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Zhao Yunlan starts at the pressure of Shen Wei’s head on his shoulder, hair brushing his jaw. The sensation isn’t unfamiliar, closeness and intimacy far from being a rare occurrence between them. Not after everything had been revealed, not after they’d gotten to know each other again for the first time, without any secrets or memories between them.They’d spent countless evenings curled up together on the couch, mindlessly watching one show or another (cooking shows more often than not, because Shen Wei’s eyes had lit up the first time he saw one, his lips parting in wonder as he blinked at the elaborate dessert painstakingly crafted on-screen by frantic participants, and Yunlan didn’t need to watch anything else if he could be the witness to that ). They’d spent even more time in bed, melting into one another and filling the air with the rustle of sheets and the symphony of skin on skin, of kisses and caresses, whispered promises and breathy laughter. Shen Wei hadn’t pulled away the first time Yunlan had grasped his hand while they walked through town, and the day after, he was the one who reached out, entwining their fingers with a small, shy smile.However, they’d never as much as hugged at the office, not for Yunlan’s lack of trying. Shen Wei had all these concepts of propriety and being professional and correct behavior at the workplace, and not even Yunlan’s exaggerated pout and puppy eyes could break his resolve on that matter.He seems to have changed his mind now, as they sit on the SID common room’s couch surrounded by their friends, clutching drinks and basking in the relief of prolonged peace as the questionable pop music picked by Lin Jing washes over them.A year, a whole year after Ye Zun and the serum coursing through Yunlan’s veins, power flaring and then burning out as he gave it all up to save Shen Wei’s life.The memory of the relief that had flooded him when his Xiao Wei had opened his eyes and smiled at him, blood-stained and weak but alive, is enough to make Yunlan’s chest burst with happiness, even without the aid of alcohol. His glass of baijiu is still untouched, and it almost sloshes from the brim when Shen Wei tilts his head to rest it on his shoulder, soft hair tickling Yunlan’s ear.“Xiao Wei?”Yunlan cranes his neck, but all he can see is the fall of Shen Wei’s dark lashes, the slope of his nose. He wants to cup Shen Wei’s face and turn his head, but the casual affection has settled pleasantly on his skin, and he can’t bring himself to move his left arm and dislodge him.He shoves his drink in Da Qing’s direction, trusting his cat-sharp reflexes to catch it before it spills. Although he’s in human form, Da Qing is sitting cross-legged on the table instead of in a chair, surrounded by plates of smoked fish, meatballs, steamed dumplings and, to Yunlan’s delight, an overwhelming variety of noodles.Da Qing’s judgemental stare carries the same power as the typical feline one as he accepts Yunlan’s untouched glass. Wrinkling his sensitive nose at it, he passes it on to Zhu Hong, who downs the burning liquid as if it were water.Da Qing eyes Shen Wei quizzically, and Yunlan waves his newly-freed hand in dismissal even as a knot of worry slowly coils in his stomach.Because the anniversary of their victory against Ye Zun is also the anniversary of Ye Zun’s death. Shen Wei always says his brother died long before then, when he’d let the dark energy consume him and turn him into a shell; he’d already mourned him long before their final battle, when he’d lost him the first time as a child, and then again as an adult, trapped in the pillar at the centre of Dixing.But Shen Wei had still cried that night, after everything was over. Bruised and bleeding, he’d cried not for himself or for the creature they’d killed, but for the child his brother had been, for the lies and the horrors that had been inflicted on him, and for his own failure in protecting him.When Yunlan had asked, Shen Wei had assured him that celebrating was the right thing to do and he wanted them to do it, and Yunlan hadn’t seen a shadow of doubt or reticence in his eyes then. Now he wonders if he should have, if Shen Wei is hurting and the sudden affection is his way of showing it, of asking for help.“Xiao Wei,” Yunlan calls again, using two fingers to lift his chin.He wants to ask if he’s okay, if he wants to leave, but Shen Wei giggles at the pressure of Yunlan’s finger on his jaw.The sound, high and bubbly and so unlike the stoic version of himself Shen Wei often portrays, inevitably draws attention. Lin Jing raises his head, his mouth so full of dumplings that his cheeks are puffed out like those of a hamster; little Guo scratches at his ear, as if he thinks his hearing must not be working properly; even Old Chu stops pretending he’s not looking at Little Guo and starts pretending he’s not looking at Shen Wei.“Who gave professor Shen alcohol?” asks Zhu Hong. The bottle she’s holding has smudges of red lipstick all around its neck. “You know he’s a lightweight.”There’s a hint of teasing in her voice. The bitterness of a few months ago is long gone, replaced by tentative but honest warmth.Next to Zhu Hong, Gelan’s eyebrows knit in worry. So do Sangzan’s, but in confusion.“Light...weight?”“Someone who’s not used to drinking alcohol.” Gelan explains quickly before glancing apologetically at Yunlan. “I’m sorry, I forgot.”When Shen Wei’s head lolls back, Yunlan can finally see the pinkness of his cheeks, the sheen in his eyes. A beer bottle dangles precariously from his grasp, and Yunlan plucks it away.“Alright,” he snorts, the knot of concern unfurling in his stomach, at least for the moment. Shen Wei is the kind of person who would drink something because it was impolite to decline. He isn’t the type to drink his sorrows away, but Yunlan will make sure of it later, once they’re alone and he has all the freedom in the world to comfort him like he wishes.“I guess it’s time to go home.”Shen Wei finally sits up then, blinking at the room with sleepy, unfocused eyes. Free from the mask of restraint he usually wears, he looks like the Shen Wei Yunlan met when he went through the wormhole, pink-cheeked and wide eyed. Yunlan’s whole body itches with the need to touch, to gather him in his arms and kiss his face and mess up his hair. He huffs out a laugh instead. Shen Wei’s mouth parts in apparent, baffling amazement.“Wow,” he breathes out. “Your chromosomes have combined beautifully.”Yunlan’s eyebrows shoot up at that. He presses his lips into a thin line, but is efforts not to laugh in Shen Wei’s earnest, absolutely smashed face is ruined by Lin Jing’s snicker, and a low cooing sound that can only belong to Little Guo. Normally, the boy would never dare to aw at the Black Envoy, but then again, Shen Wei is normally not frowning adorably and blinking his glassy eyes at them.Shen Wei seems to notice the suppressed hilarity in the room, because he shift on the couch under Yunlan's gaze.“I-I mean to say,” he fumbles. “Are you made of Copper and Tellurium? Because you’re Cu-Te.”Da Qing snorts around his mouthful of dried fish. “How is that one better?”Zhao Yunlan can’t help but laugh then, because his Xiao Wei is using science puns to flirt with him, and well, he is only a weak human after all. He leans in, props his head on his bent arm to study Shen Wei’s face from up close. Shen Wei blinks slowly at the proximity, but he doesn’t move away and he doesn’t look down while fixing his glasses on the bridge of his nose. Apparently, drunk Shen Wei is a little shameless, which works just fine, because Zhao Yunlan is shameless, too.“You’re not so bad yourself,” he says, the tip of his nose barely brushing Shen Wei’s ear. And it’s definitely not the most original comeback ever, but Yunlan has a drunk, smitten Shen Wei looking at him like he hung the moon and stars, and his brain feels a little fuzzy from all the attention.“I can’t believe I’m neglecting my tribe responsibilities for this,” Zhu Hong laments, even though her eyes sparkle with amusement.Lin Jing shushes her distractedly, food completely forgotten. He’s pointing his phone at them, poorly hidden behind a beer bottle, but Yunlan has no intention of stopping him, if only because he wants to tease Shen Wei mercilessly after he sobers up. And possibly watch that video again and again for the rest of his life.“You must be a carbon sample,” Shen Wei states. His eyebrows are pinched in concentration and he enunciates every word with extra care as he points at Yunlan. “Because I want to date you.”He taps Yunlan’s chest twice with barely any force. Shen Wei’s touch glides over Yunlan’s shirt, and he’s looking up at him through his lashes, and Yunlan really really wishes he’d drunk something so his throat wouldn’t be so dry.“I can’t believe he used that one,” Lin Jing wheezes. The hand holding his phone shakes with the force of his laughter, and he grips his own wrist to steady it.“Of course you’d know it.” Zhu Hong shakes her head. “Science nerds.”“Look, science puns are an art form ,” Lin Jing says. “And they always work. Watch and learn.”He points at Yunlan, who’s ignoring their banter in favor of lightly tapping Shen Wei’s nose.“I’m already taken,” Yunlan teases, relishing in the deep blush that blooms on Shen Wei’s skin, coloring his cheeks and ears, all the way down to his neck.Lin Jing makes a theatrical sweeping motion with his hand that almost knocks down a few bottles. “See?”He ducks when Zhu Hong reaches out to flick his ear, Gelan and Sangzan moving helpfully out of her way.“Chief Zhao doesn’t count.” Da Qing snorts. “He’s whipped.”Yunlan doesn’t deign to comment on that. He’s watching Shen Wei, who’s frowning dejectedly at his lap.“Are you alright?”“Please don’t let him throw up on the sofa,” Gelan says, but it’s so hushed it’s unclear if she’s addressing Yunlan himself or some higher power who can somehow keep it from happening.Shen Wei’s eyes are shadowed by his brows and lashes, but Yunlan definitely hears a sniffle. His stomach twists with anxiousness.“Xiao Wei?”When Shen Wei looks up, the tip of his nose is red, and he’s blinking suspiciously quickly.“You’re already dating someone?” he asks in a soft, tremulous voice.Yunlan’s heart grows three sizes in the span of a millisecond. Shen Wei is looking at him, visibly upset, and yet no matter how hard he tries, he can’t help the laugh bubbling out of him.“Are you sure it was only a beer?” He asks Gelan, just to find something to do that isn’t succumbing to the sudden need to squish Shen Wei’s cheeks and possibly coo at him.Gelan just nods, covering her amusement with a hand over her mouth. Next to her, Sangzan mouths the word “lightweight” again, as if studying the shape of it while witnessing its meaning.Lin Jing takes a gulp of beer, and the glass clinks when the puts the bottle down on the table.“He is dating someone,” he says. Shen Wei looks at him as if only just realizing there are more people in the room. Yunlan refuses to acknowledge how deeply that pleases him.“He’s a college professor .”Lin Jing grin is goofy and ridiculous, and Yunlan would totally tease him for it if it wasn’t for the fact that he’s busy trying to deal with the enormous amount of emotions trying to claw their way up his throat. All the fondness and adoration and love he has for that ridiculous, ridiculous man.Zhu Hong has apparently decided to take Lin Jing’s side now, because she shoots him a sly, red-lipped grin.“He’s also tall,” she says. “Handsome.”“Great eyebrows,” Da Qing adds, munching on some egg rolls.“He has such a nice smile,” Gelan sighs. Sangzan nods eagerly. “He’s always so kind.”“He’s also a great leader,” Chu says. It’s the first time he’s speaking, probably because he needed to get through the horror of seeing his revered Lord Envoy in such a state. Yunlan guesses he just couldn’t pass up the chance to compliment him, even indirectly. “And a powerful warrior.”He looks like he could say more, but Little Guo is frowning deeply, his chopsticks halfway through his mouth and his gaze fixed on Yunlan. He puts them down slowly, looking as if he’s gathering the courage to intervene.“Enough,” he says. His voice is higher than normal and wavers just a little, but he’s far from the stuttering mess he would have been a year ago in the same situation. Old Chu’s hand covers his in a way that is really not as subtle as he might have wished. No one is brave enough to comment on it.“You’re making him sad.”Little Guo’s eyes don’t waver from Yunlan’s face even as a nervous flush takes over his cheeks, and Yunlan grins proudly at him for speaking up.Not that he could stop smiling. He wants to, he really does, but the muscles of his face seem to have a will of their own, and he can literally feel his ego grow to a humanly unacceptable size. He loves it.“I’m not upset ,” Shen Wei sniffles, clearly upset. He’s crossed his arms over his chest, and the corners of his mouth are pulled down into a pout. “ I ’m a professor, too.”Not even Little Guo can keep from snickering at that declaration, and Yunlan can no longer resist. Ignoring his colleagues’ ooh s and aah s and blatant lack of respect in general, he darts forward to drop a quick kiss on the red tip of Shen Wei’s nose.His boyfriend , who’s so drunk and so ridiculous and whom he loves very very very much.He’s surprised when Shen Wei gasps and pulls away, causing another burst of overall amusement that he doesn’t seem to register. He looks around in alarm, eyes wide, face impossibly redder. His glasses have slipped down his nose and he palms them up clumsily, leaving more than one smudge on the lenses.“You’re taken ,” he whines, stumbling slightly over the words. His eyes close before he bats his eyelids open again. “You shouldn’t go around kissing other people and givin’ them premature...ventricular con...traptions.”Yunlan blinks at him, fighting another huge grin.“He means contractions,” Lin Jing supplies. He sounds as if he’s almost crying with laughter by now. “As in, you made his heart skip a beat.”“That,” Shen Wei says. He lets out a huge, defeated sigh before swaying dangerously to one side.“Alright, I’m sorry.” Yunlan says. He isn’t, not at all.He puts an arm around Shen Wei’s shoulders to steady him, and his pulse quickens when Shen Wei nestles close to him with easy trust, letting himself be supported.“Don’t pass out yet. We’re getting up.”“Mmm,” Shen Wei agrees, lets Yunlan pull him to his feet. His forehead is knitted in concentration as he tries to keep his balance, but he sways gently back and forth before Yunlan’s arm comes around his waist to steady him.Shen Wei’s glasses have made their way back down the bridge of his nose, and he eyes them warily, as if he knows he’s supposed to do something to fix that, but can’t quite remember what. Yunlan takes them away gently and hooks them into the collar of his own t-shirt for safekeeping.He’s infinitely grateful their new house is a short walking distance from the SID headquarters. Their house. His heart swells whenever he thinks of the life they’ve built for themselves, their lovely, blissful domesticity. They have a room for Da Qing, too, of course, although he usually prefers to be in his cat form, lounging on the loveseat near the living room window or perched haughtily on the kitchen countertop when Shen Wei is cooking, silently demanding treats.Yunlan raises an eyebrow at him in a silent question, but Da Qing motions for them to go ahead, at work on the seemingly unending amount of dried fish in front of him.“I think you damaged my cerebellum,” Shen Wei announces quite loudly, leaning into Yunlan. He smells of beer and a hint of cologne, and his skin is unusually warm. “Because I fell for you.”“Damn,” Lin Jing says. “I need to write that one down.”Yunlan’s arm tightens impossibly around Shen Wei, because he feels like he’s falling too, like he's been falling for him from the first time he saw him, and never stopped since then. Lin Jing is still pointing his phone at them, and Yunlan snatches it away before leaving, ignoring his yelp of protest.“I was wrong,” he hears Zhu Hong say as he nudges the door closed with his foot, given his armful of very warm, very cuddly, very sleepy boyfriend. “This was worth it.” *** Yunlan can’t help but agree as he lays in bed, blissfully replaying the night’s events on Lin Jing’s phone. It’s such a rare occurrence for him to be awake before Shen Wei, who sleeps very little if at all and is always up and moving at sunrise. Now, his eyes are still closed even though it’s almost noon, and buttery sunlight streams into the room from the half-open blinders. He’s wearing an old long-sleeved shirt - Yunlan’s, because Shen Wei loves sleeping in his clothes even if he doesn’t say it, and Yunlan loves that he loves it and tells him all the time - and his hair is a mess of spikey strands. Yunlan had run his hand through it over and over the night before, lulling Shen Wei to sleep and assuring him over and over that yes, Xiao Wei, my boyfriend is completely fine with this, I promise.He snorts at the thought and puts the phone down in favor of watching his boyfriend instead, the way the light outlines his elegant profile, the dark sweep of lashes against his sharp cheekbones. Shen Wei stirs, then blinks.“Hey, professor.”Beaming, Yunlan runs a finger down Shen Wei’s nose. He’s rewarded by the most adorable, sleepy nose-scrunch he’s ever seen in his entire life.“Did I…?”Yunlan waits, because one of the many perks of being the powerful Black Cloaked Envoy is that Shen Wei doesn’t get hangovers, and Yunlan expects him to remember pretty much everything about last night.Sure enough, Shen Wei gasps as his memories come rushing back, at the same time as the blush on his cheeks.“Zhao Yunlan!” he screeches.Yunlan can do nothing but laugh at the horrified expression on Shen Wei’s face, which turns even more dismayed when he spots the phone lying on the mattress, its screen still showing the video of the night before. It’s paused at a perfect time, Shen Wei pouting inconsolably at the thought of Yunlan having a boyfriend.Yunlan is positively giggling .“Get rid of that right now,” Shen Wei commands, but it doesn’t sound very convincing when his face is halfway covered by the blanket. Yunlan reaches out to tug it down and cup his cheek.“No way. You were so damn cute.”Shen Wei slaps his hand away, but Yunlan can see his mouth twitch in an attempt to suppress a smile.“I’m the Lord Envoy of Dixing, Zhao Yunlan,” he says with as much loftiness as he can muster. Not much, considering his crimson cheeks and disheveled hair. “I’m not cute .”“You are to your boyfriend ,” Yunlan remarks with glee, enjoying the way Shen Wei’s eyes light up, even as he pretends to be upset.“Shut up,” he mutters, but he lets Yunlan roll on top of him and bury his face in the crook of his neck.Yunlan sighs, enjoying the feeling of Shen Wei’s fingers massaging his scalp and neck for a brief moment before the urge of teasing him some more gets too strong to resist.“Shen Wei,” he sighs dreamily, batting his eyelashes at him. “You’re so hot you denature my proteins.”The sound Shen Wei makes is a mixture between a growl and a groan of exasperation, and Yunlan’s laugh gets cut off as their positions are reversed and Shen Wei covers his mouth with his.It was definitely worth it.