Chapter Text
“I’ll get us some drinks,” Wei Ying said, kissing Lan Wangji on the cheek and disentangling their hands so he could walk towards the refreshment table.
Lan Wangji watched him go. He had asked to borrow a sweater for the party, complaining that all his clothes were ‘stupid,’ and Lan Wangji had obliged. Seeing him walk around in his clothes, a little too big for him, made the possessive part of himself - which he hated, and tried to repress - extremely happy.
“Lan Wangji!” Luo Qingyang tapped him on the shoulder.
He turned his attention back to her - she was smiling up at him with amusement. “I’m sorry, what did you say?”
“I was just saying how nice it was to finally meet your Wei Y- er, your Wei Wuxian. Hey, opposites attract, right?”
“Mm,” Lan Wangji said. Not untrue: he was certainly attracted, even if Wei Ying wasn’t - or at least, wasn’t attracted in a serious, long-term kind of way.
“It’s very sweet, how dedicated you are to him. You can bring him out with us, to social events, if you want,” Luo Qingyang continued, unaware of the havok she was wrecking on his heart. “Oh,” her eyes tracked back to the entrance, “Qin Su is here! God, she looks - I’m going to go say hi.”
When Luo Qingyang walked off, Nie Huaisang took her place beside Lan Wangji. Lan Wangji glanced longingly at Wei Ying - in animated conversation with a grad student two years ahead, gesturing wildly with the drinks in his hand - swallowed down his jealousy and nodded to Nie Huaisang, who was watching his face carefully.
“Not what I expected,” Nie Huaisang said, “but creative. Think this is going to work out for you?”
Lan Wangji did not dignify that with a response. Nie Huaisang was aware of his feelings, of course - they had known each other since they were children, thanks to their brothers, and while they had never been exactly close, Nie Huaisang could read him almost as well as his brother.
“I just think it’s funny that you didn’t come clean to anyone,” Nie Huaisang continued, tapping the end of his closed fan against his chin, “since lying is forbidden, and all.”
“Have not lied,” Lan Wangji said. Instantly he knew it was a mistake - engaging was always a mistake, when he wanted a Nie brother conversation to be over.
Nie Huaisang smirked. “Lying by omission is still lying.”
“Why didn’t you explain?”
“Thought watching your reaction would be more interesting than writing papers,” Nie Huaisang gave a one-shoulder shrug, “and I was right.”
Lan Wangji glared. “You -”
“Sangsang!” Wei Ying had made it back to them, and draped himself all over Lan Wangji, handing him a glass of water. One arm was around his shoulders, the other hand reaching across his torso to rest at Lan Wangji’s waist. Lan Wangji let himself loop one arm behind Wei Ying’s back, pulling him close.
“Thank you, sweetheart,” he said, as Wei Ying beamed up at him.
Wei Ying turned his megawatt smile on Nie Huaisang. “Hey old buddy my pal, how’ve you been? Haven’t seen you since October!”
Nie Huaisang snapped his fan open and fluttered it. “Ugh, I had so much work! I thought going to grad school in the arts would be more fun. Anyway, this,” he used his fan to gesture between them, “is new. Tell me about it!”
Lan Wangji tried to glare Nie Huaisang to death, but neither he nor Wei Ying seemed to notice. Wei Ying tipped his head back to laugh, and Lan Wangji let his attention be pulled to the long line of Wei Ying’s throat. And the marks there. Just for one sweet, guilty moment.
“Well, we just realized we were in love,” Wei Ying was explaining. “I’m not sure how I convinced this one,” he gave Lan Wangji’s waist a squeeze, “to give me a chance, but -”
“I did figure it was only a matter of time,” Nie Huaisang said, getting a sly look in his eyes as he glanced between them; Lan Wangji felt cold dread climb the nape of his neck, “considering your -”
“Have you tried the herb-crusted goat cheese?” Wei Ying interrupted, a little too loudly. “It’s divine. And this wine?” He took a performative sip. “Exquisite. Who’s the caterer, anyway?”
Lan Wangji couldn’t figure out why Wei Ying would have cut Nie Huaisang off, but he could only be thankful. As his body relaxed by degrees, he resumed his attempt to psychically murder Nie Huaisang via glaring. There was no reason for him to disrupt the fragile balance Lan Wangji had going, and it wasn’t like Nie Huaisang wasn’t aware of all the elements at play.
Wei Ying and Nie Huaisang chattered back and forth about cheese plates, of all things, until Nie Huaisang glanced over at Lan Wangji. His eyebrows raised and he took a step back. “Well, nice to see you both,” he chirped, “I have to . . . go over there, to talk to someone else. Bye!”
Wei Ying watched him go. “Huh. I think we got him, don’t you?”
Lan Wangji looked down at him. There wasn’t that much of a height difference between them, but Wei Ying had terrible posture most of the time. “Mm.”
“I’m such a good actor,” Wei Ying said. “I should go into acting. Make a career of it. Get famous, spoil you the way you spoil me, with gifts and food and stuff. Oh! Not that you’re doing a bad job,” he tilted his head up to flutter his eyelashes at Lan Wangji - his heart almost stopped, “but Jiang Cheng always says I can’t lie. Well, this shows him!”
“Mm,” Lan Wangji said. Wei Ying was a good actor. If he didn’t keep bringing it up, Lan Wangji would almost be able to believe that there could be something between them.
Lan Wangji recognized the emotion he was feeling as regret. Lan Huan would be proud that he could name it, if nothing else.
It was hard to feel regret, though, when Wei Ying noticed that Su She was incoming and pressed a preemptive kiss to Lan Wangji’s jaw.
“Hey, Lan Wangji,” Su She said, not even glancing at Wei Ying. “Glad you decided to come.”
“Hi,” Wei Ying said, “I’m Wei Wuxian, his boyfriend, Lan Wangji might have told you about me?” Wei Ying took his hand from Lan Wangji’s waist to reach out to shake Su She’s hand, and Lan Wangji did his best not to resent its absence.
Su She stared at Wei Ying’s hand for a moment before shaking it. “He’s mentioned you. I’m Su She.”
“Uh huh.” Wei Ying smiled, replacing his hand on Lan Wangji’s waist. “So what year are you in?”
Lan Wangji was reasonably sure he had mentioned Su She to Wei Ying before; probably even complained about him. He found Su She’s compositions derivative - derivative at best - and yet he had the unfortunate habit of seeking Lan Wangji out, to ask for help, or for his opinion on a piece, or just to talk.
“We’re in the same cohort,” Su She grit out. “Classmates. Don’t you listen to him when he tells you about his day?”
“Oh, I listen,” Wei Ying said, before Lan Wangji could come to his defense. “I guess he just doesn’t talk about you that much. Huh.” He tossed back the rest of the wine he had grabbed for himself.
Su She scowled. “Interesting to finally meet you. You’re a lot . . . louder than I would have expected. I thought Lan Wangji would be dating someone more . . . refined.”
“Wei Ying is perfect,” Lan Wangji said, firmly, tugging Wei Ying a little closer. Trust a man like Su She to have no taste.
“Mm,” Su She said, still looking skeptical. “Good to see you, Lan Wangji. Maybe we’ll see each other over the break at some point? Grab coffee?”
Wei Ying laughed a particularly fake-sounding laugh. “Unfortunately we are all booked up. For the whole break! Tragic.”
“Is that the case?” Su She asked Lan Wangji, who could only nod. There was definitely something in the conversation that he was missing. He would have to ask Wei Ying later. Su She made a show of checking his watch. “Well, guess I’ll see you next semester, then, gotta run.”
“Mm,” Lan Wangji said, as Wei Ying said, “Delighted to make your acquaintance.”
Once Su She had beat his retreat, Wei Ying fully detached himself and swiped another glass of wine. “He was hitting on you,” he said, once he had downed half the glass.
Lan Wangji cocked his head. “Su She is just like that,” he said. He was pretty sure he would have noticed if Su She had been flirting - they had gone to high school together, so he did have some idea of what Su She’s baseline behavior was. “Always been like that.”
Wei Ying made his disgusted face, one Lan Wangji found particularly endearing. “Then he’s always been hitting on you.” He gave an exaggerated shiver. “Slimy, ick.”
“Sweetheart will protect me,” Lan Wangji said.
Wei Ying’s face went through a series of expressions too quickly for Lan Wangji to process. “Lan Zhan,” he said after a moment, “you’re too sweet.”
Lan Wangji wasn’t sure how to respond without revealing too much, so he didn’t.
Wei Ying scanned their surroundings and spotted Luo Qingyang and Qin Su standing and talking together. “When do you think they’ll start dating?” he asked, gesturing with his hand.
Lan Wangji watched them: heads tilted together even as they stood cheated out to watch the room. He knew they were close, and there was evidence that Luo Qingyang thought Qin Su was attractive, but that was not always a firm foundation for a real relationship. For instance, he knew Wei Ying found him physically appealing, but he found the idea of them being together romantically laughable.
“Don’t know,” he said, pulling himself from his thoughts.
“I give them,” Wei Ying squinted and pursed his lips for a moment, “three to six months. By the end of next semester.” When Lan Wangji didn’t respond, he pinched him lightly on the waist. “I’m right about this! I’ll make you a bet.”
“Mm,” Lan Wangji said.
“Mark your words - okay, how about, when I’m right, you owe me . . . a favor? You already owe me one, but you know me! I can always think of another favor.”
“Mm,” Lan Wangji agreed. It wasn’t like he wouldn’t do anything Wei Ying asked, anyway.
“Come on, let’s go talk to them! I won’t mettle, I swear, now that we’ve bet on it,” Wei Ying said, wiggling out from under Lan Wangji’s arm and grabbing his hand to tow him towards the women.
Lan Wangji didn’t resist, twisting as they walked to avoid bumping shoulders with professors. Luo Qingyang and Qin Su watched them come, wearing matching smiles.
“Hi,” Wei Ying said, “I already met Luo Qingyang, so you must be Qin Su!”
“Yeah, that’s me. Nice to finally meet you! We’ve been hearing about you all semester.” Qin Su shot a sly glance up at Lan Wangji.
“Is that so?” Wei Ying drawled. “Only good things, I hope?”
The smirk on Qin Su’s face brought that dread rushing back. “Well, this one,” she nudged Luo Qingyang, “was convinced you were a person pretty much the whole time, but I’ll admit I wasn’t sure if you were a pet or a person.”
“A pet?” Wei Ying played up his shock, clutching at his chest, then his own sly smile spread across his face as he turned to look at Lan Wangji through his eyelids. It was an alluring expression, though Lan Wangji tried to keep from being distracted by that. “Well, I do look cute in a collar . . . “
Lan Wangji could not control his expression well enough to keep his eyes from widening, and he knew his ears were bright red. It would be inappropriate to imagine Wei Ying in a - and worse still to imagine him in nothing but a -
He dug his fingernails into the palm of his hand. Luo Qingyang, Qin Su, and Wei Ying were all laughing uproariously; it seemed none of them had noticed his reaction.
“Ah,” Luo Qingyang said, recovering, “yeah, but I was still wrong, since I thought the two of you were, you know, hitched. We talked about you all semester - your man came clean, like, way late.”
Oh no. Oh no.
“That was so embarrassing!” Qin Su wrapped an arm around Luo Qingyang’s shoulders. “For her! Lan Wangji walked in on - wait, did he already tell you?”
Wei Ying shook his head, sipped his wine. “No, he didn’t tell me any specifics. I love an embarrassing story, though, so do tell.”
Uncle was right: indulgence was always a mistake.
While Luo Qingyang and Qin Su treated Wei Ying to a dramatic reenactment of one of the more embarrassing evenings in Lan Wangji’s life, he checked his watch. Half past eight - he could reasonably excuse himself. It would be a shame to take Wei Ying from the women - they all seemed to be getting along; Wei Ying inspired camaraderie so easily - but also, if they spent too long talking, the pattern of Lan Wangji’s behavior would reveal itself. Wei Ying was brilliant and had more social intelligence than Lan Wangji: he would be able to accurately interpret the pattern.
Wei Ying would feel violated, no doubt, and would feel that Lan Wangji had taken advantage of him. Their friendship would be ruined. He would have to move. He would never again have the privilege of seeing Wei Ying just after he got out of bed, or hearing about his day, or -
He felt a gentle tapping at his waist. Wei Ying was looking up at him, bemused. “Getting close to your bedtime, huh, babe?”
At least Wei Ying would save him face by rejecting him in private. Lan Wangji nodded mechanically at the excuse he had been offered.
Wei Ying smiled softly, then turned his attention back to the two women. “We gotta go take care of the big guy,” he said, squeezing Lan Wangji’s waist. “You know how he is about routine.”
“Oh, of course,” Luo Qingyang said. “I’m sure you need to make it home so that you can have, uh, your usual bedtime?”
Qin Su elbowed her sharply but with a poorly-suppressed smile. “Mianmian!” To Wei Ying and Lan Wangji, she added, “Sorry about her; I think she’s indulging a little too much. It was nice to meet you, Wei Wuxian - I hope to see the both of you around more, next semester.” She pointed between them with a glare that Lan Wangji knew to be affected.
“You too,” Wei Ying chirped, already starting to draw Lan Wangji towards the exit. “Nothing says spring like a double date!”
Lan Wangji didn’t get a good look at their reactions to Wei Ying’s parting shot, since they stepped into the coat room as he called it out.
“That was fun,” Wei Ying said, as they donned their jackets; he tossed his scarf loosely around his shoulders as they headed for the door, even as Lan Wangji wrapped his own carefully.
They spilled out into the cold of the night air - or Wei Ying spilled, while Lan Wangji followed more sedately. Outside of the party, they had no reason to hold hands, but Wei Ying reached for Lan Wangji, seemingly unconsciously, and who was Lan Wangji to deny Wei Ying anything?
“Did I take it too far, with the double date thing? I know I promised not to mettle, but maybe they’ll take it, uh, platonically? They would be so cute together, it can’t be the first time anyone’s implied it to them.” Wei Ying chatted as they walked towards the subway station, his breath clouding. He didn’t seem to be mentioning what Luo Qingyang and Qin Su had told him. Could he be getting away with it? “Anyway, I was thinking, I had a good time, maybe we could keep playing along? We really could go on a double date with the girls in your cohort. It’s not that much different than how we normally act, anyway.”
Wei Ying did not normally hold his hand, or kiss him on the cheek and jaw. And mouth. It was an even more tempting prospect, now that Lan Wangji had had a taste. But the dread he had felt, not once but twice, reminded him of what he stood to lose: Wei Ying in his life at all.
Being greedy was forbidden.
“No,” he said.
Wei Ying turned his head to the side as he laughed. “Fair enough.”
They walked in silence for a beat, before Wei Ying picked up a new stream of conversation, about the television show he had started watching, removing his hand from Lan Wangji’s to gesture wildly.
As he tucked his now-empty hand into his jacket pocket, Lan Wangji allowed himself to feel bittersweet hope: that it was over, that they could return to normal; not what he wanted, but infinitely better than not having Wei Ying at all.
He had been wrong. Wei Ying and Lan Wangji did not return to their usual equilibrium in the days after the department party.
Five days later Lan Wangji found himself trying and failing to meditate in his room, frustrated but unwilling to leave. Meditation had not been so difficult to achieve since freshman year of undergrad, when he had struggled against his feelings for Wei Ying; and while Lan Wangji knew himself to be a solitary man, he had never before been so unwilling to accidentally run into a person he lived with - least of all Wei Ying.
But in the days since the party, he had found himself avoiding Wei Ying, and more concerning still, had noticed that Wei Ying was avoiding him in turn.
It was possible that there was some benign explanation for Wei Ying’s behavior, but Lan Wangji was reasonably confident that it was because of the party, because Wei Ying had figured out how Lan Wangji truly felt. Potentially had even figured out that Lan Wangji had been trying to ask Wei Ying to be his date, for real, before backing down in a cowardly manner.
A knock on Lan Wangji’s door broke him from his thoughts.
“Lan Zhan, uh, do you have a minute?”
No, Lan Wangji thought, he didn’t have a minute. He was terribly busy, fixating on mistakes he couldn’t undo. “Yes,” he said, “come in.”
Wei Ying came in and hovered by the doorframe, looking down at where Lan Wangji was sitting on the floor. Lan Wangji gestured for him to sit down - he didn’t anticipate it being a short conversation. He had many apologies to make.
Body language unusually tense, Wei Ying slid down the wall, both knees up. A defensive posture, almost curled in on himself. “I have something to say,” he said, then paused.
Presumably trying to think of a kind way to let Lan Wangji down. “Mm.”
“First of all, I need to apologize.” Wei Ying said, looking over Lan Wangji’s head to the plain white wall of his room. “I know I’ve made things awkward, with the way I, uh, came on to you, and with my feelings. But it doesn’t need to change things. We can still be friends; we can move past this if you want to. I promise. But I can - we really can just be friends. Our friendship is important to me, and I’m enough of an adult to - give you space for as long as you need. But I miss you.”
Lan Wangji took a few deep breaths and a minute to parse out what Wei Ying was saying. Hope sang in him, but he did his best not to get carried away. “Your feelings?”
Wei Ying’s eyes darted to him, then away again. “Yeah, I mean, I know I’m not a subtle person, and you know me so well. I'm sure you’ve picked up on my, uh, little crush on you by now.”
Crush. Wei Ying’s little crush. Lan Wangji clenched his fist, relaxed it, to ground himself: he was not going to jump to conclusions, not yet. “Crush?”
“Oh, fuck me,” Wei Ying said, looking directly at Lan Wangji in rising horror. “Forget I said that. Nevermind. I know I -”
“No,” Lan Wangji said, before Wei Ying could carry the conversation away with him. “I will not forget. Is it true, that you have feelings for me?”
“Yes, but like I was saying just a second ago, your friendship is really important to me. Like, so important to me.” Wei Ying had been tense, but as he spoke he was practically vibrating, bouncing one leg and tapping his fingers. “I would never give that up just because my stu- well, I’m not going to say I don’t have great taste, because I do! You’re great! A great friend, too, which is the important thing, to me anyway, since I know you’re not interested in me, like that. Which is fine!”
Lan Wangji let Wei Ying talk, to give himself time to think. To process. To become sure that Wei Ying was not simply talking about physical chemistry.
“Platonic friendship is great! So can we forget this whole thing?” Wei Ying said, coming to a close.
“No,” Lan Wangji said.
Wei Ying’s face fell. Inexcusable.
“I have feelings for you as well.” Lan Wangji said. Wei Ying startled into a moment of genuine stillness. “Romantic feelings,” he clarified.
“Sexual feelings, too,” he added, when Wei Ying did not react.
Wei Ying laughed hysterically, dissolving, and Lan Wangji did his best not to flinch away. He was sure he was interpreting Wei Ying’s words correctly. “Deadass? Me? You have feelings for me?”
Lan Wangji could feel his lips twitch down. “Why is that so hard to believe?”
“Because you’re you,” Wei Ying said, regaining structural integrity. “You know, a sex god. Literally the kindest person I’ve ever met, and Yanli's my sister! And you’re incredibly talented at what you do, and smart as hell! Have I mentioned that you’re unbearably hot, and perfect in every way? And I’m me. I'm great! But I'm not-”
“You’re perfect,” Lan Wangji said. “I love you.”
Wei Ying made a noise like a boiling kettle and clapped both hands to his face. Lan Wangji couldn’t help but smile at him - he was adorable, and worthy of being adored. That only made Wei Ying squeak louder.
Lan Wangji knew he could return Wei Ying’s teasing, his provocations, as he had wanted to for so long, and he did not want to waste any more time. “May I kiss you now?”
Wei Ying’s hand dropped and, still stunned into silence, he simply nodded. He was still nodding as Lan Wangji unfolded himself so that he could close the gap, still nodding until Lan Wangji reached out to hold his face in one hand.
Wei Ying leaned into the touch. “Lan Zhan,” he breathed.
Lan Wangji kissed him. It was a heated kiss - he had been holding back for far too long for it not to be. And Wei Ying gave in, just as he had before, yielding to Lan Wangji before surging forward himself.
It was quick work to undress Wei Ying and to be undressed in turn, and a delight to be skin on skin. A part of Lan Wangji wanted to savor the moment, but there would be other moments, and so he had Wei Ying writhing under him as soon as he could, opening him up and taking him apart first with his mouth and hands.
Finally Wei Ying begged him for his cock: “Fuck me, Lan Zhan, please, Lan er-gege, please,” and Lan Wangji had never been one to deny his Wei Ying - his Wei Ying, truly, at last - anything.
Fucking Wei Ying was bliss. Wei Ying was never silent, but Lan Wangji did his best to leave him wordless, to reduce him to moaning. With satisfaction he had Wei Ying coming first, and he stilled the movement of his hips to watch Wei Ying’s face.
“Ah,” Wei Ying said, coming down from his orgasm, hair a sweaty fan over the crumbled sheets, “you’re so good to me, Lan Zhan. You can keep going.”
Lan Wangji started to move again, more gently.
Wei Ying beamed up at him, reached out and smoothed some hair from Lan Wangji’s brow. “Come on, baby, I love you, come for me.”
Lan Wangji came.
In his pleasure he collapsed on Wei Ying, who was laughing softly as Lan Wangji came back to himself and pulled out.
“You’re heavy,” Wei Ying wheezed, tapping at his shoulder. “Crushing me! Too much muscle.”
Lan Wangji rolled over, keeping Wei Ying in his arms, so that he ended up draped over him. Wei Ying didn’t resist, still giggling.
“Let me up,” he said, slapping Lan Wangji’s arm but making no attempt to actually move. “We need to go pee, or at least you do. And I need to clean up.”
“Mm.” Lan Wangji breathed in the smell of Wei Ying’s sweaty hair instead.
“Mm,” Wei Ying parroted, snuggling deeper into Lan Wangji’s arms, already sounding drowsy. “You caveman, not letting me up.”
“Love me for it,” Lan Wangji murmured, trying to keep it from being a question.
Wei Ying grinned up at him, one of the smiles that illuminated his whole face, and said, “I do love you for it. I love you.” He pressed a kiss to a hickey he had left, just below Lan Wangji’s collarbone. “And we are on your sheets,” he mumbled.
“Love you,” Lan Wangji said, as Wei Ying slipped into unconsciousness. Holding the man he loved, he decided that all his actions - the ones he had previously categorized as mistakes - were justified, in the end.
Two days into spring semester, Lan Wangji spotted his chance: Qin Su alone in the library, very near the campus-run cafe. Minutes later he approached her work station.
“Hi, Lan Wangji,” she said, looking up, “how’ve you been?”
“Well,” Lan Wangji said, because it was true. He and Wei Ying had been making up for lost time while he had no classes. He had already ‘repaid’ the favor he owed, from asking Wei Ying to be his fake date. “You?”
“Can’t complain,” she answered, then waved at the open seats at her table. “Wanna sit?”
“No. Coffee?”
“Uh -”
Lan Wangji set down the paperboard four cup beverage tray he had carried over. “That one has the coffee,” he explained, pointing to the different cups in turn. “Creamer, 2%. I got several sweeteners.”
Qin Su glanced between the cups and Lan Wangji, somewhere between amused and confused. “Thanks, I guess?”
“Was not sure how you take it.”
She laughed and added two sugars, the real ones, not the artificial sweeteners. “Black with sugar,” she said, redundant, “for future reference.”
“You should ask Luo Qingyang out, if you’re interested in her,” Lan Wangji said.
She started, almost spilling her coffee on her notes. “What?”
“She is attracted to you.”
Qin Su laughed again, at a higher pitch. “Why are you telling me this?”
Because Lan Wangji knew that he and Wei Ying would most likely not have ended up together, had she not innocently told him to invite him to the end-of-semester party; or at least, they would have wasted several more years dancing around their feelings. One good turn deserved another. “If you two are dating by the end of the semester, Wei Ying will win our bet.”
“Will win your -” Her eyebrows shot up as she drew her own conclusions. “Do not tell me what the stakes of the bet are, like, I support you but I need to be able to make eye contact with you, okay?”
“Will not tell,” Lan Wangji said. “But, bet aside, there is no reason for you to wait.”
Drumming her fingers on the table, Qin Su looked into the middle distance for a moment before she shook herself slightly and faced Lan Wangji down. “I’ll take it under advisement. I will let you know if there are any . . . developments. Of the dating variety. But don’t think I’ll forget that you and your boyfriend make bets about my love life.”
Satisfied, Lan Wangji nodded at her. “See you in class,” he said.
Qin Su snorted, already pulling out her phone. “See you.”
Once he was a respectable distance away, Lan Wangji took out his own phone, to send a text to Wei Ying: Hope Wei Ying has plans for the second favor.