[ what a disorienting thing, to awaken like this - after being stretched apart and pushed together, after the wormhole sent lu bixing into a tailspin -- no. no, he was already in a tailspin, he was already in one, because the relaxant wore off and lu bixing wasn't hallucinating a single second of it.
he's real.
lin jingheng is real, and he's still here, and -
when the disorienting sensation of arrival clears, he's dizzy and a little nauseous. ten years could have passed, or twenty, or five minutes, or ten seconds, who knows? there's the sense that he died. did he die? does he care?
he doesn't.
lu bixing realizes with a start that he's in a different position than he was just before. his head snaps up, looking left, right, like a panicked animal, and then he spots - well, strange clothes, but he spots lin jingheng and just reaches out and grabs him, hands fisting tight in the front of that jumpsuit.
his hands are shaking. he's wide eyed and sucks in a short, shallow breath. ] Lin.
he's real.
lin jingheng is real, and he's still here, and -
when the disorienting sensation of arrival clears, he's dizzy and a little nauseous. ten years could have passed, or twenty, or five minutes, or ten seconds, who knows? there's the sense that he died. did he die? does he care?
he doesn't.
lu bixing realizes with a start that he's in a different position than he was just before. his head snaps up, looking left, right, like a panicked animal, and then he spots - well, strange clothes, but he spots lin jingheng and just reaches out and grabs him, hands fisting tight in the front of that jumpsuit.
his hands are shaking. he's wide eyed and sucks in a short, shallow breath. ] Lin.
[ everything is wrong. it's not quiet enough, he can breathe, and when his eyes snap open and the unfamiliar clothing locks into place as details taken in by the millisecond he knows that he is not adrift any longer. he blinks slowly, though his instincts are honed, a knife of a man first. his fingers close fast around lu bixing's wrist.
this isn't right. this...
god this highlighter pink is killing his eyes. he squints. while his wounds are healed, everything in him is still swimming, nerves on fire down to his knees. they're breathing in the same air. he grabs his wrist just to pull him closer, like he's about to flutter away. fingers tangle in offensively bright fabric until his knuckles crack just a bit.
lu bixing. ]
You.
[ softer, his voice hoarse. ] You're here. How are you here...?
[ this is likely torture, tantalus, everything you want just out of reach. this is a dream, or a nightmare, there's no way... ]
this isn't right. this...
god this highlighter pink is killing his eyes. he squints. while his wounds are healed, everything in him is still swimming, nerves on fire down to his knees. they're breathing in the same air. he grabs his wrist just to pull him closer, like he's about to flutter away. fingers tangle in offensively bright fabric until his knuckles crack just a bit.
lu bixing. ]
You.
[ softer, his voice hoarse. ] You're here. How are you here...?
[ this is likely torture, tantalus, everything you want just out of reach. this is a dream, or a nightmare, there's no way... ]
[ where the fuck is he where is this little twink i'm going to find him. lin jingheng is going to deadass search the planetarium and library both up and down before slinking into the lap to check there too. any hits?
(if not he's rouning back to where bixing's room in the dorms ought to be.) ]
(if not he's rouning back to where bixing's room in the dorms ought to be.) ]
[ hELP I WAS WORKING
anyway he's definitely not far away because he didn't run very far because he still cannot allow himself to be that far away from lin jingheng
he's in like
the next room, sitting with one leg folded over his knee, leaning back against the couch (and fidgeting slightly in his attempt to make sure he's fine. he's cool. this is normal. he's good. he's normal,) ]
Hello, Commodore.
[ uwu ]
anyway he's definitely not far away because he didn't run very far because he still cannot allow himself to be that far away from lin jingheng
he's in like
the next room, sitting with one leg folded over his knee, leaning back against the couch (and fidgeting slightly in his attempt to make sure he's fine. he's cool. this is normal. he's good. he's normal,) ]
Hello, Commodore.
[ uwu ]
[ us like how many threads will we have this week? the limit does not exist
anyway lu bixing is still sticking to lin jingheng like glue most of the time, though, he did sleep in his own bed which was an improvement. did he sleep well? no. it's fine.
either way, on tuesday morning, he's up really, really, really early. like, unreasonably early for lu bixing. like
maybe he didn't sleep at all
either way he's kind of in the hallway where lin jingheng's room is like he's waffling over knocking on the door. what if he wakes up his lil sweetheart roommate. he's just here. he has coffee? it might be watered down but he has it! he has not slept. send help. ]
anyway lu bixing is still sticking to lin jingheng like glue most of the time, though, he did sleep in his own bed which was an improvement. did he sleep well? no. it's fine.
either way, on tuesday morning, he's up really, really, really early. like, unreasonably early for lu bixing. like
maybe he didn't sleep at all
either way he's kind of in the hallway where lin jingheng's room is like he's waffling over knocking on the door. what if he wakes up his lil sweetheart roommate. he's just here. he has coffee? it might be watered down but he has it! he has not slept. send help. ]
[ it's critroles all over again but worse???? still, jingheng does emerge from the room very quietly, zhanlu on his arm. he's been up for a while, so hearing bixing move down the hall isn't too difficult. as he lifts his head, he sees the coffee and
glances down the hall before gently setting a hand on lu bixing's arm. ]
... You slept by yourself.
[ captain obvious but like THIS IS A COMPLAINT IN THE MOST LJH MANNER. he bumps him as he starts to walk them towards idk a source of food maybe. ]
Stay with me tonight.
glances down the hall before gently setting a hand on lu bixing's arm. ]
... You slept by yourself.
[ captain obvious but like THIS IS A COMPLAINT IN THE MOST LJH MANNER. he bumps him as he starts to walk them towards idk a source of food maybe. ]
Stay with me tonight.
[ here we are in the planetarium post-trial, jingheng walking beside bixing as they make their way in post-trial. getting as far away from the location of the last utterly chaotic 9 hours is just great thanks. he is still, shockingly, wearing tolerating popcorn around his neck.
he has his fingers wound around lu bixing's own loosely, drawing him somewhere to sit in the dimness. ]
Bixing.
[ a squeeze. ]
A long day for us.
[ nothing we can't handle. is something he'd want to say in this moment, but he can't bring himself to. the absurdity of it all feels like a mockery. ]
he has his fingers wound around lu bixing's own loosely, drawing him somewhere to sit in the dimness. ]
Bixing.
[ a squeeze. ]
A long day for us.
[ nothing we can't handle. is something he'd want to say in this moment, but he can't bring himself to. the absurdity of it all feels like a mockery. ]
[ god he's so tired. what an absolutely wild, insane day, with more questions than answers, with more puns than sense, and - at the very end, with a cruel comment that's sticking in the back of even lu bixing's craw.
he looks tired, but he's looked tired every day, and this is no different. still - he rubs his face, exhausted, and then turns to look at lin jingheng. the sight of him, with popcorn around his neck of all things, makes him smile.
he lets himself soak in the warmth of holding his hand in his own, quietly thankful, and takes that hand a little tighter, to pull it up and hold it tighter in his own. ]
A long, strange day with more questions than answers. [ a pause, and then, a little ruefully - ] ...I'm tired. I know you must be, too.
he looks tired, but he's looked tired every day, and this is no different. still - he rubs his face, exhausted, and then turns to look at lin jingheng. the sight of him, with popcorn around his neck of all things, makes him smile.
he lets himself soak in the warmth of holding his hand in his own, quietly thankful, and takes that hand a little tighter, to pull it up and hold it tighter in his own. ]
A long, strange day with more questions than answers. [ a pause, and then, a little ruefully - ] ...I'm tired. I know you must be, too.
[ he's once again out here looking for this lil shit because he's actin' up! he's dressed like a slut (jk) but his shirt is a little unbuttoned and he's leaning in the doorway of the new, superior bar. wow it's a clownshow in here already. ]
Scrublord. Really.
[ hey there. ]
Scrublord. Really.
[ hey there. ]
Edited 2023-02-13 20:59 (UTC)
[
anyway lu bixing sure is acting up. actually the reason he's acting up becomes blatantly apparent if lin jingheng sees the emptied drink sitting next to him. someone got a little flustered earlier, ordered a drink in a panic, and now you have this. there's a second drink next to him too, though the cup looks different......
he turns around in his chair and leans backwards, crosses an ankle over his knee in his impeccable dress pants, and leans back with a smug smirk on his face that really should be on lin jingheng's. ]
What can I say? I'm ripped.
anyway lu bixing sure is acting up. actually the reason he's acting up becomes blatantly apparent if lin jingheng sees the emptied drink sitting next to him. someone got a little flustered earlier, ordered a drink in a panic, and now you have this. there's a second drink next to him too, though the cup looks different......
he turns around in his chair and leans backwards, crosses an ankle over his knee in his impeccable dress pants, and leans back with a smug smirk on his face that really should be on lin jingheng's. ]
What can I say? I'm ripped.
[ you remember how mad lu bixing was the last time you got brutally injured and almost died and tried to walk it off
that's about how mad he is right now. once everyone else is gone and lin's been bandaged and treated, lu bixing herds him off to the shower that is now cleaned and locks the door. he points at the shower. ]
Strip, please. [ in like, the least sexy way possible. ] I know you won't ask for help even if you need it.
[ (but really, this is how he copes. he's learned how to cope, now. he's learned to look at his own emotions like a critical observer, and set them aside. that's what he's had to do.) ]
that's about how mad he is right now. once everyone else is gone and lin's been bandaged and treated, lu bixing herds him off to the shower that is now cleaned and locks the door. he points at the shower. ]
Strip, please. [ in like, the least sexy way possible. ] I know you won't ask for help even if you need it.
[ (but really, this is how he copes. he's learned how to cope, now. he's learned to look at his own emotions like a critical observer, and set them aside. that's what he's had to do.) ]
[ yeah he remembers, he remembers real good. how could he forget?
he allows himself to be herded to the shower, though the furrow in his brow hasn't left since he stepped off the ferry. as lu bixing decides to??? start ordering him around???? he lifts his head and basically holds his stupid shirt closed and stares at him for a long moment. ]
And your burns? What about those?
[ mrgh. emotions. he lifts a hand and starts unbuttoning his shirt (slowly), shrugging it off his good shoulder and then carefully starting to extricate it from his bandaged shoulder. it is about as slow as a wounded person gets, but lu bixing is right... he won't ask for help even if he needs it. ]
he allows himself to be herded to the shower, though the furrow in his brow hasn't left since he stepped off the ferry. as lu bixing decides to??? start ordering him around???? he lifts his head and basically holds his stupid shirt closed and stares at him for a long moment. ]
And your burns? What about those?
[ mrgh. emotions. he lifts a hand and starts unbuttoning his shirt (slowly), shrugging it off his good shoulder and then carefully starting to extricate it from his bandaged shoulder. it is about as slow as a wounded person gets, but lu bixing is right... he won't ask for help even if he needs it. ]
Edited 2023-02-16 23:19 (UTC)
[ waking up in the ballpit to the dulcet tones of eto is dead sure is a great way to wake up, right?
lu bixing is covering his tracks and lin jingheng knows it, he knows that he's pushing away every instinct to mourn and instead is saving face with his head held high. lin jingheng is no fool, he knows what years do to a man, but he will never forgive himself for this, for letting lu bixing become this and letting the galaxy carve him out in this way. everyone must grow up, it's true, but must they grow up like this?
he leads lu bixing out of the bar after their goodbyes, taking him by the shoulder and steering him quietly to whichever one of their rooms is unoccupied. once there, it's easy to shut the door and pivot lu bixing so that they are facing one another, his hands resting on his shoulders until one lifts to gently tip lu's chin, a thumb pressed to the center. ]
Don't put on a show for me like you did the others.
[ his expression is hard. tell me how you REALLY feel, bitch. ]
lu bixing is covering his tracks and lin jingheng knows it, he knows that he's pushing away every instinct to mourn and instead is saving face with his head held high. lin jingheng is no fool, he knows what years do to a man, but he will never forgive himself for this, for letting lu bixing become this and letting the galaxy carve him out in this way. everyone must grow up, it's true, but must they grow up like this?
he leads lu bixing out of the bar after their goodbyes, taking him by the shoulder and steering him quietly to whichever one of their rooms is unoccupied. once there, it's easy to shut the door and pivot lu bixing so that they are facing one another, his hands resting on his shoulders until one lifts to gently tip lu's chin, a thumb pressed to the center. ]
Don't put on a show for me like you did the others.
[ his expression is hard. tell me how you REALLY feel, bitch. ]
[ lmao!!! lmao.
the others probably didn't notice it, but of course, lin jingheng would. of course, lin jingheng would see the way that lu bixing's eyes widened when he read the note, and then the way he just - shut down. he's shut down, since, the light in his eyes almost vanished. the way he reached out and sent text messages to confirm with others that they were alright - four, persephone, lavi, kon, hana, the people he's become close to, the careful response of someone who has been through this, before. how he started to make a list of places to investigate on his phone. how he started to sort through potential gun owners - ryo, hana. lin with his harpoon, but it would've left a different mark and he doesn't even consider it. the simple matters of evidence. the who. the what. the why.
he's silent the entire time lin jingheng starts to manhandle him. he doesn't stumble or fight him off just allows it to happen, on complete and total autopilot. he doesn't allow himself to feel for a second. he can't. not again.
(not again. not captain turan's voice. we lost contact with Zhanlu... We lost contact with Monoeye Hawk.)
not again.
it's only when his chin is grabbed that he finally seems to snap out of wherever his mind was. lu bixing blinks, unfocused, and turns his gaze on lin. (lin, who is alive, who he just watched die this week, which he sees every time he closes his eyes.) ]
What?
[ is what he says, at first, truly - like he's coming back online. ] I'm not...
[ it's a useless protest, probably, but he has to hold onto the threads of his composure or they'll crack. ]
the others probably didn't notice it, but of course, lin jingheng would. of course, lin jingheng would see the way that lu bixing's eyes widened when he read the note, and then the way he just - shut down. he's shut down, since, the light in his eyes almost vanished. the way he reached out and sent text messages to confirm with others that they were alright - four, persephone, lavi, kon, hana, the people he's become close to, the careful response of someone who has been through this, before. how he started to make a list of places to investigate on his phone. how he started to sort through potential gun owners - ryo, hana. lin with his harpoon, but it would've left a different mark and he doesn't even consider it. the simple matters of evidence. the who. the what. the why.
he's silent the entire time lin jingheng starts to manhandle him. he doesn't stumble or fight him off just allows it to happen, on complete and total autopilot. he doesn't allow himself to feel for a second. he can't. not again.
(not again. not captain turan's voice. we lost contact with Zhanlu... We lost contact with Monoeye Hawk.)
not again.
it's only when his chin is grabbed that he finally seems to snap out of wherever his mind was. lu bixing blinks, unfocused, and turns his gaze on lin. (lin, who is alive, who he just watched die this week, which he sees every time he closes his eyes.) ]
What?
[ is what he says, at first, truly - like he's coming back online. ] I'm not...
[ it's a useless protest, probably, but he has to hold onto the threads of his composure or they'll crack. ]
[ hey baby, he came to find you wow. he also has drinks in to go cups.
but in all seriousness, here is lin jingheng, zhanlu just vibing on his arm. it doesn't take him too long to find lu bixing at the fucking weedy's blunt hut or whatever we're calling the smoke shop/lounge portion, but anyways. it's sheer dumb luck.
so wherever lu bixing is, lin jingheng sits himself down wordlessly because what do you even say? what is there to say after that? there are no apologies possible to make in this moment.
all he does is wrinkle his nose a bit at the smell. ]
but in all seriousness, here is lin jingheng, zhanlu just vibing on his arm. it doesn't take him too long to find lu bixing at the fucking weedy's blunt hut or whatever we're calling the smoke shop/lounge portion, but anyways. it's sheer dumb luck.
so wherever lu bixing is, lin jingheng sits himself down wordlessly because what do you even say? what is there to say after that? there are no apologies possible to make in this moment.
all he does is wrinkle his nose a bit at the smell. ]
[ apparently there is no seating area so we will say he's sitting outside up against the side of the building. jingheng knows him - he can see his long leggies sticking out.
when he realizes lin is here, though, belatedly, lu bixing lolls his head over to look at him. and then, seems to properly recognize? and like, pulls the blunt down out of side like that will hide the fact that it is clearly in use. his brows knit together, and his lips purse into something soft and worried. ]
... Lin. Were you looking for me...?
when he realizes lin is here, though, belatedly, lu bixing lolls his head over to look at him. and then, seems to properly recognize? and like, pulls the blunt down out of side like that will hide the fact that it is clearly in use. his brows knit together, and his lips purse into something soft and worried. ]
... Lin. Were you looking for me...?
[ lin jingheng has immediately taken lu bixing off the goddamn stage and honestly, they are probably not staying on party island, if only because lu bixing has had a fucking day and so has lin jingheng by proxy. still, he embraces him, no matter how wobbly or still or stiff or shaken he is, he pushes his face into his shoulder and he holds him to his chest and he keeps him there. needs to affirm that lu bixing is real, he is alive, he is here.
(he is going insane in this moment, he swears he's flickering. it's not fair. don't take him don't take him don't take him.)
jingheng is thorough as he checks wounds and bruises, knows that there are some he can't touch until they are somewhere quiet, somewhere alone to let the weight of the past settle in between them. he gathers him with ease, a coat over his shoulders and one step at a time, from the ferry to the shore to the comfort of the narrow threshold.
the moment the door is shut, it is clear:
break. ]
(he is going insane in this moment, he swears he's flickering. it's not fair. don't take him don't take him don't take him.)
jingheng is thorough as he checks wounds and bruises, knows that there are some he can't touch until they are somewhere quiet, somewhere alone to let the weight of the past settle in between them. he gathers him with ease, a coat over his shoulders and one step at a time, from the ferry to the shore to the comfort of the narrow threshold.
the moment the door is shut, it is clear:
break. ]
[ wow it's lu bixing's turn to be beat up this time, huh.
the pain feels sort of dim, now. he only registers it dimly that he's being treated and hustled off the island, onto the ferry, and he doesn't bother trying to look strong or tough when lin jingheng pulls him close on it. he doesn't cry, but his hands tremble, and he holds very, very still, almost numb as they go through the motions.
and when they're back and alone in lin jingheng's room, lu bixing tiredly starts to unbutton the buttons on his shirt, and says in a rough, tired voice: ]
...I'm sorry, for worrying you.
[ he knows that must have been terrifying. knows it intimately, from having to see lin die just a few days ago.
joking, very lightly, in a sort of attempt at stepping away from the absolute immensity of everything that just happens, as he fumbles with his buttons with shaking hands, he says; ] What do you think. Monoeye Bixing? Monoeye Dog?
the pain feels sort of dim, now. he only registers it dimly that he's being treated and hustled off the island, onto the ferry, and he doesn't bother trying to look strong or tough when lin jingheng pulls him close on it. he doesn't cry, but his hands tremble, and he holds very, very still, almost numb as they go through the motions.
and when they're back and alone in lin jingheng's room, lu bixing tiredly starts to unbutton the buttons on his shirt, and says in a rough, tired voice: ]
...I'm sorry, for worrying you.
[ he knows that must have been terrifying. knows it intimately, from having to see lin die just a few days ago.
joking, very lightly, in a sort of attempt at stepping away from the absolute immensity of everything that just happens, as he fumbles with his buttons with shaking hands, he says; ] What do you think. Monoeye Bixing? Monoeye Dog?
[ sis ill kill you if you're dead this week.
anyways, here is lin jingheng waiting for lu bixing to meet him here at the aquarium. he's currently dressed in a dark gray button down, some black gloves and his blue jacket draped over his shoulders. zhanlu is here, of course, on his arm and hanging out.
with a cigarette dangling from his mouth and leaning against a wall, he truly just looks like his usual trash self. damn. he's just currently flicking through his phone while waiting for his showman boyfriend to make himself Known. ]
anyways, here is lin jingheng waiting for lu bixing to meet him here at the aquarium. he's currently dressed in a dark gray button down, some black gloves and his blue jacket draped over his shoulders. zhanlu is here, of course, on his arm and hanging out.
with a cigarette dangling from his mouth and leaning against a wall, he truly just looks like his usual trash self. damn. he's just currently flicking through his phone while waiting for his showman boyfriend to make himself Known. ]
[ points gun
aquarium date!!! lu bixing shows up right on time for their meeting, and he is really looking his best in this terrible hell that we're in. button up shirt, nice trousers, coat slung over his shoulder - he's gotten a stylish patch for his eye, and has his hair done, sunglasses perched on his nose and then pushed up into his hair like a model.
he gives lin his most award winning smile and then bounds over to him immediately, like a puppy. ]
Wow, the catch of the day's right here. [ CHEESY ] Hi! Ready to go?
aquarium date!!! lu bixing shows up right on time for their meeting, and he is really looking his best in this terrible hell that we're in. button up shirt, nice trousers, coat slung over his shoulder - he's gotten a stylish patch for his eye, and has his hair done, sunglasses perched on his nose and then pushed up into his hair like a model.
he gives lin his most award winning smile and then bounds over to him immediately, like a puppy. ]
Wow, the catch of the day's right here. [ CHEESY ] Hi! Ready to go?
GOD YES IT IS MY TIME TO JUST TAG THIS DUMB AQUARIUM DATE ALL NIGHT
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awol
- 2023-02-22 02:28 (UTC) - Expand[ ding ding ding here comes the deda announcement as they are waking up in the tentacle bar. there's a lighter flicking on, and then a cigarette being lit almost immediately within a few seconds of the announcement's aftermath. ]
I'm done playing games.
[ he's really going to have to do this on a fucking saturday. this bullshit. that's his sonion. ]
I'm done playing games.
[ he's really going to have to do this on a fucking saturday. this bullshit. that's his sonion. ]
Edited 2023-02-24 23:12 (UTC)
[ every name hurts. last week, it was lu bixing who was especially affected - this week, he liked cosmos, and there's always something brutal and heartbreaking about the loss of a life like that. for lu bixing, it feels too famiiar.
his heart breaks the most right now for lin, though, because as soon as he reads the message, his head whips up to lin, eyes wide, mouth a little open, before it all collapses down into something softer, the pull of his mouth dropping into the curve of misery, though he tamps it down. ]
... Lin. [ he says, voice quiet, and very gently puts a hand on the back of his shoulder, then stays.
... ]
...mm. Aquarium, it looks like. [ from the second picture. a little more businesslike, the prime minister's voice. ] We can find out where everyone was sleeping tonight, too.
his heart breaks the most right now for lin, though, because as soon as he reads the message, his head whips up to lin, eyes wide, mouth a little open, before it all collapses down into something softer, the pull of his mouth dropping into the curve of misery, though he tamps it down. ]
... Lin. [ he says, voice quiet, and very gently puts a hand on the back of his shoulder, then stays.
... ]
...mm. Aquarium, it looks like. [ from the second picture. a little more businesslike, the prime minister's voice. ] We can find out where everyone was sleeping tonight, too.
[ ugh.
well that fucking sucked. that sucked just as bad as last week. lu bixing is exhausted, but he finds lin jingheng and takes his hand, and takes him far, far away from gehenna and the dorms, and away somewhere where they can just, sit and be left alone.
he settles them on the dock, and then just sits down, sighs, and reaches into his pocket for a tiny satchel. inside of it is... a lighter and some good kush, because frankly, he's so tired and so sad and this is just. how he dealt with it, for thirteen years. right now, he just wants to press his face into lin and never move away, so he's going to settle in and just press his face to his shoulder and hold still there before he does literally anything. ]
well that fucking sucked. that sucked just as bad as last week. lu bixing is exhausted, but he finds lin jingheng and takes his hand, and takes him far, far away from gehenna and the dorms, and away somewhere where they can just, sit and be left alone.
he settles them on the dock, and then just sits down, sighs, and reaches into his pocket for a tiny satchel. inside of it is... a lighter and some good kush, because frankly, he's so tired and so sad and this is just. how he dealt with it, for thirteen years. right now, he just wants to press his face into lin and never move away, so he's going to settle in and just press his face to his shoulder and hold still there before he does literally anything. ]
[ oh this is actually soft wow i love him anyways, yeah, lin will follow him, tripping into his steps at some point. it doesn't matter where they go, so long as he doesn't have to leave lu bixing's side. his fingers clutch at him and as they draw near the docks, a breath leaves him, crisp and clear, just oxygen.
as they sit down, lin jingheng turns his eyes towards the sky a hand resting over lu bixing's waist, feeling the way he burrows into him. his lungs heave, and it feels alive, it feels human. he clutches a little tightly at his jacket, and turns inwards, covering him, holding him close.
that's hell, isn't it? it's supposed to be torture like this. hell for lin jingheng is a no-win scenario, the scales always tipping into fire no matter how quickly you climb or how far you push your boulder. he lifts the arm around lu bixing's waist and shifts to slide fingers through his hair, to draw him close and kiss the top of his head softly. ]
as they sit down, lin jingheng turns his eyes towards the sky a hand resting over lu bixing's waist, feeling the way he burrows into him. his lungs heave, and it feels alive, it feels human. he clutches a little tightly at his jacket, and turns inwards, covering him, holding him close.
that's hell, isn't it? it's supposed to be torture like this. hell for lin jingheng is a no-win scenario, the scales always tipping into fire no matter how quickly you climb or how far you push your boulder. he lifts the arm around lu bixing's waist and shifts to slide fingers through his hair, to draw him close and kiss the top of his head softly. ]
[ i just think the funniest possible option is for this to happen at the worst possible time. so it's happening like this - it's when lu bixing is coming to greet lin jingheng this fine morning, that he leans over and pecks him on the mouth as a kiss good afternoon that the hole for memory share opens up right underneath them.
lu bixing hits the ground, surprised, still holding onto lin's arm. he barely has enough time to process what's happening when he realizes the screen has once again dropped. there's a small, sharp gasp, and he hopes, against all hopes, this is going to be something normal -
but of course, it's not. ]
lu bixing hits the ground, surprised, still holding onto lin's arm. he barely has enough time to process what's happening when he realizes the screen has once again dropped. there's a small, sharp gasp, and he hopes, against all hopes, this is going to be something normal -
but of course, it's not. ]
Edited 2023-02-28 20:25 (UTC)
[ after lin jingheng and monoeye hawk die, you spend one hundred days locked in your house.
you're working. the eighth is a mess in an aftermath of the battle with the seventh galaxy, and zhanlu has been destroyed. you have to fix him. you spend one hundred days in your house, alone, sending out missives. speaking to prime minister edward, too sickly to do much, taking over his duties where you can. you try and fix zhanlu.
five hundred days into your restart of life, prime minister edward passes away, of sickness, of old age, and you officially take his spot. you, as the new prime minister, host the state affair of his funeral. there was a eulogy. you think you remember people looking at you. staring. watching. you remember the caskets of nothing and the tombstones and now... you're home.
home. for five hundred days, this is where you've spent all your time. five hundred days ago, monoeye hawk and lin jingheng perished, in the battle for the seventh galaxy. five hundred days ago, your entire world ended.
there were no funerals, then.
when you first arrive at the home of engineer 001 and commander lin, as the sign cheerfully reminds you, hanging over the door, you make it all the way inside. you go to the kitchen. the ai of zhanlu, in butler mode, greets you, you think, but it sounds like it comes from underwater. you go to the refrigerator. you think - a drink. i need a drink. and you open the fridge. there's hardly anything in it - supplies in the eighth galaxy are heavily rationed, right now, and alcohol is no exception - but at the back, an unopened bottle of beer, and as your hand curls around the neck, you remember -
you see the mental image, of lin jingheng in his pajamas, bedhead, staring at the beer bottle like it personally wounded him for being so disgusting, and putting it back, and sulking to the kitchen table to a cup of cold tea, instead, and for some reason, the grief and the memory snaps the last remaining piece of your stability in two.
you scream. you just scream, at the top of your lungs, as the image vanishes, the bellow of a miserable animal, and the whole world goes dark as you stagger to the area of the house where the medical capsule is, you bang your fist on the edge of it in your frustration and start asking it, i need a hallucinogen, i need an opiate, i need drugs, give them to me, i need it, i don't want to be awake, i need it, i need it - and the capsule doesn't respond. you're shaking too hard to do anything or type anything and your fingers claw in desperation at the metal. you scream, again, despairing, drowning, miserable, slam your fist against the capsule again.
zhanlu's voice comes over your head. soft, quiet, concerned - you scream at him, too, the AI unable to do anything but warn you. "Headmaster Lu, I can't accept those requests right now, you're too unstable. Headmaster Lu, this is your first warning."
he's an AI. he has to listen to you. you ignore him, shaking, almost hyperventilating, and after the second warning, you snarl - ] Zhanlu, give me a gun.
[ because you've lost everything. in one fell swoop, in one moment, you've lost everything and you can only run from it for so long. you've worked so hard. you've done so much, to not look it in the eye, but the grief is a monster that lives under your bed and in your brain and today it rips you in two. it's all-consuming, like it was when you were a child, and zhanlu can't ignore you, and as the gun is placed into your hands, you start to bring it up, to your head, start to --
then
zhanlu projects footage on the wall in front of your head.
you forget everything.
you sink down to the floor, and you watch the clip again. you watch it again. you watch it again. you watch that clip hundreds of times and you don't sleep, and the next morning, you drag yourself to your desk, grab a pocket knife, and carve a single hatch mark on your desk. you push yourself to standing. you turn off zhanlu's automation function, so he can make conscious decisions, because you - you can't be trusted with yourself, all the time. you know that, now you've fallen and burnt to ashes, and now you have to rebuild yourself. one scratch mark says i fell, and i nearly quit, but i dragged myself to standing.
--
three years pass in the new independent era in the eighth galaxy. you are their leader, the face of their revolution and their prime minister, and no one outside of your home knows the turmoil that you go through. they can't see you that way. in those three years, a group of pirates and black market illegal merchants reemerged, emboldened by the chance to disrupt the economy you've worked so hard to build. it launches the galaxy into a war that lasts three long years, and you command your military forces and your political forces like an expert. you are an expert, you're the prime minister lu bixing. you can do anything.
five more scratch marks are carved into your desk.
you promised prime minister edward before he died this - if you fell seven times, you'd get up eight. these are your falls. these are your dips into despair that are so deep that you want to die. you want to die. locked into the misery of your ruthless job, alone, you want to die. you want to die, you want to die, you want to die.
you can't die. the eighth needs you.
after the first one hundred days on your own, your house is invaded by other engineers who come to help you work on zhanlu so he's no longer just in emergency mode. it takes you all a total of four hundred days to get him online, but the other engineers are so crowded and messy that you force them out, and you need to move things to the attic. the attic is untouched and filled with lin jingheng's things. you could almost see him next to you. you could almost have him there.
you light up a cigarette. you inhale, just for the sake of the familiarity. to feel like he's there, that you could see him, that he's not gone and you were just delusional the whole time, stupid -
- the smoke burns your lungs, and you start to cough, violently, violently, and you take the cigarette and you smash the burning end into your arm until the pain is so bright and smart that it forces you to come back to your senses. he's dead. lin jingheng is dead. nothing will bring him back and he is dead.
two hatch marks.
another day, you find yourself trembling as you inject a biochip in your arm. it's an opium biochip - the kind being used to create 'perfect humans', though the data is incomplete. it won't be, for you. it becomes your pet project. you work. you experiment on yourself. you inject yourself, over and over again. you work. you work. you don't sleep. you rule the eighth galaxy, you unite its forces through carrot and through stick, monitoring public executions and supply rations and economic growth and population happiness all at once, and you pull an entire galaxy to its feet while you tremble on your knees in the dark.
three hatch marks. four. five.
(you download all of the video data of lin jingheng in zhanlu's system. you watch every single part of it. you work. you work, you work, you work, you throw yourself into your duties and at night you take drugs and force yourself to sleep only when you need to, or when zhanlu forces you to, like a tiny hand tugging at your pinky finger when you're about to let loose on the world.)
--
in the seventh year of the new era, one of your students, brilliant, brilliant mint, pilots the first program to travel through the heart of the rose, the wormhole at the edge of your galaxy, your natural barrier. you are told not to go, but you go, anyway. what's the worst that could happen? you'll die? you don't care. you go on your own.
the people in the eighth praise your courage when you return with fresh research for mint's project. you didn't die. instead, you gathered data, and from the inside of the wormhole, the data gathered gets you the visuals on what happened when the seventh and the eighth galaxy fleets, respectively, were destroyed. your father's ship. lin's. gone. destroyed, in the blink of an eye.
you come home from your trip. you order captain turan to station patrols around the wormhole, now that it's active. you lock yourself in your lab. you take a strand of lin's hair you extracted from the couch and you open a breeding tank in a fit of madness nad you think, i could just reconstruct him, because you could, you're a genius, it would be easy, it would be so easy, and zhanlu blows up the breeding tank.
you stay in the dark lab for three days afterwards, but when you emerge, the knife comes out, and you scratch the sixth mark into the wood of your desk.
--
the final hatch mark is the product of your research, nine years into the new era of the Eighth Galaxy.
you stand there on the precipice. you stand there, with your completed opiate biochip research. with this completed project, with all the tests you ran on yourself, you've given yourself those abilities. you are fast. you are strong, you are, in essence, the perfect human, and you've found a way you could transplant it into anyone. tested on mice, tested on yourself. you have learned that the rainbow virus can be used to break humanity down to ashes, and rebuild them as something greater. you know, now, why you lived through that first outbreak.
you could have an army of superhumans, you could take over the IUS. you could take over the entire universe. it has taken you nine years to prove this scientific theory, and you found out that it's true.
(you could wreak destruction, on the people who took your father and lin jingheng from you.)
you stare at the papers in your hands. they tremble.
this time, you don't call captain turan. this time, you don't call the engineering department. this time you don't deliver the research. you go to your office. you work, all day long. you come home, and you stare at the papers.
you walk to your lab, where you've secretly kept those strains of the rainbow virus, papers in hand.
and you set the sample and every single paper ablaze, and destroy it for good.
when you return to your desk, you mark the final hatch mark.
if you fall seven times, you have to rise eight.
with a storm in your heart, you turn away from destruction.
with a storm in your heart, you rise. ]
you're working. the eighth is a mess in an aftermath of the battle with the seventh galaxy, and zhanlu has been destroyed. you have to fix him. you spend one hundred days in your house, alone, sending out missives. speaking to prime minister edward, too sickly to do much, taking over his duties where you can. you try and fix zhanlu.
five hundred days into your restart of life, prime minister edward passes away, of sickness, of old age, and you officially take his spot. you, as the new prime minister, host the state affair of his funeral. there was a eulogy. you think you remember people looking at you. staring. watching. you remember the caskets of nothing and the tombstones and now... you're home.
home. for five hundred days, this is where you've spent all your time. five hundred days ago, monoeye hawk and lin jingheng perished, in the battle for the seventh galaxy. five hundred days ago, your entire world ended.
there were no funerals, then.
when you first arrive at the home of engineer 001 and commander lin, as the sign cheerfully reminds you, hanging over the door, you make it all the way inside. you go to the kitchen. the ai of zhanlu, in butler mode, greets you, you think, but it sounds like it comes from underwater. you go to the refrigerator. you think - a drink. i need a drink. and you open the fridge. there's hardly anything in it - supplies in the eighth galaxy are heavily rationed, right now, and alcohol is no exception - but at the back, an unopened bottle of beer, and as your hand curls around the neck, you remember -
you see the mental image, of lin jingheng in his pajamas, bedhead, staring at the beer bottle like it personally wounded him for being so disgusting, and putting it back, and sulking to the kitchen table to a cup of cold tea, instead, and for some reason, the grief and the memory snaps the last remaining piece of your stability in two.
you scream. you just scream, at the top of your lungs, as the image vanishes, the bellow of a miserable animal, and the whole world goes dark as you stagger to the area of the house where the medical capsule is, you bang your fist on the edge of it in your frustration and start asking it, i need a hallucinogen, i need an opiate, i need drugs, give them to me, i need it, i don't want to be awake, i need it, i need it - and the capsule doesn't respond. you're shaking too hard to do anything or type anything and your fingers claw in desperation at the metal. you scream, again, despairing, drowning, miserable, slam your fist against the capsule again.
zhanlu's voice comes over your head. soft, quiet, concerned - you scream at him, too, the AI unable to do anything but warn you. "Headmaster Lu, I can't accept those requests right now, you're too unstable. Headmaster Lu, this is your first warning."
he's an AI. he has to listen to you. you ignore him, shaking, almost hyperventilating, and after the second warning, you snarl - ] Zhanlu, give me a gun.
[ because you've lost everything. in one fell swoop, in one moment, you've lost everything and you can only run from it for so long. you've worked so hard. you've done so much, to not look it in the eye, but the grief is a monster that lives under your bed and in your brain and today it rips you in two. it's all-consuming, like it was when you were a child, and zhanlu can't ignore you, and as the gun is placed into your hands, you start to bring it up, to your head, start to --
then
zhanlu projects footage on the wall in front of your head.
A 14-year-old Lin Jingheng was attending the opening ceremony of the Black Orchid Academy. The ceremonial hall was decorated with heroic histories of the Union since its founding, motivational and inspiring. The young boy sat in the corner with his attention being pulled away occasionally. But even then, he still wanted to act cool, and pretended to look around in boredom whenever he remembered he was still in the middle of a ceremony. He then accidentally noticed the small camera beside him that was recording his every move; his face reddened in embarrassment and anger as he slapped his hand down and turned off the recording.
you forget everything.
you sink down to the floor, and you watch the clip again. you watch it again. you watch it again. you watch that clip hundreds of times and you don't sleep, and the next morning, you drag yourself to your desk, grab a pocket knife, and carve a single hatch mark on your desk. you push yourself to standing. you turn off zhanlu's automation function, so he can make conscious decisions, because you - you can't be trusted with yourself, all the time. you know that, now you've fallen and burnt to ashes, and now you have to rebuild yourself. one scratch mark says i fell, and i nearly quit, but i dragged myself to standing.
--
three years pass in the new independent era in the eighth galaxy. you are their leader, the face of their revolution and their prime minister, and no one outside of your home knows the turmoil that you go through. they can't see you that way. in those three years, a group of pirates and black market illegal merchants reemerged, emboldened by the chance to disrupt the economy you've worked so hard to build. it launches the galaxy into a war that lasts three long years, and you command your military forces and your political forces like an expert. you are an expert, you're the prime minister lu bixing. you can do anything.
five more scratch marks are carved into your desk.
you promised prime minister edward before he died this - if you fell seven times, you'd get up eight. these are your falls. these are your dips into despair that are so deep that you want to die. you want to die. locked into the misery of your ruthless job, alone, you want to die. you want to die, you want to die, you want to die.
you can't die. the eighth needs you.
after the first one hundred days on your own, your house is invaded by other engineers who come to help you work on zhanlu so he's no longer just in emergency mode. it takes you all a total of four hundred days to get him online, but the other engineers are so crowded and messy that you force them out, and you need to move things to the attic. the attic is untouched and filled with lin jingheng's things. you could almost see him next to you. you could almost have him there.
you light up a cigarette. you inhale, just for the sake of the familiarity. to feel like he's there, that you could see him, that he's not gone and you were just delusional the whole time, stupid -
- the smoke burns your lungs, and you start to cough, violently, violently, and you take the cigarette and you smash the burning end into your arm until the pain is so bright and smart that it forces you to come back to your senses. he's dead. lin jingheng is dead. nothing will bring him back and he is dead.
two hatch marks.
another day, you find yourself trembling as you inject a biochip in your arm. it's an opium biochip - the kind being used to create 'perfect humans', though the data is incomplete. it won't be, for you. it becomes your pet project. you work. you experiment on yourself. you inject yourself, over and over again. you work. you work. you don't sleep. you rule the eighth galaxy, you unite its forces through carrot and through stick, monitoring public executions and supply rations and economic growth and population happiness all at once, and you pull an entire galaxy to its feet while you tremble on your knees in the dark.
three hatch marks. four. five.
(you download all of the video data of lin jingheng in zhanlu's system. you watch every single part of it. you work. you work, you work, you work, you throw yourself into your duties and at night you take drugs and force yourself to sleep only when you need to, or when zhanlu forces you to, like a tiny hand tugging at your pinky finger when you're about to let loose on the world.)
--
in the seventh year of the new era, one of your students, brilliant, brilliant mint, pilots the first program to travel through the heart of the rose, the wormhole at the edge of your galaxy, your natural barrier. you are told not to go, but you go, anyway. what's the worst that could happen? you'll die? you don't care. you go on your own.
the people in the eighth praise your courage when you return with fresh research for mint's project. you didn't die. instead, you gathered data, and from the inside of the wormhole, the data gathered gets you the visuals on what happened when the seventh and the eighth galaxy fleets, respectively, were destroyed. your father's ship. lin's. gone. destroyed, in the blink of an eye.
you come home from your trip. you order captain turan to station patrols around the wormhole, now that it's active. you lock yourself in your lab. you take a strand of lin's hair you extracted from the couch and you open a breeding tank in a fit of madness nad you think, i could just reconstruct him, because you could, you're a genius, it would be easy, it would be so easy, and zhanlu blows up the breeding tank.
you stay in the dark lab for three days afterwards, but when you emerge, the knife comes out, and you scratch the sixth mark into the wood of your desk.
--
the final hatch mark is the product of your research, nine years into the new era of the Eighth Galaxy.
you stand there on the precipice. you stand there, with your completed opiate biochip research. with this completed project, with all the tests you ran on yourself, you've given yourself those abilities. you are fast. you are strong, you are, in essence, the perfect human, and you've found a way you could transplant it into anyone. tested on mice, tested on yourself. you have learned that the rainbow virus can be used to break humanity down to ashes, and rebuild them as something greater. you know, now, why you lived through that first outbreak.
you could have an army of superhumans, you could take over the IUS. you could take over the entire universe. it has taken you nine years to prove this scientific theory, and you found out that it's true.
(you could wreak destruction, on the people who took your father and lin jingheng from you.)
you stare at the papers in your hands. they tremble.
this time, you don't call captain turan. this time, you don't call the engineering department. this time you don't deliver the research. you go to your office. you work, all day long. you come home, and you stare at the papers.
you walk to your lab, where you've secretly kept those strains of the rainbow virus, papers in hand.
and you set the sample and every single paper ablaze, and destroy it for good.
when you return to your desk, you mark the final hatch mark.
if you fall seven times, you have to rise eight.
with a storm in your heart, you turn away from destruction.
with a storm in your heart, you rise. ]
[ here we are in a kitchen (where?) a kitchen. lin jingheng is seated on the counter because fuck the rules, a cigarette in the corner of his mouth and being put to work stirring something because what else are his arms good for?
anyways, he can't have any proper part of the baking. you know what would happen. ]
anyways, he can't have any proper part of the baking. you know what would happen. ]
[ his arms are good for hugging lu bixing? hello?
anyway. he's over here at the pantry, a cookbook projected on his personal device, hovering over his wrist, and scrolling through the instructions. when he finds whatever he's looking for, he comes back - holding a bag of what looks like chocolate chunks, which he brings over to lin's bowl. ]
Thank you, Lin. [ this week isn't as miserable as last week was, but he still sounds a little tired. loss is loss, no matter what. ] Another Thursday passes.
anyway. he's over here at the pantry, a cookbook projected on his personal device, hovering over his wrist, and scrolling through the instructions. when he finds whatever he's looking for, he comes back - holding a bag of what looks like chocolate chunks, which he brings over to lin's bowl. ]
Thank you, Lin. [ this week isn't as miserable as last week was, but he still sounds a little tired. loss is loss, no matter what. ] Another Thursday passes.
[ everything is sad forever!!!!!!!
on this terrible saturday evening once again, it feels at least safe to go back to the room. it feels nice, actually, to step away from everything. from being the world's shoulder to cry on for a little while, and just spend time with lin. actually, what feels better is a chance to maybe throw out the misery of the day, and try and wash it away, and so... he's tugging lin off to the bathroom, and locking everyone else out for a little while.
he's tailing him a little like a puppy, today, just sticking close, and when they get there, he steps in behind lin jingheng and hugs him, wrapping his arms around his waist with no warning or anything, just stepping in and sticking his face in his shoulder and breathing in cigarette smoke and home. ]
... I am sorry. About earlier. I'll still tell you about it, if you want. [ muffled ] Gideon didn't mean it.
on this terrible saturday evening once again, it feels at least safe to go back to the room. it feels nice, actually, to step away from everything. from being the world's shoulder to cry on for a little while, and just spend time with lin. actually, what feels better is a chance to maybe throw out the misery of the day, and try and wash it away, and so... he's tugging lin off to the bathroom, and locking everyone else out for a little while.
he's tailing him a little like a puppy, today, just sticking close, and when they get there, he steps in behind lin jingheng and hugs him, wrapping his arms around his waist with no warning or anything, just stepping in and sticking his face in his shoulder and breathing in cigarette smoke and home. ]
... I am sorry. About earlier. I'll still tell you about it, if you want. [ muffled ] Gideon didn't mean it.
[ lu bixing knows that if they're going to be alone, he'll go wherever he wants. the bathroom is fine, better than fine. his nerves are on fire and he's prickling all over. if they're here in the bathroom together then it must be serious. ]
She's fine.
[ he doesn't care about pursuing it anymore, but he does shift and turn to look at lu bixing from the side of his gaze expectantly like go ahead and tell me what happened out there. ]
She's fine.
[ he doesn't care about pursuing it anymore, but he does shift and turn to look at lu bixing from the side of his gaze expectantly like go ahead and tell me what happened out there. ]
[ well good morning, lin jingheng is just resting, cheek in his palm and watching lu bixing sleep. his fingers just sort of slip upwards and touch his sleep-tousled curls. while his face remains rather stony, his eyes regard him warmly, like he could watch him sleep for any amount of time. ]
[ good morning....
lu bixing is not really a super sound sleeper nowadays, but he sleeps sooo much better than he used to when lin jingheng is beside him. even still, the hand in his curls is what stirs him out of a mostly dreamless slumber. at night, he rarely wears his eyepatch, so, it's just the scarred remains of where his eye used to be and the slow, sleepy blink of one sparkly, lovely brown one. there's a little drool on his pillow which ruins this cute image but that's okay.
and oh... to wake up to lin looking at him like that. is he dreaming still? ]
....Good morning, Lin. [ he says, sleepily, smiling up at him....? ] Did you come back to bed....?
lu bixing is not really a super sound sleeper nowadays, but he sleeps sooo much better than he used to when lin jingheng is beside him. even still, the hand in his curls is what stirs him out of a mostly dreamless slumber. at night, he rarely wears his eyepatch, so, it's just the scarred remains of where his eye used to be and the slow, sleepy blink of one sparkly, lovely brown one. there's a little drool on his pillow which ruins this cute image but that's okay.
and oh... to wake up to lin looking at him like that. is he dreaming still? ]
....Good morning, Lin. [ he says, sleepily, smiling up at him....? ] Did you come back to bed....?
[ hi, we're here in the onsen either curled up in the corner of the cozy group room or slinking into one of the other vacant rooms with futons for some quiet time. zhanlu is resting quietly on a low table humming a soft tune and lin jingheng is sliding the door shut with all of the solemness of a tomb door. thursday is starting to become a particularly obnoxious day. he grinds his teeth and pivots on his heel to crawl onto the futon with lu bixing.
it's the warmth of him that has him unclenching his jaw as he rests his head in one hand, the other with its thumb sliding into the tired space beneath lu bixing's eyes. ]
Tired yet?
it's the warmth of him that has him unclenching his jaw as he rests his head in one hand, the other with its thumb sliding into the tired space beneath lu bixing's eyes. ]
Tired yet?
[ lu bixing hates thursdays. he hates the whole weekend but he hates thursday the most. it's too reminiscent of that elevator on turan's command ship, and it makes him extra clingy, extra needy, and this is no exception. they slink off a little later in the evening before the hour of curfew is up, and he lifts up the blankets to gently pull them over them both.
as lin comes close, lu bixing tips his head up into his hand, into his thumb, remaining eye fluttering shut. ]
Mmm... no. I don't sleep well until I get knocked out. [ considering. he makes a soft noise, nuzzling into his palm, then pulling it close, laying a kiss on his wrist, over his pulse. ] How about you?
as lin comes close, lu bixing tips his head up into his hand, into his thumb, remaining eye fluttering shut. ]
Mmm... no. I don't sleep well until I get knocked out. [ considering. he makes a soft noise, nuzzling into his palm, then pulling it close, laying a kiss on his wrist, over his pulse. ] How about you?
[ pc everyday this week? no problem :ok_hand: ;9
anyways, here is lin jingheng sulking in a bar about childe and drinking... uh... something probably. he actually nyoomed prettttty hard out of the onsen after the announcement with the sort of 'i want to be alone' menacing aura. but lu bixing is always welcome so. ]
anyways, here is lin jingheng sulking in a bar about childe and drinking... uh... something probably. he actually nyoomed prettttty hard out of the onsen after the announcement with the sort of 'i want to be alone' menacing aura. but lu bixing is always welcome so. ]
[ hell yeah
as if bixing would let him go. he'd let lin have a few minutes to himself, but beyond that... well, he's hurrying to follow him. lin jingheng's had a terrible, terrible week, hasn't he? it makes bixing's heart ache, and when he spots him at the bar, he comes to find him quickly, lifting a hand as his fingers curl briefly in the air before he slides it gently between his shoulderblades by way of greeting.
he asks, very softly: ] Can I join you?
as if bixing would let him go. he'd let lin have a few minutes to himself, but beyond that... well, he's hurrying to follow him. lin jingheng's had a terrible, terrible week, hasn't he? it makes bixing's heart ache, and when he spots him at the bar, he comes to find him quickly, lifting a hand as his fingers curl briefly in the air before he slides it gently between his shoulderblades by way of greeting.
he asks, very softly: ] Can I join you?
[ at some point when they're not together on friday: so.....like just so
lin knows..... ]
Something bit Rynlan on his adventure, and it's gone from an injury to a rapidly spreading rash on his leg and arm, accompanied by a high fever.
[ this has nothing to do with murder and everything to do with the remember how the rainbow virus starts with high fever and a rash. sometimes you're paranoid ]
lin knows..... ]
Something bit Rynlan on his adventure, and it's gone from an injury to a rapidly spreading rash on his leg and arm, accompanied by a high fever.
[ this has nothing to do with murder and everything to do with the remember how the rainbow virus starts with high fever and a rash. sometimes you're paranoid ]
[ ughhhhghhghghg
happy saturday. once again one of lu bixing's favorites is a murderer!!! at least he knew this one was rough from the beginning but god.
he's decided to go have a drink, honestly. actually? it's the confession one, because he's with lin jingheng, and he doesn't really care about whatever he's going to say while he's drinking it, because it won't be anything new. it's after he's gone to talk to scaramouche, and he slinks into their combined room to wherever lin jingheng is, holding two-no, three carefully balanced to go cups in the crook of his arm. ]
...Hi. [ he says, softly, nudging the door shut with his foot, and making his way over. where u at lin what u doin. ]
happy saturday. once again one of lu bixing's favorites is a murderer!!! at least he knew this one was rough from the beginning but god.
he's decided to go have a drink, honestly. actually? it's the confession one, because he's with lin jingheng, and he doesn't really care about whatever he's going to say while he's drinking it, because it won't be anything new. it's after he's gone to talk to scaramouche, and he slinks into their combined room to wherever lin jingheng is, holding two-no, three carefully balanced to go cups in the crook of his arm. ]
...Hi. [ he says, softly, nudging the door shut with his foot, and making his way over. where u at lin what u doin. ]
Edited (STOP WRITING FRIDAY) 2023-03-12 02:28 (UTC)
[ siting with two to-go cups on the night stand scrolling through his phone. he has behaved and is bandaged even and has actually just been waiting after making some of his rounds to go just. lay with some of his faves on the floor in the void.
normal stuff. ]
Hi.
[ soft. he looks at the drinks that lu bixing has brought with him and shuts his eyes like ah. ]
It's that kind of night.
[ this place is really just enabling them. it's fine. he takes out a cigarette and pops it into the corner of his mouth, searching quietly for a lighter. ]
normal stuff. ]
Hi.
[ soft. he looks at the drinks that lu bixing has brought with him and shuts his eyes like ah. ]
It's that kind of night.
[ this place is really just enabling them. it's fine. he takes out a cigarette and pops it into the corner of his mouth, searching quietly for a lighter. ]
[ help this is out of nowhere
lu bixing looks a little surprised as he settles into his chair, raising his hand to order something for himself, too, and then glancing over. he looks tired, today, but spending even a moment in lin's company is a balm, so. ]
You - what? [ a pause, and then, he laughs, ducking his head with it.] ... I think that's mathematically impossible.... [ teasing, though. ] Why's that?
lu bixing looks a little surprised as he settles into his chair, raising his hand to order something for himself, too, and then glancing over. he looks tired, today, but spending even a moment in lin's company is a balm, so. ]
You - what? [ a pause, and then, he laughs, ducking his head with it.] ... I think that's mathematically impossible.... [ teasing, though. ] Why's that?
[ i have so many sisi tags to do clearly i am just stocking up for my inevitable depression spiral no jk anyways
lu bixing and lin jingheng are exploring and happen to have, perhaps, maybe, ended up in the home biome because who doesn't want to end up back on qiming. for a moment, lin looks at it with the eyes of someone who has literally not seen this beloved little cobbled-together home in... ]
Fourteen years... [ he whispers it softly. and maybe the biome does depend on the person walking in, but, it's clear what lin jingheng believes of as home the moment his foot hits the threshold first: ] Bixing...
[ also his hand has been on lu bixing's lower back like. the entire walk. ]
lu bixing and lin jingheng are exploring and happen to have, perhaps, maybe, ended up in the home biome because who doesn't want to end up back on qiming. for a moment, lin looks at it with the eyes of someone who has literally not seen this beloved little cobbled-together home in... ]
Fourteen years... [ he whispers it softly. and maybe the biome does depend on the person walking in, but, it's clear what lin jingheng believes of as home the moment his foot hits the threshold first: ] Bixing...
[ also his hand has been on lu bixing's lower back like. the entire walk. ]
[ oh lu bixing really loves this. he loves that lin is touching him like this. in public. sorry he loves this he's a top except in every way that he isn't as he leans into it, and -
well, when they look up at the biome, and lu bixing sees the sign hanging over the top of it, it catches his breath.
The Home of Engineer 001 And Commander Lin. ]
Oh.
[ because, well, of course lu bixing sees exactly the same thing. a little house with a garden, with two low tech robots dancing out in the front and holding their sign. it's cute, and it's little, and it's theirs, and his heart just aches as he turns his head and beams at lin jingheng. ]
Welcome home.
[ he's gonna explode. ]
well, when they look up at the biome, and lu bixing sees the sign hanging over the top of it, it catches his breath.
The Home of Engineer 001 And Commander Lin. ]
Oh.
[ because, well, of course lu bixing sees exactly the same thing. a little house with a garden, with two low tech robots dancing out in the front and holding their sign. it's cute, and it's little, and it's theirs, and his heart just aches as he turns his head and beams at lin jingheng. ]
Welcome home.
[ he's gonna explode. ]
[ hee hee we're going up the steps after some serious drinking. lin jingheng is maybe a little pushy, having spent enough time in this get up, having had to mingle and mill around and dance with people he's found himself caring about, knowing he's going to have to worry about each and every one of them tomorrow. as he pulls, he lets his eyes fall to the dance floor, following a few figures before he turns his attention fully on lu bixing.
his heart is racing, so instead of worrying, he demands something else, tugging at lu bixing's coat with a sharp pull-pull and drawing him into one of the many many rooms.
fuck it. ]
I'm done with sharing you with everyone else. It's annoying.
his heart is racing, so instead of worrying, he demands something else, tugging at lu bixing's coat with a sharp pull-pull and drawing him into one of the many many rooms.
fuck it. ]
I'm done with sharing you with everyone else. It's annoying.
[ pushy is fine. pushy is great! pushy is amazing. lu bixing is tipsy and happy and like, floating on clouds right now so he lets lin jingheng herd him upstairs with little complaining, reaching back out to hold his hand, to touch him just for the sake of touching him. the look outward at the dance floor is nice, and he follows his gaze curiously for a moment, but -
well, okay, being yanked into a room is incredibly attractive so everything else goes right out of his head. he makes a surprised noise, a little yelp, and then brightens up, the emotional leak share of one of his drinks going surprised-delighted-a-tiny-bit-horny-thrilled all at once as he's pulled in.
lu bixing brightens, and immediately pulls the door shut behind him, kicking it with his heel and locking it behind him. occupied. ]
Well, if that's the case, I'm all yours - I'm always all yours. [ duh. he drops his hands, skating them down lin jingheng's tiny, tiny waist, curling them at his hips, and then ducking his head in to steal a kiss. just a quick one. ] Is it later?
[ cheeky ]
well, okay, being yanked into a room is incredibly attractive so everything else goes right out of his head. he makes a surprised noise, a little yelp, and then brightens up, the emotional leak share of one of his drinks going surprised-delighted-a-tiny-bit-horny-thrilled all at once as he's pulled in.
lu bixing brightens, and immediately pulls the door shut behind him, kicking it with his heel and locking it behind him. occupied. ]
Well, if that's the case, I'm all yours - I'm always all yours. [ duh. he drops his hands, skating them down lin jingheng's tiny, tiny waist, curling them at his hips, and then ducking his head in to steal a kiss. just a quick one. ] Is it later?
[ cheeky ]
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