Chapter Text
This is a stupid idea. Mo Guan Shan knew it, and Zhan Zheng Xi knew it, and yet they're here anyway. Mo can't even explain inside his own head why.
They hear from Qiu, of all people, that He Tian will be leaving on business today and Zheng Xi gives Mo one look and says, “You should find him and say a proper goodbye. You don't know how long it's gonna take.”
And Mo, against all his best judgment, agrees. Ain't that stupid?
They had first noticed Qiu out of instinct. Mo and Zheng Xi were walking out of high school on the way to the subway when Zheng Xi pokes him, makes a subtle gesture behind. Mo already knows what he means. He felt the stare too. After the years of hanging around She Li and later He Tian, Mo had developed a sixth sense to danger. He can always tell when he’s being watched.
In this case, they realize soon enough, it's not exactly a threat. Qiu. The devil you know, and all that.
Zheng Xi says “Hello".
Mo says “Why the fuck are you following us asshole,” because he doesn't believe in pleasantries. Zheng Xi has to stop being a wimp around people they are begrudging acquaintances with.
Qiu stubs out a cigarette he had been smoking. “Why are you always looking for a fight Guanshan? I'm here because He Tian asked his brother to keep an eye on you while he's away.”
…wait, what?
“...away?” That's new information. “Away how?”
“International business trip.”
Mo and Zheng Xi look at each other. Fuck. They know this record.
Mo can feel his heart start racing in his chest.
Zhan Zheng Xi shakes his head and voices what they’re both thinking. “Is this trip anything like... like what's going on with Jian Yi?” It’s a good thing that Zheng Xi asks because Guan Shan can't get the words out.
Right after Jian Yi's disappearance Zheng Xi tried so, so hard to get information out of Qiu and He Cheng. He cried, and screamed, and kicked and nothing ever got him any answers. They say that they don't know anything, which no one in the room believes, but they also say that Zheng Xi should stop asking about it, and that if something had happened to Jian Yi he would know.
Eventually Zheng Xi learned to take that as the reassurance that they meant. But the anger never truly went away. Qiu knows it. The civility of this conversation is hanging by a thread.
“It's not like that, no,” Qiu answers calmly. Mo pushes it.
“How do you know?”
“It's just a business trip.”
“How do you know that?”
“For fucks sake. I just do. I wouldn't take this job if I was supposed to follow you for a year.”
That's a low blow. It was recently the one year mark of Jian Yi's disappearance.
Zheng Xi's entire expression shutters closed. “Fuck you.”
There you go Zheng Xi, Mo thinks, watching him. I know you have claws in there.
Still. They can’t afford a fight. Qiu is currently their source of information. Guan Shan has to turn back to the problem at hand. He Tian is gone.
He Tian is gone.
Mo might be shaking. He needs to think about this. "When did He Tian leave?” Mo tries to remember the last time he actually saw him in person. Maybe a week ago, before vacation was over. He Tian had asked him to come over to cook. Even sent some pitiful picture of his ramen as argument. Mo wonders if he already knew he was leaving by then. It makes Mo resentful that he didn't-
...what? That he didn't what? Say goodbye? Fuck.
It makes Mo resentful that He Tian didn't tell him he was leaving so Mo could, not exactly say goodbye, but still know that it was a goodbye. It makes him resentful that He Tian wants Mo to trust him but he never says anything. It's fucking frustrating to have to guess shit-
“He hasn't left yet.”
And doesn't that snap Mo out of his musings.
“What?”
“What?”
“He's at He Cheng's,” Qiu clarifies, “they'll drive down later. I don't even know why I'm telling you this, stop being annoying now.”
They'll drive down, he must mean to Shanghai. If He Tian is flying internationally he'd fly from there.
Mo turns to Zhan Zheng Xi. Zheng Xi is already looking at him.
“You should find him and say a proper goodbye. You don't know how long it's going to take.”
It makes sense that Zhan Zheng Xi is saying that. Jian Yi's disappearance almost broke Zheng Xi. Mo knows how sensitive this is for him.
Jian Yi was annoying, but he was a good guy. You don't find a lot of those. Mo can't even imagine what this feels like for Zheng Xi.
Zheng Xi’s point is obvious.
If I'd had a chance to say goodbye, I would have.
But still, it's not the same thing. He Tian will go on a business trip for whatever shady shit his family does and will be back before they know it.
…yeah, Mo Guan Shan doesn't believe it when he thinks it either.
“He Cheng's, you say?” Mo asks. “I'm going there. Zhengxi-”
“I'm going with you.”
“...you sure?”
Jian Yi lived at He Cheng's for months. That place must bring back painful memories for Zhan Zheng Xi.
“Yes, I'm sure.”
Guan Shan, to this day, still doesn't understand how he ended up having friends. It feels like he just got distracted one day and boom, there’s a couple people that are willing to do a lot for him. Still, he's thankful for it.
“Alright. Let's go.”
_______________
They go to He Cheng's place. They even get past the front gate, since apparently at some point Mo Guan Shan's name was cleared through security by He Cheng. Mo wonders when that happened. But they get in, no, that's not the problem. The problem is that once they’re inside there are about a million men in black suits and He Tian is right among them. Mo pulls Zheng Xi through an empty hallway before they're spotted.
The fuck are they supposed to do, walk up to them and say hi?
"I don't know what we were thinking. These people are dangerous."
Qiu, very helpfully, appears once again from out of the shadows.
"I don't know what you were expecting. These people are dangerous."
"Yes, thank you Qiu, you are ever so helpful. Zheng Xi we should just..." Mo points back the way they came. We should get the fuck out of here. If He Tian disappears forever that's up to him. Good riddance bitch.
Neither Zheng Xi or Qiu seem keen on his idea.
“They're dangerous but no one here has a problem with us, Guan Shan,” Zheng Xi tries to point out. “They're not going to hurt us just because we want to talk to He Tian for a moment."
"They also know you're here," Qiu adds. "Security notified He Cheng when you walked in. Waiting around will just piss him off. Do what you want and get out."
Shit, Mo thinks.
Shit shit shit. Shit.
Mo steps out of the hallway again.
He Tian hasn’t noticed him yet. Mo takes a moment to look. He's dressed in full black, from the gloves and long sleeved shirt to his pants and shoes. He looks dangerous.
He fits right in with a group of potential criminals.
Mo wonders what that says about He Tian, and what that says about Mo, for hanging around him.
Mo counts heads of the guys in the next room. Yep, still approximately 1 million of them. Fuck that. He turns around and starts walking away.
A voice stops him.
"Mo-ge?”
Oh boy. Ain't that a sight, to be called big brother Mo in a room where every single person outranks him in power, age and guns. Probably. He can't see the guns but he thinks they are implied.
Mo turns around. He Tian is staring at him.
“What are you doing here?”
Mo clears his throat. Fuck, all of the men are looking at him now. He never felt so exposed before.
“...I must have taken a wrong turn somewhere, I was just leaving.”
“A wrong turn into my brother’s house? Mo-”
Mo turns back and starts walking away. He can hear He Tian behind him justifying an absence ‘excuse me for a moment ,’ and then his footsteps are following him.
Mo pauses when he's unsure between the front door and the hallway he was in with Zheng Xi and Qiu. He Tian catches up with him.
“Here,” He Tian says, and guides him to the hallway with a hand behind his back, and then past the boys and into one of the rooms. Some kind of a library? Mo doesn’t really look around. He turns around and leans against the wall.
“Mo?” He Tian is frowning.
“I heard you are leaving,” Mo finally says. He Tian’s expression clears.
“You came to say goodbye?”
“Fuck you.”
He Tian has this huge smile on his face. Mo wants to punch it off. He will, really, he’s just distracted for a moment.
“How long will you be gone for?” he asks.
“I don’t know yet. I’m sorry. Not too long, I think.”
Fuck. This sounds so close to Jian Yi's disappearance that Mo can barely process.
“Anything you can share?” It’s a long shot. Mo knows it is.
“No. I’m sorry.”
Second time he apologizes today. Mo would find it amusing, in a different context. He Tian is usually way too spoiled for it.
Something about the moment though doesn’t quite allow Guan Shan to feel amused. He looks down.
“Well, don’t die or something. See ya.”
Except, Mo doesn’t go anywhere. He doesn’t move and then He Tian has a gloved hand tilting his chin up, to meet his eyes.
“Mo you came here to say goodbye. Don’t be a coward.”
Mo knows what He Tian wants him to do.
Mo is not a fucking coward. There's energy thrumming through him, like this might be the day he does something stupid. He feels high on adrenaline.
Before he can change his mind, he reaches up and meets He Tian’s lips.
Take that, asshole.
If He Tian is surprised, Mo can’t tell. He Tian raises his hands to the back of Mo's head and kisses him softly, then presses kiss after kiss to Mo's lips, just lightly, until in one he coxes Mo's lips open and sucks on Mo's bottom lip. Fuck. Mo can barely fucking breathe. The texture of He Tian’s gloves in the back of his head versus the soft feeling of his mouth on his. Mo breathes out hard and tells his brain to shut up for just a moment. Fuck, what is he thinking??
He presses up into another kiss.
He Tian indulges him, falling easily into it. One of his thumbs strokes Mo's cheek. Before the kiss can really build up, though, he pulls away and sighs into Mo's mouth.
“You’ve been stringing me along for 18 months and you make a move when I'm about to leave?”
...the fuck? ...what does he want Mo to say? And wait, has he-
“You’ve been counting the months?”
“Absolutely.”
What a fucker, Mo thinks. He Tian leans back so he can look at Mo properly.
“I'll be back. You know that, right?”
Mo doesn’t know anything.
It’s kind of hard to trust given the world’s continuous ability to prove him wrong.
“Whatever,” Mo says. He takes one last lingering look at He Tian’s face and squares up. “Don’t die.”
“I wouldn’t dream of it.”
Mo turns away. This time He Tian doesn’t stop him. His hands fall away from Mo’s face and he makes room for Mo to leave.
On the hallway Zheng Xi is still waiting for him and he nods at Mo when Mo steps out. Mission accomplished, he seems to say.
Fuck off, Guan Shan does his best to send back, but it's a moot point. At the end he’s not really angry.
“Don't do anything stupid out there,” Zhengxi tells He Tian. “Stay safe."
“Will do, Zhengxi.”
They hug it out. Mo is actually surprised by the hot feeling burning in the pit of his stomach at it. Since when are He Tian and Zheng Xi the hugging type? The fuck is this. Does He Tian go around hugging everyone he knows? It's too intimate, that's what it is, and it looks stupid. After a moment Mo looks away. When He Tian is done he smiles at Mo, like he caught on to something that Mo hasn't. Fuck him.
“I have to go. Thank you for stopping by.”
He waves and then Qiu is unceremoniously pushing them to the front gate and then out into the street.
This was it.
Goodbye over.
Mo has no idea when he'll see He Tian again. Shit. He might be shaking.
Zheng Xi looks like he's going to say something, but Mo waves him off. He can't- he just can't. Zheng Xi understands. He stays quiet.
Mo starts counting breaths inside his head. By the twelfth he feels like he can move again.
“Alright,” he tries but it doesn't sound quite right so he tries again. “Alright. Gotta go. I am late as fuck for my part time work.”
“We can head back to the subway,” Zheng Xi points and then pauses as a thought comes to him. “Unless...”
They both turn to Qiu.
"Fuck no."
Mo doesn't give up so quickly, “Are you su-”
“I'm not giving either one of you a ride. Take the subway. I don't care.”
Mo can barely believe this asshole.
“Are you honest to god going to follow me around for the next however-long-you-plan-on-doing-this-for and not even stop me from getting fired?”
Qiu shows no empathy.
“If you're fired for being late you’re already fired. Playing your personal chauffeur won't change that.”
Zheng Xi chimes in. “All kinds of danger could befall him while on the way. Did you know he was once attacked on the subway?”
“We're negotiating Mo Guan Shan kid, there's fuck none that I can do for you. It's a bike, in case you didn't notice, I can’t take you both.”
“I know. I'm just worried about my friend getting to work.”
“Christ, teenagers are annoying’
They both keep staring at him.
“Fine, hop on.”
I owe you, Mo mouths at Zheng Xi, and he means more than just the ride. Zhan Zheng Xi grins.
Not for this, he mouths back.