Monday 31 days for the Full Moon Festival

Wei Ying couldn't believe what he was seeing.

"Lan Zhan! You've been holding out on me!!" He exclaimed loudly, nudging the poor embarrassed man.

Already the treacherous ears were red and hot.

Lan Zhan kept his face calm with great difficulty, and allowed only a slight twitch in his mouth. He too, looked down at his bunny slippers, and then at Wei Ying's delighted face as he grinned back at him.

"They match!" Wei Ying continued to make a big fuss about his attire.

But Lan Zhan always wore bunny pyjamas and bunny slippers, and it had been a long time since he had given any thought to it. Both were a pale blue flannel with white cotton tail bunnies. And if Wei Ying liked them so much...Lan Zhan had an idea on what to do about that...

"We have a busy day today." Lan Zhan said, checking his watch. "I must ask Mo XuanYu what he thinks...about adoption." Lan Zhan looked nervous about that.

Wei Ying leaned up and kissed his cheek.

"Sweetheart...you don't have to worry on that front. I saw the way he was looking at you...he already sees you as a role model."

Lan Zhan's eyes lit up eagerly, wanting to believe it.

"Will Wei Ying join me when we speak? I...would be glad of the company." Lan Zhan wasn't used to asking for things, especially what he wanted. Usually his brother already knew and would make the appropriate suggestions to his uncle, who preferred a nudge in the right direction.

"Of course I will! Besides, isn't that what boyfriends do? They support each other, right?" Wei Ying replied, enthusiastically.

To hear those words from Wei Ying's mouth...when all this time he had been an advocate of taking things slowly...it made Lan Zhan grab him carefully and kiss him again and again.

Wei Ying was too sweet and too delicious to only have one taste, and Lan Zhan was pretty sure he was addicted to him. That special floral scent drove him wild with an anxious need, a hunger that just couldn't be satisfied.

Wei Ying kissed him back because to him, Lan Zhan was just as irresistible, just as tempting and once he started to, he couldn't make himself stop. His left arm stayed straight by his side, but his right hand clutched Lan Zhan's soft pyjama top and held on for dear life as he was ravished again and again.

"Do you mean that?" Lan Zhan demanded, against his lips.

Wei Ying nodded, his silver starlight eyes bright with need.

"If that's...if that's okay with you?" He sounded unsure now.

Lan Zhan wondered if he regretted it, his declaration of love.

"It is more than alright...I want it. It is all I want." Lan Zhan admitted.

"Then that's alright." Wei Ying kissed his adorable nose. Then he giggled. "You know...we've kind of done everything backwards. We've done each other's I love yous, we just became boyfriends and we've already slept together! How mad is that?" He started laughing for real.

"We have not slept together." Lan Zhan growled next to his ear.

Now that Wei Ying had said it, it was all Lan Zhan could picture: Wei Ying beautiful and bright, shining like a star in his bed, with a halo of ebony hair and making all kinds of sounds as Lan Zhan showed him how much he appreciated him.

"When we do...Wei Ying will know the difference." Lan Zhan lifted up the sleeve of Wei Ying's borrowed white T-shirt.

"What...what are you doing...Lan Zhan?" Wei Ying could only watch as Lan Zhan kissed his bandage over the gunshot wound. He held his breath in anticipation, watching his mouth.

The kiss was delicate and the barest of touches...and yet it made Wei Ying want to swoon. He felt it right the way down to his toes, making them curl.

"I am applying treatment. Wei Ying has a boo-boo." Lan Zhan told him, his golden eyes on fire.

Wei Ying tapped his lips with longing.

"These hurt! Honestly!" He declared, ignoring Lan Zhan's snort. "Why don't you apply treatment where I really need it?" He whined.

"Because, if I start...we will not be leaving this room." Lan Zhan licked his earlobe, before taking it into his mouth. He bit down lightly, enjoying the way Wei Ying moaned. But the injured man in the throes of passion, lifted his left arm too and gasped out in pain, wincing.

Tears sprang to his eyes, and just as fast, Lan Zhan had let him go, carrying him to the bed. He kneeled at his feet, hands fluttering uselessly by his injured arm.

"I'm so sorry!" He kept saying, wishing he could go back in time, if only for a few seconds.

"I'm okay...I'm okay..." Wei Ying blinked back the wetness in his eyes. "I just have to remember not to raise my arm like that. You could kiss it better again...because that was so hot!"

"Shameless!" Lan Zhan stood up, once he saw Wei Ying was alright.

He tied up Wei Ying's hair into a neat bun using the scrunchie on the bedside table so his hair wouldn't get wet.

"Where are you going?" Wei Ying stood up too, worried.

"I will shower in my bathroom. Wei Ying can use this one." Lan Zhan clarified, looking scared at the sudden ideas popping into Wei Ying's head, as his grin became even more cheekier. "It will be faster."

"What if I don't want to be faster? We could save water and shower together! Come back, Lan Zhan, what if I need your help?" Wei Ying was shouting that last bit as Lan Zhan ran away.

*********

When Lan Zhan had freshened up and changed into business clothes, a light grey suit sharply cut with a pale blue tie and pocket square over a cream silk shirt, he knocked on Wei Ying's door, wondering if the soft, relaxing clothes he had left out for him were sufficient.

The doctor had told him that the stronger painkillers would make Wei Ying drowsy and sleep was the best cure to heal his arm, so Lan Zhan thought he might not mind wearing Lan Zhan's tracksuit bottoms and a long-sleeved white Jersey. He had no dark coloured clothes...none that Wei Ying might prefer, a fact he now lamented.

He was thinking about taking Wei Ying shopping later...if he was up for it...otherwise they could just go online. It depended on how long today's meetings would take. He hadn't been lying when he had said it was going to be a busy day.

Wei Ying opened his door, smiling shyly at first with a red scrunchie in his hand, but as soon as he saw Lan Zhan, his jaw dropped as he drank in his appearance.

"Omg..." He finally said, pulling him into the room by his tie. "Right...it's official! I can't let you go outside this room if you're looking like that!" Was all the warning Lan Zhan got before the softest mouth was kissing and kissing him senseless, his lovely sensual tongue exploring his mouth like a starving man. Wei Ying was melting against Lan Zhan and it was only by luck that Lan Zhan was holding him up.

Not that he was complaining...his mind had been wiped cleaned of every thought and there was just a blissful silence, letting him enjoy this feeling. But they needed to breathe and when they parted, Lan Zhan got a good look at what Wei Ying was wearing.

The tracksuit bottoms were just the right length, or so he thought until Wei Ying lifted the shirt hem to show him that he had rolled the waist. But the top fit too well, molding to his lean muscles and Lan Zhan couldn't help holding his torso, secretly delighting in his thin waist.

"Lan Zhan...I cannot allow you to go to work looking like .... like...this!" Wei Ying was absolutely serious.

"And what does Wei Ying suggest instead?" Lan Zhan asked, trying not to smile.

"A brown paper bag. I'll even cut out holes for your eyes. No one will know it's you. And you'll be safe!" He declared.

Lan Zhan really wanted to laugh.

"What if I promise not to look at anyone?" Lan Zhan was fairly certain this would work, since he knew he could only feel this way about Wei Ying.

"You're not the problem!" Wei Ying clucked his tongue in annoyance. "I trust you implicitly, it's the cougars and gold diggers I don't trust. I'd rather no one else got to see my boyfriend when he looks this amazing!"

"We'll see." Lan Zhan told him, indulgently. "It's time for breakfast now otherwise we'll be late."

"Okay...but can you please do my hair?" Wei Ying smiled, shy again.

Lan Zhan took the scrunchie from his fingers and came closer to plant a warm kiss on his forehead. Wei Ying was breathtakingly beautiful every second of a day normally...but when he was shy...he was even more adorable.

"I love Wei Ying." Lan Zhan told him, leading him to the bed.

He made Wei Ying sit down sideways so he could tie up that gorgeous hair. It was silky soft and so dark, it almost looked blue. Thick and heavy, it stayed in a lovely ponytail, because Lan Zhan thought that would be the easiest for Wei Ying to undo should he want to lie down.

"Painkillers?" He asked as he finished up.

Wei Ying scrunched up his nose, concentrating on his arm.

"It only hurts when I move it...so not yet. Maybe later."

As they walked to Mo XuanYu's room, Wei Ying asked, "What's going on today?"

"First we can talk to Mo XuanYu...and then I have two meetings maybe together with my finance manager and someone else...and the police would like to interview you today too." Lan Zhan explained. "Also...doctor will becoming to change your dressing."

His fingers found Wei Ying's right hand and he linked their fingers together, feeling really proud of their progress. In a single night, they had confessed their true feelings and become boyfriends...and it was the sweetest feeling.

Wei Ying brought their joined hands up to his lips and kissed them, feeling ever so happy now. He had tried his hardest to stay away from Lan Zhan but they were like two magnets clinging together. He couldn't even think of them parting now, job or no job.

That was another worry. JingYi had told them they couldn't return to the house for at least a week until the police finished their investigation. That meant seven days of sitting on his backside and not actually doing anything useful, as regards the house. Plus if what XiChen had said was true about his home and his car, then Wei Ying would have to fill out an insurance claim and that was going to be another legal battle. Wei Ying was not looking forward to that.

Mo XuanYu opened the door, wearing some of Lan Zhan's clothes too, and they were way too big on his small frame. Lan Zhan had wondered if the boy would want to nap during the day, and then he thought it did not matter either way; as long as the boy was comfortable, that's all that mattered.

Wei Ying held his shoulder with his one good hand, and looked him over.

"Maybe you should come with us when we go shopping." He mused, his mouth already widening into a beautiful smile.

"Time for breakfast." Lan Zhan said, his golden eyes watching the curly-haired teenager. "But after...after breakfast...if you have some time..." Lan Zhan wasn't quite sure how to get his message across without sounding so awkward. "Maybe we can talk?"

Mo XuanYu paled immediately and wriggled out of Wei Ying's grasp, stepping back. His face shuttered, and he lost his smile.

Wei Ying couldn't stand that, nor the misunderstanding that the boy believed, because it was as clear as day that he thought they were going to return him to his father. Wei Ying couldn't even blame him for jumping to that conclusion because Lan Zhan was way too nervous to sound friendly.

"We want to adopt you!" He blurted out, throwing Lan Zhan an apologetic look over his shoulder.

"W-what...?" The look of terror did not go away and if anything, Mo XuanYu looked worse.

Lan Zhan was way too happy because Wei Ying had said "we" and that was so significant, plus he had taken the hard part out of telling Mo XuanYu in the first place. But the boy was still panicking.

Wei Ying drew Mo XuanYu towards his bed which he had already made up.

Wei Ying glanced at it before sitting next to the boy, making sure his good arm went around his trembling shoulders.

"I'm sorry to spring it on you like that...but you looked like you were thinking the opposite of what we were going to do. We just want you to be safe." Wei Ying continued speaking to him in a low voice.

Lan Zhan sat on the boy's other side and took his little hand in his big one, holding it tight.

When Wei Ying was quiet, Lan Zhan spoke.

"We are not forcing you. Please understand." He waited for Mo XuanYu to nod, that he did. "But what do you think about it?"

"Scared." The boy whispered.

"Why?" Wei Ying asked him, softly.

"Because...b-because you'll have to...to talk to...him." Mo XuanYu explained. He couldn't stop himself from shaking.

Just the thought of going back to his old home, having to face his father...who must be livid by now...it was making his stomach hurt.

"No." Lan Zhan told him, his tone colder than he would have liked. But he couldn't help it; he already hated Mo XuanYu's father.

"No?" Wei Ying asked him. "Then how?"

"We have lawyers. But..." Lan Zhan wondered how to say this next part. "We will need proof. I will talk to Huaisang...but the police and the lawyers will want pictures. Then you never have to go back." He promised, looking into trusting green eyes.

"Alright...I can do that." Mo XuanYu replied, nodding to himself. He knew exactly what Lan Zhan was talking about because the fear that someone else would try and send him back home was always with him.

The problem was...he felt ashamed. He knew how his father treated him wasn't his fault, but this ridiculous and unreasonable thinking was there like a tapeworm, gnawing on his insides. But he had to make a stand...break the cycle.

So, before anyone could stop him, he shrugged off his T-shirt. He looked down, forcing his hands not to shake...but he could not look at them, not yet because he knew what they were seeing.

Wei Ying gasped.

He hadn't meant to...not when Mo XuanYu was being so brave about everything...but the criss-cross marks across his body front and back...obviously from a leather belt...it was too much. Some of the hits had bled...and Wei Ying quickly wiped his face so Mo XuanYu wouldn't be embarrassed. His ribs showed and his whole torso was black and blue with old and recent bruises, scabs forming over the worst cuts.

But his arms...the inside of his soft skin was marked with burnt flesh.

"Is that...is that cigarette burns???" Wei Ying could not mask his horror.

Lan Zhan felt grim.

He started taking pictures, methodically and efficiently, cataloging every injury from the worst ones to the ones nearly healed. And as he did so, he thought about hurting that disgusting excuse for a human being in exactly the same way he had doled it out...see how he liked it.

"I'm coming right back." Wei Ying had said, giving Lan Zhan a questioning look.

"Bathroom, lowest shelf in the cabinet." Lan Zhan told him, knowing exactly what Wei Ying was asking for.

Wei Ying rushed into the bathroom and began pushing past bottles of shower cream and the like, looking for the medic kit. There was no way he was leaving those injuries untreated.

He returned with the little red box in his hands, impatiently waiting for Lan Zhan to finish taking pictures.

All the while, he was thinking how horrible it was that someone so young had to suffer so much pain.

When Lan Zhan nodded at him, Wei Ying stepped forward. He put a hand on Mo XuanYu's arm to stop him from getting dressed again, before he could treat his wounds.

"It might sting." He warned, just thankful that his voice had come out so calm, instead of how he was really feeling. It was a terrible mix of wanting to hurt Mo XuanYu's father, needing to have some sort of vengeance because how could he let something like this go? And wanting to cry because Mo XuanYu was such a sweet kid...and to know that something like this had happened to him...it was like kicking a bunny to Wei Ying.

He simply couldn't fathom how someone could be so cruel as to hurt a child so viciously.

And it was worse because Mo XuanYu had smiled finally, only to reassure him by saying, "it's okay...I've been hurt more than this before." It was said matter-of-factly as if they were having a casual conversation.

He didn't even flinch when Wei Ying applied the salve that would stop any infection. And when it was all over, he quietly put his T-shirt back on like nothing had happened.

Wei Ying hugged him.

Silently, the three of them made their way downstairs to the dining room where XiChen was already seated. He smiled when he saw them enter together, but the rules and their adherence to them prevented him from commenting.

They sat down with Mo XuanYu between the adults.

He still couldn't process the fact that they wanted to adopt him. It seemed like an impossible dream, like he was really sleeping and any minute now he was going to wake up and none of it would be true.

They piled his plate high and encouraged him to eat more, and whenever he caught their beautiful eyes, they both smiled at him in their own ways. The silver-eyed man smiled with his whole body, with his eyes crinkling at the edges, while the sterner one, the quieter one smiled with only his golden eyes.

Mo XuanYu liked that about them. They were so different in the best ways, but they fit together like peas in a pod, complimenting each other. It was heartwarming and sweet.

Wei Ying had been dying to see A-Yuan as soon as possible. All he wanted was for him to take his baby into his arms and reassure himself that there was good in the world. A-Yuan was proof of unconditional love and Wei Ying needed something to take away the gruesome parts of his morning.

They could be a proper family and show Mo XuanYu another kind of life, one full of joy, and laughter and love.

Lan Zhan finished before the other two, and as his uncle wasn't present at the table, he surmised that they had already finished and gotten up. So he quickly shot off a few texts on his phone to set things in motion.

After all, today was turning into a day of surprises, most of them welcome.

********

They knocked on the door of the library and immediately, they heard chuckling laughter behind the door and Shifu hushing a certain small body. Wei Ying rushed in to find A-Yuan holding up a picture, and a glowing Shifu who looked too proudly at his protégé to be an innocent bystander.

"Baba! Pwetty Gege and A-Yu...thith is usth. It's our family!" A-Yuan, an uncontainable smile on his face, was saying.

A-Yuan had painted blob men/figures. There was XiChen, Shifu, Baba, Pwetty Gege, himself and Mo XuanYu plus tiny white blobs which were obviously bunnies.

"My sweet little Radish! You're such a good artist!" Wei Ying had swung him up into his arms, kissing him all over his pudgy face. "Good morning, my sweet boy."

"Baba..." His chocolate eyes shone with happiness. "I wuv you, and Pwetty Gege and A-Yu and Thifu and other Gege..." He chortled, kissing Wei Ying's cheek because that was a gift. Then he made grabby hands at Lan Zhan and did the same.

Mo XuanYu was next, and he was so surprised, but who could say no to the cutest, most adorable little Radish?

There was a knock on the door and a maid entered, looking quite serious.

"The police are here and wish to speak with you." She was looking at both Lan Zhan and Wei Ying.

"Show them to the study. We will be there shortly." Uncle Qiren told her, stroking his whiskers.

There was a loud meow from under the table where they were seated.

"Will you be alright?" Uncle Qiren stood up. He was looking at both Mo XuanYu and Wei Ying.

Wei Ying grabbed Lan Zhan's hand tightly.

He nodded, not able to speak just yet.

He felt like he was sitting on a roller coaster ride, climbing that slow long ascent towards the top of a terrifying peak, only to fall faster and harder, and it was the anticipation that was the worst.

"Wei Ying." Lan Zhan said his name.

Wei Ying looked up to see golden eyes full of concern.

"I can send them away. Wei Ying need not talk to them if he is not ready." His calm, deep voice managed to chase away some of the irrational fear.

Wei Ying forced himself to smile but it did not reach his beautiful eyes, which were filled with doubt.

"I suppose...we have to get it over with...right? If we don't do it now...we'll only be delaying it." He looked at Mo XuanYu. "They'll probably want to talk to you too."

Mo XuanYu looked bravely back at him.

"I can do it if you can." He said, clearly.

The maid left.

"We have the video, too." Lan Zhan added.

"Will we need Xiao XingChen?" Uncle Qiren asked.

"It wouldn't hurt to have him...maybe Song Lan too." Lan Zhan suggested.

"Who's Xiao XingChen?" Wei Ying whispered. "And Song Lan?"

"Our Lawyers." Lan Zhan told him.

"But Lan Zhan...I may not be able to afford them." Wei Ying replied, looking down. He had never minded not having much money...but now that he needed it...he understood how important it was...or could be.

"Wei Ying must not worry about such things." Lan Zhan told him, squeezing his hand.

"They work exclusively for us." Uncle Qiren replied. "On retainer. There will be no extra cost."

"Really?" Wei Ying asked, hardly able to believe it.

Maybe that's what wealthy people did...he had no idea.

Lan Zhan nodded, his lips turning up slightly.

"Would you like me to be there?" Uncle Qiren asked them.

Wei Ying nodded enthusiastically.

"A-Yuan?" Uncle Qiren made sure he had the little boy's complete attention.

"Thifu?" A-Yuan wriggled and Mo XuanYu put him down gently.

He waddled towards Uncle Qiren.

Uncle Qiren sat him in his lap, waiting until A-Yuan looked up at him.

"We are going to go and talk to some important people. Only big boys can go...because big boys know they have to be quiet unless someone asks them a question. Do you understand?" He said it patiently, waiting fir the understanding to happen in A-Yuan's big round eyes.

"A-Yuan big boy?" He asked, looking at Uncle Qiren hopefully.

Uncle Qiren nodded, smiling at him.

He was rewarded with the brightest, joyful smile on the little boy.

"If you want to say anything, you can whisper in my ear, alright?" Uncle Qiren told him. "A-Yuan can do some colouring in while the other people are talking...is that okay?"

When A-Yuan nodded happily, they both collected a selection of colouring pencils and a colouring books.

"Are we ready?" Uncle Qiren asked them.

Lan Zhan waited for Wei Ying to say something. Those silver eyes looked back at him full of trust, asking a question.

"Mn. I am here." Lan Zhan answered.

It was the right thing to say...and what Wei Ying needed to hear, because he gave a tentative smile.

"Let's get it over with then." Wei Ying replied with steely determination.

**********

A/N

Happy Monday everyone.

There must be something good about today, and for me, I got to buy the most beautiful red roses for my pals. Life is about finding the little things that make you happy.

Have a wonderful day, lovely people and share some chocolate...

Charlie.