Chapter Text
Wei Ying had a drinking problem. Would he admit to it, not really. He would excuse it as everyone enjoys a nice, strong drink on a Friday night after work and laughs it off. But for him, one drink became two, which became unlimited, and he never remembered after the fourth one. Most times, he woke up in his own bed, but how he got home, he’d never remember. So after years of blackouts, he didn’t think much of it. After all, it happened semi-regularly, and he thought it was common for everyone to black out all the time. He also never thought to ask his friends about it either.
Occasionally, he’d wake up in a park on a bench with a police officer nudging him. He’d apologize and stumble his way home with a killer headache. Those times were far and in between. Waking up in someone else’s bed with no memory at all was few, but he tried not to think about it too hard. If he did, it made him sick to his stomach. There were a few times that he’d woken up, looked at the stranger, and regretted everything. It had mostly been strangers, but on the rare occasion it was someone he did know, it made his stomach feel awful.
Which was something he was feeling right now. In fact, he’d been sick to his stomach for a little while now. With his constant drinking, his memory wasn’t the best. He could remember certain things really well, things that were work-related, but in his personal life, chunks were missing. He’d last woken up in a stranger's bed five weeks ago, which he semi-remembered. When he woke up, he said a stranger wasn’t there. Not wanting to wait for them to return, Wei Ying had left. It was early in the morning, but once he’d woken up, he decided he was sober enough to figure out where he was and try to get home. His body ached in a way that implied that they definitely had sex. It wasn’t the first time something like this had happened. He didn’t want to wait for the stranger to come back, wherever they had gone off to. Likely, they left and wanted him gone by the time they came back. He knew when he wasn’t welcome, and he wasn’t going to overstay. It was early enough that the buses had started running, so he had a way home anyways. A quick look at his phone before it died told him he wasn’t too far from home. The bus ride felt miserable as he was tired, hungover, and sore. But this was the way his life was, so he wrote off the experience as nothing to worry about.
He’d gotten home, showered, and then passed out and slept until four in the afternoon. He’d only woken up because his friend, Nie Huisang, was calling him. It was a phone call he wanted to ignore, but didn’t. He knew if he didn’t answer it, he’d have the other pounding on his front door in 20 minutes to see if he was home and alive. He knew from experience, Nie Huisang would do it if he didn’t pick up the phone.
“Hello?” He grumbled.
“Dude, I was starting to question if you were still alive.”
“Huh?”
“I saw you leave with a stranger, and you didn’t text me when you got home. In fact, your phone was dead for quite a while. I saw your location disappear, and I got worried.”
Grumbling, he replied, “It died while I was on the bus back. I’m fine.”
“So, how was it?”
“How was what?”
“Don’t be Coy, the handsome stranger you left with.”
“Who?”
“Don’t tell me you didn’t get his name.”
“Nie Huisang… I don’t remember anything past you saying, Let’s take shots. I woke up at someone’s house, but they weren’t there when I woke up. So I took the bus home and slept it off.”
“Wei Ying.” Nie Huisang sighed. “We talked about this. You can’t keep doing this to yourself. We’re not going out anymore. I said I was cutting you off from bars and clubs last time, and then it happened two more times after that. So it’s official, we’re not going out to drink anymore. You can’t keep sleeping with strangers that you can’t remember.”
“Nie Huisang.” Wei Ying whined.
“Nope. You’ve been cut off. I’ll tell those other two friends of yours, too- the doctor and her brother. She’s wanted you to cut back on drinking anyway. She’ll support this. She’s been on you for your liver.”
“Listen, it’s fine, I just drink a little too much, and I don’t remember very well, it’s not like it’s a problem. It only happens sometimes. Besides, my liver is fine. She said it was just a warning to watch out for, not that I had an actual issue.”
“Wei Ying, even if it’s only happening sometimes, it’s still a problem, but it’s also happening consistently. I’ve gotten calls about you in the park, at the bus stop, hell, on the subway one time. I said I was cutting you off from drinking before, and it’s time I actually listened and enforced my words. Welcome to sobriety, Wei Ying. It’ll be good for you.”
“I didn’t agree to this.” Wei Ying responded, he felt trapped.
“You will unless you want me to call your brother and tell him where you are. I know he’s still asking around at times- especially asking my brother. But my brother promised me he wouldn’t say anything. Don’t give me a reason to tell him.”
“You wouldn’t.” Wei Ying said coldly. Jiang Cheng had no business in his life now that they’d parted ways years ago. He could keep asking around for all he cared, but he refused to talk to him. He was done with that family, forever.
“I would. You need help, Wei Ying. I enabled you for far too long. It’s time we put an end to this- take accountability and responsibility. I’m not saying it has to be forever. Let’s do a month- I’ll do it too. Sober for 30 days, and we see who can outlast the other. If you beat me, I’ll give you… money. And if you do 3 months, I’ll double the money on day 90.”
“How much?”
“3,000 dollars?”
“Deal.” Wei Ying agreed, he needed the money more than Huisang realized.
“If you lose, you have to give me 3,000 dollars, got it?”
Wei Ying gulped; he didn’t have that kind of money lying around like Nie Huisang. He had to pay rent and bills. There was no way he could let his friend win; he couldn’t afford to pay him. Nie Mingjue didn’t pay horribly, but Wei Ying wasn’t the best with his money. Often, he spent it on alcohol after paying all of his bills and student loans. Plus, all the other things he had to pay, things he didn’t tell his friends about.
“Fine.” He agreed.
Wei Ying hadn’t thought about that phone call for weeks until he threw up his breakfast. He hadn’t drunk in almost six weeks, yet he was sick. He’d eaten some fish that smelt like it could’ve gone off, so he passed off his sickness as food poisoning. He’d taken on a new project at work, and because it was still in the early design stages, he had a lot of meetings with the clients over their goals and deliverables. Because of the constant back-to-back meetings, he’d not been eating the best. So, he’d ordered some delivery and ate his lunch at his desk as he opened up his sketch book and looked at his designs. The client wanted a lot of things- a logo, website, cohesive branding for all the social media accounts, and this guy wanted all of it within two weeks, which was an insane deadline. It would be rough, but he could do it.
Putting himself under immense work pressure but taking away his usual outlet of drinking meant he was stressed in new ways. He started taking on more projects to fill his more empty social calendar. Nie Husaing still insisted on hanging out often, but it wasn’t the same. To refuse temptation, they didn’t go anywhere where he could easily get alcohol, and by no means was he going to a bar or club. Which meant he went to work and came home every day. Which meant they were hanging out in his apartment and watching movies. Wei Ying wasn’t used to sitting still. So, he needed distractions, and for him, he buried himself in his work. When he wasn’t overworking himself for his day job, he was taking on smaller graphic design jobs that didn’t take much effort or time. So, he wasn’t sleeping very well most days. He needed to keep busy, idle hands would lead him down troubled paths.
So, throwing up fish that he reasoned as bad, was within reason. He’d been at his desk and suddenly got a strong urge to throw up. Not wanting to make a mess of the office, he did his best to stand up and walk normally to the bathroom, but the last little bit was him dashing into a stall and gagging. He barely made it to the toilet as he lost his breakfast. He dry heaved when he was done. The feeling he was going to throw up was still there, but after a few minutes, it passed. He’d had the fish maybe 20 minutes ago, but maybe that was fast enough to make him sick?
Washing out his mouth, he did his best to fix his hair and make it look like he was fine. He looked slightly pale, but he could write it off as not going outside often. Going back to his desk, he discreetly got back to work. His stomach was still churning, but he didn’t think he was going to be sick again. He needed every minute possible to finish this website. When the clock ticked past 7 pm, he hadn’t realized he’d zoned out on his work for so long. He’d drafted all the essential pages for the website and had them designed, and most of the basic HTML done. Seeing as the lights were still on in the office, not everyone had left yet. So, he decided he was going to keep working a little bit longer. Which was how another two hours passed before Nie Mingjue was personally turning off Wei Ying’s desk light.
“Wei Ying.”
“Huh?” he groaned before looking away from his monitor. He almost had the CSS correct for the box he was trying to get to float, but it wouldn’t center correctly. CSS was a bitch and a half to deal with some days, especially with how tired he was, and how much his eyes were burning.
“It’s time to go home.”
“It’s not that late, I’m almost done…”
“It’s almost 10 pm. You’ve done enough for today.”
Wei Ying went to argue, but the older Nie brother raised an eyebrow.
“Fine.” Wei Ying grumbled. He didn’t want to deal with Mingjue arguing with him as his head was still aching. He saved his file and then shut off his computer. When he’d stood up, he nearly toppled over because he hadn’t moved in so long. It felt like all the blood had rushed to his lower body, which it probably did since he hadn’t stood up since his bathroom trip earlier.
“Whoa. Are you okay?”
“I’m fine, I sat for too long.”
Nie Mingjue wasn’t going to argue; he was pretty sure he hadn’t seen Wei Ying move in like at least 5 hours.
“You need to take more breaks. I know this contract has a tight deadline, but burning yourself out isn’t the answer.”
“I’m fine.” Wei Ying was dismissed. The word ‘break’ wasn’t in his vocabulary. Not since he was 13 years old and Madam Yu had gotten angry with him for doing better on a test than Jiang Cheng, and saw him taking a break from studying, and she took her horse whip and whipped him with it. Then proceeded to make him clean up his blood from the floor and carry on as if it had never happened. The scars on his back were awful, but they were a testament to how strong he was. He never took a break after that, always busy, never resting or giving himself time to heal when sick.
“Go home.” Nie Mingjue sighed. He cared for his little brother’s friend, even if he wouldn’t admit it out loud. The whole time Wei Ying had worked for him, he’d been nothing but hard-working and respectful. He’d heard about the antics his brother and Wei Ying got into, but it never interfered with his work. Huisang had made him promise not to tell Jiang Cheng that Wei Ying worked directly under him in his office and that he’d known his location the whole time. Huisang wouldn’t go into detail why, but he made it clear that Jiang Cheng wasn’t to know anything about Wei Ying. Why? He didn’t know, but he wasn’t going to get into it with his brother, nor Wei Ying’s brother. He used to tolerate the other Jiang boy as a teenager when he came around, but as they got older, his snarky and bitter attitude got on his nerves. The kid was always angry at something, and Nie Mingjue had no interest in listening to the kid rant on and on about stupid things.
With a yawn, Wei Ying grabbed his jacket and headed out. It was colder out at this time of night than it was this morning. Wrapping his jacket around himself, he shivered as he made the walk to the bus stop, only to realize that it had already stopped running for the night. With a sigh, he made the 25-minute walk home. His jacket was barely warm enough. The longer he walked, the more the cold seeped into his bones. By the time he got home, he was beyond cold and wanted nothing more than a shower and his bed, so that’s what he did.
The rest of the week continued in a similar fashion; he’d go to work, eat a snack in the morning, work through lunch, and stay until late when Nie Mingjue kicked him out. Nie Mingjue had caught on to Wei Ying’s habits, though, and started kicking him out earlier- so his home time was now 8:30, as the older was insistent he was trying to get to sleep. And then he finished the project. He turned it over to the client, and they went on their way, happy as a clam with their website and well within the deadline. For him, he was now two thousand dollars richer, but it didn’t mean much. For one, taxes took part, and two, it covered his rent, and that was it. Because this was such a rushed job, he got a bonus for it. His landlord kept upping his rent every few months- far sooner than what was allowed, but what could he do? It’s not like he could argue it. His rent went from $1,200 when he first moved in, to almost $2,500. His apartment wasn’t even that nice. It was perpetually cold in winter, boiling in summer, and if he wasn’t careful, it got too humid and his stuff would mold.
Things changed the week after his last project ended. He’d been given a lot smaller projects, but they were all quick and easily done within a few days. It still kept money in his pocket, but it was limiting his budget, and as winter was coming, he needed to be ready to pay for the extra bills that it brought. But that wasn’t the change he was thinking about, not today. No, that change came in a new hire.
Nie Mingjue was a plotting asshole just like his brother, Nie Huisang- that Wei Ying was sure. He loved Nie Huisang, but he also loved drama and theatrics. Officially, the reason that Lan Wangji was brought onto the team was to work on their legal team. He was officially their HR/ Lawyer to keep them on the right side of things. Wei Ying knew Mingjue had been handling things for years, so for him to suddenly hire someone was strange. But, he didn’t want to deal with it. It wasn’t his business. The new hire was handsome. There was a sense of familiarity to him that Wei Ying couldn’t place, but he shrugged it off. He had shit to do. What made him think that there was plotting involved, was Nie Huisang’s constant asking about Lan Wangji and if he’d talked to him yet.
So, Lan Wangji started on a Monday and slowly became someone Wei Ying saw regularly in passing but did not speak with directly- despite Nie Huisang asking him if he did. He didn’t know why the other kept asking either, but he didn’t care enough to ask. They’d ride the elevator together, but often Wei Ying was so tired in the morning that he was basically napping the whole way up from the ground floor. Previously, he’d been having such bad insomnia and nightmares that he hadn’t been sleeping, but it flipped, and now he was always tired. No matter how much sleep he got, he was still exhausted. He’d written it off, blaming it on catching up on sleep. He was eight weeks sober, and instead of drinking, he was sleeping. He’d go home and sleep from 7pm until almost 6am. Which, for him, was unheard of. He went from barely sleep 5 hours a night, usually only 4, to almost three times that. He’d pushed his friends away slowly, which, for him, was never a good thing. Wen Qing had been busy at the hospital, so she hadn’t realized how much time had passed since she last saw Wei Ying. Wen Ning, had been trying to keep closer contact of Wei Ying, but Wei Ying made it hard at times.
Nie Mingjue had been quiet about his concerns regarding Wei Ying’s health at first. He knew of the deal that the other had made with his brother. Wei Ying went from clearly not sleeping to napping during his lunch break. Once more, not eating well. He did what he could to balance Wei Ying’s projects, trying to give him more time to work on things so that he wouldn’t stay as late, but even as he did that, Wei Ying was still clearly not sleeping. Then, it was like a switch, he went from not sleeping to almost always sleeping in his spare time.
Lan Wangji met Wei Ying eight weeks ago in a bar, and he was a completely different person from the one he saw sleeping standing up in the elevator. The Wei Ying of before was lively and full of laughter. This one was dead on his feet the entire time. He’d started working at Nie Design Co. after his brother was adamant that he try working for companies other than their family business. So, after much pressure from his brother, he agreed and made a deal with Nie Mingjue. He’d work there for one year, then he could go back to GusuLan and work under his uncle. When he took the deal, he had never thought he’d see Wei Ying ever again after that night in the bar. Lan Wangji had hoped, desperately, that Wei Ying wouldn't remember him once he realized that they now worked together.
His memory of that night was spotty. He remembered meeting the other before someone convinced him to take a shot with We Ying, then absolutely nothing. He’d expected Wei Ying to recognize him, but he didn’t. In fact, he showed zero recognition at all. He himself didn’t remember much after the shot of alcohol, but when he woke up in his bed, with Wei Ying beside him, he felt like he needed to go for a run; his brain was too busy, despite having only slept a few hours. So, he’d gone on his usual 6 am morning run, and expected to find Wei Ying still asleep, only he was gone by the time he’d gotten back. So, he pushed the memory from his brain, and hoped to one day apologize to Wei Ying for being so drunk and putting him in that situation- if he ever saw him again, that was. But Wei Ying remembered nothing. There was no recollection, no anything. He’d greeted him when Nie Mingjue introduced them, and Wei Ying had absolutely no recognition whatsoever. So, against his better judgment, he said nothing. He didn’t want to bring it up if Wei Ying didn’t bring it up.
The moment he walked into the company and saw Wei Ying, he wanted the floor to swallow him whole. After all, it’d been a few weeks since that night. He honestly wanted to go home and quit that night, mortified about the situation, but after talking to his brother, whom he had not told the whole story to, Xichen convinced him to give it a month, and if he truly hated it, then he could quit. His brother thought that he hated it because it was different than the family business, but that wasn’t the case. So, two weeks in, he decided that he didn’t truly hate it, but he didn’t feel any attachment or loyalty to the company yet. That is, until he saw Wei Ying practically collapse in the elevator one morning.
The Wei Ying from eight weeks ago was full of life and looked healthier. This Wei Ying, looked pale, gaunt, and lifeless. It was unnerving to watch someone go from being so full of life, to a walking shell of that person. He looked like a doll that had it’s strings cut. Wei Ying had gotten in the elevator, and like usual had his eyes shut as the elevator went up to the 10th floor. But around the 7th, he started to sway more than usual. By the time they got to the 10th, his knees buckled, and he was on the ground. Lan Wangji was used to Wei Ying standing there sleeping until the elevator stopped on their floor. Only occasionally did he need a tug on his jacket to wake him up. But this wasn’t normal. There was no one else but them in the elevator. Trying to keep calm, he decided that the best option was to take Wei Ying out of the elevator; after all, no one else should see him like this. So, with little struggle, he picked Wei Ying up. Wei Ying was far lighter than he ever expected the other man to be.
As he walked through the office, people stopped and stared. As soon as Nie Mingjue saw Wei Ying in Lan Wangji’s arms, he knew something had happened. Wei Ying looked like a bag of potatoes in his arms, his head dropped, his arms hanging as Lan Wangji carried him. He quickly shouted at everyone to get back to work. Nie Mingjue led him to his own office and had him lie Wei Ying down on the couch there. With a sigh, Nie Mingjue picked up his cell phone and made a call.
“Huisang, I need you to come to my office. It’s Wei Ying.”
Whoever this Huisang was, he had a lot to say, barely letting Mingjue get a word in. After repeating to just come to the office, he hung up the phone.
“I take it you were in the elevator with him?” Mingjue asked.
“Yeah, he was doing his usual sleeping while standing, and unlike normal, his knees buckled and he collapsed. Usually, when he sways, he wakes himself up and doesn’t fall. But he’s been out since he fell.”
“Do you think he hit his head?”
“No, I semi caught him before his head hit the ground.”
Mingjue sighed, “Thank you.”
“Who’d you call?”
“I called my brother, who is technically his emergency contact. He’ll come take him home.”
“Shouldn’t he go to the hospital?”
“His other friend is a doctor, she’ll come look over him if she thinks he needs it.”
“If you say so.” Lan Wangji responded.
“I know you haven’t met him before, but he’s not normally like this. This, this is out of character for him. I’ve never seen him so unlike himself before. He usually just shakes things off and keeps going.”
“Mn.”
Mingjue shook his head, “I’ve known him since he was a kid, and even then, he kept a smile on his face, and now, it’s just so unlike him.”
“I’ve met him before,” he answered, cringing that he had slept with someone his brother’s best friend knew since childhood, and admitting that he’d met him once before. Admitting to meeting him wasn’t something he had planned on admitting to anyone ever, but it felt better to tell someone that he knew the Wei Ying of before, too, even if it was just one night.
“What? When?”
“A bar, he was different then.”
“When was this? He’s in a sobriety pack with my brother…”
“Maybe 2 months ago? We had some shots together.”
Mingjue let out a sigh. “Good, so he’s not broken the pact yet.”
“Pact?”
“My brother and him made a deal. That’s all I’ll say, as it’s not ours to discuss.”
“Mn.”
A groan came from the couch. Wei Ying was slowly waking up.
Squinting, he sat up quickly and felt the world spinning. Mingjue pushed his shoulder back down, effectively pushing him back into the couch.
“Stay down. You passed out, don’t move quickly.”
“Huh?”
“Wei Ying.” Mingjue sighed.
Blinking, Wei Ying let the world slowly come back into focus. He was on the couch in Nie Mingjue’s office. Lan Wangji was sitting in the chair by the desk. His head felt like it had been hit with a baseball bat, and his whole body had been hit by a car. Which, ironically, he knew what both felt like, but no one needed to know that detail, otherwise, they’d have a stroke.
“How are you feeling?” Mingjue asked.
“I’m fine.” Wei Ying answered, he’d had worse.
“Wei Ying.” Lan Wangji said.
The way he said his name sent shivers down Wei Ying’s spine. It felt nice in a way he couldn’t explain. It felt familiar.
“I fell asleep, it’s fine.”
“Wei Ying, you collapsed in the elevator and have been out for 20 minutes. That’s not normal.”
“I’m just a bit more tired these days, it’s alright. I promise it won't affect my work, you have my word.”
“Wei Ying, I’m not worried about your projects- I know you will have them done, but I’m worried. You’ve been tired and unwell. I think you should see a doctor.”
“It’s fine, I’m fine.”
“WEI YING.” Nie Huisang shouted as he pushed the door open to his brother’s office.
Lan Wangji frowned at watching Wei Ying cower and shrink into himself when his name was shouted. For someone who was one so full of life, to shrink like that, was disheartening.
Nie Huisang was a big personality for his small body. He normally carried himself quietly and meekly, but when Wei Ying’s health came into question, he’d fight others and show his true personality when it was dire. If Wei Ying didn’t take his health seriously, he would.
“I’m fine.”
“Fine? Fine is falling asleep at your desk, it’s not collapsing in an elevator and being out cold for 20 minutes on my brother’s couch.”
“I fell asleep standing; it’s not a big deal.”
“Take him home for the day.” Mingjue interrupted, not wanting to witness them arguing.
“I have something I need to finish by tomorrow.”
“And I will personally see to it myself then, but you need to rest, Wei Ying. You need to look into this more. What is going on? Before it gets too serious.” Mingjue told him.
Wei Ying tried to argue more, but no one was listening to him.
“Did he have his bag?” Huisang asked Lan Wangji.
Lan Wangji shook his head.
“Let’s go, no arguing with me,” Huisang told Wei Ying.
Wei Ying rolled his eyes and made no move to stand up.
“Get up.” Huisang kicked his foot.
“I don't wanna,” he pouted.
“Why not?”
“I’m still dizzy.” Wei Ying mumbled.
Nie Huisang, to his credit, didn't scream at Wei Ying again, instead, he pulled out his phone and started to dial a number.
“Don’t, she’s busy.” Wei Ying tried to sit up quickly, but instantly was swaying.
Nie Huisang gave Wei Ying a look that had him leaning back into the couch.
“Either I call her, or I take you to her. Take your pick.”
“Fine, but no hospitals.”
Nie Huisang rolled his eyes, “If she says hospital, we’re going.”
Whoever he called, asked a few questions, which he then asked everyone before relaying the information to the woman on the phone. With a sigh, he hung up the phone.
“She says for now, to eat a meal, sleep, and see how you feel after. So, I’m taking you home to do that.”
“Fine.”
Wei Ying still made no move to stand up.
“Wei Ying,” Huisang said softly.
“Give me a minute.”
“If you’re this dizzy, I think you need to go to the hospital instead. Being dizzy is never anything good.”
“No, it’s fine, it’ll pass,” he argued back.
Lan Wangji felt like he was watching something personal. Rather than draw attention to himself by leaving, he leaned back in the chair and tried to ignore how sickly Wei Ying looked on the couch. Eventually, he got up slowly, refusing help from Nie Huisang and walking out on his own, but it took a few more minutes for him to get up. Once he was gone, Nie Mingjue let out a long sigh.
“I hope he’s truly fine.”
Lan Wangji hoped he’d get the chance to know the real Wei Ying again, if Wei Ying didn’t fall apart before then. Mingjue let out another long breath. “Well, we’re down one designer for the day.”
Lan Wangji folded his hands behind his back. “Should his workload be adjusted?”
“It already was,” Mingjue muttered. “Didn’t help.”
Lan Wangji looked toward the door. “He needs rest.”
“Yeah,” Mingjue said quietly. “But he never thinks he does.”
Neither of them moved for a moment, the still-early morning feeling heavier now that Wei Ying had gone.