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The sky deepened into a dark blue, seeping into its orange hues as the sun makes its descent on the horizon. Freckles of light littered the night, dancing and sparkling like jewels in the sky. Like a graceful queen, the moon rose to her throne amongst the stars, draping her voile gown over the surface of the Earth, painting the lands a snowy white.
Under her divine glow, the Cloud Recesses glimmered ever so beautifully.
Tall white buildings towered over winding grounds, standing like ethereal palaces over the lands. Candle-lit lamps dotted its walls and seeped across winding gravel paths, illuminating the sanctuary of Gusu Lan Sect like fireflies in the fields.
Upon laying eyes on this landscape, one would let out a gasp and exclaim, "How beautiful!"
Yet...
To Lan Wangji, it was cold, dull, and quiet.
For how long had he been sitting there, gazing down at the place he called home?
For how long had he been sitting there, outdoors on the wooden floorboards of Jingshi?
For how long had he been sitting there, playing his guqin until his limbs grew numb?
For how long—
"That's enough..." a gentle voice whispered in Lan Wangji's ears, as a pair of warm hands cradled his own and halted his playing.
The melody of the guqin came to an end and silence returned to the Jingshi.
Lan Wangji stared blankly at the pair of hands encasing his, before lifting his gaze and meeting a pair of ruby red eyes, framed by lashes of white. "Qiānjié." The name trickled out from his lips in a breathy whisper.
Red hues of the male dilated in fondness as his lips curled into a smile. "It's getting cold. You should come inside," Qianjie advised. He raised his hands up, lifting Lan Wangji's hand up to his lips. With a deep exhale, Qianjie enveloped Lan Wangji's hand in a heated gust, before rubbing their hands together to warm up the ice-cold fingers within his hold.
If this happened a decade ago, Lan Wangji's ears would have flushed a deep red, before pulling his hand back and averting Qianjie's gaze.
Now, after everything they have been through together, and having a place in his heart left hollowed, Lan Wangji welcomed such warmth more than ever.
In his daze, he vaguely felt the weight of his guqin being lifted off his thighs. An arm wrapped around the back of his waist and a warm body pressed up against him, lifting him up from the floorboards.
Lang Wangji almost sunk back down to the ground, but luckily, Qianjie caught him and pulled him back up, stabalising him on his feet—which he had lost feeling in hours ago.
Qianjie supported Lan Wangji across the room and to his bed, carefully seating the man down on the cushioned surface. Making sure Lan Wangji had his back steadily leaned against the wall, Qianjie said, "Wait here."
Qianjie left the room and brought back a wooden pail. With routined practice, Qianjie set the pail down on the ground beside the bed and took a seat beside Lan Wangji. He soaked a towel with the water in the pail before squeezing it dry. Then, he wrapped one of Lan Wangji's hand with the towel—which had been dipped into warm water, Lan Wangji noted.
Lan Wangji silently watched as Qianjie repeated the action until both of his hands regained their original colour and warmth. However, as soon as the numbing cold receded, the tips of his fingers flared and burned in biting pain.
Noticing the slight shift in Lan Wangji's expression, Qianjie's long ears stiffened behind his head. He quickly held the slightly trembling hands in his own and rubbed circles on the back of Lan Wangji's hands in an attempt to comfort him. "Gege, are you ok?"
Lan Wangji lightly nodded, heart swelling with a gentle warmth. "Un."
Qianjie let out a sigh, his ears relaxing. "I've told you many times to take care of yourself. But here you go, playing until your skin tore again," he chided, twitching his nose by habit. He brought Lan Wangji's hands up to his eyes to examine the wounds and Lan Wangji watches as his ears droop down the sides of his head.
"I am fine," Lan Wangji assured, relieved that his words left his mouth smoothly, despite the tightening of his jaw—in response to suppressing the pain. "Do not worry."
"How can I not..." Qianjie trailed off, eyebrows knitting in concern as he brought Lan Wanji's trembling fingers closer to him.
Lan Wangji stared at the male, who seemed to be lost in his own thoughts. "Qianjie, what-"
Lan Wangji cut himself off with a sharp inhale as Qianjie stuck his tongue out and started licking the wounds on his fingers. Lan Wangji froze in shock, his ears starting to flush a rosy colour. He quickly jerked his hands back, but the grip around his wrists tightened in response. "Qianjie!"
The man obediently paused in his actions, giving Lan Wangji some time to collect himse—
The feeling of cool saliva running down his sensitive fingers sent shivers down his arms, effectively distracting him from the pain.
Unfortunately, it was not enough time as the hold on his wrists tightened again. Lan Wangji snapped his face away from Qianjie and hoped that a curtain of hair was able to hide his face. "Qianjie!" Lan Wangji shouted.
"Yes, Gege?"
"Brin-" Lan Wangji swallowed the lump in his throat. "Bring the medicine."
"Ok, Gege," Qianjie answered with a chirp and released his grip.
Lan Wangji drew a deep breath as silently as possible as he rested his palms on his knees. Do not indulge in pleasure. Do not be greedy. Be strict with yourself.
Reaching up a hand to touch his forehead ribbon, Lan Wangji reminded himself once more. Regulate oneself.
The bedsheets beside him shuffled as Qianjie returned with the medicinal herbs. "Gege, your hand."
Lan Wangji shifted his gaze back onto Qianjie's figure and noticed his outstretched palm. The second jade of Gusu eyed Qianjie, golden eyes narrowing in warning.
Qianjie brightened under his stare. "Qianjie won't do it again," he said, a fox-like smile hanging off his lips. "I promise."
"If broken," Lan Wangji stressed, "Leave immediately."
"I understand," Qianjie responded, with a fluttering of his ears, and gestured with his palm. "Hand," he repeated.
Lan Wangji held his position for a few more seconds, before giving in and placing a hand into Qianjie's open palm. Like a diligent healer, Qianjie began carefully applying the medicinal herbs— after Lan Wangji made sure the saliva was cleaned off.
"Wangji," Lan Wangji uttered, catching ruby hues in his gaze.
Qianjie let out a confused hum, before coming to a realisation. "You mean, your guqin?" he checked. "I've kept it back in its wraps."
"Doors."
"They're closed."
"Pail."
"I've cleaned up."
"Hn," Lan Wangji hummed. Qianjie was diligent, after all. There was no need to worry.
A comfortable silence settled over the two inhabitants of Jingshi.
Carefully securing Lan Wangji's fingers with clean bandages, Qianjie smiled at his work. He cleaned up any remnant of medicine that had accidentally dripped onto his own hands and set the medicinal bottle on a spot by a nearby table.
Lan Wangji had been meditating with his eyes closed to regulate and rejuvenate the Qi in his meridians. So when a warm body pressed into him and a weight rested against his shoulder, the man instinctively tensed and snapped back into reality. "Qianjie."
Qianjie rubbed the underside of his chin against Lan Wangji's shoulder and blinked innocently—as innocently as his alluring phoenix eyes could—as a pair of gold irises rested on his face. Lips curling into a smile, he quipped, "Yes, Gege?"
"Straighten your posture. Do not lean."
"I'm tired," Qianjie grumbled, pressing his head closer to Lan Wangji's neck and continued rubbing, his hands snaking around Lan Wangji's waist to secure his grip.
Lan Wangji's ears bloomed in a pink tint as Qianjie's fluffy white ears brushed past his cheek. He swiftly rose a hand and pressed down on Qianjie's head, stopping his movements. "Enough."
Qianjie rested his chin on Lan Wangji's shoulder and obediently halted his actions. Noticing that the man had made no move to push him away, Qianjie shuffled slightly and got into a more comfortable position to cradle the cold body in his embrace. "You've been playing that piece for nearly 4 hours now," Qianjie remarked.
Lan Wangji lowered his gaze at the comment, his stomach sinking ever so slightly.
Qianjie hummed, scattering trails of vibration across Lan Wangji's torso. "How long has it been already..." he trailed off, leaving the rhetoric question hanging in the air.
However, without missing a beat, Lan Wangji answered, "11 years, 7 months, 23 days."
The arms around his waist tensed slightly.
Qianjie let out a weak laugh. "It's been that long, huh." He drew in a deep breath. "I hope Wei Ying is doing okay."
"Indisputable," Lan Wangji said, his hand unconsciously caressing the soft locks under his palm. "Have confidence."
Qianjie nestled into the touch. "Un," he answered. "I do."
Lan Wangji slightly nodded his head in response.
"But you're not doing okay," Qianjie rebutted.
Lan Wangji's breath lodged in his throat. "...I am."
"Do not lie," Qianjie teased weakly, throwing a Gusu Lan Sect rule back to the disciple of Lan. "You can't hide from me."
"Almost Haishi. Return to your room," Lan Wangji stated, lifting himself off the wall and gently prying the arms off his waist. He silently breathed in relief when the bunny spirit made no move to stop his actions. At times like this, he was grateful for Qianjie's sensitivity to human emotions. "We leave at late dawn tomorrow."
"Un," Qianjie responded, albeit reluctantly. He pulled back his arms and stood up from the bed, assisting Lan Wangji in laying down. Making sure the man is well tucked in, a smile grew on Qianjie's lips, "Goodnight, Gege."
Lan Wangji hummed in response. When Haishi struck, the younger brother of the sect leader went out like a light.
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