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The first time he'd been shoved into the tiny, nearly barren room and told to socialize with his 'roommate', Xia Fei had admittedly felt horror and fear.
Not for the soul sitting up slowly in their bed, but for himself.
After all, he'd just come back from his first 'job', skin itching all over with disgust.
And now there he was, with a stranger staring right back at him. The words of the man escorting him here didn't register. Something about dogs? Taking care of each- oh.
Xia Fei backed away a step, throat closing up when the thought settled in. Wasn't he done for today? Hadn't he done enough?
The stranger approached, ever so slowly. They were a whole head shorter than him, but that didn't stop the fear of being at their mercy from rearing its ugly head. After all- what good could he do, while his muscles locked up with fear?
They stopped before him, peering up at him with pretty lilac eyes and Xia Fei couldn't help but think: Shit, they're genuinely pretty.
Though, oddly, they didn't reach out to touch him. They didn't even speak. Only stared, tilted their head. There was an x-shaped scar across their mouth, but he doubted that it affected their speech. It seemed like a superficial scar.
They kept staring at each other for what felt like an eternity. Then, finally, his 'roommate' waved. As if to greet him. They didn't outright greet him verbally, but they did smile, the corner of their lips ticking up just a hint into something welcoming- if pitying.
His eyes wandered over them, took in the slender frame and bandaged arms. He could spot hand-shaped bruises on their upper arm and oh. They were in the same situation as him, weren't they?
Guilt blossomed in his chest. "Uh... hi" he said, feeling horribly awkward and out of place. He wasn't even sure if they understood him. Their expression gave nothing away, much to his dismay. "So you're trapped here too?"
His roommate nodded, eyebrows drawing together into the barest hint of an upset frown, but that was all the reaction he received. No verbal 'yes'. He was starting to think that they might be mute. Which- no judgement there. If they were, they were. If they weren't, they weren't.
Even after looking them over a second time he couldn't even say whether he'd presume them to be a girl or a guy. It didn't really matter, wouldn't change the situation. He felt too embarrassed to ask, though.
After all, they must've been exhausted too if their day had been anything like Xia Fei's. "I'm..." he paused, hesitating. Everyone here addressed him as Felix. That pig-faced boss, Jack - and he still loathed that he'd stupidly asked him for help -, his 'customers' when he played host, the handler... honestly, sometimes he forgot where Felix ended and Xia Fei started, too.
He hadn't been called 'Xia Fei' by anyone in ages. He'd slowly lost contact with Cheng Xiaoshi and Lu Guang, distracted by grief over losing his closest friend and needing to finish his degree to avoid ending on the streets.
Well, a whole lot of good did his degree do him. He'd been top of his class, a model student, he'd even been elected to hold a fucking speech... and no one would take him. They saw his previous occupation, saw that he'd been a model at one point, and assumed he was just a pretty face with nothing in his brain.
It was insulting.
His grades should speak for themselves- but no. The one thing that had kept his head at least slightly above the water and managed to finance his education ended up ruining his life in the job industry.
So... yea. He'd been 'Felix' for ages now. Was there any difference between Xia Fei and Felix anymore? He could think of one important one, among small miscellaneous ones.
"I'm Xia Fei" he decided, because he didn't want to forget who he really was. He was Xia Fei, even if he had to be 'Felix' for these people. But this... guy? gal? pal was in the same situation as him. It was only fair to show his real face.
His roommate tilted their head, lips parting around the softest "A Yuan" possible. He almost missed it. He did feel his heart stutter, out of shock, confusion or something else he couldn't quite say. Maybe one, maybe the other, maybe all three.
Dumbly, he stared at them. He really had assumed them to be mute. The softness of their voice still made it hard to tell- but he did, for a split second, think that they sounded a bit like a guy. He was still too embarrassed to ask.
His mouth, however, worked faster than his brain: "Like the currency?"
He felt his heart nearly stop in horror when he realized what he'd asked, and the apparent 'A Yuan' shook slightly. It took him a moment to realize that they were trying not to laugh at him- eventually failing and giggling like a maniac.
All of this was really, really bad for his heart. He started laughing a little too, unable to stay serious when his roommate clearly found his stupid question hilarious. By the time they both calmed down, after breaking into laughter again multiple times in a row each time they made eye contact, his chest was aching and his throat burning.
Xia Fei moved over towards the window eventually, glancing outside. There, sadly, wasn't much to see aside from the courtyard, which had its gate locked, so escaping was not an option. He really, really wanted to get out of here.
A Yuan must've noticed his drop in mood, silently stepping up next to him. He didn't even notice at first, getting a mini-heart attack once he did. "Jeez- we need to put a bell on you" he mumbled, smiled tiredly to show that he didn't really mean it.
With a tilt of their head, his roommate regarded him. As if thinking it over, before eventually shrugging. Sighing when their gaze also wandered out of the window.
They stood like that for a while. Looking at what little freedom they could see behind the wall... which wasn't much. There really wasn't anything useful, regretfully. He didn't even currently have his phone.
"We'll escape" he said, with as much conviction as he could. Offered A Yuan a brief, reassuring smile. "I promise, A Yuan"
~
"We'll escape" he said stubbornly, an hour after being thrown back into the room. His skin scrubbed raw since he'd been allowed into a shower before returning to the dreaded building in the middle of nowhere.
He tried escaping, obviously. He'd failed. Tripped and spilled wine over himself- that's why he'd been shoved into a shower.
His clothes were slightly wet, clinging to his skin uncomfortably. He much preferred his clothes over a stranger's wandering hands.
If he'd succeeded, he'd have alerted the police. Would've made sure A Yuan got out, too. He'd promised, and he intended to keep his promise.
A Yuan smiled, their expression sad. They seemed worried, unconvinced. He wasn't sure if their worry was directed towards him or the both of them or just at A Yuan themself.
~
It was the seventh time he'd returned from a job. He was quivering, tears burning in his eyes. Skin itching uncomfortably. They'd chided him, but he couldn't help it, scratching at his bare arms.
The latest outfit was far, far too revealing. Even for a host. He hated it. Hated how easy it made touching him. Hated how it was see-through, leaving little to imagination. Hated how people assumed he was pretending and actually enjoying when they-
It was the first time he hugged his roommate, practically clinging to them. Stifling a broken sob. If they were unhappy with his touch, they didn't show it. Gently rubbing his back and swaying from side to side as if to help calm him down.
"We'll get out" he croaked out eventually.
~
A Yuan returned looking terrified and haunted about as often as Xia Fei did. Looking mentally far, far away on the worse days.
He'd quickly learned that talking about everything and nothing brought them back down to earth, and slowly initiating touch eased them into calming down.
They were getting along rather well, all things considered. Perhaps because they shared the same fate.
Some days they simply sat on their beds. Sometimes they squeezed into one bed, seeking comfort in each other. Silently clinging to each other as if they were a lifeline to each other.
Sometimes, Xia Fei thought that the cage might not even be gilded, but at least it wasn't lonely. Even if he couldn't help but hate himself for such thoughts.
They got to know each other, though. And that was... nice. Even in their misery they managed to hold onto their true selves via each other.
If, eventually, sitting cuddled up together became the norm, no one needed to know. Despite that, they both respected each others boundaries. No matter what. And if their friendship slowly drifted into something neither of them felt ready to put into words?
No one needed to know that, either.
They were locked up, anyway. With no way to escape. Still, each time they returned to the room, Xia Fei insisted "We'll get out" no matter how down in the dumps his mood was.
~
A Yuan prided himself on being observant. He may he mute, more often than not, but he wasn't stupid. He was good at seeing patterns. Recognizing people by not just appearance, but also behavior.
And this was not how Xia Fei usually acted. Even when they returned him drunk or drugged did he not act like this. He even seemed sober, despite his weird behavior.
What gave it away was the lack of insistence that they'll escape. Still: This was Xia Fei. Perhaps currently not in mind and spirit, but certainly in body.
He didn't care about the threats, had never feared the dogs, but he cared deeply about his roommate. More than he'd cared about any previous friends.
So when 'Xia Fei' left the room, A Yuan followed.
When 'Xia Fei' was thrown down the stairs, A Yuan rushed to his side. Brought to tears in fear of losing his only friend and ally in this horrifying place.
When 'Xia Fei' was nearly stabbed, it took not a single second of thinking for him to lean over the railing, lilac eyes flashing golden-yellow while he shouted a command:
"Stop!"
(Not long after, Xia Fei would return. Back to being himself. A redheaded man in tow, a pink-haired guy trailing after them. Would offer his hands and say "We're leaving, Yuan! I told you we'd get out of here!" and A Yuan took his hand because this was Xia Fei. If no one else, he could trust Xia Fei.)