Chapter Text
Wei Wuxian pulled his leather coat tighter around himself as he hurried down the sidewalk. He tried to play it off as a defense against the cold, not wanting to admit an itch of nervousness in his body. He never should have offered to cover the night shift in the first place. He hadn’t stopped to consider what it would mean.
He didn’t realize he’d have to walk through clan territory after dark.
Nearly thirteen years of playing it safe, all to be undone by trying to be a good guy and taking a triple shift. Maybe if he hadn’t been asked four hours into his double shift he might have realized what a bad idea it was. Instead he’d agreed without thinking about it because the night shift girl had a sick baby.
Now here he was, with nothing more than a thin pair of scrubs and his worn leather jacket to protect him from the cold and the gangs. He felt the old familiar sensation, the tingling on the back of his neck, he fought to keep the pace unhurried. He allowed himself to hunch his shoulders, pulling the collar of his coat just a bit higher. It could be passed off as a response to the cold.
Just a few more blocks to the bus station, he reminded himself as he fought his instincts. All he had to do was get there. He could do this. He just had to not draw any more attention to himself. He took a deep breath to steady his nerves.
Only to nearly trip as he smelt them.
Alphas .
His heart pounded in his chest as he tried to remain calm. His hand shakily wrapped around the can of pepper spray in his pocket, the only weapon he allowed himself. Just a few more blocks, he reminded himself. He put a little more speed into his walk.
A wolf whistle marked his mistake.
How could he be so stupid? Thirteen years and suddenly he was soft and stupid. He’d sped up. He’d let them know he knew they were there, lingering in the shadows. In the dimly lit street, there was only one way he could have known they were there. He’d smelled them. He’d reacted to their scents, confirming he was what they suspected.
An omega walking alone through clan territory after dark.
“Hey there, pretty thing!” A voice called out.
Wei Wuxian’s hand tightened around the can of pepper spray. Maybe they would lose interest if he just ignored them.
“Don’t ignore us bitch!”
Wei Wuxian grit his teeth as he continued marching on. The moment he stopped walking he was as good as theirs. He cursed himself for being so stupid. He should have paid more attention to when the shift ended. He should have stayed at the hospital until someone else could walk with him, or called an uber. He shouldn’t have sped up.
“My friends are talking to you.”
Wei Wuxian’s eyes widened as a hulking form slid out of the shadows, planting itself on the sidewalk in front of him. They took up almost the entire sidewalk, their pungent scent filling up the rest. Alpha, probably the one in charge of those behind Wei Wuxian. Wei Wuxian had no other way to go other than to enter the street, but luckily he hadn’t forgotten all of his safety measures.
“I’m sorry, did you say something?” He questioned raising his own voice. It was to sell the bit, but also on the off chance someone else might notice. He raised his hand to his ear, pulling an ear bud out of it. His finger pressed the nub on the side of it at the same time, the music now lowly audible.
He could see the effect on the alpha in front of him. His eyes flickered to the white bud and then back to Wei Wuxian.
“Didn’t your mama tell you not to walk alone after dark?” The alpha’s eyebrow arched. A smile spread on his face. The silver tips of his fangs glinting in the low light.
“Need a mama to have one tell you what to do,” Wei Wuxian shrugged. The exterior calm he was projecting contrasting with the heart rabbiting in his chest. He was thankful for the scent patch still on his neck, otherwise he never would have had a chance.
How far he’d fallen.
Here he was letting a puny group of alphas scare him. He’d been the fucking Yiling Patriarch, he’d made alphas run in fear of him. Hell, he had the whole underworld terrified of him. Thirteen years ago these alphas wouldn’t have dared to accost him on the street. If they had, they’d soon regret it.
But that was before Wei Wuxian had shattered, body and mind.
The Yiling Patriarch was dead, even Wei Wuxian was dead. He hadn’t been part of the underworld for thirteen years. He might have continued to be if he hadn’t been so stupid. His hand tightened further around the pepper spray. He was rusty enough to fall into this trap, but what about his fighting skills? He still worked out. Would it be enough? Or should he let them take what they wanted?
The wave of nausea that came with the thought cemented his option.
“We’ve got a funny one boss,” A voice nervously chuckled from behind Wei Wuxian. His head shifted towards it, catching sight of a scrawny man. From the way he was twitching, with disheveled hair and dark circles under his eyes, Wei Wuxian pegged him as an addict. He’d be the most dangerous in a fight. Addiction would make him unpredictable.
“What, no dad to tell you not to walk alone after dark either? This is clan territory, babydoll.”
“Hello, A-Ying, you might not remember me but I remember you. How would you like to come home with me? Be a part of my family.” Wei Wuxian tried not to physically react to the memory suddenly invading his senses. He swallowed it down. Ghosts of all kinds tonight.
“Or no daddy?” A voice snickered behind Wei Wuxian.
Wei Wuxian took a breath, they liked to talk. He could work with that. He might get out of this without a fight. He just had to talk his way out. He was good at that, wasn’t he? Or had those skills gotten just as rusty? He supposed there was only one way to find out.
“Boys,” Wei Wuxian sighed, settling the hand that wasn’t around the mace in his coat pocket on his hip as he popped it. “Do you really think I’m dumb enough to walk through clan territory without protection?”
He couldn’t see the alpha in front of him falter, but he could smell it. His scent wavering just enough to calm the furiously beating heart in Wei Wuxian’s chest. He could do this without fighting. He’d keep his hands clean.
“He works at Dafan General boss,” One of the men behind him spoke up. “I see him walking through here during the day.”
Wei Wuxian’s skin prickled at the insinuation that the man had noticed him. Maybe he should reconsider his walking routes, or finally give in and buy himself a car. His hand tightened around the can of mace.
“You an associate?” The alpha in front of him questioned, moving in closer.
“What do you think?” Wei Wuxian arched an eyebrow back. Keep it vague, he reminded himself. Let them draw their own conclusions.
“Hold on boss,” A voice behind Wei Wuxian piped up. “General is neutral territory, ain’t it?”
“It’s a hospital, not a street.” Wei Wuxian shot back, not letting his eyes leave the alpha in front of him.
“We’ve got clan doctors boss, why do we need a nurse?” The twitchy one questioned. His eyes narrowed as he studied Wei Wuxian. Just Wei Wuxian’s luck the man was on something that gave him paranoia.
“What, you’ve never had a civilian call an ambulance on you?” Wei Wuxian fibbed. “Who do you think makes sure the police don’t get called when you come in with a gunshot wound?”
“Makes sense.” One of the alphas behind Wei Wuxian muttered.
“No it ain’t!” The addict protested. “He’s lying, or covering for something! I know it. I got a feeling.”
Wei Wuxian wanted to roll his eyes. The look of contemplation on the lead alphas face was enough to stop him, of course he’d believe the addict over him. The addict was part of his crew. Wei Wuxian was just a stupid omega walking alone through clan territory after dark. His mind spun, quickly trying to think of a way out of this.
“Fine,” He huffed as he straightened. He flicked his ponytail for a bit more emphasis. “You got me, usually no one is stupid enough to mess with me. I was enjoying our little game,” He pouted, watching the lead alphas' eyes drop to his lips. “You better hope he’s in a good mood,” He let a sly smile pull up his lips. “At least my scrubs are already dirty, I can do our washing together.”
“Him?” The alpha swallowed.
“Mhm,” Wei Wuxian hummed. Whoever the alpha was thinking of was more than enough for them to consider messing with him, which was just what he needed. “He’ll be very angry, now your scent is all over me.” He tilted his head, turning his voice into the petulant pout he always heard side pieces use. “I just worked a triple shift, and now you idiots are interfering with our time together. He’s always more violent when he’s horny.”
“He’s lying!” The addict twitched.
“Is someone going through withdrawal?” Wei Wuxian rolled his eyes.
“I know he’s lying,” The addict shifted closer to the lead alpha. “Why would they let him wander through clan territory like this?”
“Because I’m an independent omega?” Wei Wuxian snorted back. He sighed as he saw the lead alpha wasn’t going for it. “He was busy and I didn’t want to bother him.” He pouted, knowing he had long perfected the look of someone who’d been caught doing something he shouldn’t. “And I wanted to surprise him when he got home.” He batted his eyelashes for extra measure.
“Aw-”
The note admiration was cut off by a low grunt, no doubt due to being elbowed in the gut. Unfortunately, they weren’t the ones who needed to buy it. From the stink eye the addict was giving him, he might not talk his way out of this. His hand tightened on the mace again.
“Don’t buy it boss,” The addict twitched. “I got a feeling.”
“Last time your feeling was you pissing yourself,” The lead alpha snorted.
“Not one of those feelings,” The addict saddled closer. “More like when I knew my ex was stepping out on me.”
“We all know you haven’t trusted an omega since!” A man snorted from behind Wei Wuxian.
“Come on, I just worked a triple shift,” Wei Wuxian batted his eyelashes one more time. “I just want to go home to my alpha.”
“What’s his name?” The addict jumped.
“What?” Wei Wuxian blinked.
“His name.” A large grin lit up the addict's face as he shifted closer. “Surely your alpha has one, that is if he isn’t imaginary.”
“I don’t see why that matters,” Wei Wuxian shot back, his hand tightening around the mace in his pocket.
“Don’t see?” The addict shifted, like a vulture approaching a dead body. “You want his protection, but won’t give us his name? That’s a bit backwards, ain’t it?’
“His name.” The lead alpha demanded, Wei Wuxian’s eyes jumping back to him.
Dozens of names flew through Wei Wuxian’s mind, but in the end it was a knee jerk reaction.
“Lan Zhan.”
He felt the alphas go still around him.
“You’d probably know him by Lan Wangji,” Wei Wuxian nervously babbled on. “Or Hanguang-Jun? He’s a bit taller than I am, possibly the most gorgeous man to ever walk this earth? Skin like white jade, the longest eyelashes you’ll ever see. Light eyes that light up like gold when the light hits them just right?”
Wei Wuxian didn’t know why he couldn’t stop his babbling. He knew the key to success here was being vague, yet here he was gushing about eye color. He’d gone thirteen years without talking about Lan Wangji. Thirteen years without talking about anyone he’d known in his youth, other than a few details to push anyone who might inquire off. It was like he was a teenager again, harassing Lan Wangji from across the library with poetic lines.
“He’s even got this little-” Wei Wuxian broke off as he refocused on the lead alpha, his heart dropping at the look the man was giving the men behind him.
It was all the warning he got before an arm was snaking around his neck. Luckily, just because his mind was distracted didn’t mean Wei Wuxian’s body was. Gone were his days in the clans, but paranoia had pushed him to keep himself in shape.
And it turned out his fighting skills weren’t as rusty as he feared.
Wei Wuxian’s free hand shot up, catching the alpha’s fist before it could complete the circle around his neck. His nails dug in as he spun, his other hand withdrawing from his pocket. The mace hissed as it flew while Wei Wuxian’s foot lashed out nailing the man in the balls.
The man fell like a rock.
Wei Wuxian’s gaze flew up, seeing the alpha’s beginning to circle like a well organized pack. Steel flashing in the dim streetlamps as they withdrew their knives. Wei Wuxian gritted his teeth as he adjusted his hold on his mace. He’d never had to use it before, but he didn’t know if there’d be enough to take down five more alphas. His eyes fell to the butterfly knife glinting from the downed alpha’s belt. Before he could second guess himself, he darted forward to grab it.
He hadn’t wielded a weapon in thirteen years.
But the flick of his pinky to disengage the lock, and the subsequent roll of his wrist to expose the blade felt as natural as his own breathing. His grip shifted as he felt out the weight of the knife, matching the way his own weight shifted on his feet. His eyes darted around the group, waiting for their first move.
“Huanguang-Jun’s bitch,” The lead alpha leared at him. “We’ve been waiting for an opportunity like this, boys! Finally we take the bastard down a peg.”
“Who’s calling Huanguang-Jun a bitch?” A voice roared.
A white blur crashed into one of the alphas, disrupting their perfectly planned circling. Wei Wuxian took advantage of the surprise, spinning into the nearest alpha. He made a swift downward slash, following it up with a spray of mace to the face. The alpha falling with a howl.
“Jingyi!”
The call was followed by the sound of a blade whistling through the air. Wei Wuxian saw it glinting in the low light out of the corner of his eye, a low grunt telling him it had hit its target. The group of alphas might have had more in numbers, but it was clear that Wei Wuxian and the two strangers out matched them in skill.
Meaning the alphas were reduced to moaning bodies in minutes.
“Call Hanguang-Jun a bitch one more time!” One of the strangers, a boy really, was seething as his foot was leaving an impression on the lead alphas face.
Wei Wuxian glanced at the two new faces. Both of them were young, too young if you asked Wei Wuxian. Then again, he didn’t have much room to talk. He’d been on the front lines at fifteen. He’d been running errands for years before that. If the white clothes weren’t enough proof of their Clan, Wei Wuxian could see the trademark white ribbons tied around their foreheads. He tried not to swear as he made out the outline of clouds on them. Inner blood relatives of the Lan Clan.
“I didn’t! I was calling his omega a bitch! I swear!”
“Liar! Hanguang-Jun doesn’t have an omega.” The boy seethed.
“I knew you were lying! I knew it!” The addict cackled at Wei Wuxian. He hissed as he delivered a sharp kick to the man, knocking him out cold.
“You said you were his omega?” The boy’s head whipped to look at Wei Wuxian. The dark silky locks of his pony tail flaring out around him. “You think you’re good enough for him? What gives you the right!”
Wei Wuxian flinched back, holding up his hands in defense as the boy stalked over to him. It would be just his luck that the first time he invoked a name from his past, it came rushing back at him.
“Jingyi?” The other boy’s voice sounded, the tone of it wavering.
Wei Wuxian looked over, and felt his stomach drop at the sight of the deep red stain seeping into the boy’s white shirt. A knife sticking out of his gut.
“Sizhui!” Lan Jingyi seemed to forget whatever offense Wei Wuxian had bestowed on him, or more importantly his precious Hanguang-Jun. He darted to the other’s side, his hand moving to the knife. Wei Wuxian’s eyes went wide.
“Don’t!” Wei Wuxian called, but it was too late. The boy had pulled it out. “Shit-” He swore as he hurried over.
“Back off!” Lan Jingyi growled. The sharp scent of an alpha flaring out around them.
“I’m a trauma nurse,” Wei Wuxian growled back. “You’re the idiot who removed the knife, now do you want your friend to live or not?”
He took the young boy’s faltering as permission, swooping in to press his hands into the wound. The blood was hot as it seeped through his fingers, a familiar feeling to ground him. From the way Lan Jingyi was panicking, it was one he hadn’t adjusted to.
“Call an ambulance,” Wei Wuxian ordered the boy.
“I can’t-”
“Then call your clan’s doctor,” Wei Wuxian cut him off with a growl. “If he doesn’t see a doctor, and soon, he won’t make it.” He leveled. “You don’t get this much blood from a surface wound. From the angle it might have hit an organ, if you don’t have surgery available ask which hospital is on payroll. If you take longer than five minutes, I will call Dafan General.”
“Right,” Lan Jingyi nodded, a hand scrambling for his phone.
“That bad?” The stabbed boy offered weakly.
“What’s your name?” Wei Wuxian hummed, meeting the boy’s gaze. He had a handsome face, delicate features lending to a rather dignified face. Even now, Wei Wuxian could see him attempting to keep up his composure.
“Lan Sizhui.”
“Pretty name,” Wei Wuxian smiled.
“My a-die gave it to me,” The boy groaned as Wei Wuxian put more pressure on his wound. For a moment there was a flash of familiarity. Wei-gongzi- Wei Wuxian took a breath as he banished another ghost.
“First time being stabbed?” He tried to distract himself.
“Mn,” The boy nodded. Wei Wuxian saw him wince.
“First one is always the hardest,” Wei Wuxian winked at him. “Are you pretty good friends with him?” He nodded his head in the direction of Lan Jingyi. The boy had leaned away, hurriedly speaking into his cell phone.
“Yeah,” Lan Sizhui nodded.
“Best buds? Brother’s in arms?” Wei Wuxian prodded. He saw a soft blush form on the boy’s cheeks. “A bit more?” He winked. The deepening red told him the answer. “My advice?” He leaned in. “He won’t judge you if you show pain. I definitely won’t go around telling anyone. There will be plenty of other times to be stoic.”
He saw the boy’s jaw set, before loosening. His head fell back, his features contorting with the pain. Wei Wuxian gave out a hum, turning his attention down to the blood seeping through his fingers.
“I’m going to put a bit more pressure on now,” He murmured, putting more of his weight on the boy’s wound. It earned him a cry of pain, a beacon drawing Lan Jingyi back.
“You’re hurting him!” He hissed, his hand darting to hold one of Lan Sizhui’s. His fingers working the clenched fingers open.
“It’s fine,” Lan Sizhui exhaled. Wei Wuxian saw him squeeze Lan Jingyi’s hand. He ducked his head, trying to give them some privacy. “I trust him.”
Wei Wuxian’s eyes widened, trust was a rare thing in their world. Or at least it had when Wei Wuxian had been a part of it. He caught a glare out of the corner of his eye from Lan Jingyi, seeing his hand tightening around Lan Sizhui’s.
“Keep him talking,” Wei Wuxian murmured softly.
“It’s going to be a dope scar,” Lan Jingyi laughed. Wei Wuxian could hear the nerves in his voice. “That’s two you’ve got on me know.”
“You have a scar,” Lan Sizhui chuckled, following it with a groan of pain.
“Not a baddass one!” Lan Jingyi protested.
“It’s very badass,” Lan Sizhui’s brow furrowed.
“Sure, you think so.” Lan Jingyi rolled his eyes. Wei Wuxian saw them flicker towards his direction.
“How long until the ambulance arrives?”
“We had one in the area,” Lan Jingyi explained. “It’ll be here any minute.”
“Medics on board?”
“No, but the driver is the best in the city.” Lan Jingyi replied. “Right Sizhui? Sizhui!”
Wei Wuxian glanced over, seeing the boy’s face had gone slack. He gritted his own teeth as Lan Jingyi’s scent exploded around them. Wei Wuxian’s stomach growling as it reminded him of sesame chicken.
“What did you do! I thought you said he’d keep him from dying!” Lan Jingyi rounded on him.
“Calm down,” Wei Wuxian shot back. “He’s just passed out.”
“I’ll kill-”
“Jingyi.”
Wei Wuxian felt every hair on his body stand up, his blood turning cold in his veins. His eyes became glued to his own hands, not daring to look up. After all these years, he still sounded the same. Straight out of Wei Wuxian’s dreams, a low baritone dripping with gravitas. The kind that made his skin tingle.
Wei Wuxian’s eyes closed for a moment. He couldn’t be here. Why would he be here? Shouldn’t he be tucked away somewhere, helping run things? Why would he be on the streets? On the same night Wei Wuxian made his first mistake in thirteen years.
“Hanguang-Jun!” Lan Jingyi breathed. “Sizhui-”
Wie Wuxian’s attention was pulled away as someone appeared at his elbow. An average blank face and a ribbon to match making him nothing more than a grunt.
“Do you have bandages? Medical supplies?” Wei Wuxian turned to the matter at hand.
“Here,” The person produced a kit.
They worked quickly, quickly bandaging the wound so they could get him off the ground. Wei Wuxian’s hands were pressing back into it the moment they were in the van, eying out the hollowed back. His eyes lit up as he saw a familiar crate.
“You’ve got blood,” Wei Wuxian exhaled. “Kid!” He called for Lan Jingyi. The boy jogging along side Lan Wangji. His mouth moved as they quietly discussed something. “I need you to take over.” He nodded to the hands.
“What?” Lan Jingyi’s eyes widened. “What if I put too much? Or too little?”
“Just get over here,” Wei Wuxian snapped. He resisted growling as the boy hesitated. “Or would you prefer to put the IV in?”
It got the boy moving, stumbling over as the van started off. The blood on Wei Wuxian’s hands smeared against the boy's white skin as he pressed over it, demonstrating how much pressure he needed to apply. The moment Wei Wuxian was comfortable with his pressure, he hurried over to the blood chest.
“Do you know his blood type?”
“AB.”
“At least they taught you something,” Wei Wuxian muttered as he made his way to the blood box.
“Excuse me?”
Wei Wuxian waved him off as he rifled through the packs, grabbing the other supplies he needed before using the momentum of the van to get back to Lan Sizhui’s side. He tore open the needle pack, thankful he started out as an EMT.
“Should you really be-”
Wei Wuxian glanced up at Lan Jingyi as he drove the needle home. He watched the boy’s protests die, his eyes dropping back down to his own hands. HIs brow furrowing at the sight of the blood now staining them and his sleeves.
“How are you so calm?” Lan Jingyi muttered.
“I’m a trauma nurse,” Wei Wuxian snorted. “It’s my job to be calm.” He added as he hooked the blood bag to the appropriate hook set into the ceiling. “Started as an EMT.” He moved to take over from Lan Jingyi.
The trip went quickly, thankfully for Lan Sizhui’s sake. The back doors opened, and Lan Jingyi and Wei Wuxian shifted to get Lan Sizhui unloaded.
“You're the nurse?” A man in clean scrubs greeted them as they unloaded Lan Sizhui.
“Trauma at Dafan General,” Wei Wuxian nodded. “Applied pressure, started blood, from the fact he’s still bleeding I think it nicked something important.”
“I’ve got surgery prepped,” The doctor nodded. “But I could use the extra hand.”
“I couldn’t,” Wei Wuxian’s eyes widened.
“You can’t? If you hadn’t pretended to be Hanguang-Jun’s omega he wouldn’t even be stabbed!”
Wei Wuxian could feel a pair of eyes burning into the back of his neck. Wei Wuxian swallowed, wiping his hands on his now filthy scrubs. He gave the doctor a nervous smile.
“I’ll need new scrubs.”
“Right this way,” Someone appeared by his elbow.
Wei Wuxian let himself fall into the routine of prepping for surgery. He’d long learned how to use it to distract him from what was going on in his life, slipping into the cool calm and numb mindset that made him so steady as a trauma nurse.
Yet, for the first time in a while he found thoughts creeping in. Some were benign, like noticing the Lan still paid for top of the line facilities. Others were more damaging, like whether or not Lan Wangji had recognized him. If he had, how long would it take him to turn him over to the Jiang or the Jin?
You, me and A-Cheng together forever.
The memory tore through Wei Wuxian like a knife. He took a deep breath as he planted his hands on the edge of the sink he was scrubbing down in. There was a boy in there who needed him to be focused. He couldn’t waste time on ghosts of his past.
“You okay?” The doctor’s voice cut through as he stepped up to the other side of the sink. The automated spout came to life so he could scrub down.
Take a moment to ground yourself. Count your breathing, wiggle your toes, hum, remind yourself that you are in this moment. Your past is behind you, it can’t hurt you .
“I’m good,” Wei Wuxian exhaled once he hit his zone, all else fading away. “Let’s get started.”
Α-Ω-Α-Ω-Α-Ω-Α-Ω
Mo Xuanyu.
Amnesiac with a history of ferality. Unknown origin. Works at Dafan General as a trauma nurse, where he has glowing reviews despite his unorganized paperwork. No known significant other, social media presence nearly non-existent. Neighbors find him friendly and helpful, although he keeps his distance. Usually goes for drinks with coworkers at least once a week, and has frequent meetings with a Dr. Xiao.
Lan Wangji flipped through the file in front of him. The furrow in his brow deepened with each flip of a paper. He could practically smell the sweat off the lackey in front of him, worsening the longer Lan Wangji was silent. Before the smell could get too pungent, Lan Wangji glanced up.
“No photos.”
“It was a very quick assignment sir,” The lackey stammered. “If I had a few days, I could take surveillance-”
“I did not ask for surveillance,” Lan Wangji felt his patience growing thin. “He is working on one of our family. We need to know if he’s trustworthy.”
“How are photos going to help with that?” Lan Wangji’s jaw clenched as he glared at the lackey. He saw the man’s throat bob with fear. The first trickle of his scent, something that smelled nauseatingly like pork began to trickle out. “I’ll see what I can find sir.”
Lan Wangji waited until the man left to exhale. The sound was low and long as he reached up to rub his eyes. He could still see Lan Sizhui’s pale, slack face. The deep crimson that stained his clothes. He’d been injured before, but not like this.
Lan Zhan reached out for his keyboard, quickly tapping the keys until he had the security feed for the OR. His jaw clenched as he saw his son on the table, a mask covering the lower half of his face. He focused on the rise and fall of his chest, the blips of the heart monitor.
The fear of losing him was bitter in Lan Wangji’s mouth.
He itched to scrub up, to hold his son's hand. He wouldn’t be able to once he woke up. ‘Hovering’ was what Lan Sizhui called it. Even Lan Wangji’s presence in the aid van had earned him glares and flushed cheeks of embarrassment. Reminders the boy wasn’t so little any more, that he was starting to stretch his wings.
It was movement on another camera that caught Lan Wangji’s attention. His eyes narrowed as he watched Mo Xuanyu’s mouth move. A smile curled up the corner of his mouth, making Lan Wangji’s eyes narrow. He clicked on the feed, turning up the sound.
“I can’t believe you know the Doc,” Mo Xuanyu was saying.
“We were practically joined at the hip back in medical college!” Doctor Lan chuffed. “The trouble we got into, I could write books! Tell the old man I say hello will you? No! Even better, tell him the pale side of the moon says hello!”
“I will,” Mo Xuanyu laughed as he started tugging off the soiled scrubs. Lan Wangji’s eyes fell to the man’s chest, narrowing as he saw tattoos. He clicked, trying to zoom in to see if he could make out any gang affiliations.
“It’s always such fun hearing of old friends,” Doctor Lan chuckled to himself. “Back then we thought we’d be together forever, taking on the world.”
Lan Wangji wouldn’t have noticed if he wasn’t staring so intently at Mo Xuanyu’s tattoos. Suddenly they were dancing as his breathing picked up. Lan Wangji’s eyes flickered up to the man’s face, watching it contort for a moment. The man’s body pressed forward into the sink as he braced himself, his eyes closing as he took a deep breath.
The cameras barely picked up the man’s humming, but it still made Lan Wangji’s blood freeze just the same.
“You okay?” The doctor’s voice sounded. The rushing water of the sink drowned out the melody as it was hummed..
“I’m good,’ Mo Xuanyu exhaled, his face eerily calm as his eyes opened. “Let’s get started.”
Lan Wangji watched numbly as Mo Xuanyu finished scrubbing up. The melody playing over in his head. The melody he’d only shared with two people. He felt a flicker ignite in a space in his chest that had long gone cold. A small beacon of hope.
Wei Ying.