Liu sang watched as the man sprawled in front of him shook and trembled. Sobs wracked the lean man’s shoulders and he sniffed loudly. Liu sang was terrible when it came to comfort; all these years he’d been unable to comfort himself, let alone someone else. Yet he watched himself reach out a cautious hand which he laid on the man’s back.
The man reacted to his touch, and he looked up at Liu sang, eyes red and puffy. Liu sang knew how hard it was for him, for he could relate. Wuxie was in a coma and not knowing if he would ever wake up again was terrifying, especially for Kan jian.
Kan jian spoke through his sniffles in a voice that could only be compared to that of a small child. And essentially, Kan jian WAS a child, despite his fit and well trained body.

“Will Laoban be alright..?” came a small question from the man. Kan jian’s eyes locked with Liu sang’s own, as if searching for a definite answer that Liu sang knew he couldn't give.
Liu sang shocked himself as he felt a reassuring smile form on his lips.

“Wu xie isn’t weak; after all, he still hasn’t been able to talk to Ouxiang yet and Wu xie wouldn’t be able to leave this world without talking to his lover”. Liu sang found his voice was quite soft and gentle. He didn’t want Kan jian to hurt, or cry, or feel grief. He wanted to curl around the man and forever protect him from the harsh world.
He watched as Kan jian considered his words, lips letting out a breath he had obviously been holding for quite some time.
Liu sang’s words had the desired effect, and Kan jian stood up shakily and smiled.
Liu sang reached a hand forward and stepped towards the other man. His stretched out hand wiped Kan jian’s tears gently, and the other man gave him a confused yet content look.
What was Liu sang doing? Wiping another person’s tears?
It had not occurred to Liu sang that they were, in fact, in a room full of people at the foot of Wu xie’s bed, where Kan jian had been previously crying. Now, all the eyes in the room were turned to them. Liu sang heard a muffled chuckle come from Pangzi who was standing closer to the bed and Liu sang gave him a chilling side glare. Pangzi went quiet, a teasing smirk still playing on his lips.
The room went silent, as if waiting for Liu sang to make another move. Liu sang became aware of all the eyes on his back and he blushed, his cheeks a light shade of rosy pink.

“Ahem”. A voice coughed purposely from the head of the bed.
“I’m all for romance, but I would rather if it was not in front of me. You two are cute and all, but I have a dying patient here”. Huo daofu pointed at Wu xie lying in the bed to emphasise his words.

Now Liu sang’s face became a deeper shade of red. Romance? Was it that obvious..?
“R-Right” Liu sang stuttered, embarrassed.
Kan jian however, was not embarrassed in the slightest and said: “What romance? Liu sang was just being a good friend!”
Liu sang had to hold back an eyeroll. Kan jian was completely oblivious to the moves Liu sang made on him whenever he mustered up the courage to do so. Wang meng had once described Kan jian as a puppy with no wits whatsoever, and Liu sang thought that description fit pretty well here and otherwise. Liu sang felt that if he didn’t directly tell Kan jian he loved him, he might never get the memo.

“Sure sure, whatever you want kid”, Huo Daofu muttered dismissively and turned back to adjusting Wu xie’s IV.

---

The past few days had been by the far the most stressful in comparison to recent events. Wu xie was essentially the brains of this whole Thunder city operation, and without him conscious everyone was tense and alert. Both Pangzi and Bai haotian were cooped up in Wu xie’s room, anxiously waiting for a sign of his awakening. Liu sang didn’t dare bother them while in this state; when it came to Wu xie, Pangzi was known to be quite snappy and uneasy. Liu sang had taken it upon himself to be awake at all hours, straining his ears for hints of Mr Jiao’s men underground and aboveground. However, many consequences came with not sleeping. Liu sang was painfully aware of how human he was; he wasn’t trained to withstand pressure or to go long nights without sleep. Even with the helpful assistance of Jia Kezi, (he would often take up Liu sang’s position so Liu sang could eat), Liu sang came to find his senses had dulled with exhaustion. Liu sang definitely wasn’t known for his mental strength and he was quite anxious all the time regardless of the situation.

When Kan jian came in to check on him every so often, Liu sang felt all his anxiety disappear, as if washed away by a calming wave. Maybe Kan jian wasn’t as dense as everyone seemed to think. Kan jian was quite sensitive to the emotions of the people around him, even if he often interpreted them wrong. Whenever Liu sang shook his head and refused to eat the various snacks Kan jian brought him, Kan jian would pout defiantly. Liu sang found himself purposely declining the food, just so he could watch Kian jian have a mini temper tantrum like a child. His lips, his pretty, kissable lips, were adorable and Liu sang found himself giggling like a teenage girl whenever Kan jian fussed over him.

“Are you feeling better now?”, Kan jian cocked his head to the side adorably. Kan jian’s visits had become more frequent, from once every few days to almost every hour. This time, he had brought hand warmers for Liu sang, which Liu sang had accepted gratefully. Kan Jian asked Liu sang a series of questions about what he had heard, which he wrote the answers to in a small leather notebook. Liu sang hadn’t actually heard much of Mr Jiao and his men, and that led him to wonder; had they all inhaled the neurotoxins in the forest fog and gone insane? Or had they simply gotten up and left after discovering how dangerous Thunder city was?. Liu sang made a mental note to mention this to Ouxiang later. Whatever the situation down there, Liu sang personally couldn’t care less, for he was completely absorbed in his conversation with Kan jian. Every time Liu sang said something remotely smart or wordy, Kan jian would look as if Liu sang had explained the meaning of the world, or something completely alien.

For the rest of the evening even after Kan jian had taken his leave, Liu sang thought about the way Kan jian grinned, ear to ear, and just how much it made Liu sang want to hug him. Liu sang wanted to make him smile, because when he did, he looked at Liu sang as if he was the best human being in the world and it was just so cute.

Liu sang slept, for the first time in a long time, without nightmares that night.

---

Liu sang awoke to some of the best news he had heard in months. Wu xie had woken up from his coma, much to Kan jian’s delight. However, Wu xie now had this bright idea that he wanted to go down to the exit of the Spring of Roar, following the directions of Erjing. Liu sang did not trust Erjing whatsoever. He found it oddly suspicious that Erjing had returned from the depths of the underground river unharmed yet was carrying Wu Erbai, crippled and unable to speak, in a wheelchair. The facts just simply didn’t add up. Erjing often talked about how he would give his life for Wu Erbai, yet there was not a scratch on his body. Wu Erbai could not talk, so everyone trusted and believed Erijing’s every word. Liu sang had the feeling Wu xie would be just walking straight into a trap.
Despite Liu sang’s suspicions, there was no way in hell he’d let Wu xie go without him. Not only was Liu sang very close to Wu xie, he knew Kan jian would never recover should Wu xie die in the middle of a forest.

Liu sang compactly packed his parachute and slung it over one of his shoulders, and then the other so that it was sitting in the middle of his back. He hadn’t seen Kan jian all morning; Liu sang had no doubt he was probably sulking somewhere or begging Pangzi to let him come on the mission. Liu sang smirked; he had previously asked everyone on Wu xie’s mission team to decline Kan jian should he ask to join. Liu sang knew he wouldn’t be able to be of much help if his senses were overloaded with worry for Kan jian’s safety.

In true Wu xie fashion, Wu xie had left before everyone else on the team. Liu sang knew it was Wu xie’s last futile attempt at refusing their assistance. However, it was unanimously known that there was no way Wu xie could shake Pangzi, even in the depths of hell.
Liu sang felt a familiar rush of anxiety. This type of anxiety was frequent, and occurred just before they set off for a life threatening mission. Liu sang laughed at himself internally for being weak and pathetic. He certainly wasn’t protagonist material, compared to the iron triangle who were fearless and had never once doubted their decisions.

Liu sang stood at the gate of the hotel with Pangzi, Xiao bai, Jia kezi and Li jiale, preparing to follow Wu xie. Xiao bai was fussing about the food they were taking, clearly thinking about how much Wu xie would need and no one else. Jia kezi and Li jiale had their heads close together, discussing a game plan. Liu sang listened in; it was an efficient plan, but not foolproof, as nothing was or could be. They couldn’t truly have a plan until they assessed the situation down there. Liu sang felt himself overthinking again, but didn’t stop himself, because this was the only way he could keep his anxiety at bay, at least for now. Liu sang didn’t know how he’d feel at the cliff, about to parachute into the seemingly bottomless void.
What if their parachutes were tampered with? What if they arrived and ouxiang and Heiye were dead? What if it was all for nothi—

Liu sang’s train of thought was completely cut off as he felt two warm, bearlike arms wrap around his waist, completely encompassing the lower half of his body. Liu sang let out a quiet, shocked gasp.

He felt a soft breath of air whistle across his ear as the person behind him opened their mouth to speak.
“Wha-”, Liu sang stuttered, taken aback by the sudden human contact. Liu sang went silent, waiting for an explanation.
“..Be safe, please”, the person said desperately. The distress in their voice was sharp and it ripped a hole in Liu sang’s heart.
It was Kan jian, Liu sang recognised his voice fondly.
Liu sang liked it here. In Kan jian’s warm, comforting embrace. Liu sang worked up enough courage and turned to face Kan jian. Kan jian shifted his grip, adjusting to Liu sang’s movement, but did not let go of his waist.
“You know I’m quite lucky when it comes to things like this”, Liu sang said confidently despite the fact he was quite the opposite.
Kan jian’s features up close were incredibly soft. The temptation to reach out a hand and cup his smoothly defined jaw was overwhelming. Those eyes, so full of worry for Liu sang’s safety; Liu sang felt he could get lost in the depths of those deep hazel eyes.

Kan jian huffed irritably, clearly not satisfied with this answer.
“Promise me you will come back perfectly fine or I’ll—”
Liu sang cut him off, chuckling. He could not stress enough how adorable this man was.
“Ok ok ok, I promise”, Liu sang agreed gently.

And then it all hit him. Kan jian was holding his waist, at the gate of the hotel, telling him to be safe. All the people around them pretended to be occupied, busying themselves with fake tasks that Liu sang knew they didn’t need to do. They had all obviously read the room, giving the two men space to talk.
So.. maybe Kan jian didn’t view Liu sang as ‘just a friend’ after all.
Liu sang felt his face heat at this thought, his cheeks quickly becoming a deep shade of pink. Kan jian obviously thought that was funny, or adorable, or both, and he laughed playfully at Liu sang’s expense.
“You better keep your promise. See you soon Liu sang!”, Kan jian giggled and removed his arms from around Liu sang’s waist. He ran, like an excited child, back into the hotel room where the people staying behind currently occupied.
Liu sang was left, standing shocked at the gate, longing for Kan jian’s arms to be back around his waist.
It felt wrong, that empty space where Kan jian’s arms had previously been.

---

Liu sang stood at the edge of the cliff, shoulder to shoulder with the other members of Wu xie’s team. All wore grim and taut faces, aware of the dangers that came with this expedition to Thunder city.
“We’re coming with you, Wu xie”, Pangzi said firmly.
“There is no point in following a dying man. You all have lives ahead of you, why risk your life for me?”, Wu xie asked rhetorically.
Bai haotian spoke up. “Whether you like it or not; we’re coming, so suck it up”, she said, the fondness and kindness evident in her voice.
Wu xie seemed to accept this, nodding his head in defeat. He considered the situation for a minute or so, then went on to explain and instruct the team in preparation for their jump.
“Open your parachute at the last minute; this way, the wind won’t affect us and we will be able to land at our target spot”.
Liu sang had to admit, he was barely listening; just gathering enough information so that he wouldn’t die on his way down. He was immersed in the sounds, which felt all the more overwhelming when his heart was beating rapidly with anticipation.
“Alright, let’s do this”, Wu xie said, giving everyone in line a small, appreciative nod as he spoke.

And with that, Liu sang leaped, feeling the change in gravity as his feet left the rocky edge of the cliff.

---

(see note 6) Liu sang’s body ached terribly. He wanted to scream, to let someone know of the pain he was in. However, he stayed quiet and helped Bai haotian drag a hole open for the people climbing out.
Liu sang’s ears rang, having still not recovered from the explosions that the spy’s team had set off in Thunder city, yet he gritted his teeth and pulled harder. The rock blocking the hole moved, opening a gap for the others to come out of. Liu sang dropped a rope down for them to grab onto.
“Xiao sanye!”, Bai haotian called out worriedly, her voice echoing through the paoga.
“I’m alright”, came a gruff reply.
Liu sang latched his hand onto Ouxiang’s outstretched one, and he pulled him up using what little physical strength he had. Ouxiang then pulled Wu xie up, then Pangzi, and then Heiye .
Not one of them, aside from Ouxiang of course, was free of injury. Pangzi had a broken leg that had been bandaged (Liu sang guessed by Wu xie), Wu xie had bruises all over his face and many small cuts littered his body, and Heiye had a bullet wound on the lower left of his abdomen.
“We made it out alive!”, Pangzi said with a haughty laugh. “The iron triangle prevails once again!”.
Wu xie laughed at this, and pulled everyone, including Liu sang, into a group hug. Even Ouxiang smiled (or what could be considered a smile on him) and hugged Wu xie softly back.

Wu xie used a rope to pull up Jia kezi’s deceased body, which had previously been laying on the floor of the paoga while the others waited on the surface.
“We have no idea if Li jiale survived or not, and we can’t just leave him here”, Pangzi stated.

As he said this, Heiye looked in the direction behind Liu sang, and raised an eyebrow. Liu sang followed his gaze, and so did everyone else.
Li jiale stood there, his neck bandaged. He looked half dead, but thankfully, he was alive.
“Look who it is!; Li jiale!”, Pangzi exclaimed.
Li jiale gave him a weak smile and nodded, as if confirming he was not a neurotoxin driven zombie like Jia kezi had been before he died.
Li jiale looked at Wu xie as he spoke. “Jiang zisuan saved me”.
This confused Liu sang. The man who had been so desperate for revenge, for Wu xie’s blood , had saved one of Wu xie’s closest comrades. Liu sang decided not to give it much thought as the man was dead now regardless.
“I see”, Wu xie said mournfully. Wu xie shook his head, as if dismissing a thought. “For whatever reason he saved you, I’m grateful. Jia kezi’s body is here now; let’s take him home for the last time”, Wu xie said whilst throwing one arm around Li jiale’s shoulders. Wu xie began to leave, and Liu sang followed.

---

Heiye had stayed behind a little longer to grieve for ChuChu, the girl who had been shot dead by Mr Jiao and who had also been the girl Heiye loved. Liu sang gave him space, but touched his shoulder as he walked past, following Wu xie.
Looking out across the now unrecognisable Thunder city was surreal; it had been blown to nothing but rocks and dust. Thousands of years of history, lost forever in the ruins of an explosion.
Liu sang didn’t care though. He was done with Thunder city. It had driven his closest friends and comrades to give up other’s lives and their own. The search had been a long one, and in Liu sang’s eyes, one that was not worthwhile. For all the damage it had caused, Liu sang was glad it had exploded.

---

Kan jian sat in the fancy hospital room that Wu Erbai was staying in and sighed as he turned his attention back to Wu Erbai. Wu Erbai refused to take any medicine or let himself be tended to.
Kan jian was sitting at his bedside, attempting to feed him soup. Kan jian blew on the soup to make it cooler, and he put it up to Wu Erbai’s lips. Wu Erbai would not open his mouth.
Kan jian spoke to the hospitalised man in a firm tone.
“Mr Erbai, I know you are worried about my Laoban . But his biggest wish is for you to get better”.
Wu Erbai continued to look up at the roof blankly and then closed his eyes, Kan jian could not be sure if he even heard him at all.
Kan jian continued. “It was my fault. I should’ve gone down with Laoban ”.
Kan jian didn’t want to blame himself, but from Wu Erbai’s point of view, he probably did think Kan jian was at fault.
Kan jian’s phone rang, and he took it out of his jacket pocket in a hurry.
“Mr Erbai, look! It’s Laoban ! Laoban is calling!”, Kan jian exclaimed.
Wu Erbai responded to his and his eyes flew open.
Kan jian talked to Wu xie who was on the other side. “I’ll take good care of him, don’t worry!”, Kan jian said loyally.
Kan jian looked up at Wu Erbai. “Mr Erbai, Mr Erbai! Laoban is safe and sound, he's coming back!”.
Wu Erbai looked brighter at the sudden news, and he smiled lightly. He then accepted Kan jian’s attempt at feeding him soup again, the stress that had been tormenting him obviously fading as he swallowed the white liquid.

---

Liu sang sipped from his piaopiao milk tea cup. They were on the train, heading home, and Liu sang sat on the top bunk of a bed. Bai haotian and Pangzi were on the bottom beds; Bai haotian writing messages in purple pen on Pangzi’s leg cast. They snorted and laughed as Bai haotian wrote ‘talk less and lose more weight’ .
Wu xie was out the door, sitting at one of the windows and leaning his head against the frame. He was wearing a green sweater which Liu sang thought made Wu xie look even more like an old man. Wu xie was reading Wu sanxing’s diary which they had found during their expedition to Thunder city, looking quite nostalgic.
Ouxiang stood at the door, blocking Liu sang’s view slightly, obviously looking at Wu xie, as he normally did. Ouxiang wore black jeans with a belt and a black turtleneck which Liu sang thought looked quite nice. Heiye sat near Wu xie, at the window behind him, obviously lost in thought.
Liu sang took another sip of his tea and looked out the window, the landscape moving with the train.

---

Pangzi was getting an operation on his leg, and Wu xie was getting his lungs assessed at the hospital where Wu Erbai was. Liu sang knew that the end of this mission wasn’t a happy ending for them all, but Liu sang certainly felt much better knowing no one was going to be risking their lives anytime soon. Only one thing, or person, was left on his mind now: Kan jian.

A few months later
Today was the reopening of Wushanju . The artifact shop had been shut down a while ago by Xue wu. Liu sang was in the kitchen, preparing some snacks and grabbing a few for himself. The sun was nice today; it came through the window and warmed Liu sang’s cheek.
Liu sang heard a creak as the door to Wushanju opened, and he turned his attention to it to see who was entering.
Kan jian walked in the kitchen, a bounce in his step. He was wearing a mustard coloured hoodie, which Liu sang thought was absolutely adorable .
Kan jian’s features brightened as he caught sight of Liu sang.
“Someone’s happy today”, Liu sang stated fondly.
“I’m even happier now that I’ve seen you”, Kan jian replied cutely.
He walked up to Liu sang behind the counter and they stood face to face. Kan jian smiled his signature smile; oh how Liu sang loved that smile.
Much to Liu sang’s surprise, Kan jian raised a warm hand to hold Liu sang’s face. Liu sang put the weight of his cheek into Kan jian’s palm, enjoying the warmth and comfort it brought him.
Slowly, Liu sang watched as Kan jian raised his other hand to cup the other side of his face.
Liu sang found himself moving his own hands from his side, to encircling Kan jian’s waist, earning a soft smile from Kan jian.
Kan jian tipped his head to the side.
He made eye contact with Liu sang for a heartbeat, then closed his eyes and moved in slowly, his very pretty lips making their way closer to Liu sang’s own.

They made contact.

Liu sang’s cracked, dry lips caressed Kan jian’s own, soft and ethereal ones.
Liu sang’s heart was pummeling, going haywire, threatening to explode against his ribs. He just hoped Kan jian didn’t hear it.

Kan jian pulled his lips away from Liu sang gently, his hands on Liu sang’s jaw but a sweet memory as he smiled delightfully. He rested his arms on Liu sang’s waist.
Just as Liu sang opened his mouth to talk, they both heard Pangzi call loudly.
“We’re opening now, come on everyone, gather at the gate!”
Kan jian turned his head back to Liu sang, his eyes shining; they shared a look and Liu sang laughed playfully, grinning like an idiot. He slid his arms off of Liu sang’s waist and held one of his hands with his own.
Kan jian tugged, signalling him to follow.
“Coming!!”, Kan jian called back, just as loud.
With a quick peck to Kan jian’s cheek, both men dashed like children out of the room, hands clenched together with the promise of a future.

A future where they were happy. Together.