"PingZe, let's go back to the inn," MingYu said as he stepped out of the enclosure, his fingertips still rubbing at his brow.
He doubted his previous life choices as a deity and Wu TianLan. This punishment was going nowhere. He had learned nothing new from Da Siming, the Wei's name kept sneering at him every time he glanced at the scroll, and what was even with the Liu's?
The headache was becoming overwhelming, and MingYu groaned.
"PingZe?"
No answer.
MingYu looked around, his attention now fully on his surroundings.
That damned demon had bailed on him.
"PingZe!" MingYu screamed, kicking his feet like a child. Of all the times to go on with his wanton ways, he decided to disappear now?!
"Excuse me, young master, I believe this belongs to you." A youth disrupted MingYu's little meltdown as he held the pewter staff in his hands, looking at MingYu warily. He was the only guy who even remotely resembled a monk in the entire area.
"The man standing here just now told me to give it to you."
"Uh, yes, thank you," MingYu muttered as he snatched the pewter staff from the boy's hands and hurried away from the stalls, ashamed that he had thrown a tantrum in front of a kid.
The Sun was retreating from its peak as MingYu weaved through the crowd that was flooding down the street, making his way upstream towards the inn.
Smiling, laughing faces passed by him, oblivious of all but their everyday life chores, responsibilities and mundane problems.
MingYu's movements were slow, his numb arm swayed awkwardly, hitting the passersby by accident, and he had to apologies to multitudes of women and even men who wanted to slap him for indecently groping them.
As the worst throng passed, MingYu let out a relieved breath. Taking a look around his surroundings to pinpoint where the inn was, his attention was drawn to a man walking down the street towards him.
The man was dressed in well-tailored robes, intricate lines of cherry blossom embroidery wrapped over his shoulders, down the front of his outer coat. A heavy jade swung by his sash, and one could tell he came from the riches. But something else had pulled MingYu's attention to him, and it had nothing to do with the way the man had dressed.
His steps were slow, and with a quick glance, one would think he was taking a leisure walk. A little jovial smile persisted on his lips. His eyes were set straight ahead, and as MingYu stopped in his tracks to study him, the man blinked. But it wasn't… natural. MingYu frowned as he watched the man walk closer until their nose nearly touched each other.
The guy had walked straight into MingYu, who was in no way small in comparison. ShiBai's body had an impressive height, and the man could barely see eye to eye with MingYu now that their chests were making close acquaintances in the middle of the street. There was no way he hadn't seen MingYu.
"Pardon me," The man said, his tone cheery. He hadn't even blinked at the sudden impact. His eyes weren't looking at MingYu as he stepped back and walked past him.
MingYu was frozen in place. His skin had prickled from the sudden encounter. Just now, he was sure he saw something crawling in the man's eyes. A slight shiver ran across his spine like trickling icy water, and his entire body shuddered at the thought. He must be seeing things because of the headache.
A hand smoothed over the small of his back, startling him when ZhiYi's warm breath brushed over his ear.
"What are you doing here alone?"
MingYu's tense posture eased at once, melting like butter under ZhiYi's touch.
"I was with PingZe, but then he just disappeared," MingYu complained as he was nudged to move forward.
AhXin was drooping over ZhiYi's arm like a wilted flower. MingYu wanted to reach out to brush over the boy's cheek, but his hand was already holding onto the staff, so he settled for watching the boy snore lightly.
"Where could he go?" ZhiYi said, his eyes blazing and promising of death.
"You know him the best, ZhiYi. You tell me."
YueQin had been trailing beside them quietly and now saw her chance to voice her knowledge.
"We drank together on the top floor of the inn last night. I think he was complaining about owning ink or ink owning him. It was hard to understand his drunken talk." YueQin said, smiling as she saw ZhiYi's eyes widen from realisation.
MingYu was still trying to understand what any of this had to do with PingZe ditching him at the stalls. When they finally reached the inn, the Sun was disappearing behind the looming buildings.
"Brother MingYu, how about today we go up the top floor to enjoy the cool air and the music?" YueQin asked, her eyes sparkling with hope. MingYu shook his head, and seeing her sullen expression, hurried to say,
"Not today, I'm exhausted. But we will all go together tomorrow night, promise."
"Ok," YueQin beamed at them before she bid goodnight and disappeared in her room down the hall.
The two men stepped into their room with an awkward silence.
MingYu was wringing the pewter staff in his hand, as he looked around, suddenly growing conscious of how ZhiYi had held him in his sleep the night before. ZhiYi was busying himself with AhXin, and taking this moment of distraction, MingYu tossed the staff aside and undid his robes in record time, stripping down to his undergarments. He gave himself a quick sniff to make sure he was still in the realm of bearable and jumped on the bed.
When ZhiYi had tucked AhXin away, he turned back to MingYu and looked visibly surprised that MingYu was that fast of a stripper.
"Are you sleepy?"
"Uh, yes, I'm tired," MingYu said but didn't make a move to lay down. He sat crossed-legged on his side of the bed, waiting… for something. He wasn't sure of what. He could feel his heart making its way down his stomach, beating in his guts. For the first time in his life, he wished he could have nightmares every day, so he could shamelessly sleep in ZhiYi's arms.
ZhiYi raised an eyebrow at him, and MingYu realised he had been staring at ZhiYi, expecting him to disrobe without even blinking. He quickly turned his gaze away, changing the subject.
"What's with PingZe and the ink?"
MingYu picked up his numb arm and let it fall on his lap with a thud to distract himself.
ZhiYi folded his robes over the chair in a neat pile and moved to the clothes MingYu had discarded haphazardly in his haste to reach the bed.
"I think I understand how the ink works now," ZhiYi said as he set MingYu's neat pile of robes over his own on the chair and blew the oil candle on the table off.
"Oh?"
"Fan ZhiHao's ink must mimic the ink used by the Yao's. But I don't think it is as potent."
MingYu's jaw dropped. "The ink used by the ruling family of Hell themselves?"
ZhiYi sat down on the bed, and in the darkness, MingYu could feel his stare on him. Blood rushed to his cheeks, ad he was glad it was dark.
The bed creaked.
"You know how it works? The Yao's ink?"
ZhiYi's voice came closer now as he leaned forward, his free-flowing hair draping over his shoulders.
MingYu's heart was pounding so hard, he was sure ZhiYi could hear it as his mind scrambled to think of the answer.
"I heard about in Heaven. They say the Yao's are born to the world without a string of fate. When they have chosen their partner, by marking the other one, they will tie the two souls together, which even death can't tear apart. If one dies, the other will die too."
"Do you think it's better? To get to choose yourself?" ZhiYi's breath tickled his ear, as ZhiYi took hold of his shoulders and gently guided him to lie down on his back. MingYu's brain stopped processing any information after that. He merely stared at ZhiYi as the man hovered over him, his hair draping around them like black curtains of ink.
"MingYu."
MingYu swallowed the lump in his throat, as ZhiYi whispered his name so close by, he almost melted into a pool of goo on the bed. It took all of his will to muster up a "Hm?"
They were so close their nose tips brushed over each other, and ZhiYi's hand came up to caress his cheek. MingYu's fingertips twitched, eager to reach out and-
"Goodnight."
"…" MingYu blinked as ZhiYi moved away, plopping down next to him after tucking MingYu under the blanket.
Wait, what? MingYu was simmering in his place, unsure of what just happened or what he had expected. His mind was racing ahead of itself. Just now he wanted to reach up and pull ZhiYi into a kiss. He was going out of his mind.
But unwilling to let the small ray of hope die completely, he turned to ZhiYi and snuck closer. ZhiYi had already closed his eyes, his long lashes brushing against his cheekbones. MingYu was lost in staring at the sleeping man like a creep when ZhiYi finally said,
"Can't sleep?"
"I'm afraid I'll have nightmares again," MingYu was getting good at little white lies and his pride as a man who was not scared of anything, the least nightmares, was pushed aside for now. PingZe never had good influences on others, but for once, MingYu was glad about it.
ZhiYi flickered his eyes open and turned to him with a smile.
"We can't have you trashing around and wake up AhXin in the middle of the night, now can we?"
MingYu was nodding like a bobblehead, and ZhiYi chuckled.
"I guess there is no way around it." ZhiYi spread his arm, making space for MingYu to move over his side. "Come here."
MingYu didn't have to be ordered twice. He wriggled over like an earthworm and snuggled right over ZhiYi's shoulder with a content smile.
"Better?" ZhiYi's voice seemed amused as he turned his body to wrap his free arm over MingYu's waist.
"Perfect," MingYu mumbled as he closed his eyes, falling asleep in ZhiYi's warm embrace.