Mdzs Oneshots

neighbours (living ghosts part 1)

Nie Mingjue had always scolded Huaisang's bad habit of wandering and exploring. But when he said that it'd get him in trouble, Huaisang didn't think that this was what he meant. On his random trips to one of the ruins, he spied a dilapidated house. Being the idiot he was, of course he had to check it out.

The wind bit past his face as he walked closer. The house must have been beautiful once, he thought, with its arching beams, and polished wood. But now, the beams had long since weakened, beginning to cave slightly. The house was overrun with gentians, and vines slithered up the walls, like a warm blanket. The wood seemed to have crumbled over the years, the house sinking into itself. Still, there was something breathtaking about its elegance, softened by the flowers. There were traces of an animal pen strewn in the garden, and Nie Huaisang couldn't help but wonder what had lived here once, or a better question, who?

Unknowingly, the image of a white and grey bunny flashed through his mind, racing through the pen. He heard a soft chuckle behind him. "Lan Zhan, aren't they so cute? We should have done this earlier!"

"Mm." Instinctively, Nie Huaisang turned around, as if expecting to see faces behind him. But where the voices once were, only wind billowed through, whispering softly. Oddly enough, the image of a carefree smile imprinted itself onto his mind, dancing through the edges. A weird, gnawing feeling edged at him, stabbing him softly, as if urging him to do something, to think. To remember. But his mind stayed empty. Enthralled, he stepped closer to the house.

Unbidden, the image of the house in a soft, blue ran through his mind. Nie Huaisang couldn't quite explain it, but it was like touching a live wire. As if he'd been here before, done this before, yet the memories lay dormant, haunting him in the back of his mind. For a fleeting moment, he half expected the door to fly open, and for someone to greet him. Stupid, he knew. Stupid, stupid, stupid.

Still, there was a part of him that blindly hoped. Huaisang couldn’t quite explain the feelings that surged through him. The odd certainty there someone would open the door, and that it’d be someone he knew. Unable to resist the urge, his fingers wrapped around the worn doorknob. It was made of pewter and looked like it’d been worn over the years, though it was obviously well-loved, seeing how well-polished it was.

“Hello?” he called out, breathing unsteadily. “Is anyone here?”

Nothing but silence.

But just as he was about to leave, quiet footsteps pattered behind him. Turning around, he came face to face with a boy. He didn't look much older than Huaisang, but there was something to his eyes that said otherwise. His skin looked like bougainvillaea petals, white and snowy. Grey lines ran up his face, and there was an otherworldliness to his eyes, one that Huaisang couldn't quite put a mark on. He was ethereal.

But his eyes. They were a soft grey, but Huaisang could have sworn they danced in crimson shades, sliding in and out of grey. He stood there awestruck, before it finally hit him that the boy probably lived there.

"I'm sorry, it's just… I thought this place was abandoned," he muttered sheepishly, scratching his neck.

Not that the other boy seemed to care. "It's fine," he answered stiffly. "What are you looking for?"

Oh, crap. There wasn't anything in particular he had been looking for, but somehow the sight of him scratched at his brain, as if he were playing a broken record, the stylus scraping against the record, looking endlessly around the turntable. "Nothing much, really. Just looking around."

The boy gave him a questioning, half-accusing glance.

"I just like wandering around, looking at architecture…I mean no harm, I swear."

At that, the boy seemed to relax, shoulders sagging down. Though not before Huaisang caught a flicker of hesitation in his eyes, a realisation.

I wonder what he's thinking about…( don't we all, Huaisang. Don't we all.)

"Okay."

"I'm Huaisang, by the way." Upon hearing the name, the boy froze. He blinked rapidly a few times. "I'm sorry, but can you repeat your name again? I might have heard wrongly."

He didn't. He heard him as clearly as day. Puzzled at his reaction, the gears in Huaisang's head started to turn…"Nie Huaisang. Does the name mean something to you? I don't believe we've met."

The light in the other boy's eyes vanished as quickly as it appeared. "Oh no, of course we haven't…"
Not in this life, anyway.

"Just sounded familiar, that's all. I'm Wei Wuxian, " A smile appeared on the boy's face, "It's nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you too," odd change of attitude. But the name weighed heavily on his mind, like a ball kick-starting Newton's cradle. "You live nearby?"

"Yeah. Here, actually. But I haven't seen anyone in a while. You?"

"Somewhere nearby- the house just over there, actually. " Huaisang pointed vaguely, but you could see the faint traces of a mansion where he pointed.

"I see…" the boy sounded thoughtful, almost hopeful.

"I guess I'll see you around then?"

"Yup, you'll see me around quite a lot. So sorry for today!" Nie Huaisang waved. "I've to go soon, so I'll be on my way!"

He left before the other boy could speak, bolting away before running back home. The journey was short, at least. But if there was one thing Nie Huaisang was sure of, it'd be that he was not made for running.

By the time he ran up the winding path, he was already heaving, his lungs ready to collapse. He stumbled clumsily through the door, where his brother sat, waiting. He was making a show of reading the papers, too, and being unbothered. But the papers were upside down.

Still, his brother barely looked up as he stumbled through the door, clinging onto the wooden frame. "You had fun?"

"Yeah, I took a…run today. Went..  to visit the house nearby, too." Huaisang answered, still gasping for air.

"You saw the neighbour?" Nie Mingjue looked up at him through his glasses, brows raised.

"Oh yeah, the neighbour…the neighbour… he's…pretty interesting. "

The expression on Nie Mingjue's face would have won an Oscar for confusion.
"That's…good."

"I'll take my leave now, Ge."

As soon as Nie Huaisang got back to his room he collapsed on his bed

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A/N: 1095 words!  And now I'm wishing that I could collapse on my bed...sorry for not updating in a while, school just started a few weeks ago, and it's been really busy. I likely won't update as much or as often, I'm so sorry for that in advance. I know this slip is shorter than usual, but life's been...really busy. Just wanted to give you guys something, even if it's just me writing....
How have you guys been?

And I'll try to finish this oneshot soon, don't worry...I don't think it'll become a series, I know I haven't caught up on any of the Oneshots. My brain is overrunning now, but still- thanks out guys so much for reading, I hope you'll enjoy this chapter! ❤️