second Young Master Lan!”

Lan Wangji tried his best to not let his annoyance be shown at the mention of Jiang Wanyin but something on his face must've given it away because Wei Ying started giggling and shaking his head jokingly disapproving. 

“You know you can’t hate each other forever if this goes on.” 

“Mn.” 

“Mn! I can’t have you two killing each other, okay?” 

Lan Wangji kissed him instead of replying. 

Wei Ying was running to catch up with the rest of the Jiang disciples. He did end up overstaying his visit after all. 

Once they reached the gate Lan Wangji walked next to his brother, they had to see-off all of the guest disciples formally. 

“Wangji, how come you and Young Mater Wei appeared together? Didn’t he have to pack with the rest of his sect?”

Lan Wangji averted his gaze and pointedly, didn’t reply. His brother smiled and gave him a knowing look.

“Wangji, I am happy for you.”

Well, Xiongzhang caught up fast enough. 

“Thank you, brother.” 

Wei Ying who was now in line with the rest of the Jiang disciples, just having finished greeting his Sect Leader turned around and flashed a smile. 

“Lan Zhan! I’ll miss you! Make sure to think of me!” Wei Ying teased, while giggling even when his brother started shouting something about how much he was embarrassing their sect. 

And then because he was in love with the worst person in the world, Wei Ying sent him a kiss with his hand in broad daylight, while laughing like this was the funniest thing he had ever done.

Xiongzhang accidentally nudged his side as he raised one hand to hide his giggling with his sleeve.

Uncle looked less like he was ready to kill someone than Lan Wangji expected he would. Maybe even he was getting used to Wei Yings’s antics. 

Lan Wangji could only incline his head to acknowledge Wei Ying and stare as his figure disappeared along with the rest of the Jiang sect.

He already felt a pang in his head, reminding him Wei Ying wouldn’t be around for some months. But it wasn’t as bad as he had initially thought it would be.

This wasn’t a final goodbye, he would see Wei Ying again. They would eventually manage to spend more time as… lovers. He still felt giddy every time he thought of their relationship. 

“It will be too quiet, won’t it?” Xiongzhang said with a small smile. 

Yes, yes it would. 

“I hope you don’t miss him too much.” Said his brother as he turned around and started walking up the gate's stairs. 

Now that was too much to hope for.