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The last few hours had all been a blur to him.
Xie Lian felt as if he were being shook around by the hands of fate, following an unpredictable path towards what could only be disaster. That’s what it always seemed to be, anyway.
He burned Paradise Manor’s armory down, leaving a grumbling Hua Cheng in his wake. He got himself injured trying to protect Lang Qianqiu who later turned on him the moment they stepped foot back in Heaven. He’d snapped at his past student infront of a crowd, was detained, and then kidnapped after being akwardly stuffed between Feng Xin and Mu Qing’s arguing.
So it was quite fair to say that it left him a little dazed. Xie Lian didn’t feel up for anything other than a nice rest now.
“Spacing out on me? Best not to let your mind wander while I’m here.” said a voice next to him. Xie Lian blinked, then turned his head.
His gaze met with another’s, whose obsidian eye stared right back at him. “I see you’ve pulled your head out of the clouds now. Welcome back.” The person scoffed.
Xie Lian’s lips parted as if to speak, but the words died in his throat. He instead furrowed his brows and huffed.
Right, he was with Hua Cheng right now. The ghost king swept him away from his palace while he was detained, bursting in like he owned the place and grabbing Xie Lian’s arm as they escaped. The event had blurred together with the rest of the recent chaos he’d been roped into.
He tried not to think about it too hard anymore, lest he have another pounding a headache.
“…En, so we meet again.” He nodded.
The ghost king hummed in acknowledgment, but said nothing more. He released his hold on Xie Lian’s arm and instead clasped his hands behind his back, continuing on. There was no complaining, no teasing, nor fighting. It surprised the prince.
That was… more mild than he’d expected.
Xie Lian did nearly burn Hua Cheng’s house down, so he braced himself for a lashing. Especially considering that he and Hua Cheng have been at eachother’s throats for the last couple centuries, he thought there’d be more than just this.
“Hey… listen, if this is about the fire—“
Hua Cheng glared at him over his shoulder. “Don’t.”
Xie Lian ignored it. “I know I wrecked your residence and all, but this really isn’t the best time to discuss.”
“Shut it.”
He sighed. “Come on, atleast let me explain!”
“I said shut—“ he spun around and fiercely met Xie Lian’s eyes. Hua Cheng paused for a moment, then looked away. ”ugh, whatever.”
Xie Lian frowned, though he was too tired to spit anything back at Hua Cheng so he simply dropped his irritation and went along with the ghost king. Hua Cheng wordlessly took the prince’s hand in his own once more and lead them forward.
Neither said a word about it. In fact, they were mostly silent for the duration of their stroll.
They walked side-by-side in relative peace, which wasn’t at all normal. Xie Lian remembered that at times like these, they’d usually be taking jabs at eachother, or debating over some small problem at the shrine. He oddly missed those moments right now.
But Xie Lian couldn’t bring himself to dislike this either. Was it strange that he felt safer in the company of his enemy than he did in the heavens? Was it… wrong?
Out of the corner of his eye, Xie Lian caught Hua Cheng glancing down at him. He didn’t look back, though he still observed the other quietly.
And the changes were barely noticeable at first, but the farther they traveled, the more obvious it became. Hua Cheng’s grasp grew tighter and his glances, unnervingly frequent. It eventually got to the point that neither of them could ignore it anymore.
“San Lang, are you alright?” Xie Lian asked.
The corners of Hua Cheng’s lips twitched downward. He didn’t reply.
“What’s going on? You’re tense.” He coaxed further. Xie Lian hesitantly used his free hand to cover Hua Cheng’s.
He figured that if the ghost king was being this quiet, then he shouldn’t reciprocate with a biting remark. Something was bothering him.
Hua Cheng’s steps faltered at the touch. His grasp loosened as he slowed their pace, though it was a long while before he responded.
“Your wrist,” The ghost king finally said. “it has hand marks.”
“Ah,” Xie Lian looked down at his arm. There were indeed red streaks left over from when Lang Qianqiu seized him earlier, but he thought they would have faded by now. “It’s alright, it’s not a big deal.” He dismissed without much concern.
Hua Cheng’s expression twisted at that. He grimaced, “Gege…” and said in warning. His voice was dangerously low.
Hua Cheng stopped walking altogether. He held up Xie Lian’s injured arm and scrutinized it for what felt like an eternity. Xie Lian didn’t resist though, curious at the ghost king’s strangely gentle touch.
“San Lang.” The prince softly addressed him in turn.
Hua Cheng’s fingers traced over his palms, as if searching for something. He then travelled down to Xie Lian’s wrists, where the marks began. His expression instantly soured upon seeing it. “Who did this to you?”