Work Text:
——————
Feng Xin wasn’t exactly known to be level-headed, but he could make do. Sure, when extra angry he had a chance of doing something akin to becoming the fucking Hulk, but yeah. He could make do.
Until his polar opposite moves in, right next to him no less.
There hadn’t been a new person in the complex since Xie Lian moved back in–and only for that bastard Hua Cheng, too. He had taken to calling the guy ‘San Lang.’ Feng Xin vaguely wondered if that was some sort of kink they were sharing with the world. He also wondered what it would take to get them to only share it to the walls of their bedroom.
He still wasn’t fond of that. They were across from him, thank the Gods not in the empty apartment next to his, but they were still loud.
Either way, this new renter was different. He was quite pretty, for someone who talked as if he came straight from the 14th century. One could assume the guy was a vampire. He had long beautiful hair, sharp teeth that looked an awful lot like fangs, these amazing yet freaky ass red-grey eyes, a–
Wait a minute.
…
Surely not. He couldn’t jump to conclusions.
It started as normal as possible–a housewarming gift! What kind of person wouldn’t greet another individual they would probably be seeing often? Feng Xin was knowledgeable in the ways of being-a-good-person. It was a philosophy that this new guy clearly didn’t have.
And that leads to the present. Mu Qing, he learned, stood in front of him, the door held wide open. The look of pure disbelief on his face left Feng Xin incredibly confused. Who didn’t like garlic bread?
“...You’re joking, right?” Mu Qing asked incredulously.
“No?” Feng Xin tilted his head. “I just wanted you to feel welcome. In your new apartment. You know, like a good neighbor?”
“I’m allergic to garlic.”
Well, shit.
“Oh. Uh. That’s, that’s my bad. Sorry.”
Apology not accepted, as it was so plainly obvious by the disdain Mu Qing wore. Said man opened his mouth wide, giving Feng Xin a good look at his sharp canines, his voice now threatening.
“I know what you are. Don’t speak to me again. I don’t need your dumb gifts and I don’t need to deal with your kind.”
“My kind?! So I was right! You vampire scum–”
Mu Qing wiggled his finger. “Ah-ah-ah, not so loud. You’ll get both of us caught up in a whole new mess. Not that I expected much more from a werewolf.”
The smug grin he had on his face made Feng Xin want to punch him. Maybe also kiss him. Gods, was he pretty. Alas, Feng Xin was not made for conflicting thoughts, and promptly stomped on Mu Qing’s toes. This led to Mu Qing slamming the door on Feng Xin’s fingers.
The next day, in a fit of blind rage and absolute maturity, Feng Xin got into arts and crafts. A very peculiar kind of DIY, if you will. One with a lot of garlic, and miniature pitchforks to boot.
His wreath was beautiful, if you asked him.
It looked even better on Mu Qing’s front door. Who cared if the holiday season was over?
Comedic gold was the only way to describe the shout he heard when Mu Qing got back home after he had hung it.
Even more so, the squeak of utter disrespect Feng Xin gave when he came home from work, exhausted on a whole new level, and saw the new welcome mat Mu Qing had bought. And by “welcome,” it really meant “go away” considering it had “NO DOGS ALLOWED” written across it.
And thus started a long battle of “who can piss off who the most.”
——————
Considering the people living in their apartment complex, parties really shouldn’t have been unexpected. But one from Xie Lian and Hua Cheng was. They usually preferred for people to stay out of their home.
This was different, and for Mu Qing, something to be afraid about. He got a text, of course, having known Xie Lian for so long. Xie Lian was the main reason he was even able to move in anyway.
His biggest problem, though? He couldn’t enter unless explicitly stated. And now here he was dreading the party planned for further into the night. The message he got wasn’t clearly saying he was allowed inside, and he wasn’t particularly sure how to explain his predicament to his old friend.
Another downside, his fleabag neighbor would also be attending. How terrific. For a creature of the night, he prayed this would be over soon.
~
“Come in, come in.” Xie Lian said to the group in front of Mu Qing. A bunch of young people who had moved in a bit ago, given a good word to the landlord Jun Wu and allowed to rent. Mu Qing stood awkwardly in front of Xie Lian when he finally made his way to the door.
Don’t fuck this up, don’t fuck this up, don’t fuck this up–
“Hi Xie Lian.” They both ignored the way his voice cracked.
“Hello, Mu Qing.” He said softly, face as princely as it had always been. Seriously, he was probably royalty in another life.
“Can I–”
“It’s been a while since I’ve seen you.” Well, there goes that approach. “I’m glad you decided to stay here, and it seems you and Feng Xin have been getting along?” He snickered.
Mu Qing rolled his eyes so hard they nearly fell into the back of his head. “Right. Yeah. That prick has left me plenty of wonderful gifts. That is to say, I hate them and I sincerely hope he’s burned at the stake.” The irony was lost on them both.
Speak of the Devil, and he shall appear. Feng Xin strolled up, gave Xie Lian a curt nod and walked inside. The smirk he shot Mu Qing’s way was more than enough to let him know, “haha I know that you can’t come inside.”
Damn werewolves.
Mu Qing cleared his throat, and as he was about to speak, Xie Lian cut him off. “Well, you should follow him then.”
Mu Qing stood completely still. They stared at each other.
“Invite me inside.”
“Wha–”
“Don’t ask, just do it. Please.” Mu Qing said shamefully.
“You may enter.”
“Thank you.”
He immediately ran away. The inside of Xie Lian and Hua Cheng’s home was pleasant. Probably. At least it was when there wasn’t music loud enough to burst one’s eardrums. He leisurely walked to the kitchen, pouring himself some juice. He was a man of taste, thanks.
The night became twenty times worse as the smell of dog invaded his nostrils like a parasite. Unsurprisingly, it wasn’t from the dog E’ming running around somewhere in the house.
“Hey.” Feng Xin said.
Mu Qing fought not to roll his eyes and lost miserably. “I already said not to talk to me. By the way, do you need some shampoo or something? There’s a Petsmart right around the corner, you runt.”
“Ha-ha, very funny. No. I just wanted to give you something.”
His eyes widened a bit out of curiosity. If this was another gag gift–which it probably was–Mu Qing would throw him out of the nearby window. The mutt could take it.
He was immediately unimpressed at the sight before him. Feng Xin looked all too smug as he pulled out a relatively beautiful necklace. Mu Qing held out a hand cautiously, not trusting this at all.
And he was right not to. This motherfucker, bone chewer, butt sniffer, all other insulting words towards werewolves, had dropped a fucking silver necklace in his hand. It burned like hell, and he dropped it with a click-clack on the tiled floor of the kitchen.
Feng Xin looked to be holding back an amused, boisterous laugh. He did not succeed. He barked out a laugh in Mu Qing’s face, causing his eye to twitch uncontrollably. Of course his laughter would sound like barking.
Mu Qing made good on his promise. He punched Feng Xin in the face, leading to them exchanging blows, leading to them fist fighting in Xie Lian’s living room. They were both entirely too intimidated by Hua Cheng’s nasty glare as they were sent home.
That night, Mu Qing ordered soaps specifically for dog coats to be delivered to Feng Xin’s house. That and a few dog toys, emphasis on bones. The next morning, and with a fair hangover, Mu Qing was sorely mistaken to have thought the man was done. This is because the silver necklace was hanging on his door knob.
He nearly knocked Feng Xin’s door down in outrage so they could brawl again.
——————
Feng Xin didn’t want a dog. He had been compared to one, sure, but he didn’t want one of his own. They were too much work.
And that made him all the more concerned about the huge doghouse now in front of his front door, blocking the hallway, with other essentials for dogs tucked away inside. What the fuck.
Sure, he could ask himself, “who would do such a thing?” but everyone knows who did it. Mu Qing.
He had to get to work soon, and if he spent any longer he would be late. Worth it. Feng Xin marched his way back inside and to his computer, logging in and ordering something that was sure to rid this complex of his neighbor for good. If he used it right, quite literally!
In the meantime, he carried the doghouse to his room so it was out of the way. The things in it included puppy pads, bowls, a fucking collar. And to think Feng Xin was starting to feel kind of bad for what he just bought. Not anymore.
So, work went as normal as always. At least, as normal as it could be with the excitement of his order coming soon. The website said it would arrive tomorrow, and he could not wait.
Ever since that stupid blood sucker had moved in, Feng Xin’s life had become significantly worse. He couldn’t focus on anything before considering the couple across from him, but with Mu Qing right next to him? Even worse. Even WORSE.
The devilish grin that spread across his face when he got his mail the next day surely would have gotten him punched if he did it in front of Mu Qing. He sucked in a breath as a splinter got embedded in his thumb. Maybe he should’ve thought twice before buying wooden stakes from a not-so-reliable source.
At least the look on Mu Qing’s face when he hand-delivers it will be worth it.
Probably.
He grabbed a stake and hid it behind his back as he made his way to Mu Qing’s front door. He knocked once, twice, three times before it opened and there was the vampire himself with a very unimpressed look.
Feng Xin smiled brightly, enough to make Mu Qing grimace. Then the carved wood came into play, with Feng Xin’s smile turning downright sinister when his neighbor’s face dropped faster than lightning.
If only he had more time to laugh about.
All of a sudden, a fist collided with his jaw, and, for lack of a better word, he knew shit was about to go down. He bared his teeth and jumped onto Mu Qing, falling further into the man’s apartment.
So, yeah, Feng Xin wasn’t known to be level-headed. And especially not when his polar opposite moves in right next door.