#shuangjie retrouvaille

[truly-morgan]

[cuckJade brothers]

ChengXian | Mo Dao Zu Shi Modern AU 10-06-2021

[#chengxian feat. xicheng and wangxian]

We often see cuckji, but what about cuckjade twin? Both brothers end up being clueless cuck at first, until they realise chengxian aren't just friends again.

Like, they finally reunite after /years/ apart and spark old thing.

maybe chengxian has a little something going on already, dancing around each other for years as they are teens. yet they still are each other's first kiss (they argued who kissed better), experimented with each other (out of curiosity of how someone else would feel). they had /something/ going on despite never admitting to loving each other more than what was expected of them.

They were still each other most trusted and cherished person.

then wwx was gone for about 13-15 years to keep his family away from the big problems he got himself into.

Maybe he's gone at first to try and repay a debt he owns to the wens, hides and runs from jc for 3 years until he just disappears from the earth surface. he actually ends up in prison for like, 7-9 years for some crime he ended up committing to finish paying his debt, hence completely losing tie with anyone and making him basically disappear.

when he's finally out of prison wwx doesn't know how to contact anyone (after all, it has been 7-9 years), but he's also scared to even /try/ contacting jc. What would he say? Can he show his face after what he did? What if jc wouldn't want a criminal?

too many doubts and too many things he is still processing from the past 10-12 past years. He lives by jumping from odd job to odd job until one day he stumbles onto lwj (he did try running away but he was not fast enough against lwj). This is a bit weird and awkward, especially since the last times they met was in some of his worst time and the very last time had been a huge argument (and three days later he was arrested).

but lwj is understanding and helps him get back on his feet. they grow closer over that and ends up playing family (wwx is surprised when he learns that baby a-yuan has been with lwj all this time, but happy to know he was safe).

He's nearly a "stay at home wife", trying to find a job he can do well and without being kicked out.

As for jc, when wwx suddenly disappear after a fight they had about wwx refusing to tell him what kind of problems he got himself into.

Sure, he did refuse to contact him for a while because he was angry, but then he got anxious when wwx wouldn't reply to him.

only once did wwx replied to his call, sounding so tired, jc had never heard him like this. All he manages to get is that he /cannot/ look for wwx because it's dangerous, but that wwx doesn't hate him. ("I could never hate my chengcheng" he is told, the chuckle sounding genuine and a bit more alive).

but he still tries to chase wwx, sometimes hears snippet and hints, but he seemingly always misses him by little. Lwj that traitor would never tell him, but he /know/ the man has had contact with wwx (it does sour they relationship, how can he refuse to tell him where to find wwx?)

then suddenly nothing, even lwj looks has though he had lost everything and it only made jc gut drop, assuming the worst.

Then his family got into a deadly accident.

lxc was the one to help him all this time, slowly gaining trust from jc, helping him slowly pick up all the broken pieces, helping him with jl.

He never forces his feelings on jc (he can pine until he dies if needed, he just wanna be by jc side). It does take years before jc is steady on his feet again, jl his new reason to actually keep on living without giving up ("I have someone needing me, I cannot let my only family alone"). in these 10-12 years he warms up to lxc, slowly letting him in his heart until he allows himself to actually love again and let lxc take care of him fully.

Stability and a loving family are something he needs and lxc is more than happy to give him this.

Then the big reunion does need to happy, wwx somehow knew it was bound to happen, but he would never have thought it would happen the way it did.

of course, he learned about jc dating lxc (which did hurt his heart a bit, he could never let go of jc fully)., but he decided to stay hidden, still unsure how to meet him (even more now that he had been out of prison for /3/ years and never contacted him).

but it is a bit hard when they move to the same city as xicheng and that the juniors are all good friends.

Of course, lsz friends are over often, which means wwx has to deal with xicheng kids. He sure likes them, but it often makes him nervous. Have they told jc about him? Or is he just lwj's boyfriend and lsz new dad? He assumes not, otherwise, he feels like jc would surely have made a move.

and make a move he does.

when jl is on the phone with jc once at wangxian house, jc hears wwx talking and he also hears oyz calling out to him. He was so shocked that he nearly drop his phone, before asking jl to repeat what oyz just said. but he did hear well, wwx was /back/. He was back, safe and /close/. Why didn't he know?

in no time he rushes to where the juniors are hanging out, forgetting about his manner and he opens the door and enters to see wwx cooking for them. they both freeze when they see each other and wwx looks like a deer caught in headlight. this was jc.

This was jc in his house and look angry and about to cry.

he feels like running away, he is /not/ prepared.

but he doesn't and the atmosphere suddenly gets tense and filled with many emotions. jl and lsz are the first to get it, suddenly suggesting going out to get some snack for their movie night (jl quickly shut down ljy when he tries to point out they already did that).

then it shuangjie time, very emotional, maybe a bit of screaming, blaming and apologies, lot of crying too.

by the time the juniors come back (3 hours later), they are now talking at the table, eyes red a puffy, voices still a bit hoars.

they have /a lot/ to talk about, but right now is not the time. right now was the time for letting out all the negative, letting out all the bad accumulated over the past decade and a half. It was also the time for wwx to apologise for being missing like this, for not telling jc. only a couple of days later do they take a day to go over the past decade and a half, wwx finally telling all that had happened, not wanting to hide from jc anymore (plus, the danger has been taken care of when he was in jail).

of course, jc doesn't like hearing he went to jail, but the relief of knowing that /now/ he is alright and good is stronger.

Then wwx learns about all that has happened when he was gone and he wishes he could have been there. He regrets not finding another way, even though he isn't sure how he would have found a way. He just wishes he could have been by jc side when their family died like this,m leaving him all alone with jl.

it takes some time, but they do sorts out everything together, slowly working on what they missed, working to catch up.

Soon it's pretty evident to them that the love they had for each other and that they thought was gone (after all, they were genuinely happy with lxc and lwj) it's clear that finally being back next to each other is helping greatly for both of them.

the jade twin are pretty happy to see them happy like this again, simply thinking they are happy to finally have their family back again. But then what started as them being back to "just being bros" started being a bit more when old feelings decided to come hitting hard. Old habits were coming back, old desires follows suit.

It started with lingering looks when no one else was looking, lingering and discreet touch, going out (on date) to "catch up" (away from their boyfriend's eyes).

Then at some point, they finally cross the line, unsure who actually initiated the kiss, hands roaming around, trying to find old familiarity.

They both know they should feel guilty for their makeout session in the car and they do a little bit, but the happiness somehow drowns everything. of course, they promise not to do this again.

But now that they finally tasted what they wanted all these years, can they really stop?

and then they broke this promise.

many times.

they would sneak away from other's eyes, using the excuse of hanging out to rediscover each other's body. This is what they could have had if life hadn't been this hard on them, they could have had that all this time without needing to hide like this.

on the other side, lxc and lwj were first happy for them, then suspicion settled in. They both had a vague idea of what kind of feeling chengxian had for each other in the past.

lwj had a funny impression when most of the time he met up with wwx in his difficult time, he would ask about jc, making sure he was doing alright. More than once did he saw him looking longingly at a picture wxx had of jc, sometimes his thumb hovering above the call button.

lxc had obviously known that all these years jc had still tried to keep looking for wwx, his eyes looking suddenly hopeful anytime someone similar to wwx would pass them, the similar figure that could have been wwx if he hadn't been in jail. He felt like jc wouldn't have been /this/ obsessed with finding wwx if his feeling weren't deeper.

yet they both had been dating the young men and hoped that they would forget about it 

(especially since lxc didn't expect wwx to suddenly reappear like this).

So how could they not suspect something when wwx and jc seemed to have grown a bit /too/ close after their reunion. Often going out until late, coming back smelling like each other and trying to hide possible marks and proof of what they did.

Eventually, the brothers stumble onto a kissing chengxian, surprising both men when they finally notice them.

It is pretty awkward afterwards, with everyone sitting in the living room without talking.

[poll to see what the ending should be]

(love how most of y'all decide cuckjade accept easily that they are cuck ijbfijb)

The atmosphere in the room was rather awkward and tense, wwx and jc sitting on the couch, on each end, as the Jade twins were sitting on chairs they brought from the kitchen.

The two who had been caught right-handed were not sure how to start explaining. But what was there to explain? It had been rather clear what they were doing, even wwx wouldn't be able to find excuses for it.

They couldn't say they regretted it, but they did feel bad in a way. Sure, they were still in love with each other, but their affection for each of the Jade brothers was not fake either, they didn't want to hurt them.

"Lan Huan, I'm-" tried to start jc, his voice tight as he didn't dare to look up at the man.

"I know," said lxc with a small smile on his lips.

on the other side of the couch, wwx dared a look at lwj, but it was hard to say what the other man was thinking about. Sure, he had gotten used to reading his rather unexpressive face, but right now it was hard to tell.

"We've actually been suspecting it for a while now" lwj finally says, only making wwx a jc pale a bit.

They knew? And they never said anything? They both thought they had been sneaky, but apparently, they couldn't escape the attentive attention of the Jade brothers. They had noticed and suspected it and now they had their confirmation. But what could they really do about it if they wanted to keep the?

after all, with all their love and passion, neither would want to break up with the cheating duo. It had taken /years/ before they could finally have their little lover, could they really let go like this?

But they couldn't really force the two to break off either. For a starter, if the two really wanted to be together, they would always end up meeting up and the Jade brothers couldn't just lock them up inside (although it did sound like a nice idea...). Plus, if they were to force them to break off when they clearly loved each other, wouldn't they start hating them?

breaking them off could have the same result as breaking up, only this time it would have the laying of wwx and jc just having negative feelings for them. It was not the best option.

With one look to his brother, lxc knew lwj had a similar thought. They only had one option...

wwx seemed to be about to talk this time, but he was cut off by lxc quickly, not allowed to end anything.

"We understand" he smiles, "And we don't... want to see either of you sad".

jc and wwx were a bit surprised, confused that they seemed to be giving up so easily. Were they really breaking up? It felt surreal for it to come from the Jade brothers.

"We grew up being told that sharing is also important" pointed out lwj.

oh.

now they understood.

wwx and jc ended up even more surprised, stunned when they realised lxc and lwj accepted so easily that they were being cheated on, but also accepted to let it happen because they wanted them to be happy together too.

it felt a bit too surreal when wwx remembered how lwj would chase away anyone who simply looked at him wrong. This lwj who was so in love with him was ready to share him with jc because he wanted him to be happy with the both of them?

jc was as surprised. Sure, lxc was not as possessive as his brother, but he had his fair share of scaring anyone who wanted to try anything with him away (as discreet as lxc tried to be, of course, jc noticed it). he was also ready to let jc give his love and attention to both lxc and wwx?

"You really mean it?" jc asked, looking as lxc stood up to instead kneel in front of him. "I know my a-cheng wouldn't have stayed with me if he had not even a little bit of love for me, you are not the kind of person to keep on faking feelings, but I also know you would be really sad without wwx next to you and I can't bear seeing you like this again" he smiled, cupping his cheek as jc's eyes were getting a bit teary.

He really meant it. He was really ready to share his love if it meant jc could still be by his side.

a yelp got their attention when lwj suddenly pulled wwx to him, hugging his smaller frame close to him. "I don't want to lose wei ying again," he said in a low voice, "Of see you longing desperately for jc as you did in the past".

he had seen how low wwx had been in the past, and he was scared to see him like this again. Maybe he wouldn't hit rock bottom again, after all, there was more than just losing jc at the time, but he knew it would be a hard hit after they were finally able to be together again.

"Just promise not to forget I am here too".

wwx gently returned the embrace, hand slowly rubbing his back to reassure. "I won't forget about a-zhan, don't worry" he whispered.

After that, jc and wwx shared a look, smiling at each other.

They were happy to have such accepting, generous and understanding boyfriends.

They wouldn't forget to love them the same way they loved each other.

Original

[truly-morgan]

[Youtube AU, shuangjie extra]

General | Mo Dao Zu Shi Modern AU 12-08-2021

[#mdzs youtuber AU] 

Just a silly AU imagining some of my favs as YouTubers if YouTube wasn’t banned in China (please let me know if there’s actually an equivalent to it).

[#jiangcheng] Sandu 

Jc created his account soon after wwx was kicked out of the house officially and then basically disappeared. He needed somewhere to vent and he doubted his family would ever find his account (they never).

He started by simply filming himself with his phone with barely any editing outside of cutting parts out. He was mostly talking about his day and his anxiety when it was starting to build up too much.

Then he started having a following, answering comments through videos when people wanted updates about certain events he mentioned. He slowly started doing Story time, even including one sent to him by subscribers.

When he got into college, he would even do the occasional vlog. He started to be known for being a grumpy sarcastic college student (even tho everyone can see in his interaction with people in his vlog that he seems really nice and polite).

He has different biweekly series on his channel. Storytimes for either when something interesting happened or from subscribers; reading stories he either finds online or is sent by subscribers (usually scary and supernatural ones); and the occasional vlog.

[#jiangyanli] cooking with a-li 

Jyl started her videos after starting to study cuisine (the idea totally didn’t come from jc barely being able to cook anything more than eggs and pasta).

She does recipe videos, mostly aimed towards those who want to start cooking but might feel overwhelmed. She sometimes makes more complicated dishes.  She focuses on cooking but also experiments more with baking, which is a series of her getting better at that skill.

She has another series called “Cooking/baking with Didi” where she and jc follow a receipt together when jc is free to make one with her.

[#weiwuxian] Yiling Laozu 

Wwx has a channel about art and experiment, sometimes mixing both together.

His art video often consists of him rambling about whatever comes to mind while the camera is showing what he’s painting or drawing. He couldn’t say whether people are here for his art or his rambling, either way, he enjoys making these videos. 

His other videos nearly all have a “Do not do this at home” warning at the start of it. It consists of him building weird contraptions that have no real use, sometimes little robots, other times his contraption /are/ useful but look rather unsafe. He sometimes also messes with science.

The voice of reason in these videos is his faceless and shy roommate who tries to make sure he doesn’t burn anything or hurt himself. 

This channel is actually how jc and jyl found him back and knew he was alive and safe.

[#lanwangji] Hanguan-Jun 

Lwj channel is basically him doing music, some include old videos of recital of his (recorded by lqr) followed by him redoing the same melody to see the difference in practice. The music he composes himself usually only have instrumental, but he will sometimes sing when he does covers. 

He doesn’t interact often with fans, but anyone who did interact with him said he is rather nice. He will often be seen replying in comments when people ask for tips about music. 

He stays faceless in his videos, although he doesn’t necessarily hide himself if he ever appears on his brother’s channel.

[#lanxichen] Zewu-Jun 

Much like his brother, lxc channel is one around music. Although he makes his own covers and composition public, what Zewu-Jun is most known for is his music tutorial on various traditional Chinese instruments, going from debutant to more knowledgeable level depending on the video. 

He is more than happy to give tips and help people learn, he has even given private classes to some who were living in gusu (which did make him consider becoming a teacher).

Lwj will sometimes appear in his videos when he either makes little challenges suggested by his subscribers or needs help with other videos. He even has some Q&A with lwj, which is where fans can find most info about the quiet lwj.

[#niehuaisang] Juan Shan 

Nhs channel is all about art and fashion. He does everything from art videos, and some tutorials on how he does things in his art, to giving suggestions about outfits and even doing a weekly series about outfits and put together (he also loves collabing with people to create a nice outfit for them). One of his most recent series turns around makeup as he slowly gets to learn about it to make his outfits even better. 

He also 100% manages to convince 3zun to be his model.

[#niemingjue] Chifeng-Zun 

Nmj has a fitness channel. He has a couple of playlists, all turning somehow around training. He will do vlogs about his own training regime and diet, sometimes following a goal to do [x] thing or being able to participate in [y] event.

He also does exercise tutorials, going from debutant to more advanced exercise, although he is very beginner-focused as he wants more people to find ways to slowly get to exercise. He also has a series about Storytime from the gym (some events sent by followers).

[#jinzixuan] Bai Mudan 

Jzx has this channel where there's a big contrast between his first upload that is still up on his channel and what he creates now. 

He started young, posting dumb things he did and showing off the wealth of his family, trying to play a character that “he should be”. He was pleased and satisfied with the attention he got, which was what he was looking for, but then got tired to be “the rich kid who shows off”.

As he grew older, he slowly got more into movies and film, gaining interest in storytelling and filmmaking. His content nearly suddenly changed to a film review, even adding facts about how it was done.

Fans who stayed since he started posting as a dumb young teen can see how much more passionate and happier he is about his content now. 

Once his relationship with jyl got better she started staring at his video, even having a series of “wife first time watching...”.

[#xueyang] Chengmei 

Xy basically has a gaming channel, known to be an annoying brat when playing online or for his horror game Let's Play. Although he is mostly known for his streaming of varied games, ranging from online fps to simulator gaming passing by horror and even romance games when he wants to laugh a bit. 

Despite his content basically being the same in the past years of his being active, his fans have all seen a shift in him, especially after the sudden change in the room he films and streams in. “Isn’t this new room great? Bigger than my last apartment” he comments when someone pointed it out.

He is still a chaotic and annoying gremlin, but people have seen the dark circle under his eyes diminish over the last months and is that water he’s drinking?! 

Sometimes his other roommate will appear in videos.

Aq will join him in some of his games, appreciated by the chat because of her attitude and the clash between the two. She often whines that xy should split the money with him when she streams with him.

Xxc seems to also be loved by the chat. The man isn’t great at video games and everyone finds it rather funny how xy suddenly becomes a bit less of a gremlin (although quite the flirt) while he teaches him how to play the game (some even suspect he let xxc wins sometimes).

Xxc is also well known for being the mom's friend, as he will sometimes pop only to bring something to eat, some water or just remind xy not to forget to sleep (“Can gege be my new dad TToTT!!!!” often fills the chat when he appears).

Sl rarely appears, usually when it’s already late in the night and he reminds xy that he should go to sleep. It usually ends in xu betting that if he wins against him (sl) he can stay awake all night, but that he’ll end the stream (which usually has even gone on for hours already) if he wins. Xy still doesn’t understand where sl gets his skill in video games.

====

(should I be working on my 3D model? Yes. Is my head killing me and my motivation non-existent right now? Also yes, so let me have silly AU where I don't even know where am going with it since my brain feels stuck)

Original

[truly-morgan]

[Awkward reunion]

Shuangjie | Mo Dao Zu Shi Modern AU 10-05-2021

[#yunmengshuangjie modern, awkward reunion]

what if because wwx gets in big trouble with people (the wen?) he ends up needing to disappear for some time, which extends to 13 long years where he cannot contact his family in fear that something might happen to them. (little did he know the future held a tragic end for the jiang family).

not to help, he had a huge argument with jc before disappearing, mainly about how what he was doing would cause him problems. yet when he's finally free from the danger... he doesn't know how to face jc. he cannot just show up with a "Look who's back from the dead :D!", even less when he still remembers the argument they had as if it had happened yesterday. So he hesitates and stalls for some time, also busy raising a-yuan by himself after taking him in. 

They meet by accident when wwx goes to drop wy (since lwj never took him in, his name should still be wen yuan?). at his new friend's house. He has already met oyz parents and they seem fine, so he feels reassured about leaving his son in their hands. Little did he expect to see jc when the door opened, both of them freezing on the spot.

wwx only gets out of his shock when he feels wy slightly pull on his shirt, asking who the man is in a whisper since he could clearly see his father's reaction wasn't usual.

"Someone... daddy knows," he says as he quickly averts his eyes from jc, looking down at his son with a smile oyz mother even comes to greet him, wy running in quickly when he saws oyz and two other boys inside. They have a small talk as oyz mother introduces them, telling him jc is jl jiujiu. They both end up saying they don't want to overstay and that they did have some matter to take care of, unsure if either of them would be able to keep the facade.

wwx tries to run away, pretexting he has something despite it being a lie, yet he ends up being dragged by jc to the silence is awkward, tense and heavy and wwx cannot meet jc intense staring, as if taking his eyes of off him for even a second would allow him to run away (again). they stay in silence for a good while, until wwx tries to break the silence by asking how jc has been doing. jc only answered by asking where he had been, making wwx tense.

he's forced to explain what had happened, what trouble he had been stuck in and how he ended up needing to pay back a debt. of course, the discussion sours a bit when wwx doesn't want to tell him all, or even why he wouldn't ask them for help.

they both stop talking for a while to calm down, until wwx finally points out he wouldn't have wanted to put them in danger or cause such problems, feeling like he could never have asked such a thing (also he doubted yzy would have accepted to help him out).

he ends up rambling that he understands if jc doesn't want him around, he did fuck up and then disappear for years without giving news and probably even making him believe he was dead. he will stay away as much as possible if needed.

"But please, let a-yuan keep jl as a friend, it's the first time I saw him this close to other children, if you don't want me interacting much with him it's alright, but just... please allow a-yuan to be". obviously, jc is still mad at wwx for what he did, but he was not expecting for him to believe he would go as far as refusing for the children to be friends, or even believe he would ask him to disappear again.

He is angry and mad for what happened and how he was left alone after the death of their family, but it's not to this point. How anxious had wwx been about this all these years for him to come to this conclusion? They would clearly need a better talk and a more detailed one. They had a lot to talk about, especially to clear misunderstanding, but for now, he decides to leave it at that, simply sighing.

after a more light-hearted chitchat, they parted ways, jc still needed to do what he needed to do for the day, leaving wwx only after having exchanged numbers and addresses (he's too anxious to not have them, although he could have asked wy too).

====

I dunno why, I feel like this could be an interesting setting. I feel like writing ymsj reuniting, but without the "I hate your fucking guts for being the cause of dead of my family" and more of a "where tf were you?!? what happened? Why didn't you call me /once/?!"

I think my sleep-deprived mind is starting to come up with too much stuff tonight, some parts here feel a bit weird(??)

Original

[truly-morgan]

[Retrouvail, JC helping WWX out]

Shuangjie | Mo Dao Zu Shi cw: mention of not eating enough 07-07-2021

[#shuangjie (potential xiancheng) retrouvail / reconciliation, modern] (cw: mention of not eating enough)

the classic wwx modern move where he gets in trouble with the wen (or maybe the wen helped him out so now he has to pay back). And of course, wwx cannot trouble the jiang after all they did for him all these years, so the best he can do is pack his thing a disappear. Jc of course tries to contact him and wwx answer to him each time for a while when he can, reassuring him that he simply needs time to deal with something.

When he's not in front of jc it is easier to lie about how things are going, about how things should soon be settled. He tries to tell himself he's only half-lying since he doesn't know for how long he will be stuck with this debt, but he knows it's not true.

So he tries to reassure jc who only gets more angry, worried and anxious after each call, as if the one they have would be the last.

jc does try to reason with him, but it doesn't work, so he settles for messages and calls, where he asks for wwx to at least write to him once a day, to make sure he is alright and well (he also lies to himself when he decides to believe wwx when the young man says everything is fine).

but then, after nearly a year of doing this stupid game, jc gets an unusual call from wwx and something in his guts tell him that something is /wrong/ and he starts to panic when wwx voice gets a bit tighter. "A-cheng, stay safe and take care of jiejie for me okay? I... I'll be okay, don't panic, just... stay safe for me so I don't worry... Don't come looking for me now, I need you safe"

Jc tries to talk him out of whatever stupid shit wwx will do, asks him to tell him where he is, that he'll go get him and they /will/ find a way. "Wei Ying! You promised me to be by my side, are you going to go back on your words?" he asks shakily, desperate to make wwx change his mind.

wwx does pause at that. He really wants to reconsider what he needs to do to get rid of his debt, but people are now coming for him and he can't stay longer. "I am sorry a-cheng" he whispered into the phone before hanging up and shutting down his phone.

after that, there's nothing from him. Jc did try to call him many times after, tried calling anyone he knew had been friend (or at least, acquaintance) of wwx, yet no one knew anything, wwx had basically burned all bridges months ago, and only jc was left from his life.

and now even jc wasn't able to contact him. He did all he could, but nothing worked and he didn't even have an idea /where/ he could search.

jfm did give a hand at first (after all /it was/ wwx who had disappear) but even he gave up after nothing could be found, only rendering jyl and jc more worried from the lack of /anything/.

Then things got distracted when jyl pregnancy got farther and soon jl was a source of attention (but jyl could never forget about wwx, and neither could jc). but of course, some calm couldn't stay for long and tragedy followed another. jc basically lost his last family, left with a poor baby who would grow up with only an anxious uncle who could only do his best and probably never as good as his parents.

It was really hard for jc, to raise jl alone while going to college so he could find a good job and take better care of his nephew. He really hoped that he could have wwx by his side, even in the worst of time the man could find ways to make it seems a bit less worst.

But he wasn't here and he had to power through it alone.

So taking care of jl took away from searching for wwx, although the man never fully left his mind, when he saw a similar face he would stop, only to realise it is not him.

It was hard, but he managed and still kept the hope that wwx was somewhere safe at least.

Then a bit more than a decade passed by so quickly.

Jc had moved to a new city with jl for a better job opportunity (which mean better money for them). It also seemed to be good with jl, as the boy seemed to have had difficulties with other students, despite jc trying to change that.

This is why he was more than happy to see that he had managed to make friends more easily this time and was growing close to three lively young men.

He was more than happy to have them stay over for dinner when they came to play or do homework.

wy had caught his attention a bit, as he was clearly coming from a poorer background (clearly ljy parents weren't low on money and oyz parents seemed to be doing comfortably).

He did ask jl if he knew more about it, wanting to make sure the young man was alright after all, it did happen often for him to stay until rather late before his dad came to pick him up (or even just go back home alone).

jl simply said that wy had told them his dad had off working hours, hence why he would stay until late, so he was not home alone. of course, jc is more than happy to let the young man stay until late or overnight if needed, but he does worry about his dad's situation (especially since he seems single).

but the way wy talks to him over the phone, the man seems to really care about him, so this does reassure him a bit.

Yet he is curious about who the man is, after all, even when he comes to pick him up, he doesn't come to the door and wait in the car.

jl told him wy dad was alright, clearly, life had been hard on their little family, but he was overall doing his best and treating them right when they were over (though he could be a bit annoying sometimes).

Then one time, as wy was to stay overnight to do a group project, his dad came to bring him something he had forgotten back home. "Wen Yuan, your dad is here, he's coming to the door" jl warned as he saw the car park in the driveway and the man getting out (for once) to the door.

wy then went to the door for him, jc was cooking when he heard that, a bit curious as to who the man was, but decided to finish cutting his vegetable first before looking.

But then he heard the voice.

"A-yuan forgot his school bag at home before coming over for a school project?" teased a very familiar voice. jc couldn't have bolted for the hallway as fast as he did, stopping net in his track when his gaze landed on the dark figure in the doorway.

it's was so sudden both wy and his dad jump, before wwx froze when he saw him. "Wei Ying", the name escaping his lips.

"Jiujiu, you know wy father?"/"Gege knows jl uncle?" ended up asking the teen, looking a bit confused as to what this was about.

yet wwx couldn't feel like he could do this right now, faking looking at the time on his none existent watch. "Ahah I have to go to work now, my boss won't be happy if I am late again today," he said as he was quickly retreating, not actually leaving time for jc to do anything other than stare at him in disbelief.

wwx was back and so close, yet he had no clue about this.

why didn't he tell him?

He had to wait until the next day if he wanted to have some answers, because he knew wwx would still come and pick up wy, he wouldn't leave him here for this.

Thought wwx did wait in the car like usual this time, but it was not enough to stop jc, of course. He simply stopped wy gently, telling him to wait inside for longer, before going out.

"Why don't you come inside for a minute?" he asked once he got to the car.

wwx wanted to refuse and find some bullshit reason, but he knew that look in jc eyes, it was the "I am not giving up so easily" look. He would probably get in the car if he needed to, so he decided going inside would be better.

wwx greeted jl when he came in, the two teens quickly understanding they needed to have a talk and leaving them space for it. "We'll hang out in my room" simply said jl as they went to his room.

This is how wwx was left alone in the kitchen with jc, sitting awkwardly at the table as some tea was being made. "Where were you?" jc asked as he leaned against the counter, staring at him.

Wwx didn't really want to reply to this. Could he really just admit he went to prison? And that afterwards he tried to just survive? He wasn't ready to know how jc would react to knowing he was now considered a criminal ("I guess the teachers were right" he laughed to himself more than once).

"You know... places" he replied vaguely, looking even more awkward and uncomfortable than before.

jc knew pushing on this one would lead nowhere, he had a vague idea of what wwx might have gotten himself in the past, he simply couldn't be sure which path it had taken. He even had a suspicion about the truth, but he understood he wouldn't have his confirmation now.

"Why didn't you contact me in all these years then?" he asked instead, which he felt was a valid question. Was he that untrustworthy? Was he not a good enough help for him?

wwx stopped himself from saying he actually did it one time, to see if jc still had the same phone number as in the past. It was late at night and he was missing jc even more than before, so he had dialled the number in the hope to talk a bit.

yet, when the tired voice of jc asking who it was he choked out of it and hung up, scared of /how/ he should get back in jc's life. At the end of it, he simply never actually found the courage to do it, staying out of jc's life, it would probably be easier for him especially with what he had heard had happened soon after he was put into jail, he really wishes he could have been by his side when it happened. How lonely and sad must jc have been when he lost everyone around him, leaving only a baby behind (which he was happy to see was doing good too).

But he also didn't want to be a burden for jc. His record was making things harder for him now, he wouldn't have wanted for jc to be affected by that too. Also, he didn't want to be a financial burden for jc, the man already had enough of taking care of himself and jl, he wouldn't have wanted to add himself.

"I... Didn't want to be a burden" he finally admitted, a sad smile on his lips, "You seem to have already a lot to take care of and a lot to go through, I didn't want to add to it".

this annoyed jc. Couldn't he decide by himself what /was/ a burden for him? He wouldn't have found wwx to be a burden, they would most likely have figured out a way to manage.

They ended up talking for a good part of the evening, wwx mostly answering questions about where he had been in the past years and what he had been doing (avoiding a couple of years gap directly after his last call to jc).

jc was a bit mad that wwx had put himself in this situation, but he was also glad that he had found him now. He was not going to let him disappear again and wanted to help him.

throughout this conversation, he had noticed that yes wwx was struggling with jobs and money, yet he had assured many times wy was alright.

"WQ actually help a bit, but I decided all the money goes for wy" had admitted wwx after jc asked. Sure, wy wasn't wearing the latest trend or the most expensive clothing, but they were in a better state than the one wwx had.

Also, wy looked like a healthy kid for the most part, having most likely never lacked the food he needed to grow well. yet wwx looked thinner than he should be. It wasn't sickly either, or he wouldn't be able to work as much as he does, but he was clearly not eating enough.

wwx did try to brush it off, saying he was simply eating too much in the past and this is why jc had this impression.

It took weeks of meeting here and there for jc to get a better grip of what exactly was the whole situation. Clearly, wwx was working as best as he could to get money. Part of it would go for what wy needed, which paired with the money wq was sending to help her nephew made it so wy could be more comfortable, where wwx would cut some things for himself just to make sure of that. He had even gotten some frustrated jokes about how he couldn't keep all his job for that long either once when wwx came back.

It also took many weeks for wwx to finally admit that he had indeed gone to jail. It had been a bit hard to talk about and he was clearly not ready to talk about what he might have seen and lived in prison, but jc was happy that he would tell him at least that.

wwx was only supposed to do three bigger jobs so a larger amount of his debt could be paid (honestly, sometimes he felt like it was never going to end).

But with his bad luck at the time, of course, things went horribly wrong and the other party ended up opening fire. "I-I... I killed someone, Jiang Cheng, I just wanted to scare him and protect myself, but I killed him" wwx said in a quiet voice, scared that jc would start hating him now.

It was truly an accident, he never went there in the idea that he would need to defend himself. He had been there for other transactions and everything went well, so he assumed it would be the same. Yet shit got really bad and he was cornered, he truly never wanted to injure the person to the point where they died of it quickly. luckily it was seen as self-defence despite the situation (maybe him giving the officer more information than needed also helped his situation, he felt lucky to not die in prison).

He was happy that he didn't get over 10 years in prison, but the time he did was already a lot.

When wwx was done talking he was tense, anxious and scared that this would be it, jc would definitely hate him now, jc was not one to really break the law (other than small mischief, all started by wwx when they were younger).

Yet jc didn't get mad at him. The man wasn't sure how he should react or see it, but he knew wwx would never have killed with intent. wwx might have changed a bit over the years and some part was a bit hard to recognise, but this was something he would always believe in. wwx was not necessarily a bad person and this was all in self-defence.

After that day they didn't go over that section of his life again, only mentioning his stay in prison from time to time when it was relevant. This was relevant once when jc went to pick up wwx after work once, seeing the man get out with a sour expression on his face. he did startle him when he called out to him asking what was wrong.

"Got fired because I did something wrong, they probably just figured out I have a record, wouldn't be the first time anyway". It was hard keeping a stable job where someone was ready to really give him a chance without waiting to kick him out to the slightest inconvenience.

He would need to find another job again, or he would have difficulty paying for bills at this point and he wouldn't cut in what was necessary for wy.

jc did suggest helping them, but he was gently brushed off by wwx "You already have jl and yourself to take care of, I don't want to burden you more". This did annoy jc and pinch him the wrong way, did wwx think he don't have the money? but he took a deep breath and reconsidered it.

If he was in wwx shoes he knew he would also refuse the help unless he was at rock bottom, so he couldn't blame him.

So instead he tried helping to find another job, talking to some contact he has. It was a bit hard finding someone who was ready to give wwx a chance even when knowing about his record (better be upfront from the start). But since he was trusted by these people seen as a trustworthy man who was only trying to help his brother he did find a couple of people ready to give wwx a shot.

wwx couldn't be more thankful for that help.

Then, as the month slowly went by, wwx and jc slowly enter each other's life again. It was sometimes odd getting used to things and habits they never had before, but they were slowly getting there, where they fit perfectly together as they did before. It became rather frequent to visit each other, to the point where jl and wy weren't surprised anymore when they were seeing each other so often, this meant they could hang out more.

This also meant wwx was slowly letting jc help him out when he needed it, still unsure sometimes if he could really ask for help (He had gone on for so long that he couldn't really do so).

But something he couldn't stop jc from helping apparently was groceries.

"It is good that you make sure a-yuan has all that he needs to eat, but /you/ also need to eat correctly" jc scolded once when he dragged him to the grocery store so they could buy enough for /both/ of them.

He was so worried about wwx, especially since he could see he was cutting his own portion to make sure wy eat enough. He couldn't let that slide, he would put back some meat on wwx, be it if he needed to cook for him every day too.

This is how he saw wwx slowly (but surely) go back to a healthier size, having also more energy from correctly eating, instead of living on energy drinks and pushing himself. even if he didn't ask for it, wwx would always try to pay him back for the food, so he simply settles on "You pay back half the grocery when you can, keep your money for what you need"

they may be both stubborn, but he would out-stubborn him if needed. At some point jc even suggest coming to live with him and jl, they both would be happy to have them here (plus, they were already often over as it is). jc didn't push him when he first refused, simply saying the offer would always be on the table.

It took weeks before wwx accepted his offer. Something had happened in their cheap building and he didn't want anything to happen to wy, and he had really wished to get out of there at some point.

So they moved in, a new routine settling in for everyone. Something in both older men was more than happy to have each other around all the time, like in the good old days.

They didn't notice it, but jl and wy saw how they acted around each other, wondering if they were ever more than "brothers" in the past.

This is how wwx was slowly able to find a more stable way of living, also trying to finish his studies now that he had the time and financial safety to do so (in the hope of maybe getting a better job despite his record).

It was a weird little family, but really, none of them would complain about it going this way. They couldn't tell what the future would bring, but they knew they could go through it now that they were back at each other's side.

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