Work Text:
Xie Lian had been apprehensive when Hua Cheng suggested he join him in playing mmo's. For one, they'd had to get him a computer that could actually run the game. And two, Xie Lian had very little gaming experience in general.
However what he did have was flawless hand-eye coordination, a studious nature, and a dedicated, borderline savage drive to win that the unprepared did not expect from him.
Hua Cheng knew he would be great at this. Now Hua Cheng is one of the only tanks who can actually keep aggro off of Xie Lian's top dps. All of his practice was for this.
However, the rest of the raid group? Not so satisfying.
"Crimson Rain, do not start."
"Wh-hh! Start what?" Hua Cheng growls, through the tickle in his nose that just keeps itching at him.
"Sneezing!" Black Water snaps.
"It doesn't matter, you know I can still play. Fuck-- h'IXSSH!!"
"It doesn't matter if you can--"
"eh-" He unpresses his talk button quickly, "EH'zSCHH!!"
"Stop that!"
"Fuck you-- ah-! Do you think I do this on purpose," and again, "-- ah'ETCCHHiew!!"
"If you--"
"haH'ESSCHh!! h-hH'eHH! AESSXCHIIEW!!"
"--start sneezing, then your precious dianxia is going to get distracted and die and we're going to miss the dps check and wipe!"
"Bless you, San Lang," Xie Lian says, bright and (in fact) slightly dreamy and distracted.
"Gege, it's about to--"
They all narrowly avoid dying to the tankbuster mechanic (this time). Hua Cheng scrunches his nose, focusing past the itchy sneeziness that persists.
It's no good, though. He's sneezing again-- and again-- over his shoulder, down at his lap, both hands occupied with mouse and keyboard, too focused on the screen to care about covering. Xie Lian's character on screen lags, missing parts of his rotation, ignoring cooldowns. Hua Cheng preens a little. Others in the chat start groaning. Black Water rages. The Wind Master thinks this is hilarious every single time it happens. He has a specific macro if he has to resurrect either one of them because Hua Cheng was sneezing.
"Babe, are you okay?" Xie Lian asks off headset.
"Fine, gege, I'm fine," Hua Cheng assures him. It's not escalating, he's just fucking... sneezy. As usual when the plants are alive. "Gege, the positioning--"
It's too late; Xie Lian is square in the path, and gets swept off the cliff. No resurrection from that one.
"God fucking damn it, I told you so, what did I say?" Black Water hisses into the chat.
Hua Cheng sneezes fully into the headset just to annoy him. Xie Lian makes a muffled yelp of a moan from the desk next to him. Ah.
"Disgusting," Black Water growls. "You're the worst, I don't know why I still play with you--"
"--'xSSHtt!! Isn't it because you still-- ihh-- owe me--"
"Oh my god just shut up and sneeze already."
"ah-hhhhh-- - - --hh'EXXKh'SHHhuhh!!" Hua Cheng keeps the talk toggled in retaliation.
"San Lang-- if you keep--" Xie Lian says warningly. When Hua Cheng glances over his headphones are back down around his neck and he's staring fixedly at Hua Cheng in a way that Hua Cheng can't get enough of. He takes his headphones off too and rubs his nose (still vaguely able to hear Black Water grumbling and Wind Master cajoling him, unfortunately). Xie Lian's gaze follows the movement hungrily. More so when Hua Cheng winces and actually gives into the urge to pinch and rub at it for real, shaking his head into the persistent itch that almost seems to get worse under the touch.
"San Lang," Xie Lian says again, breathless this time.