Wei Ying finally sits up in his bed, abandoning all hopes of being able to sleep successfully. He feels frustrated and angry and when he looks at his phone, it is two in the morning, and the device is strangely empty of any kind of messages from the one person he's mad at.

He knows he's not being reasonable, but then, ever since he met Lan Zhan, 'reasonable' has gone out the window.

However, there's no excuse for Lan Zhan not contacting him after that morning's debacle. Why did Lan Zhan propose to Luo QingYang? Does he really want to marry her? And if so, why has he been coming on so strong these past few months? And while Wei Ying has done his best not to be affected by him, he's ashamed to say that he hasn't actively discouraged the flirting, either. In fact, he has flirted back just to see Lan Zhan's cute ears go pink.

He groans, and leaves his bed, hoping that a drink of water and a visit to the bathroom will alleviate any unconscious discomfort and allow him to sleep for a few hours. He's been tossing and turning, and his eyes hurt.

He's just about to return to his room when he hears the clatter of keys falling into their pot pourri bowl in the hallway - it was an ugly gift from a well-meaning friend but no one in this house has time for dried flowers and infusion oils, so the bowl (eyesore) was commandeered for the sole purpose of magnetically drawing one's eyes just before they left the premises, thus ensuring that nobody was locked out - and so Wei Ying knows that Wen Qing is home.

He decides on a whim to hide behind a wall downstairs and scare her - if this means he'll get beaten, it'll still be worth it - and it works. She's about to scream when his quick reflexes kick in and he clamps a hand over her mouth as she glares back at him, and then aims a well deserved kick at his shins, but they're both laughing so = worth it.

"Why are you awake?" She grouses, pulling out a cereal box and a bowl blindly from the cabinets without looking.

Wei Ying hands a spoon over and then gets one for himself, back kicking the door of the fridge closed after he's collected the milk, and they sit down next to each other at the kitchen table. The first bowl of shared cereal is over him telling her about that morning and running into Lan Zhan and MianMian.

"You're an idiot," she tells him, lightly hitting his forehead with her empty spoon.

"Ow," he says mildly, raising a brow.

"You told me he's gay."

"Yeah, but-"

"So why do you think Luo QingYang pretended to imply he was the one who proposed? Think about it."

For the next few minutes, they munch on golden nuggets and Wei Ying contemplates the possible alternatives.

"How are you so sure she's pretending? He might be forced into a marriage he doesn't want all because he's the second heir to a multimillion business in China, and they need him to look good for their image, or, or, what if she's pregnant and the person responsible has done a runner and my Lan Zhan is her Knight-in-Shining-Armour, ready to whisk her away into the sunset on his brave steed?"

Wen Qing stares incredulously at him for a full minute before hitting his head harder than the first time, with her spoon.

"I can see this is going to take longer than I thought," she mutters under her breath, pouring out more cereal.

Wei Ying adds the milk and they resume eating.

"Now, this may come as a hard surprise, but life isn't like a soap opera. Everything you just said would probably make some bad telly producer really happy, but I can assure you as a woman, Lan WangJi's friend is exactly that to him, and nothing more. It wouldn't surprise me if her fiance actually showed up sooner or later." Wen Qing nods to herself.

"But you don't know her-"

"I don't need to," Wen Qing interrupts him, waving her weapon in front of his eyes, and he whimpers, satisfying her bloodthirsty soul. "I know Lan WangJi, and that is enough. The man would not lie about something like this, not even for a prank, so if I was you, I'd go in guns blazing. Tell this Luo QingYang that you're onto her, and that you're not falling for it. That'll earn you kudos of respect, no hard feelings."

Wei Ying whines and rests his head on his arms, not looking at her.

"But there ARE feelings." He mumbles into his self-made cocoon.

"Which everyone can see from outer space."

"But Qing-Jie, we can't do anything about them. Even if, and that's a massive IF, Lan Zhan has the same feelings for me, it won't work. There's this countdown going on in my head like a ticking bomb, that there's only eighty-seven days left of him being in this country."

"You need to talk to him."

"I can't. He's going through enough as it is, what with everything he's dealing with regarding his mother. Did you know, she's left him recorded messages on her laptop? And we found a ton of pictures, not only of Madam Lan's happy customers but there's whole files of pictures of her with Lan Zhan and XiChen-Ge. He's learning how to heal himself, and it's taking time."

"Wei WuXian! What about you?"

"Huh?" This is the first time Wen Qing has taken that tone with him.

"You keep putting yourself on the back burner, and I gotta say something. It is becoming painful, watching you think about everyone but yourself, and it's time you stood up and did something for you. Why is it so hard for you to accept that you can be loved? Why is it easier for you to believe that Lan WangJi won't stay here for you? Why do you believe that you aren't enough?" Her warm brown eyes are burning with a fiery conviction of her own words.

Wei Ying shrinks into his seat, unable to look away from her.

"Lan WangJi might be going through a lot, but that's by the by. If he's shown an interest in you, then he should man up and do something about it. Otherwise, you should walk away, because all this not knowing which way to swing isn't good for either of you. And even if he's not willing to stay in the UK, then ask yourself, are you prepared to move to China?" She pushes back from the table, grabbing both spoons and her bowl, and taking them to wash in the sink.

She leaves them to dry on the rack and puts the milk and cereal away, stomping around the kitchen until she comes to stand next to him.

"Just think about what I said, Didi," she says in a gentle tone and with that, she walks away.

Wei Ying slumps in his seat, letting her tirade wash over him.

He has been silly, hasn't he?

Wen Qing is absolutely right. So overcome with jealousy that Wei Ying had forgotten everything Lan Zhan had told him before. It's not really his fault because he and Lan Zhan have been dancing around each other all this time, but they have not really talked. There is no definition, no label he can put on their relationship, because the whole thing is one big mess of liking each other and needing each other, but they're being held back by the situation they're both in. Circumstances are preventing them from moving forward, and in this too, Wen Qing is absolutely correct that Wei Ying needs to do something about this impasse.

They are both suffering and it needs to stop.

The kitchen clock, in the shape of a teacup, reads three o'clock in the morning, and despite his bravado, there's nothing Wei Ying can do about Lan Zhan right now. Lan Zhan is most likely asleep, and so won't even see any messages until tomorrow morning (because dark = night time even though it's technically not), and Wei Ying suddenly feels exhausted.

Maybe he will catch a couple of winks and tackle tomorrow's problems then.

Sounds like a plan.

***********

Wei Ying sleeps through two alarms and it's only a super wet slobbery kiss on his cheek that wakes him up.

"Bye, Xian-Gege!" A-Yuan yells with his bunny backpack on, and wrapped up in a pale blue scarf and his red jacket. He waves at Wei Ying before stomping past Wen Ning, who pokes his head around the door apologetically.

"Sorry, he made a fuss and snuck past!" He looks at his watch. "Hey...um, shouldn't you be at work by now?"

Wei Ying wipes his cheek and grabs his phone, and groans.

It's five minutes to ten.

Lan Zhan is just going to have to put up with his smelly self, he thinks before changing his mind and simultaneously brushing his teeth and washing his hair under the shower. Someone should invent a machine for that...

***********

At 10.15 am, Wei Ying runs as fast as his little heart can carry him, all the way to the shop.

But the shutters are down and that's strange.

Wei Ying considers jumping up and climbing to the bathroom window, but he can't bear Lan Zhan's sad face at the thought, so he runs back home, grabs his keys and lets himself into the entrance of Lan Zhan's apartment. There's no noise and he wonders if Lan Zhan is okay, if he hasn't had another episode or something.

He puts the keys in the lock and something stops him from entering straight away - that self preservation instinct kicks in at the exact moment a frying pan comes at him, aiming for his head and Wei Ying shrieks, dodging out of the way and into Lan Zhan's home.

"What the fuck, Lan Zhan??"

But it's not Lan Zhan standing in front of him in an orange jumpsuit with a neon green belt and a red frying pan raised in the air above her head.

It's Luo QingYang, chest heaving and hair in disarray as she stares right back at him. A string of Chinese curses leave her mouth before the frying pan is lowered.

"Oh my God, my eyes!" Wei Ying exclaims, blinking fast. "Are you colourblind? Please, I'm asking for the sake of all humanity."

"Fuck off. Why are you here?" She says calmly, marching towards the kitchen, but Wei Ying is seriously concerned that it's not for putting her weapon back but in fact, exchanging it for something more lethal.

"Lan Zhan usually opens by ten. Where is he?" Wei Ying looks around in vain, but there's no sign of him.

"Oh, yeah, he said something about that before leaving for Glasgow." Luo QingYang stands in the threshold of the kitchen and the living room, sipping from a mug and watching him over it.

"You know, they say demons reside there," Wei Ying says, motioning to her feet.

"So what? I'm not scared." She continues drinking defiantly.

"Makes sense," Wei Ying snickers, cos she might as well be one.

"So..."

"Okay, I'm gonna go open up," Wei Ying informs her, and turns around to leave. If Lan Zhan isn't here, then this place holds no interest for him.

"Alright. I'll join you in a few," Luo QingYang shouts, giving him a devilish smile when Wei Ying gapes at her.

"No need. Please, fucking stay here," he replies.

"Actually, I promised my boss I'd step in, so hurray for both of us...you're stuck with me until he gets back." She cackles at the horrified look on Wei Ying's face.

**************

Wei Ying sends off a string of texts to Lan Zhan as soon as the shutters are up.

Wei Ying: Lan Zhan! Are you really in Glasgow?🤯😤🤡

Wei Ying: Luo QingYang nearly took my head off with a frying pan! I need Lan Zhan to save me!!! 🍳🤕😶

Wei Ying: Why did you have to go?

Wei Ying: And when are you coming back?

Wei Ying: I miss you so much, already!!!! 😭😭😭😭

But after that, he gets one customer after another and there's no time to check his phone. It's a good hour later that he looks up to find his nemesis staring back at him from the doorway.

"It's great you kept that outfit on," he says snarkily, staring back. "You blend right in."

"If I'm going to spend the day with you, we should totally start over," she says, confidently marching up to him. She shoves her hand at him, not the left one weighed down by a rock, and grins cheekily back. "I'm Luo QingYang, or MianMian to my friends!"

Wei Ying is already shaking their hands together when he gets a light bulb moment in his head. "Mianmian...MianMian! You're MianMian!!! My MianMian!" And with that, he vaults over the counter and pulls her into a hard hug.

She struggles to get away and very nearly knees him in the groin.

"Get off me, right now, if you value your balls!"

Wei Ying drops her like a hot potato, but he's grinning from ear to ear. "I can't believe you're here! Wow! What are the chances!!!???"

She narrows her eyes at him. "Do I know you from somewhere?"

"Yes!" Wei Ying wants to grab both of her hands and do a little dance, he's so delighted! "Maybe you don't remember, but you were in London because of your dad being a diplomat at the Chinese embassy, and he enrolled you in Middlesex high school for a term. You socked a guy in the face for bullying me during that time...you don't recall that?"

"Wei Ying? Really? It's you??"

At her astonishment, Wei Ying does grab her and they do their little dance, both of them grinning like fools.

"So, you and Lan Zhan, huh?" He decides to tease her, instead, while they're catching their breath.

"Okay, I have to apologise then. I'm only working for him, but I AM meeting my fiance later today, so I technically did not lie." She grins back, looking unrepentant. "But I think you worked it out, so it's okay."

"I had help," Wei Ying tells her honestly. "And for a while, I was really angry at him."

"He's totally innocent, it was all me." She gestures vaguely in the air between them. "But, I have to ask, if you like him, like him, and he obviously is into you, why haven't either of you done anything about it? What's the problem?"

Wei Ying flops onto the counter dramatically.

"It's complicated!" He wails.

"So uncomplicate it for me. What's going on? I have to say, I've known Lan WangJi for several years and I've never seen him so upset! And over my little game like that! I was shocked. He was totally going to chase you down yesterday." She winks at Wei Ying when he opens an eye to stare at her.

"Really?" Wei Ying asks her in a small voice, pulling himself up reluctantly.

"Really," she says exuding self assurance and the aura of one who knows she's right.

So Wei Ying tells her everything, from the moment they met, to Lan Zhan's almost immediate hiring of himself, and then giving him the keys. He doesn't divulge the details about Lan Zhan's mother because that's something private, and not his story to tell, but he brings her up to speed on all things Lan Zhan.

In between serving customers and cleaning up the shop, tidying away the rolls of fabric and teaching MianMian how to cut straight, the day passes away in a blur.

Wei Ying cashes up, feeling quite hungry now that he's got the time to think about it, and he stores everything away in the safe like Lan Zhan taught him, making sure MianMian doesn't see him doing that.

Thinking of Lan Zhan's whereabouts, he pulls out his phone and is disappointed that there are no messages, which is strange anyway, even if he knows how much Lan Zhan hates texting.

"When was Lan Zhan supposed to come back?" He asks MianMian as they leave the shop.

"He should be on his way back now," she says, pulling out her phone. "He met with the client at eleven, as scheduled, and he got the item...but there's nothing after that." Her brow furrows with worry.

A taxi pulls up outside the pavement as the shutters come down, and when Wei Ying turns around, Luo QingYang is in a tight liplock with the man who has apparently disembarked from it, with a suitcase next to him.

Wei Ying waits for them to finish, looking everywhere except at them, and blushing from secondhand embarrassment.

"So! A-Feng! I want you to meet my old school friend, Wei WuXian," she beams as MianMian introduces them. "And Wei WuXian, this is my Fiance, Chang WuFeng."

The men shake hands and smile awkwardly.

"We were just about to get some dinner," Wei Ying says. "You should join us...or I can make myself scarce if you guys want to...you know..." he giggles nervously now, unsure how to finish that sentence.

"You could put your suitcase in there and we can all go together," MianMian says brightly, but something on her fiancé's face makes her falter. "A-Feng, what is it?"

He takes both of her hands, and now Wei Ying feels like an intruder on something private, and not for him to witness.

"I'm not staying. I can't...I got a text from CEO Lan XiChen just as I logged into the airport network. He needs me back straight away, and he apologised in advance. You see, Senior Lan Qiren suffered a massive stroke, and had to be airlifted to hospital. I'm needed back, and he said he has messaged his brother too, who has caught a flight straight out of Glasgow to Suzhou. We can only hope he makes it back home in time."