#Tattoo artist!Hua Cheng

[tummymoth]

Of (Tattoo) Guns N' Roses [1]

Chapter 1: Sweet Child O' Mine (read on Ao3 here)

Chapter Summary: On his way home from work, Xie Lian finds a bedraggled cat in an alleyway and decides to take it home. His roommate Mu Qing is less than enthused, but the florist insists that he can cover the expenses.

Additional Info: Florist! Xie Lian x Tattoo Artist!Hua Cheng, roommate!Mu Qing, personal trainer!Feng Xin, some FengQing as a treat for us, strong language, meet-cute, fluffy as fuck in the future, slice of life, an unnecessary amount of flower research was put into this

A/N: A sleep-deprived night full of making headcanons of my favorite trope (florist/tattoo artist) with my favorite mutually obsessed paring has resulted in one of the most self-indulgent things I've ever written. Enjoy.

Word Count: 4,261

Next>

“You get what you pay for,” while a common adage, is a phrase Xie Lian has worked hard to defy every day. 

Why spend sixty dollars on a coat when he could layer on three sweaters he thrifted for five dollars each? No need to waste money on buying a new one either, when he could patch up the holes with a good, old-fashioned, needle and thread. The idea of spending 20 dollars on an umbrella? Obscene; especially when Xie Lian got a deal for his new favorite possession: a Hello Kitty umbrella. A steal, really.

Unfortunately for Xie Lian, his two-dollar, bottom-of-the-bargain-bin, flimsier-than-a-wet-napkin umbrella was unable to keep the wind and rain from seeping through three layers of woolen threads and soaking him to the bone. 

If his shivering form was anything to go by, it was apparent that the phrase, “you get what you pay for,” still reigned supreme.

It was with stiff limbs and an inverted umbrella in tow that Xie Lian speed-walked to his apartment in the rain (taxis are overrated, it’s important to get your cardio in). A steady rhythm of icy drops paired well with the post-workday din of cars screeching down the city street, allowing his mind to wander. 

What was Mu Qing making dinner tonight? He ate a piece of cantaloupe he packed for work in thought, eyes observing rainwater filling in the familiar cracks of the sidewalk. To be fair, it didn’t matter either way; Xie Lian was banned from the kitchen regardless. You set off the building’s fire alarm once, and everyone gets into a tizzy about how you “managed to set fire to congee” and  “should never be allowed within three meters of a working stove again.” Honestly, did people no longer believe in second chances anymore—

A pitiful yowl yanked Xie Lian back to reality. He squinted in the general direction it came from, trying to see past what was essentially a grey sheet of rain. It wasn’t long before another cry rang out, barely making it above the sound of traffic. His eyes zeroed in on the alleyway a meter or so ahead of him. 

What poor creature had managed to get caught in the rain? It wasn’t as if this was a summer shower either. Each drop of autumn rain that splattered on his skin leeched heat away from his body. He couldn’t imagine being weighed down by fur that couldn’t even offer warmth. 

Sure enough, there was a dirtied, soaked cat shivering as it pressed itself against the wall in an attempt to shrink away from the cold. It couldn’t have been more than two years old; it also looked like it could’ve been white, but with all of the dirt, smog, and—was that blood?!—caked into its matted fur, Xie Lian figured the poor thing hadn’t had a proper bath in ages. 

Making sure his steps were light—not that the cat seemed to be of the mind to care how loud he was—he padded his way towards it before squatting down. 

“Hello there, little one,” Xie Lian cooed, gingerly reaching out a hand while trying to shield it from being pelted by any more rain with his umbrella. “You shouldn’t be out in the rain like this, you’ll get a cold.” 

He received little more than another meow before his brown eyes met blue ones. The cat butted its head toward him, trying to lean its full body weight against his hand. Xie Lian shivered at how frigid to the touch its waterlogged fur was and made a move to withdraw his hand in surprise, but each time he tried to move away, the cat pushed further until it was practically in his lap. 

He chuckled and gave its head a few cursory pets, smiling in spite of the water that was slowly seeping into his pants. It was fine if they got grime and mud on them today, tomorrow was laundry day anyway. 

“You’re a persistent one, aren’t you?” he mused mostly to himself as he took a closer look at its coat to see if there were any injuries that needed attending to. The few streaks of blood he could see on its fur didn’t look fresh, but it couldn’t have hurt to get them checked out to avoid any infection. There was no collar around its neck either, so unless it was microchipped, he had no hope of trying to call the owners. 

With a small grunt of effort, Xie Lian scooped up the cat in one arm and hoisted himself up. Now that it was pressed close to his chest, he could feel the tremors that wracked the poor thing’s body. 

“I know we’ve only met today,” he said as he made his way to the nearest clinic, pointedly ignoring the feeling of claws digging into his sweater, “but can I ask you not to hate me if I take you to the vet? I want to make sure you’ll be okay before I send you home and see if we can find your parents.” 

The cat blinked back at him owlishly, shivering all the while. Xie Lian smiled. 

“To the vet, it is then!”

After about thirty minutes of sitting in the waiting area, the door to the veterinarian’s office opened and the cat stepped out, closely followed by the vet herself. 

“Aside from a few cuts and scrapes, he looks to be in good condition,” she announced, smiling at the cat leaping into Xie Lian’s arms before turning back to her clipboard and writing notes. 

Ah, so it was a he.

“We also gave him a bath to get rid of the dirt and dried him off.”

“That’s good to know, thank you so much for your help,” Xie Lian nodded his head in thanks and gave the cat gentle scratches behind his ears, admiring his newly blow-dried coat and fawning over him even more when he started purring. So he was a white cat. With soft fur too.

 “If it’s not too much, could I ask one more thing of you?”

“Yes?” The vet looked up from her papers with a raised brow. 

“Do you know if he’s microchipped or not?” 

“You don’t know if your own cat is microchipped?” 

His smile turned sheepish as he scratched the back of his head with a free hand. “Ah, no I actually picked him up off the street today. He was just sitting there in the rain, it was worrisome.”  

“I see…” After a few beats of silence, she pushed up her glasses. “When we conducted his physical exam we didn’t see any microchip. You could take him to a nearby shelter, but they tend to be at capacity around this time of year.” 

Xie Lian frowned. As far as he knew, there weren’t any no-kill shelters in his area. And while the question of whether or not he would be adopted wasn’t an issue—this cat was quite handsome now that the dirt and blood had been washed off—sending him off to another strange area didn’t sit right with him. 

“Could I take him home instead?”

She smiled and scribbled a few more notes. “I’ll go ahead and get you the proper paperwork so we can get him registered. That shouldn’t be a problem at all."

“Absolutely not,” Mu Qing deadpanned before Xie Lian could get more than a word in edgewise, arms crossed over his chest and a spatula in his hand. The pinched look of irritation on his face was almost intimidating enough to offset the pink checkerboard apron (also Hello Kitty themed) he was currently wearing. 

Almost. 

The smile Xie Lian was wearing felt a little more forced than it did thirty seconds ago, but he carried on regardless and closed their shared apartment door behind him, mindfully setting his newly acquired companion on the couch where Feng Xin sat and a hefty bag of cat food on the floor. The cat wasted no time in padding over to the man and pawing at his knee, eyes timid but curious as he inspected the threads on his pant leg.

“I don’t know…” Feng Xin trailed off as he let the cat nose at his fingers, enamored by how the small creature’s nose was cool to the touch. “I think it’s a great idea, Xie Lian. Mu Qing just hates the idea of cleaning up after a fellow stray.”

“You don’t even live here, cadger.” If Mu Qing’s eyes kept rolling like this, Xie Lian feared they would get stuck looking at the back of his head permanently. “You get no say in this.” 

“Oh my, that’s a fancy word for you. Is that the word of the week for your little book club—”

 “As I was saying,” Xie Lian began again, “I’ve named him Ruoye, and he’s an exceptionally well-behaved cat. I found him on the street today, and he was sitting in the cold all alone—”

“All due respect, I couldn’t care less how well-behaved that thing is,” Mu Qing interrupted as he shot a pointed glare in their direction. “It hasn’t even been here for more than five minutes and it’s already shedding all over the couch.” 

Feng Xin barked out a laugh. “See? Told you.”

“Can it, freeloader.”

“Mu Qing…” Xie Lian’s voice took on a pleading tone. 

“We’ve both been struggling with rent, we can’t possibly take in a stray cat.” He waved his spatula around emphatically. “I hate to be the one to say it, but this isn’t practical. You’d have to think about food, vet visits, bedding—” 

“I can make it work.” The gears in Xie Lian’s mind were already turning as he worked out the budgeting he’d need to keep track of. “The shop got a new regular about a month ago, and he tips really well. More than I’d like… but if he keeps ordering arrangements and tipping the same, the amount of income the shop would make from just him would be enough to cover any expenses for Ruoye.” 

Mu Qing was hardly convinced. “Listen, I don’t say anything about you spending money on buying treats to feed stray animals or letting them stay here to recover for a night if clinics are closed. I’m not your parent; if that’s your prerogative, then you should go for it. But to permanently bring one into a space that we share? Did you think this through?”

“I can take care of everything for Ruoye and still keep up with my half of the bills,” Xie Lian insisted. 

Feng Xin rose to his feet and stretched himself out, yawning languidly before he let his hands drop to his sides. “Sounds like he’s got you beat, you know how Xie Lian is when he’s got his heart set on something,” he simpered as he gave the cat of the hour a few head rubs, cooing when he leaned into his hand. After sniffing at his hand for the past five minutes, Ruoye had decided Feng Xin wasn’t a threat. “Anyways, when’s dinner gonna be ready?”

Rolling his eyes, Mu Qing headed back to the kitchen to check on the progress of tonight’s dish.  “I’m not feeding you tonight, you mooch. Go order takeout or something.”

“How am I supposed to tell my clients to train hard and keep to a diet if I’m stuffing my face with shitty food?” Feng Xin groaned as he followed after him. 

“Oh, I don’t know. Starve then, ”Mu Qing grumbled.

“You have the most bitter personality I’ve ever been unfortunate enough to meet. You are such an ass…”

“…”

“…but your cooking is actually decent.” 

“Maybe instead of starving you, I’ll just spit in your food,” Mu Qing muttered dryly as he pinched the bridge of his nose in irritation. He turned to Xie Lian and, upon seeing that his stupidly optimistic smile never went away, Mu Qing huffed turned back around to rifle through the cabinets and grab three plates. He set them on the island before taking the pan off the stove and plating up. 

Tonight was steamed sea bass in a ginger soy sauce with stir-fried vegetables. For extra protein, there was also scrambled egg with tomato mixed in. Feng Xin hated tomatoes, but they were healthy and Mu Qing took personal joy in watching the man try to tough it out and force himself to eat them anyway. 

From the corner of his eye, Mu Qing could see sapphire eyes peek up at him in interest as he brought the dishes to the kitchen island and set them down. It seems as if the small thing had already begun to make itself at home and start exploring. 

He looked up. 

Xie Lian smiled back. 

Mu Qing stubbornly averted his gaze and shoveled rice onto each plate before grabbing chopsticks and spoons for the three of them. Maybe if he busied himself with setting up for dinner, his hardheaded roommate would drop the subject. Dealing with Feng Xin’s stupid face as he jovially pulled a chair up to the kitchen island was almost tolerable compared to Xie Lian’s silent begging. 

Sure, the man could handle rejection—it’s not as if he would ever push someone’s boundaries after a hard no—but having to tell Xie Lian “no,” was the same as asking Mu Qing to tell some kid that Santa wasn’t real. Easy in theory, but dealing with the knowledge that he was the bearer of bad news? Not so much. 

After a few more moments of fidgeting with placemats, Mu Qing dared to look up again.

The fucker never stopped smiling.

Sighing in defeat, he sat himself down and waved in the general direction of the couch. 

“Keep him out of my room, and we have a deal.”

He could practically feel the energy of their small apartment shift as his roommate’s face lit up. Xie Lian wasn’t one for raucous, incendiary emotions—even as a kid, he never took it upon himself to shriek or whoop loudly in joy—but his excitement was palpable nonetheless.

“Oh thank you, Mu Qing! You’ll get used to him in no time, I swear. He’s super friendly, he was even okay with me carrying him all the way home while I walked—”

“If I see any cat hairs in my cooking, I’m throwing him out the window.”

Sunlight filtered through the half-open blinds of the shop and bled streaks of gold across Xie Lian’s work table as he busied himself by carefully trimming chamomile stems before giving them a home in their new container. 

It was Ruoye’s first time accompanying him to work and, much to Xie Lian’s delight, he had been giving him zero issues at all. Instead of batting at every stem in his reach like Mu Qing said he would, the cat had taken a liking to the feeling of the sun warming his fur. Wherever there weren’t stray leaves or petals, he took it upon himself to sprawl out on his back, tail languidly lashing back and forth as he watched Xie Lian work. 

His current client had requested a bouquet for the bride of a wedding. When they both sat down to talk about the specifics, he learned how the two had come to meet and chose the flowers accordingly. Chamomiles for patience in adversity, and pink camellias to represent a deep longing. These two flowers combined with white clovers as fillers for the bouquet—a plea for the receiver to think of the giver—gave a quiet retelling of how the groom and bride had met and continued to fall for each other despite unkind circumstances. 

It pulled at his heartstrings, really.

There was just something about being able to pull together a piece that would be part of such a defining and joyful moment for so many people that made his heart smile. And so he stood there, painstakingly making sure every bloom sat just right. Xie Lian loved weddings—even more so when he was able to make an arrangement that conveyed a couple’s story.

He took a step back to admire his work and began to get lost in his thoughts—maybe he had time to run out and buy Ruoye a small bed he could use at the shop…?—when he heard the door chime ring up front. 

“I’ll be there in just a minute!” He patted his hands dry on his apron before giving Ruoye a quick pat on the head—after getting over the initial shock of such loud ringing, the cat had quickly grown desensitized to customers entering the shop and started to take the sound as a signal to accompany Xie Lian as he made his way toward the front. Was his client here for pickup already? He had told her it wouldn’t be ready for another couple of days.

Instead of a rather warm-spirited and peppy woman with brown hair and sun-kissed skin who wore whites and blues, Xie Lian found himself faced with a gentleman who looked to be entirely the opposite. 

Inky black hair was smartly slicked back into a high and tight ponytail, not a strand of hair out of place. Clothes as dark as night countered sharply with severe eyes and pale skin. Gold trim glinted against the black of his wool coat, nearly reaching the floor. And while his gaze wasn’t exactly frigid in the way he scanned the shop, nothing in his features made way for the implication of life. He was all harsh contrast and sharp angles. 

Save for the slight tinge of pink dusting his cheeks and nose that implied a brisk walk outside in the nippy autumn weather, he looked to be a walking corpse. 

“He Xuan!” Xie Lian’s eyes crescented as he smiled and took his hand to shake it, Ruoye still weaving in and out of his legs. Contrary to everything else about him, He Xuan’s palms gave off a pleasant heat. “You’re here for your order, right?” 

“Mn.” Other than a curt nod, the taller man didn’t contribute much more. His eyes only briefly lingered on Ruoye before he turned his attention back to the florist.

Xie Lian didn’t think much of his brevity—this was his third time ordering from the shop, and the rhythm of their exchange never deviated too far from yes or no questions—and made his way to the back again before wheeling out a two-tiered cart. 

Two arrangements sat atop the highest tier, while three sat on the bottom—all were in vessels of various heights and shapes. Each bouquet set a moody tone with near-black or burgundy petals and dark green ferns, with the only instances of bright color found in flesh-colored flowers interspersed throughout each piece for contrast. Both the flowers and He Xuan himself looked out of place in a store that had mostly warm, bright tones. 

“It’s not often I’m just given a color scheme and told to do whatever I want. Thank you for all the creative freedom,” Xie Lian said enthusiastically as he gently set each vase on the counter to ring them up. 

More freedom to do as he wished meant he could incorporate more unique flowers people didn’t typically order—sea hollies weren’t exactly the most popular compared to roses or tulips, and the snarly texture of contorted filbert branches wasn’t necessarily a crowd-pleaser either.  Using relatively unconventional materials drove up the cost of these arrangements, of course, but He Xuan had insisted that money wasn’t an issue during his first order. 

“There’s no need for thanks.” He Xuan’s tone was neither friendly nor antagonizing—it just was. “My boss enjoys your work. He says you have a keen eye for pieces that aren’t monotonous to the point of being an eyesore in the studio.” 

Unsure if he was to take that as a compliment, Xie Lian decided to change the line of conversation entirely as he punched in the necessary information to calculate the total, Ruoye looking over his shoulder as he perched on one of the shelves to his left. “You buy these for him as a gift? That’s quite nice of you.” 

“No, these are for display around the shop.” He Xuan sighed—the only other emotions he displayed other than apathy were either thinly veiled contempt or annoyance, and this was the former. “I’m his personal assistant. He sends me on errands or whatever suits his fancy.”

“Oh? Well, I assume my flowers suit his fancy, then. That seems like high praise, coming from him,” Xie Lian chuckled. 

“Very. He’s critical of other people’s works.” 

“Oh? Does he make a living as an art critic?”

He Xuan shrugged. “No. He’s an artist. Very highly acclaimed. Probably one of the best” It didn’t sound like he was bragging about his boss so much as he was begrudgingly telling the truth. 

“Well, it’s very flattering to receive praise from someone with so much skill,” Xie Lian replied with a smile on his face. “I’d love to see his work sometime.”

The black-clad man considered him for a moment. “I can talk to him about having you stop by.”

Xie Lian immediately backtracked and waved a hand dismissively.  “Oh no, I would hate to impose. I’m sure he’s a busy man if he’s sending you out so often.”

“Yeah. Busy,” He Xuan muttered under his breath and bent down a bit to peer at each of the arrangements set on the counter, eyes carefully analyzing Xie Lian’s work. 

After a few beats of silence with no words coming from the other, Xie Lian decided to busy himself by tidying up the drawers at the register to avoid rushing him. He was a relatively neat person—his upbringing didn’t give him a chance to be a slob—but try as he might, he could never avoid falling into the trappings of a junk drawer. There were wayward tealights, a pair of dull scissors he forgot to throw out, stamps, white ribbon, and… were those wilted leaves? God, that wouldn’t do—

“You’ve outdone yourself this time.” He Xuan cleared his throat as he stood back up and produced a wallet from his coat pocket. “How much do I owe you?” 

“It’ll be four hundred and twenty-five today.” 

He raised a brow at him, which was probably his version of openly gawking at someone. “That prices each arrangement under one hundred.” 

“Correct.”

“The simplest ones you’ve done before are worth at least ninety.”

“Well I would actually sell each of these for upwards of ninety-five dollars—what with the rarer flowers and all—but since you’ve been ordering so much from here, I decided to just bundle it and price them at eighty-five each.”

He Xuan’s eyes narrowed imperceptibly. “You are grossly underselling yourself. We’ll pay the full amount.”

“No, I really don’t mind.” Xie Lian waved away the notion, suddenly feeling sheepish under his deadpan stare. “You’ve been such a loyal customer over the past couple of months—”

“I insist,”  the taller man interrupted as he handed his card to him and proceeded to rifle through the bills in his wallet. “If you aren’t willing to charge full price, I’ll add tip to compensate.”

“Ah…” he trailed off, unsure of how else to decline without sounding rude. He Xuan took that as an invitation to continue talking and pointed out the least opulent arrangement out of the five. 

“What you do is artistry.” There were no layers of awe or sugarcoating to be found in his voice. Just as He Xuan pointed out his boss’s apparent skill as an artist with zero embellishments, he appraised Xie Lian’s skill (skill??) as a florist as if it was a simple fact of life.

“I wouldn’t consider myself an artist.” He scratched the back of his head sheepishly. “This is just a hobby I happen to be making money off of, really.”

“It isn’t even a question of using rare flowers or not.” He Xuan continued as if he didn’t hear him. “This piece has more typical flowers, yet you clearly know what you’re doing with its composition. The height, sizing, and colors complement each other, and by adding filler plants with more structure, you made a vertical arrangement with an angular feel without having to fight against the organic form of the flowers. You should be pricing for your skill, and all the time you’ve spent honing it.” He stopped to consider the arrangement again. 

“This one is easily worth one hundred or more.”

Xie Lian was absolutely dumbfounded for a few seconds before he found his words. 

“This is the most you’ve talked during a pickup, and it sounds to me like you have a keen eye for art just like your boss,” he jibed at He Xuan with a chuckle as he ran the card through and made to grab his receipt from the printer. 

“So you admit it’s art.” His tone was still hard—almost abrasive with its ever-present underlying current of annoyance—but Xie Lian found this to be the friendliest he’s been and decided to take his words for what they were. 

Once the transaction had been completed and He Xuan was able to (very carefully) load the flowers into his car, Xie Lian returned to the register and reached up to give Ruoye a scratch behind the ears. 

He slowly blinked his eyes at Xie Lian as a low, pleasant rumble sounded from his chest. 

“You’ve been so good today,” he cooed as he began to give the cat full-body pets. “I oughta get you some treats. Maybe a bed so you have your own spot at the shop.” 

Ruoye continued purring.

Next>

[katrinreit]

artist: REIT

[scrapimmortal]

xie lian getting a tattoo from tattoo artist hua cheng and of course he doesn't ask for a break when he needs one, because he doesn't want to be a bother and he can take the pain, it's not that serious. but hua cheng is very good at what he does and he knows, he can tell. and hua cheng makes xie lian sit in the cool shade on the bench in front of his tattoo shop, he gives him some water and a sweet snack and sits down next to him

and then when hua cheng is convinced that xie lian is really ready to continue they get back to the tattooing, and they're yapping away and smiling and feeling so comfortable with each other. and xie lian is already thinking of his next tattoo because he'll get to spend a lot of time with san lang again (and of course he doesn't need a tattoo excuse but he's a little silly)

[devotedbutterfly]

flourist/ tattoo artist au

Huayin week day 2 prompt! (Hua Cheng orders flowers and gets Yin Yu to deliver them so he can pretend that YY is flirting w him HAHA)

[artisticallycrafty]

Aaaahhhh!!!! It's finally done!!! Huge thanks to my artist for creating this absolutely beautiful TGCF tattoo. I'm in love with this amazing piece of art that lets me proclaim just how much I love Hualian. The colors on the flowers are so soft and lovely, and I love the touch of red in Hua Cheng's flowers, alluding to his title as Crimson Rain Sought Flower. And the wraith butterfly is so ethereal, coming to rest gently on Ruoye, who's so lovingly curled around E'ming??? Ugh, I'm going to be gushing over this tattoo and smiling every time I see it for a long while.

Definitely will be going back to this studio for my next tattoo!

[xielian33hua]

working on a hualian modern au fic :3

!florist xl and !tattoo artist hc!!

first chapter has only been released but i’m working on the next chapter; chapter 2 will be hua cheng focused just as the first chapter is xie lian based

[circus-complex]

A Text, A Post, A Tattoo

Rating: General

Relationship: He Xuan/Hua Cheng/Mu Qing 

Tags: Humor, Secret Relationship sorta?, Modern Setting, College/University, POV Alternating

Xi Song barked a laugh. “Yeah, Professor He has some tattoo, I think it was done by Professor Hua. You think they’re friends?” “I think they’re lovers,” Su Yan grinned. “You read too many yaoi novels,” Xi Song grumbled.

He Xuan, Hua Cheng, and Mu Qing are all professors at Puqi University. On top of that, they're married. No one knows (or so they think).

Also on AO3

Full work under the cut (i recommend ao3, formatting's messed up)

Puqi used to be a small farming village. Now, it housed one of the most prestigious universities. Students had to go through rigorous entrance exams, and teachers were hand picked, the finest in their field.

Hua Cheng, also known as Crimson Rain Sought Flower. He rose in the underground art scene, renown for his carvings and paintings. His art could sell for thousands of dollars, and yet he remained hidden beneath a red shroud of anonymity. That was until he made an announcement he would start teaching at the University of Puqi. From then on, students flocked to his class to glimpse even a shred of the famous one eyed artist.

Mu Qing, a poor child from the slums of Xianle, graduated at the top of his class due to his mathematical prowess. He was an uplifting story for news sites to spread. Eventually settling to teach at the University of Puqi, he was the teacher students who were “at-risk” were shoved too. However, he was one of the strictest, with the highest fail rate in the department of mathematics.

He Xuan, one of the lowest profile professors. He came from a long line of engineers, but his father’s company fell when he was only a child. Not only that, there had been a cheating scandal a couple years back involving him. The administrators who gave the gaokao had swapped his results with other student’s, resulting in false scores. But it was a quiet case, only coming to light because of the attempts to keep it behind the curtain. Known for appearing during class and disappearing right after, students rarely turn to him for help. But at the end of his semester, he always got good evaluations. He was revered as one of the fastest professors to get tenured.

✦✦✦

Mu Qing had his computer set up with slides on the board, but was scribbling away on the whiteboard. His students stared in wonder.

“What are you gaping for? Take notes, I won’t go over it a third time,” he snapped. His students bowed their heads and scribbled messy notes.

All of a sudden, a loud ping! rang through the class.

“Who’s phone is that?” Mu Qing demanded. He held a very strict no phone rule in his class — any student stupid enough to get caught would get a firm, public, lecture.

Three more dings filled the classroom, before a student gathered enough courage to mutter, “Sir…it’s your computer…”

Mu Qing turned around to see four new text messages, displayed for all to see on the whiteboard.

“Oh.” He said.

But his face grew red when he realized who it was from.

A-Hei <3 Tuesday, 9:18 am

Did you feed the cat?

A-Hei <3 Tuesday, 9:19 am

He looks really needy right now.

Hong’er <3 Tuesday, 9:19 am

Yea, i think a-qing did

Hong’er <3 Tuesday, 9:19 am

He’s teaching rn, i’ll ask him after

The class was silent. Student’s eyes darted around, wondering if they should make a run for it or stay still. Mu Qing finally shattered the quiet glass.

“I want to see a proof for Brun's theorem by next class. If you can’t finish it, turn in what you did, or drop my class.” With that, Mu Qing disconnected and shut his computer. His ears were tinged red with embarrassment, but no one would dare point that out.

The second he dismissed class, he could hear the rumor mill kick into overdrive. He was the professor that kept his personal life hidden, going to great lengths to separate the two. He had constructed many shields, many walls, to keep them from ever mixing. And now they were crumbling before his very eyes, mixing the toxic chemicals. Before he knew it, it would explode and his reputation would be tarnished.

✦✦✦

Mu Qing overreacted to even the smallest things. He’d complained last week about Hua Cheng texting, but both He Xuan and Hua Cheng laughed. Sure, Mu Qing didn’t speak to them for six hours, but how was it Hua Cheng’s fault? Mu Qing was the one who not only synced his messages to his computer and turned notifications on, but forgot to turn it off before class.

“Hong’er, what are you working on?” Mu Qing asked.

Hua Cheng looked up from his canvas, “Oh, nothing big. I just wanted to do a small painting.”

The “small” painting was currently black with blue undertones, lines of gold running through like lighting. In the center, thin white lines cracked through. The rolling, deep, blues were reminiscent of the ocean, evoking a feeling of drowning peacefully beneath the waves. Hua Cheng, satisfied with his work, finally set his brush down.

“You’re not going to believe this,” He Xuan snorted as he walked into the room. He flopped onto the couch.

Hua Cheng’s art room wasn’t by any means small. It provided enough room for him to work on multiple projects at once, and still have both his lovers accompany him.

“What is it?” Hua Cheng asked.

“Check your instagram. The comments are going wild,” He Xuan said. He stifled a laugh as Hua Cheng wiped his hands off and grabbed his phone.

“What exactly am I looking for?”

“Just check the comments on your latest post.”

Hua Cheng’s brow furrowed. That was, until he followed He Xuans’s instructions. His eyebrows shot up.

“Whoops,” was all Hua Cheng said.

You see, after his first week of teaching, his students had tracked down all his socials. It was a tradition for the newbies to scavenge the internet to find where he posted his art. This also meant he had to be careful what he posted – but only on his art account. God knows what was on his private twitter.

He’d posted a photo of his new sculpture a couple days ago, it wasn’t his best work. It had been of Mu Qing and He Xuan, even if Mu Qing claimed it didn’t look like him.

Clearly, his students noticed.

Hey, isn’t that Professor He? Yeah, the other guys looks like Professor Mu! I didn’t know they were friends If you look through CRSF’s past art, it shows the two of them a lot 👀

“That doesn’t look like me at all!” Mu Qing exclaimed. He must’ve opened the comments as well.

“A-yin, clearly they think it does,” He Xuan remarked. He patted the top of Mu Qing’s head in sarcastic sympathy.

“Well, I don’t think so,” Mu Qing grumbled. Hua Cheng sat down on the couch next to him, and went to pull Mu Qing over.

“Ew! No, your hands are covered in paint.” Mu Qing jolted away. He Xuan laughed as Hua Cheng looked down, defeated. Getting up to wash his hands, he glanced over at his phone. It’ll be fine, people will just think they’re friends.

✦✦✦

He Xuan stood at the front of the class. It was a small class, so he forced everyone to the front.

“I want you to discuss how decisions – or lack of – affect Hamlet’s fate. Arrange your desks into a circle. You’ll be graded on both contributions and listening.” With that, he stepped back and let his students do the work.

The season’s had begun to change. The air was growing warmer and more humid. He rolled his sleeves up to his elbows, and turned the fans up. His students huffed as it began to blow the pages around, but otherwise silently thanked him.

As their discussion began to come to a close, He Xuan shut his notebook. The students turned at the sudden loud noise.

“Professor He, what does your tattoo say?” Ahhh crap.

“It’s just a saying.” Lies, all lies. But that would have to do.

A butterfly was perched on a long sword, with the characters 红 (hōng, red) and 银 (yín, silver) scrawled in calligraphy around it. Hua Cheng had done it for him.

One student frowned. “It doesn’t-”

“Isn’t that Professor Hua’s handwriting?” God dammit, why did his students have to be so perceptive?!

“I-”

“Yeah, it’s his art style too. See?” One student had pulled up Hua Cheng’s twitter and was showing it to the class. She turned her phone to face He Xuan. He pinched the bridge of his nose.

“I’m fully aware of who he is, yes.”

His students stared up at him expectiantly. Well then.

“I want an essay on what you just discussed, due next thursday. If you have any further questions, feel free to come to office hours.” He Xuan uttered nothing else, but grabbed his bag and left the classroom.

✦✦✦

Qi Bei banged her head on the table. Professor Mu had been pissed and assigned the class extra work. It wasn’t even their fault!

“What’s wrong?” Xi Song asked. Su Yan looked up from her textbook at her friend’s chatter.

“Professor Mu accidentally projected his text messages on the board, and then got mad at us! We didn’t do anything!” Qi Bei exclaimed. She threw her hands in the air in defeat.

“What, was it some raunchy drama?” Xi Song asked.

“Not even, just “Hong’er” and “A-Hei” asking if anyone fed the cat,” Qi Bei wrinkled her nose.

“Oh, that reminds me. Did you see Professor Hua’s insta? Look!” Su Yan pulled up the comments of one of his posts. It was filled with chatter about Professor Mu and Professor He.

Xi Song barked a laugh. “Yeah, Professor He has some tattoo, I think it was done by Professor Hua. You think they’re friends?”

“I think they’re lovers,” Su Yan grinned.

“You read too many yaoi novels,” Xi Song grumbled.

✦✦✦

Xi Song knocked on Professor He’s office door. This essay was going to kill her.

The sign on his door said he was available, and she’d emailed ahead of time. Knocking again, Xi Song began to grow impatient.

“Professor He?” She said as she pushed the door open.

Oh. She was going to have to pay Su Yan so much.

Professor Hua was sprawled on a couch, with Professor He leaning against him. Professor Mu was lying across their laps.

“Hello,” Xi Song’s professor said. His face was just as expressive as a stone.

Xi Song watched as Professor Mu bolted upright. “It’s! I-”

Professor Hua just laughed.

“I thought you said no one was coming today!” Professor Mu turned to Professor He.

“I said no one usually does.”

Professor Hua peeled himself off the couch. He pulled Professor Mu up with him, and dragged them out the door.

“Goodbye!” he said, his one eye shining with what could only be described as mischief.

Once the door shut behind Xi Song, she turned to Professor He.

“So. Is it true you’re married?”

Professor He shrugged and moved to his desk. “Yeah. What do you need help with?”

Xi Song plopped into the chair across from him. “Ok, so…”

✦✦✦

Rumors don’t spread like wildfires. They spread like snails. Slowly inching along, before they get picked up by a kind passerby and throw into the nearest bush.

Xi Song told Su Yan. Su Yan, one of the most social people Xi Song knew, told everyone she knew. From there, it seemed like everyone knew of the three professor’s relationship.

But, just like snails, no one cared. Sure, there was an odd glance every once in a while, but people simply went on with their day and ignored it.

At least they weren’t crushed into smithereens like a snail. Mu Qing would kill He Xuan for that.

[noragonie]

a lot of new people have followed me in the mast few days so heres a but about me

1: im an anime tattoo artist in los angeles! u can find me on instagram at http://instagram.com/shasamzaps and tiktok at http://tiktok.com/slasherxiumin

2: im an anime fan (duh) - my main fandoms are

• noragomi

• bungo stray dogs

• vanitas no carte

• chainsaw man

• sk8 the infinity

• jujutsu kaisen

• demon slayer

• yuri on ice

3: cpop/cent - my fandoms are

• tgcf (heaven official’s blessing)

• mdzs (grandmaster of demonic cultivation)

• cpop

• ytsn (bon bon girls)

• cdramas

• hu yetao

• chuang/youth with you

4: my main ships include

• soukoku (dazai x chuuya)

• hualian (hua cheng x xie lian)

• matchablossom (kojiro x kaoru)

• akiangel (aki hayakawa x angel devil)

• wangxian (wei wuxian x lan wangji)

• vanoé (vanitas x noé)

5: Kpop - groups i stan are

•xiumin

• a.c.e

• clc

• wjsn

• highlight/beast

• itzy

• shinee

• kep1er

• twice

6: emo music - bands i love

• green day

• ice nine kills

• the story so far

• the wonder years

• suicide silence

• blessthefall

• pierce the veil

• bring me the horizon

• from first to last

• motionless in white

• grayscale

• neck deep

7: video games

8: horror movies/gore

[tummymoth]

Of (Tattoo) Guns N' Roses (2)

Chapter 2: Black Leather (read on Ao3 here)

Chapter Summary: Xie Lian has embraced the idea of living with Ruoye wholeheartedly. On his way home he stumbles upon another animal (again). He contacts the owner hoping to find them.

Additional Info: Florist! Xie Lian x Tattoo Artist!Hua Cheng, roommate!Mu Qing, personal trainer!Feng Xin, some FengQing as a treat for us, strong language, meet-cute

A/N: The fated encounter is upon us ψ(｀∇´)ψ

Word Count: 4,922

<Previous Next>

Rock ballads gently sounded from the CD player sitting on the windowsill as Xie Lian closed up shop for the day. Over the past couple of days, he had—thankfully—managed to clear out most of the clutter that had accumulated over the week, wilted leaves and all, and was sweeping up stray flower cuttings in the back room. Ruoye observed patiently from where he sat on his perch as his owner tidied up, blue eyes unblinking. 

He had been coming to work with Xie Lian for several days now and was seemingly unwilling to let him leave the apartment without him. The florist had tried to leave him at home with a sweater he wore often—maybe then, Ruoye would’ve at least had something that smelled like him, and he wouldn’t be too anxious without him around.

 An ired call from Mu Qing last week complaining about incessant yowling quickly proved that to be an unsuccessful idea. 

“If this keeps up, that thing’s going to develop serious issues in the head,” he had insisted, much to the florist’s chagrin. “I’m going to start developing serious issues in my head.”

“Ruoye has been chatty ever since I found him. Maybe that’s just how he is…?” It was a feeble argument, but it was all Xie Lian had.

 A noise of frustration could be heard from the other side of the line. Xie Lian could almost picture Mu Qing pinching the bridge of his nose while he tried to formulate a response that wasn’t too harsh. He tended to be quick to anger, but he always made it a point to not say anything offensive—unless it came to Feng Xin, of course.

“Xie Lian, there’s a difference between being chatty and yelling his head off.”

“Is there any way you could keep him calm until I get home?” the florist meekly requested. “I’m really sorry he’s causing a fuss on your day off.” 

“He won’t let me—” a distant yowl was heard in the background, followed by an aggravated sigh. “He won’t let me within five feet of him before he starts spitting. And as tempting as it is to be cut to ribbons by a cat mid-meltdown, I value my arms, thank you very much.” 

And so, both men had reached the understanding that Ruoye would accompany Xie Lian to work—if only to preserve the collective sanity of both cat and roommate. 

Once Xie Lian had locked the back door, he grabbed his sweater off of the coat rack along with Ruoye’s leash and harness. 

“Ruoye, come!” The delicate sound of metal against metal rang out as he shook the harness. It didn’t take long for him to hear the dull thump! of paws landing on hardwood. Ruoye’s tail hung loosely in the air, long white fur bouncing with each step as he padded his way toward Xie Lian. 

Once he knelt and set the harness down on the floor, Ruoye sat down beside it and let the florist slide it over his back. After a few seconds of fiddling with the straps to ensure it was a snug fit, Xie Lian rewarded him with a treat—Ruoye was especially fond of the dehydrated pieces of chicken he had picked up from the pet store. Oddly enough, the cat didn’t mind the feeling of a harness secured around his body. Positive reinforcement probably didn’t hurt, but once it had been established that the mass of grey fabric didn’t pose an immediate threat, Ruoye had taken quite a liking to it. 

“Okay, now shake?”

Ruoye blinked at the hand extended toward him, not making any signs of movement. 

Laughing despite himself, Xie Lian gestured at the cat’s front paws. “C’mon, just like we practiced this morning, little one. You need to give me one of them.” 

It took a couple more seconds and instances of tapping the floor to get the message through, but he was rewarded for his patience with a small paw gently swatting at his right palm. Claws retracted, of course.

“Good boy,” he praised, smiling and letting him eat a treat from his other hand. He extended his right hand again, just for good measure. “One more time?” 

Ruoye made a couple of tentative motions in the air—almost swiping at nothing—before he gingerly placed his paw in Xie Lian’s hand. He smiled when he saw that Ruoye’s eyes never left his face. He was quicker this time. That was good.

“You learn fast,” he mused proudly as he gave Ruoye another scratch behind the ears. He hoisted himself up and, with leash in hand, made his way toward the door. “Come, time to go home.”

The door swung shut behind them, and Xie Lian locked it. Both cat and florist stepped out into an evening buzzing with the energy of a city’s nightlife gradually beginning. Most traditional businesses had already started closing their doors for the day, save for restaurants and a few miscellaneous stores. Cars whizzed past him as he made his way down the sidewalk, Ruoye trekking slightly ahead of him.

The cat wasn’t fond of loud noises, and cars were no exception. It had taken a few days of just walking together outside to get him acclimated enough to the point where he wasn’t shaking and pressing himself against Xie Lian’s legs with every step they took. For the most part, he had grown used to the steady growl of car engines driving past. Looking at him now, Ruoye seemed almost relaxed.

whHIRRR! 

Ruoye immediately shrank into himself. With flat ears and fur standing on end, he pressed himself against the sidewalk as best as he could while a delivery truck thundered down the city street. Xie Lian could hardly blame him for being so startled, the noise was enough to make his teeth chatter inside his skull. 

He knelt beside the cat once the truck had passed and gingerly laid a hand on his head to soothe him. Aside from the tremors vibrating through him from head to toe, Ruoye was frozen in fear. Bystanders could almost mistake him for a puff of white fluff. He gently smoothed his fur down and tried to wriggle a hand under his belly to pick him up, but the poor thing was adamant about staying low to the ground. It was about five minutes before Ruoye decided to stop digging his claws into the concrete and allowed Xie Lian to lift him into his arms. 

With the cat firmly pressed against his chest and cradled in his arms, he could feel the constant twitching of overly tensed muscles. He about calming him down as best as he could with hushed reassurances and pets along his body. It wasn’t hard to walk home while carrying Ruoye by any means, but they had made so much progress with him walking with the harness, he didn’t want all of their hard work and practice to go to waste.  

Eventually, the traffic died down enough that Ruoye wasn’t digging his claws into Xie Lian’s shirt (and skin) out of panic every time a car drove past. He was still unwilling to be put down, but Xie Lian figured that some progress was better than none at all. They would just have to work on walking again tomorrow, and he was okay with that. Maybe once he was able to give Ruoye some basic training, he could slowly start to build his tolerance against being left home for small amounts of time. Just for Mu Qing’s sake, in case Xie Lian had to be away and couldn’t take Ruoye with him.

The sun had finally sunk below the horizon when Xie Lian spotted movement from the corner of his eye. He didn’t think much of it. Streetlights cast weird-looking shadows on the pavement all the time, and there were always people bustling about at this hour. That is, until he heard the mad scampering of legs and saw that a mass of darkness was rapidly headed his way. He whipped around to face it, unsure of what to even expect, when—

What felt like pure muscle hurtled into his legs and effectively knocked them out from under him. His arms splayed out as he tried to find something, anything, to hold onto and break his fall. He was unable to keep carrying Ruoye and could only hope that he would land on his feet while Xie Lian landed flat on his rear. Before he could do or say anything to react, he felt the onslaught of a slobbery tongue on his face and sputtered at the unsavory feeling of the wet muscle on his skin. 

This definitely wasn’t one of the stray cats he usually came across.

The shock was enough for him to regain his bearings, so he pushed his arms out in hopes of making the furry assailant back off. Undeterred, the dog continued to surge forward and lick his face, whining loudly all the while. It had two paws firmly planted against his chest, and the enthusiastic creature somehow managed to concentrate all of its weight onto those two points. 

Amid of this attack, he distantly wondered where Ruoye went and prayed to whatever deity that was willing to listen that he hadn’t run off. 

“Okay, okay,” he wheezed once the dog had calmed down enough to let Xie Lian gently push him away. “That’s more than enough.” He didn’t have anything on his person that could act as a napkin, so he could only attempt to wipe the drool off his face with the hem of his shirt before getting a good look at the perpetrator. 

The dog before him was a pitbull with a lustrous coat of jet-black fur and ears that were slightly pulled back. It didn’t have any markings or flaws in its coat and when Xie Lian looked it over, the dog didn’t seem to have any injuries that needed attending to. As a matter of fact, there wasn’t a single flaw on its skin aside from the healed-over socket where its left eye should have been. In the shine coming from the streetlamps, its remaining eye was a striking, rust-red brown. 

Overcome with a sense of worry, Xie Lian cupped the dog's face (upon further examination he found that she was female) and smoothed over the fur on her head. 

“Are you okay, little one? You’re not in any pain are you?” A whining dog desperately looking for someone kind in the middle of a busy sidewalk—with a missing eye, no less—would have normally been a cause for concern, but her shining coat and strong build suggested that she had quite the luxurious diet. Strays certainly didn’t eat this well. 

A glint of silver caught his eye, and he craned his neck down. Secured around her neck was a black leather collar that looked to be of exceptional make, judging from the sharp and curved designs that had been carved onto the material. The name “Eming” (what an eccentric name) was engraved onto a circular silver tag. Xie Lian found a phone number on the back of the tag and sighed in relief before he locked eyes with the dog—Eming—again. 

“Don’t tell me you ran away from home,” he murmured as he punched the numbers into his phone, laughing when she tried to lunge at his face for another round of kisses. “No, no—that’s enough—Eming! I need to get you home” From the corner of his eye, he spotted Ruoye sitting close by as he observed his poor owner being licked to death. 

“Ruoye, come!” he called out, feeling a swell of pride when the cat responded by trotting over to his side before seating himself beside him. 

Almost as if she had just now noticed his presence, Eming froze in her attempts to give the florist’s face a tongue bath and snapped her head toward Ruoye. Xie Lian didn’t think it was possible, but it seemed as if her tail started wagging even faster as she cautiously approached the cat with wide eyes. Ruoye peered back at her blankly. The only movement coming from him was his tail languidly flicking in the air. 

She seemed like a friendly-mannered dog, but Xie Lian didn’t want either animal spooking the other in any case. Right after he hit the call button, he scooped Ruoye up in his arms to keep Eming from getting him within sniffing distance. 

The line rang twice, thrice, then a couple of times more. 

“The number you have dialed, is not available… After the tone, please record your message.”

Xie Lian sighed with a defeated smile on his face. So much for getting this dog home to its owner before the end of the night. 

Beep!

“Erm, hello! My name is Xie Lian, and I believe I found your dog Eming—well, more like she found me—” he chuckled to himself before clearing his throat. “On the corner of…” He craned his neck to look up at the street signs “…forty-sixth and eighth street? Please call me back as soon as you can. I’m not gonna bring her to a shelter or anything but it is quite late out. I’ll sure to keep her safe in the meantime. Thank you—”

Eming was sniffing around his ankle where the hem of his trousers ended. Her cold nose, compounded with the threat of being licked, effectively interrupted Xie Lian as he jerked his foot away in surprise and let out what was decidedly a rather inelegant noise. 

“Ah… thank you for your time!” He concluded before hurriedly ending the call. Sighing again, he looked down at Eming and smiled at her wagging tail before giving her a pat on the head. 

“My place isn’t much, but I’m sure you won’t mind staying the night, right?”

Upon coming home, Xie Lian had barely opened the door before Eming shot past him and into the apartment in a black, excited blur. She careened into the living area, narrowly missed the couch, and went about sniffing every corner of the apartment with a fervor fueled purely by nervous energy. Once he had set Ruoye down, he was perfectly content in letting her inspect the apartment to her heart’s content, only following her around to make sure she didn’t try to eat anything she wasn’t supposed to. 

After a few moments, she had taken a special interest in the TV stand in the living room—more specifically, the game consoles that sat underneath it. 

“If this is another animal you’re bringing into the apartment, I’m taking your name off the lease,” Mu Qing announced from where he sat on the couch. Xie Lian looked up at him to see that he was nose-deep in a copy of the novel he was reading for the week, Fahrenheit 451 (the last time Feng Xin had come over for dinner, Xie Lian had insisted that attending a book club was nothing to be ashamed of, but Mu Qing staunchly denied the very idea. This wasn’t exactly helping his case). 

Xie Lian laughed at his roommate’s joke. “Can you even do that as a tenant?” 

“I’ll find a way.” He looked up from his book. Nothing on the other man’s face held any implication of humor.

“…” Well, Xie Lian certainly didn’t want to be a homeless man, joke or not. He laughed nervously and waved away the idea. “Don’t worry, I’m just waiting on a call from her owner. She bumped into me on the way home, and I didn’t want to leave her outside for the night.” 

“I won’t be able to babysit.” Mu Qing had off tomorrow but after the debacle with Ruoye, it was apparent that he wasn’t willing to do a repeat. 

“I’ll bring both of them to work with me,” Xie Lian said before he chuckled to himself a bit as he watched Eming nose at the foot of the couch, much to Mu Qing’s displeasure. “Eming is a good girl, I’m sure she won’t be a problem.

Eming meant well, Xie Lian was sure of it, but meaning well was an entirely different thing from doing well. 

She got along fine enough with Ruoye once she realized he didn’t respond well to sudden movements. If she moved ever so slowly, she could sniff at the cat and even push her luck by licking him once or twice. Much to Ruoye’s credit, he was quite tolerant of her amount of energy and didn’t lift so much as a paw to scratch at her. 

But unlike Ruoye, who was content to sit on a windowsill or perch himself on one of the many shelves around the shop to watch the florist at work, Eming couldn’t sit still. When Xie Lian had first clocked in for work, she insisted on examining each and every flower her nose could reach. He wouldn’t have minded under normal circumstances, but her aggressive sniffing led to more than a few of his hydrangeas sacrificing their petals. 

“Ah, Eming…” he trailed off when he saw the massacre that had resulted in a pile of velvety petals on the floor and let a sigh escape from his chest. 

At least hydrangeas were cheap. 

To prevent further casualties from happening in his shop, he decided to put a few of the arrangements he was in the process of finishing on hold to rearrange the flowers in the back. 

A cold, wet nose poked at his ankle and Xie Lian just about jumped out of his skin with a yelp. Looking down, he saw that it was just the rambunctious dog nosing at his pant leg, her tail furiously wagging while she let out small whines. Xie Lian couldn’t help but laugh a little bit at the sight and give her a few pats on the head, watching in amusement as she continued to sniff around his shoes and began to lick at the floor. 

“Eming, no!” At the sound of Xie Lian’s voice, Eming immediately stopped nosing at the flower petals and snapped her head toward him. 

The petals had already been swept to the side, but there were a couple that Xie Lian had missed in his eagerness to start rearranging the flowers in hopes of keeping them firmly out of Eming’s reach. He was no dog expert, but Xie Lian knew that certain flowers were deadly to certain animals—he just didn’t know which flowers in particular were toxic. It was safest to just err on the side of caution and just keep Eming away from all of them.  

“Ah, those are no good for you,” he scolded and walked to the other side of the room. “Come. Stay here while I clean up.” Much to his quiet delight, Eming plodded on and followed him, sticking close to his left side. 

“Can you sit here for me?” 

She peered up at him with a smile on her face, her tail still wagging as she remained standing. 

“Sit…?”

Eming sat. 

“Stay.”

Eming stayed.

“What a good listener you are,” he marveled. Xie Lian gave her affectionate scratches behind the ears before going about his work again. It was only a few minutes before he heard a muffled thumping coming from behind him. He turned around with incredulity on his face. What on earth could that be…?

It was Eming’s tail moving at near-light speed and thwacking against the wall behind her. As a matter of fact, her entire body seemed to be vibrating with the amount of energy she was unable to contain. Every few seconds or so she would slightly change her sitting position, whether it was by adjusting her hind legs or shifting the weight on her front paws from side to side. 

Xie Lian’s heart nearly melted at the sight of her trying her absolute best to listen to a command. 

What a good girl, her owner must’ve trained her well, he thought to himself before turning back around. He was in the middle of placing a bundle of roses into a bucket higher up when his phone started to buzz in his pocket. 

Xie Lian hastily wiped wet hands on his apron before pulling it out to see an unknown number. Seeing as he was the only one running the shop, he didn’t see the point in having a completely separate landline for his business. Of course, there was always the risk of having a bunch of spam callers contacting him at ungodly hours, but this was probably a customer. 

“Thank you so much for calling Royal Florals,” he chirped with a smile. “You’re currently speaking to Xie Lian, how can I help you?”

There was a pregnant pause before whoever was on the other end of the line cleared their throat awkwardly. 

“You said my dog was with you?” The speaker’s words were halting and a little bit awkward, but he had this kind of deep and gentle voice that was quite pleasant to Xie Lian’s ears. He was sure that whoever this was had a very soothing way of speaking. Maybe he had the makings of a good singer—not the showy, operatic type, but of a crooner who sang soft jazz with warm, dulcet tones.

“Oh…” It took a moment for Xie Lian to remember himself. “Oh! Yes! I was worried when I first saw her because of how much she was crying, but she seems exceptionally well taken care of.”

The man sighed over the phone. “She’s dramatic like that… I’d like to apologize on her behalf.” 

“Oh, no apology is necessary!” Xie Lian waved his hand dismissively despite the man not being able to see him doing so. 

“I hate to trouble you, but can I pick her up within the next hour? I’m fully booked until we close after that, and I can’t have her being a nuisance to you for that long.” Xie Lian could detect a pained undercurrent in the man’s tone. 

“Not a nuisance at all,” he insisted. “She’s actually been a joy since she followed me home.” 

“She followed you home…?” he sounded vaguely disturbed at this.

“Mhm! She’s a very well-behaved girl, very affectionate. Eming got along great with my cat too, and Ruoye is usually very skittish.”

“If I didn’t know any better, I would think that you’re trying to sell my own dog to me,” he cracked wryly. 

“Does it really seem like that?” Xie Lian laughed awkwardly. “That wasn’t my intention.”

“It’s nothing to worry about, I thought it was funny.” 

“Ah…” It took Xie Lian a few more seconds to remember the whole point of the phone call. “But yes, you’re more than welcome to stop by. Do you know where Royal Florals is located?” he asked before hastily adding on, “I brought her to my work with me to keep an eye on her.”  

  “I”m familiar with the store. Again, thank you for looking after her. Eming can be a bit much.”

Once the two men exchanged pleasantries before hanging up, Xie Lian was struck with the sudden urge to clean and tidy up the rest of the shop. It was in the middle of the process of tidying up said shop that he heard the door chime.

“I’ll be out there in just a second!” he called out as he hurriedly finished setting the remaining flowers in their proper bucket. As he was drying his hands on his apron, he opened his mouth to welcome whoever had decided to stop by.

“Thank you so much for waiting! How can I help you?” 

The first thing he noticed was the black leather eyepatch the man wore. Well no—the first thing he noticed was how he needed to crane his neck up to meet the man’s eyes. The second thing he noticed was the eyepatch. Not with judgment by any means, but it was a rather unusual fashion statement. But Xie Lian reasoned to himself that people came in with all sorts of eclectic styles—He Xuan the regular and his affinity for jet-black attire being one of them—so in the end, this wasn’t all that strange. The eye that wasn’t hidden away was bright with something Xie Lian wasn’t quite able to put his finger on. Was it ambition? Intellect? Mischief? 

He made note of the brilliant red of his shin-length peacoat, along with what looked to be meticulously crafted silver necklaces worn in layers around the man’s neck. 

The first necklace, the shortest, was rather robust. Each link looked as if it had wicked barbs, and formed a chain resembling a vine of thorns. These thorns led to a glittering silver butterfly pendant at the center. The second necklace was of a more delicate make. A simple silver chain, thin and light, hung loosely around his neck and had a crystal-clear ring hanging from it.

Despite his trousers being oversized, it was obvious they were tailored and hemmed to fit him and cinch at his waist faultlessly. The tattoos peeking out from his sleeves and crawling up his neck also looked to be expertly done. 

Xie Lian was the last person to base a first impression on how wealthy someone appeared to be, but it was abundantly clear to him that this man had a lot of money. Or at the very least, he knew how to dress in order to flaunt it.

“Yes, I’m here for my dog…”

As if that was her cue, a soft whine sounded out from the back of the shop. Xie Lian looked back at Eming and laughed fondly. The poor thing was practically quaking while excitement rolled off of her in waves.

“She’s very vocal,” the florist acknowledged lightly as her whines rose in both pitch and volume.

The man sighed. “She’s impossible. Again, thank you for looking after her. I owe you,” he responded, voice low as he held his hand out to shake Xie Lian’s. 

When he took it, it was shocking how frigid the man’s hand was. Surely it wasn’t that cold outside? He looked warmly dressed too, so maybe he just naturally ran on the cooler side. 

“Oh, it was nothing, really—”

“I hope she didn’t do anything to ruin your flowers, they’re quite beautiful,” the man continued, his eye taking time to survey the interior of the shop before it landed on a bouquet. The exorbitant flowers served as the centerpiece to the front of the shop, adding brightness with their warm and bright color. Each bloom and stalk was arranged into a fan shape and gave off the impression of opulence and finery. 

Upon seeing him look at his work with such inquiry, Xie Lian couldn’t help but feel—ah, what was the word—shy. A couple of blossoms were sat slightly askew from the wind blowing into and around the shop due to customers constantly coming and going, they weren’t really worthy of the label, “beautiful”. 

After another round of insisting that Eming was no trouble at all and that she was actually “quite a sweet girl,” the man turned toward the back room and produced a red leash—the same shade as his coat—from his pocket. 

“Eming, come!” 

Finally able to release the pent-up energy she had been storing for what seemed to be millennia (really, it had only been thirty minutes since Xie Lian had told her to sit and received the man’s call), she jumped to her feet and bolted toward the man with an enthusiasm that could only be likened to the force of a tidal wave. He almost laughed aloud at the sheer speed she was able to reach. It looked as if her feet didn’t even touch the ground as she zoomed toward her owner.

At the last possible second before she would’ve collided with his knees, Eming came to a sudden stop at the man’s left side and sat. He knelt down and clipped the leash to her collar, and Xie Lian couldn’t help but think to himself that they were both quite a sight to behold, what with his stern expression staring at Eming smiling with tongue lolled out the side of her mouth while she panted. 

“C’mon, you little bastard,” he said as he stood up and made his way to the door. “Before you do something stupid like going around and poking your other eye out or bothering the nice man.” He turned back to Xie Lian and offered him a smile and a wave before heading out the door. 

The florist waved back. “Come again soon!” he called out after them before stopping dead in his tracks. 

It was what he said to everyone who visited the shop, but that was awfully presumptuous of him, wasn’t it? To say “come again soon.” What was the man going to come back for, his dog? Did Xie Lian come off as insisting that he come back to buy an arrangement from him? Ah, and he didn’t even bother to ask for the man’s name either…

Before he could spiral and overthink, he hastily headed to the back to resume the arrangements that were put on hold earlier. If he busied his hands, his mind wouldn’t have enough leeway to wander. Yes, that would work. Ruoye meowed from his sun-basking spot on the windowsill and pulled him from his thoughts. When they met eyes, Xie Lian couldn’t help but smile at the cat and give him a scratch behind the ears. The way Ruoye purred and leaned into his hands was just so nice. 

His smile widened. 

And he thinks I’m nice, too.

<Previous Next>

[sheyearns]

GET TO KNOW THE MUN!

What's your phone's wallpaper: It’s a Jujutsu Kaizen wallpaper! It’s from one of my favorite artists and I got it from their patreon. My brain refuses me to remember their name. Otherwise I’d link their social medias here.

Last song you listened to: Never Enough from The Greatest Showman!

Currently reading: I just finished reading all the volumes of Heaven’s Official Blessings and MAN, WHAT A RIDE IT WAS! I cried, screamed, bit on my lips because of the suspension, laughed, smiled and more and more tears of sadness, joy and ugh, this story has emotionally destroyed me. Hua Cheng, Xie Lian, Pei Ming and Feng Xin are forever in my heart. I dare say I prefer Hua Cheng and Xie Lian’s relationship over Wei Wuxian and Lan Zhan. Xie Lian is a reflection of me; I related to him so much. 

Last movie: About to finish Dungeons & Dragons hehe

Last show: The new Bridgerton spinoff series! NOW I WANT TO READ THE BOOKS. IT WAS SOOOOO GOOD. 

What are you wearing right now?: My home clothes xD

Piercings/tattoos?: I have two earpieces in each ear and one day I want to get a small tattoo of Pandora Hearts. <3

Glasses? Contacts?: Both, I mostly wear glasses. I use contacts for my cosplays.

Last thing you ate: Small crackers lol

Favourite colour(s)?: Blue, violet, green and purple

Current obsession: I’m in my Transformers phase right now. Re-watching a few episodes of Prime and catching up with Cyberverse. uwu

Do you have a crush right now?: Not now atm!

Favourite fictional character: Lacie will always be number one for me. She’s special and I can’t replace her.

Tagged by:  @casketdweller​ ( thanks Tick! ) Tagging: You.

[moniehon]

Fem Hualian on a date 🦋

[captainlion04]

Fuki au with baby lixue

[nifrequerne]

me: ok now i need to just check this one thing before im finished studying

my brain: ex ballet prodigy xie lian with chronic pain bc bwx is a terrible teacher works in a flower shop or sth and meets artist hua cheng who had seen him years before the fall-out and also uses flowers for going in-between mediums of sculpture and painting

also my brain: feng xin is a taxi driver in this au

me: why are you like this

[ying-an-sanren]

And this is how modernAU!Hua Cheng became a tattoo artist... Or how I spent half of yesterday walking around with two black nails and praises to Dianxia on my forearm... 👋🚜 (Also please, ignore the fact that the forearm doesn't look like it could possibly belong to HC at all... it's just for meme purposes 🥺)

[hualianff]

AU where famous martial artist, XL, is severely injured in a car crash which killed both his parents. Given the extent of his injuries, the numerous surgeries needed to reconstruct torn ligaments, tendons, and tissue—as well as cast his left arm and foot—the estimated recovery period is at least one year. This does not account for possible permanent nerve damage.

It’s safe to say XL is absolutely devastated, especially on top of his parents’ deaths.

After two months, XL gets his casts off. One month after that, XL gets his boot and arm sling off. At the six month mark, XL is physically and mentally ready to begin more intense physical therapy to rebuild his mobility, strength, and trust in his body. One of the suggested exercises outside of therapy is swimming laps and water aerobics.

Cue XL attending his first water aerobics class, and the first glance at the instructor renders him speechless. It’s a young man, at least younger than XL, with long, black hair tied into a single braid. From his position lined up with other participants, XL is positive the instructor stands above six feet tall. His body is lanky yet nicely toned, with cream-colored patches covering his arms and chest.

He must have tattoos, XL thinks, forcing his eyes back up to the instructor’s face instead of ogling at his body.

“Welcome to the intermediate aqua aerobics. I see we have a few new faces today-“ the instructor’s eyes sweep down the line, pinning XL at the very end. He pops his eyebrow up in interest. “My name is Hua Cheng, and I will be leading the class today...”

XL doesn’t mean to tune the rest out. It’s just...Hua Cheng is such a lovely name for a lovely man- person! Lovely person, yes. XL doesn’t know him personally, and insinuating Hua Cheng is a fine man certainly suggests a type of attraction that would seem inappropriate upon the first encounter. XL is nothing but a respectful and proper gentleman, that’s for sure.

***

It’s been many years since he last saw him in person, but Hua Cheng would never forget those luminous hazel eyes and signature handsome face. He notices XL’s hair tied into a high bun. It’s styled just like it was thirteen years ago when he taught for his martial arts club over the summer—the same club that Hua Cheng had tried out after peeking into the window one afternoon one month prior.

The summer program was only one month long, but it gave HC a clear sense of XL’s reputation as one of the most gorgeous, aggressive, and fluid fighters around. As a fifteen-year-old, HC was scrawny and thin, not much muscle packed onto his bones due to malnutrition and outside labor that helped him scrape by. But he never forgot XL or his kindness and ferocity.

Astonishingly, HC kept growing. He supposed he had his father’s genes to thank for that, though that’s the only time he would even associate his father with something worth thanking over. Swimming seemed like the viable option. Instilled by a special someone, once HC’s mind was set on something, he worked ceaselessly in order to perfect his craft.

Flash forward over a decade later, HC having kept a distant eye on his special someone all this time. He is aware of the tragic losses XL has endured in the past half-year as many articles were written about the celebrity martial artist’s accident. It’s a truly unfortunate situation that will lead to HC interacting with XL.

HC hopes he can establish some sort of connection. Provide a source of strength and support, and a safe journey towards healing.

From his stance in the 1.5 meter deep end of the pool, HC watches XL cautiously turn around to descend down the ladder. As a couple other people make their way into the pool, HC wades over to XL.

“Are you okay? Do you need any help?” HC asks gently, smiling to conceal any visible concern. He doesn’t wish to scare XL off anytime soon. XL turns cranks his neck to face down to where HC holds his hands up, prepared to offer a helping hand.

“Yes please,” XL breathes out, relieved. Though his body may be in perfect condition to enter the pool by himself, the additional support will ease one of the plentiful mental barriers he acquired since the crash. “If you could just hold one hand-“

XL turns to let go of the ladder with his left hand, grasping onto HC’s right hand as he walks down the rungs until his lower-half is successfully submerged.

“Thank you, Hua Cheng.”

For some reason, a faint Hong Er plays through XL’s mind.

“Anytime.”

They share a soft smile.