Chapter Text
Lu Guang’s leg had been asleep for an hour and a half now. If it was anyone else asleep in his lap, he would have gladly moved, but it was Xiaoshi this time, and Lu Guang was hesitant to wake him. Flicking his gaze from the book he was reading to the sleeping boy, Lu Guang carefully ran his fingers through those dark, thick locks of hair, smiling as the occasional sleepy sigh escaped from Xiaoshi’s lips.
His roommate had been...clingier after what had happened during Qiao Ling's possession. She’d stabbed Lu Guang in the abdomen, and he vaguely remembered dying of blood loss or internal bleeding, maybe both. In fact, he'd died on this very couch they were sitting on. After quietly closing his book and laying it on the couch side table, Lu Guang glanced around the room. Perhaps they should get a new couch and put it in a different place in their living room. Maybe that would stop them from being reminded of the past.
Xiaoshi’s cries, which he’d only dimly registered, still haunted him after he woke up in the hospital three weeks ago. This time, though, he’d flipped up his shirt to see a wound near his hip instead of on his stomach.
Somehow, Xiaoshi had eradicated a death node.
He knew he was being a hypocrite in saying that he was grateful that Xiaoshi had changed the past. He knew it was selfish of him to want to stay by Xiaoshi's side; something unhappy settled in his gut at the thought of having abandoned his best friend, unable to return. And if the legends were true, he hated the thought of waiting for his friend in the afterlife, or waiting to be reborn together.
Part of Lu Guang hoped that there was rest after life, but he wanted Xiaoshi and Qiao Ling there, too. Even if he didn't openly express it, he loved his friends, and again, was grateful he didn't have to leave them.
Absentmindedly, his fingers continued to card through his friend's hair, and Xiaoshi made another sleepy sound, nuzzling his face against the dark denim of Guang's jeans.
"Lu..G…Guang...?"
"Hm?" Lu Guang tried not to flush at the vulnerable tremor in his friend's voice. Xiaoshi looked up at him with sleepy, dark brown eyes, and for a minute, none of them said a word.
Lu Guang was the first to speak. "My leg is asleep."
"Are you calling me a fat head?" Xiaoshi accused childishly, suddenly awake.
"I didn't mind. You needed the rest anyway.”
Ignoring the uncomfortable prickling in his leg, he placed his hand on top of Xiaoshi's slightly ruffled hair. "Tidy yourself up and I'll make us tea."
Patting his hair with a new pout, Xiaoshi complained, "You tangled my hair up with your petting!"
Lu Guang rolled his eyes. "You didn't mind it."
Xiaoshi flushed with embarrassment. Lu Guang stood up, as the tingling was mostly gone at this point, and was about to head to their small kitchen when he felt a tug on the hem of his shirt. Stopping in his tracks, he gave Xiaoshi an inquisitive glance.
"Do you want to go to that boba tea café?"
Xiaoshi seemed hesitant to suggest leaving on their day off, as they sometimes went to play basketball when they closed shop on Mondays, assuming they weren't loaded with chores. But since Lu Guang returned from the hospital, they both had mostly become reclusive, even if it'd been over a month since the accident.
It was a little depressing and maddening at times, with all three of them suffering in their own way. At least Lu Guang and Xiaoshi at least had each other. Although it hadn't been her fault, Qiao Ling, afraid of what she'd done, had basically isolated herself.
Fresh air seemed relieving, and Lu Guang nodded in agreement. "Shall I text Qiao Ling?" he asked, although he was already pulling out his phone. They didn't text much to begin with, besides the occasional message to remind Xiaoshi about rent. As Xiaoshi never bothered to reply, Lu Guang became the recipient of Qiao Ling's miscellaneous texts.
The last text they had sent each other was the day before the incident, with Qiao Ling asking if Lu Guang had plans to take Xiaoshi out for a break after Liu Min's arrest. He hadn't responded. At the time, he'd been trying to convince Xiaoshi to not get involved with Emma's death and dealing with Xiaoshi's bitterness towards him for lying again.
"Mm, maybe they have some pastries for her.” Xiaoshi slid on his shoes and varsity jacket. “I remember Dou Dou's father saying that his wife had started baking after she got well again."
Lu Guang gestured to the door. "Let's go. The line might be crazy, so let's at least try to beat the lunch rush."
Xiaoshi finished tying his shoes, and ran to open the door. "Okay, okay, let's go!"
Lu Guang checked his phone when he felt it vibrate- a text from Xu Shanshan? Ah, she’d informed him that Qiao Ling was resting. Quickly, he thanked her before pocketing his phone and following after his friend. He locked the shop door behind them with the ease of familiarity, and turned to join Xiaoshi on the sidewalk.
Xiaoshi was faintly smiling as they walked, and Lu Guang was thankful that his mood was brighter. Xiaoshi’s emotions were infectious, and Guang could feel the tension in his shoulders relax considerably.
Lu Guang knew this wasn't going to be the end, though. It dampened his spirits to know that the person who had possession abilities was still out there, possibly roaming the streets. Worse was their obsession with Xiaoshi and delusions that Xiaoshi was their friend.
It made him uneasy that such a malicious and sinister presence had latched itself onto Xiaoshi's brightness, trying to drag him into the dark. He almost reached out to grab Xiaoshi's hand, almost to anchor him there, but Xiaoshi might think he were the one possessed this time.
Lu Guang swore to himself that he'd be much more careful, because he refused to throw away the gift that he was given. He would keep close watch over his friends, Xiaoshi especially. He wouldn't be torn away from his best friend again, not when his friend had lost so much in the beginning.
~~~
Eventually, they settled on a rare movie night. Xiaoshi was usually too hyper to sit through a whole movie and Lu Guang didn't often find the plots interesting, so he usually dozed off or spaced out.
Tonight, they were in loose night clothes and curled under a large blanket. If Lu Guang pushed himself slightly closer to Xiaoshi, his friend didn't mention it, merely settling in next to him. While most of Xiaoshi’s attention was on the movie, his right-hand fingers drummed between them. Xiaoshi was jittery after having his tea, or in this case, a cup of sugar stacked on sugar, and hadn't seemed to burn much energy today, even after playing with Dou Dou.
Lu Guang sighed exasperatedly, grabbing Xiaoshi's hand to still him. "Do you want to go on a walk instead?"
The flashing colors and dramatic dialogue in the background did nothing to hide the discontent on his friend’s face, and Guang narrowed his brows.
Xiaoshi glanced up to the overhead window, where they could clearly see the stars and moon above them. “It’s just late out, isn’t it?” He flicked his gaze back to the white-haired boy. “Maybe we should just finish the movie.”
“Cheng Xiaoshi,” Lu Guang said carefully, “are you upset?”
Lu Guang immediately sensed that Xiaoshi was gearing up to yell or stomp away, and he held onto his friend’s hand tighter. “Talk to me. Please.”
“Of course I’m upset," snapped Xiaoshi, glaring at Lu Guang. “That bastard is still out there. He’s killed innocent people, he could go on another killing spree, and he killed-” Xiaoshi abruptly stopped. He couldn’t choke the rest of that sentence out, even if he wanted to. Nothing scared him more than the memory of seeing his best friend-
“You’re hyperventilating,” Lu Guang murmured, reaching out to put his free hand on the boy’s shoulder. “Deep, slow breaths.”
As he felt his friend’s trembling breaths through his palm, a swell of protectiveness rose in Lu Guang. He could never let Xiaoshi suffer again, not after the time they’d accepted that request from Chen Xiao.
Reflecting back on it, it was almost eerie how similar the names were. The older man had lost his friends, his mother, and his first love, his shoulders sunk with the burden of grief, even if he had eventually moved on. Cheng Xiaoshi already bore similarities to Chen Xiao, and if Lu Guang had died that night…a tremor shivered up his spine. He wouldn’t leave his friend’s side so abruptly. He had been gifted another chance, and he could not waste it.
Sliding his hand from his friend’s shoulder, he instead pulled Xiaoshi close, burying Xiaoshi’s face in his shoulder. Between struggling to calm himself down, Xiaoshi’s breathed hitched in surprise.
Lu Guang dropped his chin lightly atop his friend’s head. “You don’t need to worry.”
“How can I not?” Xiaoshi whispered. He felt a new wave of tears welling up, and he tried to repress them, but they did not comply. Tears spilled out from his eyelids, running down his cheeks. “Lu—”
“We will be more prepared this time,” Lu Guang promised. Squeezing his friend’s hand, he said softly, “He won’t win again.”
~~~
At first, Lu Guang thought he was hallucinating or having a flashback to the event of Qiao Ling standing in the living room, but it was really her. Lu Guang had slid an arm around his friend’s back protectively; it had been almost a subconscious move, but he was more than aware of the brief fear that overtook him. He blinked a few times to clear his fuzzy vision, before reassuring himself that it was Qiao Ling, and that it was the possession that bmand hated that he had tensed up at the sight of her.
Qiao Ling greeted him with a soft voice. “Good morning.”
Her averted gaze briefly traveled to Cheng Xiaoshi, whose face was tucked against the smooth, pale skin of Lu Guang’s neck; from his steady breathing and faint mumbling, she could tell he was asleep.
Lu Guang hummed softly, and the hand he’d braced on his friend’s back relaxed. Glancing at his watch, it was still at least two hours before they needed to open shop. He’d let his Xiaoshi sleep for another hour. Carefully, he began shifting Xiaoshi from his shoulder to the couch, so the boy could sleep more comfortably.
Lu Guang turned to Qiao Ling, dipping his head in greeting. “Would you like me to make us tea after I get him situated?” he asked quietly.
“That would be nice. Thank you.”
Qiao Ling headed to the kitchen, perching on one of the three seats that surrounded the small, yet quaint dining table. Absently, she stared out the window, which peered out into the tiny back garden, and Lu Guang slid out from under Xiaoshi to meet him. By some miracle, the other boy didn’t budge, only letting out a sleepy sigh and nuzzling into the couch. Lu Guang allowed himself a moment of tenderness as he carefully tucked the blanket around the slumbering boy and ran a gentle hand between his shoulder blades.
“Sleep well,” he murmured, and headed to the kitchen to make tea.
Qiao Ling seemed bothered as she rested her chin in the palm of her hand, but Lu Guang wasn’t going to pester her. If she wanted to talk, he would listen, but otherwise, he was adverse to nosing into her business. Pestering was Xiaoshi’s move anyway.
Instead, he silently began preparing tea and a simple breakfast for all of them. Grabbing the carton of eggs that they had in their fridge, Lu Guang tried to recall the exact measurements and instructions Xiaoshi used- this wasn’t a dish Lu Guang had learned off the internet, but from his friend.
First, he put a full kettle on the stove for tea, before going back to the kitchen counter to crack the eggs into a bowl and whisk them with seasonings. The act of cooking wasn’t something he was fully comfortable with, but it filled the silence, as it was clear that Qiao Ling wasn’t ready to start talking yet.
When he had first met Qiao Ling, after becoming better friends with Xiaoshi during university, he almost believed they were brother and sister. It’d taken him a while to realize that they were merely childhood friends, as neither often discussed their past together. The only scraps of their pasts he knew were from a single instance where Xiaoshi had a past-related nightmare, where all he could do was text Qiao Ling to come help their friend. After that, he realized that there was a substantial gap where he stood with Xiaoshi and Qiao Ling, and it had briefly stung.
Lu Guang was hardly the type to get jealous or worked up about something so trivial, because of course there was history between those two. It was something that Lu Guang would never understand unless he used his powers to survey a picture of their childhood, but it’d be invasive.
The kettle began to whistle, and he put down the whisk to take it off the stove. Into three mugs, he poured the hot water, and finally, topped off each mug with a tea bag earl grey for himself, jasmine for Xiaoshi, and black for Qiao Ling.
Sliding the mug of black tea to the girl at the table, Lu Guang watched as she reached for the sugar jar, mindlessly stirring two heaping spoonfuls into her drink. She was a sugar addict, just like Xiaoshi, and Lu Guang was reminded of how sibling-like Xiaoshi and Qiao Ling were. Both in tastes and actions.
Walking back to the stove, Lu Guang turned on the largest burner before grabbing a pan and the bowl of whisked eggs on the counter. A quick glance back at Qiao Ling revealed her still, vacant stare, and he wondered how the events of the almost-murder still haunted her. As he put the pan on the heat and poured in the first batch of eggs, Lu Guang wondered how he would have felt in that situation, hurting someone close to him. Suddenly, Qiao Ling’s actions didn’t seem so strange after all.
The smell of frying egg hit his nostrils, and Lu Guang hastily rolled the thin sheet before it burnt. Once the rolled egg was safely out of the way, Lu Guang prepared the next layer.
“You didn’t wake me for breakfast? How mean!”
Lu Guang nearly dropped his chopsticks at the sudden weight on his shoulder, but relaxed when he saw the familiar dark hair in his peripheral.
Gently poking Xiaoshi’s cheek, Lu Guang sighed, “Don’t surprise me like that.”
Xiaoshi grumbled, his words mostly muffled in the material of Lu Guang’s plain black t-shirt. Lifting his head, he bumped his head against Lu Guang’s neck like a cat wanting attention.
“Cheng Xiaoshi, stop pestering him,” Qiao Ling scolded, seemingly having snapped out of her thoughts. “Unless you want charred eggs!”
Making a face, Xiaoshi stepped away to give his friend space to finish making breakfast and wandered over to get his tea.
After taking a sip, Xiaoshi wrinkled his nose. “It’s cold.”
Lu Guang’s attention remained fixed on the pan. “You were sleeping.”
Xiaoshi stuck his tongue out childishly before shuffling over to the table, plopping in the seat across from Qiao Ling and began to pour sugar and honey in his drink. After vigorously stirring his tea, he glanced at the girl across the table.
“When did you get in?” He quirked his head, a smile playing on his lips. “I don’t remember hiring you.”
Qiao Ling rolled her eyes. “I’m making sure you’re going to pay your rent!”
“Didn’t we pay a week ago?” Xiaoshi turned to look at the calendar that was magnetized to the front of the fridge; the first of the month had been crossed out already.
“Yes, we paid rent,” Lu Guang replied, to which Xiaoshi cheered. Tilting the pan, Lu Guang slid the rolled egg onto the plate, before grabbing a knife and cutting the pieces evenly. “Cheng Xiaoshi, prepare toast.”
The dark-haired boy grumbled to himself, but begrudgingly did what he was told- toast with jam for him, butter for Lu Guang.
Turning his head, he called, “Our fair landlady! What do you like on your toast?”
“Jam. What flavor is it?”
“Strawberry.”
Qiao Ling tsked, and Xiaoshi grumped at the displeased noise, “What’s wrong with that?”
Shutting the fridge door with his hip, Xiaoshi carried the plate of toast, tray of butter, and jar of jam to the dining table.
“You still have the same tastes as a kid,” Qiao Ling teased. “You should try different flavors.”
“No one said you had to eat our food!”
Before Xiaoshi could continue his rant, Lu Guang shoved a piece of Tamagoyaki into his mouth, effectively silencing him. Xiaoshi could only glower at his roommate as his tongue began to burn from the heat.
As a peace offering, Lu Guang spread jam onto his friend’s piece of toast and placed it on his plate. He then took his plate of toast, sipped his cooled tea, and poured the dipping sauce for their eggs before starting to eat.
“Thank you for the food,” said Qiao Ling, before slicing a piece of the rolled egg in half and dipping it into the vinegared soy sauce, and Xiaoshi echoed the sentiment.
After the initial banter of the morning, breakfast continued as a somewhat quiet affair. Lu Guang discreetly looked between his two friends over the rim of his mug of now-cold tea. Of course things weren’t going to be miraculously healed, but it’d been almost a month of this painful, awkward silence, and frankly, Lu Guang was sick of it.
He stifled a sigh, instead folding the remainder of his toast in half and polishing it off in three quick bites. The tea was easy to finish, and once he was done he carried his dishes to the sink to clean. Halfway through scrubbing the melted butter off his plate, though, a chilling thought ran through Lu Guang.
The entity that had killed him before… would they know if he and Xiaoshi were separated in different parts of the studio? If he left now, would Qiao Ling become possessed and attack Xiaoshi? None of them knew the extent of the entity’s powers, so was it wrong to be cautious? Or was it paranoid, plain and simple? Lu Guang glanced at Qiao Ling, who’d fallen silent again. How would she feel about this? It seemed cruel to exclude Qiao Ling from their lives based on vague knowledge and illogical fears.
Before Lu Guang could comment on his thoughts, a screech of metal on wood sounded from the dining room.
“I should probably get going,” Qiao Ling said hastily, pushing her chair back in place at the table. “I’d hate to keep you for too long.”
Lu Guang carefully studied her expression. “Leave your dishes. I’ll collect them.”
Again, he could see something lurking behind Qiao Ling’s cheerful façade. Perhaps she was wondering the same thing, but vice versa. If she was left alone with one of them, would she get possessed again and violently attack her childhood friend instead?
Qiao Ling brightly thanked him again, before rushing out.
Xiaoshi blinked in bewilderment. “What was that about?”
“You know,” Lu Guang replied tersely. He saw his friend flinch, and he exhaled slowly through his nose. “I’ll clean up. Why don’t you go shower instead?”
“But you cooked.”
They had a system where if one cooked, the other would clean the dishes.
Lu Guang pushed his friend out of the dining room before ushering him off. “It’ll be fine this one time.”
He heard Xiaoshi let out a heavy sigh, and tried not to get irked by it. Everything was still so annoyingly delicate.
~~~
Their first customer just so happened to be a person needing clues of a canoeing trip that had been cut short. Due to a random rainstorm, everyone had scrambled to get ashore, and during the panic, someone had bumped into his and his girlfriend’s canoe. Unfortunately, their canoe had flipped, with some of their personal belongings getting washed downstream.
When the client had come to the studio, he seemed on the brink of tears. “In one of the bags was my engagement ring,” he’d sniffled. “I met my girlfriend five years ago on that very same river, and our anniversary was coming up. I planned on proposing there. Can you find it?”
At first, Lu Guang had been unsure whether to help the man find his ring. It hadn’t been long ago, but would it change the past substantially enough to drastically alter the future?
Of course Xiaoshi had been adamant on helping the man. He’d hounded Lu Guang over it, begging, “Please, please, please? It won’t change anything major, so we should at least try.”
Part of Lu Guang disliked how easily Xiaoshi was swayed by clients. If Lu Guang wasn’t there to stop him, Xiaoshi would certainly make a change he’d regret. At the same time, though, Xiaoshi’s innocence was his charm, and charm it was.
Eventually, Lu Guang gave in. It was Xiaoshi, after all.
“Very well.”
Xiaoshi pumped his fist. “Alright!”
Lu Guang turned to the man. “Do you have a picture of that day?”
The man nodded eagerly, holding up his phone. “I posted it on my Instagram, but do you need a physical copy?”
Xiaoshi took out his own phone, writing down the man’s tag before jabbing his finger to the back of the studio. “I’ll make a physical copy. It won’t take too long.” After waving to the man, Xiaoshi disappeared into the darkroom.
Lu Guang turned to the man. “We’ll get to work now. When we are finished, we’ll text you the details.”
With a heavy sigh, he escorted the man out and locked the door. Lu Guang had hoped that today would be an easy one, with the only would being developing film and processing print jobs. Instead of dreaming of what could have been, though, Lu Guang strolled down to the blackroom, where Xiaoshi was finishing the picture.
“Are you ready?”
Xiaoshi glanced at the picture, taking a slow, deep breath. He hadn’t used his power in almost a month, and was almost too afraid to leave LubGuang alone.
Lu Guang seemed to read the distress on his face. “I’ll be fine. You should be the nervous one.”
He gulped. “Right.”
It was all a game of chance and it had been allegedly reset.
Offering out his hand, Lu Guang asked once more: “Ready.”
Not at all, thought Xiaoshi, but determinedly reached for Lu Guang’s hand anyway.
Dive!
~~~
“Honey!” The woman in front of him was giggling as they rocked somewhat on the river. “You almost tipped us over.”
“A-ah...s-sorry.” Xiaoshi blinked hastily to clear his blurry vision. He was wearing sunglasses, so at least he wasn’t being blinded by sunlight, but the vertigo strained him just as much as the first time he’d jumped.
“Cheng Xiaoshi, focus.”
“Easy for you say, jerk,” he muttered, lowering his head to try and not draw attention to himself.
“What did you say, dear?”
Scrambling for a reply, Xiaoshi blurted out, “Nothing, darling!”
The woman giggled sweetly at the pet-name, and Xiaoshi felt a wave of affection as his client gazed lovingly as his partner. No wonder the man had been so distraught about losing the engagement ring- out of every body he’d inhabited, this swell of love was stronger than anything Xiaoshi had experienced before.
Speaking of, the engagement ring! This had to be before the storm, so the ring had to be somewhere around. If only that guy had told them where he had put it before the canoe had flipped.
“You need to row. Don’t make her do all the work.”
Xiaoshi suddenly realized that he had an oar across his lap, and hurriedly dunked it into the water to row. As Xiaoshi and the client’s girlfriend made their way down the river, Xiaoshi reveled at how perfect the scene was. The water was clearer than glass, and the floor at the bottom consisted of dappled rocks whose patterns made the riverbed look artfully crafted. The sun’s rays were neither relentless nor weak, but just right, and Xiaoshi closed his eyes as the cool breeze caressed his skin.
“Cheng Xiaoshi. Focus.”
Puffing out an exasperated breath, Xiaoshi straightened his posture, dutifully continuing the task at hand. It was easy to see down to the riverbed, and nothing appeared to be at the bottom of the canoe.
“Remember to paddle. You’re being obvious.”
“You’re obvious,” Xiaoshi grumbled childishly, even if the retort didn’t make any sense.
“Huan, you haven’t been paddling as much,” the girlfriend fretted. “If you need a break, why don’t we stop for lunch? I’ve been getting tired as well.”
Xiaoshi slightly ducked his head, muttering, “Should we stop for lunch?”
“Although the events are slightly out of order, it won’t change the fact that the storm will occur.”
He frowned absentmindedly. “So I’ll still lose the ring?”
“Not if you find it before the storm hits.”
“Aish,” Xiaoshi groaned.
Leave it to his friend to be so elusive with his words. With a slightly forced, cheery laugh, Xiaoshi turned to the client’s girlfriend. “Lunch sounds good, darling!”
She grinned, gesturing to a waterproof bag at the front of the canoe. “I made sandwiches for lunch! We should call our friends over so they can take a break too.” Waving at the canoes behind them, the girlfriend yelled, “Hey! We’re pulling off to the side to eat!”
Sounds of agreement came from those distant friends, and Xiaoshi and the client’s girlfriend paddled up until they banked on the shore. When Xiaoshi got out first, flailing as his feet becane stuck in the sand, he heard the girlfriend laughing brightly.
“Are you okay?” she asked between amused giggles.
“Aren’t you mean?” pouted Xiaoshi. “What if I fell in?” After wiping his damp hands on his shorts, he offered the girlfriend a hand of assistance as she stepped onto the sandy river bank, even catching her when she stumbled against him.
“Cute.”
“Don’t add your own dialogue,” snapped Lu Guang. For some reason, he sounded far more irritated than usual.
Xiaoshi puffed his cheeks when the man’s girlfriend wasn’t looking. “Listen, I didn’t ask to feel this way. It’s not my fault he’s infatuated with her.”
A satisfied “Hm.”
Xiaoshi turned back towards the canoe, spotting a couple bags and a cooler. His heart lurched when his gaze landed on the blue striped bag, which he assumed contained the engagement ring. His hands shook as he grabbed the bag, unzipping it to find a zipped baggy containing a deep purple pouch. Through the guy’s memories, he knew this was the engagement ring.
Bubbly laughter rang out behind him, and Xiaoshi quirked when he felt someone jump on his back, slender arms wrapping around his shoulders. As he lurched forward from the extra weight, Xiaoshi nearly dropped the bag in the water, before narrowly flinging it back on shore.
“Darling, we could have fallen into the water,” chided Xiaoshi, but neither he nor his client seemed to feel any anger. Looking down at their reflections in the shallow part of the river, the client and his girlfriend seemed like the perfect couple.
Warm breath blew onto his ear as the girlfriend whispered, “Is Cheng Xiaoshi going to propose to me?”
Xiaoshi’s head snapped up in confusion. What? How did she know his name? Suddenly, the girlfriend’s arms tightened around his neck, abruptly cutting off Xiaoshi’s breathing.
His eyes widened as the reflection of the girlfriend’s eyes shone bright red.