p.o.v. xuxu
I needed to get out of this room with him as soon as possible. The thing about taking a bath now was a lie, actually I'm heading to Yusheng's room. As quiet as possible I walked through the inn's hallways and carefully knocked at his door. The first knock was probably too quiet, so I knocked a few more times. Finally after some time he opened the door with a sleepy face and a sore voice.
,,Who the hell- Xuhuan-jun...?" Seemed like I was the last one he expected.
,,Master Qin.."
,,It's four in the morning, what are you doing here?"
,,Can I come inside?"
,,Sure, but be quiet, my father's room is right next to mine.." I went inside and sat down on a sofa next to his bed.
,,Now away with the formalities, I need to talk about something really important..", I confessed sighing.
To others Yusheng's and my relationship could come off as distant, as nothing more as a senior-junior or a clan leader-clan member relationship. But actually we're really close friends. After I became an earth immortal, his clan found me in the wild and allowed me to live with them. Thanks to them my wounds healed well and I learned how to live with the fact that my significant other is no longer there for me. One big role in helping me played Yusheng, who was always there to listen to me and cheer me up, distract me. He knows basically everything about my past and a lot of what's on my mind.
,,Is it about Master Hanyu's breakdown?"
,,It's also about that, yes.."
,,Come on, tell me."
,,I'm not entirely sure, but I think he's not dead. He never died, Yusheng..."
His facial expression froze, it also hinted some confusion. ,,You're not joking, I assume?"
,,It's him...."
,,What makes you so sure?"
,,The way he talks, this familiar feeling when I'm around him and all these coincident similarities about our pasts..."
,,He's an immortal, right..."
,,So maybe he ascended after I died.."
,,Why don't you just ask him how his lover died?"
,,He's very sensitive about this topic... Oh, and another thing that's such a weird coincidence is that the place where his lover died was at the bottom of our temple's mountain..and that is also where I got stabbed and saw him for the last time in my life."
,,Now that's a big coincidence.."
,,What if he doesn't feel it at all? I can't just tell him that, this would trigger him..We met just a few days ago, so I don't know 'him' that much."
,,I suggest you should just try to get to know him better first then..Maybe you'll grow closer in a while."
,,He's just like back then..but I changed a lot just to overcome the pain I've had to endure. Otherwise I wouldn't be here today. What if he doesn't like this new version of me?" I was doubting my luck and more and more worries formed in my mind.
,,Of course he'll fall in love with you again if it's really him. Do you remember telling me all the things he did for you? All the times where he proved his love for you and how he risked his life multiple times just keep you safe?", my friend encouraged me with a promising smile.
,,I'll win his heart once again.."
,,Go to sleep now, hurry, hurry."
,,I hope I won't act too awkward around him.."
,,Just peacefully sleep next to him, no worries."
,,I suddenly remember some things between him and me where-"
,,Wenyan. Leave. I'm fucking tired."
,,Yeah, calm down...'' I hurried back to my room, slowly opened the door and quietly closed it again. Moving very slowly I laid down on my bed. Before closing my eyes I looked at Hanyu, whose bed was just about two to three steps away from mine.
Now that I think about it, he does quite look like Xianliang. The way he looks so peaceful while sleeping, his calm breathing and his slightly pouty lips. I want to hold him close and treat him just like back then, but there's this big distance that keeps me from getting closer to him. What if I'm just making up things in my head? Is there even a chance he survived this massacre from over hundred years ago?
While I was so deep in thought, I didn't notice his eyes opening. ,,Xuxu...?", his quite deep voice whispered.
I got startled and slightly laughed in embarrassment.
,,Hanyu, aren't you...sleeping...?"
,,I just heard you come inside, where have you been for so long?"
,,I told you I wanted to take a bath."
,,Your hair isn't even wet.."
,,You can't even see anything, it's night..."
,,Well, you wouldn't just go to sleep with wet hair, wouldn't you?"
,,You're too curious about everything...", I sulked.
,,Then don't lie to me."
,,How can you tell I'm lying? You don't know anything about me."
,,Go to sleep...'', he just mumbled in response and turned to the other side that faced the wall.
Seems like he really doesn't like me anymore...
The next morning
,,Xuhuan-jun? Xuxu?'', I heard my roommate's voice say while pulling at my arm.
The sun was shining right at my face, so I had a hard time trying to open my eyes. I looked up and faced a freshly washed Hanyu, who had a fond smirk drawn on his lips.
,,What's so funny...?'', I asked confused and sat up. ,,I just remembered you staring at me last night...'', he chuckled, ,,for almost two full minutes.'' ,,Stop imagining things, why would I look at someone like you?''
Annoyed I pushed his arm away and grabbed my clothes. As I was putting the jade colored gown on, Hanyu's eyes met with mine when I noticed him staring at me. ,,You're quite small, aren't you?'', the taller one of the two of us suddenly said out of the blue.
,,Have some respect. It's Xuhuan-jun you're talking to right now..'', I jokingly scolded him. ,,What are you? Like..1.70 meters? Pfft..'' ,,You better go outside now and grab your stuff or we won't ever get home..'' ,,Did the others already leave?''
,,Why?'' ,,I think I just heard Elder Qin's horse start running..'' ,,And you're telling me this now? Wow, thank you, Hanyu!''
He burst out laughing and helped me pack my belongings. What's his deal?
We went on our way back to Jiangsu, all alone on our own. Only the Clan Leader and his family are allowed to use horses to get home faster, everyone else has to walk. I thought I had some sort of special rank as the literal savior of multiple clans, but hey, you can't have everything. And I'm not complaining, since this whole trip back home gives me enough time to spend with Xian- I mean, Hanyu. I shouldn't get too used to calling him Xianliang to avoid words to just slip out sometime.
,,Hanyu?'', I asked after we kept silent for a while. ,,Hm..?'' He was kicking a stone out of his way and looked after it curiously. ,,About the situation at the mountain yesterday...'' ,,I told you I don't want to talk about my past.'', Xuxu answered with a cold gaze.
,,But I want to-'' ,,You know how you can help me? Just stop mentioning this topic. This would help me a lot.'' I really didn't want to upset him.. ,,I'm seriously trying to become your friend, but it doesn't seem like you actually still want me to.''
I started walking faster and was about go past him, but he grabbed me by my wrist and pulled me back. ,,Just slow it down a little. I don't just tell strangers my complete life story. Or is this something you usually do?''
,,No one even knows my name...'' Except Yusheng of course.
,,See? Just because I need some time to open up in front of you, doesn't mean I don't want to be your friend. We both have our struggles and experiences we have to overcome, so I guess we're a good match, aren't we?'' Hanyu chuckled and slowly let my wrist slip out of his hand.
,,A...match..?'' What the hell is he saying...?
,,Ah, don't take everything literal..A good friends match is what I meant to say.''
,,Quick! They've probably passed the river already!", a man suddenly shouted, I could also hear horses running in the distance.
,,Xuxu, we should hide somewhere!" Without giving me enough time to answer, he grabbed my hand and pulled me inside a bush.