Wei Ying was worried about Lan Zhan.

There was nothing he could actually put his finger on and say, this is it, this is what's wrong. It was more a kind of feeling that was there but not exactly visible, like a canvas newly painted upon...you saw the picture, but could easily ignore the actual background it was painted on.

In the same way, Lan Zhan was Lan Zhan. He still came at five minutes past eleven every day without fail, they still travelled to and from work together, and they still ate lunch together.

This was the fourth day since that corporate party, and Wei Ying was still feeling that undercurrent. It was mostly present when Lan Zhan kissed him, that was the most troubling thing. The affection was still there, the love ever so vivid in those golden eyes, but there was a trace of...regret? Wei Ying wasn't quite sure if he had correctly identified the emotion, a flicker in those hard to read irises, but it was definitely there, and definitely not a welcome feeling at all. An intruder lurking to spoil their bliss, this new ingredient in their romance was an uninvited guest that wasn't leaving.

So tonight, when they met to go home, Wei Ying was lost in thought, and Lan Zhan noticed. Their usually passionate greeting kiss was perfunctory, something to be completed and gotten over with.

When Wei Ying moved to start walking to the underground station, Lan Zhan stopped him with a tug on his hand.

"What is Wei Ying thinking about?" He asked, a trace of worry in his golden eyes.

"Do you really want to know?" Wei Ying said, looking incredibly sad.

"Mn."

"Can we...shall we go and get a coffee or something? I think I want to be sitting down for this conversation." Wei Ying missed the slight widening of his eyes, having turned away already.

There was a cafe nearby, a hit with young instagramming influencers, because they had a wall covered in flowers. These were made out of silk, but the delicate blooms resembled the real thing so effectively that even Wei Ying had trouble distinguishing the difference at first. Even now, there was the steady click, click of cameras taking inventive photos by the flower wall.

Wei Ying thought it was a cruel irony that they had picked this place out of the many cafes to choose from in this busy London High Street, the one that had strong connotations to flowers.

Lan Zhan ordered two hot chocolates for them, loading Wei Ying’s one with extra marshmallows and sprinkled cocoa. He brought their drinks over to the table where Wei Ying was already sitting, his eyes unseeing, while he stared at a stain on the table.

Lan Zhan put his mug in front of him, and held his hand, tracing each knuckle with the soft pad of his thumb.

"Do you want to break up with me?" Wei Ying suddenly demanded, completely out of the blue.

Lan Zhan was so shocked, he lost his words, opting to shake his head vehemently.

Tears of relief gathered in the corners of his eyes, as he wiped them in a futile attempt to stem the flow.

"Why does Wei Ying think....that?" Lan Zhan managed a good few minutes later. He took a sip of the hot chocolate and ended up burning his tongue.

"Well...it’s just...you've been distancing yourself from me...and I don't understand why..." Wei Ying rubbed his eyes with the heels of his eyes. "So what's going on?"

"Cannot say...cannot say here." Lan Zhan said, finally. He was trying to find the correct words to say, just so there would be no misunderstanding between them.

For the first time that day, Wei Ying looked hopeful.

"So there is something wrong, but...you don't want to tell me just yet? Or you want to tell me elsewhere?" He asked softly.

Lan Zhan stared at him for so long, Wei Ying was scared he had forgotten the question already. He opened his mouth to speak, but Lan Zhan beat him to it.

"Can Wei Ying come to dinner?" He asked, hesitantly.

Again, that foreign feeling flickered in his eyes before he hid it, and now there was nothing but love.

Wei Ying nodded slowly.

"At our home. Must meet Uncle." Lan Zhan said, softly.

"You want me to meet your Uncle?" Wei Ying clarified, the small beginnings of a smile growing upon his face. "You know, I sort of already met him...at the party."

"Dinner. Better." Lan Zhan insisted heavily. "No strangers."

"Um...okay? When do you want to do this?" He watched Lan Zhan carefully, looking for signs as to what was on his mind, but Lan Zhan was being particularly stoic today.

"Tomorrow night?" These two words came so easily to his lips, Wei Ying knew he had been thinking about it for some time.

"And you really don't want to tell me what's bothering you before then? He leaned in, invading the personal space of his boyfriend, watching those beautiful golden eyes dilate, desire clear as day reflected in those orbs.

"Mn." Lan Zhan was having trouble thinking, because...Wei Ying...was coming closer and closer, licking those delicious lips, and leaning until his cheek rested against his, and he was whispering in that sultry voice of his...

"Are you absolutely sure?" Enunciating every syllable, Wei Ying dragged out every word, relishing the shiver his action caused.

"Mn." Lan Zhan caught himself at the last minute.

"Alright. Tomorrow it is, then." Wei Ying sat back, breaking his spell, knowing full well what he had just done.

Lan Zhan sipped his now lukewarm chocolate, just glad that the conversation had gone his way, and he could now concentrate on the dinner itself.

********

The next day started with rain.

Ordinarily, this would not have fazed Wei Ying in the slightest; he like the rain, the petrichor in the air adding to the electricity waiting to burst free. Nature in all her glory was a sight to behold, and Wei Ying was a fan.

But this morning, this particular morning, he took one look at the darkening skies and groaned.

"What's wrong with you?" Jiang Cheng asked him, testily frowning.

"I didn't want it to rain today." Wei Ying replied, feeling down about it.

On a day when he needed the universe to show him a bit of love, it was sadly lacking. He wasn't normally a superstitious person, preferring to make his own way in the world...but he would have appreciated a little bit of help today.

At the train station, Lan Zhan must have been running late, because neither he nor his brother were there, and Wei Ying was starting to feel even worse. Perhaps it was a combination of the past few days' stress, and Lan Zhan's odd behaviour coupled with his inherent desire to just cuddle up in a warm blanket and shut out the rest of the world.

Normally that blanket would have included a certain Lan, but Wei Ying couldn’t shake the feeling that something was still very wrong. He was filled with nervous anticipation, the kind you got if you stuck a mentos in a coke bottle, seconds before the eruption. A building feeling of extra energy that just would not dissipate. He ran and picked up a few bars of chocolate just before they jumped onto the train that would take them to work.

All throughout, Wei Ying kept looking back, hoping to see a silver flash, or two, someone running towards their train, but the doors closed with those annoying beeps and they were on their way.

He was wearing a black and red hoodie today, and when they left the cover of the station, the heavens opened, making him pull the hood over his head as they ran to the alcove of their shop.

On a day when he needed to be kept busy, the rain was going to keep customers away, and there was only so much tidying he could do....

Lan Zhan sent him a text saying he was sorry for missing him in the morning. Wei Ying sent him back a gif with two fuzzy rabbits kissing each other.

There was no reply.

Wei Ying kept checking his phone, hoping for another text, or even an emoji...but Lan Zhan hadn't figured those out yet, or if he had, he thought they were too frivolous to use.

Whatever...

Two chocolate bars in, Wei Ying was feeling much better. Surely, he was overthinking this, right? The last few months were like riding on a cloud of soft furry feelings, the joys of first love...just that Wei Ying was sure he would never feel about anyone else, the way he felt about Lan Zhan. And if Lan Zhan needed space right now, well...painful though it was, Wei Ying could do that at least.

At lunchtime, they received a delivery. Wei Ying had looked up in surprise when their silver bell had tinkled above the door, fully expecting Lan Zhan to be the one standing there...but it was the familiar green and white uniform of the local noodle place. The delivery guy started pulling out steaming hot takeaway bowls with clear labels as to what was for whom, before smiling and wishing them a great afternoon, and the man disappeared.

There was a message on the box marked 'Wei Ying' that said, "can't make lunch, please accept this small offering", and when Wei Ying checked the accompanying bag, there was a bottle of chilli sauce, Wei Ying’s favourite brand.

Wen Ning patted his back in sympathy, knowing he would have much preferred an actual boyfriend, while Jiang Cheng scowled and picked up the box with his name on it. However, whatever was inside had him smiling like a love sick fool as he grabbed a pair of chopsticks and began to eat.

Why was Lan Zhan avoiding him?

Wei Ying tried to stem the tide of negative thoughts, but all his insecurities came rushing at him like a herd of wild animals, knocking out the fragile wall of serenity he had been trying to cultivate.

Had he made a mistake? Was this really a break up? And maybe Lan Zhan was going to let him down gently...but then why do it in front of the old man? It was a puzzle that would not be solved like this...

When he finished his lunch, he started cleaning up their rubbish, and threw on his jacket to go throw it out.

Jiang Cheng raised a brow at him.

"I need more chocolate." Wei Ying replied by way of explanation.

Fresh air, too...

The rest of the evening passed by faster with the sun breaking through the clouds, the footfall was better and they had a steady stream of customers until it was time to go home.

Just as they were locking up, a limousine pulled up behind them. They were in the heart of the city, so that was a surprise anyway, as the congestion zone fine applied, but then the driver got out just as they were about to head to the train station.

"Please come and sit. I am to escort you to the Lan Family estate. I believe you have an appointment for dinner tonight?"

He even bowed.

"Know anything about this?" Jiang Cheng gave Wei Ying a hard stare.

Wei Ying was too busy staring at the message just popping up on his screen, his phone still buzzing.

"Yeah...Lan Zhan says I should bring you too."

They looked at each other and then the ostentatious car in front of them. The driver was holding the door open and staring pointedly at his watch.

Wei Ying was pretty sure he wasn't supposed to do that.

"Oh, well...come on then. Wen Ning, we'll see you tomorrow." Wei Ying got in first, appreciating the scent of leather mixed in with the dozen red roses they had packed earlier in the day that had been picked up by a random stranger.

Wei Ying recognised his signature bow, a double knot with the loose ends at uneven lengths tied around the vase.

The ride was twenty minutes of awkward silence. Looking out was no fun because of the tinted windows, and Wei Ying was left regretting his wardrobe choices of the morning, wishing he was over his rebellious stage. He hadn't even worn a new hoodie, this one was from his college days band, the Yilling Laozus, a rock and roll goth type group.

And his jeans...? Even from his laid back family upbringing, jeans were a definite no to wear at a dinner party, unless you had something against your host.

Already, tonight was looking like a disaster and it hadn't even begun yet.

The driver pulled up outside huge black gates made of wrought iron, twisted to look like an orchid floating on a cloud. He punched in some numbers and the gates opened by themselves.

Wei Ying’s nerves shot through the roof, and fished out a half bar of chocolate. Snapping the last piece in half, he offered the other part to his brother.

"In case dinner is shit." He whispered, earning himself a grin.

The truth was, when he had heard the word, "estate", Wei Ying had not allowed himself to dwell on the mental images that it produced, because otherwise he would have lost his bottle and walked past their ride in good conscience, but now, after the driver pulled up outside the massive fountain in the middle of their drive, he was having second thoughts again. He stared at his jeans mournfully once more and got out of the car.