Wild Creatures

Chapter 56

Deep breaths...he counts in his head as he slowly calms down, and then he's back in front of Wei Ying, gentler this time.

"You have no idea what was going through my mind when that Jin asshole was accosting you. Then that guy pulls out a sword!" Lan Zhan knows he's complaining, but he's justified.

"You know, it's kind of funny when you swear..." Wei Ying looks apologetic when Lan Zhan glares at him. "I'm sorry, my love. I really am. But Xiao XingChen said you were in danger and -"

"WHAT?" This growl is even deeper, and way more dangerous.

"Lan Zhan! You'll wake the children up!" Wei Ying hugs him even tighter.

Lan Zhan is vibrating with anger. He's livid.

It takes Wei Ying pushing him down onto their bed and weighing him down with all of his body, for Lan Zhan to finally calm himself down. He listens to the sound of Wei Ying's heart beating and regulates his own breathing to match.

"One day, you're going to see, I'm no helpless maiden." He promises Wei Ying.

Wei Ying giggles at that, and it's this sound that makes something settle in Lan Zhan's mind and body.

There was a time today, when he actually feared never being able to hear that again, his favourite of Wei Ying's sounds. To never be able to hear him talk again, to never be able to hold him like this.

Lan Zhan flips them around and he stares deeply into much missed beautiful silver eyes. They stare back at him, holding the secrets of all the stars in the Universe, shimmering like liquid mercury.

"Do not trust anyone," he begs.

"I know you're right. But Sweetheart, if I hadn't gone with Xiao XingChen today, we never would have found my grandmother. Look at everything we learned today."

"Wei Ying got lucky this time," Lan Zhan concedes. "Huaisang helped."

"I bet you were about ready to attack the Wens, right?" Wei Ying giggles again, when Lan Zhan looks down because he's embarrassed.

"That's why I asked my grandmother to fetch you."

"While you got drunk."

"I wasn't that drunk. But boy, was that strong stuff. She called it Emperor's Smile and either that was something liable to strip paint, or my tolerance level has decreased." Wei Ying smiles up at him.

"Emperor's Smile, you say?" Lan Zhan asks him.

"Yeah...why?"

"Uncle Qiren told us about it a long time ago. It was an ancient drink, only found in Gusu. That means, whatever she made you drink, it was very old, and very potent." Lan Zhan explains.

"Well, that makes me feel so much better. Doesn't old wine get more potent as time goes by?"

"Mn."

Wei Ying yawning loudly prevents Lan Zhan from asking him any more questions, though he has many up his sleeve that need answering. And he wants to ask Wei Ying something else, something much more of a personal nature.

But it can wait.

His man is tired, and Lan Zhan just wants him to rest for now.

Everything else can wait until tomorrow.

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Wei Ying jerks awake in the early hours of the morning. Lan Zhan is right there, still holding him when his silver eyes open and look at him. They remind Lan Zhan of a moonlit lake, with hidden currents swirling just under the surface. Magnetic and just as stunning as dark diamonds, Wei Ying makes a noise and suddenly, he's burrowing closer into Lan Zhan's chest.

"Mn?"

"I dreamt...maybe because yesterday, that Jin guy had asked me about Mrs Lan. I dreamed about her just now. Where do you think she is?" Wei Ying's voice is muffled.

"If she's clever, she will have evaded capture. If they were asking about her whereabouts, then it stands to reason that they don't know where she is, either. Mr Lan is still missing, unless they have him. But Wei Ying must be more careful from now on. If they know enough about you to accost you during the day, that means they are getting more daring." Lan Zhan kisses the top of his head.

The more he thinks aloud, the more things are starting to make sense.

"Meaning?" Wei Ying's lips find a small uncovered section of his skin, kissing him back with adoration.

Lan Zhan can tell, he's still sleepy. But he carries on talking, making his voice gentle and soothing, despite the subject matter.

"If we have so many questions, doesn't it stand to reason that the others would also have their own? What are they going to do to get their answers? How far are they willing to go?"

"Don't worry, my love," Wei Ying slurs as his eyes close once more. "I won't go anywhere without you. Love you." His voice fades as sleep takes him once more.

"Good boy." Lan Zhan's arms tighten around him, irrationally scared for him.

He had never felt this way before, this blind love that one hundred percent believed in Wei Ying so much.

In fact, he could separate his life into two compartments: before Wei Ying and after he met Wei Ying. Being turned into a vampire...sure, it made a difference to his life, but nowhere near the impact Wei Ying had on him.

The Lan Zhan of before was a closed off person, not really interested in anyone, or anything outside of his work.

But through living with Wei Ying, this Lan Zhan had learned how to love. Not just the romantic kind of love, but the nurturing kind, too. And A-Yuan with his gift for hugging, also born from Wei Ying.

This beautiful man touched so many lives and made them better, almost effortlessly and with ease. But who would look after him in return?

Lan Zhan wanted to be that guy, the one that was there for him, no doubts.

He wanted to be there for him, to take Wei Ying's worries away, to feed him and look after him forever. He was optimistic too, that there was going to be good things on their horizon, coming their way.

Today would yield more fruit by way of chatting to Baoshan Sanren. Lan Zhan closed his eyes, silently making a list of questions for her.

Today, they were going to be prepared.

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