The Untamed 陈情令 Fanfic - Untold Stories

Chapter 6 - "Gusu Part 4"

Wei Ying, what are you doing?

The tip of Wei Wuxian's fingers continued to brush over his back, tracing with deliberate pace across what Lan Wangji could only presume were his scars. Abruptly, those touches ceased, and so did his breath. Neither the sounds of wind nor water could be heard, when the pounding beat of his heart was louder than the breath of the man behind him.

"Why did you lie?" the whisper, his voice, like a plea, no...it was more of a demand.

Lied? When? His chest ached.

"That's probably the first for you, wasn't it?" Wei Wuxian deduced, his open palm placed over the bare skin, a slow pressure as he moved closer, the surrounding ripples of the cold spring spreading. "Your melody stopped when I asked...I should've known. You see...," Wei Wuxian's voice lowered as though he wanted to keep his emotions in check, "because you never lie, I believed everything you said."

I did not lie, I just did not disclose.

Lan Wangij's mind disputed, though featherlight the touch was, the statement still felt like an attack. He moved forward, but the other followed, refusing to allow him to break contact.

"Your brother told me you went back to search for me," Wei Wuxian continued, and so did his stroking, delicately over the scars unseen by others. "Lan Zhan, you went to Burial Mound, heavily injured as you were...defending a home that was no more."

Your home, my home...they're all the same...Wherever you go, I would follow. But...I would rather have you here. Shielded from the world beyond, hidden from those that would only bring you harm.

"That's why you received these scars. HanGuang Jun, who never had a stain or smirch to his name, was tainted because of this Wei Wuxian. The Wei Dog that others cursed. Why....?"

Why should I care for such a name when I can't protect this person of mine? And why...should you care?

"How painful were they?" Wei Wuxian asked, his hands continuing to brush over the lines, the tips pressed against the widest blemish. "These scars....they're deep. But knowing you, you probably did not make a sound."

Not as painful as losing you...

Thousands of blades may cut this flesh, but nothing compares to the moment you let go of my hand.

"I was childish, stubborn...a blockhead. Stupid idiot," he admitted through the bitter chuckle of his tone. Then, the most astonishing thing happened. Wei Wuxian rested his head on his shoulder, causing Lan Wangji to tremble, but no less than the shaking person who still held him hostage in his grasp. "But you...," the words choked again, the vibrating pain exuded from his breath, "What made you become such a fool?"

You...

Only you...

The teasing voice that would haunt my nights,

To the cries of battle in fields of blood,

The arrogance of your plight,

Mustered beneath the fifth and mud.

Your smile, your tears,

Your wile, your fears.

The man I chose to be,

Fool I was, just for thee...