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Chapter Text

The first thing most people think when they see Luo Binghe is ‘fit.’

Which is a very, very true observation. He’d worked hard in his life to go from the skinny little kid bullied at school to the hulking and attractive man he knew he had become. When men saw Binghe they shrunk into themselves, when women saw him they followed him for miles before attempting to break into his home and try out the ‘equipment’ (or at least that was the case with Xiao Gongzhu)

Now some might assume his well-kept form was simply genetic, a magical inherited trait that gifted him with a default six pack and sculpted arms. Which could be partially true, however Binghe tended to attribute his physique to his rigorous fitness regimen. Said regimen consisted of daily hour long gym sessions, a well-balanced diet, and a compulsory eight hours of sleep.

However as of late Binghe’s regimen has experienced a slight disruption, specifically his gym routine. See, his body had been just fine, he could still perform the proper amount of reps and lift the same weights and run just as long as he could before. But one small change had introduced a major distraction to Binghe’s entire workout routine. This major distraction was the stupidly attractive guy who ran an hour on the treadmill everyday. Every single day of the week, all seven of them, at the exact same time that Binghe used the gym.

In fact, Binghe was dealing with this dilemma presently, as he debated, for the first time since he had bought his gym membership, if he should skip the gym today.

“I shouldn’t do it, I mean my health is important and I really need to work out some of my stress from that stupid meeting today,” Binghe muttered as he drove his car towards the gym. He was still dressed in his work clothes, stress from the big meeting coursed through his veins. He had been in discussion with the board of directors for nearly four hours, four hours of them undermining his position as CEO, insulting his intelligence, age, and even parentage. It had been exhausting to hold himself back from strangling and punting the old decrypt men who thought they could talk down to him. So yeah he did need to exercise some of this stress out before it gave him an aneurysm.

Binghe continued to speak to himself as he debated the pros and cons of the gym, “Ahh but if that guy is here today, which he will be because he never freaking skips like a normal person, then I have to wear my looser pants because I can not get a…” Binghe continued ranting as he parked his car and walked into the gym.

He held his duffel bag as he smiled politely to the attendant at the front desk who simply let him in, used to Binghe’s near constant presence at the gym.

He quickly shoved his things into his locker and changed from his normal work appropriate button up and pants into a black t-shirt and red shorts. Binghe grabbed a ponytail from his bag and tied his hair up into a loose bun. After checking that the locker room was empty, he walked over to the mirrors on the wall and, and started to give himself a pep talk.

“You can do this, Binghe. You are in control, you are not a wild dog, you are an adult man who can control his thoughts and not get distracted by stupidly tight yoga pants”

After his little pep talk Binghe braved himself and entered the main gym area. He caught a glimpse of dark green yoga pants and lean long legs, but quickly averted his gaze and hurried over to the weight bench. He picked up his regular dumbbells and started some light weight training, running through a few reps of each exercise while desperately avoiding looking at the running figure.

Eventually he was able to focus on his workout, finishing with his arms - they ached in just the right way. Abruptly Binghe realized what he needed to do next, it was time for cardio, meaning it was time to run, meaning it was time for the treadmill, which meant he would be in close proximity to the distraction.

Binghe grabbed his water bottle and phone and began his descent into battle.

Most of the treadmills were in use (lucky Binghe) with the only available one being right next to the distraction. Up above, the gods were laughing at Binghe. He set his things up, subtly side eyeing the distraction, who appeared to be on a phone call of somesort. Eventually Binghe started up the treadmill and began a light jog, he plugged his headphones in his ears and started blasting his workout playlist, desperately attempting to remain focused.

But Binghe was only a man, and after twenty minutes of light jogging, exhaustion hit and Binghe felt his control slipping as he turned to peak at the distraction. Today the distraction was wearing the aforementioned dark green yoga pants which showed off the man’s long lean legs, and a black tank top that clung snugly to his upper body, showing a leanly muscled back and arms. The man’s slightly shaggy black hair was pulled back in a similar style to Binghe’s, with some small wispy strands of black hair escaping his ponytail and clinging to his face. A face which by all accounts should be horribly flushed and sweaty and most definitely not attractive at all in any way. However, against the actual laws of reality, the man’s face seemed composed - almost artful, his cheeks were only slightly flushed and his skin seemed ethereally dewy rather than gross and sweaty.

Binghe wondered what the beautiful man was talking about, probably something serious and intelligent. Maybe he was calling in for work, delegating to his employees, or discussing intelligent philosophical concepts with a friend. Curiosity got the best of Binghe as he lowered the volume of his music to eavesdrop.

“I don’t give a shit that you're depressed, get your prozac and start writing,” the distraction said, annoyance emanating from his words as his lips pulled into a sneer.

What.

“Oh boohoo, I don’t care that you're crying and neither does your publisher,” the distraction bit out.

No. Binghe felt something break in his heart, in his soul, in his other thing.

“And if your next chapter contains more shitty porn than worldbuilding, I’m going to register you as a sex offender- No, seriously you write like a town pervert despite the fact that you’re a sad lonely twenty-five year old virgin”

Binghe was in shock, the kind of shock where your body shuts down and the doctors crowd around the victim and say ‘he might not make it through this.’ Binghe was in shock, hsi world was falling apart, his imaginary dream boyfriend Mr.Distraction was surprisingly not living up to his imagination.

The shock was so much that Binghe forgot that he was on a treadmill and simply stopped walking, causing him to promptly fall off said machine. Yes that's right, Binghe very loudly, very embarrassingly, fell off a treadmill- in front of his gym crush. As he lay on the cool gym floor, Binghe wondered if one could actually die from embarrassment, because he wanted to do that right now.

The gym crush seemed startled by Binghe’s fall, quickly hanging up his call and turning off his own machine before rushing over to the fallen form of Binghe.

“Hey are you alright, that looked like a bad fall.” The distraction said as he offered his hand to Binghe.

The distraction had green eyes, bright green eyes that seemed to emanate confusion, kindness, and a hint of amusement. Binghe decided green was his favorite color. His eyes were big but rather than projecting innocence, they seemed sharp and clever, as if they were seeing right through Binghe, analyzing his very soul. Dark black lashes decorate his eyes, they were so long and pigmented that they gave the man an almost feminine look.

As Binghe’s silence continued the green eyes seemed to take on a tinge of worry. The man was speaking, Binghe could register that much. Suddenly a hand went to Binghe’s forehead, as if to check his temperature. Skin on skin contact seemed to finally awaken Binghe’s brain and he snapped back into being cognizant.

“Umm what are you doing,” Binghe asked.His cheeks flushed as he realized he was still very much on the ground and had been acting brain-dead for the past few seconds.

“Checking for brain damage” the distraction quipped.

Binghe raised an eyebrow at this, amusement filled his voice as he responded,“How would that work, what with your hand not being an x-ray machine, at least I assume so?”

This statement seemed to draw a flush to the man’s cheeks. His eyes sharpened as a slight smile graced his very nice, very pink lips. The man removed his hand and placed it on his hip.

“Apologies, I don’t often find myself in the role of first responder to the traumatic event of a man falling off a treadmill”

The joke startled a laugh out of Binghe as he continued to eye the distraction. The distraction seemed to share in the amusement. Binghe could feel the green eyes surveying his own form, though he couldn’t deduce if he was being checked out in a sexy way or in a ‘surveying for possible injury’ way.

“Well thank you for your valiant attempt at first aid but I think I’m fine, though I might call it a quits for today” Binghe said as he finally stood up. Now at full height he was able to note that he was several inches taller than the distraction. From the continued flush and gaze of the other man, Binghe assumed he had followed a similar line of thought.

“How tragic” the man sarcastically said as he began to step away from Binghe.

“Indeed, but uh seriously thank you…”

The man’s eyes met Binghe’s own and his flush quickly disappeared. His mouth screwed up in some unknown emotion as he responded, “Shen Qingqiu”

“Thank you Shen Qingqiu”

Binghe felt an overwhelming sense of victory, finally a name for his gym crush. The distraction was Shen Qingqiu. A light smile appeared on Shen Qingqi’s face.

“And you, what’s the name of my damsel in distress?” Shen Qingqiu said, a wicked gleam in his eyes as he teased Binghe.

“Luo Binghe”

This seemed to please Qingqiu as he huffed out a breath before turning back to his treadmill, he was plugging his headphones back in as he turned to Binghe, “Well until next time Luo Binghe,” and then Qingqiu turned on the treadmill and promptly continued his run.

Binghe stared at the man’s running form for a moment before he collected his own things and dashed to the locker room. Expressionless, Binghe grabbed his bag and shoved his things in it. He didn’t even change out of his disgusting gym clothes before he ran out of the locker room, out the front door and entered his car.

Once safely inside his car (with the doors locked) Binghe began his breakdown, a breakdown plagued by green eyes, yoga pants, and loose ponytails.

Chapter Text

Binghe had a skip in his step the entire day. The countless meetings at work only energized him and he took pleasure in verbally beating down a variety of idiots and insubordinates. Even his friend slash work colleague, Mobie-jun, had noticed the twinkle in his eye (though rather than be happy for him, his friend just commented that he seemed more deranged today)

So yeah Binghe was feeling good, and he was feeling especially good as he entered the gym. The gym where he would see Shen Qingqiu and after another delightful and semi-flirty conversation, he would ask him out. That's right, Binghe was ready, he had a plan and he was semi-confident it would work out and he would leave the gym with the number of his future boyfriend.

Binghe hummed to himself as he packed his change of clothes in his gym locker. He was dressed in his regular gym outfit, loose black shorts and a black muscle tee. His hair was already thrown into his typical loose ponytail. Binghe walked over to the mirrors, giving himself a once-over, he concluded he looked satisfactory and promptly exited the locker room.

Once in the main gym area, Binghe noticed that Shen Qingqiu was on the treadmill, just like last time. Today he wore a forest green compression jacket that clung to his entire upper body and black leggings that provoked a startling primal urge in Binghe, his hair was once again thrown up into a high ponytail which bobbed up and down as he walked. Binghe caught Qingqiu’s eye as he stared, though rather than the pleasant greeting or polite smile he expected, Shen Qingqiu shot an annoyed glare in his direction, his eyes narrowed and seemed to insult every atom that composed Binghe’s body. If one could be told to go to hell through another’s eyes then Shen Qingqiu had done just that.

The glare initially startled Binghe, but due to denial and/or sheer optimism, Binghe just assumed Qingqiu didn’t want to be bothered during his workout. So with that information Binghe continued his own routine, moving to the weight bench as he began his arm workouts. As he began his bicep curls Binghe lost himself in thought, with his thoughts of course focusing on Shen Qingqiu. He honestly admired the man’s dedication to his physical fitness. Binghe had been coming to this gym for the last few months, and every single time he had seen Qingqiu. Binghe didn’t even come in everyday because he wanted to, but more so out of guilt. The gym was very up-scale with full amenities, world-class trainers, and state of the art exercise machines - the membership had been expensive to say the least. Binghe had only recently become full-time CEO of Huan Hua Publishing, and with his increased pay he was finally able to rationalize buying the membership. And, though he was most definitely not still that poor college kid living from paycheck to paycheck, he still had guilt when he wasted money. So, to make the most of his expensive gym membership, Binghe had resolved himself to never skip the gym. He had even come in during the holidays, after all it wasn’t like he had anyone to spend them with; But the thing is, he wasn’t actually alone because Shen Qingqiu was always there. Even when his loneliness felt like a crushing weight in his chest, memories surfacing of his childhood and adolescence spent in foster care surrounded by others but completely isolated, Qingqiu's presence had ensured he was never actually alone. Though they had only recently interacted, Qingqiu’s presence had always been a comfort to Binghe. That’s the real reason he’s so interested in the man, sure the fact he looks like a male model helps, but ultimately Binghe felt a kinship with this stranger who he so desperately wanted to know.

Eventually Binghe finishes up his arms and he sees Qingqiu start to pack up his own things, grabbing his bag and flipping through his phone as he prepares to leave. This is it, this is Binghe’s chance, he sends a quick prayer to any higher power that can help him, and he walks over to Shen Qingqiu.

“Hey-” Binghe’s greeting is promptly silenced by a vicious glare from Qingqiu, who’s expression and posture radiate annoyance and a willingness to commit homicide on the spot. Binghe instinctually shrinks into himself.

“I will gut you like a fish if you don’t keep your eyes to yourself you pathetic little man,” Shen Qingqiu says with a sneer. His lips are turned down in disgust, as if he’s insulted by Binghe’s mere presence.

Binghe feels many emotions at the moment, many many emotions. He feels like crying, throwing up, screaming, and dying (all in that order). His dreams of a home in the countryside with 2.5 kids and a little dog shatter into pieces.

Feeling both awkward and embarrassed, Bing attempts to remedy the situation,“Oh, I’m sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable -”

“Did you not hear me? Are you stupid? I would rather immolate myself than talk to some perverted creep who can’t take a hint,” Shen Qingqiu interrupts.

Binghe stares. He just stares, unable to form a response or imagine any way to rectify the situation.

Binghe’s lack of response seems to please Shen Qingqiu, his glare persists but his sneer transforms into a smirk, as if he’s pleased to have shocked Binghe into silence, “Hmm that's what I thought.”

Qingqiu then turns from Binghe and walks away, towards the exit, not looking back once.

In the olden days they used to say that veterans experienced shell shock, a term later replaced by the medical label of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, it was characterized by distortion of the senses and confusion. Binghe was experiencing shell shock. Out of the millions of possibilities and scenarios he had anticipated for today, none of them could live up to the horror of what he had just experienced. So, like a soldier in battle, Binghe entered a trance as he finished his workout with a thirty minute run, and he remained in this trance as he gathered his things and left the gym.

When he entered his car the reality of his situation hit Binghe. He had been rejected, no not even rejected, he had never even had the opportunity to be rejected. It was obvious from today that whatever flirty interaction they’d had before, Qingqiu hated Binghe, genuinely detested him. Binghe felt something in him break, maybe he really was meant to be alone.

Chapter Text

—------------------
To: “Mobei-Jun”
From: “Luo Binghe”
Subject: Work

I’m taking some time off
—--------------------

It had been four days since Luo Binghe had come into work. Luo Binghe, the guy that lived at the office for seventy hours a week, who responded to his emails all hours of the day, who was also the CEO of a multi-billion dollar publishing company and whose presence was necessary for the functioning of said company.

Mobei-jun, Luo Binghe’s CFO was not pleased in the least by this development. In the absence of the CEO, he had to fill in, handling the board of directors himself, supervising the next year’s financial planning, communicating with the different department heads, and overall just completely and totally exhausting himself. By the second day of Binghe’s absence Mobei-jun was contemplating simply dissolving the company. Binghe needed to come back, whatever was happening, whatever he was going through - Mobei-jun did not care. They had good health insurance, Binghe could always afford a good therapist if need be. With this in mind, Mobei-jun resolved himself, it was time for Binghe to return.

So here he was, standing at Luo Binghe’s doorstep at midnight. One might ask, why midnight? A time when any normal person would most definitely be asleep, mobei-jun’s response, Luo Binghe is not a normal person. When they had been roommates in college, Binghe never slept. Like straight up never slept, Mobei-jun would go to classes in the morning while binghe worked away on his laptop and he would return in the afternoon to the same sight, and when he went to bed he would still be greeted with a view of Luo Binghe staring down at some textbook or paper. Luo Binghe was many things, a workaholic, romantic, deranged oversized toddler - but he was also reliable. He stuck to the same routine, he didn’t laze around, he was consistent, that’s what got him the position of CEO and that’s what worried Mobei-jun. After all, if Binghe turned out to be dead Mobei would have to plan and attend the funeral which would just be more work.

After a few minutes of knocking (which transitioned into kicking the door) mobei-jun resolved himself to break into the home. Most would picture him attempting to pick the lock on the door, like a spy in a cool action film, the reality was he just hit the door really hard and it promptly swung in. Without a pause he entered the home.

As expected of a CEO of a multibillion dollar company, Luo Binghe owned a very nice house. It had two stories, the bottom consisted of a frankly disturbingly large kitchen and a sprawling living room and the upper story was Binghe’s personal area with his bedroom, bathroom, and a small exercise area. When Binghe had first bought the home he had thrown a huge house warming party, inviting the higher-ups from work and the entirety of that social circle. That had been the only time Mobei-jun had really seen the entirety of the home; he distinctly remembered how organized and clean it had been. Binghe had kept a minimalist aesthetic (mbj doubted it was an aesthetic so much as it was a result of Binghe simply refusing to buy things), the walls were sparsely decorated with impersonal photos from Binghe’s life and his countertops cleared of any mess.

What Mobei-jun was seeing was quite different. The kitchen looked trashed, as if a wild racoon had broken in and brought a chainsaw with it, produce was rotting on the countertops, containers of chips and bread were left open, and the trash smelt like it hadn’t been taken out in weeks. Mobei-jun began seriously considering the possibility of Luo Binghe being murdered. Nevertheless, Mobei continued his journey attempting to discover some hint of life in the home. As he made his way over to the living room area Mobei began to hear a deranged muttering sound, he had found Binghe, alive.

What Mobei-jun saw next could only be described as disturbed. Luo Binghe stood in front of a brown board with tacked on pieces of paper, some of which were connected by red yarn. It was a conspiracy board. Luo binghe had made a conspiracy board.

“What is this?” he asked. This finally grabbed Binghe’s attention. The man turned to face Mobei, his muttering paused, he had a feral look in his eyes which were rimmed with dark circles.

“My evidence board” he responded.

Mobei stepped closer, now that it was apparent that Binghe did not have rabies or would bite him, and began reading the notes on the board. They were small phrases and sometimes just single words, there seemed to be no logic to what Binghe had connected with the red yarn.

“Elaborate,” Moebi said.

And Binghe did just that.

-

It happened in the locker room on Monday.

Binghe was already changing into his gym outfit, his off-white button up was almost off, when he heard another person enter the room. He ignored the presence, though he could feel eyes watching him. After he finished unbuttoning the top, Binghe finally cracked and looked over to the rude voyeur, intending to tell them off.

He was greeted with a familiar pair of green eyes. The face of Shen Qingqiu was staring back at him, he had a light flush in his cheeks, which reddened when he made eye contact with Binghe, and his eyes seemed transfixed on Binghe’s back.

The awkward silence was disrupted when Qingqiu said, “I like your tattoo, its really cool”

Binge didn’t expect that, he kind of expected to be told off again but this was a pleasant surprise. The tattoo in question spanned a good portion of his back, it was an all black illustration of a dragon, a coiling and fluid design that was more suited to be called beautiful than scary. He had gotten done when he was eighteen, when his absent father had popped back into his life and decided to send Binghe off to college. It was essentially a fit of late-teenage early adult rebellion; he wanted to piss off Tianlang-jun, but the guy had barely even noticed the change, simply commenting that Binghe had odd taste. But yeah back to Shen Qingqiu.

“Umm thanks” Binghe replied, trepidation in his voice. He really couldn’t take another verbal lashing, he was still recovering from yesterday’s.

Despite his expectations, Shen Qingqiu seemed content with his reply and turned away. He wore a pair of loose blue jeans and a baggy aquamarine t-shirt that seemed a few sizes too big for him. His jet black hair was down, it barely reached his shoulders and its layering made the haircut look almost shaggy. Qingqiu had an adorably unkempt look, like the boy next door, if the boy next door wanted to simultaneously flirt with you and bathe in your blood. He began changing into his gym outfit, slipping out of his shirt, and oh my god he was topless, someone send a prayer for Binghe he might die from thirst. As expected by his consistent exercising Shen Qingqiu had an athlete's body, his cardio workouts gave him a lean body though not thin as one could definitely see some light muscling in his arms and core. One might call him thin but his muscle gave Qingqiu a little weight, he looked strong, and capable, and cute, and very very -

- Green eyes met Binghe’s own. Shen Qingqiu flashed a very hot and very scary smirk at Binghe. He had been staring, oh shit. Shit, shit, shit, and another shit. Binghe could feel himself begin to sweat.He had been caught staring, Qingqiu was definitely not going to let that go. At best Binghe would get a verbal lashing resulting in a wounded ego, at worst he might be castrated.

Shen Qingqiu began to speak, his eyes never leaving Binghe’s own, Binghe wondered if he would be mourned after he died from embarrassment,“I retract my previous statement, cool doesn’t accurately describe your tattoo, no i think the better word for it is-”

Qingqiu paused as he gave Binghe a once-over, his gaze focusing on his back, on his tattoo, before flashing up to meet Binghe’s gaze.

“Hot”

And with that Shen Qingqiu walked out of the locker room and Binghe combusted.

-

Tuesday afternoon, Binghe has been hitting the weights for the past hour. He was covered in sweat and his arms were shaking, he felt like death. In his peripheral vision he could see Shen Qingqiu packing up his things.

Shen Qingqiu had been on the standing bike since before Binghe had arrived, meaning Binghe hadn’t had the opportunity to speak with him about what had happened in the locker room the other day. Binghe felt cautiously optimistic, with the memory of Qingqiu’s insults from a few days ago still haunting him. But the ‘hot’ comment, oh the ‘hot comment. He had been thinking about that interaction, that eye contact, that smirk. He had been thinking about it when he got home,when he cooked, when he showered, when he slept, and when he went to work. He had been in a daze, floating on the high of the possibility of something happening.

As Binghe executed a bicep press he felt something hit his sneaker. Strange, perhaps a foot fetishist had snuck into the gym. Binghe looked down and saw his foot had made contact with a water bottle. It was one of those reusable kinds, with a translucent green tint to it. Oh, he recognized that water bottle. It was Shen Qingqiu’s.

Binghe set his weights down and picked up the water bottle, he then turned to where he noticed Shen Qingqiu standing. He had his arms crossed, his green eyes narrowed in impatience and then annoyance at the sight of Binghe.

Binghe walked over, “Is this yours?,” he asked, handing the water bottle over.

Shen Qingqiu grabbed the bottle quickly

“Die,” he said sincerely, he then turned away and walked in the direction of the exit.

-

On Wednesday they’re in the locker room again.

Shen Qingqiu is standing in front of the mirrors, frustration is painted across his face as he glares at his reflection. Binghe stands in front of the mirror a few feet away from him, he’s cautious after yesterday and really can’t deal with another death threat (or death recommendation?).

Binghe grabbed his hair tie and began putting his hair up into his normal bun. It was especially curly today, so a few pieces escaped from the updo, curling around his face instead. He’s always had voluminous hair, and his texture has always been unique like this, most people had straighter more manageable hair but Binghe’s hair had always formed ringlets and waves. He was teased as a kid, the other kids said he looked like a girl with his ‘fancy’ hair, they would pull on it and one time someone had cut off a big chunk of it with some craft scissors. Nowadays he doesn’t mind the texture, though it's always been difficult to work with and style - he tends to have more bad hair days than good ones.

“You have really pretty hair,” a voice huffs out.

Binghe looks over, at Shen Qingqiu, the man stares at him expectantly. Binghe does not reply, he is scared. Why would he say that? Oh no, is Shen Qingqiu going to steal his hair, is going to reveal a pair of scissors and hack off Binghe’s bun.

“Ahh don’t worry I’m not gonna steal it or anything, it just looks so nice, Ughh my hair’s been so hard to work with. I swear it refuses to stay in a ponytail, I might just have to shave it off at this point,” Shen Qingqiu rants, ignoring Binghe’s silence.

He looks annoyed as he surveys his reflection in the mirror, he has his hair in a ponytail but some strands in the front keep falling out into his face. Qingqiu begins batting at them in a way that reminds Binghe of a cat playing with its toys. It’s cute.

“Hey your hair texture, do you perm your hair or are the curls natural?” Shen Qingqiu asked, his eyes focused on Binghe’s hair with a startling intensity. Binghe blushes at the attention.

“Oh it’s natural, it's been like this my whole life,” he responds.

This seems to annoy and please Shen Qingqiu who lets out a huff of air, which Binghe things is unfairly attractive, “Dang you’re lucky-” Qingqiu looks over and makes eye contact with Binghe, a charming smile stretches over his face, “-well, see you in there!”

Shen Qingqiu gives him a little wave before he turns his back and walks out of the locker room.

Binghe wants to say his very red face is from his workout, from all the running, and sweating, and pain. He wants to say this, despite the fact he has done no such workout.
-

On Thursday Binghe overheard Shen Qingqiu’s phone conversation. Like most days Qingqiu was on the treadmill walking with his headphones in, obviously on some kind of phone call.

“Even if you saved a burning building full of orphans, you would still be damned to hell for your shit manuscript,” Qingqiu said. He had a wicked gleam in his eye and his eyebrows furrowed, he looked annoyed.

He paused for a moment, whoever he was talking to must have replied.

“If you keep this up I’m selling you on craigslist.”

If Binghe really concentrated he swore he could hear light sobbing emanating from Shen Qingqiu’s headphones. The man looked undisturbed.

They made eye contact, again. Binghe was too tired to feel fear, he didn’t look away, Shen Qingqiu winked at him and then broke their eye contact.

“If you don’t send me your next chapter before noon, I’m coming to your apartment tonight and setting the building on fire”

-

On Friday Binghe decided to return the wink. Shen Qingqiu was stretching while Binghe was doing some walking to cool down. When they made eye contact Binghe summoned all the courage he had and projected his normal confident flirty persona as he sent a wink Qingqiu’s way. He was met with a fierce glare and middle finger.

When Binghe left the gym he was greeted with the sight of his car with no windshield. In its place was shattered glass and a brick. Someone had thrown a brick at his windshield (he was fairly certain he knew who the perpetrator was)

-

On Saturday Binghe was on the phone in the locker room. Since his windshield was well, not there anymore, he’d had to use a rental while it was out of commission.

“What do you mean it costs a thousand to fix my windshield? Isn’t it usually like a quarter of that price?”

On the other line his mechanic huffed out a breath, “Normally I’d quote you that but kid, the glass is literally everywhere in your car. You need that professionally removed and I can not stress enough how much shattered glass is in your car, the stuffs embedded in your seats, its almost impressive how much force would be required to do that - whoever threw that brick musta been pissed at ya.”

Binghe let out a low chuckle at the statement
“I’ll tell you this you're lucky it was just your car and not you, anyways your car should be all good by Monday, see ya then”

“Thank you, see you Monday,” Binghe said as the call ended.

Shen Qingqiu stood in front of his opened locker, his curious gaze locking onto Binghe. Ahh he must’ve heard Binghe’s phone call. Good, it was his handy work that was costing Binghe one thousand dollars.

“What happened to your windshield?”

---------

The room was silent as Binghe finished recounting the events of the last week. He looked unhinged as he turned his eyes to Mobei-jun.

“Do you understand now?”

“No.”

Binghe threw up his arms and let out a silent scream of frustration.

“What do you mean by ‘No’?” he asked.

Mobei-jun sighed,“You have issues at your gym, what does that have to do with work?” he asked as he crossed his arms. Halfway through Binghe’s story Mobei had settled in on the couch, propped up so that he could more properly glower at his friend.

“I just, I can’t stop thinking about him. This thing between us, it's driving me insane. Does he like me? Does he hate me? I don’t know if he wants to kill me or fuck me and I’m scared,” Binghe replied. Mobei noted he did look genuinely fearful, his eyes were wide and glinted in the light, as if he was on the verge of tears.

“He could be possessed,” Mobei said.

“No, I talked to a priest yesterday and he said he didn’t sound demonic enough for possession.” Binghe replied.

“Multiple personalities.”

“Maybe, but he acts so normal, he's just different around me.”

At this point Binghe was in fact crying, fat ugly tears that scared Mobei-jun, rather than elicit any form of sympathy. Binghe’s sobs racked his whole body as he slowly collapsed onto the floor, spreading his arms wide like a starfish. In that moment Mobei was reminded of a small child throwing a tantrum.

“You need help,” he grunted out.

Binghe looked up at his lounging friend. “No shit”

“I’m going out tomorrow with Qinghua, you’re coming”

“No”

“If you don’t come I will call your father”

“What time?”

“Don’t worry about that I will pick you up, since you’re car is broken-” Binghe’s sobs intensified at the mention of his car “- and be presentable, Qinghua is bringing a friend.”

Chapter Text

“If some people have soulmates, then you're my soulhate.”

“This is why I’m the writer and your the editor”

Shen Yuan was currently lounging on a bed in the smallest apartment humanly conceived. The object of his hatred was sitting at a small desk, his haggard expression and dull eyes illuminated by the soft glow of a computer screen. Shang Qinghua was currently very overdue on his latest chapter for his upcoming book release, the guy could barely meet the extremely lenient deadlines the publisher had set - meaning Shen Yuan was very overdue in his editing. Which took a very long time, as Qinghua was somehow the worst professional writer Shen Yuan had ever met. The guy had talent for sure, his world building was flawless (when he actually tried) and his character’s were well written and fan favorites (and likely the only reason people actually bought his books). Now if he could focus on those two elements rather than the element in his pants - then Shen Yuan’s job would be much easier. Sadly that was not the case, as was evidenced by Qinghua’s latest chapter, which could best be described by Shen Yuan’s own reaction in his initial read through - in which he ended up standing on the roof of his apartment building threatening to jump off if Qinghua did not repent and promise to rewrite the chapter.

“Maybe its because I refuse to degrade myself by writing copious amounts of anatomically incorrect, verging on impossible, pornography”

This caught Qinghua’s attention, he turned is stupid little spiny chair around to better face Shen Yuan. Qinghua’s light brown hair was knotted and greasy from his writing bender and his eyes appeared sunken in, as if he were a prisoner of war. Honestly, looking at Qinghua you wouldn’t expect him to be a closet pervert, he actually was kinda cute most of the time. He was small, smaller than Shen Yuan, and he had a nervous energy to him that reminded most people of a paranoid toddler, combined with his chubbier cheeks and most people assumed Shang Qinghua was just a normal guy. But Shen Yuan was not most people. He knew Qinghua, in ways he wished could forget. (sometimes Shen Yuan still has flashbacks to their college dorm days when Qinghua thought it was fully appropriate to just randomly sleep butt ass naked)

Qinghua looked over Shen Yuan’s figure, his eyes scrutinizing his lounging form,“Twink.”

“Pervert”,” Shen Yuan lazily replied.

“Ahh, but I’m a pervert with a boyfriend,” Qinghua quipped, a self-satisfied smile plastered on his face, his eyebrows raised as if mocking Shen Yuan and his loneliness. Shen Yuan kind of wanted to punch him in the throat. So he did.

Shen Yuan leapt off the bed and ran over to Qinghua, his hands quickly encapsulating his friend’s neck - as if to choke him out. Qinghua attempted to struggle out of the hold but his malnutrition and exhaustion left him defenseless. Shen Yuan thrashed his friend’s limp form around before letting him go, his eyes trailed over Qinghua’s pathetic form before he let out a satisfied huff of air. He flung himself back on the bed dramatically as Qinghua recovered from the light thrashing.

“Ok but bro listen, I’ve been trying to make my move on the gym guy, Luo Binghe, but he’s been acting so weird,” Shen Yuan whined.

“What do you mean by ‘weird’?”

Shen Yuan flopped onto his stomach and put his face in his hands as he elaborated,“Ok so I tried to compliment his hair, ya know be all flirty and shit, but the whole time he looked at me like I threatened to bite him. And ok I can take a hint, so I lay off for a few days, but I can still feel his eyes on my ass, so I feel like he’s at least somewhat interested!”

“It's a nice ass” Qinghua says solemnly.

“I know, and so does Luo Binghe”

“Idk cucumber bro, maybe you just need a new victim”

“No I’ve claimed this one,” Shen Yuan said petulant, “Maybe I should pee on him like a dog, ya know mark my territory”

“Yeah I wonder why he’s so scared of you, you're a totally normal and sane person A-Yuan, not creepy at all with the whole threatening to urinate like an animal on your crush.”

Shen Yuan pouted,“Ahh whatever, but how are you and Mobei? Hes not trying to murder you anymore right? Because I already claimed that right so he's too late.” No literally they’d drawn up the contract back when they were seventeen, sealed with a blood oath and everything.

“He’s great, he still scares me but that just makes the sex even better”

“Ahh yes sounds like a very functional relationship”

“Indeed”

“Anyways…are you done with your revision, or do we need to tell your boyfriend we’ll be running late-”

Qinghua interrupted,“ - And done, no let's go”

“Looking like that?”

“Yes”

“No”

—---

Apparently Mobei-jun was taking Binghe to some fancy restaurant to meet-up with his boyfriend and a friend. Oh joy. Binghe really didn’t want to go, but the continued threats from Mobei-jun and his own realization that he hadn’t showered in a week propelled Binghe to finally exit his delirious vacation and re-enter society. Yay.

So here he was dressed in a casual but comfortable gray sweater and black pants, the only clean clothes Binghe currently had. Mobei-jun had huffed at his appearance, his approving huff not his annoyed huff, so Binghe must have looked at least decently presentable.

The restaurant they were in was very nice and up-scale. It was one of those farm to table places that promised organic fresh food, so fresh the cow shit was still on it and everything. Apparently Shang Qinghua, Mobei-jun’s boyfriend, had picked out the place after seeing stellar online reviews for it. In Binghe’s opinion Shang Qinghua was a strange guy. He was happy Mobei liked him and had someone for him, but Qinghua was still strange. He was a squirrely guy with a mop of lighter brown hair that always looked slightly mused and big cheeks that were always flushed in embarrassment or delight. He gave the aura of a small animal in need of protection, Mobei-jun was obviously the protection.

“Mobei!”

Speak of the devil. From across the booth Mobei perked up, his eyes fixing on something behind Binghe, Shang Qinghua.

“Qinghua. This is Luo Binghe” Mobei-jun huffed out with a small (very small) smile.

As Binghe turned to look at Qinghua he saw the other man lose color, his initially excited smile morphing into a weak nervous grin. His eyes examined Binghe before darting to look behind himself.

“Nice to meet you Shang Qinghua, I have heard much about you from Mobei-jun,” Binghe said, a slight smile on his face appeared as he attempted to annoy Mobei. For his efforts he got a hard kick to the shin from below the table, ouch. Binghe’s smile only widened.

“Oh ahh yeah same deal.” Qinghua said, his eyes still darting behind him. He still stood awkwardly in front of the table, not taking a seat.

Mobei-jun seemed to sense his discomfort, “Qinghua, where is your friend?”

As Shang Qinghua opened his mouth to respond a figure approached from behind him.

“Bro there you are!”

Binghe recognized that voice. He turned farther to see the new person, as they further approached his eyes widened in shocked recognition. All the blood drained from his face (and down to other parts) as he took in the sight of Shen Qinqiu

Chapter Text

Shen Yuan was very surprised. Shocked actually. After a very heated and emotional debate with the uber driver, he had entered the restaurant in search of his raggedy friend. Shang Qinghua had deserted him for his boyfriend, the little simp really had it bad. Eww, so gross. Not like Shen Yuan was jealous of his reciprocal relationship or anything, no not all. So anyways, when he spotted his friend, Shen Yuan quickly ran over and called out to him, after he shouted at him, Shang Qinghua turned to look at him with a peculiar look in his eyes, skittish with a mix of trepid excitement. Weird, but Shang Qinghua was a weirdo.

As Shen Yuan continued his approach he recognized two figures in the booth. From where he was standing he got a clear view of Qinghua’s boyfriend, Mobei Jun, and he could see the back of another person’s head, he must be the friend of Mobei Jun’s that Qinghua had mentioned. From what Shen Yuan could see, the mystery person had really nice hair. Dark thick ringlet curls and waves that were let loose. Wait, that hair looked familiar. (yes it’s totally normal to recognize a person by their hair, back off)

Then the figure turned. Oh shit. He knew that person.

Sitting in the booth was Luo Binghe, the gym guy, the gym crush, Shen Yuan’s imaginary boyfriend, there he was. They made eye contact, and oh my god Shen Yuan could get lost in those dark brown orbs. Eveytime he looked at Luo Binghe he was taken aback by how disgustingly attractive the man was, tall and built with the face of a model and hair from a pantene commercial. Shen Yuan attempted to look hot- fixing his posture, batting his eyelashes and giving Binghe a onceover - Binghe seemed to pale in return. Finally Shen Yuan saddled up to Shang Qinghua, now able to take in the full scene before him.

“Nice to see you again Mobei Jun, and what a pleasant surprise to see you here Luo Binghe”

“How do you know Binghe?,” Mobei Jun asked.

“Oh we use the same gym, so we see each other around, we’re kinda gym pals I guess? Right Binghe?”

At Shen Yuan’s mention of their gym connection, he saw Mobei Jun shoot a faint smile in Binghe’s direction, combined with the surprise in his expression, and Mobei Jun looked almost mocking. And in response to his question directed at Binghe, Shen Yuan was met with utter silence. How delightful, not awkward at all. Nope everything was fine. For fucks sake the guy was starting straight ahead of himself like a prisoner of war, had he never heard of common courtesy? That was just plain rude.

At this point everyone had finally sat down, Shang Qingua was seated next to his boyfriend and Shen Yuan had taken a seat next to Luo Binghe. Externally Shen Yuan was attempting to portray his hot bitch persona, internally he was going rabid over his close proximity to an attractive man. He was especially enthralled by their height difference, at the gym they had never been this close, but now they were nearly thigh to thigh (and damn nice thighs Binghe) - meaning Shen Yuan could fully appreciate Binghe’s frankly disturbing height (the guy was at least six foot, and my god Shen Yuan wanted to climb him like a damn tree).

Shang Qinghua chose to break the awkward silence, “Are you alright Luo Binghe?”

Binghe seemed to snap out of some dazed trance, his eyes darted across the figures around the table before settling on Shen Yuan; they seemed to analyze his every detail (Shen Yuan felt both flattered and scared). Binghe’s eyes had a peculiar glint in them, serious and brooding, frankly he looked hot as fuck and Shen Yuan was definetly feeling the vibe.

“What do you want from me?” Binghe asked, his head turned in the direction of Shen Yuan. And holy shit he was talking to Shen Yuan. Wait what the fuck did he just ask. Ok frankly this whole brooding dominatrix energy was only hot in a private scenario, right now Shen Yuan was feeling kind of embarrassed, a little off put, and just confused as hell.

“Umm did I do something to you?” he asked, tilting his head to better address Binghe.

“Yeah you threw a brick through my windshield!”

Wait what the fuck is this guy talking about. Shen Yuan had done many strange things in his life (he still has nightmares about that time he drunkenly tried to register a restraining order against his own brother after he had thrown out his favorite Asuka figurine - damn you Jiu-ge! You’re getting taken to small claims court!!), but he had most definitely not thrown a brick through his gym crush’s windshield. He was like 70% sure he hadn’t done that.

“Huh?” Shen Yuan remarked dumbly.

“A-Yuan you threw a brick through his windshield??” Shang Qinghua cried out, his voice edging on hysteria.

“No! I feel like I would’ve remembered that”

At this point Luo Binghe looked like he wanted to kill himself and everyone else at the table. He was glaring at Shen Yuan, his entire face was screwed up in some weird mixture of confusion or anger.

“One day I come into the gym and you threaten to kill me, the next day you compliment my hair. Excuse me if I want to be a little straightforward and simply ask you: What. Do. You. Want. From. Me?” Binghe said tensely, enunciating the last words of his question.

“Oh my god you’re going to jail” Qinghua bemoaned.

“I refuse, I'm innocent!,” Shen yuan stated, he threw his hands down on the table for emphasis. He couldn’t go to jail, his brother would kill him and then Jiu-ge would go to jail and stage a gang take-over and escape prison and go on the run to like Florida or some other shit-hole that his brother would probably take over. Oh shit, his brother.

“Oh shit” Shen Yuan says.

Shen Yuan promptly lost his shit, an amused laugh rips through his throat before his entire body seems to emanate high pitched shrieks and chuckles. He probably looked insane, but who cares. His laughing fit continued for nearly five minutes before eventually he regained some semblance of control over his body. When his giggles finally subsided Shen Yuan looked to his side and caught sight of an obviously ticked off Binghe. He could also tell that Mobei-jun and Shang Qinghua seemed to be enjoying the display.

“You met Shen Jiu”

The table was silent, Qinghua’s eyes widened in realization.

“Who the fuck is Shen Jiu?” Binghe replied, his face was red and he looked on the verge of a full blown tantrum.

“Oh my god A-Yuan you did not!” Shang Qinghua says, he has a delighted smile on his face as his mind quickly catches on to the conversation.

At seeing Qinghua’s delight at his predicament, Shen Yuan begins to laugh again, in between giggles he says, “Alright, let me actually do a proper introduction-” he takes a dramatic pause “-Nice to meet you Luo Binghe, my name is Shen Yuan and I think you’ve already met my twin brother Shen Jiu”

“T-twin”

“Yeah so me and my brother had this new years resolution to exercise more, cause Jiu-ge has anger issues and I wanted a fatter- I mean I wanted to find inner tranquility, so we decided ‘hey lets get gym memberships’ but omg memberships are so expensive especially for the nicer gyms. So anyways me and Jiu-ge decided to split a gym membership and we kinda got a fake ID with the name Shen Qinqiui so we could kinda like scam the gym,” Shen Yuan explained.

At this point Qinghua was laughing his ass off, obviously delighted by the turn of events. Even Mobei cracked a slight smile as he took in the steaming mess between Binghe and Shen Yuan. Binghe’s expression hadn’t changed, his impassivity put Shen Yuan off.

“So yeah, I’m fairly certain that's the reason we’re all mixed up, oh also Jiu-ge will never apologize for destroying your windshield, but uh on his behalf I’m sorry, and for all the other dickish stuff he might’ve done to you. In case you haven’t gathered, he’s kind of an ass.”

Binghe remained impassive, this made Shen Yuan nervous. Oh no what if Binghe got them in trouble for scamming the gym, Shen Yuan needed his serotonin boost from his runs or his seasonal depression would kill him. Binghe no! Please don’t be a tattle-tale! Even if you’re really pretty and hot and built as fuck and cute and - wait where was this going…?

“So you were flirting with me?” Binghe asked, finally breaking his silence.

“Umm yeah”

“Oh”

The silence returned.

“So you don’t want to kill me?”

“Ahh no, I mean Jiu-ge might try but I can handle that psycho - his weakness is the trolls movie, you play the soundtrack and he turns into a five year old,” Shen Yuan desperately jokes, he’s really trying to diffuse whatever tension Binghe is creating with his deep and soulful eye contact (my god is the man speaking with his eyes? What is this, a shoujo manga? What does that make Shen Yuan?)

“Oh, so the whole flirting thing, you were interested in me.” Binghe stated.

“Yeah” Shen Yuan replied awkwardly.

“Are you still?”

“Still…?”

“Interested”

At Binghe’s words Shen Yuan’s whole face flushed pink. His cheeks and ears felt warm with blood, he had to avert his gaze from Binghe’s own.

“Uh Yeah, I’m-” Shen Yuan paused as he gave Binghe a once over, his gaze appraised the man as he continued “-interested.”

Whether from Shen Yuan’s lecherous activities or admission, Binghe flushed. And oh wow Shen yuan wanted to see more of that. Binghe’s countenance transformed, his apathetic expression brightened and he even smiled! He smiled at Shen Yuan! Like he actually liked him and didn’t want to have him arrested! Progress!

Like a cool, suave guy, Binghe asked, “Want to get out of here?”

At this point Qinghua and Mobei had been relegated to background noise.

Shen Yuan flashed a mischievous grin, “Lets go”

The two quickly extricated themselves from the table, as Shen Yuan got up he looked to Qinghua who gave him a suggestive wink and thumbs up. Creep.

Eventually Shen Yuan and binghe were out of the restaurant. They stood on the street, making very heated eye contact (will it ever end???).

“So just to be clear you like me?” Binghe asked. Wow this guy was kinda insecure for someone who looked like a demi-god.

“I mean yeah, and are you sure about-” Shen Yuan gestured down to himself “- all of this?”

Binghe had followed Shen Yuan’s gesture and his gaze seemed to linger on his body, surveying every nook and cranny with a heated gaze. And oh wow that definitely did things for Shen Yuan’s confidence.

“Definitely”

“Well then, seeing as though we’re two consenting adults interested in one another, I recommend we go on a date.”

This seemed to please Binghe as he shot Shen Yuan a smile, oh wow did this man actually enjoy Shen Yuan’s brand of humor! They’re soulmates, your honor!

“Then let's go on a date,” and with that Binghe grabbed Shen Yuan’s hand (oh my god he had such big hands, they could probably wrap all the way around his waist, wtfwtf!).

And so the two men walked into the sunset, optimism teemed off their figures and they painted a picture of puppy love. After all that confusion and angst everything had been cleared up, the little misunderstanding was no more.

“I watched your ass”

“I know.”

Chapter Text

“You need help”

“No shit.”

It goes like this: Mobei-Jun wants Luo Binghe to touch some grass, but he doesn’t want to drag him along on his date. Qinghua had just messaged him that his friend wouldn’t be coming, so it would be too strange to have Luo Binghe third wheel on their date. So he surveys the rumpled and exhausted body of his boss/friend, and he knows what he needs to do.

“Go to the gym.”

Luo Binghe makes a choking noise at the command and he pretends to punch and kick at the air above him. It makes for a troubling sight.

“Did you not listen to me? I can’t go back there.” 

“You need to, go confront him or workout—” Mobei-Jun breaks off as he scrutinizes the filthy state of Luo Binghe’s home “---just get out of the house.”

Luo Binghe is still splayed out on the ground from his tantrum. After a few seconds of silence he finally hoists himself into a sitting position. 

“Fine.”

Mobei-Jun grunts. He doesn’t leave the house until he sees Binghe grab a duffel bag of gym clothes and drive away in his spare car. 

Luo Binghe is walking through the gym parking lot. You heard that right, the gym parking lot. He will likely be leaving the aforementioned parking lot, in a body bag. Because that’s just how his luck seems to be going. 

He sighs, he doesn't even know why he’s here. He could have lied to Mobei, he could have just hid out in a coffee shop or mall. But he didn’t, maybe he wants to be in a body bag. Maybe it would be worth it to see Shen Qingqiu. 

Binghe’s walk to the gym entrance stops as he hears a muffled shout. He freezes, a few feet away from the door. What was that? He looks around, but there’s no one else in the parking lot. He shrugs and keeps walking.

“AH—” a voice screams.

He stops again, the voice was close but far, probably coming from the alley next to the gym. Curious and a little scared, Binghe walks towards the entrance of the alley. Maybe its a serial killer, or someone taking a smoke break, or maybe just an oddly human sounding animal—he peeks his head in. His eyes widen as he takes in the sight before him.

What. What the fuck. 

He throws his body out of the alley, squatting down by the wall as he quietly gulps in air. He must be having a seizure, or some hyper realistic dream, or maybe he’s dead. 

He can’t help it, he looks again. The sight remains unchanged, this is real. 

In the alleyway there are two Shen Qingqius. One of them is pressed against the wall, with the other forcefully holding him down and furiously whispering into his ear. They are wearing identical workout gear, the only difference between the two is the one against the wall has his hair down and the other is wearing his hair in a tight ponytail. They are so close together, identical bodies smashed in a frustratingly intimate pose. Binghe may have been right about that body bag. He gulps. 

The one against the wall sighs as the other finishes whispering in his ear. 

“But Jiu-ge pleaseeeee,” says the Shen Qingqiu with his hair down. His voice increases in pitch near the end as he says ‘please,’ Binghe tries to memorize the sound (would it be too weird to pull out his phone and start recording this?)

“No idiot, it's my day.”  

Shen Qingqiu with loose hair begins to make a groaning noise, at this point Luo Binghe has pulled out his phone and started recording a voice memo.

“Pleaseee, I need some endorphins,” as loose haired Shen Qingqiu says this, he buries his head in the neck of ponytail Shen Qingqiu. Luo Binghe has never been so jealous of a neck. 

Ponytail Shen Qingqiu, or Jiu-ge, sighs and rakes his lithe fingers through the other’s loose hair. 

“And why is that A-Yuan?” 

Loose haired Shen Qingqiu, or A-Yuan, replies, “I’m having boy problems.” 

His voice sounds sad, Luo Binghe feels a startling need to kidnap this boy and keep him away from his ‘boy problems’ forever. 

Jiu-ge hums, “Just use Qingge, you’ll get plenty of endorphins from a quick fuck.”

What . 

‘A-Yuan’ makes a disgusted face at the suggestion, good , “Eww Jiu-ge I’m not getting into whatever fuck buddy thing you have going on with him.”

Th other Shen Qngqiu’s face twists into a frown, “Dont says fuck buddy, its childish.”

‘A-Yuan’ raises a brow at the statement.

“Having a fuck buddy is childish,” he deadpans while poking the other’s face. 

The other Shen Qingqiu scoffs, “ You’re childish.”

‘A-Yuan’ keeps poking his face, “Oh really?”

The other seems to be getting mad, though his frown transforms into more of a smirk and his eyes gain a devilish glint. 

“Really,” and then he pounces. ‘Jiu-ge’ uses his position to tighten his lax hold on ‘A-Yuan’s’ neck. He gets him in a chokehold, until ‘A-Yuan’ grabs the other around the middle and spins him around, forcing them to collapse onto the ground. They keep fighting on the floor, trying to gain leverage over one another. Luo Binghe adjusts his seated position at the sight, it seems like little Binghe also wants to play. 

Eventually ‘Jiu-ge’ gains enough leverage and is able to pin down ‘A-Yuan,’ with his long pale legs straddling the other’s chest. Binghe feels his hands itching to take a photograph, he resists. He watches as the two raggedly breathe, how ‘Jiu-ge’s’ smirk looks wicked compared to the amused grin of ‘A-Yuan.’ 

BUZZZ, BUZZZZ, BUZZZ, a loud sound disrupts the quiet. Luo Binghe’s head snaps to the source, his phone. The screen shows that he is receiving a phone call from Mobei, he hits the decline button. Slowly he looks back up, two sets of green eyes stare at him. 

“It’s the beast,” ‘Jiu-ge’ says venomously.

‘A-Yuan,’ who is still laying on the ground, simply stares. He must be scared or too angry to process Binghe’s presence.

Not knowing what else to do, Binghe says, “Hello.” 

Surprisingly ‘A-Yuan’ pipes up with a pleasant, “Hi Binghe!” 

That catches ‘Jiu-ge’s’ attention and his head snaps between the two men before he begins glaring at the man underneath him. 

“Boy problems huh?” 

‘A-Yuan’ giggles. 

At that point ‘Jiu-ge’ begins disentangling the two, until he and ‘A-Yuan’ are standing. He takes another moment, his eyes glaring literal holes into Binghe’s head. After nearly a minute of this, he lets out a dramatic sigh.

“Whatever, but I’m tracking your—” he points to ‘A-Yuan’ “---phone, so you better be at home by the time I wrap up here.”

“Yes Jiu-ge.” 

The other man spares them not another glace as he storms out of the alleyway. 

The two are silent for a moment until Binghe speaks up, “I’m confused.”

‘A-Yuan’ laughs, “Yeah I think I get what's happening now.”

Binghe flashes a bashful smile, “Could you maybe explain it to me then.”

Shen Yuan nods and walks closer before plopping himself down in front of Binghe. He is so close, Binghe gulps, he can practically feel the warmth of the other man’s body. Unwittingly his eyes lock onto the pale thigh below him, how the leggings dig a little into the meat of ‘A-Yuan’s’  leg. 

A pale hand flashes in front of Binghe’s face, he snaps back into attention, flushing at his blatant ogling. Shen Yuan’s still wearing a smile, it feels dangerous, like it may lull Binghe into a false sense of safety. Binghe jumps a little as he feels that hand land on his knee, neither say a word about the intimate contact. 

“Well Binghe, it seems you’ve busted our little operation. See me, I’m Shen Yuan, and  my brother, Shen Jiu, are kind of lacking in funds and this gym is a little out of our price range, that is if we bought two memberships. But cool thing, we’re twins so we decided to get one membership and just share it.” 

Oh. Oh. 

“So–” Luo Binghe pauses to run a hand through his hair, disbelief and relief are painted clearly on his face “--you’re not possessed.”

That startles a laugh out of Shen Yuan, “You thought I was possessed?”

Luo Binghe throws his hands up in the air, “I mean one day you would be nice to me and the next you were throwing a brick through my windshield.”

That cuts Shen Yuan’s laughing fit off, he fixes Luo Binghe with a horrified face, “Oh my god, Jiu-ge would not.”

Luo Binghe cracks a rueful smile, “He did.” 

Shen Yuan must be able to tell that Binghe isn’t actually mad, though he still seems embarrassed by his twin's antics. He flashes a bashful look at Binghe before turning away for a moment, he’s acting nervous. 

The hand on Binghe’s knee starts moving, he feels a finger begin tracing patterns on the exposed skin. What . 

Shen Yuan’s eyes flash back up to look at Binghe, he looks almost coy, “How should I repay you for all the trouble we’ve caused?” 

Maybe Shen Yuan doesn’t mean to sound suggestive, maybe he doesn’t realize what a sight he makes with his adorably flushed cheeks and rumpled hair, maybe he’s just a good innocent person who wants to repay a debt he believes he owes. Maybe Luo Binghe is tripping on acid back in his house. 

Binghe laughs, a brittle pathetic thing, “It’s no problem.”

Shen Yuan’s voice is a purr as he replies, “What if I want to make it my problem?’

Binghe gulps as he desperately searches for an excuse, “I thought you were having some other boy problems–” he lets out another disingenuous laugh “--maybe you should focus on those and not a convenient distraction.”

Because that's what Luo Binghe is, a convenient distraction. Maybe Shen Yuan changed his mind about having a ‘fuck buddy.’ But Luo Binghe, he’s still too wrapped up in his domestic fantasies of marriage and two and a half children—and it would hurt too much to be offered such a consolation prize, one night of Shen Yuan, when what he really wants is a lifetime. 

“Oh you heard that!” Shen Yuan flushes, Binghe feels sickeningly jealous, he wants to be the person to make Shen Yuan flush like that, he wants to find this idiot boy and make him realize what a gift he has. 

Shen Yuan continues talking, apparently he wants to divulge the details of his ‘boy problems.’ Luo Binghe feels the need to vomit. 

“Well you see umm—” Shen Yuan begins playing with a loose strand of hair, oh my god, “--- I’m not really a people person, but I finally found this guy and over the last year I’ve started developing feelings for him. And so I decided ‘this is it Shen Yuan, go for it!’ and I went for it, I tried to flirt with him—” Luo Binghe’s hand tightened in his lap “---mostly by complimenting how handsome he was, I had no idea what I was doing, it was mostly me being a dork about his tattoos or hair.”

At this point Shen Yuan’s face takes on a look of embarrassment, his skin flushes even deeper and he starts avoiding eye contact.

“But my flirting never got me anywhere, if anything I thought I was scaring him away, because everytime I would go to talk to him he would look at me like I had…well… like I had thrown a brick into his windshield.” 

What an oddly specific detail. Luo Binghe looks at Shen Yuan, whose eyes are directly locked on Binghe. It feels like he’s missing something here. Thrown a brick into his windshield, oh. 

“... I’m your boy problem.” 

Shen Yuan lets out a high pitched laugh, and rubs the back of his neck. He looks so embarrassed, cute. 

“Uhh yeah.” 

Luo Binghe wants to steal this boy away forever. He could probably do it, he already owns a few rental properties in the countryside and he knows a priest that owes him a favor. But that would not be a smart move, that would be what his therapist calls ‘a clear manifestation of his abandonment issues.’ Or as Sha Hauling calls it, ‘Binghe’s amoral delusions.’ He needs to start slow and work his way up. But—he looks at the beautiful disheveled man that just propositioned him—maybe not too slow.

Luo Binghe’s voice is calm and strong, desperately hiding his inner jubilance, “Do you still want to get those endorphins?” 

Shen Yuan seems surprised at the question, his eyes widened and then slowly begin to track over the planes of Binghe’s body. Oh, he’s being checked out. Binghe feels a flush begin to spread from his neck to his cheeks, it's especially hot because Shen Yuan seems unaware of what he’s doing, as if he needs to assess the offer before accepting. It’s innocent, it’s depraved. 

Finally Shen Yuan’s eyes focus back on Binghe’s face, his hand on Binghe’s knee tightens as he says, “Let’s go to my place.”

Without even thinking, Binghe grabs Shen Yuan off the ground. Shen Yuan’s legs wrap around Binghe’s middle and his arms straddle his neck. He lets out a surprised ‘oof’ noise before giggling a bit. Embarrassed and without an explanation, Binghe ignores his actions and starts trekking back to his car. 

“Yeah—,” Binghe exhales a heady breath, “---let's do that.”