Chapter Text
Before Wei Ying even knew what a social construct was, he knew something was different. When on the streets as a child, no more than five, he could tell the difference between himself and his counterparts.
Wei Ying had always been a small child, even more so with his growth stunted from the time spent as an orphan in the slums. Other children always seemed to have this naive sort of confidence that no matter what he did, he was unable to muster. There was this steady gap separating him from others his age. Ignorant as to why, he had no way to bridge it.
As time went on, he began to understand this seclusion. It wasn’t others that were the problem, it was him. Fragile with eyes as wide as saucers, he would watch the children around him, how they interacted, and how they were perceived. The longer he looked, the more it made sense.
There was this hollow space in his chest that he couldn't fill. No matter how long he tried to sleep, or how much grimy street food he stole to eat. He always felt hollow, like he was hungry for something that he just couldn't find. Whereas the other children seemed full.
They looked as if they had hope, even though the vast majority were in the same predicament as him. Then some weren't. The ones in loving, happy families. When he watched them specifically from his dusty alleyways, that hole inside him seemed to gasp for air. As if it had found what it wanted. So slowly, he began to figure it out.
It was loneliness. He realized. Wei Ying just wanted someone he could love, and someone who loved him. His body remembered a time when he had once been like that, had a loving family. But regardless of how hard he tried, his mind could not. The memories were foggy and faded. All he could remember from those times was warm arms holding him, an even warmer smile that glowed on a familiar face. He missed it. His mother, or so he assumed.
That hole inside of him was a sore spot that just wouldn't heal, as if some sort of bond had been broken, a very important one at that. So one cold, winter evening, when a kind man garbed in purple saved him from a pack of dogs, he thought he might have regained something, if not mended it.
That man brought him to his home and introduced Wei Ying to his new family. To his big sister, his shijie, as he called her. And his younger brother, A-Cheng.
“I was your father’s family, long before you came into this world. I promised I would take care of you, so you will be safe here.” Jiang-shushu explained softly, a sad smile ever present on his face.
“This is your family, we will protect you; in turn, you will protect them.” The man continued, holding him close. Wei Ying nodded up at the man, leaning into the warmth as he was held at his hip.
Although as they got older, A-Cheng made it clear he didn't want to be protected, Wei Ying still watched over his brother. When they got into fights or arguments, he would always keep that in mind. Even if not by blood, they would be brothers. So instead of truly getting mad, he would just go and complain to his shijie, regardless of whether A-Cheng called him a snitch.
The only thing that remained unchanged in all the years that Wei Wuxian resided with the Jiang was Madame Yu. She refused to acknowledge Wei Ying as anything more than a pest. Maybe at best a hated disciple. But not family. The only time that was ever mentioned was when he awakened his second gender.
He was fourteen at the time, his vision blurry with pain as his body changed rapidly, getting him ready for his first heat cycle.
He had been freaking out for the past two days, with Uncle Jiang away for the week, she refused to even acknowledge that it was happening. She commented in her usual, off-handed manner. Wei Ying’s siblings had been pestering her about it for a few hours at that point, and she had been fed up.
"If that omega's so important to you, stupid child, then why don't you do something about it? He's gonna go into heat eventually, might as well make use of it." Jiang Yanli had been outraged at the comment, the only one with enough worldly experience to understand the insinuation.
From then on, those kinds of snide remarks became the norm. Despite the fact that Wei Wuxian wasn’t the only omega in the house, his Shiejie presented the same way a couple of years prior; he was the only one subjected to the Madame of the household’s torment. The female alpha wouldn’t even think to harm her firstborn.
The two of them were untrue omegas, each of them having two alpha parents, yet still presenting the opposing second gender. Jiang Yanli, however, fit the norm of an omega much better than her brother. She was kind, polite, docile, and most importantly, pleasing to the eye. Wei Ying, on the other hand, was classified as a dominant omega, his physical makeup not completely in line with the standard. He was taller than normal, his scent not completely distinguishable, somewhere between omega and alpha. He was an odd one, that’s for sure.
Worst of all, though, was his personality. He was loud, crass and abrasive. He was practically mate-proof despite his conventional attractiveness.
He was a nobody by blood. Despite being adopted by the head family of Jiang Yunmeng, he was treated as nothing more than a favoured disciple. It didn’t stop people from talking behind his back, behind the backs of his family. The behaviour of others was only encouraged by the glee Madame Yu seemed to feel at watching his torment. His abuse was only further emboldened by her attitude towards him.
It was the worst the first two years after his second gender had been revealed. Even though he gained his golden core early for a disciple, through his hard work, determination, and pure talent, he was still an omega. There were only so many ways he could try and convince others of his capabilities, and if they refused to see him as nothing more than his second gender? Then that was on them.
So instead of fighting it, he hid it. No one who didn’t already know would be privy to the knowledge. Of course, there were rumours, but the longer Wei Ying lived, the further in the ranks he climbed, the more people doubted them.
Soon enough, Wei Wuxian became the head disciple. Any doubts about his competence are long gone, and his second gender is a relatively well-kept secret. Only those who absolutely had to know were in the loop. It was one of the few things Madame Yu had agreed to.
Male omegas were rare. Seventy-five percent of the population were betas, fifteen percent alphas, and only ten percent omega. In every fifty omegas that presented, statistically, only one would be male. Madame Yu, in spite of her dislike of the young omega, could see his use. Wei Ying was a card in their back pocket if they ever needed to use him.
He had finally begun to get comfortable with his position of head disciple, and he enjoyed the time he spent training his juniors. He liked the night hunts he would lead, the skills he would practice and the respect that he was given. People looked up to him, and he liked feeling valuable.
So when Jiang-shushu announced that he would be accompanying Jinag Cheng to study in the cloud recess, he couldn’t help but feel a little betrayed. Yes, this would be an amazing opportunity, yes, he would probably enjoy himself and meet new people. But at what cost? Would he have to rebuild what he had earned somewhere completely new? He would be starting all over from scratch! He would be in an entirely new place, with entirely new people, absolutely zero respect, and one hundred percent way too many rules. Like seriously, who needed three thousand rules? He thought it seemed a little excessive.
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Wei Wuxian let out a small huff of indignation. He wasn’t completely upset, though, even if he was frustrated.
The omega had been caught breaking numerous rules. How many? He wasn’t completely sure, but apparently it was enough to land him here: in the library pavilion, stuck copying the entirety of the three-thousand Lan precepts.
Bored with the task, he snuck yet another glance at the young alpha sitting across from him. He couldn’t bring himself to be genuinely upset at his predicament. The work was tedious, but it could be done relatively quickly. Most of all, he had someone to bother while he ‘worked’.
The teen in front of him was annoyingly pretty. He had silky, dark locks pulled into a half-up hairstyle by a simple but expensive headpiece. His skin was as fair as it could be without making a person look sickly. But his eyes were by far his most attention-grabbing feature. Such a light golden-brown, they appeared yellow.
Lan Wangji, one of the twin jades of Lan, is second in line for the position of sect leader. Wei Ying had to admit that despite his cool nature, he was much more appealing than his brother.
Lan Wangji was aloof, something about his unapproachability drawing the omega’s attention. He was strict and more than a little uptight, the complete opposite of Wei Wuxian. Still, something about the other teen intrigued him beyond explanation.
Maybe it was just because he was fun to tease, always getting so riled up over the smallest things. Wei Ying held back a snicker at the image behind his eyes. Lan Wangji’s perfect composure broken, hair slightly ruffled like his robes, a spark of anger visible in his eyes.
The teen in question raised his head to stare incredulously at the omega, noticing his lack of focus. He glared ever-so-slightly, as if he was prepared for Wei Wuxian to do something nefarious.
“I’m working!” Wei Ying exclaimed, looking back down at his ink and paper. A small huff could be heard from the alpha; the Yunmeng disciple glanced up to see the other teen return to his own work.
Screw his stupid scent blocker, he wanted to tease this man soooo bad. He wanted to see how he would react to Wei Ying’s scent. Regardless of his dynamic presentation, he was sure he could get a rise from him.
The Lan clan had so many rules, there were bound to be rules about the use of pheromones around others. Hell, he was pretty sure their Gusu robes had scent-blocking properties sewn into the fabric. They were quite conservative like that.
The Lans were a clan made up largely of betas, like any other. But somewhere along their family line, they had been blessed with the blood of an alpha. So now, unlike the vast majority of the cultivation world, their main family was made up of almost exclusively Alphas. It was truly an impressive feat.
The only downside to this, though, was an almost complete lack of omegas. This meant that their precious Lan Wangji probably didn’t have much experience being around an omega. The tolerance to omega pheromones that people would subconsciously build up is bound to be essentially non-existent. Which meant he was probably highly sensitive to scents.
As if to prove his point, the alpha’s nose twitched, and he raised his head to glare at Wei Wuxian.
“Stop that.”
“Huh?” The omega met his eyes, a little confused.
“Stop that.” Lan Wangji repeated,
“Uhh, I'm not doing anything?” Wei Wuxian replied, his eyes shifting around as if looking for an answer. The only response was a slightly furrowed brow.
The other teen just returned to his work as if he hadn’t just made no sense. With his question unanswered, Wei Wuxian begrudgingly went back to work.
Could Lan Wangji smell him through his scent blockers? Those things were potent as fuck. The only other person capable of anything even remotely similar was Jiang Cheng, and he had a freakishly good nose.
To test his theory, he pushed his pheromones against the scent blockers. Not much would escape because of the greasy substance that covered his scent glands, but it was worth a try.
“You’re doing it again. Stop.” Lan Wangji glared at Wei Wuxian, eyes stony.
“I’m wearing scent blockers; the only way you would be able to smell anything would be if you were sniffing me.” Wei Wuxian poked, a small smirk crossing his features.
“I am not sniffing you.” The alpha responded, his glare getting even colder.
“Whatever you say!” Wei Wuxian teased. He should probably be worried that Lan Wangji could pick up his pheromones despite his precautions. But there was very little chance the other teen would recognize him as an omega. His scent wasn’t that potent to begin with, and he had been told repeatedly that it was hard to tell what he presented as. A lucky trait of his dominant omega status.
He watched with amusement as Lan Wangji attempted to focus on his work, the teen trying his darndest to return to ignoring Wei Wuxian.
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"So, how was the study session with Lan Wangji?" Nie Huaisang asks, keeping in stride with him and A-Cheng.
"Wasn't all that bad, he's awfully easy to tease." Wei Ying says, a small smirk crossing his features.
"Really? What did you do? He's such a stick-in-the-mud, always following the rules, no emotions to be seen." His fellow omega says, a look of awe dazed in his eyes.
Nie Huaisang was the only other male omega he knew. The teen openly displayed his dynamic willingly. It wouldn’t affect his day-to-day much. The omega is much more keen on his art and literature than trying to achieve anything great. Plus, he had his older brother to protect him, and that alpha was terrifying. No one would dare insult his little brother in his presence.
Regardless, there was bound to be rumours. Nie Huaisang didn’t seem all that bothered by what he heard; he knew it was all just talk.
"The guy is a real rule-stickler, like you said. All you have to do is break them in front of him. He's sure to get pissed." Wei Ying exclaimed as he jumped up onto the railing beside them as an example.
“Wei Ying, you shouldn’t be doing that. You’re gonna fall into the water.” Jiang Cheng chided, finally pitching into their conversation.
“Oh, you scared I'm gonna drown or something?” Wei Ying said, his tone mocking. He purposely teetered further over the edge, dramatically pretending he was slipping.
“Oh, you won’t drown. But the water here is frigid, and I don’t want to have to listen to you complaining about being cold.” Jiang Cheng grumbled.
“Aw, don’t pretend like you don’t care about me. I know my baby brother is a big softy deep down.” He teased, using the sheath of Suibian to tap him on the head. In response, the alpha shouted, jumping forward and grabbing Wei Wuxian’s legs.
“I will push you in.” He growled, putting his strength into dangerously wobbling his brother.
Wei Ying yelped at his sudden lack of balance, only steadying himself by grabbing his brother’s head.
“Let go!” The omega shouted, trying to force Jiang Cheng to release him.
“Not until you let go of my head first, asshole!” His brother shouted back.
“Guys, stop. One of you is bound to fall in. I would love to see that and all, but Jiang Cheng is right. You complain far to much for it to be worth it.” Nie Huaisang stated, walking up to where the two of them were roughhousing.
Slowly, Jiang Cheng let go, allowing his brother to safely return to solid ground.
“Thank you!” Wei Wuxiang said begrudgingly, brushing out some of the wrinkles from his outer robe. He wasn’t actually all that grateful; it would have been Jiang Cheng’s fault if he had fallen in.
So instead of letting it go like the benevolent omega he should be, he reached out with his sword, Suibian still in its cheetah, and smacked Jiang Cheng across the face. The alpha let out a shout, quickly recovered, then began his pursuit after his brother.
Expecting this outcome, Wei Ying was already running. Laughing and having a jolly good time as he skedaddled away from an angry Jiang Cheng. His brother’s shouts echoed around the silence of the Cloud Recess, accompanied by a cacophony of laughter from the two omegas.
As he ran towards their classroom, hoping his brother would at least have the decency not to murder him in front of their teacher, he heard Nie Huaisang’s laughing come to an abrupt halt. Wei Wuxian turned his head to see why, only to be greeted by a mildly horrified face of his fellow omega.
Before Wei Ying could turn his head back to see what had caused that reaction, he caught a whiff of sandalwood. It was quickly followed by Wei Ying running headfirst into a solid object.
A small kernel of dread popped into the omega’s stomach as he had just run into Lan Wangji, literally. The alpha’s hard frame stopped Wei Ying’s momentum dead, and he fell flat on his ass.
“Heyyy-” He started, only to be cut off by a curt ‘Shameless’ from the alpha in front of him. Before he could respond, Lan Wangji left with a huff, White robes billowing as he turned. Wei Ying couldn’t help but stare, dumbfounded.
"Oh my god, that is some serious bad luck you have, Wei Ying." His friend let out after a tight silence, followed by the howling laughter from his brother.
"Wow, you're such a hypocrite. To think that you called me an asshole." Wei Ying huffed out, crossing his arms as he sent a half-hearted glare in Jiang Cheng's direction. The only response he received was more laughter, this time from both teens in front of him.
"Y-you have to admit, that was kinda funny. Ironic, almost." Nie Huaisang stuttered out between his wheezes of laughter, his smile hidden behind his favourite fan.
" Whatever, you guys are mean." Wei Ying says, before beginning his ruffled march towards class. Only to realize it was the same way Lan Wangji had left earlier.
It's gotta be a coincidence. He hasn't been to our last two classes. Wei Ying decides, brushing the thought off as he continues walking towards his class, his friends catching up to him on the way.
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Nope! Not a coincidence! Wei Wuxian thought as he stared at the back of a very familiar, tall frame. Because, of course, Lan Wangji just had to end up sitting directly in front of him.
"You've got to be kidding me." Wei Wuxian muttered, obviously not quietly enough, though, because both Lan Wangji and Lan Qiren turned towards him.
"What is it now, Wei Wuxian?" His teacher asked in an exasperated tone.
"Uhh, not much really. Other than the fact I can't exactly see the lesson." He responded, then gestured towards Lan Wangji at the quirk of Lan Qiren's brow, his larger frame the issue here. Not because he was distracting for other reasons.
"Maybe if you had better posture, it would be easier to see." Lan Qiren deadpanned before sighing. "Fine, move over two places. There's another free desk beside Nie Huaisang. Don't be causing any more distractions." The older man finished, pausing before he continued his lecture.
So, Wei Wuxian gathered up his minimal stuff before going over to sit next to his friend. They smiled at each other, and he could hear the exasperated sigh that came from A-Cheng, even from halfway across the room. Wei Wuxian only sent the teen a look that said something between "I'm not doing anything" and "You know me too well". His brother only turned away from him, his hands moving up to rub his temples as if calming an oncoming migraine. Wei Ying snickered to himself at the teen’s worry.
As the lesson went on, Wei Wuxian did try to pay attention, even taking a couple of notes. But he was an impatient person, and he could feel his attention slipping. So his minimal notes began to turn into small doodles, which turned into full drawings. As he continued, even the drawing became tiresome, and he began to fidget in his seat. His lower end shifted from side to side as he tried to get into a more comfortable position. His hands moved from his drawing to more mindless tasks like tapping out a quiet rhythm on his desk or leg.
When that would no longer do, he turned his focus to the things around him. The quiet chirping of unknown birds outside, and the even quieter trickle of a stream off in the distance. The cloud recess was quiet, achingly so. Wei Ying missed the busy go-go-go of Lotus Pier. The sounds of vendors advertising their products, the laughing and screaming of children, the constant sounds of rippling water, and his shijie's voice.
Oh, wow, he missed her. It hadn't even been two whole weeks yet, and he couldn't wait to see her again. But it was still a dreadful two and a half months away till he got to return home. So he let out a heavy sigh. He'd just have to make do with bugging his A-Cheng, and maybe Lan Wangji while he was at it.
Which reminded him that the handsome teen was sitting only a seat ahead and to his left, and he would not want to disrupt his uncle's class. So, of course, he can't get too mad if I bug him now. Wei Ying thought, a conniving smirk reaching across his face.
He drew a small doodle on a piece of scrap paper, a small note at the end. Once he deemed it suitable, he tossed his little masterpiece directly at the intended Lan alpha. It landed directly on his desk. To make it even better, it hit his arm as it reached him, so there was no reason for Lan Wangji to ignore Wei Wuxian.
But to his immense disappointment, Lan Wangji just crumpled up the paper and shoved it into his sleeve. This action made it obvious to anyone other than Wei Ying that he wanted to be left alone. So the only possible answer was to toss the man another one; this time, the paper hit him on the shoulder before falling to the ground beside him.
Yet again, to Wei Wuxian's increasing disappointment, he completely ignored the piece of paper. This time, he didn't even acknowledge it to put it away.
So Wei Ying threw a third note, nothing more on the paper than a winky face. But he was ignored yet again. Maybe the whole Stoic thing Lan Wangji had going for him was more than just a show. But Wei Ying was not one to back down from a challenge. Instead, this time, Wei Ying drew up a little talisman out of ow paper he kept to himself. Then, once the little guy was animated, he sent him on his first mission: to bother Lan Wangji enough to get his attention. So the loyal little guy began to follow his orders, only to be harshly destroyed by a flying projectile just before reaching his target.
"WEI WUXIAN! What did I say? You can't even last an hour and a half in my class without causing a distraction! Can't you see everyone else is trying to pay attention!? Leave my nephew alone now." Lan Qiren exclaimed loudly, his sudden change in tone waking the rest of his reasonable students from their fatigued daze.
"Have you been paying attention at all, young man?" Lan Qiren asked, his tone somewhere in between condescending and disappointed.
"Yes, I have." Wei Ying responded confidently, even though the statement wasn't one hundred percent true.
"Very well, then you won't mind answering a couple of questions, will you?"
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*Sighhhhhh*
All Wei Wuxian could do was sigh. Because he is currently sitting back where he was the previous afternoon, except now with a different set of tasks. Still the same supervisor though, so at least there was that.
The morning had gone along swimmingly, and during class, he had answered nearly all of Lan Qiren's questions perfectly. But the last one was a different story.
Personally, Wei Ying thought he answered the question amazingly. Maybe he had tripped up a bit at the start, but his finale was awesome. He had come up with a completely new technique for exorcising a fierce corpse, except it wasn't the answer that his grumpy teacher had wanted. It had been so bad that he had gotten two things thrown at him, and he now had to copy a stupid chapter of one of the Lan's stupid books three hundred times. Seriously, what was it with Lan's and their threes?
I mean, come on, really? Three months stuck here, three thousand rules, and three hundred copies he now had to make of some chapter he probably should have already read.
But just like before, it could have been so much worse, so he was grateful for that.
He sat quietly, or at least as quietly as he could muster. The silence didn’t last long, though. Lan Wangji is just far too tempting not to tease. Eventually, fed up with Wei Ying, the lan alpha placed a silencing spell on him. So the poor omega had to resort to tossing things at him instead.
Small things like pieces of paper or little clips, until the silencing spell finally let up about forty-five minutes later. Any normal person would have probably kept silent and finished the work that they were given. But Wei Ying wasn't a normal person. Hence why, when he realized that his lips were no longer forcefully sealed shut, he dived directly back into talking, not exactly with the teen, but more or less towards him.
"Say, Lan Wangji, why are you so boring all the time? I mean, you have the hot and stoic alpha vibe going for you, but does it ever get annoying?" He asked, his tone light, but missing his usual tease. He was kind of curious whether or not the personality of the teen in front was his real personality or a façade.
The only response Wei Ying ended up receiving was a minute pause in the strum of Lan Wangji's Guqin, which went nearly unnoticed by the omega.
"Ugh, Lan Wangji, you are seriously so boring!" He exclaimed loudly at the lack of response. "Lan Wangji! Are you even paying attention to me? How do you know whether or not I'm doing my work? Huh?" Wei Ying provided as he draped himself over the desk in front of him.
"Lan Wangji. . . Lan Wangji. LAN WANGJI!" He just repeated the teen's name over and over again; something was bound to get his attention.
"Lan Zhan!" Wei Ying called loudly, and sure enough, the calming music of the Guqin stopped.
Wei Ying looked up at the alpha through his unruly bangs. His eyes met surprised golden ones, which turned into glaring yellow.
"Lan Zhan, don't be jealous. If you want, you can call me by my given name! Wei Ying!" He said, a smirk curling his lips as he watched Lan Wangji's ears turn ever so slightly pink. Wei Ying was beginning to learn his tells.
This time, he got a response, even if it was curt and nearly muttered.
"Shameless." Lan Wangji said, but he didn't refuse the trade. Only going back to strumming his Guqin, long fingers dancing over the strings elegantly.
"Aw, Lan Zhan... does this mean we're besties now? How awesome! My Shijie would be so proud!" Wei Ying exclaimed proudly, tapping on the desk in front of him as his mind began to wander yet again.
He really did miss his Shijie, and it hadn't even been a day since he last thought about his big sister. He guessed that maybe it was a good thing he was away from her for a while, only now realizing the dependence he had built up towards his sister. He knew why it had happened, and he was happy he had that kind of bond with someone. But it could become annoying beneath all of its comforting natures.
When two omegas grew up together, in close quarters, usually with some form of outside danger, in his case, Madame Yu and some of the meaner disciples, they would sometimes form a physical bond similar to that of a mated pair, except it was familial instead of sexual or romantic, in most cases. It usually affected the omega with the weaker bonding capacity. So it made sense that it had happened to Wei Ying. He grew up the majority of his younger years without any type of familial bond. He could still remember the empty hollow feeling in his chest, and it made him shiver just thinking about it.
As he grew up, he eventually formed something similar with his Jiang-Shushu, but it was nowhere as close as needed for an omega to develop their bonding capacity properly. Eventually, though, he gained another, much closer figure in his life, whom he will admit, he sometimes views as less of an older sister and more of a mother. She wasn't much older than him, only a couple of years, but his second gender recognized her as a very close familial figure compared to Jiang-Shushu, or even A-Cheng.
So yeah, sometimes it got to be a little confusing, but he tried to regulate it. Wei Ying's whole bonding issue was more of a ‘him problem’, and he didn't like pushing it onto others. Even if his shijie and A-Cheng knew about it, they had talked, and it was a topic best left further undiscussed.
Now, as he sat there, the serenity of his surroundings made him a little drowsy, and he let his mind wander. He reminisced about happy memories from his childhood. It made him nostalgic. As if he wanted to chew on some loquats or go for a refreshing dip in one of the many lakes of Lotus Pier. He wished he could show Lotus Pierre his home, to Nie Huaisang. He was sure his fellow omega would love the bustling atmosphere and the delicious alcohol.
Only then did he realize he currently had a friend in the same room he could talk to about it.
"Hey! Lan Zhan, have you ever thought about visiting Lotus Pierre? I could show you around if you ever come by?" Wei Ying asked, re-opening his eyes, he hadn't even realized he had closed them.
The small twitch of the alpha’s nose went unnoticed; Wei Wuxian was too excited to talk about his childhood home to pay much attention.
"I think you would like it there. The loquats are delicious, and we have really beautiful women and omegas.” He continued on, speaking as if he were telling a story. Lan Wangji didn’t respond, but he also didn’t stop Wei Ying from talking.
Soon enough, the time came back to him, Wei Wuxian realizing that he was expected back by Jiang Cheng. He rose from his seat, halfheartedly putting his papers and ink away.
“I'll see you tomorrow! Enjoy your evening, Lan Zhan!” The omega bid as he walked towards the exit. He cast one final glance over his shoulder at Lan Wangji and was quick to notice the small gleam of something light in his eyes.
He was stunning, sitting there peacefully in the late afternoon light. Wei Ying pushed away the flutter in his stomach, turning his head back towards the door. It would be really embarrassing if he face planted.
Fuck, Why am I like this?
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