Chapter Text
The case was supposed to be simple.
‘Simple’ as in so straightforward that it would have honestly would have taken more effort to fail.
In fact, it was so stupidly basic that Cheng Xiaoshi probably could have dove in and out the photo and successfully complete the mission without any help from Lu Guang. Theoretically, of course.
Which, in hindsight, was probably why the universe, which always possessed a twisted sense of humor, took that theory as a bet. Because a few hours later, the "simple" case had devolved into the trainwreck of a lifetime.
It was all because Cheng Xiaoshi made one tiny mistake that was so microscopic it shouldn’t have even counted as a mistake.
Yet, here they were. Standing in the middle of the Time Photo Studio and staring at each other.
Or rather, staring at themselves.
***
A few hours earlier
The Time Photo Studio was only just opening for the day.
Morning sunlight filtered through the front windows, casting long bright rectangles across the wooden floorboards.
Qiao Ling was off on her morning jog, Cheng Xiaoshi was upstairs—presumably fighting a losing battle with the snooze button—leaving Lu Guang to man the front of the store.
He stood behind the counter methodically organizing a shelf of cameras and was just about to polish a dusty Polaroid when the door opened, making the automatic greeting resonate through the small room.
'Welcome, boss. Out for the guests!'
A young man with short brunette hair and a lanky stature glanced in for a few seconds before meekly stepping inside.
“Morning. This the Time Photo Studio?” the boy greeted. He seemed shy, and looked to be in his late teens.
Lu Guang inclined his head politely. "Yes. How may we help you?"
The teen reached in his pocket and placed a single photograph on the counter in front of Lu Guang. "My name is Sun Yifan. I heard from a friend... I think they said this place can do some kind of divination? Like, looking into photos to find things?" He rubbed the back of his neck, "I really need some help."
Lu Guang slid the picture closer to himself to take a look. It was a photo of an empty classroom, the desks orderly and the room tidy while afternoon sunlight poured through the windows.
Lu Guang looked back up at Sun Yifan. “It depends on what kind of help you’re looking for,” he replied.
Sun Yifan’s gaze dropped to the floor. “Uh, okay, so let me explain. Although there’s not much to explain,” he muttered. “I took that photo on the last day of high school. I kept my laptop password on a sticky note under my desk, and recently I forgot my password and…”
Sun Yifan winced as if the admission caused him pain, “I just moved here for college and my high school is literally on the other side of the country. That note is the only thing that has my password on it. And now my entire life is locked in that computer.”
He suddenly bowed so low his forehead nearly smacked his knees. “So please, I need to find out what was on that sticky note!”
Lu Guang almost thought he had heard the entire conversation incorrectly. Seeking divination powers for a laptop password? This kid must be desperate.
Sun Yifan straightened up, his eyes pleading. “Just name your price. I’ll pay anything.”
Lu Guang’s brain instantly calculated the benefits. Maximum payout for minimum effort. It was basically free rent money. He’d have to be crazy to say no.
So he nodded once at the boy. “We’ll see what we can do. If you’d like to come back in a couple of hours, we should have your answer by then.”
Sun Yifan’s face lit up, “Really? Thanks, man. I’ll be back after classes, around 4:30, maybe?”
Lu Guang nodded, “That sounds fine. Thank you for your business.”
After Sun Yifan left, Lu Guang picked up the photo and used his powers to look into it, his stormy grey eyes turning electric blue.
The photo’s history was normal, as far as Lu Guang could tell. Sun Yifan had spent the day cleaning out his locker, listening to lectures, and later getting hotpot with his friends.
There was no murder mystery to solve or kidnapping to prevent. Nothing that could traumatize, hurt or…kill Cheng Xiaoshi.
All it required was for Cheng Xiaoshi to dive in, crawl under a desk, read a sticky note, and flip back out. Five minutes, tops.
They could work with this.
***
Lu Guang strolled into the sunroom, eyes still fixed on the photograph in hand.
The sunroom was peaceful, the early sunlight just beginning to brighten the room and the only noise came from a ticking clock nearby. It was quiet.
…and that quiet lasted approximately five more seconds until Cheng Xiaoshi, in all his upbeat sunshine boy glory, came thudding down the stairs.
Lu Guang closed his eyes briefly and exhaled through his nose, bracing himself for the cacophonous attack to his eardrums aka Cheng Xiaoshi’s no-indoor-voice.
“Goood morning, Guang Guang!” Cheng Xiaoshi greeted brightly as he passed by Lu Guang, who didn’t spare him a glance. Cheng Xiaoshi clamored on the sunroom’s couch to reach the curtains and yank them open, letting the light flood the room.
After gazing out the window for another moment, he looked over his shoulder toward Lu Guang. “I heard talking down here a minute ago. Did we get a customer already?"
Lu Guang finally tore his eyes away from the photo to look at Cheng Xiaoshi. "A local university student. He brought us a case."
That got Cheng Xiaoshi's attention. He slid off the couch and made his way to Lu Guang to get a look at the photograph.
“It looks like an abandoned classroom,” Cheng Xiaoshi commented, slinging an arm over his partner’s shoulders and leaning in for a closer view.
“It’s an empty classroom. Know the difference,” Lu Guang retorted, but he didn’t push the arm off. “This is the high school classroom of the client, Sun Yifan. He’s now miles away from this school and needs something.”
Cheng Xiaoshi chuckled to himself, “What? He wants to confess to his crush? Or get back at a bully?”
Lu Guang replied curtly, “No. He needs his laptop password.”
Cheng Xiaoshi blinked once. His arm slid off Lu Guang’s shoulders as he stepped back, staring in complete disbelief. "Sorry, what?"
Lu Guang met the wide-eyed stare with an unreadable gaze. "He forgot his laptop password. It's written on a sticky note under his old desk," he repeated flatly.
For a second, the room was quiet again. Then, Cheng Xiaoshi lost it.
“HAHAHA! Seriously?!” he wheezed, grabbing Lu Guang’s shoulder for support. “He wants supernatural help because he’s locked out of his computer?”
Lu Guang’s shrug was almost unnoticeable. "I had my doubts too. But it’s simple enough that we could get this done within minutes.”
"I still can't believe it," Cheng Xiaoshi whispered, wiping a tear from his eye as he tried to catch his breath. "This has got to be the weirdest case we've ever taken. Aren’t there, like, IT guys for this? Imagine going straight to superpowers because you're bad at remembering passwords."
Lu Guang gave him a pointed look. "How many times have you forgotten yours?"
Cheng Xiaoshi choked on his last laugh, his smile faltering. “That’s not important.”
"How about I change your password when this is over?" Lu Guang dryly offered, “Then you’ll know how helpless it feels.”
Cheng Xiaoshi finally recovered his breath, letting out a sigh. “Okay, okay, I get it. He needs our help, and since it’ll be so easy, I’m more than happy to lend my highly sought-after assistance.” He rubbed his hands together and grinned, “Low risk, high reward! This is gonna be the easiest case ever!”
He reached for the image, only for Lu Guang to pull it out of reach. “Wait. I need to make sure you completely understand the mission and that you remember the rules.”
Cheng Xiaoshi groaned loudly, throwing his head back. It was the Easiest Case Ever! He didn't need to be given the rules lecture for this. Still, under Lu Guang's unwavering stare, he robotically rattled off the protocol. "Jump in, look under the desk, read the sticky note, and get the hell out."
Lu Guang raised a skeptical eyebrow, “And?”
Cheng Xiaoshi sighed, rolling his eyes. “Twelve hours max. Follow your lead. Don’t change anything, and don’t ask about the past or the future.” He reached for the image again, and this time Lu Guang let him take it.
“This is going to take, like ten seconds. I know what to do. There is literally nothing I can change anyway,” Cheng Xiaoshi added, flopping the print around.
He placed the picture on the table in front of the couch. He extended his hand to Lu Guang. “I promise. I’ll get it done, and come right back,” said Cheng Xiaoshi, his cocky attitude replaced by an earnest smile Lu Guang knew all too well.
Lu Guang’s gaze lingered on Cheng Xiaoshi for a few more seconds, then on his hand. Without another word, he raised his own hand to meet Cheng Xiaoshi’s in a sharp clap.
“Dive!”
Just like that, Cheng Xiaoshi was off to complete what was supposed to be the easiest case of their lives.
***
Click
For an instant, Cheng Xiaoshi felt the familiar sensation of being pulled through water and space at the same time.
Once reality snapped in place, Cheng Xiaoshi found himself in Sun Yifan’s body, peering through the tiny, digital viewfinder of a compact camera. He lowered the device, blinking as his gleaming yellow eyes adjusted to the atmosphere of the empty classroom where he stood.
His surroundings looked exactly like the picture. The walls were painted a bronzy gold from the setting sunlight that came through the windows, revealing tiny dust particles that floated through the air. The open-front desks and chairs were neatly arranged in rows, and the chalkboard was swept clean.
The classroom seemed ready to welcome a fresh group of students ready for senior year.
His little contemplation was interrupted by a tap on his shoulder. Cheng Xiaoshi turned his head around to see a boy wearing a friendly, eager smile.
“Hey, Sun Yifan! We’re gonna go for some hotpot to celebrate our release from high school. You in?” asked the boy, hooking a thumb toward the door.
Cheng Xiaoshi dumbly stared back, barely concealing his confusion. “Uh, yeah, um—” he stammered helplessly.
“Lu Guang, who is this again?” Cheng Xiaoshi internally demanded.
“That’s one of Sun Yifan’s classmates. It should be obvious. Maybe not to you.” was Lu Guang’s deadpan response through Cheng Xiaoshi’s mind. “Just say it sounds good and you’ll catch up later.”
Cheng Xiaoshi regained his composure and smiled what he hoped was Sun Yifan’s normal smile. “Yeah! Sounds good. I’ll meet you there.”
The friend gave his shoulder a firm pat before walking away. “Just don’t stay here until the janitor locks you in here for the summer!”
The friend laughed to himself, which Cheng Xiaoshi copied by chuckling awkwardly until the boy exited the room and disappeared down the hallway. Once the coast was clear, Cheng Xiaoshi let the fake smile drop and scanned the rows of desks.
“So, where was his seat exactly?” He asked in his mind.
Lu Guang’s answer was immediate. “Third row from the front. Leftmost one.”
Cheng Xiaoshi mapped out the directions in his head and quickly found Sun Yifan’s desk.
Once he got there, Lu Guang’s command was simple. “According to the client, there’s a sticky note underneath the desk with the password written on it.”
“Yeah, yeah, I remember. You’ve told me about three times already,” Cheng Xiaoshi muttered as he lowered himself to the ground. With a small grunt, he slid flat on the floor and commando-crawled under the desk and managed to peek upward. His eyes landed on a single piece of pink paper stuck to the underside.
“Bingo. Found it.” he said quietly with a small hint of triumph. He pulled the note off and read the contents. And a snort escaped his nose.
On the sticky note read the password: baishajaws4life
“Wow, okay. I don’t know how you manage to forget a password like that,” Cheng Xiaoshi said in a laughing whisper.
On the other end, Lu Guang stayed silent for a few moments, not having an answer. “You have the password. Put it back and get out of the photo,” he eventually said, choosing not to comment further.
Cheng Xiaoshi pressed the sticky slip of paper back where he found it. “Don’t get me wrong, he has good taste!” he said, his voice slightly strained since he was still flat on the floor, “I was just expecting something really boring like ‘password123’”
Lu Guang replied calmly, “Don’t project your own abysmal security standards onto everyone else.”
"Hey, my passwords are secure! Besides, this guy is the one who relied on a single piece of stationery.” Cheng Xiaoshi retorted as he started crawl back out, “Everyone has their own—ow!”
His sentence was cut short when he straightened out too early, smacking his host’s head on the metal frame of the desk.
"Ow, ow, ow..." Cheng Xiaoshi rolled out from under the desk, rubbing his head and squeezing his eyes shut as he winced.
“You okay?”
He heard Lu Guang ask, but he didn’t respond because his brain was still rattled.
Once the imaginary stars cleared, Cheng Xiaoshi got to his feet and cracked his eyes open again. He noticed that his impact had knocked what looked like a small card to the ground. He picked it up and flipped it over curiously.
It was a photograph of three friends. Sun Yifan stood in the front, a little further back was the friend from earlier, and way in the background was some other girl. They were all looking at the camera and flashing peace signs and quirky smiles.
A thought popped into Cheng Xiaoshi’s mind. He looked up at the ceiling, as if he were talking to an invisible narrator. “Hey, Lu Guang?”
He heard a sigh, indicating that Lu Guang was prepared to hear something astonishingly foolish. “What is it.”
Cheng Xiaoshi glanced at the photo in hand. “So like, what if I tried diving in a photo, while I’m already in one?”
He could practically hear Lu Guang’s eyeroll.
“Idiot, stop asking stupid questions.”
Cheng Xiaoshi made an offended sound. “Seriously, if you don’t know, why don’t you ever just say, ‘I don’t know’?”
Expertly dodging Cheng Xiaoshi’s question, Lu Guang repeated his order. “You did the job, now get out already. The classroom might be empty, but the entire school isn’t. Do you want someone to catch you talking to yourself?”
Cheng Xiaoshi slid the photograph back in the little cubby under the desk. “Alright, I’m getting.”
He raised his hands together and clapped them to dive back out. As he did, his eyes absently glanced at the photo in the desk.
And thus, he made the aforementioned mistake that truly should have been negligible.
***
The moment his feet touched the floor of the studio, Cheng Xiaoshi threw himself backward onto the couch, spreading his arms on the backrest. He smiled, satisfied with himself.
“See, Lu Guang? Easiest case ever. I managed to—”
The words died hard in his throat as he listened to his own voice. It didn’t sound like his own. It was a voice he knew intimately, but it sure as hell didn't belong to him.
His hand flew to his throat as if he had been choked, his eyes wide. His gaze snapped down to his hands, and they were paler than his normal skin tone.
His brain stopped entirely. He whipped his head to the side, and the situation went from bad to worse.
Sitting right next to him on the couch was himself. Or at least, what looked like his own body, staring back at him with an equally stunned, wide-eyed expression. Huh? What—?
Cheng Xiaoshi blinked several times, but his own figure still remained in front of him. Was he still diving? Was he dreaming? What the hell was going on?
In dazed, choppy motions, he reached up to touch his face. The skin was impossibly smooth. He ran a hand through his hair, and it was shorter than his own. When Cheng Xiaoshi peered as his faint reflection in the window behind him, he was met with grey eyes and a shock of white hair.
He was indeed, possessing Lu Guang’s body.
"Yaaaah!" Cheng Xiaoshi let out a yelp, springing off the couch like the cushions had caught fire and scrambling backward until his spine hit the wall.
“Cheng Xiaoshi…”
He heard his own voice, dripping with icy disapproval, call to him.
Cheng Xiaoshi watched his own body, sporting a death glare harshly silhouetted by the sunlight, rise from the couch to stand up and meet him at eye level.
“What. Did. You. Do,” demanded what looked like Cheng Xiaoshi, but was now very clearly Lu Guang.
Cheng Xiaoshi raised his, or rather Lu Guang’s, hands in a ‘don’t shoot’ gesture. “I have no idea! I swear!” His mind frantically ran through the last few minutes. “I just clapped my hands to get out, then maybe I…was looking at that photo while I clapped. Oh.” His words slowed as realization dawned on him.
"You actually tried to dive inside a dive?" Lu Guang asked incredulously, crossing his arms—actually, Cheng Xiaoshi’s arms.
“Not on purpose! It was right in front of me, I literally had no time to think!” Cheng Xiaoshi defended himself, his voice pitching up with panic, which sounded bizarre coming out of Lu Guang’s mouth.
Lu Guang gave Cheng Xiaoshi one last hard stare, then sighed. Lu Guang dropped his hands to his sides and sat back down on the couch. He rested his elbows on his knees, folding his fingers right beneath his nose in deep thought.
“When you kept that second photo in sight while clapping out, you must have confused the connection, forcing me into your body and pulling yourself into mine," Lu Guang mused, his brow furrowed in concentration.
Cheng Xiaoshi sat down next to him. “It’s possible for our powers to glitch out? And how are we supposed to undo it?”
Lu Guang ran a hand through his own hair, which was now a fluffy crown of raven locks. It was amazingly soft, pleasant to touch, and Lu Guang had to resist the urge to stroke it again. “The only thing I can think of right now is to wait it out. I’m guessing the effect might last as long as twelve hours, based on our abilities.”
Cheng Xiaoshi’s jaw dropped, “Are you serious?”
Lu Guang side-eyed him. “Since when was I not?”
Cheng Xiaoshi dragged his current hands down his current face. “You’re telling me we’re stuck like this for twelve hours?” he moaned, voice muffled by his hands.
Lu Guang flinched at the sound of own voice complaining so loudly and so annoyingly. Still, he helpfully added, “I was only speculating twelve hours. It could be shorter or longer. Worst case scenario, this is permanent.”
That triggered another round of laments from Cheng Xiaoshi. He sprawled flat on the couch and let out a deep sigh. “Look, I’m used to this kind of possessing-another-body thing, but that’s when I know I can switch back whenever I want.” He lazily gestured between themselves, “But this? We’re actually doomed.”
Lu Guang peered at Cheng Xiaoshi through the black tufts of hair he now had. “More like I’m doomed. How am I supposed to trust you to walk around in my body?”
Cheng Xiaoshi sat up suddenly, his eyes narrowed. “Excuse me? I’ve possessed you two other times.”
He lifted up a pointer finger. “First time was when, because you can’t take a decent selfie to save your life, I turned your posture from awkward to stunning.”
He raised another finger. “And second time, I singlehandedly retraced your footsteps and saved myself from getting kidnapped by Li Tianchen.” He tilted his chin up proudly, “So far, me being you has been proven to have positive results, thank you very much.”
Lu Guang’s poker face remained firmly in place, but he didn’t answer.
Ha. Got him.
Cheng Xiaoshi looked at his own body up and down. He’d always considered himself a good-looking guy, but seeing himself from the outside? Pretty damn charming in his opinion. But Lu Guang brought that brooding, mysterious energy that everyone, including Cheng Xiaoshi, seemed to go crazy for.
Now Cheng Xiaoshi was thinking two things: First, wow, I look amazing. Second, we are still in a shit-ton of trouble. Another idea formed in his head.
“Hey, does that mean we get each other’s powers?” he asked, an eager smile making its way to his face, which looked extra weird since it was Lu Guang’s face.
His query was only met with a wall of frost from Lu Guang. “Idiot, what did I tell you about asking stupid questions?”
“What did I tell you about if you don’t know, just admit it like a normal human being?” Cheng Xiaoshi shot back. He got up anyway and grabbed a picture of some flowery landscape randomly lying on the counter and came back to the sunroom.
He set the photo on the coffee table. “Let’s see if I can unpack this thing like you do.” He pressed two pairs of joined fingers on each of his temples, mimicking a psychic.
“You know that’s not how it works, dumbass,” he heard Lu Guang say. But beneath the harsh words, floating through Cheng Xiaoshi's vocal cords, there was a faint trace of... fondness?
“Shh, I’m concentrating.” Cheng Xiaoshi hissed. After a few futile seconds, he dropped his hands from his head. “Yeah, no. It doesn’t work.”
He glanced at his partner. “So if we really are stuck like this for over twelve hours, do you have a plan B?”
“Calm down, it hasn’t even been ten minutes.” Lu Guang replied.
Cheng Xiaoshi scoffed, “Again, that’s not an answer!”
“You didn’t deserve one.”
Cheng Xiaoshi decidedly got on his feet and stood in front of Lu Guang, or himself. Whatever. He deepened his voice monotonously, despite that he already had Lu Guang’s voice.
“Hello. I am Lu Guang. I have no emotions and everything always has to go according to my flawless plans.”
Lu Guang’s face didn’t react, but both irritation and a little bit of amusement colored his tone. “I don’t sound like that at all, moron.”
“Yeah you do!” Cheng Xiaoshi insisted as he continued in a mocking voice, “Remember the rules, idiot. Don’t touch anything, idiot. I’m not gonna answer your perfectly reasonable questions, idiot Cheng Xiaoshi idiot!”
Lu Guang felt his eye twitch, “I don’t say it that much, you idi—”
He stopped dead, his mouth snapping shut as he caught himself nearly saying the allegedly overused word.
The devilish Cheshire-cat grin that spread across Cheng Xiaoshi's face—using Lu Guang’s mouth—was salt in the wound.
“I know you too well, admit it!”
Encouraged to take it further, Cheng Xiaoshi continued his exaggerated imitation of Lu Guang. He pointed dramatically into empty space. “Cheng Xiaoshi, if you alter the timeline, I will scream. Cheng Xiaoshi, stop breathing near that camera.”
Lu Guang finally decided he had tolerated enough of this wildly inaccurate, slanderous portrayal of himself. He abruptly bolted upright from the couch, cutting Cheng Xiaoshi’s monologue short.
Lu Guang-as-Cheng Xiaoshi casually combed a hand through his messy dark hair and flipped it with a flair, a move Cheng Xiaoshi used whenever he was trying to be suave.
Then he used Cheng Xiaoshi’s voice in a mockingly high tone while gesturing to himself. “Look at me, I’m Cheng Xiaoshi! I’m loud and annoying and can’t follow simple commands.”
Cheng Xiaoshi reeled back, feigning offense. It didn’t last long, because he started to laugh, a previously nonexistent sound coming from Lu Guang’s voice. "Oh, wow. Now look who’s the terrible actor," Cheng Xiaoshi teased, "Nice to see you finally let your inner child loose, Guang Guang!”
“My impulses obey me. I can’t say the same for you,” Lu Guang replied seriously. but what kind of impulses are we talking about
Cheng Xiaoshi-as-Lu Guang made a face. “Uh, okay, that’s some high horse you’re riding.”
A much bigger problem suddenly crashed into his train of thought, and his face went blank, “Oh, how are we gonna explain this to Qiao Ling?”
Lu Guang-as-Cheng Xiaoshi barely reacted. “She knows how our powers work. She’s seen weirder.”
Cheng Xiaoshi raised a pale eyebrow, “Weirder how?”
“You eating nearly an entire cake in one sitting.” Lu Guang said curtly,
Cheng Xiaoshi scoffed, waving a hand dismissively. "Pfft, that? What about you dancing? At least I don’t dance like I’m being remote controlled.”
“Alright, shut it!” was Lu Guang highly intelligent way to stop the conversation from advancing.
Cheng Xiaoshi perked up, which usually meant he had a terrible idea. “Or, we could keep on acting like each other! Who knows, maybe if we really commit to the bit, the universe will just fix itself?”
The suggestion was met with silence. Cheng Xiaoshi noticed the temperature drop and glanced at Lu Guang, wearing an expression that caught him off guard.
The universe fixing itself.
The timeline reinforcing its nodes.
Death nodes.
Inescapable fates crashing together with no way to stop it, no matter how desperately he fought to tear it apart.
Like breaking a rubber band by pulling it.
The harder he pulled, the harder it would snap back.
Only it would never break.
It always came back.
Always.
Lu Guang didn’t say anything, but his unfocused gaze rested somewhere on the wooden floor. It looked a ghost had passed right through him.
The teasing attitude Cheng Xiaoshi had was dropped immediately. "Lu Guang...?" he murmured, taking a step forward, "What’s wrong? Did I go too far? I’m so sorry, I shouldn’t have—“
Before the frantic apology could spiral, Lu Guang recovered from the trance and interrupted Cheng Xiaoshi. “That is by far the dumbest thing I’ve heard from you. Do you realize how high of a hurdle you just cleared?” Lu Guang said, back to his quick remarks.
Cheng Xiaoshi took a second to process Lu Guang’s sudden insult. This man’s mood changed like the weather.
So Cheng Xiaoshi shot back, “At least I’m trying to think of ideas to get us out of this mess! Your plan is literally just to sleep it off like a common cold!”
“It’s still better than yours.”
Cheng Xiaoshi pouted, which again looked strange in Lu Guang’s face. “I still say we can pull this off in front of Qiao Ling. When she walks in, we’re gonna be like,” He flattened his expression and squared his shoulders. “Welcome back, Qiao Ling-jie”
He emphasized the honorific with visible effort. “Everything is perfect. Especially Cheng Xiaoshi. Don’t you think he looks extra gorgeous today?”
Lu Guang felt a vein throb in his forehead. He raised a hand threateningly, “If you don’t shut up right now, I’ll—”
“What? Hit yourself? Go ahead.” Cheng Xiaoshi challenged him with a smug smile.
Normally, Lu Guang had a supernatural level of patience when it came to tolerating Cheng Xiaoshi's audacity, but using his own face to look that infuriatingly smug was rapidly turning this into a psychological experiment.
The sound of the door opening and triggering the jingle phrase broke their micro-war. They both instinctively hid behind the wall and peeked toward the front like children who didn’t want to greet the relatives.
Standing at the counter was a young lady, glancing around for service. “Excuse me?” she called, “Are you open?”
Cheng Xiaoshi straightened and adjusted Lu Guang’s shirt collar, which was now his. “We’ll be right with you!” he called back.
He turned to Lu Guang, “I know her. She’s just here to pick up a few prints.” He grabbed Lu Guang’s Cheng-Xiaoshi-wrist. “Come on! We can’t keep her waiting.”
Lu Guang allowed himself to be dragged out into the open, his mind screaming.
“Hi! Hello, you’re back to pick up those developed photos, right?” Cheng Xiaoshi greeted the girl brightly, pulling a dazzling customer-service smile across what was supposed to be Lu Guang's face.
Lu Guang watched from the sidelines as the client nodded shyly, and Cheng Xiaoshi briefly held up a finger, “Just one second, I have it right here!”
Cheng Xiaoshi disappeared into the back room, leaving Lu Guang with the customer.
He was so cooked.
The girl turned her smile to Lu Guang, whom she, of course, thought was someone else. “Hi, Cheng Xiaoshi, was it?”
"No, I'm—" Lu Guang started to correct, but reality caught up to him just in time. He swallowed hard. "...Yes. That's me."
She tilted her head, looking mildly concerned. “I’ve been here a few times. You’re always smiling and so friendly, but you look a little down today. Everything okay?”
Lu Guang forced himself to smile as broadly and innocently as he could until it reached his eyes. “I’m fine, thank you for your concern,” he chirped, the fake cheeriness scraping against his throat.
She softened and her smile returned, “I see. Sorry for prying.”
Cheng Xiaoshi-as-Lu Guang came back out carrying a small envelope with her name written on the front. “There you go! Everything’s right in there,” he said as he handed the envelope to her.
She took it with both hands and dipped in a small bow. “Thank you so much!”
Cheng Xiaoshi flashed a charming smile, deliberately maxing out Lu Guang’s physical attractiveness. "Come back anytime. We’ll be waiting."
She giggled as she turned toward the door, “I plan on it!”
Lu Guang stood frozen behind the counter after she left. He had never been a fan of watching Cheng Xiaoshi throw flirty charms at anyone. It made Lu Guang’s insides twist with disgust, for a reason he chose not to explore.
But now it was even worse. Forget figuring out how to swap back, if Lu Guang had to witness himself grinning like that for one more second, his soul was going to evacuate voluntarily.
Cheng Xiaoshi brushed his hands off. Like he did any work at all. He grinned proudly at Lu Guang. “See? No harm done.”
No harm done? My ass. Lu Guang thought. You just shaved ten more years off my life.
Outwardly, he rubbed a hand on his own face. “I take it back, twelve hours is a death sentence. I’m not going to stand here and see you using my face to flirt with customers. We’re closing for today.”
As expected, Cheng Xiaoshi protested, “Come on, Lu Guang! It’s too early, and if this goes on, we can’t stay closed through tomorrow!”
“We have bigger priorities. We need to think this through.” Lu Guang insisted sternly.
Cheng Xiaoshi rested his hand on a hip, still frowning. “Lu Guang, I know neither of us knows what’s going on, but we can’t crawl into a hole and play dead just because we’re in different bodies. We have a client coming this afternoon, anyway!”
“We can’t turn down our loyal customers,” He jerked a thumb to himself, “and someone’s gotta pay the rent, you know!”
Lu Guang gave him an unimpressed, heavy-lidded stare. “You? Pay rent? You can’t even pay attention.”
Cheng Xiaoshi slumped in defeat. “So cold…” he muttered.
But as the banter subsided, from their earlier conversation drifted back into his mind. The lingering memory of Lu Guang's hollowed-out expression made him pause.
“Hey, earlier, did I really go too far? Did I hurt you?” Cheng Xiaoshi asked meekly.
Lu Guang shook his head slowly, “No, you didn’t. I was just tracking a thought. It has nothing to do with you.”
It has everything to do with you, actually.
Cheng Xiaoshi took a careful step toward Lu Guang. “No, I need to be clear. It’s fun to tease you, sure. But, I never want you thinking I actually mean any of it,” he paused, searching for the right words. “I want you to know that there’s nothing wrong with you.”
I like you just the way you are. You should have that figured out by now.
“Never has been, never will be. I mean it. I really do.”
Lu Guang leaned back on the counter, his hands resting on the edges. “I know that. Thank you.”
They stood in silence for a few more moments until Lu Guang spoke up again. “And I also mean it when I say you didn’t offend me,” his tone became dry, “Your insults aren’t worth a reaction anyway.”
Cheng Xiaoshi was too relieved to pretend to be mocked. So he just let out a small huff of laughter and glanced out the window.
When he did, he gasped loudly and lunged for the window frame, nearly smashing his face to the glass. “OH NO. We’re dead!”
Lu Guang pushed off the counter to move to Cheng Xiaoshi’s side and peered out the window. “What? Captain Xiao? Someone from the Liu family? Debt Collectors?”
Cheng Xiaoshi gulped, “Worse. Qiao Ling’s back!”
There was Qiao Ling, rounding the corner to the photo studio, completely unaware that the two idiots inside had somehow messed up their own powers.