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Chapter Text

“What do you mean I am getting a bodyguard?!” 

A voice echoes across the hallway that houses an office. The door of the office is open.  

And inside is a dainty man, just under 6ft. His nutmeg-colored hair sits upon his head with permed curls. He wears black slacks with a white dress shirt, neatly tucked in. His suit jacket is thrown to the side. His hands are covered with simple rings, and silver jewelry hangs from his ears. A flushed face, with freckles across his cheeks and nose. He has pink, glossy lips with long eyelashes. He looks like an idol. 

He is Xie YuChen, the head of the Xie family. The 8th family in Lao Jiu Men. He is staring at the phone on his desk, shaking. 

“I do not need a bodyguard”, he says. 

“Too bad. You probed into something you should not have probed into. You can not trust the people in your household. While this man is a mercenary he is loyal, and I can trust him with my life”, Wu SanXing’s voice filters through the speaker. “I already talked to the Madam of the household, she will take care of the guest bedroom, and make sure the man gets measured for suits when he arrives”. 

“I do not want him”, Xie Yuchen says with fire. 

“I don't care. I have always cared for you like a son after your uncle disappeared. I want you alive, do you hear me?” 

Xie Yuchen sighs and rubs his eyes. He can not argue with that fact. 

“Okay”, he resigns. “Let him come”. 

“Well you did not have a choice, he will arrive in about 20 minutes. He just grabbed a taxi from the airport”. 

Xie Yuchen scoffs and slams down the phone on the receiver. He grabs his coat and heads to the spare bedroom next to his. The bed is made up of black, silk sheets. The windows are open, allowing fresh air to enter the room. Sheer white curtains move in the breeze, it is a wonderful spring day outside. He sees stacks of new pajamas on the dresser. Along with bathroom essentials. He heads onto the balcony and sees that it connects to his own and he frowns. 

He heads out of the room and heads to the front door. He does not want to deal with this strange man, but if Wu SanXing trusts him enough to live in this household he needs to appear thankful. He sits on a couch in the drawing-room by the front door when he hears a car pull up. He moves the curtains and sees a black taxi at the gate. He stands up and fixes his coat and walks out the front door with some servants. 

The door opens and a young man walks out of the taxi. A mess of black hair is on his head, thrown into a ponytail. Black sunglasses sit on the bridge of his nose. Over his shoulder is a black leather jacket. He wears a tight black t-shirt that sticks to the lean muscles on his arms and sits perfectly on the man’s cinched waist. A belt with extra loops and weapon holsters is around the waist with tattered jeans. The outfit ends with mud-covered combat boots. The man goes to the trunk and grabs a suitcase and duffel bag from it. He closes it and hands money to the taxi driver, bowing his head. 

The dirty man walks up to the prim and proper Xie Yuchen. 

“Hiya, I am Hei Yan Jing, the man Master Wu hired”, Hei Yan Jing says with a grin. He sticks his hand out for a handshake and Xie Yuchen recoils looking at the dirt under the man’s nails. 

“Pleasure”, Xie Yuchen says. “I am Xie YuChen. You call me Master Xie”.

Hei Yan Jing chuckles and puts his hand down. He nods his head. Xie Yuchen moves his hands and the servants to his sides grab Hei Yan Jing’s belongings. 

“Go with them and get clean. The Madam of the house will measure you for new clothes, and prepare you for lunch with me in the garden. I will show you around the house then, and then you will be given your duties”. Xie Yuchen says before he walks away. 

Hei Yan Jing nods his head and follows the servant to the bedroom. He walks in and is greeted by a lively older woman.
“Oh you must be the Madam of the house?” he asks. She motions him closer and she starts to measure his body while they talk. 

“Ah yes, I am Miss Chen, I take care of the servants of the house and make sure it is clean for Master Xie”. 

“Am I considered a servant of the house?” Hei Yan Jing asks in a light-hearted manner. 

“Well yes and no. You will be by Master Xie’s side most of the time unless he is doing something personal such as showering.” 

Hei Yan Jing nods his head trying to remain still for the woman. 

“This room is next door to Master Xie. You will share this balcony, but you have separate bathrooms. The balcony door is to be locked at night, but there is a shared door here. This is the key to it, if something is to happen to him at night this is your way into the room. These are new clothes for you to wear while here. As well as anything you need to stay clean while living here. Master Xie will give you a copy of his schedule so you are aware when you need to wake up and when you head to bed”, she says. 

Hei Yan Jing nods his head. 

“You are to shower now, and prepare yourself for lunch. On the bed is an outfit for you to wear when you head down”. She puts down the measurer and pockets her notes. 

Hei Yan Jing nods his head and bows when Madam Chen leaves the room. He locks the door behind her and heads to the bathroom. He turns on the tap and watches the hot water seep into the tub. He removes his clothes and removes his glasses. Placing them on the vanity. He pours some bath salts into the tub and kneels testing the water with his fingers. Since he arrived he has been super aware of the disdain Xie YuChen had for him. He can tell the man was going to give him a hard time, but if he wants this money he knows he needs to be the best for the man. Even if that means scrubbing under his fingernails. 

He steps into the tub and grabs something sharp and starts to scrape his nails. He eventually finishes up and continues his shower. He steps out and walks into the bedroom with a towel around his waist. He looks outside and sees Xie Yuchen sitting down with a slim, younger woman. He cocks his head. 

“He has a girlfriend?” he wonders out loud. He laughs to himself and gets dressed. He scowls when he sees his figure in the full-length mirror. He is dressed in all black. Black slacks and a black dress shirt. The top couple of buttons are open. He throws a knife onto his waist. He heads to the bathroom and braids his hair so it meets in the back for a small ponytail. He puts lip gloss on and then throws on his shades. He looks at himself in the mirror and gives himself finger guns. He laughs at himself. 

“Damn, you are going to hate this job”, he says in a sullen voice. He slips his feet out of slippers and throws on boots that click-clack way too much on the hardwood floor of the hallway. 

He heads outside to the courtyard garden and he is greeted with a smile from the young girl but a scowl from Master Xie. He walks up to the man and lightly bows. 

“Master Xie, I have come when you want me”, he says in a tone that irks Xie Yuchen. 

“Is this how you talk to your other bosses?” Xie Yuchen asks. He stands up and walks up to Hei Yan Jing. He looks him up and down. 

“I am not sure what Master Wu told you, but this is my charm. I am an asshole so to speak”, Hei Yan Jing says with a tilted head. Xie Yuchen’s eyes widen. “Listen, I am only here to protect you. This means I do not serve you tea, I do not tuck you in at night, I am not your chauffeur. I am the scary man that can kill people in complete darkness”. 

“What if I want you to serve me?” 

“Tea or in bed?” Hei Yan Jing says with a smirk. 

“You dirty-” 

“Listen, you are not paying me. Master Wu is, so I am doing what he told me to do, which is protect you from the people who you are probing into”

The woman looks at the two men standing chest to chest and lets out a cough. “Ahem, maybe you should step away from one another”. 

Hei Yan Jing looks at her and nods his head. He goes to step away from Xie Yuchen but the man grabs his arm. 

“You are to do your job”, he says. 

Hei Yan Jing looks at the man’s hand on his arm and smiles. 

“I will protect you Xie Yuchen. I am willing to die for each job I get, you are no different”. He removes the man’s hand and sits down at the table. 

“You said you needed to show me around the mansion first”, he says. He crosses his legs. 

“Ahem!” the woman suddenly says. Hei Yan Jing moves his head and looks at her. He cocks his head and smiles 

“Hello”. 

“Hi, my name is Huo Xiu Xiu,” she says. She sticks her hand out and Hei Yan Jing takes it. He smiles at her. 

“My name is Hei Yan Jing”, he says. 

“Oh? Is that really your name?” she asks. 

“It is such a stupid name so I assume it is not. “ Xie Yuchen says as he frowns into his tea. 

“It is a name to protect my identity,” Hei Yan Jing says. He places his hands on his lap and looks at Xie Yuchen.

“Do you have security here?”

“Yes”. 

“Can I bother them later to show me blueprints of the building? I need to know the weak points”. 

“Hmm. Xiu Xiu, you can head back now. I need to show this asshole the grounds”, Xie Yuchen says. He stands up and Huo Xiu Xiu follows. She nods her head and smiles at Hei Yan Jing before leaving. 

“You calling me an asshole threw me off”, Hei Yan Jing says. Suddenly, a hand is on his neck and Xie Yuchen is towering above him. His breath is tickling Hei Yan Jing’s nose. 

“How dare you come into my house and try to embarrass me in front of my people”. 

“Ah- Master Xie-” his words are cut off by Xie Yuchen squeezing his throat tighter.
“Shut up”, Xie Yuchen growls. “I know that I can not control you but you better not pull any stunts when you are here. I will throw you on the street”. 

Hei Yan Jing looks at him, he feels tears pooling in the corner of his eyes. He nods his head weakly and Xie Yuchen releases his grip. “Come on, get up”. 

Hei Yan Jing stands up and adjusts his shirt and rubs his neck. He follows behind the man. He listens to half of what he says and looks around the ground with watchful eyes. Something feels wrong to him. He steps forward and grabs Xie Yuchen’s wrist, halting him.

“Can I ask you a question, Master Xie?” 

“Unhand me first”. 

Hei Yan Jing grabs his hand back and Xie Yuchen wipes his hand on his pants. 

“Do you have cameras in this part of the grounds?” 

“Yes.” 

“Can you signal with your head where?” 

Xie YuChen nods his head and moves his head to different parts of the yard. 

“Ah, well there is one you have not tagged”. 

“What?” 

“I will handle it tonight, come on let us continue”, Hei Yan Jing says. 

Xie Yuchen frowns at the man but nods his head and walks on. They walk around the mansion and outer grounds for hours and when they return to the main building it is dark outside. 

“We will dine and then I will retire to my room”, Xie Yuchen says. Hei Yan Jing nods his head and follows Xie Yuchen to the dining room. 

“Do you need your bodyguard to taste test everything for you before you eat it?” Hei Yan Jing says mockingly. 

Xie Yuchen gives him a side-eye. And mutters under his breath “hopefully it is poisoned”. 

Hei Yan Jing smiles and stands behind Xie Yuchen. He looks around the empty room and he is suddenly aware that the man dines alone. 

“Does anybody ever eat dinner with you?” he asks. 

“Only if my friends are over”, he says. 

“Hmmm”. 

“You can eat with me, I doubt any assassins are going to get to my dining room”, he says. He motions to the empty seat next to him. 

Hei Yan Jing sits down and looks at the plate in front of him. The food is meager, with mainly greens. 

“I do not eat a lot so I am sorry if the food is not to your liking”, Xie Yuchen says. He opens up a bag and pulls out papers. “I also work through dinner”. 

Hei Yan Jing looks at Xie Yuchen and leans his head on his hand. 

“Do you ever not work?” 

“Excuse me?” 

“Ah Master Xie, you work so much. Do you want a massage?” he asks in a playful tone. 

“Don't you dare even think about touching me”, Xie Yuchen says. 

“Good, I was going to ask you to pay me”, Hei Yan Jing says. He grins a toothy smile. 

“What?” 

“If you want to use me in that way you have to pay”

“Why would I pay for your services?” 

“I am a god at sex”. 

“EXCUSE ME?” Xie Yuchen stands up and knocks the tea down on the floor. 

“Ai-ya I am sorry”, Hei Yan Jing kneels and starts to clean the tea. He is humming to himself and a hand grabs the back of his hair and pulls his head up. 

“AYE!” he screams. He looks up and sees Xie Yuchen looking down at him. “Haha Master Xie, you like seeing me on my knees? I said ``I charge extra”. 

Xie Yuchen releases his head. “Gross. I am no longer hungry”. He grabs his papers and heads to his bedroom. 

Hei Yan Jing is still kneeling on the ground and he rubs the back of his head. He rises off the ground and places the teapot on the table. 

“This man is sensitive”. He walks away and heads back to his room, his stomach growling. He sits on this bed and lays backward swinging his feet at the end of the bed. 

“Why does Master Wu need me to protect this pretentious douchebag, ugh”. He sits up and closes the curtains and removes his shirt. He slides his feet into slippers and goes to the mirror. He opens his pants and starts to unbraid his hair when he hears a scream from Master Xie’s room. He turns around and grabs the key hanging by the door. He throws himself into the room to see it empty.

“Master Xie?” he calls. 

He runs to the bathroom and sees the man kneeling on the ground, a towel barely wrapped around his bare waist. His head is in his hand, and he is groaning. 

“Master Xie?” Hei Yan Jing calls. The man on the ground looks up and then stands up abruptly. The towel falls and Hei Yan Jing is faced with a very naked Xie Yuchen. 

“HEI YAN JING”.

Chapter Text

They are both standing there frozen, and Hei Yan Jing can see bright red color on the other man’s face. Suddenly he blinks and sticks out his arms.
“Ah, Ah I can not see. I am blind, what happened Master Xie?”

Xie Yuchen makes a choking sound but grabs the towel and covers himself up. “Get out”. He says in a stern voice. He starts throwing bottles at the man, trying to push him out faster. 

“Okay”, Hei Yan Jing says. He walks into the wall by the door and continues back to his room pretending to not be able to see. He finally enters his room and closes the door. He sighs and sits back on the bed. “He is going to fire you”, he says in an annoyed voice and flips over shoving his face into the bed so his scream is muffled. 

Xie Yuchen in the other room is still standing in the bathroom stunned. He turns on the shower, trying to purge the thoughts from his head. 

“Why did that idiot come running in here, who the hell does he think he is?” he says. He steps into the shower and sighs. “I want to fire him”. 

The next day Hei Yan Jing meets Xie Yuchen outside of the man’s door. He is scrolling through his phone. He wears a similar outfit from yesterday, but his hair is not pulled back so it hangs loose. He looks up when he hears the footsteps of Xie Yuchen. 

“Ah Master Xie”, he stands up straight and gives a lopsided grin. “Good morning”. 

“Listen to me”, Xie Yuchen says. He walks closer and presses himself again Hei Yan Jing. “We do not talk about last night”. 

“I have no idea what you are talking about”, Hei Yan Jing says. 

Xie Yuchen frowns and steps back. “Come”. 

They head into the office and Xie Yuchen settles into his desk. “You are to stand outside the door at all times”, he says with a stern voice. 

“Ah, okay”, Hei Yan Jing says. He walks out of the office and stands by the door. He leans his head back on the wall behind him and watches people walk around the mansion. He does not realize that a couple of hours passes until someone raises a hand in front of his face. 

He freezes and grabs the wrist of the hand. 

“Ah!” a female voice says. He lets go of the hand. 

“Ah, Miss Huo,” he says. He smiles at her. “Are you here to see Master Xie?” 

“Do not call him that anymore”, she says. She pouts and puts her hands on her hips. “We call him Xiao Hua”. 

“Little flower?” he asks. 

“Yes! Because when he was younger he was so pretty, and dainty” she says with a large grin. “Oh, why are you out here?” 

“I am the bodyguard so I have to watch out for people”, he says. He puts his hands in his pockets. He is now aware that his feet hurt, he is not used to wearing dress shoes for long periods. 

“But how do you know if he is okay in there?” she asks. 

“He has been muttering to himself about his family partners for the past 3 hours. So I know he is alive” he says. 

“Ah, you should be in there with him. I will talk to him” she says. She opens the door and yells the man’s nickname. 

“XIAO HUA! How dare you leave your bodyguard outside the room. What if someone was going to kill you from the window?” she asks. 

“If he is that experienced he will hear it”, he says. He looks at her, “why are you here?” 

“I want to go out for lunch”, she says. 

“Okay, where?” 

“There is a new Boba cafe that opened last week”, she smiles. 

“Okay”. 

“Take your bodyguard,” she says. Her grin becomes bigger. 

“Why?” 

“He’s hot. And I think..you should tap that”, she leans in closer to say this so her words are a whisper. 

“Aiya!” Xie Yuchen says. He slaps her away and she giggles. 

“Isn’t he though?” 

“You have poor taste in men, so no”. 

“Excuse me?” 

“You do. You see a man with a nice ass and you fall apart”, he says. He starts to close up folders on his desk. 

“So you think he has a nice ass?” she says with wonder. She puts her head in her hands and smiles at him with wide eyes. 

“Xiu Xiu,” he says. 

“Xiao Hua GeGe”, she whines. “Come on, he is”. 

“He is my bodyguard, I do not care what he looks like. He annoys me”. 

“Do not let him hear that”, she pouts. 

“He has heard this whole convo”, he says. He points to the door which was not closed all the way. 

“Oh”, she says. Her face turns red and she looks at Xie Yuchen. “he..heard”. 

Xie Yuchen smiles and gets out of the chair. He walks to the door and sticks his head out. He looks at Hei Yan Jing. The man is silently staring straight ahead. His hands are in his pocket and his body is leaning against the wall. 

“You”, Xie Yuchen says. 

Hei Yan Jing turns his head and smirks when he sees Xie Yuchen looking at him. “Me?” he says. 

“Come”, Xie Yuchen says. 

“That is no way to please a man”, Hei Yan Jing says. 

Xie Yuchen turns his head around and stares at him. “Why do you test me every day?” 

Hei Yan Jing shrugs his shoulders. Huo Xiu Xiu runs out of the room and slaps his arm. She pulls back and looks at him. “Do you like boba?” 

“I do like balls”, Hei Yan Jing says. 

Huo Xiu Xiu smiles and looks at him and then Xie Yuchen. 

“You like…balls?’” she says with a grin. 

Xie Yuchen and Hei Yan Jing both give her a disgusted look. 

“Tapioca balls”, Hei Yan Jing says. The way the miss is looking at him makes him want to shudder and hide. He looks up and Xie Yuchen is staring at him. 

“Come with us to the boba cafe”, he says, not a hint of emotion in his voice. 

“Okay”, Hei Yan Jing says. He follows the two to the front door of the gate. 

“Can you drive?” Xie Yuchen asks. “Normally I would ask my driver to drive, but he is not in today”. 

Hei Yan Jing nods his head and climbs into the front of the car. He waits for Huo Xiu Xiu and Xie Yuchen to finish bickering before they slide into the back seat. Hei Yan Jing adjusts the mirror so he can see the two in the back seat. 

“Since Huo Xiu Xiu is coming with us, I will also protect her,” he says. He pulls away from the curb. He is driving when suddenly he hears Huo Xiu Xiu’s voice.

“Hei Yan Jing, what is your career?” she asks. 

“I am a mercenary”, he states. 

“In what field”, she says. 

“Usually expeditions” 

“Ex…pe..ditions?” she asks. “Which kind?” 

He can sense the tension in the back of the car from Xie Yuchen. 

“Tombs” he states. 

“You work in the business of tombs?” Xie Yuchen asks. 

“Why else do you think I know Wu Sanxing?” Hei Yan Jing asks. He stops at a red light. 

“Why do I not know your name?” Xie Yuchen asks. 

“I was never contracted by the Xie family, but I have been by the Huo family”, Hei Yan Jing answers. 

“My family?” Huo Xiu Xiu asks. 

“Yes. A couple of times”. 

“How old are you?” 

This causes Hei Yan Jing to freeze, he chuckles. “You choose, my real age or my fake age?” 

Xie Yuchen frowns at this. “Real age”. 

“I do not know, old. As old as Zhang Qiling probably. Except I kept my memories”. 

The name causes Xie Yuchen to bristle, and Huo Xiu Xiu looks confused. 

“Why do you know him?” 

“I worked jobs with him, he is also contracted by the Wu family”, Hei Yan Jing states.
There is silence in the car and Huo Xiu Xiu chirps up. 

“How old do you tell people you are?’ 

“27”

There is more silence and Hei Yan Jing releases an exhale as he pulls into a parking spot. He turns around and smiles at them. 

“We have arrived”.

They all get out of the car, and Hei Yan Jing looks up at the sky. He allows Xie Yuchen to walk ahead of him and he follows.

They enter the boba cafe and Huo Xiu Xiu runs to the counter. She orders the drinks for her and Xie Yuchen. She looks at Hei Yan Jing gesturing to the cashier. 

He gives her a weird look and then smiles in understanding. He stands next to her and orders himself a drink. She orders some mochi donuts for them while Hei Yan Jing leads Xie Yuchen to an empty table. They sit down and Xie Yuchen looks at Hei Yan Jing. 

“Why have I never heard of you before?” Xie Yuchen says. He turns his body so he is facing Hei Yan Jing. They are sitting at a tiny round table. 

“I am surprised you have not, especially since you are the head of the family”, Hei Yan Jing says. He plays with the watch on his wrist. 

“Are you successful in your job?” Xie Yuchen asks. He grabs Hei Yan Jing’s hand so he stops fidgeting. Huo Xiu Xiu looks over at that moment and sees Xie Yuchen touching the man’s wrist. She smiles and turns back around waiting for her drinks. 

“I am alive so what do you think?” Hei Yan Jing says. He looks at the hand on his wrist and then into the eyes of Xie Yuchen. Xie Yuchen removes his hand and leans back. 

“You like the money I presume?” Xie Yuchen says. He leans his head on his fist and looks at Hei Yan Jing through half-closed eyes.

“Would I stick around babysitting you if I did not?” Hei Yan Jing chuckles. Xie Yuchen frowns and turns his body away. They both sit in silence until Huo Xiu Xiu comes with the drinks and donuts. She sets them down and she looks at the two. 

“Did you fight?” 

“He is an asshole,” they both say at the same time. They turn their heads and glare at each other. Then they stand up and point to the other. 

“I am the asshole?” they both say again at the same time. They then start poking each other and calling each other names with exaggerated mannerisms. Huo Xiu Xiu stands up and pushes them away from each other. 

Xie Yuchen points to Hei Yan Jing. “Get out. Wait in the car”. 

“Excuse me?! What am I a dog?” 

“YES! You are a bitch!” 

The store goes quiet, and Hei Yan Jing huffs. He picks up his drink and takes a sip of the drink. He then spits out tapioca balls on the front of the man’s shirt and stomps out of the cafe.

Xie Yuchen is as still as a statue while Huo Xiu Xiu tries to remove the balls from his shirt. Hei Yan Jing stomps back into the cafe and points to Xie Yuchen. “DRIVE YOURSELF HOME YOU DOUCHEBAG!” He then looks at the workers and bows and whispers a sorry before throwing money at the tip jar and running out. 

Xie Yuchen’s eyes widen and he lets out a scream. He runs out of the store and throws his shoe at Hei Yan Jing who is walking away. 

“GET BACK HERE YOU ASSHOLE!” 

Hei Yan Jing turns around and places his empty cup on the ground. 

“WE ARE THROWING SHOES NOW?!” he yells. 

“YOU FUCKIN THREW BALLS AT MY SHIRT!” 

“BECAUSE YOU ARE AN ASSHOLE! I’VE BEEN HERE FOR 24 HOURS AND YOU DEMEAN ME EVERY SECOND YOU GET!”

“YOU DESERVE IT!”

“YOU LITTLE FUCK” Hei Yan Jing yells before he jumps on Xie Yuchen. They start fighting both attempting to hit one another. Huo Xiu Xiu watches from the door of the store where the customers have started to record. One of them looks at Huo Xiu Xiu. 

“Is this a lovers quarrel?” 

“No they have only known each other a day”, she sighs out. 

Huo Xiu Xiu then sees that they are both bleeding and she gasps out loud. She runs up to them and separates them. She then slaps Hei Yan Jing across the face. 

“HA, that is what you get!” Xie Yuchen jests. But then Huo Xiu Xiu turns around and slaps Xie Yuchen, causing Hei Yan Jing to laugh. 

“Are you both done?” she asks. 

They both nod their head slowly. Hei Yan Jing is holding his hand, where Huo Xiu Xiu sees he has bruised knuckles. She then sees then the wall next to them has blood on it. She looks at Xie Yuchen and sees that he is bleeding from his nose. She sighs. 

“Get in the car”. She grabs her and Xie Yuchen’s drink. She orders another drink for Hei Yan Jing and heads to the car. She opens the door of the driver’s side and hears them two bickering in the back seat. She looks at them and Xie Yuchen has Hei Yan Jing in a headlock who is biting the other man. 

“Stop it!” she yells. 

They both part and pout looking out the window. She climbs into the driver’s seat and drives them home. She parks in front of the house and the two men fly out of the car running up the steps to the house. They both stomp to their rooms forgetting they live next to each other. Huo Xiu Xiu sees them shoving each other as they ascend the steps to the second level. Madam Chen appears next to her. 

“What happened? Why are they bloody?” 

Huo Xiu Xiu laughs. 

“Either they will end up killing each other, or they will fall in love and this will be the love story for the ages”. She links her arm around the older lady’s arm and explains to her what happened that day. 

The men go into their rooms and slam the doors closed. Hei Yan Jing walks to the balcony door and makes sure it is locked before he covers the glass door with the curtain. He puts a chair in front of the door that connects the two rooms. He strips his clothes and looks at the bruises on his body. 

“This little fuck” he murmurs under his breath. He removes his glasses and heads into the bathroom, slamming the door behind him.

Xie Yuchen is sitting on the floor of his bedroom, leaning over his shirt with a tide-to-go pen trying to remove the stains from the black tapioca balls. The door opens and Huo Xiu Xiu walks in. 

She sits down next to him and looks at him working. He has bruises on his back and a cut above his eye.

“Xiao Hua Gege”, she says in a soft voice. “Give up on the shirt let me tend to your wounds”. 

He huffs and sits up. He looks at her, and she can tell that he is still seething. There is a bite mark on his arm from the fight in the car. 

“You have to get along with him”, she says as she rubs ointment on his arm. 

“Why?” 

“Because one day you may need him”, she says. She starts to wrap his arm. “I know he is a difficult person to deal with, but Master Wu trusts him. You have to understand he is here for a reason”. 

“To piss me off”, Xie Yuchen says. He sighs and looks at the shirt. He throws it into a nearby trash can. 

“He knows how to fight, he is on par with you”, she says. “Isn’t that good?” 

“Yes, but if we were the same skill level why does he need to protect me?” he asks. 

“It does not hurt to have someone else in your corner. Xiao Hua Gege”, she sighs, “you are always alone. You do not need to be best friends, but you need to trust him. Stop making comments that will annoy him”. 

“He makes gross comments about sex”, he says. 

“Does that topic make you uncomfortable?” she asks. 

He does not speak and closes his eyes so Huo Xiu Xiu can access the cut above his eyebrow. 

“Gege”, she says. “Are you a virgin?” 

He laughs. “No, I just do not see the need to talk about it all the time”. 

“Have you asked him to stop?” 

“No”. 

“There is your problem”. 

“He won’t stop”. 

“Well, now he won’t”. 

They go quiet and she looks at him. 

“You are pent up”, she laughs out. 

“How?” 

“Sexually and emotionally,” she says. She closes the tin of ointment and grabs a bandaid. 

“What?” 

“I have never seen you explode like that with someone before”, she says. She moves in and places butterfly stitches on his wound to close it. 

“Hmmm. Now, why sexually?” 

“Once you have sex you will be in a better mood”, she laughs. 

“Xiu Xiu, no”, he says with a sigh. 

“How about that girl from the club?” she asks. 

“Hmmm?”

“The foreign girl. You were into each other”, she says. 

“Xiu Xiu..this stays between us”, he says. He places his hand on her hand. “I fucked her brother. And we have been hooking up for the past couple of months”. 

She lets out a loud laugh. “So you are not sexually pent up then”. 

“No”. 

“Is he good?” 

He is quiet and he scrapes dried blood off his nails. 

“No?” she asks. 

“No.”

“So you are...pent up”. 

“Yes”. 

She looks at the door that connects the two rooms. She smiles to herself. “Okay, I will find you someone”. She stands up and kisses the top of his head. She leaves the room, leaving him alone on the floor. He is quiet, picking at his hangnails. He hears music from next door and looks at the wall. He sighs and rises off the floor. 

He heads to his radio and puts on music before heading into the bathroom, ready to rinse off the stress from today.

Chapter Text

A couple of months later 

An alarm goes off next to Hei Yan Jing’s head. He is laying in bed, clutching a body pillow. He is shirtless, only wearing tight boxers. One leg hiked around the pillow, showcasing his butt. His blanket is thrown on the floor, and a fan is directed at his sweaty body. It is summer, and he hates it. The alarm goes silent, and then 10 minutes later it rings again. A sharp knock is heard from the door connecting the two rooms. He groans loudly and turns off his phone. He then sees he has a missed call from Xie Yuchen. He calls him back. 

“What?” he asks in a sleepy voice. His voice is raspy and deep. He rubs the night from his eyes and stretches, hearing his back crack. 

“Open the door”, the voice says. It is clear like the man has been up for at least an hour. 

“No”, Hei Yan Jing says. He is about to hang up the phone until he hears Xie Yuchen start screaming at him. He throws the phone on the bed and crawls out of the bed. His front is sweaty from sleeping with the body pillow, causing his chest to glisten in the morning light filtering in through the window. He runs a hand through his damp hair and puts on his sunglasses. He is slicked with sweat and he’s annoyed. He opens the door and standing there is Xie Yuchen. The man is dressed in slacks and a dress shirt. His mouth opens when he sees the sweaty, glistening Hei Yan Jing in front of him.
His eyes immediately land on the man’s chest, but he quickly diverts them up into the shaded eyes. 

“Did you just wake up?” he asks. 

“Yes,” a blunt answer is given by Hei Yan Jing. He runs his hands through his hair. “Listen I know you have a meeting in 2 hours, I will be done by then. He turns around and heads into his room expecting Xie Yuchen to close the door but the man leaves it open and looks around. 

His eyes land on the fan and the blanket on the floor. 

“Hei Ye”, he starts. He walks into the room which startles Hei Yan Jing. “do you want an air conditioner?” he asks in a low tone. He touches the bed and recoils when he realizes it’s damp. He turns his head and Hei Yan Jing is standing there still only in his boxers. 

“Excuse me?” the older man asks. 

“Do you want an air conditioner?” Xie Yuchen says again. He walks closer to Hei Yan Jing and keeps his hands behind his back. “We have window units, you never complained about the heat so I did not know it bothered you this much”, he gestures towards the wet bed and the equally wet man in front of him. 

Suddenly footsteps enter the room and Huo Xiu Xiu is standing there with coffee for the three of them. She freezes when she sees Hei Yan Jing. He is still barefooted, and only wearing boxers. His hair is now in a bun but tendrils of hair frame his face, 

“Oh my god”, she says. 

“Miss Huo why are you in my room?”, Hei Yan Jing asks with a sigh. He grabs Xie Yuchen’s shoulders and steers him away from the room. “Please I do want a window unit, thank you. Please let me shower”, he says before he slams the door on their faces. 

“What the hell?” Xie Yuchen asks. He sighs and walks back into his bedroom. He sits on his bed and removes his slippers before he crawls by his pillows going through his phone. 

“Xiao Hua Ge Ge?” Huo Xiu Xiu asks. 

“Hmm?” 

“You..him?” she asks. 

“What about him?” Xie Yuchen asks. He looks up at her. 

“He..he was naked”, she says. 

“He had underwear on. His room is hot, so he has been sweating his ass off at night”, Xie Yuchen laughs. “Are you getting flustered Xiu Xiu?” 

“No, but you should be”, she says. She hands him his coffee and climbs into the bed with him. “Does he have a Weibo?” she asks. 

“Yes. I follow him do you want to see?” he says. He pulls up Weibo on his phone and hands it to her. She scrolls through and smiles at one photo. She opens it up and shows it to him. It is a mirror selfie that he took in the room next door. He is wearing grey sweatpants, and his phone covers his face. So his body is on display. 

“Yea I saw that he’s a thot”, he says. Suddenly the door that joins the room opens and Hei Yan Jing is standing there. He is wearing black form-fitting slacks and a black button-up. His hands are in his pocket and he looks at Xie Yuchen with a smile. 

“Ready to start the day Master Xie?” 

Xie Yuchen nods his head and rolls off the bed. He hands the coffee to Hei Yan Jing before waving goodbye to Huo Xiu Xiu. “Come visit me in the office later if you are remaining here”, he says. He walks in front of Hei Yan Jing and he thinks about his day ahead when suddenly he feels the man halt behind him. He turns around and opens his mouth to ask but then Hei Yan Jing drops his coffee, and he lunges towards Xie Yuchen. At the same time multiple bullets are shot through the large window they were standing by. There is a ringing in Xie Yuchen’s ears, and he feels the body of Hei Yan Jing on him. The man has him pressed on the ground and his body has shielded the young master. They are like that for a while, the sound of their breathing and glasses breaking mix with the sounds of servants yelling and security officers running. They are surrounded by people and Hei Yan Jing pulls himself up so he is still over Xie Yuchen but his body does not oppress him. 

Xie Yuchen looks up and sees a drop of blood come off of the man’s face and land on his shirt. His ears stop ringing and he realizes the position they are in. 

Hei Yan Jing does not move from this position and suddenly a hand touches his chest. He looks down and Xie Yuchen is looking at him. He is pinned under Hei Yan Jing and he has been silent. 

“Can you get off of me?”, he asks. 

Hei Yan Jing nods and gets up. He looks at the window and the spot where the impact was. 

“What the hell was that?” Xie Yuchen demands.

Hei Yan Jing turns his head around slowly to look at the smaller man. 

“Excuse me?” 

“You do not tell me something is happening and you pummel me to the ground?!” 

“Do you not care that I saved your life?!” 

“Well thank you for that! You did your fuckin job!”

“Then why the fuck are you angry?” 

“What are you two yelling about?!” Huo Xiu Xiu is standing at the end of the hallway looking at them with an angry expression. Her eyes look over the broken glass on the floor and people running around them. 

The two men are facing each other, both angry. Both of them have been so involved in their petty arguments they did not pay attention to her approaching. Huo Xiu Xiu walks up to them and goes to slap them across the face but then she sees blood coming down Hei Yan Jing’s head. 

“You are bleeding”, she says. She goes to move his hair out of the way to look at it but he brushes her hand away. 

“I am fine”, he says. He glares at Xie Yuchen. “someone wants you dead, go back to your bedroom while I figure it out”. He looks at the security officers around him. “Protect his room, reinforce his windows. Miss Huo stay with him”. He walks away from them, bumping his shoulder against Xie Yuchen causing the smaller man to stumble. 

Huo Xiu Xiu stands there and allows the men to escort them both back to the bedroom. The men check the windows and then leave the room. Xie Yuchen is sitting angrily on the bed. He has his spilled coffee on his shirt, and there are some droplets of blood on his shirt from Hei Yan Jing’s wound. 

“Why did you yell at him?” she asks. 

“Excuse me?” 

“He saved you and you yelled at him,” she says. 

“I can handle myself”, Xie Yuchen says. 

“You did not hear the bullets coming and he did”, she says. 

He frowns deeply at this. 

“Can you not admit that he cares about you?” 

“He does not care, he is getting paid to care”. 

She is silent and then it hits her. 

“Are..you annoyed that he is getting paid to do this job?” she asks. 

“No”. 

“Yes, you are”. 

“I do not care about him. So why would he care for me?” 

“Because he has a heart”. 

“Xiu Xiu, I dont care about what he did. I just wish-” 

“You wish what?!” 

“Wha-”

“YOU WISH WHAT?! DID YOU NOT WANT HIM TO SAVE YOU?” 

“I DO NOT NEED TO BE SAVED BY THE LIKES OF HIM”

They are both silent for a bit, and Huo Xiu Xiu sits next to him. She puts her hand on his hand and rubs his hand. “Were you scared?” she asks. 

“Yes”. he admits. He lays his head on her shoulder and is silent. 

“You do not always need to be strong Xiao Hua Ge Ge, you know that”, she says. He does not say anything but keeps his head on her shoulder. Suddenly they hear a knock on the door. Huo Xiu Xiu gets up and opens it to see Hei Yan Jing standing there. He has a tray of tea with some snacks. 

“Miss Huo, someone is going to escort you back to your house”. He gestures to a group of men next to him. She nods her head and heads to the bed to grab her phone. She hugs Xie Yuchen and kisses his forehead before heading to the door. She leaves the room and Hei Yan Jing enters. He sets the tea down on a coffee table and brings it to the bed. He pours a cup and offers it to Xie Yuchen. 

“I thought you said that you would not serve me tea”, Xie Yuchen says. He does not take the cup from the larger man. 

“Take the tea”, Hei Yan Jing says. He pushes the cup forward into the man’s hand. Xie Yuchen takes it and sniffs it before drinking it. 

“Why did you not change your shirt yet? Do you need a babysitter?” Hei Yan Jing explains. He gets up off the bed and goes to the man’s closet. He opens it up but his arm is tugged backward by Xie Yuchen. He turns around and the man is staring at him.
“Who gave you the right to go through my stuff?” he asks. 

“Your shirt has blood and coffee on it”, he says. He turns back around but Xie Yuchen grabs him again and slams him into the closet door. It shuts the closet, and Xie Yuchen is holding Hei Yan Jing’s shirt. 

“Why are you this angry?” Hei Yan Jing asks with a smirk.
“You're not allowed to go through my things”, Xie Yuchen says. He brings his face closer. 

“Are you angry because you were saved by a lowly mercenary?” Hei Yan Jing asks suddenly. 

“What?” Xie Yuchen says. He loosens his grip on the man’s shirt. 

“Are you sad that you could not save yourself?” Hei Yan Jing asks. He brings his face closer to Xie Yuchen and smirks. Xie Yuchen scoffs and slams the man’s head into the closet again. Hei Yan Jing lets out a hiss of pain as his head collides with the wood. His head still hurt and this was not making it better. 

“Do not act like you know my feelings”, Xie Yuchen says. 

“Do I not? I thought we knew each other fairly well. We spend every waking moment with one another”, he says. He is grinning because he knows his words annoy the young master. 

“We do not. You know nothing about me”, Xie Yuchen says. 

“I do. I know that you were angry at me because you neglected to listen outside so you did not hear the danger coming. That you feel comfortable around me, so you dropped your guard. I know that you are angry that you allowed yourself to get saved by a man you give zero shits about.” Hei Yan Jing says. He leans closer, so his voice is just above a whisper. 

“I hate being saved by someone like you. Someone who only cares about money and no one else”, Xie Yuchen says back. He feels his anger boiling over. 

“Who says I only care about money”, Hei Yan Jing says. 

“I can tell. You are a leech”, Xie Yuchen says. Their faces are centimeters from one another, where they can feel each other’s breath. Xie Yuchen was still holding Hei Yan Jing’s collar. His body pressed the man. 

“I care about people”, Hei Yan Jing says. He tilts his head so his nose brushes Xie Yuchen’s. 

“Give me two people you care about”, Xie Yuchen says with a smirk. 

“Wu SanXing”, Hei Yan Jing says with a smile, “and you” he whispers. 

Xie Yuchen is quiet. His hands loosen on his collar. His mouth opens a bit and he takes a step back. “What?” 

“Did you think I was getting paid that much to remain here?” Hei Yan Jing says. He sees that Xie Yuchen has loosened his grip so he goes to remove his hand when suddenly Xie Yuchen lunges forward and presses his lips against Hei Yan Jing’s. He stumbles and presses the man into the closet. Hei Yan Jing’s eyes are wide as he feels the lips of the young master against his. He feels Xie Yuchen open his mouth to breathe and he presses his tongue inside causing the man to moan. Suddenly Xie Yuchen steps back and looks at the man in front of him. 

“Leave”, he says. 

“What?”

“Get out”, Xie Yuchen says. He pushes Hei Yan Jing away and points to the door. “Please. Never speak of this”, he says.

Hei Yan Jing looks at him and nods his head. He bows slightly and walks out the front door into the hallway. He looks at Xie Yuchen the last time before the door closes. 

Xie Yuchen slides down the door with his head in his hands. 

“Xie Yuchen, why did you do that?” he asks. He suddenly fishes his phone out of his pocket and he Facetimes Huo Xiu Xiu. 

“I just got into my bedroom what’s wrong?” she asks. She takes the phone to her vanity where she sits down and starts to remove her makeup. 

“Xiu Xiu”, he starts. “I fucked up”. 

“What?” she asks. She is putting an oil cleanser on a cotton pad. “What did you do?” 

“I -” he murmurs. “I kissed Hei Ye”. 

There is silence on the other end.
“Excuse me?” 

“I KISSED HEI YE!” he screams at the phone.
“How the hell does it go from “he does not care about me?” to kissing?!” she yells back. Only one of her eyes has the makeup removed. 

“He said he cares about me,” Xie Yuchen says. He looks at her. “Why did I do that?” 

“What did he do?” she asks.
“He kissed me back”. 

Huo Xiu Xiu starts screaming on the other side of the phone like a schoolgirl. 

“Xiu Xiu why are you screaming?” he asks. 

“HE KISSED YOU BACK! IT MEANS HE LIKES YOU!” 

“No, it does not. I said he’s a thot. He sleeps around” he sighs. 

“Do you know that is true or is that an excuse you have created?” she asks. 

He goes silent and looks at her. “I don’t like him. I was just stupid at that moment. It has been a while” he says with a sigh. 

“So you did not enjoy it?”

“Of course, I enjoy kissing, but…I did not enjoy kissing him. I don’t like him Xiu Xiu. I think the tension that was there, and him saying something nice confused my emotions. I was either going to slap him or kiss him”, he laughs. 

She laughs at him,” if you say so, you understand your emotions better than I do. Just do not make things awkward between you two”, she says. 

“It has always been awkward Xiu Xiu, we will be fine”, he says. He says goodbye to her and hangs up the call. He gets off the floor and goes to his closet, ready to change. He grabs clothes and takes a bath. He climbs into bed reading a magazine when he hears a knock on the door. He gets off the bed and heads to the door. He opens it up and he sees Hei Yan Jing standing there. 

“I left my phone on the bed,” he says. His hands are in his pockets, and he looks pale. 

“Hei Ye, did you get your wound checked out yet?” Xie Yuchen says. He is hesitant to touch the man but something was off him.

“I am fine”, Hei Yan Jing says. 

Suddenly Xie Yuchen stands on his tiptoes and brushes the hair away. He inhales a breath when he sees the gash. He can still see small shards of glass around the wound. 

“YOU DID NOT CLEAN IT YET?” he yells. 

Hei Yan Jing looks straight at him and just shakes his head no. 

“ARE YOU STUPID?” Xie Yuchen yells again. “Get in here,” he says. He grabs the man’s wrist and sits him down in an armchair. He runs to the bathroom and comes back with a bowl of water, a rag, and some first aid supplies. He sits down on the arm of the chair, and he pushes the hair back. He clips it back with one of his opera pins. Hei Yan Jing does not move and allows Xie Yuchen to coddle him. 

“I know you do not want to talk about it but we should”, Hei Yan Jing says. 

Xie Yuchen pretends to be chill about the questions and dips the rag into the water. 

“What is there to say, I needed you to shut up and it was either slap you or kiss you”, he says with a chuckle. 

“Is that the reason?” Hei Yan Jing says. He flinches when the rag touches the wound. 

“You think I would like someone like you?” Xie Yuchen laughs. “No, I just knew it was confusing to you”. 

“Hmmm”, Hei Yan Jing says, He leans his head back so Xie Yuchen has better access to the wound. Hei Yan Jing removes his glasses and closes his eyes relaxing. 

“Why did you kiss back though?”, Xie Yuchen asks. He knows he should not have asked but he needed to know for his sanity. 

“I am a thot”, Hei Yan Jing says. 

Xie Yuchen looks at him and realizes that Hei Yan Jing must have heard the conversation between him and Huo Xiu Xiu. He inhales and starts to remove the glass from the wound. They are both quiet, and Xie Yuchen realizes that Hei Yan Jing fell asleep. He smiles when he looks at the man in the chair. When he is asleep he looks soft. His long eyelashes brush the top of his cheeks and his lips are soft. Xie Yuchen touches his own lips, remembering the feeling of Hei Yan Jing’s lips on his own. 

“Oh,” he says out loud. 

He looks at the man again and then it hits him. He thinks he likes Hei Yan Jing. He silently curses himself and puts ointment on the wound and dresses it. He starts to clean up and heads to the bathroom to dump the bloody water. He comes back out and Hei Yan Jing is awake. He is leaning his head in his hands and his glasses are on the ground. Xie Yuchen leans down and picks it up and goes to hand it to him. 

“Hei Ye”, he says. 

The man picks up his head. He grabs the glasses before he sits up fully. “Thank you,” Hei Yan Jing says. He stands up and smiles at Xie Yuchen. 

“You should really need to stop kissing people if you do not like them, it might give them the wrong impression,” he says before he walks to the bed. He grabs his phone and waves his hand before leaving the room into his own room. 

“The wrong impression?” Xie Yuchen asks himself before he heads to the bed. “What wrong impression?” 

He sits in his bed and then hears a large thump from the room next door. He turns his head and jumps off the bed, running to the door. He burst into the room and on the floor, Hei Yan Jing is crumpled. 

“Hei Ye!” Xie Yuchen yells. He runs to the man on the floor and touches his forehead. “A fever?” he asks. He runs to the door and yells down the hallway. “I need a doctor!”

He runs back into the room and turns Hei Yan Jing on his back and lays the man’s head on his lap.

“Hei Ye, Hei Ye, wake up”, he says as he lightly taps the man’s face. He then looks down at the man’s chest and sees scratches. “Huh?” he unbuttons the shirt and sees bruises and some scratches littering his chest. 

“What the hell happened?” he hears and he looks at the man in his lap. 

“Hei Ye”, Xie Yuchen says. “You passed out, why are you covered in wounds?”. 

“We caught the man who shot at you”, Hei Yan Jing says. He sits up and looks at Xie Yuchen. “he was…vicious”, he says. “He set off a small explosive that I was near.” he stands up but wavers and Xie Yuchen jumps up to steady him. Suddenly a man walks in a white coat. 

“The doctor is here Hei Ye, please cooperate”, Xie Yuchen whispers. 

“No, oh by the way thanks for the air conditioner”, he smiles and then passes out in the man's arms. 

“Hei Ye!” Xie Yuchen says. He sighs and looks at the doctor. “He’s stubborn”. 

“I can tell”, the older man says. They both bring Hei Yan Jing over to the bed. The doctor checks all his wounds, removes some shrapnel, and cleans him up. 

“He will be fine”, he says. “Let him rest for 2 days and he will recover in no time”.

Xie Yuchen nods his head and sits on the bed looking at Hei Yan Jing sleeping in the bed. He removes the glasses from the man’s face and brushes the hair away from his forehead. He gets up and grabs a chair and a blanket and puts them by the side of the bed. He pulls up the blanket on the sleeping man so it covers his upper half. He goes to the air conditioner, and sets it to a nice temperature, and closes the windows in the room. He plugs his phone into the charger by the bed and curls up on the chair. He turns off the light by the bed, he goes to hold Hei Yan Jing’s hand rubbing his thumb over the back of his hand. He falls asleep listening to the breathing of the other man.

Chapter Text

Hei Yan Jing wakes up to the sun coming into the room, and a cool breeze across his face. He turns his head and sitting in the chair next to him was Xie Yuchen. The man is curled up with a book in his hand, and his head on a pillow. His mouth is open. He looks around and tries to move but the rustling wakes up the man in the chair. 

“Ah dont move”, Xie Yuchen says. He presses Hei Yan Jing down into the bed. 

“What happened?” he asks. 

“You got hurt and did not take care of yourself, so here you are”, Xie Yuchen says. He seems annoyed. 

Hei Yan Jing nods his head and he is aware he is wearing glasses. “Did I sleep with my glasses on?” he asks. 

“No, and yes. I woke up and put them on you just in case you woke up”. 

Hei Yan Jing nods his head and looks at him. “Why are you here in my room?” 

“Someone needed to stay with you just in case you woke up and tried to move around,” Xie Yuchen says. He puts the book down and pours some water into a cup. He helps Hei Yan Jing drink it. 

“Is this your way of being sorry for the way you treated me?” Hei Yan Jing asks. He lays back down and looks at Xie Yuchen.

“I am never sorry”, Xie Yuchen says. “Now you’re awake I will have the doctor take care of you, a lot of my time has been spent taking care of you”. 

“How long was I out?” 

“2 days”. 

Hei Yan Jing narrows his eyes. “Have you left this room at all?” 

“No.” 

Hei Yan Jing smiles softly. “I am tired”. 

“Sleep then”, Xie Yuchen says. He grabs his book again and continues to read. He looks over the edge of the book and sees that Hei Yan Jing fell back asleep. He sighs and puts the book down. He opens his phone and sees that Huo Xiu Xiu had texted him about 20 times in the time he was sleeping. He heads to the bathroom and calls her. 

“Why are you being needy?” he asks. 

“Is he awake?” 

“He woke up for 5 minutes and went back to sleep”, he says. He sits on the toilet, leaning his chin in his hand. “He looks better so he will probably be up and at it by tomorrow morning”. 

“That is good”, she sighs. “When can I come over?” 

“I think he will probably want to check the whole mansion before I get any visitors. He cares for your safety too”, Xie Yuchen says. 

“Okay”, she says before hanging up. 

Xie Yuchen stands up and exits the bathroom. He walks back into the room and Hei Yan Jing is standing up in the center of the room. His back is tense as if something is bothering him. 

“Why are you standing up?” 

“I can not stay in bed forever”, Hei Yan Jing says. He turns around and looks at Xie Yuchen. He cocks his head at the man. The older man is shirtless wearing black sweatpants. His ink black, greasy hair is in a ponytail, with loose strands framing his face. Hei Yan Jing walks closer to Xie Yuchen. The younger man takes a step back and backs into the wall. 

“What are you doing Hei Ye?” he asks. 

Hei Yan Jing walks up to him, and he leans over him, his arm blocking Xie Yuchen’s escape. 

“Why did you watch over me for two days?” he asks in a low voice. 

Xie Yuchen is quiet and looks up into the face of Hei Yan Jing. He finally sighs. “I did not want to pay for your funeral so I wanted to make sure you stayed alive”. He slams his body against Hei Yan Jing’s chest which causes the older man to double over in pain. He coughs, his hands on his knees. 

“The next time you get that close to me your balls are next”, Xie Yuchen says. He grabs his stuff and heads out of the room. Hei Yan Jing runs up behind him and pushes him through by shoving his head.
“Get out of here you piece of shit”, he says. He slams the door. He goes over to his bed and he strips the sheets. Something falls out of the bed and he sees that it is Xie Yuchen’s earring. He frowns. “Why is his earring in my bed?” 

He looks at the door and shakes his head. He puts the earring on the dresser and continues cleaning his room. 

Xie Yuchen is in his room furious. “How dare he? I care for him and he yells at me. Pushes me out of his room?” he yells and throws his book across the room. It hits the wall and falls. He plops on the bed and looks at the ceiling. “I hate him”. 

A couple of hours later there is a knock on the door and he opens it to see Hei Yan Jing. The man is fully dressed and his hair is pulled back in a neat ponytail. He holds out his hand and  Xie Yuchen instinctively puts his hand in it. 

“The fuck no, ew”, Hei Yan Jing says. He pulls his hand back. “Why the hell would I want to hold your hand?” 

“Huh?” 

“I only hold hands with people I’m trying to date. If anything I wanna fuck you, not date you”, he says. He places the earring in Xie Yuchen’s open hand. “I found this in my bed”. 

Xie Yuchen looks down at the earring and his ear tips go red when he realizes what Hei Yan Jing said. One of the nights Hei Yan Jing had gotten feverish and was thrashing around in his sleep. Nothing seemed to soothe him so Xie Yuchen crawled into the bed. When he was young, his father used to do this to calm him down when he has a fever. 

He had put Hei Yan Jing’s head on his lap and stroked the man’s hair while he hummed some lullabies. He had fallen asleep in that position and he guess his earring had fallen off that night. He never even realized it. 

“Get ready, I need to go over some things regarding the attack the other day”, Hei Yan Jing says. “I will wait outside your door”. 

This pulled Xie Yuchen back from his memory. “No, come in. Have some tea”, Xie Yuchen says. He ushers his bodyguard into the room and forces the man to sit down. “You look like literal shit, well you always do but extra today”. 

“I take back the comment about banging you, I do not like you anymore”, Hei Yan Jing says. He pours himself some tea while Xie Yuchen goes to change.

Xie Yuchen removes his shirt and throws on a beige sweater. He puts on some slacks and hears Hei Yan Jing chuckle. 

“You have a perky ass”. 

Xie Yuchen looks around and Hei Yan Jing is lounging in the chair. His legs are open wide and he holds his teacup like a cup of wine. He smirks while biting his thumbnail. 

“ARE YOU GETTING TURNED ON?!” Xie Yuchen asks. He throws his shoe at Hei Yan Jing. 

“Hey you have a nice figure just a shit personality”, Hei Yan Jing says as he shrugs. 

“EXCUSE ME?” Xie Yuchen yells as he throws his other shoe. Hei Yan Jing dodges it. 

“I am sure you think the same thing about me”, Hei Yan Jing says. 

“No, you are shit all around”, Xie Yuchen says. He walks over to get his shoes.

“Huh-uh”, Hei Yan Jing says. He grabs Xie Yuchen’s arm and then pulls him back. Xie Yuchen falls onto Hei Yan Jing’s lap. The older man leans over him, their faces centimeters from the other. He smirks as he brings his face in closer but the door slams open and Huo Xiu Xiu is standing there. She is holding coffee and her smile melts when she sees the pose of the two men. 

She sees Xie Yuchen laying on the bodyguard’s lap. Like a fair lady being seduced by a charming man. Hei Yan Jing supports his head and is leaning down. They look like they are about to kiss, with one of Xie Yuchen’s arms hanging and the other thrown around Hei Yan Jing’s neck, grasping for support. There is tension in the air. 

His face is red, and he looks over at Huo Xiu Xiu with fear when she walks in. 

“I am so sorry”, she says. 

“NO NO”, Xie Yuchen says. He squirms his way out of the other man’s grasp and runs over to Huo Xiu Xiu. “Protect me”, he whispers. 

Hei Yan Jing cocks his head at the smaller man and smiles when he looks at Huo Xiu Xiu. “Hello, Miss Huo”. 

“What were you doing?” she asks Hei Yan Jing. 

“I wanted to give him a thank you kiss”, Hei Yan Jing says. He rises off the chair and pretends to brush off dust off his pants. “I will head to the main dining room, Miss Huo and Master Xie. I will see you there soon”, he waves his goodbye and heads off. 

Xie Yuchen looks at Huo Xiu Xiu. “I swear I did not initiate that”. 

Huo Xiu Xiu squints her eyes. “I do not trust you”. 

“Excuse me?” Xie Yuchen asks. He puts his hands on his hips. 

“When did you two get close?” she asks.

“We are not close, so please do not think that”, he says. He grabs his shoes and his coffee from Huo Xiu Xiu. “come on”. 

They walk to the main dining room together, laughing and gossiping. When they enter the air is tense, and Hei Yan Jing is standing at the front of the table looking through papers. He is the only one in there, and he looks angry. 

“Hei Ye”, Xie Yuchen says. 

“Ah Master Xie,” he says. He puts on a smile, that shows all his teeth. It makes Xie Yuchen nervous. He grabs the other coffee from Huo Xiu Xiu and holds it out to Hei Yan Jing. 

“What happened?” Xie Yuchen asks. Hei Yan Jing frowns and takes the coffee. He takes a sip and gestures the man to sit. 

“We finally found out who that man works for”, Hei Yan Jing sighs out. 

“Oh, who?” 

“The man you probed into”, Hei Yan Jing says with an edge. 

Xie Yuchen is silent. Hei Yan Jing walks towards him and places folders in front of him. He sits down on the edge of the table. Xie Yuchen places his hand on the man’s thigh to get the older man’s attention and he looks up at Hei Yan Jing. 

“Is this going to continue to happen?” he asks in a small voice. 

“Yes. You need to stop digging”. Hei Yan Jing answers. 

“I can not. There is so much fraud with him. He has been trying to get into the Mystic Nines business for years, and he has a partnership with Cox Hendry” he says. 

Huo Xiu Xiu speaks up. “Do you plan on getting rid of him?” 

“Yes, if I can prove what he is doing is beyond illegal, then we can ask Master Zhang to deal with him”, he says. 

Hei Yan Jing nods his head. He places his hand on Xie Yuchen’s hand and squeezes it. “Your life will become more dangerous if you continue”. 

“I know”. 

Huo Xiu Xiu blinks looking at them holding hands. They were just fighting minutes ago and now holding hands.

“We must always be together”. Hei Yan Jing says. He removes the man’s hand from his thigh. “I know how much that must anger you, that you have to spend more time with me”, he says with a smirk. Xie Yuchen frowns and pushes Hei Yan Jing off the table. The man falls on the floor and stays there. Hei Yan Jing speaks up from the floor, “I believe Miss Huo should refrain from coming over or should get her room in the house”. 

“Can I have your room?” she asks Hei Yan Jing. 

Hei Yan Jing picks up his head and looks at her. “Then I would have to sleep in Xie Yuchen’s room”. 

There is silence and then Xie Yuchen bursts out laughing. “That is funny.  Xiu Xiu you can stay in my room. We can remove the couches and replace them with a bed if there is space”. 

Hei Yan Jing stands up. “Actually, having me in the same room as you would be smarter, If anyone attacks in the middle of the night then I will be there to protect you”, he says. 

There is silence and Huo Xiu Xiu nods her head. “He is right”. 

“Excuse me?” Xie Yuchen asks. “Who said I want to room with this man?” 

“You think I want to room with you either?” Hei Yan Jing says. “But for your safety, I should always be by your side”. He smiles at him. Xie Yuchen pushes him away again and gets up. 

“Do not leave” Hei Yan Jing says. He places his hand on the man’s shoulder. “I said I need to always be with you”. 

Hup Xiu Xiu looks at them both. “Can I go home and pack and come back later?” 

Hei Yan Jing nods his head. He opens the door and gestures for some men to come. “Please escort Miss Huo to her house and remain with her while she packs up. You are to bring her back here”. 

They nod their heads and Huo Xiu Xiu leaves. 

Hei Yan Jing looks at Xie Yuchen who is seething at the table. Hei Yan Jing places his hand on the top of the man’s head. 

“Stop it. You will pop like a balloon”, he says. “Come on help me move from my room”. He holds out his hand and Xie Yuchen slaps it away. 

“I thought you only wanted to hold hands with people you want to date,” Xie Yuchen says.

 Hei Yan Jing grabs the man’s wrist and pulls him into an embrace. “I want to tell you a secret”. 

“Do we need to be crotch to crotch for this?” Xie Yuchen grumbles. 

Hei Yan Jing brings his lips to the man’s ear. “I think we should pretend to date”. 

Xie Yuchen pulls back but Hei Yan Jing’s grip keeps the man in the spot. “What?” 

“Think about it, if people look into why I am staying at the mansion, would it not be better that I am your lover and not your bodyguard?” he asks. 

“Why would I want to date you?” Xie Yuchen asks. 

Hei Yan Jing brings his face close again and whispers. “Because there are people in your mansion who are spies. And if they leak information, we want it that we are dating and not that I am a highly trained assassin”. 

Xie Yuchen pales when he realizes the words that Hei Yan Jing is saying are true. “Oh”. 

“Ah, now you understand my words”. Hei Yan Jing says. He looks down at Xie Yuchen. He places a soft kiss on the man’s nose. “Do not forget to act like you actually can tolerate me”, he laughs off. He releases the man and Xie Yuchen scowls whole rubbing the kiss from his nose. 

Hei Yan Jing leads the way out of the dining room, and Xie Yuchen watches him walk. He feels his face warm, and he touches his lips. Why was he blushing? Why did the memory of Hei Yan Jing kissing him suddenly come back?

He remembers the way the man’s soft lips seemed to match his. How he felt the metaphorical “sparks” everyone talked about. Was it because of the tension between them, or did they actually match each other? 

Why was he not 100% disgusted with the idea of pretending to date this man?

He stalls for a second, and Hei Yan Jing senses it. The older man looks at him with a frown as he looks at Xie Yuchen’s tense shoulders. Xie Yuchen realizes the man is staring at him, so he smiles widely and waves to him an apology. Hei Yan Jing softly smiles in return and continues walking.  They enter Hei Yan Jing’s room and he opens his closet. 

Xie Yuchen heads into his room and comes back with a bin. “Throw everything in here so it is easier to bring in my room”. Hei Yan Jing nods his head. 

They make quick work of removing Hei Yan Jing’s items from the room. The maids come in to make up the room for Huo Xiu Xiu and Xie Yuchen returns to his room to see Hei Yan Jing folding his clothes into a vacant dresser. 

“You can use the closet to hang up our jackets and pants,” Xie Yuchen says. They are cleaning up the room when a maid enters the space. 

“I am sorry Master Xie, but we do not have a bed that can fit into this space,” she says with a slight bow. Hei Yan Jing can tell that Xie Yuchen is about to yell so he speaks up first.
“Thank you for letting us know”, he dismisses her. 

“I am not sharing a bed with you”, Xie Yuchen says. 

“It is okay, I will sleep on the couch”, Hei Yan Jing says. He smiles his cheeky smile and continues putting his clothes away. Xie Yuchen goes next door to wait for Huo Xiu Xiu. 

Finally, the door opens and she enters with an entourage of servants holding her bags. 

“Xiu Xiu, why so much stuff?” he asks. 

“We have not had a sleepover in so long, so it is like a long sleepover”, she says. She dismisses the servants and Xie Yuchen helps you unpack her stuff. They are sitting on the ground with a pile of clothes between them. They are folding them and putting them into the draws of the dresser. Xie Yuchen is anxious, and his emotions are going back and forth. He debated telling Huo Xiu Xiu what Hei Yan Jing told him, but he feels he is ready to explode at any moment. He sighs and leans towards her. 

“Xiu Xiu, I need to tell you something you need to keep secret”, he says. 

“What?” 

He whispers in her ear “Hei Ye and I will be in a fake relationship to cover up the fact he is a hired bodyguard”. 

She opens her mouth in disbelief but then she grins. “Are you sure it is fake?” 

“Xiu Xiu we both fight every moment we can get, why would it be real?” 

Suddenly a hand touches his cheek and he turns to see Hei Yan Jing looking at him. “I assume you trust Miss Huo since you told her”, he says. He rubs his thumb against the younger man’s cheek. He smiles and looks at Huo Xiu Xiu. Xie Yuchen looks up at him with doe eyes. He is stunned by the sudden touch. 

Huo Xiu Xiu stares at them both and then smiles largely. 

“What do you want for dinner tonight? I can ask the cook to make dinner or we can order in?”, Hei Yan Jing asks. 

“Is it dinner time already?” Xie Yuchen asks. He pushes the hand away from his face. He continues folding the clothes to hide his red face from the older man. 

“It is almost, we spent most of the day cleaning we forgot to eat lunch”, Hei Yan Jing says. It sits down on an ottoman by them. 

“Do you have work tomorrow Xiao Hua Ge Ge?” Huo Xiu Xiu asks. 

“No”. 

“Let us order in and drink”, she says with a grin. 

“Drink?” Hei Yan Jing asks. He is twirling a piece of his hair with his finger. 

“Yes soju”, she says with a grin. 

“Mmmmkay,” Hei Yan Jing says. “Should I grab dim sum for dinner?” 

Huo Xiu Xiu nods her head fervently. Hei Yan Jing rises off the chair but Xie Yuchen grabs his pant leg. “I am going to text you the name of the restaurant we always order from”. Hei Yan Jing nods his head and Xie Yuchen lets go. 

They continue unpacking Huo Xiu Xiu’s clothes. Before they know it, Hei Yan Jing is back in the room. He leans down next to them and smiles. 

“Hiya”, he says, They both jump. Xie Yuchen clutches his chest and glares at him. Huo Xiu Xiu drops her phone on her lap.

“The food has arrived”, Hei Yan Jing says. He helps Miss Huo off the ground. He holds out his hand to Xie Yuchen but he refuses it. They enter the other room, where Hei Yan Jing has set the tiny coffee table up with food and bottles of soju. 

The three of them sit down and start to eat. 

“Now now Master Xie”, Hei Yan Jing starts. Xie Yuchen looks at him with annoyance. 

“Can I ask you a question?” Hei Yan Jing says. He leans his head into his hand. “Are you straight?” 

Xie Yuchen spits out his soju into Hei Yan Jing’s face. 

There is absolute silence as they watch the soju fall neatly off of Hei Yan Jing’s shades. It lands on his lips, and Xie Yuchen stares at him. He then sees the man’s one eyebrow twitching behind the shades. He turns his attention from the man’s wet lips and nervously laughs. 

“What the fuck?” Hei Yan Jing asks. 

“I am sorry but you caught me off guard,” Xie Yuchen says. He grabs a napkin and hands it to Hei Yan Jing. The man takes off the shades and dries them. He then wipes his lips and places the napkin on the table. 

“What kind of question is that?” Xie Yuchen says. Huo Xiu Xiu sips her drinks and smiles. 

“I wanted to know”, Hei Yan Jing says. “Are you pretending to be gay when you pretend to date me or are you actually gay when you pretend to date me?” 

“Why can’t he be real gay and real date you?” Huo Xiu Xiu says. 

“EW!” both the men yell. “REAL DATE HIM?!” they say again while pointing to the other man. 

“Wh-” she starts. But Xie Yuchen turns his head and starts to loudly yell at Hei Yan Jing. While Hei Yan Jing retaliates and starts to yell back. Eventually, Xie Yuchen slaps Hei Yan Jing across the face and his glasses fall on the table. 

“Oh my god oh my god,” Xie Yuchen says as he grabs the glasses. He places the glasses back on the man’s face. “I am so sorry. Your ugly face made me angry”. 

Hei Yan Jing grabs Xie Yuchen’s wrist and moves his body so he can tower over the smaller man but he suddenly remembers that Huo Xiu Xiu is present. He turns his head and looks at her. Xie Yuchen also turns his head and she is sitting there. He is suddenly aware that his face is beat red and his body is warm. She is giggling while fiddling with the bottle in her hand. 

“Go ahead, dont stop”, she says. Hei Yan Jing sighs and drops the man’s wrist. 

“Please stop looking at us like that”, Hei Yan Jing says. He opens another bottle of soju and chugs a sip from the bottle. 

“Do not get drunk”, Xie Yuchen says. “You need to protect me if anything happens”. 

“Shut up”, Hei Yan Jing says. Xie Yuchen clams up and looks at Huo Xiu Xiu. She then claps her hands together. 

“We should play a game”. 

“What game?” Hei Yan Jing asks. He picks up some food and eats it. 

“How about truth or dare?” She asks. 

“Are you saying this game so you can dare one of us to kiss the other?” Xie Yuchen asks. 

Huo Xiu Xiu falls quiet, 

“That’s that’s what I thought”, Xie Yuchen says. He angrily picks up a dumpling and eats it. 

“How about we just talk and drink. I’m not a fan of games” Hei Yan Jing admits. 

Huo Xiu Xiu nods her head. They continue eating into the night. They all get plastered, and they see the sun rising through the window. 

Huo Xiu Xiu is laying down on Hei Yan Jing’s lap while she pats his arm. 

“Hei Ye, you have such nice arms. Do you know that? I think you should date my gege,” she says. 

Hei Yan Jing smiles and pats her head. “Miss Huo, let me get you to bed,” Hei Yan Jing says. He gets off the floor and picks her up. He brings her into her room. He gets a makeup wipe and removes her makeup, and covers her up. He then enters back to the room he shared with Xie Yuchen. He sees the young master sleeping on the floor, his body slumped across an ottoman. He holds an empty bottle of soju in his hand. His face is red, but he looks peaceful. Except he has been drooling and murmuring in his sleep. Hei Yan Jing sits down next to him and puts his hand through the man’s hair. He is stopping himself from leaning down and pressing a kiss on the man’s soft lips. He looks at the man’s open shirt, and he sees a sliver of skin. The always composed Xie Yuchen is here now, drunk on his floor. He looks so vulnerable. 

Hei Yan Jing smiles to himself and picks up the man, he brings him to the bed and lays him down. He adjusts the young master so he is comfortable. He wipes the drool and the makeup from the man’s face. He turns off the lamp by the bed.  He is about to leave for the couch when a hand stops him. He looks down and Xie Yuchen is clutching his hand. 

“Stay,” Xie Yuchen says. 

“What?” Hei Yan Jing says. 

“I’m lonely, stay,” Xie Yuchen says. The man’s eyes are closed, but he pouts. Making him look childish and lost. 

Hei Yan Jing can not tell if the man is asleep or not. He smiles and sits down on the bed.  He eventually removes his glasses and lays down on the bed. He is not comfortable at all. But he can not bring himself to remove the younger man’s hand from his own. He starts to drift off to sleep, enjoying the warmth in his hand. 

Suddenly he hears a breathy voice, and he looks up at Xie Yuchen. Suddenly the man lets out a small moan, and says “Hei Ye”. Hei Yan Jing freezes. 

“What…?” He says out loud. Xie Yuchen released another small moan says the name again. Hei Yan Jing does not move. Xie Yuchen then releases his hand and Hei Yan Jing scrambles off the bed. 

He looks at the man in the bed and he panics. The man looks so small on the bed, clutching the sheets in his dream. Moaning and saying the man’s name in such an obscene way.

He walks to the couch and cleans it off. “No no, this asshole does not like me.” He laughs it off. “He’s probably just dreaming about beating you up”. He kicks off his pants, grabs a blanket, and curls up on the couch. He tries to block out Xie Yuchen’s voice rattling around in his brain. The way the man looks at him with his doe eyes. The soft pink tinge to his lips. The way his hands grazed him whenever they fought. 

Hei Yan Jing eventually falls asleep, dreaming about the man. The man moaning his name in his dreams.

Chapter Text

The next day Xie Yuchen wakes up and sits upright. He is still wearing his clothes from yesterday. He gets out of bed and looks at the couch but Hei Yan Jing is not there. His phone, blanket, and bag are there but not the man. He then hears the water running in the bathroom and he heads to the door. He really needs to pee and he does not care if he bothers the man. 

He knocks on the door loudly. “Hei Ye! Hei Ye! I have to pee!” he screams. He hears the water turn off and the sound of wet bare feet hitting the tiled floor. Hei Yan Jing opens the door. Xie Yuchen looks up at the man’s body. The water was caressing the man’s muscles, showing the veins. The towel was barely covering the man’s groin, and Xie Yuchen felt himself become warm looking at it. 

“Hey my eyes are up here”, Hei Yan Jing says. He grabs Xie Yuchen’s chin and pulls his head so their eyes meet. “Pee”. He pushes the man into the room and stands outside the bathroom. Xie Yuchen frowns and closes the bathroom door. He goes to the bathroom and comes out minutes later. Hei Yan Jing is still standing by the door, a puddle of water under him. 

“Finally”, Hei Yan Jing says. He pushes Xie Yuchen out of the way and goes back into the bathroom. The water turns back on. 

Minutes later he walks out of the bathroom in his underwear with his hair in a towel on the top of his head. Xie Yuchen is cleaning up the floor from yesterday. Hei Yan Jing walks towards him and removes the bag from the man’s hand. Their hands brush one another, and Xie Yuchen freezes.
“What are you doing?” he asks the man. 

“Shower. I will clean”, Hei Yan Jing says. 

“Huh?”

“You smell. It makes my eyes water. Ai ya the more you don’t shower, why I think I would actually go blind”, Hei Yan Jing says while dramatically covering his face. 

Xie Yuchen scoffs and slaps the man before grabbing clothes to go shower. Hei Yan Jing smiles as he watches the man walk away. He suddenly remembers last night, with Xie Yuchen calling out his name while he slept. He still can not figure out why the young master would moan his name like that in a dream. He sighs to himself and continues to clean the floor. He finally cleans the floor and dresses when he realizes that Xie Yuchen has not finished his shower. He wanted to get coffee but he needs Xie Yuchen to wake up the woman in the room next door. 

He knocks on the door of the bathroom but does not get a response. He frowns and opens the door a bit. He sees Xie Yuchen sitting in the bathtub, surrounded by water and bubbles. He is playing with the bubbles in his hand and was too absorbed to hear the knock. 

“Master Xie”, Hei Yan Jing whines. 

Xie Yuchen startles and covers his chest up with bubbles. “Why are you in here?” 

“I said take a shower, not take a bath”, Hei Yan Jing whines again. He sits on the edge of the bathtub. He sticks a hand in the water and releases the stopper. The sound of water going down the drain causes Xie Yuchen to panic. 

“Hey hey, stop that. I am naked!”, he says with a pout. 

“I have already seen you naked, so why does it matter”, Hei Yan Jing says. He keeps on pushing the young master’s hand away from his hand. He left his hand on the lever to control the stopper since he knew Xie Yuchen would intervene. Xie Yuchen grabs Hei Yan Jing’s head trying to push him away without rising out of the bathtub. 

“Release the lever,” he says while holding onto the man’s hair. Hei Yan Jing smiles and goes to place his hand on Xie Yuchen’s head to push it underwater. The sudden movement causes his butt to slip and he slips forward. He goes to grab the shower curtain for stability but it comes tumbling down with him and he falls directly into the bathtub. There is a large splash and Hei Yan Jing lands directly on the naked young master. He had gone to protect the man from the falling shower curtain pole, and he ended up holding his waist and his face was planted on Xie Yuchen’s chest. 

Suddenly they hear footsteps and a female voice screams. 

“WHAT ARE YOU TWO DOING?” 

Hei Yan Jing and Xie Yuchen both pick up their heads and Huo Xiu Xiu is staring at them. Her face is red in embarrassment as she looks at the men in the bathtub. 

“You are shameless!” she says covering her eyes. She peeks between her fingers and smiles. 

“Ug, Master Xie I am sorry”, Hei Yan Jing says. He tries standing up but his head hurts. His head is spinning. The pole hit his head on the way down.

Xie Yuchen sees him struggling and he frowns. 

“Master Xie, let me get up”, Hei Yan Jing says. He finally gets out of the tub and uses the wall for support. “Miss Huo, please leave the bathroom”. 

She nods and runs out closing the door behind her. Hei Yan Jing turns around and hands a towel to Xie Yuchen. He then takes the shower curtain and the pole out of the bathtub and throws them on the floor. 

Xie Yuchen looks up at him “I still need to wash my hair”, he says with a frown. Hei Yan Jing nods his head but the action makes him dizzy. 

“Hei Ye”, Xie Yuchen says, “Go sit down”. 

Hei Yan Jing plops down the floor and puts his head between his legs. Xie Yuchen looks around and then realizes he can not shower since there is no shower curtain. “Hei Ye I need your help”. 

Hei Yan Jing turns his head. “What?” 

“I —I” Xie Yuchen stammers. 

“Out with it”. 

“I need you to wash my hair”. 

“Okay”. 

Hei Yan Jing crawls over to him and turns the water on. He runs out of the bathroom, grabs a cup, and comes back. “Turn around”, he says softly to the man in the bathtub. Xie Yuchen faces the wall, and Hei Yan Jing starts to wet his hair. He grabs the shampoo and starts to clean his scalp. He is massaging the scalp when Xie Yuchen releases a moan at the sensation. Xie Yuchen freezes while Hei Yan Jing laughs it off. 

“I massage as a side job normally, most people do it. It is no surprise. Don’t stop”, Hei Yan Jing says. He then wets his hair, rinsing out the shampoo. He then puts conditioner in the man’s hair. He massages the man’s whole head, and Xie Yuchen bites his lip to stop a moan from escaping. Hei Yan Jing then moves his hands to his shoulders and starts to massage them. 

“Aiya, Xie Yuchen you are so tense”, he says softly into the man’s ear. He continues to massage the shoulders and Xie Yuchen can not hold back a moan. 

“Hei Ye” he breathes out. Hei Yan Jing feels the air in the bathroom has changed, and everything feels tense. “God, Hei Ye. You know what to do with your hands”.

Hei Yan Jing just hums in his ear. He moves his hands lower on his back, and he continues to massage. Xie Yuchen leans his body back at the touch and rests his head on Hei Yan Jing’s shoulder. “I am ticklish there”, he breathes out. He is suddenly breathless and he does not know why. Xie Yuchen then suddenly realizes what he is doing and sits upright. “Uh can you rinse my hair out now?”, he says. 

“Hmmm”, Hei Yan Jing says. He smiles enjoying the reaction he got out of the man. He rinses his hair. Xie Yuchen turns around and looks at Hei Yan Jing’s hair. 

“Oh you got bubbles in your hair”, Xie Yuchen raises his hand and runs his fingers through the man’s black hair. He laughs. “Seems like you need a rinse too”. 

Hei Yan Jing nods his head and strips his shirt and pants off. He gets into the bathtub and sits opposite Xie Yuchen. He grins, “Clean my hair.” 

Xie Yuchen scowls and fills the cup up with water and dumps it on the man’s head without warning. Hei Yan Jing sputters water from his mouth and nose. He looks at Xie Yuchen with a frown. He removes his glasses putting them on the floor outside of the bathtub. Xie Yuchen notices that he keeps his eyes closed when he does not wear glasses. This means Hei Yan Jing would just bump into things.

Xie Yuchen grabs the glasses and wipes them dry. He grabs the man’s chin and pulls it towards him. He slips the glasses back on his face, and he sees Hei Yan Jing open his eyes behind the lens. 

“Oh”, Hei Yan Jing says with a surprised look. They continue staring at one another, without a word escaping their lips. 

“Ah,” Xie Yuchen says. “Turn around so I can clean your head”. Hei Yan Jing obliges and Xie Yuchen starts to clean the man’s hair. He does not massage as Hei Yan Jing did, he did not have that skill. He finishes and his hands end up on the back of Hei Yan Jing. The older man realizes something is odd so he turns around and Xie Yuchen’s hands are on the chest of the older man. They both do not move away and Hei Yan Jing moves in closer. 

“Xie Yuchen, what is in your mind?” Hei Yan Jing sneers. 

Xie Yuchen looks up at Hei Yan Jing. The man is only centimeters away from him. He suddenly leans in and grabs Hei Yan Jing’s face. He slams his lips against Hei Yan Jing’s lips, leaving the man breathless. Hei Yan Jing opens his mouth and Xie Yuchen pushes his tongue in. Hei Yan Jing places his hands on the man’s waist, pulling him closer to him. Their chest flushes with one another. Both of their hands start roaming and Xie Yuchen is suddenly aware of what they are doing. He pushes Hei Yan Jing away. 

“No no, we can not do this”, he says. He gets out of the tub and quickly dresses. He throws a towel at Hei Yan Jing. He does not speak anymore and runs out of the bathroom. Hei Yan Jing is left alone in the bathtub, his hair dripping. He is breathing heavily, and he touches his lip which cracked from the pressure of Xie Yuchen kissing him. 

Xie Yuchen runs out of the bathroom and Huo Xiu Xiu is sitting on his bed. 

“Hey you, what the hell took you so long in the bathroom?”, she says. 

He looks at her and his eyes are wide. “I kissed him again”. 

Huo Xiu Xiu’s face drops, but she then covers her mouth to muffle her scream of joy. 

“Why are you out here then?” she whispers. 

“I pushed him away”, Xie YuChen says. 

“What? Why?”, she says. 

“I..do not know”, he says. He looks at her, and he sees the confusion on her face. “I do not know my feelings for him. So please act like you do not know, okay?” 

She nods her head. 

Hei Yan Jing’s voice then comes from the bathroom. “Xie Yuchen, can I get another pair of underwear..and new clothes?”

Xie Yuchen scowls and grabs clothes he opens the bathroom door and throws it at Hei Yan Jing. A couple of minutes later, Hei Yan Jing comes out of the bathroom. His hair is towel-dried and he is fully dressed. He smiles at Huo Xiu Xiu and gives Xie Yuchen a look of pity. They are both silent and Huo Xiu Xiu sits there. She looks at the two of them. Even if Xie Yuchen did not tell her something happened, she felt the tension between them. 

“Uh, Hei Yan Jing, did you want to go get coffee?” she asks. She is dressed ready to leave the mansion for the day. 

“Uh yes. It is a nice day, so let’s grab some food too and hang out at the park”, he says with a smile. She nods her head. She runs to her room to get her purse. 

Xie Yuchen looks at Hei Yan Jing and walks over. 

“I am sorry,” he says. 

“It is okay”, Hei Yan Jing says. He does not smile. He is happy that Xie Yuchen can not see his eyes. “But since we are in public, if I initiate any sort of PDA please do not pull away”. He sees a look of fear flicker across the man’s face. “I will not try and kiss you, that’s your job”, he says. The end of the sentence trails away and he gets up. He pushes his shoulder into Xie Yuchen’s shoulder causing the younger man to stumble. 

Xie Yuchen looks at the man walking away, confused. Is Hei Ye annoyed with him for kissing and then walking away? Why would that bother him? 

The three of them gather their stuff for their last-minute picnic and head to Starbucks. Huo Xiu Xiu goes inside to get the drinks. Hei Yan Jing and Xie Yuchen remain in he car. Hei Yan Jing is the driver, while Xie Yuchen sits in the passenger seat. He looks at Hei Yan Jing and frowns. The older man was acting fine when Huo Xiu Xiu was with them but now he seems dejected. He sighs and looks out the window. The sky is a bright blue with not a cloud in the sky. It was a wonderful summer today. He wore chino shorts, with a t-shirt with white tennis shoes. Huo Xiu Xiu wore a pretty pink sundress with sandals. While somehow, Hei Yan Jing was wearing black jeans and a black t-shirt. His hair is up in a small bun. He turns back to Hei Yan Jing. 

“Aren’t you hot?” he asks. 

“I am a 10/10 thank you for asking”, Hei Yan Jing replies. 

“I meant temperature-wise”. 

“Hmmm I have been in deserts wearing this so I am fine”, Hei Yan Jing says. He plugs his phone into the charger of the car so it charges while they wait for Huo Xiu Xiu. Some music starts to play through the speakers. Korean R&B. Xie Yuchen looks up at the sad man next to him he opens his mouth to say something but Hei Yan Jing speaks up first. 

“I understand that you may not understand the emotions of others around you. But I told you this before, don't kiss random people.” Hei Yan Jing says. “They can get the wrong information”. 

He turns his body and looks at Xie Yuchen. His face is serious. “If you have no intentions of being mine then do not kiss me again. The next kiss better be because you like me, not because you are lonely”. 

“Do you like me?” Xie Yuchen says.

He is quiet. Then he says, “I thought you finally accepted me as someone in your life, but you just like to toy with people’s emotions”.

“I-” Xie Yuchen starts. 

“No excuses. I told you I hate games. When we “date” it is for protection, it is my job. I do care about you, I have told you that. But I will not allow you to abuse my emotions because you are too emotionally constipated”, Hei Yan Jing says. 

There is a knock on the window, and Hei Yan Jing turns his head. Huo Xiu Xiu is standing there with coffee and a smile. He rolls down the window and takes the coffee from her. He smiles at her. “Thank you, Miss Huo!”. 

He hands the coffee to Xie Yuchen with a smile. “Here you go babe”, he says with a mocking smile. 

Xie Yuchen frowns and takes the coffee. He starts to sip it, enjoying the feeling of espresso hitting his brain. Hei Yan Jing puts the car into drive and they had to the park. 

They finally arrive at the park and they head to a nice spot in the sun. Huo Xiu Xiu smiles as the sun hits her face. 

“Ah I miss being outside”, she says with a smile. She sits down on the blanket they laid out.

“It has been some time since we went to the park right?” Xie Yuchen says. He smiles as he opens up the cooler they brought. He hands fruit to Huo Xiu Xiu and looks up at Hei Yan Jing. The man is now shirtless and his head is tilted towards the sky. A soft smile on his face, 

“Hei Ye”, he says softly. Hei Yan Jing turns his head and looks at Xie Yuchen with a dazzling smile. Xie Yuchen hands him a bowl of fruit, “Here”. 

Hei Yan Jing whispers his thanks. Huo Xiu Xiu sips her coffee and looks at the men. 

“You both okay?” she asks. Xie Yuchen nods his head and starts to eat his fruit. Huo Xiu Xiu stands up. 

“I see some of my friends over there” she points. “I am going to go say hi”. She runs over. They had a car of security detail follow them here just in case something happens. Hei Yan Jing gestures two of the men to follow behind her. 

Hei Yan Jing watches her walk away and looks at Xie Yuchen. He is about to say something but he freezes. He sees a group of men keep on glancing at them. 

“Come here Master Xie”, he says. Xie Yuchen does not move. Hei Yan Jing puts on a fake smile. “Babe”. 

Xie Yuchen understands the hint and crawls over to him. 

“Lean back”, Hei Yan Jing says. Xie Yuchen leans back and Hei Yan Jing wraps his arm around him. 

Xie Yuchen is leaning back on Hei Yan Jing. His body is in between the man’s long legs. His head is under the chin of the older man, and Hei Yan Jing has his one arm wrapped around him. He takes Xie Yuchen’s hands. 

“Be natural you are so tense right now, those men over there are watching us”, Hei Yan Jing says. 

Xie Yuchen frowns and relaxes his body. “I am sorry, I am not accustomed to being in someone else’s arms”. 

Hei Yan Jing just sighs and places a kiss on the man’s head. “Just do not think about it too much”. 

Xie Yuchen nods his head and leans over to grab his fruit. He sits up a bit so he is not leaning his full body into Hei Yan Jing and eats his fruit. Hei Yan Jing rests his head on the man’s shoulder and gestures his head to the fruit. 

“Feed me”, he says. 

“Aren't you being needy?” Xie Yuchen says. 

“No, feed me. They are still watching”, he says. 

Xie Yuchen sighs and lifts his fork to Hei Yan Jing’s mouth. Hei Yan Jing opens his mouth and takes the fruit. 

“Thanks, babe,” he says. 

They continue like this, and eventually, it becomes more natural for them. Xie Yuchen puts down the fruit. 

“Hei Ye, are you not sweaty with your hair down?” he asks. 

“Hmmm my neck is a bit sweaty,” he says. 

“Let me braid it”, Xie Yuchen says with a smile. 

“Hmmm”, Hei Yan Jing says. He removes his arms from around Xie Yuchen and the man scrambles from the space between his legs. He sits behind Hei Yan Jing. and they reverse the position from before. Xie Yuchen starts to brush his hair, threading his fingers through the man’s hair. He finishes the man’s hair and he realizes that the breathing of the man between his legs has evened out. 

“Hei Ye, Hei Ye” he calls out. No answer. He guesses the man fell asleep. He leans the man back a little more into his lap and smiles when he sees the soft face of Hei Yan Jing sleeping on him. He runs his hand up and down the man’s face. He looks out at the grass, at the people milling around. People are playing frisbee with their dogs, couples feeding each other, and families together. 

He suddenly realizes…he is not disgusted with his position right now. He looks down at the man in his lap. 

What is happening to him? He can not figure out his emotions to the man. He angers him..but..this feels so nice. The feeling of this man in his lap sleeping. He sighs softly and continues to rub the man’s face. Some time passes and Huo Xiu Xiu comes back she smiles when she sees Xie Yuchen relaxing with Hei Yan Jing in his lap. 

“Isn’t he supposed to be protecting you? Why is he sleeping?” she asks. 

“I have been awake for most of the time, I am listening around”, Hei Yan Jing says. 

Xie Yuchen freezes when the man says this. He has been rubbing Hei Yan Jing’s face with his thumb for about 20 minutes and has been resting his head on the man’s head. Hei Yan Jing sits up and looks around at Xie Yuchen. 

“You are a great pillow, thank you”, he leans over and places a soft kiss on the man’s nose. Xie Yuchen is frozen in place. Hei Yan Jing stands up and stretches. Xie Yuchen looks at the way the muscles on his abdomen stretch with his body. 

Huo Xiu Xiu walks up with Hei Yan Jing. “Have they made any moves?” she asks. 

“No, but one of them kept on walking behind us, like 10 meters behind. I can tell by his footsteps. We should head back soon. Or do you want to grab dinner from somewhere?” 

Xie Yuchen looks at him “Can we stay here for a bit longer, I miss being out like this”. He looks at Hei Yan Jing with wide eyes. Hei Yan Jing smiles and nods his head. 

He plops back down and Xie Yuchen takes out a thing of sunscreen. “Let me spray you, you are red with the sun beaming down on us”, he says. Hei Yan Jing nods his head. Xie Yuchen sprays the man’s back and rubs it in. He then sprays his front. “You can rub yourself down”, he says. Hei Yan Jing smiles and rubs the sunscreen into his chest. 

Xie Yuchen looks at Huo Xiu Xiu. “You too, let me spray your arms”. She nods her head and he sprays her. Huo Xiu Xiu grabs the bottle and sprays Xie Yuchen down. They then settle down again on the blanket, and Huo Xiu Xiu takes out a small box. 

“Let us play Uno”, she says. They spent a large amount of time, snacking and playing the game. Xie Yuchen somehow ends up with his leg hooked around Hei Yan Jing’s. 

Hei Yan Jing looks up. “The sun is going to set”, he says. He then looks at the walkway at the end of the grass and he sees carts coming in. “Let us stay here tonight”, he smiles. 

Xie Yuchen looks at him. “Why?” 

“Carts are coming in with sparklers and dumplings”, he says with a smile. 

They then hear Huo Xiu Xiu’s phone go off. “Oh it’s my Nai Nai”, she says and picks it up. 

She then hangs up and looks at them. “They want me to go home, my Nai Nai has gotten sick”, she says. 

Hei Yan Jing nods his head. “I will head back with the security that you brought here. I trust you two to be safe”, she says. She says her goodbyes and runs to the car waiting for her at the top of the hill. 

It leaves Hei Yan Jing and Xie Yuchen alone on the grass watching the sunset. 

Xie Yuchen leans his body backward and leans his head on the man’s shoulder. He watches the way the sun falls on the grass. He looks up at Hei Yan Jing, the way the sun falls off his nose and his jawline. 

“Hei Ye,” he asks softly. “How long do you think I will be tailed?”

“I do not know, weeks, months maybe years”, he says. He rubs his hand up and down Xie Yuchen’s arm. “Why do you ask?” 

“Will you have to stay then?” Xie Yuchen asks. 

“If I have to then yes, I will not leave in a dangerous situation”. He places a kiss on the man’s head for reassurance. “Come on, let’s pack up our stuff. I will throw it into the car and we can explore the shops”, he smiles. He gets up and Xie Yuchen follows. They pack up the basket and head back to the car. 

Xie Yuchen looks around and at the sky. “It is chilly”. 

Hei Yan Jing nods his head. He grabs his jacket from the back of the car and lays it on the shoulders of Xie Yuchen. “We forgot to bring one of your jackets, sorry”. 

Xie Yuchen shakes his head. “One of the worst servants I have had”. 

“Who said I was your servant?” 

“I did. When you came you said you would not- and I repeat “you would not serve me tea and you would not drive me around”, he smiles. “You have done both”. 

Hei Yan Jing frowns and places his hands on his hips. “Wow someone is being a real bitch today, maybe I want my jacket back”. He leans forward to swipe the jacket off of the man’s shoulder. Xie Yuchen evades his grab and walks away with a swagger. Hei Yan Jing frowns and shoves the car keys into his pocket following the young man. 

They head to the walkway, with Xie Yuchen leading the way. He turns around the Hei Yan Jing “Do you have my wallet?” 

Hei Yan Jing nods and takes out the man’s wallet, “Here you go”. 

Xie Yuchen grabs it and buys some food. He hands a hawthorn candy stick to Hei Yan Jing. 

“Here”. 

Hei Yan Jing takes it and looks at Xie Yuchen. “I forgot Master Xie has a sweet tooth”. 

“Do not complain”, Xie Yuchen says. “At least I am buying you food”. He says with a grin. Hei Yan Jing nods his head and starts to eat it. They continue walking along with the crowd. Hei Yan Jing grabs Xie Yuchen’s arm. 

“Do not run ahead, I can not lose you here”, he says. 

“Oh by the way Hei Ye,” Xie Yuchen looks at him. The stars and the lights from the lanterns hanging from the carts create reflections in the man’s shades. “Call me Xie YuChen when we are out.”. 

Hei Yan Jing cocks his head. “Can I call you Xiao Hua?” 

Xie Yuchen knit his eyebrows together but then softly smiles, “Sure”. 

They continue walking, not talking. Hei Yan Jing is on alert, looking around. He knows that the people were still there watching them so he was on edge. He is lost in thought when a hand wraps around his hand. 

“You spaced out”, Xie Yuchen says. Hei Yan Jing looks down and the smaller man is by his side holding his hand. 

“What happened?” Hei Yan Jing says. 

“There has been someone following us on our 3 o’clock”, he says. 

“I have noticed. It is bothering you?” 

“Yes. I am not sure why, but..I dont like him”. 

“Hmmm. Stay by my side”, Hei Yan Jing says. 

They continue walking with Xie Yuchen pointing to random carts and remarking on the items they are selling. He stops at a cart selling sparklers. “Hei Ye”, he starts. He points to them. 

“What?” Hei Yan Jing says. He looks at them. “Do you want them?” 

“Yea”. 

“Aren’t you too old to get this excited over sparklers?” 

“Hey, come one,” he releases Hei Yan Jing’s hand and walks over to the cart. He gets a couple and walks up to Hei Yan Jing. “Let us find a more quiet spot to do these, away from these people”. 

Hei Yan Jing nods his head and lets Xie Yuchen lead the way. They stand away from people. Lanterns hanging from the streetlights, causing a red glow on their faces. 

“Hei Yan Jing”, Xie Yuchen starts. 

“Hmmm?” Hei Yan Jing says. He turns his body towards the younger man. 

“Thank you”, he says. “Thank you for protecting me”.

“Oh? Why thank me now?” 

“I felt like it was a good moment”, Xie Yuchen says with a soft smile. He grabs a lighter and turns it on. He lights up the sparklers in his hands and then hands them to Hei Yan Jing. He wraps his hands around the older man’s. 

“This feels like a moment”, Hei Yan Jing chuckles. He takes the sparklers in his hand. Xie Yuchen smiles and lights his own. He looks at the way the sparks fly out against the starry sky. Hei Yan Jing looks over at the man and watches the lights of the fire dance in his eyes. The innocent smile on his face. He smiles to himself and looks up at the sky. The sparklers die out and Hei Yan Jing sighs. He turns his head and looks at Xie Yuchen. 

“Xiao Hua, we should head back to the mansion”, he says. He takes the dead sticks out of the man’s hands. 

“Okay”, Xie Yuchen says. 

They walk back to the car, and Hei Yan Jing opens the door for him. Xie Yuchen smiles at him and gets in. They are quiet on the way back. Xie Yuchen does not know what he felt when they were lighting up the sparklers. He never felt it before. The way he felt at peace by his side. He..felt safe. 

He turns his head and watches Hei Yan Jing drums his fingers on the steering wheel to the music on the radio. He smiles and leans his head against the window of the car. 

They get back to the mansion and head up to the bedroom. Hei Yan Jing rubs his neck and Xie Yuchen looks at him. He frowns. 

“Did you get stung by a bee?” Xie Yuchen asks. He moves Hei Yan Jing’s hand and sees a red bump. But he sees some green vein in the red bump. His eyebrows furrow. 

“Xiao Hua”, the man breaths out. “I am tired. It was just a bee probably”. He smiles at Xie Yuchen before heading into the bathroom. 

Xie Yuchen frowns. Something was off but they had a long day. He gets into his pajamas and waits on the bed for Hei Yan Jing to leave the bathroom. The man eventually does and heads to the bed. He runs his hand through Xie Yuchen’s hair. The bump was covered up by a large bandage. 

“Go shower. I am going to sleep now”, he says. 

Xie Yuchen nods his head and goes to the bathroom. Before he steps in he turns his head.
“Hey, we are no longer in the public eye no need to keep on touching me. We are not really dating”, he says. 

Hei Yan Jing laughs. “Haha, I had forgotten. Sorry about that”, he says. 

Xie Yuchen just nods his head and heads to the bathroom. Hei Yan Jing heads to the couch and lays down. His neck hurt, and so did his head. He rubs his neck before stretching out. He removes his glasses and places them on the table next to him. He grabs a blanket and curls up and falls asleep. 

Xie Yuchen heads out of the bathroom after taking a shower and he stops by he couch. He puts his hand on the sleeping man’s forehead and feels a slight fever. He frowns. Why would he have a fever? 

He sits down at the coffee table by the couch and holds Hei Yan Jing’s hand. He was confused. His emotions were all over the place. He could not possibly like this man, there was no way. The way Hei Ye acted today..he was upset. But why? Was it…does Hei Ye like him, and that is why he was upset about the kiss? 

What was happening between them? There is no way a trained assassin would like someone like him. 

Suddenly he hears whimpering sounds and Hei Yan Jing has a cold sheen on his head. He is moving back and forth. His eyes are clenched hard, the veins are seen on his eyelids. Xie Yuchen panics and starts to rub his hair, trying to soothe him. 

“Shhh shhh, I am here”, he says. Hei Yan Jing eventually stops whimpering in his sleep and settles back down to normal breathing. Xie Yuchen sighs and presses his forehead to the man’s forehead. 

“Hei Ye…why do you make me feel like this?” he sighs out. He gets off the table and heads to his bed. He turns off the light and curls up. He falls asleep with only one person on his mind.

(image I drew of the sparklers scene)

Chapter Text

The next day they decide to head out of the mansion again, just Hei Yan Jing and Xie Yuchen. 

“Why did Xiao Hua want to leave the mansion again?” Hei Yan Jing asks. He walks beside Xie Yuchen. 

“Hmm, it is a pretty day outside why not?” he says. “Are we not supposed to be pretend dating?” He looks up at Hei Yan Jing. The man next to him was tense and his hands were in his pocket. 

“Haha, I guess so. Does not mean we always need to be touching”, he says. He suddenly goes tense and he wraps his arm around Xie Yuchen. “Our tail has arrived”. 

Xie Yuchen looks over to where a random man is staring at him, but Hei Yan Jing turns his head around, “Don’t be obvious”, he laughs. 

“This position is weird, can we change it?”, Xie Yuchen says. Hei Yan Jing nods his head and removes his arm. He wraps his hand around Xie Yuchen’s hand and rubs his thumb down his wrist, “Is this better?” 

“Yes”, Xie Yuchen says. He hides his face so the older man can not see the grin on his face. They continue walking down the street and Xie Yuchen stops outside of a cafe. “How about we go in here?” he says. 

“The cafe?” Hei Yan Jing says. 

“Yea why not?” he says. 

“Hmmm okay”, Hei Yan Jing replies with a smile. They head into the cafe, and they sit down at a small table. 

“What do you want to order?” Hei Yan Jing says. 

“Huh, an americano, you know how I like it,” he says. 

Hei Yan Jing nods his head and stands up. He smiles at him and heads to the counter. He stands in line when he sees a young woman walk up to Xie Yuchen. 

“Master Xie?” she asks. 

Xie Yuchen looks up at her and smiles. “Ah, hi Miss Wang, how are you?” He does not get up and Hei Yan Jing can see that Xie Yuchen is tense around the woman. 

“I am fine Master Xie, I um, have not seen you around in the lounge in a while. Are you okay?” she asks. 

Xie Yuchen’s face goes a bit red and he smiles up at her “I, uh have been busy with work”, he says. He coughs into his hand. Hei Yan Jing cocks his head at looks at him with a weird face. He orders their stuff and pays for it while listening to the conversation behind him. 

“My brother misses you,” the woman says. “He says, that um he enjoys his time with you. And you have not been picking up his calls”. 

Suddenly Hei Yan Jing appears next to her and gives her a fake smile. 

“Maam”, he says. He places the iced americano in front of Xie Yuchen. “I got you this cake. I know how much you like sweet stuff”. He says with a sly grin. 

“Oh who is this?” she asks. 

“Oh”, Xie Yuchen says. 

“I am his boyfriend”, Hei Yan Jing says. He sits down next to Xie Yuchen and smiles. “Right babe?” 

“Oh?” she says. “Boyfriend….?” 

“Yes”, Xie Yuchen says with a nod. Like he was confirming it for himself. 

“Actually can you take a photo of us, we have none of each other and it makes me sad”, Hei Yan Jing says. He takes his phone out of his pocket and hands it to the woman. She reddens but takes the phone from him. 

Hei Yan Jing whispers in Xie Yuchen’s ear something that makes him blush. “Hei Ye!” he says. He pushes his hand on the man’s arm. Hei yan Jing just leans in and laughs, knowing that he made the younger man red in the face. The woman snaps the photos at that moment and hands the phone back. Xie Yuchen looks at the photo and his eyes widen looking at the photo. 

He is smiling in the photo, his eyes crinkled as he looks at Hei Yan Jing. His hand is wrapped around the older man’s bicep. Hei Yan Jing is looking down at him, his eyes open and full of kindness. He is smiling and his hand is on Xie Yuchen’s hand. The picture exudes love. 

“Thank you Miss Wang”, he whispers. She then runs away from them. 

Hei Yan Jing looks at him. “Do you want me to text this to you?” he whispers. 

“Uh, you do not have to”, Xie Yuchen says, he removes himself from Hei Yan Jing’s side. 

“I am going to post it on Weibo”, Hei Yan Jing says. 

“Go ahead”, Xie Yuchen says. Hei Yan Jing looks at him with his head cocked. He opens the app and posts it with a cute caption. He tags Xie Yuchen in it, puts his phone away, and leans on the table. 

“Babe”, Hei Yan Jing says. “You okay?” 

“Hmmm, yes. Why do you ask?” Xie Yuchen says. He leans on the table and looks at Hei Yan Jing. The lights hanging from the ceiling reflect in his eyes. 

Hei Yan Jing smiles and places his hand on Xie Yuchen’s face. He rubs his cheek and leans in. “You know if we were dating, this would be the perfect time for me to kiss you”, he chuckles. 

Xie Yuchen’s eyes widen. “I would also need to have feelings for you”, the older man continues. Hei Yan Jing removes his hand from the younger man’s face. “Come on, let us eat and then continue our walk. You have a meeting tomorrow early so we need to head to bed early”. 

Xie Yuchen nods his head. He finishes his cake and stands up. He holds his hand out and Hei Yan Jing takes it. He stands and Xie Yuchen is standing face to face with him. He places his hands on his chest and smiles up at him. 

Hei Yan Jing leans in and places a kiss on his forehead, “Come on”. He grabs his coffee in one hand and Xie Yuchen’s hand in the other. They walk out of the cafe hand in hand. 

They finally arrive back at the car, as the sun is setting. 

“Ready for the workweek?” Hei Yan Jing says with a laugh. 

“Of course”. 

They head back at the mansion. Xie Yuchen looks at his phone and sees that Huo Xiu Xiu texted him screaming about the photo Hei Yan Jing posted on weibo. He walks out of the car and Hei Yan Jing waits for him by the staircase leading into the building. He holds out his hand.

“Come on, everyone in the mansion thought we went on a date today, so let us continue this play”, he says with a smile. 

Xie Yuchen takes his hand and smiles. They head up the stairs and eventually to the bedroom. A soon as they enter the bedroom, they drop each others hands. And the safety and love that Xie Yuchen felt that day in the cafe fades away as he watches Hei Yan Jing walk away from him. His back cold. He frowns and continues on with his day. This is common. Outside the bedroom they greet each with kindness, they hold hands. They do not kiss, but they look at each other with love. This great facade they both have up, the way they fake the relationship. Once the bedroom door is closed everything changes. They do not touch one another, they act as if they did not spend the whole day as putty in the hands of the other. 

Xie Yuchen understands they are not dating, but how long can he hold up his end of the farce without breaking. Without wanting to grab the man’s face again and kiss him. He knows that hei Yan Jing has no feelings for him…but…it felt too real. 

The next couple of days go as usual. But Xie Yuchen notices that Hei Yan Jing has become more irritable and distant. He thought their “date” went fine and that they were okay. But something is off. 

It is a regular Friday, where Hei Yan Jing and Xie Yuchen spent most of their time in the office. Hei Yan Jing is sitting at a small desk in Xie Yuchen’s office when a hand covers the paper he was staring at. He picks up his head. 

“Huuh?” he says. He sees Xie Yuchen looking at him with a worried face. 

“You look pale”, the man says. “Have you eaten today?”

Hei Yan Jing removes the hand and continues reading. “I am fine”. 

Xie Yuchen frowns deeper but walks back to his desk. He goes through some papers and sighs loudly. 

“If you want something then just ask”, Hei Yan Jing says. He does not pick up his head, and continues staring at the paper. He is wearing a plain white t-shirt tucked into jeans. His hair is loose, and there is still a bandage on his neck from the bee sting from the past weekend. 

“Hei Ye” Xie Yuchen whines. “Look at me”. 

Hei Yan Jing sighs and picks up his head. He looks at Xie Yuchen. the man was pouting. He wears a white dress shirt with beige slacks. The man has been acting different since the trip to the cafe, like he wanted something but also…was on guard at all times. 

“What?” 

“Can you stop looking at that paper please?” 

“No.” Hei Yan Jing put his head back down and then the door opens. Huo Xiu Xiu walks in. She has a tray with snacks and iced coffee. 

She places it down on a table in the center of the room and looks at the two men. “Are you fighting?” 

“No”, Xie Yuchen says with a pout. He walks over and grabs a coffee. He places it on Hei Yan Jing’s desk. 

Hei Yan Jing smiles at him and takes the coffee. He places the paper into a folder amd closes it. He leans back and looks at his friends. 

“How are you doing Miss Huo?” he asks. 

“I am doing fine, I miss being at home but my Nai Nai is better. Just a small cold”, she says with a soft smile. “What have you been reading?” 

“Some information about the men who have been tailing us”, he says. “Trying to figure out more information about them”. 

“Oh is that why you have looked so serious?” Xie Yuchen asks. He sits down next to Hei Yan Jing and opens the folder. 

“You know you do not have to get close to me to read the papers?” Hei Yan Jing says. Even though he says this he leans his body a little so their legs touch. Xie Yuchen reads the papers and his eyebrows knot. 

He looks up at Hei Yan Jing, “How many different workers does he use?”

“A lot. This is probably only half of the names”, Hei Yan Jing says. 

“That is worrisome”, Huo Xiu Xiu says. She takes an orange from the plate and starts to unpeel it.” What do you plan on doing?” 

“I can not make any moves for now. This is..going to take a while to bring him down”, Hei Yan Jing says. 

“It has already been 5 months since you moved in”, Xie Yuchen says. He sighs and leans his body back on the couch. He picks up his legs and drapes them over Hei Yan Jing. 

They both realized that it was hard to trust some of the workers in the mansion. Because of this, whenever they left the bedroom they needed to pretend to date. Which usually meant touching. They still refrained from kissing. 

Huo Xiu Xiu looks at them, and how casual they looked in the position. She smiles to herself and hands a snack to Hei Yan Jing. He eats it with a straight expressiion. 

“Hei Ye you look tired”, Huo Xiu Xiu says. 

“Hmmm  I am okay, just can not sleep with Xie Yuchen snoring all night”, he says with a grin. 

Xie Yuchen slaps his arm. “You fall off the couch almost every night and wake me up. Plus, I do not snore”, he says. 

Hei Yan Jing sighs and leans his head back on the couch. He closes his eyes. 

Xie Yuchen looks at Huo Xiu Xiu, “Do you want to eat dinner in the courtyard today?”

“Oh, yes! We have not grilled this summer yet, why not do it tonight?”, she answers. 

“I do not know if we have the meat for it”, Xie Yuchen says. “I can ask the chef to buy some”. 

“Oh let me ask. I am bored so I will make a menu for tonight”, she says with a smile. 

They finish their snacks and iced coffee. Huo Xiu Xiu waves her goodbye and walks out of the office. Xie Yuchen shakes Hei Yan Jing. The man did fall asleep. 

“Hei Ye, wake up”, he says. He removes his legs from the man’s lap. 

Hei Yan Jing opens his eyes and looks up at Xie Yuchen. “I fell asleep?” he asks. He removes his glasses and pinches the bridge of his nose. 

“Is everything okay?” Xie Yuchen says. “You have been out of it since the day at the cafe”. 

“Yea, I am just too paranoid to sleep sometimes so I have been missing out on sleep”. 

“Paranoid why?” 

“What happens if something happens to you at night and I am sleeping too soundly to hear it?” Hei Yan Jing says. He puts his glasses back on and turns his head to Xie Yuchen. “I just do not want to mess anything up. Because me messing something up can mean your life”. Xie Yuchen frowns when he says this. He places his hand on the older man’s arm. 

“You do not need to waste all of your energy in me”, he says softly. 

“You are my mission”, Hei Yan Jing whispers.” I can not let you die”. He places his hand on Xie Yuchen’s hand and smiles softly. “I will be fine”. He looks up at him and pushes some stray hands away from Xie Yuchen’s face and tucks it behind his ear. Xie Yuchen looks at him with wide eyes. 

Something was stirring inside of him. When was Hei Ye ever this soft?

Hei Yan Jing removes his hand from Xie Yuchen’s face and places it on his lap,” Come on, let us continue working for today”. 

Xie Yuchen nods his head and heads back to his desk. Hei Yan Jing opens up the folder again and looks at the pile of papers that he has. He hears Xie Yuchen sighing and he looks up. The younger man has put on glasses and was glaring at the computer screen in front of him. Hei Yan Jing smiles watching the man work. 

About an hour passes and there is a knock on the door. 

“Come in,” Xie Yuchen says. 

A servant walks in and has a tray of fruit water and some snacks for them. Hei Yan Jing narrows his eyes and gets up. He gets the tray from the person and dismisses the servant. He places the tray on the table and takes a pouch out of his pocket. He pulls a silver needle out of it and tests everything on the table. Xie Yuchen watches him with a concerned face. 

“Do you think people will poison me in my own home?’ he asks.

“Do not underestimate people”, Hei Yan Jing says in a low voice. He pours some water in a cup and hands it to Xie Yuchen. Xie Yuchen smiles and takes the cup. 

“Let us do an hour more of work and relax before dinner tonight”, Xie Yuchen says. 

“I am okay with that. I will nap after work”, he says. 

They continue working and the alarm goes off from Xie Yuchen’s phone. Hei Yan Jing turns his head and looks at Xie Yuchen. The man is not budging and has not turned off the alarm. He stars intently at the screen of the computer. 

Hei Yan Jing sighs and throws a pen at him. Xie Yuchen jumps up when the pen hits his shoulder. 

“Turn off the fuckin alarm”, Hei Yan Jing says. Xie Yuchen nods his head and turns it off. He then starts to close all of the folders on his desk and locks his computer. He stands up and stretches like a cat. Hei Yan Jing stands up and grabs the empty tray from the table. He places it on a table right outside of the table so the servants can grab it later. He turns around and Xie Yuchen is standing behind him, he is scrolling through his phone. “Come on move your ass”, he says. 

Hei Yan Jing scoffs and walks through the door. He hears the footsteps of Xie Yuchen following him. Xie Yuchen closes the door and locks it behind him. They walk up the stairs to the bedroom. Hei Yan Jing walks behind him, looking at all windows and empty spaces. Suddenly Xie Yuchen turns around and then stares down at Hei Yan Jing. 

“You need to calm down”, Xie Yuchen says. 

“Huh?” 

“I can feel your anxiety from here, you are looking everywhere for a possible killer. Do you think they will just be here hiding in the corner of the mansion?” he asks. Hei Yan Jing looks at him with his mouth open. 

“I do not know what the fuck has happened to you since that day at the cafe, but you are always on edge. You are making me anxious”, Xie Yuchen adds. Hei Yan Jing sighs and hangs his head. 

“I am sorry. I guess..being in public and feeling everyone watching us made me nervous for your safety”, he admits. He runs his hand through his hair. Xie Yuchen walks down the stairs and stops on the step right above Hei Yan Jing. For once he is the taller one. He places his hands on the older man’s shoulders and smiles at him. 

“You need to sleep”, he says. He picks up his hand and places it on the older man’s cheek. “You are pale, and you are not yourself. You have not yelled at me in a couple of days”, he laughs. 

Hei Yan Jing nods his head in silence. He looks up at Xie Yuchen and smiles. The younger man removes his hands and heads back up to the bedroom. Hei Yan Jing looks down the stairs and sees a servant staring at them. He runs away when he feels the eyes of Hei Yan Jing on him. Hei Yan Jing frowns and runs back up the stairs following Xie Yuchen. 

They walk into the bedroom and Xie Yuchen heads away from Hei Yan Jing. Suddenly Hei Yan Jing’s phone rings and he fishes it out of his pocket. 

“Hi, Master Wu”, he says. He heads to the bathroom and closes the door.

Xie Yuchen turns his head and looks at Hei Yan Jing walk away. He hears only some words from the conversation but he does not like what he hears. He frowns and walks closer to the bathroom door. He hears one sentence “you know I am only in this for the money, you better pay me by the end of this” he laughs. 

Xie Yuchen freezes. He backs up slowly from the door. “Only in it for the money?” he says softly. Why does he care? This is a job for Hei Ye, nothing else. He runs to the bed when he hears Hei Yan Jing hang up the phone. He curls up under the covers and covers his head with the blanket. 

Hei Yan Jing walks out of he bathroom and sees Xie Yuchen is in bed. He smiles to himself. He rubs his neck, it has been bothering him. He goes to the couch and sits down. He scrolls through his phone and falls asleep while scrolling. He wakes up a couple of hours later to a hand on his forehead. He opens his eyes and Huo Xiu Xiu is looking down at him. 

“Hey, you good?” she asks. 

“Yea just took a quick nap”. Hei Yan Jing says. He looks over at the bed. Xie Yuchen is awake sitting cross-legged. “Did you prepare for dinner?” 

“Yes, I have all the meat ready to be cooked by us”, she smiles. She puts her hands on her hips. 

“Let us go then”, Hei Yan Jing says. He stands up and walks over to the bed. “Come one, Xiao Hua,” he says with a grin. Xie Yuchen nods his head and crawls off the bed. He walks past Hei Yan Jing, his shoulder bumping is. Hei Yan Jing frowns, why is Xie Yuchen treating him like this. 

They head down the stairs. Huo Xiu Xiu led from the front, skipping to the courtyard. They head outside and there is a small gazebo set up. The grill is set up with many types of meat around them. There is cold soju on the table. Lights hang from the corners of the gazebo.

“Wow, Miss Huo”, Hei Yan Jing says, He looks up with wide eyes, the lights reflecting in his shades,” You outdid yourself.” She smiles and grabs his hand pulling him towards the gazebo. Xie Yuchen is standing with his hands in his pockets, frowning. He can not stop thinking about what he heard Hei Yan Jing say. He follows them. They fire up the grill and start putting meat onto it. 

Hei Yan Jing can tell that something is off with Xie Yuchen, but he ignores it. He fulfills the job of grilling while the two best friends talk at the table. Huo Xiu Xiu gets Xie Yuchen laughing and smiling which is good enough for him. 

Hei Yan Jing turns around while waiting for the meat to cook and he catches Xie Yuchen looking at him with a strange expression. Hei Yan Jing softly smiles and cocks his head at him, confused. Xie Yuchen looks away and continues his conversations with Huo Xiu Xiu. Hei Yan Jing frowns and looks down at the floor.

Did he say something wrong? Everything was fine before, Xie YuChen started acting funny..shit after his talk with Master Wu. He pinches the bridge of his nose. 

“Fuck”, he whispers to himself. He drinks from the bottle of soju in his hand and turns back to the grill. He spents some more time on it and then brings it to the table. He heads to the grill again but a wave of dizziness overcomes his body. He grabs the grill for support but it burns him. 

“Ah fuck”, he says. 

Xie Yuchen stands up fast “what happened?”. 

Huo Xiu Xiu is startled when the man stands up. She grabs his arm “Did you not just tell me you are angry at him.”

Xie YuChen frowns but shrugs her arm off. He whispers “Call me a fool but I still care for him”. He runs up to the older man and grabs his hand, he sees the burn on his hand. He grabs a first aid kit they keep by the grill and he places some ointment on it and wraps it. 

“How the fuck did you manage to burn yourself Mr.I am the best”, he says. He then looks up and sees that Hei Yan Jing has clenched his eyes. There is a sheen of sweat on his forehead. “Are you okay?” 

“I think the heat from the grill is making me dizzy”, Hei Yan Jing answers. He opens his eyes and smiles at Xie Yuchen. 

The younger man just nods his head and releases his hand. Hei Yan Jing walks over to he table and sits down. He grabs a cup of water and downs it. His neck hurts, the irritation from the smoke and the sweat on the adhesive is probably making it itch. 

Huo Xiu Xiu goes over to Xie Yuchen to help him grill the rest of the meat. She sets down another plate of meat and frowns at Hei Yan Jing. He is playing with the bandage on his hand, just staring at it. 

“Hei Ye”, she calls out. He picks up his head and smiles at her. He then looks past her and sees Xie Yuchen having a hard time cooking. He stands up and walks over. 

“I knew you were going to be bad at cooking” he laughs out. 

“Hey do not be mean”, Xie Yuchen says. “Why aren't you sitting down?” 

“I feel better”, Hei Yan Jing says. “Let me help”. He takes the tongs out of the younger man’s hands. “You hold the plate for me, okay?” he says. Xie Yuchen nods his head and holds the plate while Hei Yan Jing finishes cooking the food. He was feeling dizzy again but he assumes he just needs food so he powers through. He finally finishes the food and puts it on the plate. 

Xie Yuchen heads over to to the table with the food. Hei Yan Jing turns off the grill and puts down the tongs. He looks at the two sitting at the table and smiles. He did not know he just needed to get hurt and the young master would run to his side.

Suddenly the corner of his eyes goes black but he shakes his head. He grabs his cup of water next to the grill before he walks to the table. But when he looks at the table everything is blurry. He hears Xie YuChen call his name, but his face is just a blop and the words are distorted. He shakes his head to let them know he is fine and he tries his best to appear casual as he walks to the table. 

He finally arrives and he reaches out to grab the chair so he can pull it out and finally sit but he misses it. He keeps his composure but he can sense that the other two are looking at him. 

“Hei Ye?” Xie YuChen asks. He sees the man get up and start to head towards him. Hei Yan Jing waves him off and goes for the chair again, he can grab it but suddenly everything goes black in his vision. His brain goes blank and he feels his body go limp. He feels his body hit the cold grass, he feels it tickling his nose. The sounds of his friends yelling his name reach his ears and no matter how much he wants to say something, the only thing that escapes his mouth is gasps. He feels like he can not breathe and all of his senses have betrayed him. He feels the cold touch of a hand on his arm and he shivers before passing out. 

Xie YuChen sits on the floor next to the man. His heart stopped when he watched him struggle to sit down and then collapse to the floor. His breathing was haggard as if he could not get a breath in. His face is pale and his lips are turning a shade of light blue. His ink-black hair sticks to his forehead, strands of it sticking to his sweaty face. 

“Hei Ye, Hei Ye”, Xie Yuchen calls out. He pushes the hair from the man’s forehead and he feels a raging fever. “XIU XIU CALL A DOCTOR!” 

She nods her head and runs into the mansion. Xie Yuchen looks at the man on the floor and notices that his neck is red. He removes the bandage and he sees that it is bright red. There are green, blue, and purple splotches around it. 

“He..is poisoned”, Xie Yuchen says. He stares at it with wide eyes. “The bee sting..you have been poisoned”. He panics and his eyes lose focus as tears flood the corner of his eyes. He picks up the man and lays him in his arms. He squishes Hei Yan Jing’s face against his chest and he cradles him. He mutters to him. 

“It is my fault. You did this to protect me. You knew it got worse, why did you not say anything?”.

Suddenly the doctor comes running outside. He sees Xie Yuchen panicking on the ground and looks down at the unconscious man snuggled in his arms. 

“Master Xie we need to get him into the house”, he says. Xie Yuchen just nods slowly. The doctor leans down and takes the older man and picks up him with the help of his assistant. They carry the man into the house and lay him down on Xie Yuchen’s bed. 

Xie Yuchen is standing at the foot of the bed, his hands on his chest. He is breathing heavily with tears coming down his face. 

“This is because of me”, he says. “All because of me”. Huo Xiu Xiu turns her head and looks at him. She sees the tears coming down his face and she runs to his side. 

“Xiao Hua Ge Ge,” she says. “No, it is not”. 

“Yes”, he says. He slips to the floor, his knees give out. Huo Xiu Xiu sits down next to him and wraps her arms around him. He leans his body into her body and sobs. 

The doctor is at the bedside, and he is extracting Hei Yan Jing’s blood. “What happened?” he asks. Xie Yuchen picks his head up and looks at the doctor.
“He-he-he” he mumbles. “The other day we thought he got a bee sting at the park, but it…it ..it is now this”. 

“Hmmm”, the doctor says. He looks at the vial of blood and Hei Yan Jing’s neck. His neck was obviously poisoned and the man’s fever was getting worse. “I think I know what poison this is, but since it is so far along..I am not sure if it will work”. He opens his bag and removes an ointment. He puts gloves on and rubs the ointment on Hei Yan Jing’s neck. 

“This will not stop the spread but it will cause the wound to heal, so it will not be infected”, he says. He then removes a vial from his bag. He pours it in a small cup of water and mixes it. He picks up Hei Yan Jing’s head and tilts the cup of medicine into his mouth. It thankfully goes down and he lays his head down. Xie Yuchen looks at the doctor. 

“How long till it takes full effect?” he says. 

“Can be days”, the doctor says. “Or he can never wake up. The poison attacked his organs already and is messing up with his body. Which is why he has this fever. I also gave him a medicine which will hopefully bring the fever down.” The doctor leaves a paper with instructions on how to give Hei Yan Jing the medicine and he bows before leaving the bedroom. 

Once the doctor leaves Xie Yuchen scrambles to his feet and goes to the bedside of Hei Yan Jing. He looks down at the man. He feels numb. He has never felt this emotion before, he looks over at Huo Xiu Xiu who stares at him with a worried expression. She walks up to him and places her hand on his shoulder. 

“Stay with him”, she says softly. “I am going to go outside and clean up”. She walks out of the room. Xie Yuchen collapses to his knees and grabs a hold of Hei Yan Jing’s hand. He leans his head on the bed and stares at him. 

“I am sorry,” he says. Tears pricked the corners of his eyes. “This is all my fault for digging deeper. You went so far to protect me, but why…” He closes his eyes thinking about their past. 

It has been a long 5 months between them. He remembered how much they literally hated each other when they first met. While they have grown to be fond of one another over the months, there was still this tension between them. 

They really never talked about their emotions, why should they. 

While they were friends..they did not like each other like that?

He frowns deeper. 

If he did not like him like that, then why did he feel so emotional when he found out that Hei Yan Jing was hurt? He cried. When was the last time he cried? He does not recall. He sighs and buries his head in the fabric of the sheets. He was confused and angry. 

Did he really like Hei Ye, and instead of facing this reality head-on? He has just been rude to the man who protects him and makes him feel safe. 

He stands up and goes to the bathroom. He grabs a bowl of water and a rag and returns to the bed. He wipes the feverish sweat from Hei Yan Jing’s forehead and removes his shirt. His whole body was feverish. He moves the blanket off of him and replaces it with a light sheet. He sits on the edge of the bed and rubs his thumbs over the man’s hand. He sighs looking at his serene face. When he slept he shows no pain. 

He crawls into the bed and lays his head on the man’s chest. He can feel every breath the man takes. He can stare straight at his face. He does not dare to sleep making it his mission to protect Hei Yan Jing. Watching him take every breath, making sure his sweat is wiped away from his forehead. Holding his hand and singing to him when he starts making noises in his sleep.

Chapter Text

Xie Yuchen stays in that position throughout the night. His eyes hurt, and his body aches but he is afraid that if he falls asleep something will happen. He yawns and he feels a hand touch his shoulder. He turns his head and Huo Xiu Xiu is standing there. She settles into the bed next to Xie Yuchen and smiles at him. 

They are both sitting at the foot of the bed, their bodies leaning against the footboard staring at the man laying down. Huo Xiu Xiu runs her hand through Xie Yuchen’s hair.

“Sleep now, I can watch over him. The servants will bring food for us when it's breakfast time”, she whispers. He nods his head and crawls towards the empty spot next to Hei Yan Jing. he curls up and falls asleep. Huo Xiu Xiu watches them both and softly smiles. 

She has been trying to figure out what is going on between the two men. They were both adamant that they had no romantic feelings towards the other, but it was confusing. Can someone fake the looks they gave each other? Can someone hold hands with another person, caress their face, and embrace and act if there is nothing there? 

She has been best friends with Xie Yuchen for years. She has never seen him fall for a person. This was the first time she has seen him genuinely care for someone in this way. She saw him cry with large tears rolling down his face. He cried in front of strangers. He blamed himself. He was always the first person to shift the blame, he was filled with pride. So why was he so quick to apologize and say it was his fault? She sighs and rubs her eyes. 

She is still wearing her pajamas and her hair is in a messy bun. She rolled out of bed and ran over to this room. She hated the way Hei Yan Jing looked. He is pale. His black hair sticks to his face, and she can see the veins in his neck going towards his collarbone. His breathing is haggard. She frowns and crawls out of the bed. She reads the instructions of the medicine next to the bed and she sees that Xie Yuchen has written down the times that the medicine needed to be given. He had given him the medicine right before falling asleep.

The sun has not even risen yet. She does not know what the day will bring, but she knows that she can not leave the mansion, and neither can Xie Yuchen. Without Hei Yan Jing there is no knowing of what danger they might encounter. She sighs and wipes the sweat from the man’s brows. She sits at the foot of the bed and around 8 am there is a knock at the door. She crawls off the bed and takes food from the servant at the door. She heads to the bathroom and grabs a pouch of silver needles. 

Ever since Hei Yan Jing told her that he started testing all the food brought to Xie Yuchen, she has been paranoid. The three of them started cooking for themselves more. She tests the food and the tea and sees that it is good for consumption. She pours herself a cup of tea and sits on the floor staring up at the bed. She eats some food and she hears stirring. She sees Xie Yuchen pick his head up and he looks over with half-closed eyes. 

“Go back to sleep”, she says in between a mouthful of fruit. He nods his head and goes back to sleep. 

A couple of hours later he wakes up and crawls out of the bed. He goes to the dresser next to Hei Yan Jing’s head and prepares the medicine for the poison. He gives it to the man and plays with his hand for a bit. 

“Come eat something”, Huo Xiu Xiu says. Xie Yuchen shakes his head no. 

“Come on, you can not get sick too”, she says. Xie Yuchen sighs and joins her on the floor. “Do not blame yourself” she says as she hands him a cup of tea. “It is not your fault. He kept it secret to himself that the injury was getting worse, how would you know?” 

“I should have noticed something was off. He has not been sleeping nor eating”, he says. 

“Didn’t you tell me he said he was paranoid someone in the mansion was going to kill you at night?” she says. She takes the cup from his hand and replaces it with a pork bun. 

“Well yes, but-” he starts. 

“No buts. He gave you an explanation, there was no reason for you to question it”, she says. “He has a lot of pride, just like someone else I know”. 

“Who?” he asks. He takes a bite of the bun. 

“You, you stupid idiot”, she says. She pushes his shoulder. “You have a lot of pride and the fact that broke down in front of the doctor still surprises me”. 

“Hmmm, I did not intend to do that”, he says. He then turns his body to her and takes her hand into his. “You can not tell Hei Ye that I cried over him”. 

“Why not?” she asks. 

“Why not?! You think I want him to have the satisfaction of knowing I cried over him”, he says with a pout. He removes his hands and goes back to eating. 

This goes on for about a week. They both sit on the floor by the bed during the day while he does work. And she is on her phone. At night they take watches, so someone is always awake watching over him.

The doctor comes over one day to check his progress. 

“He should have woken up by now”, the doctor says. He looks at Hei Yan Jing’s neck and sees that is healing. “Why hasn’t his fever broken?” he says with worry. 

“It broke the other day, but it came back that night”, Xie Yuchen says. He is sitting on the other side of the bed. 

“Hmmm, I will give him a different medicine that can help with the fever. Have you been feeding him broth?” 

“Yes. We have mainly chicken broth”, Xie Yuchen says. He is rubbing the hand of Hei Yan Jing as he speaks to the doctor. 

“At least he has nutrients going in then”, the doctor says. He puts down a piece of paper and a sachet of medicine. 

“There are the instructions for the medicine. It should wake him up soon”, he says before bowing and leaving the room. Huo Xiu Xiu was standing beside him and looks at Xie Yuchen. 

“You okay?” she asks. 

“Hmmm”, Xie Yuchen says. “I am ready for him to wake up. The more he’s asleep the more worried I am”. 

“I understand”, Huo Xiu Xiu says. She sits at the foot of the bed and looks at Hei Yan Jing. The man has been breathing better, with less strained gasps. He takes broth and tea, which is helpful. 

“It has been a long week”, Xie Yuchen says. He sighs and wipes the hair from the man’s forehead. He places a rag on his head trying to soak up the sweat from his fever. 

Huo Xiu Xiu crawled to Xie Yuchen’s side and hugs him. Xie Yuchen leans his body into his and rests his head on her shoulder. He sniffs the tears back up into his nose.

“What if he doesn’t wake up?” he asks. 

“He will don’t worry Xiao Hua Ge Ge”, she says. “I think he will wake”. She leans her head on his, and they stay like that for a bit.

Huo Xiu Xiu looks down and sees small tears leaking from Xie Yuchen’s eyes. She wipes them away and holds him tighter. 

A week later Hei Yan Jing is still unconscious.

“Why?” Xie Yuchen asks the doctor. “His fever broke, the poison seems gone. Why isn’t he awake?”

“It seems like Hei Yan Jing is the one who doesn’t want to wake up,” the doctor says. 

“Huh?”, he asks. 

“Give him time. He won’t die”, the doctor says. 

“Time?” Xie Yuchen says. 

“Talk to him,” the doctor says as he packs up. 

“Talk to him?” Xie Yuchen and Huo Xiu Xiu ask at the same time. 

“You have been with him, but have you talked to him?”, he says. 

“Sometimes”, Xie Yuchen says. He hasn’t talked to him because he’s embarrassed to say those things out loud. 

“I think you should let him sleep for a while. And just let him be for a moment, he won’t go anywhere. You staring at him for 2 weeks straight seems stressful” he laughs. 

Xie Yuchen frowns at the comment but does not say anything. The doctor leaves. 

“Maybe the doctor is right “ Huo Xiu Xiu whispers. She looks at the sleeping form on the bed.

Xie YuChen looks at her. He is standing up leaning against the couch. Ever since Hei Yan Jing’s fever broke for good the color has been back in Xie Yuchen’s face. He is dressed normally but he always has s serious look on his face. 

“Okay”, he sighs. He punches the bridge of his nose. “We will stop taking watches at night and actually sleep normally”. He turns his body towards her. “Does that sound okay with you?” 

She nods her head and stands up. “I am going to ask someone to go buy us Starbucks,” she says. She leaves the room and he sighs. He sits down on the edge of the couch. 

“Hei Ye”, he says out loud. It felt odd to him. He looks at the bed. “Hei Ye, I am not sure if you are being an asshole and trying to sleep more or you are really dying, but please wake up,” he says. He cringes at himself for saying please, sounding needy. He stands up and walks to the bed. He sits down on the edge and brushes the man’s hair away from his face. He stares at him and smiles. The sun streaming in the windows cast a warm glow on the man’s face. His eyelashes look like pieces of gold thread. Xie Yuchen leans down and places a kiss on the man’s forehead. 

“Please wake up. I need you”, he says. He lays his head down on the man’s chest. Breathing in the man’s scent, and enjoying the feeling of his skin on his face. He knows the man will not die, but there is the overwhelming fear that something is going to happen. He feels tears start to drop down his face and land on the man’s bare chest. He frowns feeling the wetness. 

“Xiao Hua, if you are crying I would like if you did not do it on my chest”, he hears a voice say. 

He freezes. That voice. He picks up his head and faces the man in the bed. The tears fall down his face, turning from worried tears to happy tears. His eyes are open but he is moving his hand around looking for something. “Help me up please, I can not see”, Hei Yan Jing says. 

Xie Yuchen nods his head and leans over to help the man sit up. 

“I need my sunglasses”, Hei Yan Jing says. 

Xie Yuchen leans over and grabs them from the nightstand. He wipes the tears from his eyes first. “Here” he puts the glasses on Hei Yan Jing’s face. He sees the man blink a couple of times and then he smiles at Xie Yuchen. 

“Good morning”, he says. 

“Good morning my ass”, Xie Yuchen says. He slaps the man’s arm. Hei Yan Jing looks at him with a fake hurt expression but he sees an expression on Xie Yuchen’s face he has never seen before. 

“Hei Ye”, Xie Yuchen says. He turns his head away from him. 

“Hmmm”, Hei Yan Jing says. 

“Don't do that again. That is an order”, Xie Yuchen says. He turns his head back at Hei Yan Jing and throws himself on the man in an embrace. 

Hei Yan Jing is stunned but he smiles at the touch. He wraps his arms around the younger man’s back and rests his head on his shoulder. 

“I am sorry I made you worry”, he says in a soft tone. 

At that moment Huo Xiu Xiu walks into the room and sees them in a soft embrace. She backs up and watches from the door opening. 

“I thought you were going to die,” Xie Yuchen admits. “So many people around me die, I thought you were going to die because of me”. He feels himself become overwhelmed with emotions. 

“Xie Yuchen, I am not that easily killed”, Hei Yan Jing says. He rubs his hand up and back the man’s back. “Let it out”, the whispers. He nestles his head into Xie Yuchen’s hair and he feels the man tremble. His sobs are muffled by the older man’s shoulder. 

Eventually, they part and Hei Yan Jing wipes the tears from Xie Yuchen’s face. 

“I am sorry”, Hei Yan Jing says. He smiles at him. 

“If you get hurt again you have to tell me”, Xie Yuchen says. He jabs his finger into the man’s naked chest. 

“I will, I will. Do not worry Master Xie”. 

“Xiao Hua Ge Ge”, Huo Xiu Xiu says as she walks into the room. “Oh my god! Hei Ye you are awake”, she runs to the bed. “How do you feel?” she asks. 

“Good, what happened?” he asks. Huo Xiu Xiu hands him a cup of water. 

“You got poisoned”, Xie Yuchen says. “Did you not realize the bee sting on your neck was getting larger?” 

“Hmmm I noticed, but I was allergic to the bees”, he says. 

Huo Xiu Xiu and Xie Yuchen look at him in silence. 

“Huh?” Xie Yuchen asks. “You thought you were allergic..and just kept on living life as if nothing happened?” 

“Uh huh”, Hei Yan Jing says. He takes a pork bun from Huo Xiu Xiu’s hand and starts to eat. “Is that a problem?” he says with a full mouth. 

Xie Yuchen frowns and slaps him. “To think I was worried about you”. He gets up and walks to the desk he has in the bedroom. He turns on the computer and puts AirPods in his ears. 

“Is he going to ignore me?” Hei Yan Jing says. 

“Yes”, Huo Xiu Xiu says. 

Hei Yan Jing sighs and finishes his food. “I need to shower”. 

Huo Xiu Xiu sits on the bed and watches him head to the bathroom. She then looks at Xie Yuchen at the desk. He picks up his head to watch the half-naked man meander. He sighs and goes back to work. She chuckles to herself and scrolls through her phone. 

A month later 

The summer is coming to a close. They are sitting outside soaking up the sun rays. A blanket is in the grass and Xie Yuchen is reading a large file while Hei Yan Jing has his head on the man’s lap. His eyes are closed but he is not sleeping. Huo Xiu Xiu is laying down too, her head on Hei Yan Jing’s chest. 

They are all silent, only the sounds of Xie Yuchen turning the page and the birds in the sky. Suddenly Hei Yan Jing’s phone goes off. He picks up his phone.
“Hello?” he asks. He listens to the other side. “Okay, we will be there”. He puts his phone back down on the blanket. 

“Xiao Hua”, he says, 

“Hmmm?” Xie Yuchen answers. 

“I have a lead”. 

Xie Yuchen puts down the papers and looks down at the man in his lap. “Explain”. 

“Those men will be here in Beijing, I think I found a way we can trap them”, he says. 

Huo Xiu Xiu puts her phone in front of Xie Yuchen’s face. The text read “ They will be at XinYue for an event”. 

Xie Yuchen looks down at the two by his lap. “We can trap them at the restaurant”. 

“Exactly”, Hei Yan Jing says. He rubs Xie Yuchen’s thigh. “We can finally end this paranoia we live in”. 

Xie Yuchen nods his head. “I want to figure out the information”, he says. He jumps up causing Hei Yan Jing to thunk his head on the ground. Xie Yuchen runs into the mansion. 

Hei Yan Jing pushes Huo Xiu Xiu off his chest and rubs his head. Huo Xiu Xiu is staring at him with an odd expression. 

“You want this to end?” she says, 

“Well, it has been almost a year of me living here right?” 

“Around 8 months,” she says. 

“So..the event happens in 2 months from now right?” he asks. 

“Yes”. 

“So by the time we get rid of him, it would have been 10 months”, he says. 

“Do you want to leave?” she asks. 

“Well I do miss my freedom”, he laughs. 

“You will leave us”, she says.

He is quiet. The three of them have become inseparable over the months of him living here. They spent most of their time with one another, is he ready to leave them? He frowns. 

“Are you ready to leave him?” she asks. 

“Why do you single him out?” he says. He pulls up a clump of grass and starts to tear the blades into smaller pieces. 

“Hei Ye, do you like him?” 

“That is a silly question. All feelings I have for him are platonic. We are only fake dating, nothing else”, he says. 

“Are you sure you know your feelings?” she asks, 

He stands up, “Miss Huo, I do not like him”. He brushes the grass off his legs and heads into the mansion. During this month months since his sickness, they have found out the spies in the house one by one. He was on bed rest for another week after he woke up so he spent time looking into the files of all of the workers in the house. He feels the house is a bit safer, but they still pretend to date just in case. 

He is not sure if they do it to fool others…or to fool themselves. He heads up the stairs onto the main floor of the house and he looks out the window at Huo Xiu Xiu still sitting on the grass. He sighs and opens up the window. 

“Get in the house, Miss Huo! There is a storm coming!”, he yells. She turns her head and waves at him. She packs up the blanket and runs into the house as the wind picks up outside. He smiles watching her run barefoot. He suddenly frowns realizing..is he ready to leave this life he created here? This family he seems to have found. 

He heads up to the office. He passes the door and Xie Yuchen is hard at work at his office. Huo Xiu Xiu appears next to him and runs into the office. Hei Yan Jing pokes his head in. 

“I am feeling tired, I am going to the drawing-room and taking a quick nap. Scream if you need me”, he says. He heads away, a somber tone in his steps. 

‘What did you say to him?”, Xie Yuchen asks. 

“Nothing”, Huo Xiu Xiu lies. She sits down on the couch and picks at her cuticle. “Xiao Hua Ge Ge I am not ready for this to end”. 

Xie Yuchen tenses up. “What to end?” 

“I do not want him to leave”, she says. She looks at Xie Yuchen. 

Xie Yuchen feels an emotion overcome him and he turns away from her.
“He does not belong here, let him go”, he says. “We have 2 more months with him, that is more than enough time. I do not like sharing my bedroom with him”. 

“Will you not miss him?” she says. 

Xie Yuchen is quiet. He does not move at all and he lowers his head. Of course, he is going to miss him. But no one needs to know that.
“No I won’t”, he says with a sigh. He looks at her and grins. “He is a pain in my neck, I have not been alone for longer than an hour without him being there”. 

“You..do not like him?” she says.
“I like him as a friend, we are platonic,” he says. He feels himself getting upset but he needs to pretend he is okay. “We..are nothing more than that”, he says. The end of his sentence trails off. Huo Xiu Xiu nods her head and leans back in the chair. 

She does not understand either of the men. Why do their actions betray their words? 

2 months pass in a blink. It is the day of the large event at Xin Yue. Xie Yuchen has been dreading this day for a while. This is the day they finally get rid of the man that made him live in a bubble for 10 months. They barely left the mansion anymore. The most they can do is run to a drive-through Starbucks to grab coffee. The one time they left to grab groceries to make dinner, Hei Yan Jing noticed a large number of people around them, all staring at them. They got ambushed in the parking lot and Hei Yan Jing ended up fighting with his fist and a pack of frozen meat. 

That night while Xie Yuchen patched up a small cut on the man’s brow Hei Yan Jing was adamant they remain in the mansion until everything is resolved. 

Hei Yan Jing walks in front of him, blocking his thoughts. 

“Listen, Xiao Hua, everyone in the Mystic Nine thinks we are dating. We need to continue that at this event. Just in case he is not there, we can not blow out cover”, he says. 

Xie Yuchen nods his head. 

“That means I might have to kiss you”, Hei Yan Jing says. Xie Yuchen picks up his head and looks at him. 

“Why?” 

“You think us just holding hands is going to trick people into thinking we are dating?” he says. 

“Why do people need to think?” 

“Because if they think I am coming in to turn everything upside down will I be allowed to enter with you? This is a stricter event than the auction. This is a personal birthday party for a shareholder of the Mystic Nine. He invited you because he probably wants to network with you, so we also need to make sure you make face and aren’t bringing an assassin for the hell of it. Not even Miss Huo is allowed to enter. When you asked to enter, didn’t you say you were bringing your boyfriend?” 

“Yes.” 

“And didn’t they get annoyed with you for bringing an outsider?” 

“Yes”. 

“Then we need to make sure I do not get kicked out before we can make a move”. Hei Yan Jing says. He grabs the younger man’s and he runs his thumbs over the man’s cheeks. “Think about it, you can have freedom again. You can move around without scary men following you to the nearby cafe, you can sit in the park again and be at ease. I will leave and be out of your hair”. He moves his face closer to Xie Yuchen, and he puts on a soft smile. “Isn’t that what you want?” 

“I…I”, Xie Yuchen starts. They are interrupted by Huo Xiu Xiu walking in with two garment bags.

“Your suits have arrived”, she says. Hei Yan Jing stands up and grabs them. He opens it and he looks at them. His is all black, while the lapels of the suit are velvet. While Xie Yuchen is a mauve color, with black accents. He hands the suit to Xie Yuchen. 

“Come on let’s get ready,” he says. The man nods their thanks to Huo Xiu Xiu and she walks to her room. 

They both get dressed helping the other with buttons when needed. 

“Xiao Hua”, Hei Yan Jing says. He turns around to look at him. “Do I put on a tie?” he asks. 

Xie Yuchen looks at him, scanning his body up and down. “No tie”. He walks up to him and unbuttons some of the shirt buttons. Exposing his collarbone and the top of his chest. “There you go”. 

“Isn’t this too scandalous”, Hei Yan Jing jests. 

“You are my boyfriend so it’s fine”, Xie Yuchen says with a sad smile. 

Hei Yan Jing just wants to reach out and embrace the man. They are finally ending the suffering of being tailed and being targeted why is there an air of sadness around them. He runs his hand up and down Xie Yuchen’s arms. 

“You look good”, he whispers. Xie Yuchen smiles at him and walks away. Xie Yuchen heads to the bathroom and starts to put on his makeup. The door opens and Huo Xiu Xiu entrees holding her makeup. 

“Hei Ye”, she heads to him. “Time to make you pretty”. She puts him down in a chair and starts to put makeup on him. 

20 minutes later Xie Yuchen walks out of the bathroom, all done when he sees Hei Yan Jing. The man is fully dressed now. His hair is down but small pieces of hair frame his cheekbones… He is wearing makeup, but slightly that it enhances his features. Mascara, a thin line of eyeliner. A red tint covered with gloss on his lips made them look plump. He freezes..suddenly aware this was maybe the last time he would get to see him like this. Hei Yan Jing realizes the man has stopped moving at looks at him with a confused look. 

Xie Yuchen smiles and walks to his desk. “We need to head out in 10 minutes, a driver will drive us there. Do not call me Master Xie when you are there. Be full-on boyfriend mode. No serving me tea. Nothing. You are my equal”. 

Hei Yan Jing nods his head. He looks at Huo Xiu Xiu and he can see the worry on her face. “Do not fret Miss Huo, I will always care for him”. He hugs her and she gives him a tight squeeze back. She then grabs Xie Yuchen and pulls him into a hug. She wraps her arms around the two of them. Hei Yan Jing suddenly feels choked up but he then hears Huo Xiu Xiu sniffle. 

“Ah Miss Huo why are you crying?” Hei Yan Jing says. He wipes the tear from her face. 

“I’m going to miss hanging out with you two every day”, she says with a sad smile. “But we need to take our lives back”, she says. 

Hei Yan Jing nods his head and looks at Xie Yuchen. Even the young master looks sad. “Come on you two, I am not going to die. I will always be here, just…maybe in a desert miles away”.

He extends his hand out and wraps it into Xie Yuchen “come on, we need to go”. 

Xie YuChen looks up at him and smiles. He says goodbye to Huo Xiu Xiu and they head out. 

Xin Yue

They arrive at the restaurant. Hei Yan Jing gets out of the car first and then Xie Yuchen follows. Hei Yan Jing looks at him and grabs Xie Yuchen’s hand. 

“Are you ready?” he whispers. Xie Yuchen nods his head and they wait in line to get inside. Hei Yan Jing is rubbing the man’s hand with his thumb when he sees a woman at the top of the stairs looking at him. 

“Ai Ya, Xiao Hua”, Hei Yan Jing says. 

“Hmm?” Xie Yuchen says. He looks up at Hei Yan Jing. The older man puts his hands on Xie Yuchen’s shoulder and leans in. 

“Why is it taking so long for us to go in?” He rubs his hand on the back of Xie Yuchen's neck. Xie Yuchen leans his head into the touch, enjoying the feeling while he can. 

“They need to check everyone is on the list, and then make sure they can pay for the food here”, he chuckles. He places a kiss on the palm of Hei Yan Jing’s one hand. Hei Yan Jing nods his head. Xie Yuchen looks up at Hei Yan Jing through his eyelashes. The way the sun was hitting Hei Yan Jing was making his heart stir. Suddenly Hei Yan Jing turns his head and places a quick peck on Xie Yuchen’s lips. He breaks and whispers. “A woman has been staring at us since we arrived, I wanted her to know that you are mine”. He places another kiss on his lips and breaks apart. 

“Ai YA! Standing in the sun in this suit is stifling”, he laughs. 

Suddenly a man walks up to them both. “Master Xie?” he asks. 

“Yes”, Xie Yuchen says. 

“Come with me”, he says. He leads him away and Xie Yuchen grabs Hei Yan Jing’s hand dragging him with him. 

“Ah who is this?” the servant says. 

“This is my boyfriend,” Xie Yuchen says. He has not said this sentence before, and it makes him feel a type of way. 

The man looks at them both and he nods his head. “Follow me”. He leads them to the front of the line, and they are ushered inside. “You can go to your box”, the man says. 

Xie Yuchen nods his head and grabs Hei Yan Jing’s hand and they walk up the stairs. This was the first time in public, in front of so many colleagues that he was ever seen holding hands with a person. They sit down at the table that oversees the entire floor. 

“Why do you look shaken?” Hei Yan Jing says. He takes a napkin and dabs Xie Yuchen’s forehead. “Are you okay?” 

“Sorry I have never been so…open in front of these people”, Xie Yuchen chuckles.

“Holding hands?” Hei Yan Jing laughs. He grabs Xie Yuchen’s hand and rubs it. “Do you want a kiss?”, he chuckles. 

Xie Yuchen gives him an annoyed look but Hei Yan Jing leans across the table and places a kiss on Xie Yuchen’s lips. This lasts longer than the peck and Hei Yan Jing parts. “Enjoy these for today”. He sits back down and lets go of Xie Yuchen’s hand. He then hears someone from below them talking. 

“Did you see Master Xie finally found a boyfriend!” 

“I always knew he was fruity, but wow he caught himself a looker”. 

“You think the dude is in it for the money?” 

“Nah, they seem to have chemistry. Did you see that kiss? I felt ashamed looking at it”. 

“Seems that our plan is working”, Hei Yan Jing says. 

Xie Yuchen nods his head and drinks his tea. Xie Yuchen and Hei Yan Jing sit forwards and look at the people entering the restaurant. Xie Yuchen then sends Hei Yan Jing a text. 

“He has arrived”, Hei Yan Jing nods his head. 

“How will you confront him?” Hei Yan Jing texts back. 

“While this is not the actual auction, they are auctioning one thing off today. I made sure the item that is auctioned is exactly what he has been looking for”. 

“Oh, that fancy funerary vase?” 

“Yes” 

“When he tries to buy it, I am going to be a little shit”

Hei Yan Jing lets out a laugh. 

Xie Yuchen leans over. “Before the auction, there is going to be dinner. They will also have a live band and people will be dancing”. 

“What kind of event is this? So fancy for a birthday party” 

“Zhang Rishan already knows what may happen”, Xie Yuchen says. 

“How?” 

“I already sent the files over showing how he has been falsifying his expeditions records, saying he found some artifacts. But what he was doing was buying these artifacts from other sellers, and claiming he found them in a random tomb which made the money rise.” 

“Oh, you did?” 

“He has been looking for them and he sent some men over to those supposed tombs and realized that they either don't exist or were never explored. Now that we have confirmation from him, he’s pulling his membership essentially. And it’s taking away his funds. He is not the head of the family he works for.” 

“The Li family right?” 

“Exactly. His name is Li Hu, but from what I know that is not his actual surname. He took it after he joined the ranks, trying to move up.  He is not the head and he has been making money on the side so he can try to become the new boss. But Master Zhang tipped off Master Li so the family knows and they are removing him”. 

“When?” 

“Hmm, I dont know”. 

“Why do you want to confront him then?” 

“Because if we confront him in front of everyone here, then it will stop people from allowing him to infiltrate their family as well. I want to cut off all of his networks”. 

“Oh, you're evil”, Hei Yan Jing leans back and sips his tea. 

A voice rings out, “We will start dinner service with a performance from our opera performers”. 

Hei Yan Jing and Xie Yuchen sit back down at the table facing one another while the food is brought to their table. 

“Don’t get drunk”, Xie Yuchen says as he pours some wine into a cup. He hands the cup to Hei Yan Jing with a smile. 

Hei Yan Jing takes the cup and waits to drink it until Xie Yuchen pours himself a cup. They clink their cups together and smile before they drink them. 

They eat the food that is given to them and they do not talk. They focus more on eating and watching the people around them. Hei Yan Jing hooks his foot around Xie Yuchen and leans forward. 

He covers his mouth and says “Sorry the dude from the Li family is staring at us”, he says. “If you to say anything important cover your mouth so he can not read out mouths”.  He coughs and continues to eat. Xie Yuchen just nods his head and smiles at Hei Yan Jing. 

“Hei Ye, what do you want to do tomorrow?” he asks. 

“Hmm, why dont we just stay in tomorrow. It has been a while since we cuddled the day away in bed”, he says with a smile. 

Xie Yuchen smirks at him and kicks him from under the table. The performance on stage finishes and the live band starts playing slow jazz. Hei Yan Jing clears his throat and stands up. He places the napkin on the table and outstretches his hand towards Xie Yuchen. 

Xie Yuchen looks up at him. 

“Can I have this dance A-Chen?” Hei Yan Jing asks with a flirty tone. 

Xie Yuchen feezes at the name, but he smiles and takes the hand. He had mentioned once how someone once called him that name and he had broken their nose. But for some odd reason, when Hei Ye says it, it makes him happy. Hei Yan Jing leads him down the steps to the dance floor where other people are dancing on the floor. Hei Yan Jing puts one hand on Xie Yuchen’s waist and holds the younger man’s hand. 

“Have you ever slow danced before?” he chuckles. 

“No”, Xie Yuchen says while he reddens. 

“Ai-ya, place your hand on my back, and now take this hand”, Hei Yan Jing says as he holds the man’s hand. “My hand sits on your waist, and I will lead you”, he says. “Follow my steps okay?”, he whispers into Xie Yuchen’s ear. He smiles as he watches the young man dance with him. 

Xie Yuchen loosens up and follows the older man’s steps. He looks up at Hei Yan Jing and smiles watching his soft expression. 

“I did not think that 10 months after meeting we would be slow dancing together”, he laughs. 

“Anything can happen in this business right?”, Hei Yan Jing says. More people are dancing around them.

They dance for a bit and Xie Yuchen looks at him “I am getting dizzy from the spinning”. 

Hei Yan Jing stops spinning and looks at him “I am sorry”, he softly smiles. He releases Xie Yuchen’s hand but keeps his hand on the other man’s waist. 

Xie Yuchen looks into Hei Yan Jing’s eyes. He can see them behind the sunglasses and he sees how they soften. He suddenly leans up and grabs the older man’s face. He presses a soft kiss into Hei Yan Jing’s lips. He feels as the world stopped around them, the people spinning around him are a blur. He feels Hei Yan Jing’s hand on his waist tighten. 

“Hei Yan Jing,” Xie Yuchen says as he parts. “I-” 

He is cut off by a booming voice and the sound of a gong. “The big event of the night has begun, THE AUCTION!”. 

“What?” Hei Yan Jing asks. “I could not hear”. 

“It is nothing”, Xie Yuchen says as he lets go of the man’s face.

They head back to the table. Xie Yuchen frowns as he watches the floor. 

“Now it is our time to shine”, Hei Yan Jing says. He sips his wine as he watches them start the auction. 

“We are only auctioning off one item tonight. One of the members donated this piece so there can be an auction during this party”, a loud female voice says. “This item”. They uncover the item and they hear the man from the Li family exclaim loudly. 

“So when do we let him know he has no money”, Hei Yan Jing says. 

“I will bid against him. He will think he has the backing of the Li family, and once he gets too cocky I will be an asshole”, he says with a laugh.  

“We will begin the bidding”. 

They watch the man on the immediately start bidding. 

“They bid 100000 RMB” 

“How are we going to bid now?” Hei Yan Jing says. 

“Wait a bit for it to go up more”. 

“We have a man on the right who bids 150000 RMB”, the announcer says. 

“Man on left bids 200000 RMB”. 

Xie Yuchen hits his bell. 

“Man in the balcony bids 250000 RMB”. 

It eventually becomes a fight between Xie Yuchen and Li Hu.  

Hei Yan Jing hears people whispering. 

“Why are they bidding this high?” 

“Isn’t this just a funerary vase?” 

“What dynasty is it even from?” 

Hei Yan Jing turns his head and looks at the serious face of Xie Yuchen. Suddenly Li Hu bids 100 million RMB. 

Xie Yuchen leans back. He looks at Hei Yan Jing. “Are you ready?” 

“Always”. 

Xie Yuchen stands up and walks to the edge of the balcony. 

Li Hu looks up from his seat on the floor “Ah so it was the young master from the Xie family who fought me over this” he says. 

“May I ask when I gave you permission to talk to me?”, Xie Yuchen says. 

“Excuse me?” the man says. 

“Lao Li”, Hei Yan Jing says. He walks next to Xie Yuchen and he places his hand on the small of his back. “Why I know you. The old man who never paid me back”. 

There are murmurs around the room.

“Who are you?” Lao Li says. 

“You do not know me?” Hei Yan Jing says. “I worked for you..hmm about 2 years ago. I went to a tomb for you and then your team left me alone. I tried to find you but you left Beijing, and I never got paid”, he lies. “But more importantly I am Master Xie’s boyfriend”. He places a quick kiss on the man’s cheek. 

More sounds are coming from the crowds. 

“I don't care who you are, I am here only for this”, Li Hu says. He points to the vase.

“I did not know someone like you can afford this”, Xie Yuchen says. He takes a fan from the table and opens it dramatically fanning himself. 

“What do you mean, I am backed by the Li family”, the man says. 

“Ah, you were backed by the Li family”, Xie Yuchen says. 

“What?”.

“Your surname is not Li”, Xie Yuchen says. “Rather it is Yin”. 

There are murmurs and someone stands up. 

“You told us you were a direct descendant of the Li family, which is why we worked with you!”. 

“Yeah!” 

Sounds of discontent are heard throughout the restaurant. 

“For months I have been looking into your misdeeds”, Xie Yuchen says. “You have hurt people I care for, and have made it that I can not leave my mansion in peace”. 

Li Hu looks up at Xie YuChen. There is a vein throbbing on his greasy forehead, “That is what you get for looking into me and my workers”. 

Xie Yuchen shakes his head and smiles. “It does not matter, I have made sure to cut off your funds”. 

“What?!” 

“The Li family knows of your misdeeds and have formally separated you from their prestigious name”. 

“Why you!”, Li Hu yells. He pulls out a gun and points it at Xie Yuchen and Hei Yan Jing. Suddenly around the restaurant more men pull out guns and knives and all aim their attention towards the two on the balcony. 

The people not involved run out of the restaurant. 

“This poor restaurant”, Hei Yan Jing says. He sighs and removes his jacket. He then removes Xie Yuchen’s jacket. He whispers in the man’s ear. “Are you ready to go apeshit?”. 

SYC looks at him with a wide smile, with a devious look in his eyes. “Of course Hei Ye”. 

Hei Yan Jing removes a knife from his ankle and throws it down. It lodges itself in the column next to the Yin man.
“Ha, you missed!” Li Hu yells before his body is thrown backward by Hei Yan Jing barreling into him.

Hei Yan Jing and Xie Yuchen are now in the center of the restaurant floor. The attendants of the restaurant grab the auction item and runoff. 

“Oi was hoping to solve this without having to get bloody”, Hei Yan Jing says. 

“It seems no one likes fighting with words anymore”, Xie Yuchen says. 

“Let’s go babe”, Hei Yan Jing says before they both start swinging at the men around them. 

Hei Yan Jing quickly disarms the men with guns and sends them flying into tables. 

Xie Yuchen picks up a chair and throws it at a man’s head and he falls to the ground. Hei Yan Jing takes out a knife and starts attacking one of the bigger guards. Suddenly he hears the sound of a trigger, and multiple rounds of bullets come from a balcony. 

Xie Yuchen and Hei Yan Jing both dodge the bullets and Hei Yan Jing runs up a column using a curtain as a rope and swings onto the balcony. He disarms the man and throws him over the balcony. Xie Yuchen immediately punches the man sending him into the column behind him. 

Someone charges at Xie Yuchen with a  knife but Hei Yan Jing throws a chopstick and it impales the man’s arm causing him to drop the knife and he screams. Xie Yuchen fights a few more men off. His hair is disheveled and his shirt is covered in blood from the men he was fighting. 

Two months ago Hei Yan Jing had told Xie Yuchen that things got ugly when he fought. Xie Yuchen told him that he usually just fought with fists. Hei Yan Jing had trained him for two months with a knife and he watches Xie Yuchen fly across the floor maiming people with just a knife. He smiles to himself.
“I created a monster”, he laughs. He scans the crowd and sees Li Hu trying to escape. He jumps down and hits the back of his neck causing the man to pass out on the floor. 

Suddenly they hear the sounds of heels on the hardwood floor. They look up at Yin Fang is standing there with Zhang Rishan. Everyone stops fighting and Xie Yuchen turns his head to look at Hei Yan Jing. Crumpled by his feet is the man who has been trying to ruin his life. He looks back up at Hei Yan Jing. 

His face and arms are stained with blood. His shirt is crumpled, and his nose is bleeding. He removes his shades and wipes the sweat on his forehead before putting them back on.

“Master Zhang,” Hei Yan Jing says. “We are sorry about this”, he gestures to the moaning men around the floor. And the blood on the floor. He was not intending to hurt people like this, but Li Hu’s brought guns to a knife fight. They wanted to kill. So Hei Yan Jing had no qualms about killing them. 

Xie Yuchen walls up to Zhang RiShan and gives him a check. “Just write the total you need on it, I already signed and endorsed it”, he says before stepping away. He is also covered in blood, and there is a slight gash on his arm. 

“You did more damage than I thought you would do”, Zhang RiShan says in a sad voice. “Such a bloody fight, so many dead people. You can go”, he says. He dismisses them with his hand. “The Li family are coming and will handle this. My men will clean this place.”

Hei Yan Jing and Xie Yuchen both bow before leaving the restaurant. Yin Fang runs out to them “Someone will drive you home.”

A car pulls up to the front of the restaurant and the bloody men go into it. They sit in the back of the car quietly. 

They eventually arrive at the Xie mansion. They were both quiet the entire ride, and they did not even glance at one another. There was a tension in the car between them that neither of them wanted to address. 

“Let us go through the secret entrance to the room”, Xie Yuchen says. He grabs Hei Yan Jing’s wrist and they walk to a door by the side courtyard. It leads them up the stairs and they exit in a hallway. They walk a bit more to the bedroom and they walk in. 

Xie Yuchen sighs and removes his shoes. They also have blood on them and he feels so dirty. He looks at Hei Yan Jing and gives him a small smile. 

“I guess that is it” he sighs. “Let us rest and tomorrow we can talk”. He walks to the bathroom. His body was on high alert. He felt the hair on his arms stand up. He walks to the sink and looks at himself in the mirror. He has not done anything like that in a while. While he has not really enjoyed fighting in the past that ended with him covered in blood, he enjoyed it now. Why? He thinks back to Hei Yan Jing throwing a chopstick at a man and saving him. Why did he feel turned on? 

He shakes his head trying to get rid of those thoughts. It was just the adrenaline that was it. 

Hei Yan Jing is outside the bathroom door, leaning his head against the wall. His body was hot. He always got weirdly turned on when he can fight like that. But something about Xie Yuchen made him sensitive. Seeing the man cartwheeling and throwing knives a people. He just wants to pin the man against the wall. He inhales a deep breath and he suddenly throws the bathroom door open. 

Xie Yuchen is standing there shirtless. His body is still dirty, and Hei Yan Jing looks at him. 

Looks a the sweat on his body. Looks at his lean body. Looks at the younger man’s adam bobbing back and forth. He walks towards him. 

“Hei Ye”, Xie Yuchen says. His voice is breathless. He places the rag he was holding down. His face is flushed. 

Hei Yan Jing stands here, staring at the man. His breath hitches in his throat. He feels warm. 

He whispers “Fuck”.

Chapter Text

“Hei Ye”, Xie Yuchen says. 

“Fuck”, Hei Yan Jing says. He runs towards the man and grabs his face slamming his lips against his chapped lips. He slams him into the bathroom wall and presses his body against him. The younger man does not move and his eyes are wide. But the feeling of Hei Yan Jing rubbing his hands on his body and the hungry kisses makes him feel feral. 

“Hei Ye, we cant”, Xie Yuchen says in between hungry kisses. He has no intention of stopping but he knows if they make this step, there is no going back to what they were before. 

“I know,” Hei Yan Jing says. He continues kissing him. His hands are tight on Xie Yuchen’s waist, holding him in place. He lowers his head and starts to kiss Xie Yuchen’s neck causing the man to moan his name. 

“Hei Ye”, he moans. “We can’t”, he says. He leans his head up so the older man can have access to his neck. He snakes his hands under Hei Yan Jing’s shirt and he feels the muscles in the man’s back, tracing his fingers over them. He removes the shirt from the older man’s body so he can feel all of the muscles under his fingers. Hei Yan Jing then moves his hand to Xie YuChen’s ass so he can push his pelvis forward so they are completely flush with one another. He hears the younger man make a small moan at the sensation, 

“Xiao Hua”, Hei Yan Jing moans into his neck. “I need you”. 

“I”- Xie Yuchen says. He stops speaking when Hei Yan Jing bites his neck. “I need you too”, he finally says. He grabs Hei Yan Jing’s head and picks it up slamming his lips into his. 

Hei Yan Jing moans into the kiss and presses him against the wall more, their bodies are perfectly flush with one another. The kisses are sloppy, with no clear intention of stopping. 

“Hei Ye”, Xie Yuchen moans into the kiss. “We are going too fast.” He feels ready to explode. His body is so warm and tense. He has not felt this way in so long or has he ever felt this way before. 

Hei Yan Jing snakes his hands into the man’s pants, cupping him. Xie Yuchen moans with the sudden cold hand touching him. They both have needed each other for so long, that the kissing is sending them into overdrive. 

“A-Chen”, Hei Yan Jing sighs. He bucks his hips causing Xie Yuchen to moan into Hei Yan Jing’s open mouth. He knows he is close, and he can not control his hips. Rolling them into the man against the wall. 

“Fuck Hei Ye”, Xie Yuchen says. He grabs the man’s waist and pulls him in so they rub against one another causing them both to moan, but it is stifled as they hungrily kiss one another. “Fuck”, he whispers again. Hei Yan Jing removes his hand from the younger man’s pants so he can press himself more against his body. Rolling his hips so they both can feel sensations. 

“Xiao Hua,”, Hei Yan Jing whispers into his ear as he bucks his hips again and he feels the man under him shake and moan loudly. Hei Yan Jing feels himself spill over into his pants and he lays his forehead on Xie Yuchen’s shoulder. Both of them panting but still gripping each other. They are silent, only the sounds of them panting are heard. Xie YuChen slides down the wall and Hei Yan Jing slides down with him. The older man keeps his head on the younger man’s head. 

Xie Yuchen laughs and places a kiss on Hei Yan Jing’s head. “I think this was overdue”. 

Hei Yan Jing picks up his head and looks at the younger man. He leans in and kisses him again. “We need to shower”, he says. He straddles the man and places his bottom on Xie YuChen’s lap. Xie Yuchen moans into the kiss. 

“Again?”, he chuckles but he feels himself become limp when Hei Yan Jing rolls his hips on his lap, and he feels the sensation rocket through his body. “My god Hei Ye”. 

“Shower”, Hei Yan Jing whispers into his ear. He stands up and extends his hand to the man still on the floor. “Come on”. Xie YuChen grabs the hand and stands up. He looks at the disheveled man in front of him and walks closer. He grabs his face and pushes him against the sink, kissing him hard. He starts removing his clothes, and Hei Yan Jing follows. Hei Yan Jing pauses from kissing to turning on the shower, laughing when Xie YuChen protests. 

The bathroom heats up while the two men are kissing one another, only their underwear still on their bodies. 

“Come on, shower”, Hei Yan Jing whispers into Xie Yuchen’s ear. They head into the shower and continue where they left off. They eventually clean each other of the blood and grime of the day. By the time they are done, they are exhausted. Hei Yan Jing gets dressed in his underwear and heads into the bedroom. He is not wearing his glasses and he walks around barefoot picking up the dirty clothes on the floor. There is one lamp on in the bedroom and he turns it off. The moonlight was enough for them to walk around in. 

“Hei Ye”, Xie Yuchen says. Hei Yan Jing turns around and the man is standing there with shorts on. “We-”, he starts but Hei Yan Jing walks up to him and places a finger on his lips. 

“We can talk about this tomorrow,” he says. “I am tired”. He turns around and Xie Yuchen wraps his arms around his waist.
“Sleep with me tonight”, he whispers into the man’s shoulder. 

Hei Yan Jing smiles and nods his head. “Okay”. 

Hei Yan Jing leads the man to the bed and they lay down. He flips over in the bed and he sees Xie Yuchen staring at him with a strange expression. 

“What?” he whispers. He moves closer to him in the bed and he places his hand on the man’s face. 

“I-” Xie Yuchen starts. 

“Do not do sappy on me, we talk tomorrow”, Hei Yan Jing says. He leans in and places a kiss on his lips. He is tired. 

Xie Yuchen grabs Hei Yan Jing’s arms and pulls him into a closer kiss. 

“Hei Ye,” he whines. He is needy but he is also exhausted. 

“Hmmm?” Hei Yan Jing says. 

“Thank you”, Xie Yuchen says. 

“I said do not get sappy on me”, Hei Yan Jing says with a smile. He brushes the hair away from Xie Yuchen’s forehead. He places a soft kiss on his forehead and pulls the covers up around them. “Let’s sleep. I am tired”. 

Xie Yuchen nods his head and snuggles in closer into the man. He lays his head on his chest smiling as he inhales the man’s smell. Xie Yuchen falls asleep first. Hei Yan Jing stares at the wall next to the bed rubbing his hand up and down Xie Yuchen’s back. Tomorrow he is worried. What will they do if the job is finished and he’s asked to leave? Maybe this was Xie Yuchen just running high on adrenaline and tomorrow he will regret this and ask Hei Yan Jing to leave? What if this is a dream?

Hei Yan Jing sighs and looks at the man sleeping in his arms “I do not deserve someone like you”, he whispers. He feels a small tear roll down his face and he wipes it away. He was tired enough that he was starting to cry realizing this chapter of his life is over. 

The next day he is woken up by the sound of birds outside the window chirping. Hei Yan Jing looks at the clock and sees that it is around noon. The fight tired them both out yesterday so it does not surprise him that he slept so late. Xie Yuchen is still curled up to Hei Yan Jing. His face was on the man’s chest, his arm thrown across his abdomen. 

Hei Yan Jing weaves his fingers through the man’s hair. He smiles as he looks at the sleeping man on his body. He sighs and then rolls out of the bed and grabs his sunglasses from the table. Xie Yuchen is still sleeping, Hei Yan Jing had no intention of waking him up. He does his morning routine, gets dressed, and heads downstairs to the dining room. He smells coffee. He walks into the room and sees Huo Xiu Xiu sitting at the table on her laptop. 

“Oh you are awake!” she says. 

“Hmm,” he says. He sits down and pours himself coffee. He grabs some fruit and a croissant from the table. “What are you doing?” he asks her. 

“Just answering some emails”, she says. She turns her head and looks at him. “What time did you both get in last night, I did not hear you come in”. 

“Oh, we entered from a side door to the mansion, sorry. We were both covered in blood and did not want to be seen by the servants”, Hei Yan Jing says. 

“Are you okay? Is he okay?” she asks. She stands up as if she was going to go up to the bedroom.
“We are both fine”, he says. He tugs her sleeve and guides her back down to the table. “Just tired. It was a long fight. We are waiting for Master Zhang to contact us to see if things are settled”. He takes a sip of his coffee and then places two sugar cubes into it. He swirls it around and sighs. He closes his eyes and his phone goes off. He looks down and sees a message from Zhang Rishan. 

“Speak of the devil”, Hei Yan Jing says. He calls the man. 

“Hiya”, Hei Yan Jing says. 

Huo Xiu Xiu can hear the response from the other side of the phone, “I am busy so I am going to keep this brief. The man has been jailed since he was actually running an illegal ring of antique dealing. He should not cause you any problems in the future. I handed all the documents that Master Xie gave me to the officials”. 

“Thank you”, Hei Yan Jing says with a relieved smile. He hangs up and looks at Huo Xiu Xiu. 

“It is done”, he says at her. 

“What is done??”, they hear a voice say. They turn their heads and Xie Yuchen is standing there. He wears sweatpants with a black t-shirt.

“Ah, they arrested the dude. Means he won’t cause you any more issues”, Huo Xiu Xiu says with a smile. 

Xie Yuchen nods his head and sits down in his seat. He gazes at Hei Yan Jing, but the older man does not look at him. He woke up to an empty bed, which he was not thrilled with. At least he sees that the older man stayed, but he thought that something was going to change after the bathroom situation. While it was just making out and hands he thought that it meant something to the older man. He sighs and pours himself some coffee. 

“So your job is done?” Huo Xiu Xiu asks Hei Yan Jing. She closes her laptop and places it on the chair next to her. 

“Yes, I have to wait for confirmation from Wu Sanxing though”, he says. “But since Li Hu is no longer a threat, I no longer have to be Xiao Hua’s bodyguard”. He says this in a blunt tone that makes Xie Yuchen annoyed. He then feels his phone go off and he sees a text from Wu Sanxing. 

“I am paying him his money. This means he no longer needs to stay at the Xie mansion. Thanks for feeding him these past few months. Sorry you had to live with him”. 

Xie Yuchen frowns and locks his phone not responding. He then hears Hei Yan Jing’s phone ring. Hei Yan Jing sighs, gets out of his chair, and heads to the window in the room. He looks out at the changing landscape. 

“Hiya”, he says. He nods his head and says a quick goodbye. He turns around and looks at the two at the table. “Uh, the job is done. I leave tonight. I need to ship out to a job at the end of the week”. 

“Oh”, Huo Xiu Xiu says. “So soon.”

“Sadly this is my life”, Hei Yan Jing says. He sits down at the table and drinks his lukewarm coffee. He does not look up at the young master. He knows that Xie Yuchen is staring at him. 

Xie Yuchen slams the table causing Huo Xiu Xiu and Hei Yan Jing to both divert their attention to him. 

“How dare you,” Xie Yuchen says. He then runs out of the room and they hear a door slam in the distance. 

Huo Xiu Xiu turns her head and looks at Hei Yan Jing. His head is in his hands and she sees that his hands are shaking. 

“What happened?” she says. She takes Hei Yan Jing’s hand and looks at the small cuts from the fight yesterday. She then looks at his face and sees that he looks ready to cry. 

“I need to speak to him”, Hei Yan Jing says. He gets up and runs out of the room. Huo Xiu Xiu looks confused but sneaks out of the room, wanting to eavesdrop on the two men. She sees Hei Yan Jing running up the stairs towards the bedrooms. She runs to her bedroom and leans her ear on the door. 

Hei Yan Jing walks into the bedroom and Xie Yuchen is curled up in the bed, his face pressed into the pillow. 

“Xiao Hua”, Hei Yan Jing starts. 

“Do not speak to me”, Xie Yuchen says. His voice is muffled. “Do not come closer”. 

“Please let me speak”. 

“NO!”

Xie Yuchen picks up his head there are old and new tears on his face. His face is red and puffy and he is shaking with rage. 

“How dare you”, he says again. He gets off the bed and pushes Hei Yan Jing. “GET OUT!” he yells. 

Hei Yan Jing is frozen watching the man fall apart in front of him. He does not know what to do. “Xiao Hua…” he outstretches his hand but Xie Yuchen pushes it away. 

“I do not want to see your stupid face here anymore. Go leave. Take your money, and go take your jobs. And act like everything we have done and been through was nothing to you. Act like everything was a lie”. 

“We were fake dating Xiao Hua..” Hei Yan Jing starts. 

“ALL THOSE TIMES YOU LOOKED AT ME WITH REAL LOVE! ALL THOSE TIMES YOU HELD MY HAND WHEN NO ONE WAS WATCHING! LAST NIGHT!” Xie Yuchen yells. He throws a vase at Hei Yan Jing’s head. Hei Yan Jing allows it to hit him and he feels the impact above his brow bone. The younger man shows no emotion at that. 

“YOU SLAMMED ME AGAINST A WALL AND MADE OUT WITH ME”, Xie Yuchen yells. “Does that mean nothing to you?” he asks. 

“It means-” 

“I do not want to hear your lies”, Xie Yuchen cuts him off. He picks up another vase to throw. 

“Why do you think they are lies?!” Hei Yan Jing says. 

“Huh?”

“Why do you think they are lies?” Hei Yan Jing says again. He walks closer to Xie Yuchen. 

“Why would they not be?” 

“Do you not want me to say the truth?” Hei Yan Jing says. He takes the vase out of Xie Yuchen’s hand and wraps his hands around the younger man’s. 

“I do not want to hear your empty words”, Xie Yuchen says. 

“Xiao Hua” Hei Yan Jing says. He grabs the man’s face and then pulls him into a tight embrace. “I have not even confronted my own emotions. I am not good enough for you. I do not want to tell you my feelings and then leave. You can be happy with someone else. I do not want you to fall for someone like me when you can do better.” 

Xie Yuchen leans his face on the man’s shoulder. “But I have already fallen for you”, he whispers. “I have liked you…since the day you saved me”. He buries his face deeper into Hei Yan Jing’s shoulder. 

“Oh”, Hei Yan Jing says. He says nothing further. 

“Hei Ye”, Xie Yuchen says. He moves his body out of Hei Yan Jing’s embrace and he looks up at him. “Hei Ye”, he says softly before placing a soft kiss on the man’s lips. 

“I like you”, he whispers into the older man’s mouth. 

Hei Yan Jing freezes. His eyes are wide and there is uncertainty all over his face. He looks afraid, and Xie YuChen rubs his thumb over the older man’s lips. He sees the confusion all over his face. 

“Hei Ye, I like you”, he says again. He cups the man’s face with both of his hands. He looks into his face, trying to understand his thoughts. Hei Yan Jing finally shows a soft smile and wraps his hands on the younger man’s waist. “I like you too”, he responds. He kisses him. The kiss feels desperate. There is nothing happy in the kiss, it is filled with sadness. And a pain. 

“I do not want you to go”, Xie Yuchen says. 

“I have to,” Hei Yan Jing says softly. 

“For money?” Xie Yuchen says. 

“I-I can not abandon my job because,” he says.

“Because of me?” Xie Yuchen says with a bite. 

“I don’t know”, Hei Yan Jing admits. “I have never been in this situation”, he laughs. But then his face becomes stern as he thinks. He then closes his eyes, his head hurt. 

“Hei Ye”, Xie Yuchen says. He runs his hands through the man’s hair. Hei Yan Jing leans his head into the hand. He smiles softly at the touch. “Stay with me”, Xie Yuchen says. 

Hei Yan Jing opens his eyes and looks into the soft, pleading eyes of the young master. 

“Please stay with me. Decline the job. You can stay here when you do not work, but right now. I need you with me”. 

“You sound needy”, Hei Yan Jing says in a low voice. 

“Hei Ye, please”, Xie Yuchen says again. 

Hei Yan Jing leans his head forward and leans his forehead against the younger man’s forehead. 

“I can let you leave when you have jobs, but let me be your home base. Let me be your home”, Xie Yuchen says. Hei Yan Jing smiles at this and wipes away the tears from the man’s cheeks. 

“Okay”, he whispers. “I will stay, my Xiao Hua”. 

Xie Yuchen smiles widely and throws his arms around the older man, placing a large kiss on his lips. Hei Yan Jing smiles into the kiss. 

“I need to contact Wu Sanxing”, Hei Yan Jing says. 

“Oh, what will he say?” Xie Yuchen says. 

“He will not deny the wishes of the young master”, Hei Yan Jing says. “You can tell Miss Huo”, he says. 

Xie Yuchen nods his head, but he makes no effort to remove himself from the older man’s arms. He looks up at Hei Ye. 

“I won’t leave”, Hei Yan Jing says. He smiles at the younger man and Xie Yuchen runs away towards Huo Xiu Xiu’s room. He knocks on the door and enters after a few seconds. 

Huo Xiu Xiu is sitting on the floor pretending she did not hear everything. He closes the door. “You heard didn’t you?” 

She nods her head super fast. She then jumps up screaming and throws her arms around him. 

“FINALLY!” she yells. “YOU TWO ARE FOOLS!”. She runs into the bedroom where Hei Yan Jing is on the phone and tackles him to the ground. 

“XIU XIU!” Xie Yuchen yells as he comes running into the room. Huo Xiu Xiu is on the ground, hugging Hei Yan Jing tightly while he looks at the ceiling stunned. His phone was flung from across the room and they hear Wu Sanxing’s voice through the speaker. 

“Miss Huo, what is the meaning of this?” Hei Yan Jing asks from the ground. 

“You two finally admitted”, she says with a large smile. Xie Yuchen walks to Hei Yan Jing’s phone and presses the end call button. 

She sits up and gets off of Hei Yan Jing. She grabs his one hand and then grabs Xie Yuchen’s hand. “You two have been tiptoeing around your feelings for months, I thought I was seeing something that was not there.”  She smiles as Xie Yuchen sits down on the floor. They form a triangle and he grabs Hei Yan Jing’s hand. 

“Are you leaving?” Huo Xiu Xiu asks Hei Yan Jing. 

Hei Yan Jing shakes his head no. A large smile plasters itself on Huo Xiu Xiu’s face. 

“I will stay here, but if I need to do a job I might leave”, Hei Yan Jing says. “But I denied the last job that was offered to me”, he squeezes both of their hands. “I have been awfully selfish.” 

Huo Xiu Xiu nods her head at him. “Oh my that means I can go home”, she says. She stands up. “I am going to run home real quick and I will come back tomorrow to pack”, she says. “I have had some distant family over for a bit and I want to have dinner with them before they go”. She leans down and kisses them both on the head before running out of the room. 

Xie Yuchen looks at the soft smile on Hei Yan Jing’s face. 

“Hei Ye”, he says. 

“Xiao Hua, I am sorry that I have been a douche. I know I was aggressive last night and I should have spoken to you about my intentions beforehand”, he sighs and removes his glasses. He lowers his eyes and rubs the bridge of his nose. “I am just tired, and the person I was when I came into the mansion, is different than the man you see before you”. He goes to put his glasses back on but Xie Yuchen stops him. 

“I never asked you why you wear shades all the time”, Xie Yuchen says. 

Hei Yan Jing blinks and lets out a hearty laugh. 

“Your eyes…can you see?” Xie Yuchen asks. He waves his hands in front of Hei Yan Jing’s face but the man does not react. 

“I can see in low light without my shades. If you shine a light in my eyes, I will not be able to see. And they will appear pupil-less”, he states. Xie Yuchen moves closer and cups the man’s face. He looks at his eyes and smiles. 

“You are pretty”, he says softly. 

“Never gotten pretty before”, Hei Yan Jing snorts. He pushes Xie Yuchen away and puts his shades back on. He stands up and brushes the dust from his pants. “Oh do I still need to sleep on the couch?” he asks. 

“Why the fuck would you need to sleep on the couch still?” Xie Yuchen asks. He stands up and puts his hands on his hips. 

“Maybe because you are clingy as hell when you sleep”, Hei Yan Jing says. 

“Excuse me? I am clingy?!” Xie Yuchen says. 

“Yes, you clung to my chest all night”, Hei Yan Jing chuckles. He walks over to the couch to remove the blankets and pillows. 

“You have nice tits”, Xie Yuchen says. He crosses his arms. 

“I have nice tits? First, you call me pretty now say my tits are nice. Are you sure you are into men?” Hei Yan Jing asks. He walks over to Xie Yuchen and looks down at him. 

Xie Yuchen looks up and pouts. “Yes, I am into men”. 

“You say that with so much conviction”, Hei Yan Jing coos. Their faces are centimeters from one another. 

“Why..?” Xie Yuchen starts. He starts to stutter. 

“Why what Xiao Hua?” Hei Yan Jing says. 

Xie Yuchen backs up. “I am hungry”. He starts to walk away and Hei Yan Jing is left standing there. He lets out a big laugh and walks up to Xie Yuchen. He grabs the back of his arm and pulls him back, embracing him. He places a large kiss on the man’s lips. He feels Xie Yuchen’s body react to the kiss, his arms wrapping around Hei Yan Jing’s waist. 

“You do not get to walk away from me like that”, Hei Yan Jing whispers. 

Xie Yuchen smiles as he lays his head on the man’s shoulder. “Come on let’s go out and get food”, he says in a soft voice. 

Hei Yan Jing kisses his nose and smiles in response. “Come on my Xie YuChen”. 

Xie Yuchen smiles as he hears his name roll off the man’s tongue. They grab their stuff and head out the front door to where the cars are parked. Hei Yan Jing opens the door for Xie Yuchen, and the young master goes into the passenger seat. Hei Yan Jing climbs into the driver’s seat, and he leaves the mansion. 

Xie Yuchen looks at the man driving the car and smiles. He feels safe and he feels content. These past few months have been hell for him. Never knowing what was going to happen when they left the house. Fearing for his life, and his friend’s lives. He sighs and closes his eyes. He feels a hand grab his hand and he opens his eyes. Hei Yan Jing is gripping his hand while he drives with the other. There is a soft smile on the older man’s face as he drives them around. 

“Hei Ye”, Xie Yuchen says. 

“Hmmm?” 

“What are you thinking about?” 

Hei Yan Jing is quiet and then softly chuckles. “Nothing really. But I guess that I am lucky that I met you”, he says quietly. Like he is still unsure of those words. 

“Why lucky?” 

“Maybe it’s not the right word to use”, Hei Yan Jing admits. “I am glad I met you”. He squeezes the hand before taking it back so he can make a tight turn. 

They are silent for a bit more and Hei Yan Jing ruminates in his mind. Did he deserve someone like Xiao Hua? He did not think so in the slightest, but he can not deny him anymore just because he has doubts. He is content with his life. He is content, just living in the mansion and going on missions here and there. The thought of actually sleeping in someone’s arms at night, just makes him feel like this is a dream. People always left him, and he is afraid. But for now..he will be happy. He pulls into a parking lot and parks the car. 

“Xiao Hua”, he says. He looks at the man beside him. “Thank you”. 

“Why are you thanking me?” 

“For making me feel worthy of someone’s love”, Hei Yan Jing says. He grabs Xie Yuchen’s hands and rubs his thumbs over them. “I know we have not known each other for long, but it feels like a lifetime. You have shown me kindness, even when you hated me. I thank you”. 

“You are worthy of so much more than you think”, Xie Yuchen says. He leans forward and places a soft kiss on Hei Yan Jing’s lips. “Please do not forget that”. 

Hei Yan Jing smiles in the kiss. 

“I think I love you Xie YuChen”. 

“I love you too Hei Yan Jing”.