Technically Lan Zhan didn't need to breathe and there was no discernable reason why he wasn't doing that very normal action right now.

But Wei Ying was walking towards him with the brightest smile on his face and Lan Zhan...Lan Zhan just wanted it to stay there. He wanted that smile more than anything else in this moment.

As with all the times it has happened, Lan Zhan drowns in this feeling of love. It has become more and more frequent lately, in these three short days he has lived here, but he has no doubts at all of what he is feeling.

These feelings are like a knife in the dark, a thief stealing his senses. Sudden and without warning, his whole being is filled with love for this extraordinary man.

And when the phone is thrust into his face, that's when he's amazed.

Wei Ying has captured him and A-Yuan with such tender looks on their faces. Everything Lan Zhan is feeling, it is right there on his face, in his expression. There is kindness and there is love in his eyes. And how could there not be? When A-Yuan is looking up at him like that? There is a wealth of trust and innocent joy in those gray eyes are that is more precious than gold.

"Lan Zhan...let's take some more pictures. Together." Wei Ying says. His eyes are suspiciously wet, and that breath-stealing smile is lethal.

Silently, Lan Zhan nods.

He cannot speak right now for fear that this too will be taken away from him. Maybe ... in return for taking away his sunshine, the Universe has gifted him this, a memento, a souvenir of this happy time.

Perhaps it will only last seconds and they must take advantage of it.

Both Wei Ying and himself are scared; Lan Zhan can smell it.

It is the uncertainty of not knowing.

"Alright! One, two, three, say Bunny Rabbit!" Wei Ying takes selfies of the three of them, the first few are ordinary and they're all smiling. But then he encourages A-Yuan to make funny faces and the boy is hesitant, not sure he should because it doesn't seem right.

And then Lan Zhan sticks his tongue out.

Wei Ying recovers first and suddenly, all three are being very silly, and everything is immortalised on a digital format.

They end up a giggling mess on the floor, two adults and a breathless child and for a few minutes, Lan Zhan thinks this is the life.

This is the life for him.

Wei Ying gets up reluctantly and brushes himself off.

The magic is broken...just like that.

"I'll be back soon." He says.

He doesn't want to go and it's all over his face.

"Before it gets dark." Lan Zhan says firmly.

Wei Ying nods solemnly, hearing the warning in his tone.

Up until Thursday, he hadn't had a cause for being scared of the dark.

"Baba...you don't have to go. We can make a watch out of paper...or even Lego." A-Yuan says so suddenly.

He gets up and runs to Wei Ying, hugging his thigh tightly.

"Don't be silly, my darling little Radish. I'll be back in twenty minutes, thirty tops I promise. In and out." Wei Ying bends and captures his body, lifting him up to plant a giant kiss on his forehead. "Now, you be good for Zhan Gege and make something interesting for me for when I get back."

Wei Ying waves at them with his fingers and gives Lan Zhan a wink, and then he turns and leaves.

Just the click of the door echoes in the empty room, sounding ominous and heavy in the silence left behind.

"Come on, Zhan Gege...let's go make stuff." A-Yuan says and pulls his hand.

Lan Zhan thinks of all these precious moments as they pass, a record of things that happen as the Second hand moves on a clock.

He lets himself be lead into A-Yuan's bedroom and they sit on the floor, looking for parts and, as Lan Zhan describes the pieces he needs and what functions they will induce, he sees the wonder in that bright, inquisitive face grow into understanding.

It is a magical feeling.

No matter what happens after today, one thing is absolutely clear: A-Yuan is going to remember this day.

Five years from now, ten years from now, fifty years from now...he is going to remember.

It brings tears to his eyes and Lan Zhan brushes them away before the boy can see.

A-Yuan is busy finding four piece black sets and Lan Zhan is figuring out the axels of a wheel mechanism, when A-Yuan says, "I like you, Zhan Gege."

Lan Zhan stops what he's doing.

It feels momentous, this admission.

They are only five words, and the last two being his name, don't count.

So...only three really important words.

Lan Zhan turns to him.

They are both sitting side by side cross-legged on the floor, knees touching with a pile of Legos in front of them. Lan Zhan has shifted slightly so that he's at angle.

The thing about most children is that when they're this young, they don't really lie unless they're scared, which is not what A-Yuan is feeling. He is at an age where he says what he thinks without a filter because that's something which needs to be developed and it comes later on, when a whole host of defensive emotions pop up out of nowhere.

Right now, Lan Zhan is privileged to have a raw, honest, undiluted version of A-Yuan, who says what he means.

And Lan Zhan is terribly aware of that.

How can he not respond in kind, when anything less would disrespect him?

Lan Zhan has always been very frank and direct; it is mostly responsible for alienating him in social situations especially where skirting the truth is welcomed and honesty utterly not appreciated.

His face has something to do with that too. He is the only one responsible for that, learning early on that any nuances would alert anyone not friendly, to his current state of mind. So as Lan Zhan grew up, he developed a stoic face and anyone who did not know him would have a damn hard time understanding what he was thinking.

The truth was, most people didn't like him.

He was feared and respected yes, but like? That was so far out of range, it wasn't even visible.

It has only been three days and yet this kid says those three really important words.

"I like you too, A-Yuan." Lan Zhan says carefully.

"Would you like a hug?" A-Yuan continues to surprise him.

Lan Zhan nods.

There is something hot and heavy clogging up his throat, and Lan Zhan fears if he attempts at speaking now, he's going to cry instead.

Without any hesitation whatsoever, A-Yuan climbs into his lap and his skinny arms go around Lan Zhan’s neck.

A-Yuan is just as warm, if not more than Wei Ying. His is a comfortable weight in Lan Zhan’s arms as his own come around to secure the child to his body.

"Baba says hugs make everything better." A-Yuan adds.

His voice is so sincere, it burns Lan Zhan’s eyes and he blinks away those precious tears. He knows it is only a matter of time that he will not be able to cry either.

"Mn." Lan Zhan is not able to make any other noise right now.

"And he says my hugs make him happy." A-Yuan continues slashing away at any composure Lan Zhan is trying to build.

But he makes a superhuman effort to speak.

"A-Yuan's hugs are the best. A-Yuan is a professional." Lan Zhan tells him, rubbing his back.

"What's a pwof-fesh...a pwof..." He gives up, the word a little tricky until Lan Zhan says it slowly for him, letting him sound it out.

"It's somebody who gets paid for what they do. Because they're so good at it." Lan Zhan clarifies.

"Am I good enough?" The boy sits on his thigh, carefully thinking about what Lan Zhan is saying about him.

"Mn. A-Yuan is the best." Lan Zhan tells him.

"Sometimes Baba is sad. I don't like that." A-Yuan tells him.

"Mn." Lan Zhan agrees.

They both feel the same way about him and there is companionship in that, theirs is a unity because they want the same thing.

And then, because Lan Zhan cannot resist, he has to ask.

"When? Why is he sad?"

"Stupid Bill." A-Yuan tells him seriously. "I don't like him. He writes Baba all the time. And then Baba feels sad but he makes his face like this." A-Yuan makes a face by pulling his lips into the most unnatural smile Lan Zhan has ever seen, and it would be funny if A-Yuan wasn't so serious about it.

Who was this Stupid Bill? Was he threatening Wei Ying? Was Wei Ying in danger?

Lan Zhan was going to stand up and ... and...do...what?

He had nothing other than what A-Yuan told him.

And no matter how angry it made him feel, he had nothing concrete to vent upon, no one to threaten with immediate bodily harm.

Just these thoughts alone made a surge of power gather in his mouth and Lan Zhan felt his canines grow, ever so subtly. When he ran his tongue over their sharp edges, he cut it accidentally on the serrations.

His teeth were so sharp!

And now those four teeth were definitely bigger in his mouth.

What to do? Wei Ying was sure to notice!

And this bombardment of changes...when would it get too much for Wei Ying to simply put his foot down and kick him out?

A-Yuan had picked up the half finished car and was trying to get his head around the way it worked, his brain doing all the hard work.

Good, he hadn't noticed yet.

Lan Zhan took in deep breaths and wondered if doing the opposite of thinking murderous thoughts would reverse the action...or not? He shivered in allowing that awful thought to stay.

Only one way to find out.

He closed his eyes and began to meditate.

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

Wei Ying was whistling as he hurried outside into the now hot sunshine.

He paused, appreciating its warmth for a few seconds and thinking about Lan Zhan.

Lan Zhan would never be able to come outside like this...ever.

It was an awful truth.

He was pale anyway, but just because he couldn't tan didn't mean the choice could be taken away from him.

Lan Zhan had lost everything in a single bite of time.

His brother, his uncle and any family....his way of life...his job.

He could adapt...there was no question about that.

But the fact that he had to, that any choice in the matter was taken away from him.

Some lowlife had bitten him and run away... it wasn't right, what had happened to him.

A part of Wei Ying ached for him. Ever since they met, this pain for Lan Zhan’s predicament had only grown, day by day. Lan Zhan was inherently kind, like that was part of his DNA and he was so gentle...and to have this kind of violence done to him was an unforgivable crime.

He thought back to when Lan Zhan had told him that he was a vegetarian...yet he had forced himself to eat meat...alright he had thrown it up immediately but that wasn't the point; he's had to do so much out of his comfort zone...

Wei Ying took a deep breath and marched to the bus stop, letting the warm breeze dry his tears.

It wasn't fair, his heart cried out.

It wasn't....

Anger, flaring bright and vivid in his chest, made him want to punch something. It was deep too, like a splinter which only burrowed further inside him.

The only way those flames would be quenched was to find the culprit and bring them to justice.

Just as Wei Ying was thinking this and climbing into the bus, a roar from the side made him look up and he saw an ostentatious red ferrari zoom past, clearly too fast and way too dangerously swerving on the road to be considered safe in any capacity.

They rarely saw entitled assholes like that in this area, he thought as he paid for his ticket.

And that was a good thing.

As long as people knew where they belonged, everything would be alright. This town was too poor to be noticed by the privileged and when it was...well, that would only bode ill for the residents.

Wei Ying sank into his seat gratefully, feeling suddenly lethargic. His body felt heavier than normal which was unusual. But he didn't have time to concentrate on that because the next stop was his and they'd already arrived.

The formerly pleasant sunshine felt too warm and Wei Ying hurried into the store after checking the name, that it was the right place.

The proprietor was a red-faced tubby, friendly chap who pulled out his tray of used pocket watches for Wei Ying to choose from. Two were silver, one gold-plated (which Wei Ying ignored for financial reasons) and another was brass, but it had a cracked face. Wei Ying liked the silver ones and because in the end, it was just a prop. He made sure the cheaper of the two was still in working condition before purchasing that one.

The man accepted his money and wrapped it carefully inside tissue paper and then a plastic bag.

Wei Ying left his shop and when he saw the bus coming to the stop, he booked it, running as fast as he could to catch it.

As he sat down, he wondered if he hadn't made a mistake because his head started to pound. He closed his eyes and rubbed his temples, hoping to ease the pain. He wasn't even sure if there were painkillers in the apartment because for one thing, he didn't like having pills in the home even if they were out of reach for A-Yuan, and another was that he hardly suffered any headaches.

This was just a coincidence...

He got off the bus at the stop closest to his apartment and now he was feeling nauseous. Maybe he just needed to lie down.

Or drink some water...yes, that sounded good.

Wei Ying made it all the way to his door this time when the dizziness hit him. He accidentally dropped his keys and the floor looked so good, he thought about just lying there for a few seconds. But then the door opened and he spotted two pairs of feet, waiting there.

It was a cute image and it distracted him enough to swipe his keys up.

But then he swayed.

Lan Zhan quickly grabbed him and brought him inside. Thankfully, he didn't let go.

"Wei Ying?" He sounded really worried.

"Baba?" A-Yuan did too.

"Don't worry, Radish...I think I just need to lie down and maybe drink some water? That sun was really hot." He complained.

And suddenly he was airborne, lifted into Lan Zhan’s arms.

"Any other time, I'd be making jokes on how romantic that was." Wei Ying says, closing his eyes.

"Rest."

It's the last thing he hears before he falls asleep.

*********

Lan Zhan had heard him enter the building.

He notes with interest how it's like his brain can divide everything up into sections so it was easier to deal with. Most of him was present with A-Yuan and building the car from his Lego pieces, and a small section was counting down the minutes from Wei Ying’s departure, accurately too, Lan Zhan was surprised to see.

But then, he supposed he shouldn't be; after all, this body was superior in all ways to his previous one. The changes were defining and definitely better.

Wei Ying was a good estimater of his time and he made it back within the thirty minute mark...but then...there was a delay.

Lan Zhan couldn't think of why and remembering the time he found Wei Ying sitting on the top step...he didn't want to delay. A-Yuan insisted on coming with him and Lan Zhan thought, if nothing else, the child could be useful in opening and closing doors. It was more about not leaving him alone in the apartment though.

And Wei Ying was right there.

But something was wrong.

He seemed unsteady and then he proved it, swaying dangerously as if it was taking all of his willpower to remain upright.

Of course, Lan Zhan carried him to his bed and made him lie down...but it was worrying anyway.

Could it be only the sun? Was Wei Ying dehydrated? It was a possibility.

Lan Zhan brought him a glass of water and covered it, putting it on his bedside cabinet for when Wei Ying awoke.

Then he went to look for medicine.

The bathroom cabinet held only toothpaste and shaving equipment, so Lan Zhan looks in the kitchen.

"Zhan Gege...what are you looking for?" The little voice brings him out of his thoughts.

"Painkillers." Lan Zhan tells him.

But there's no recognition on the boy's face; he doesn't know what they are. Could it be that's why Wei Ying doesn't seem to have any to hand?

"Zhan Gege...I'm hungry." A-Yuan says instead.

Alright...the medication would have to wait. Wei Ying was asleep anyway and a few hours wouldn't hurt, Lan Zhan decides. He will need Wei Ying’s phone one more time, but later.

Vegetable pancakes were a quick and easy recipe, and after making two for A-Yuan with as an afterthought, a smiley face in the middle of one and a sort of rabbit shape with the second one, Lan Zhan puts the rest of the batter inside in the refrigerator.

He could whip some more up later, if and when Wei Ying felt up to it.

He likes the freedom of cooking for a child too, and this is something which slowly dawns on him. A-Yuan would never complain about anything Lan Zhan made for him, because Lan Zhan already gets the feeling of what kind of child he is.

But, neither does he expect perfection and for Lan Zhan himself who is a perfectionist, it is a refreshing change for him too. To not make something perfectly round, to play around with shapes because the person he is cooking for needs to have a little normal fun.

His observations before on A-Yuan being lonely are only confirmed when the child hangs around him more, even as Lan Zhan cleans and wipes the kitchen down.

When he finishes, he is rather surprised by A-Yuan hugging his leg.

He sees a tremor going through the child and suddenly he thinks he is at fault for not realising it earlier: A-Yuan has probably never seen anyone pass out before.

Certainly not his Baba.

Of course he's traumatised.

So Lan Zhan sits down right there and gathers the little lost soul into his arms.

This is just a frightened little boy, and if Lan Zhan can make him feel even a little bit better, then that's what he's going to do.

"A-Yuan...." He says quietly, wondering how best to approach what he wants to say.

The child stiffens in his arms and Lan Zhan remembers a lullaby that his mother used to sing to him, especially when he was troubled, or when the world felt like too much. But first, he has something very important to say to him.

"A-Yuan...everyone needs hugs. If you need a hug, you can come to me at any time. Even if it looks like I'm busy, don't worry about that. Alright?" He softly strokes his back. "I am here for you, A-Yuan. Just like you're here for me. I might be too shy to ask you for a hug...but I will always need it. Will you look after me too, A-Yuan?" He says, in his most calmest of voices.

A-Yuan nods. He leans back to check Lan Zhan’s sincerity and whatever he finds there, it makes him hug Lan Zhan again.

There is something so soothing about having someone, even a little person, trust him this much. This is bonding but on another level. It is about needing someone as much as they need him.

Lan Zhan had never in a million years thought this would happen to him.

He knew he was gay, he knew that then, if he found anyone ever, then adoption would be a possibility. Suddenly he is in this position and it's something he wants, really wants with all of his now non-functioning heart.

Suddenly and unexpectedly, he has found a family...or, it has found him.

******

A/N

Happy Boxing day everyone!

It may be just a UK thing, but it's a holiday and hey, I have Internet and no glitches, touch wood. Have to play for a bit this afternoon but hopefully I might be able to squeeze another chapter in by tonight.

Happy chocolates 🍫 🍫🍫 eating too!

Charlie.