Work Text:
Cheng Xiaoshi stood frozen at the gaping entrance to the hospital room Inspector Chen Bin had guided him to, processing a million different details all at once. They flooded into his perception with all the force of tidal waves - a feeling not unlike the frantic disorientation of having the rug pulled out from under one's feet. He felt like an innocent bystander pelted by these pointless, unsought-for observations, but he stood there, powerless to process what was in front of his face.
The overwhelming impulse - to cry, to scream, to despair - that had sunk its sharp claws into him was so overpowering that he fell to his knees without a word, unaware of the tears streaming down his face and blotting out his vision before something else kicked the air out of his lungs.
Lu Guang, whole and hale and hearty, a halo of white hair arraying his face, the sheen of sweat on his ghastly pale skin making him seem almost a specter, not quite of this world. The unmistakably alive, ragged rise and fall of his chest as he inhaled and exhaled. The regular, irritating beep of the monitor displaying his vital signs.
Unable to reconcile the vision with what he had been expecting, he involuntarily redirected his thoughts to things that were easier, however irrelevantly, to understand. The almost imperceptible swaying of the curtains. The unfamiliar sound of a notification from Inspector Chen's phone. The glare of the fluorescent ceiling light that reflected off Lu Guang's phone screen and into his eyes.
"Lu Guang? You're still alive?"
The boy in question turned away, bristling. "Idiot. Are you disappointed?"
Cheng Xiaoshi found himself crawling to him, still on his knees. Disbelief and relief flooded his body in equal measures, dizzying his mind and making his heart threaten to burst.
"That's not what I meant!"
Still bristling, with his back to Cheng Xiaoshi, Lu Guang spoke in a low, tired but steady voice. "Get out. I need rest."
Cheng Xiaoshi was so busy trying to get a good look at Lu Guang's face, he almost failed to catch a sheepish Chen Bin herding the others out on some pretense to give them a moment. He pulled Lu Guang back by the shoulder gingerly, giving it up the moment he heard the other boy sigh, mistaking exasperation for pain.
"I'm not made of porcelain, idiot," Lu Guang huffed.
"You had a fruit knife in you," Cheng Xiaoshi bawled out, unsure if he was reminding himself or Lu Guang of that fact, feeling snot tickle his nostrils. He heaved himself over the side-rail of the hospital bed, landing on the cold space next to Lu Guang, provoking a hiss of protest as his elbow collided with the other boy's knee.
"I know, I was there," Lu Guang frown made itself known in the disapproving slant of his shoulders.
"I'm so glad you're okay."
The words were out before Cheng Xiaoshi knew what he was saying, not that he would have stopped himself even if he could. Honesty was his strong suit, for better or worse, and Cheng Xiaoshi didn't spare a second thought before burrowing beside Lu Guang and slipping his arms around the other's stiff frame.
The first blush of a burgeoning red was beginning to show itself at the tips of Lu Guang's ears. Cheng Xiaoshi grinned and stretched his neck at an odd angle to first blow against and then kiss the tattle-tale of an ear he could see, talking all the while, even as a shiver overtook Lu Guang's body.
"I had no idea what I'd do without you. You pretty much do the, uh, everything in my life, you know-"
"Shut up, fool. Stop talking!"
The endless tirade had made Lu Guang turn towards him, slapping his pale hand over Cheng Xiaoshi's mouth in an effort to stem the babbling. Naturally, this prompted him to stick his tongue out gleefully, making Lu Guang recoil in dismayed disgust. The redness that had adorned his face drained away at an alarming pace, enough to make Cheng Xiaoshi think twice about what he had done.
"...Sorry," he spoke, before Lu Guang managed to collect enough of his thoughts to admonish him further, making his best innocent eyes at his partner.
Lu Guang simply sighed an all too familiar, long-suffering sigh before laying himself down again, though not turning away this time, seeming to realize that come hell or high water, Cheng Xiaoshi was determined to confirm his existence with his own eyes and hands.
A slow, triumphant grin spread across Cheng Xiaoshi's smug face, taking only a second to gloat over his victory before sobering up and cupping Lu Guang's face between his hands, his thumb stroking the plane of his partner's cheek.
"You feel so cold," he commented, "are you sure you feel okay?"
Even as he waited for a response, he had huddled closer, trying to transfer as much of his own body heat to the other boy as the laws of thermodynamics would allow.
"...I can't feel much of anything right now. Anesthesia."
"Oh, right..."
Cheng Xiaoshi bit his lip as he thought of it. That gaping wound, too wide or too deep to be fixed under local anesthesia, the continual weeping of blood all the way from their home to the hospital, the ghastly, wraith-like look of Lu Guang, who already had a tendency towards an unhealthy paleness...
"Don't look so troubled. The human body is resilient."
Lu Guang had wanted to shift his position, scoot a little over to the farther end, give them both some more room to maneuver in. As he brought his hand down on the bed to support himself, it found itself caught in the grasp of Cheng Xiaoshi's ridiculously warm hands before it could make contact with the bed.
Disgruntled, puzzled and nonetheless amused, Lu Guang looked patiently at Cheng Xiaoshi's face, eyes squeezed shut in concentration before an almost serene look passed over his face.
"What are you attempting to do?"
"I'm praying to all my ancestors for your speedy recovery."
A curious sound, something like a laugh, escaped Lu Guang's throat before he had a chance to quash it. He used his other hand to smack Cheng Xiaoshi's head.
Indeed, it might mean something to pray for the Cheng family's powers of recovery, considering how the descendant in front of him never caught a cold, had a freakishly high level of body heat, and was a complete stranger to the inside of a hospital. Although whether the last part had been a genuine absence of illness or simply the absence of someone around to realize that the boy needed a hospital, he didn't fully know yet.
"Hey! Don't knock it before you try it. But I'm generous. I'll wait for you to eat your words when you find yourself right as rain tomorrow!"
"Idiot," Lu Guang muttered, too tired even to hide the intonation of fondness in the utterance.
Cheng Xiaoshi's spirit was unbreakable. He answered with an affectionate smile of his own, reaching out to ruffle Lu Guang's already messy hair, matted with sweat at places, then thoughtlessly leaning closer to give him a peck on the lips.
Lu Guang, even through the slow motion he felt time was suddenly progressing at, could pinpoint the exact moment the magnificent fool realized exactly what he had done from the way his body froze, muscles tensing even as his face tried to keep up his bravado of an innocent mistake. They simply stared wide-eyed at each other - Lu Guang's own blush lay forgotten at the tips of his ears and the back of his neck face to face with Cheng Xiaoshi's fiery-flaming cheeks.
"What did-" the words had scarcely left his lips when an insistent knock on the door made them both jump, sent Cheng Xiaoshi scrambling to answer whoever it was in a comically high-pitched voice.
"Sorry if I'm interrupting," Inspector Chen Bin sounded genuinely apologetic, not batting an eyelid at finding the both of them so... distracted. They would have found it almost odd if their minds hadn't been wrapped up in other subjects. "We were wondering if-"
"I keep telling you, just go in! There's no need to stand on ceremony with those two!" Qiao Lin's figure was entirely dwarfed by the two officers in front of her. Cheng Xiaoshi sent a silent thanks to the heavens that people with decorum had been present with their impish friend.
"I was hoping to ask Lu Guang to take a look at Liu Min's phone for any clues." Inspector Li Xiao's booming voice cut over Chen Bin's head.
"Don't just stand there, come in! This isn't an isolation cell. And Inspector Chen, can we speak more directly in our conversations from now on?! I had no idea-"
Cheng Xiaoshi's whining continued, giving Lu Guang a moment to himself, trying to center himself and slow his racing heart. What had he even meant to say to Cheng Xiaoshi? What did you do that for? What did you mean by that? Can we do that again?
20:43. Lu Guang was almost grateful as the phone was passed into his hand, allowing him to push everything else to the back of his mind. He needed to talk it out with Cheng Xiaoshi, later, when things were calmer. They needed to talk.
20:44. He took a deep breath, prepared himself to get to work, and pressed the power button on the phone.