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avaelangel · 1 year ago

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Parents weekend.

LiMoreau blurb. Really, really want Marie to meet Jordan's parents, but I do think we won't get that in the show.

Warnings: None? I don't think I went angsty enough, but I hope it's still enjoyable. Probably not proofread enough. Might fuck around and write more.

~3093 words.

''What the fuck?''

The light went out half-way to Jordan's room and Marie heard them curse from the end of the hall. She kept going, trying not to crush into anyone beside her now boyfriend, assuming by the voice she heard. Feeling for their slightly increased heartbeat, she reached out a hand to touch theirs.

''It's me,'' she heard a sigh and hands wrapped around her, ''What happened?''

''I'll find that electricity-wileding son of a bitch and kill him,'' the moment Jordan said that, light came back.

The looked at each other for a moment. Marie with casual, but growing tenderness, Jordan with worry that seemed to be easying up. They saw Marie blink out of something. She still was tracking their heartbeat, but also, thought like she stared too much.

''What's wrong?''

''What's up?''

They both huffed in annoyance, then laughed.

''I asked first,'' Marie smiled, her hands tightened around Jordan.

''Fuck,'' Jordan tugged her into their room, letting the door close with a bang. A hug became a bit broken, but Jordan still wanted to save it wrapping their arm around Marie's waist.

''The next weekend is the parents weekend,''

''Oh,'' Marie sort of glitched on that. She was lying to people about her parents, who obviosly would be ''too busy'' to visit. Guardian shit died down, so nobody would think to like...hire actors, right? But she said the other thing.

''Already?'' She pulled away to look at Jordan better, ''We should get you and Emma out of school,'' the conviction in her voice made Jordan smile.

''I have to talk to them, probably,'' Jordan sighed and sat down on the edge of the bed. They started tapping their leg on the floor and switched, ''I haven't spoken to my dad since the gala,''

Marie's expertise on parent-child relationship started with what little memories she had of hers and promising to beat up Emma's mom. She didn't really know what to say, so she sat next to Jordan, offering them her hand to take.

''I can be there, if you want,'' Jordan took her hand, intertwining the fingers, ''I can beat you dad, if you want me to,'' Marie leaned in closer, whispering. Jordan snorted with laighter.

''As much as I would want you to try that, no. Not this time. Do you really want to meet them, though? Be a distraction, basically. From the fact that my dad would rather choke then call me at least his child, let alone his daughter,'' Jordan's jaw clenched. They looked at their tapping leg and forcibly stopped it.

''I don't mind being a distraction. I'll even fuck around and agree that we are getting married after graduation,'' Marie smiled at horror in Jordan's eyes, ''In like Norway,'' she shrugged with most grace she could master.

''You really expect me to freeze my ass off for you?'' Jordan's default settings popped back in, but they still laughed, ''I hope it won't get that bad,'' they glanced at Marie, ''I mean, with my parents.''

''It doesn't have to be bad,'' Marie squeezed their hand, ''We'll do what we supposed to do, charm them out prying in your life. Or we can pretend that you are dating Emma and make them talk to her when she's a size of a glass of water.''

''I am the only one who's going to be puking when my parents come,'' Jordan fell back on the bed, but did chuckle.

''I'll hold your hair then,'' she settled in next to them on her side, ''Even if metaphorically, I think both of your haircuts are pretty comfortable for puking,'' she enjoyed Jordan's silent fight against laughter.

''I haven't puked since my graduation, I think,'' Jordan softly knocked on Marie's shoulder with their forehead and let out a heavy sigh.

''How much do you have to drink to puke?'' Marie mused, while Jordan untangled their fingers from hers and pushed for her to end up on her back, almost kicking their girlfriend out of the bed. They quickly pulled her back, putting their head on Marie's shoulder. Jordan chose to ignore her giggles.

''You really don't want to be a witness to that,'' they murmured, clearly trying to hug their worries away, ''And don't ask Andre about things like that,'' Jordan's grasp on Marie's waist became stronger.

''Watch me,'' Marie wasn't going to ask Andre , not really, ''It's going to be okay. Hopefully, we won't have to drink ourselves stupid,'' she brushed Jordan's hair away from their eyes.

''It might be, but don't get your hopes up,'' Jordan huffed, closing their eyes, ''Thank you,'' they said with a sigh.

''Too early to thank me,'' Marie decided to drop the topic for now. There is still a week to prepare.

ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ***

The week passed rather quickly. On Tuesday Jordan's mom texted, saying that they do plan on visiting, but probably for one evening because of work. Some kind of errands to run in town. Texting with Marie at the same time, Jordan told their parents about having a ''special someone'' and allowed their mother to sugesst meeting that someone herself.

By Thursday a reservation for four was made in a very bougie restaurant. Marie became wary of it and doubted her choice of dress. Jordan assured her that there is no constriction. No need to be bougie back, just as normal as possible. It was getting windier outside.

Friday came. Marie knocked on Jordan's door an hour before they agreed to meet. When they opened the door, Marie made a pose, to show off her black turtleneck dress and a nice bag, courtesy of Emma. Black shiny boots boots with a safe heel were bought with her help too.

''Do I need a jacket?'' When Jordan kept staring, Marie felt the need to break the silence.

''No, we are taking my car,'' they sounded irritated, coming back to the desk with accessories spread out. Closing the door behind her, Marie looked over Jordan's shoulder curiosly.

''It's fucking stupid,'' Jordan mutters, picking a gold and black ring. Their burgundy shirt has a couple of buttons undone, favorite chain missing, ''I'm still trying to impress them,'' they stilled when Marie's hand wrapped around their arm.

''I should be the one to impress them, right?'' She asked in a soft voice, trying to make Jordan look at her. They let out a heavy sigh.

''You shouldn't be doing anything,'' Jordan glances at Marie and back at the desk, their fingers toyed with a two different couples of cufflinks.

''I'm already here and I'm not leaving you to explain to your parents that you for sure did not imagine having a girlfriend,'' Marie didn't see Jordan's soft smile when she picked up both kinds of cufflinks, making them choose between a silver circle with black centre and a small red-ish triangle surrounded by gold. Without words, Jordan chose the latter.

They watched Marie intently. Someone who didn't know them both, might have thought that it was a gaze of a hawk. But Jordan was trying to bottle up the moment in which Marie stepped ready to support them regardless. And how she confidently fumbled with the cufflinks, but still managed to get it right in seconds.

''Do you think I'm ungrateful?'' Jordan asked. After the gala, in the dark of their room and their thoughts, Jordan tried to understand what it was like for Marie before she got here. And how their bitching and moaning about parents being mean might sound to her.

''No!'' Marie, when she finally got it, exclaimed, ''No, don't even think about it like that,'' she held their arms at the elbow for some reason, ''After what you told me, what I've heard from Emma and Cate, I can say that bad parents can eat a bag of dicks,'' she raised her eyebrows in mock-annoyance, like she said the most obvious thing.

''But I won't say any of this tonight,'' Marie's fury calmed down and she let go of Jordan, who was trying not to smile too much.

''At least tell them your name first,'' they chuckled. A loose curl fell to their face and Marie brushed it back. She debated commenting on how romantic this hair style looked.

''Anything else I shouldn't tell them?'' Marie asked with some doubt.

''If you call me your 'partner', my dad might joke about us role-playing as cowboys,'' those words slipped with such ease, even Jordan's smirk didn't tell Marie anything about how true this statement was.

''What that phrase was? Save a horse, ride a cowboy?''Marie said it with as much feighed innocence as she could muster. Jordan, browsing their accessory spread, stifled a laugh, pursing their lips together.

''I have a cowboy hat,'' they had to take a breath. They chose a golden ring connected with a delecate chain bracelet with another chain. Marie didn't understand at first that Jordan was offering it to her. So she gave them her hand.

In thickened silence, Jordan slowly slid cool metal onto Marie's palm, the ring fitting her perfectly. They wouldn't accept it back later.

''Never took you as a gold person,'' she murmured, glancing down at the desk.

''Oh, right,'' Jordan held her hand, bracelet already on, ''When I met Luke, he got his first brand deal with some mildly luxury jewelry brand. Took away as much as they let him. Gave it to all of us. Since then I've been giving gold a chance,'' their eyes met. Marie felt a sting of guilt, but also was happy to see them remember Luke fondly.

''Come,'' Jordan pulled her a bit so they both could fit in a mirror. Their squinted gaze examined both oufits. They even put their hands in pockets of their trousers. Then Jordan held one hand on Marie's waist and switched.

''We look good,'' Marie broke the silence, ''Very privileged,'' that did bring out a small chuckle out of Jordan. They made a mental note that Marie should never find out how easy it is for her to make them smile. Too much power.

''Yeah,'' now they had to look up a bit at her, ''Would you mind some redder lipstick?''

''I'm so smearing it all over you,'' Marie gave Jordan a chaste kiss and smiled. This is the best threat Jordan Li would ever face.

ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ***

When they pulled up to the restaurant, Marie got worried and glanced at Jordan, who was nervous the whole way here.

''Relax,'' Jordan sighed.

''You relax!'' Marie's defensiveness quickly faded and they both laughed.

Not a lot of things truly matter here, beside supporting Jordan and trying to have a nice evening. Marie already blended in once, she can to it again. And her and Jordan still can cling to each other, like they could not do yet back then.

Jordan's parents already waited in a far away booth. The restaurant itself was politely chattering. Every single person busy with their plate or partner at the table. Easy and calm. Marie squeezed Jordan's hand harder, mapping out options she could order here, eat and still hold up the conversation withour getting distracted.

The initial meeting went well. A burst of laughter and hands shaking, slightly awkward introducing each other another time. Everybody sat down and enjoyed a pause while the waiter was giving out the menus.

''So, Marie,'' Kayla started, looking at her child and their girlfriend over the menu, ''What was your first impression was of Jordan?''

''Did he try to kiss you too?'' Paul chimed in. It broke the softness of the first question.

''Well,'' Marie glanced at Jordan and smiled, watching them avert their eyes in embarassment, ''Jordan actually rejected me from a the course I wanted to do. And I was a fan,''

''Oh, that's a love story,'' Jordan's mom really seemed delighted by that, ''And let me guess, everything just fell into place?''

''Oh, yeah,'' Marie got a bit too excited for that answer, ''Jordan couldn't hate me for too long!''

''Even though it was very tempting,'' they remarked, allowing everybody at the table to see their smile.

''Did you hit him for that?'' Jordan's dad sounded a bit too giddy for this.

''No, I only hit people who make Jordan upset,'' Marie did her best to sound like she was joking. Her smile was polite despite Jordan trying stifle a laugh in the background.

The conversation moved towards the dishes and drinks. Some lies were spewed by Marie, like the one about drinking. She had enough beers already amongst friends and, apparently, drunk her head off at a party. She also lied about not having allergies, because frankly, she didn't know or remember. So she ordered a seafood pasta and supressed an urge to whisper to Jordan something along the lines of ''If I die, I'm sorry,''.

''We can switch,'' As if they read her mind, Jordan winked at Marie.

''I can certainly see what Jordan likes in you, Marie,'' Kayla said, taking the kids out of intimate haze.

''Yes, your actions speak for themselves,'' it sounded more wrong that it actually was, coming from Paul's mouth.

''There is a lot of us at God U. Next Guardian or Protector, whatever, is right around the corner. I just don't want anybody to get hurt,'' remembering the interview, Marie felt awful, gripping the side of her chair.

''I was fascinated by Marie's powers first, to be honest,'' Jordan straightened out, their fingers touched Marie's, ''Then, I had to come to an understanding that all of Marie is fascinating,'' they even sighed with dismay.

''To your absolute chagrin,'' Marie really hoped she used that random word she manage to remember right. She will get teased about it later.

''Just a little bit of chagrin,'' Jordan will never forget it.

''What do you like in Jordan?'' Paul asked. His and Jordan's whiskey glasses were identical.

''Oh, many things,'' Marie took a sip of her colorful icey-looking coctail. Nobody was sure it wasn't alcoholic, ''There isn't another Jordan, I think. No one can be that strong and resilient, but also loving and...,'' she had to take a breath, ''breathtaking, really. I like all of Jordan. Every single thing,''

There was silence. Kayla did bless Marie with an ''Aww'', but Jordan leaned in, kissing her cheek.

''You just HAD to outdo me on this,''

The food came and conversaiton flowed towards simpler things. Jordan did their best to stir it away from the topic of Marie's past. Marie, in turn, filled every opportunity for a story of Jordan's childhood to be repeated with her own anecdote about shenanigans at Godolkin. She even offered a memory with her sister, the one where her and Annabeth experimented with food as little kids, as a sacrifice to a nice evening. It kind of worked.

It was very hard to fight off offering of desert. Even with Marie's curiosity to try a fancy desert, between her pasta and Jordna's ravioli, they both were super stuffed. Kayla insisted on choosing something for them to take home, maybe eat in the morning and think of her and Paul. That struck a chord with Marie.

She tried to sort out her feelings during the evening. There was something stilted about the conversation, everybody hid some parts of them, but also really wanted to enjoy what they could show. The saddest part of it. Truth will come out behind closed doors, in half-lit rooms and with hushed voices.

''Thank you so much,'' Marie smiled and held Kayla's cold hands in hers, ''I would never thought to go here,'' she never would have known this place existed.

''Thank you, It was so great to meet you,'' The woman leaned in closer, ''I know I'm glad Jordan has someone to support him at God U,''

Marie nodded, still smiling. She glanced back at Jordan, who was talking about something with their dad. Everything seemed somewhat fine. Wishful thinking almost made Marie will Jordan to switch and for the dad to hug them in the form he's refusing to accept. But the boys shook hands and Jordan turned, noticing that Marie was looking.

''You are staring,'' they chuckled, swinging an arm around Marie's shoulders.

Paul's car got brought out first and after many almost hearfelt goodbyes, they left. Marie and Jordan stood in silence for a few minutes, huddling together for warmth.

''You mom has low blood pressure,''

''I'll let her know,''

ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ***

The alarm clock showed 2:54 am. Only one lamp was lighting entirety of Jordan's room.

''That's it, I'm done,'' Marie abandonded the spoon next to the pistachio tiramisu and raised her hands. Giggling like a desert gremlin, Jordan took the rest of it for themselves.

''We probably should bring the macarons to Emma. And hide Emma,'' they remarked, taking another bite.

''Yeah. I should pay her at least in sweet stuff for her help. I still mostly use her make up,'' Marie nodded, glancing at the bag from the restaurant on the desk.

''You can use mine, you know,'' Jordan forgot about their tiramisu, the spoon softly touching their lips, ''Whatever suits you, I mean,''

''Let me guess,'' she moves closer and puts her head on their lap. After coming back, her and Jordan found their oldest and biggest hoodies to wear to bed, pants be gone, ''you have a really steady hand when it comes to stuff like eyeliner?''

''I have you know, I have a perfectly steady hand when it comes to everything,'' there wasn't another answer she could have expected from Jordan. They put their head on Marie's shoulder, their curls falling freely.

''Will you be able to sleep after this?'' Marie tapped the side of desert container.

''After knowing my parents are actually happy for me because of something beside of school? Barely,'' their hand found Marie's wrist.

''I meant the sugar and coffe,''

''Oh. there's barely any. I think,'' Jordan sat up straighter, looking at the container, as if it had the ingredient list, ''Lady fingers soaked in coffee, but cream is...''

''It's time to sleep, smartass,'' with a great effort, Marie dragged herself from the bed, took away the container, closed it and turned to Jordan, ready to bully them into cuddling.

But Jordan was already shuffling under the covers. Deciding not to say anything else, she turned off the lamp and climbed into the bed with them.

''I am smart and I do have a good ass,'' Jordan murmured, putting their head on Marie's shoulder. Her silent laugh made them smile too.

Sleep was sweet and sound untill Emma's distress signal came in few hours later.

#gen v #jordan li #marie moreau #limoreau #emma meyer #so i know it's long and i tried my best #let me know if i should elaborate on things like jordan sharing make up with marie or those two saving emma from her mom #it's a honking huge piece damn #fanfiction i guess #jordan x marie #big thanks to @limoreaulover for helping me remember what cufflinks are #i just hope it's alright #not a native english speaker by the way so sorry if something is horrible

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acearohippo · 2 years ago

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Oh yeah, Tang Xuan absolutely called Li Ling after he sent this message

You can't tell me that Tang Xuan left the convo at that.

I held my shipping self back with my previous posts but no longer. Take this fic, I might post this on ao3 later this week because it's... actually pretty long.

AO3 Link:

Ship: Li Ling/Tang Xuan

Rating: T, for language

Word Count: 2.6k

Summary: They're just chatting on the phone being cute and whatever.

[[I'm glad you're safe tho... you scared the hell outta me]]

Tang Xuan sighs, a bit dreamily. His boyfriend can be so cute, it’s unfair. He’s by himself, in one of the lounging rooms found in New Mylo Marshall’s station. It’s been repurposed as a temporary room for him to rest in, not that Tang Xuan has been able to use it as such. Giving himself only three days to resolve the truth behind the collapsing Miracle, Javid’s role in it, and the frequent Miramon waves plaguing New Mylo has left him no time to relax for more than a few minutes at a time.

He starts typing out a reply but pauses. He has nowhere to go for the half an hour and it has been a while since he got to hear his boyfriend’s voice. Not that Tang Xuan needs an excuse to call Li Ling, his thumb already hitting the “Call” button and happily getting cosy on the couch as he waits for his boyfriend to pick up. The call doesn’t even ring once before he hears the tell tale click of the person on the other side picking up the call. Tang Xuan’s heart swells and he can’t stop the grin forming on his face.

“Babydoll, you better be calling me to tell me exactly where you are so I can come get you.” Li Ling’s low monotone drawls out. Tang Xuan tenses up, recognising the signs of an emotional shutdown. His happy mood fades as he assesses the situation. The fact that Li Ling answered his call, means they still have time before any social withdrawals. He doesn’t sound any different from usual, only a bit more flat in his speech. Hearing his voice does reconceptualise his text. Tang Xuan takes a moment to calm his racing heart and thinks quickly.

First, he needs to make sure Li Ling doesn’t try to come get him. Because he will, he seriously will leave wherever he is, find him (somehow), and- if he can’t take Tang Xuan with him- he’ll latch himself to Tang Xuan and not leave. Tang Xuan loves working with his boyfriend, but this case requires a lot more finesse and critical thinking than Li Ling’s impatience is willing to handle. Not to mention the time limit and what’s at stake will annoy Li Ling and cause him to make rash decisions that may negatively impact everything. Li Ling jumps to conclusions too often, and while Tang Xuan will admit he does too, Li Ling doesn’t stop to question those conclusions, not unless someone directly challenges it and he’s given time to reflect on it. Three days is not enough time for Li Ling to process something of this magnitude, Tang Xuan is still trying to wrap his head around Javid's cruel decision and how it doesn't quite fit the man who protected him in the desert, even if he was a bit of a douche about it.

“They sent me to New Mylo.” Answer his questions honestly. When Li Ling gets like this, it’s better to answer succinctly. Tang Xuan is grateful they’re voice calling, as he can easily pitch his voice to sound calm and casual. He lets a bit of the past day’s frustration leak into his voice when he continues. “You would not believe the crap that’s happening here, babe.” Tang Xuan waits for Li Ling’s response. He isn’t trying to change the topic, that never works with Li Ling for long anyway, but he is trying to gauge how far along Li Ling’s fatigue is, to better help his boyfriend out.

“New Mylo? Isn’t that the place that’s about to get wiped out by the new miracle shit? The celestial anomaly thing the higher ups won’t shut up about?” Li Ling goes quiet for a bit, though he isn’t idle. Tang Xuan can hear him tapping away at his screen. “You’re like, a few hours away by plane… I could get to you in less than 5 minutes if I use my ring… Are these photos up to date?” Li Ling mutters to himself and Tang Xuan sighs. Looks like he’s still focused on getting to him. Tang Xuan wonders if Li Ling even realises he’s smack dab in the middle of the small town that’s in danger of being wiped out, thus being in danger himself. Not that Tang Xuan is nervous, but it’s good that Li Ling didn’t make that connection just now. The more he talks, the flatter his voice becomes and realising the danger Tang Xuan is in could be the last straw that sends him into a non-responsive, hyper-sensitive mess.

So, Tang Xuan goes for a different tactic, switching positions on the couch to get more comfortable. “I could send you pictures if you want.” He’s still going to try to keep Li Ling there, but sometimes agreeing with his spontaneous needs can help him calm down faster. “But, I don’t think Raven will be happy if you suddenly show up on my mission.”

Li Ling scoffs. “Like I give a crap what she’ll think. What was she thinking sending you on your own there?”

“I mean, I did resolve the Crow issue practically on my own.” Tang Xuan still thinks it was weird how Tevor leftmost of the sleuthing to him. He brought the cat man with him specifically so he could sniff out the crow leader, yet Tang Xuan ended up gathering most of the clues and coming to the final conclusion of both the present mystery and the past mystery that caused the cruise events to happen. Waste of a favour and money, that was. “It only took me a few days, too! I think Raven and the others starting to see my worth, putting me on all these high, erm, ranked missions.” Tang Xuan almost slipped up and said high stakes. He bites his lip to prevent himself from rambling on. Fortunately, Li Ling doesn’t notice his almost slip up, mumbling affirmative sounds to show that he’s only partially paying attention to Tang Xuan.

Tang Xuan pouts, tapping a finger against his cheek as he thinks of a way to break Li Ling’s concentration. “Oh! If you come here, we can do a road trip back to Gyrate.” Tang Xuan grins as the other line goes completely silent. He can practically hear Li Ling processing what he just said.

“What? No, absolute not! That’s our anniversary date plans, we aren’t moving those up.” Li Ling, finally, sounds a bit more lively. Tang Xuan digs in deeper.

“Weellll, if you come here, Raven’ll wonder why you’re here, and saying it’s because I’m here isn’t going to fly with her.”

“Screw her.” Li Ling sounds like a petulant child, grumbling under his breath.

”So we’re going to need to come up with a valid excuse. You got any besides an impromptu desert tour, babe?” The grumbling on the other end continues.

“But we are doing a road trip for our anniversary… what does New Mylo even have?” Tang Xuan wishes Li Ling was next to him, because he just knows he’s making that cute confused face, eyes rolling up and brows furrowing in thought.

“There’s lots of stuff we can do down here… maybe.” Tang Xuan sounds chipper, a genuine grin spreading across his face as he realises he’s got Li Ling. The man might hate rules, but he hates changing plans even more. “They have these sand glider vehicles I’m sure we can get a hold of.”

“And then we can, what, ride around the barren landscape?”

“Aaannnd, we can fight miramon.” Tang Xuan suggests, picking at his braid. He’s going to need a trim soon. “Hey it’s just a suggestion. You could also just wait a couple more weeks and then you’ll have me all to yourself.” Throwing his braid back over the backside of the couch, he rests his head on the cushion and prays that Li Ling will take the bait.

“Hn. You’re changing the subject. I want to see you now.” Oof, yes he is but he needs to convince Li Ling he isn’t.

“I really want to see you too.” Tang Xuan coughs, not expecting to say it so emotionally. But it’s true that he does. Him and Li Ling are almost never separate for more than a week at a time, and they especially don’t go hours between talking to each other. It’s something that leaves Tang Xuan feeling warm and soft inside, even after years of knowing Li Ling, and almost a year of dating him, how strongly they are still attracted to each other. It doesn’t feel overbearing, not like his childhood did- constantly being a unit with his younger brother. Everything they did was done together and any attempts at individualising himself never lasted long. Tang Yun could, and would, easily join whatever activity or hobby Tang Xuan would sign up for. It didn’t help that they were equally good at everything, despite having differing personalities.

Tang Xuan loves his brother, but he hated being overlooked for who he was. He never wanted to be a part of a pair again.

Until Li Ling came along and, gradually, all he wanted was to be matched with him. It felt different. They did many things together, but he was still Tang Xuan and Li Ling was still Li Ling. Sure, sometimes he was “Li Ling’s boyfriend” but Li Ling was also “Tang Xuan’s boyfriend” and it is exhilarating to him every time. Perhaps this is what those cheeky aunties meant when they would tell his younger self to “wait until he’s older” whenever he would declare he’d remain single his whole life. Being an item with Li Ling just carried differently than being “the Twins”. He is still himself even when he yearns to be plastered to Li Ling.

Damn, he loves this bastard.

“I want to see you so bad, Ling-Ling.” Tang Xuan continues, feeling a little embarrassed to hear it echo in the small room back to him. “And that’s what's getting me through this mission. We’re only a few weeks away from out 1st year anniversary, the places I want to go with you, the things I want to see with you, and do with you and do to you! I have been looking forward to it since you decided to stage a prison break for your former mentor.”

Li Ling has been quietly listening the whole time, and sighs softly between the break in Tang Xuan’s monologue. “Hou hou… You’re too damn cute.”

“Says the man who said he was worried about me after pretending he’s only been fighting miramon.” Tang Xuan teases.

“I was fighting miramon.” Li Ling says, and now he sounds like his usual self, even if his voice is still low.

“Why were you fighting miramon? You aren’t on miramon duty for the next month?” Raven might’ve been impressed by the corruption Li Ling and him revealed among the Tangton Correctional Centre, but they had to do press conferences and PR events for a week due to Li Ling’s outburst in front of the station going viral. Raven can be a petty boss.

“I’m still not on miramon duty.”

Tang Xuan waits for him to continue. Silence answers him instead and all Tang Xuan can do is sigh. “Please don’t get yourself in trouble before I get back. We’ve been planning this anniversary for months.”

“Don’t even, I should be saying that to you! You were supposed to be on vacation this whole month, what happened to that?” Li Ling spikes the accusation back.

“It’s not my fault! I swear I put in those vacation days, but when I checked I didn’t see them…” Tang Xuan still questions himself. He knows he pressed the submit button and he’s sure he received a message a day later that his time was approved, but when he pulled it up after splitting ways with Li Ling and Yun Chuan, he was shocked to see his schedule was filled again and none of the days he requested were blocked off. Even scarier, the message he received was gone. He had to go back and forth with HR for two days to clear up his schedule, again, and request the vacation but, by then, Raven had already tasked him with investigating the Crows on the cruise ship.

Tang Xuan hears tapping again. “Ling-Ling, what are you doing?”

“Making a note to talk to HR.”

“Why?”

“Because, when you come back, hou hou, I’m going to take you, fling you over my shoulder, and we’re just leaving. The note will be a warning not to interfere with us.”

“… Please don’t threaten anyone to give us a vacation.”

“I’m not. I’m promising them that they’ll regret screwing up your vacation with me.” He stops typing, sounding satisfied. Tang Xuan is now worried for a different reason, but a tapping on the door and Malik’s stern face peaking between the cracks, alerts him that he needs to return to the mission. Tang Xuan can only pray to the Sun that Li Ling will control himself and stay out of trouble.

“I have to go now, are we good?” Tang Xuan waves a hand at Malik to let him know he’s wrapping up his conversation. Malik nods in understanding and leaves him alone again.

“Yeah, we’re more than good, babydoll. Hmm, hey do me a favour before you go.” Li Ling sounds mischievous for some odd reason. Tang Xuan hums to show he’s listening. “Don’t tell anyone you have your phone back yet for the next two, three-ish, maybe six hours.”

“What? Six hours?? Why? If you were worried, the rest of our friends are so I don’t want to keep them in the dark.”

“Be-caauuusee,” Li Ling practically purrs, gleefully. “To make me feel better about you being MIA, Leora is taking me to a spice market nearby to try out Tangton candies,” Tang Xuan bites his lip to keep from gasping in pitied-shock. Tangton candies are lies in a wrapper. They aren’t sweet like candy, they’re just glazed balls of pure fire and agony. “And, after, Lewis is gonna treat me at my favourite grill joint.” Once again, Tang Xuan winces in sympathy. The food from that restaurant is delicious, but Li Ling always wants to sit right in front of hibachi grill and watch live as his favourite appetiser, skewered spiced-chili peppers, are grilled. Tang Xuan let him sit them there once and the smoke that came from those peppers hospitalised him as it clogged his nostrils and burned his eyes. As far as Tang Xuan knows, no one asides from him knows about the danger of letting Li Ling choose the seats. Tang Xuan sends a silent prayer out to Lewis, and hopes that his flaming hair will somehow render him immune to the effects of the spicey smoke. “And then after that, the boys and I are finally going to have an ultimate dodgeball competition!” Tang Xuan doesn’t even try to stop the grunt of disappointment from escaping, his hand audibly smacking against his forehead. Why do his friends become stupid the moment he leaves? They should know better not to encourage any sort of competitive sport with Li Ling, especially when there are balls concerned. Whatever damage they sustain, it’s on their heads.

Tang Xuan should warn his friends, but…

“It looks like I’m being sent out to look for more clues, so it might just be several hours before I post anything, anyway.” Tang Xuan has yet to see Leora lose her cool demeanour and it’s always fun to tease Lewis. “Send me pictures of Leora and Lewis enjoying the experience.”

“Deal, talk to you later, babydoll.” Tang Xuan returns his goodbye and ends the call. Refreshed, he gets off the couch and stretches. He has three days to wrap up this whole fiasco and he’s more motivated than ever to get it done.

#dislyte #tang xuan dislyte #li ling dislyte #lixuan #lotusmokey #monkeylotus #the hippo writes #well damn it's been a while since i've used that tag #i got over stimulated responding to those anonymous asks #so i wrote this to calm down #i apologise if the timeline is a bit off with the past few events #lord knows i remember nothing #and dislyte hasn't dropped the story event for playback for truth unveiled so I don't remember much of the details #if anyone corrects me i'll edit it for when it gets posted to ao3 #i will die on the hill that duplication is the cutest way to make nicknames #hence ling-ling and hou hou #hou being monkey in mandarin chinese #i like to think that when they're being soft and emotional with each other they'll use these cutesy petnames #but every other time they will call each other babe (tang xuan to li ling) and babydoll (li ling to tang xuan)#i will also die on the hill that li ling is autistic you cannot convince me otherwise #f in the chat for leora and lewis they will be missed

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