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[bringingdowndisaster]

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[gentledawn]

The confusion makes him blush. He squeezes Xue Yang's hand and shakes his head, amazed anyone could think so highly of him!

"You are very, very sweet." he is about to argue when he feels himself wrapped in his lover's arms. The kiss makes him soften and he embraces Xue Yang tightly.

"I love you too. I...think better of myself...when we're together."

[bringingdowndisaster]

"Good... That means we should always be together, so you'll never have a bad thought about yourself again." Xue Yang smiles and kisses him again. He won't allow his Xingchen to think so poorly of himself!

[gentledawn]

He gasps and smiles slowly, amazed. Xue Yang...wants to be with him. Always? Xingchen hugs the other man to him, exhaling.

"Yes! I like that. Always." he pinks, "I'll make you feel good about yourself too, I promise."

[bringingdowndisaster]

Xue Yang snuggles into Xingchen's arms, feeling so safe and content there. "You already do," he murmurs softly.

[gentledawn]

Xingchen places a soft kiss against Xue Yang's temple. Those words are some of the best he could ever hear.

"You're so kind, A-Yang."

[bringingdowndisaster]

"For you," he murmurs and kisses Xingchen's cheek before grabbing towels for the both of them. He wraps one around Xingchen and helps him get dried off.

[gentledawn]

Xingchen snuggles into the towel and dries himself off, pulling his hair over one shoulder. Then he braids the wet strands, smiling faintly.

"I used to put flowers in my hair."

[bringingdowndisaster]

Xue Yang feels so much warmth and love watching Xingchen. "Oh?" He smiles and leans in to kiss Xingchen's shoulder. "Then I should pick some flowers for you."

[gentledawn]

Xingchen is about to grab for his robe when he feels the kiss. Smiling, he reaches for his love and embraces him.

"I don't know if any grow around here. I don't want to set you an impossible task!"

[bringingdowndisaster]

Xue Yang feels like he has a mission now! He will go outside of Yi City if he has to - surely flowers will grow there?

"It will be worth it to do it for Daozhang," he says and smiles, kissing him again.

[gentledawn]

Maybe! Little ones might grow by the river. Xingchen wouldn't know; his world is always dark.

By choice.

"You're very sweet, love. But you are far more breath-taking than any bloom." he presses into the kiss with a little smile.

[bringingdowndisaster]

Xue Yang is going to find out! He's never paid much attention to flowers before, but he will now. For Xingchen. He deserves something nice and familiar, even if he can't see it.

The compliment makes him blush a little. "So are you," he murmurs.

[gentledawn]

He can smell them! Flowers usually have such a nice scent - earthy and sweet. Xingchen would bury his face in a bouquet without a single hesitation. Just like a deer or a honeybee.

"If my love thinks so, that's all that matters to me." he bows his head, touched.

[bringingdowndisaster]

"It's the truth," Xue Yang insists. Anyone who disagrees must be blinder than Xingchen! He presses a kiss to his forehead before grabbing their robes from the ground so that they can start getting dressed.

[gentledawn]

"Ah...thank you." Xingchen reaches for his trousers and robes, getting dressed with a small, happy smile, "And not only for the robes. You are very kind to me."

[bringingdowndisaster]

"You deserve it," Xue Yang murmurs softly. "You deserve everything." And he'll try his damndest to give it to him.

Once they're both dressed, he takes Xingchen's hand and starts to walk out of the washroom. Time to be confronted with the fact that Song Lan and A-Qing are still here... Selfishly, Xue Yang wishes that it was just the two of them, but he also knows that Xiao Xingchen would probably be a lot unhappier if those two weren't here.

[gentledawn]

Xingchen shakes his head, amused and touched at Xue Yang's point of view. He kisses the other man's temple before he lets himself be guided back to their companions. His foot hits a board that needs to be nailed down and he accidentally falls forward a few steps, running into Xue Yang's back.

"Ah I'm sorry... That board needs to be nailed down..."

[bringingdowndisaster]

Xue Yang immediately turns when Xingchen crashes into him and catches him in his arms. He frowns and glances down at the loose board. It had been an issue just before Xingchen's death, one he'd planned on fixing, but then well... he'd completely forgotten about, for obvious reasons.

"I'll fix it," he says as he wraps an arm around Xingchen's waist instead.

[gentledawn]

Arms steady him - arms he knows and trusts. Xingchen almost doesn't mind tripping if he is going to be held so sweetly after! He turns his head towards Xue Yang's voice and smiles softly.

"Just watch your feet. There's no rush." he rubs over the arm around him.

[bringingdowndisaster]

"I'll watch daozhang's feet for him," Xue Yang says, managing a slightly playful tone, though any hint of playfulness dies when he sees Song Lan coming towards them, looking like he's trying very hard not to show any emotion.

Ugh. Xue Yang wishes even more that Song Lan wasn't here. Even mute, he somehow manages to say so much with just his eyes. (Xiao Xingchen's eyes, he thinks resentfully. Oh, he'd pluck them right out of Song Lan's skull if he didn't know it'd upset Xingchen).

[gentledawn]

"Mm I might need that." Xingchen laughs softly at himself, sensing the shift in emotion a split second later. His ears twitch and he turns towards Zichen's footsteps.

"Zichen?" he calls gently, "Is that you?"

The silence feels...heavy. And filled with complicated emotions. He would rather talk than bear it.

[bringingdowndisaster]

I'm here, Song Lan responds through their connection. You should speak to A-Qing. She was worried about you. She, of course, doesn't have the context to why Xingchen and Xue Yang had ran out of the house, and had been very anxious about it.

Xue Yang hates that he can't hear what Song Lan is saying. It just makes him feel anxious and a little insecure, despite all of Xingchen's reassurances.

[gentledawn]

"You're right. Poor girl." Xingchen nods at Zichen's message and feels his way to the other man, gently squeezing his hand as he walks by, "Play nice, you two." he means for the words to be a tease, but there is too much weight behind them.

He knows it's difficult for them and there isn't much he can do about it. So he goes to A-Qing and gently reassures the girl.

"We're all family, A-Qing. If one of us is upset, I want to help them."

[bringingdowndisaster]

Song Lan gives a gentle squeeze back as he watches Xingchen leave. He can feel Xue Yang's eyes on him and turns his head to look at him. They share a tense look, and the only reason Xue Yang doesn't say something derisive is because he'd promised Xiao Xingchen to try.

With a small huff, he decides that he may as well fix that stupid loose floorboard and as he sets about doing so, Song Lan ends up assisting - just to have something to do other than standing around in awkward silence.

[gentledawn]

Xingchen hears the work and smiles at A-Qing. After getting the poor girl something hot to drink - a nice tea to calm her nerves - he seeks out the other two men.

"Working together?" he asks hopefully not bothering to hide the hope in his voice.