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Nine pairs of eyes closed.
Ten fluttered open.
"Bossss!" Xia Fei waved, excited despite knowing it wasn't actually real. After all, Vein died three years ago. But, just this once, he felt like indulging his fantasies and dragged Cheng Xiaoshi along, closer to the redhead.
Next to his deceased boss was Liu Xiao. He sighed to himself at that, but he wasn't surprised- the man had appeared in this dream world along with everyone else.
There were nine of them, currently. Only seven of them were actually alive. No one had the heart to point that out to the pink-haired twin who stuck by Liu Xiao like a shadow until he'd seen his sister.
Xia Fei pretended the girl was alive, just like how he pretended one of closest friends to be alive. The hand ruffling his hair may have been cold, but Vein had always run colder than the average person.
Point being, all of them were here and his sister, of all people, had announced this to be a sort of battle of the bands type of situation.
Except their performances were meant to make time start moving again.
Xia Fei really, really wasn't shy about being in front of cameras. He kind of couldn't be- he'd been a model, he had his picture taken basically... well, a lot. Even after leaving the industry that hadn't changed.
But there was something fundamentally different about performing on a stage as opposed to being in front of a camera.
... then again, there were only eight other actual people and all these adorable 'Keliks'.
He kind of wanted to cuddle one.
A scoff snapped him from his thoughts, and he glanced up. Watched as Vein outright rolled his eyes and Liu Xiao's attention caught.
"Hi~"
Clear English reached his ears, and he held a hand over his eyes to see easier who'd appeared. Spotted a young-ish man with dark blue, nearly black hair. It reminded him a little of Liu Xiao- though the hue was different.
The man's eyes were closed, lips pulled into a pleasant smile.
Xia Fei hadn't ever seen this man before, but Vein seemed to know him. Which... odd for a dead man who only existed in a dream space, but then again Cheng Xiaoshi had whispered to him that Li Tianxi had died a couple months ago. So at this point nothing made sense anymore, anyway.
Idly, he wondered how much of this world was a dream and how much was reality. Could the dead rise in a dream scape such as this? Could it mean something else? For now, he pushed all those thoughts aside: "Who's that guy?"
His boss opened his mouth, lips pulled back into what could nearly be considered a grimace. The stranger was faster, breezing right past Xia Fei, Cheng Xiaoshi and Lu Guang, who'd stepped up next to the two of them.
"My, it's been so long, dear~" the stranger's smile widened, dark eyes blinking open while he looked Vein over. He'd never seen the redhead's face change between reddish like his hair and nearly a ghostly pale so fast.
He'd also never seen him stalk off that fast, reaching out to grab Lu Guang by the back of his jacket to drag him off, muttering something about rehearsal. The white haired man protested, but the red wolf that kept lingering around his boss latched onto his pant-leg and pulled, causing him to trip and be dragged along like a wet cat.
Which... that was a strange thing about the dream world, too. The animals that seemed to almost mimic them to an eerie degree. The only animal he knew to exist in the real world was the fat owl Liu Xiao called his own.
If it weren't for the distress on Lu Guang's face, it would've been funny. Though, he knew Vein and he doubted the wolf to be dangerous either- he'd even gotten to cuddle it when he'd first been run over by it!
Point is, Lu Guang will be fine. Hopefully.
As it was, this seemed to be the guy Liu Xiao was supposed to perform with. They seemed to hit it right off, and Xia Fei couldn't help but think that Vein was gonna hate that. Especially considering he'd seen the glasses-wearing annoyance greet his boss with a kiss to the cheek when they'd all first arrived at the stage.
Liu Xiao had been crushing on his boss massively before... that day, so he wasn't exactly surprised to see that... except boss had looked happy, if the glint in his eyes was anything to go by. So whatever that was was mutual. It was kind of a shame that once this was over, Vein would be just a dead man again, even if he loathed Liu Xiao.
So, when they were all heading their separate ways, he pulled Liu Xiao aside. For once in his life. He'd catch up and grab a bite with Cheng Xiaoshi and Qiao Ling later- he wanted to get to know his friend's sister. She was bound to have some stories that he'd never heard before!
"Do you know what's up with Vein?" he asked, glancing over his shoulder as if his boss might appear any second. But the only living beings near them were a deer that kept bumping its head against him to request pets and a fat owl that stared at him with utter judgement from its perch on Liu Xiao's ridiculously big hat.
He almost missed the old one.
The dark haired man shrugged, smiling. "I'm only aware that they... have a shared history that Vein never quite managed to get over" he said, calm as ever. As if that was normal knowledge to have about- actually, Liu Xiao was a fucking freak. Of course this stalker knew something like that.
"Oh" he said, intelligently. Stared at him for a long, long moment. "Doesn't it bother you? That, even in death, he's not gotten over it?" he found himself asking, before he could stop himself.
Liu Xiao, dramatic bastard that he is, outright pouted. "I'm more disappointed about him being an idiot. Otherwise, I could be dating them both right now..." he lamented, as if that was a normal thing to say about a man who died three years ago and a random stranger.
Luckily, Xia Fei wasn't drinking anything. He'd have spat it out. "Excuse me-?" he stammered, wide eyed. Even their animal-companions looked at the hat-wearing man with pure, undisguised judgement. Though the fat owl looked... nearly resigned.
The bastard had the guts to blink innocently at him. "What?" he asked, voice light and with faux confusion, but with a hint of something sly and amused. He so knew that he'd just said something outlandish. "It's okay to date multiple people, no? You can't say anything, with what you, Cheng Xiaoshi and Lu Guang have going on~"
The blond tightly pressed his lips together for a moment. Liu Xiao wasn't wrong, but... "They're both alive and I've known them longer than five minutes, you pain in the ass" he muttered glumly.
Liu Xiao laughed. "Right now, at least" he said, utterly delighted.
Xia Fei refused to ask.
They'd all fallen into a routine easily enough, in all honesty. Each of them telling time in different ways. Be it the pattern of the Keliks, melting candle wicks or a internal clock.
"That sounds... like a plan for sure" Cheng Xiaoshi told him over lunch, sitting across from him in the small home they shared in the dreamland. "Are you sure setting them up is smart, though? I mean, Vein's kinda..."
Xia Fei grimaced. "Look, I... Liu Xiao knows. That Jae Lee guy probably does, too. I just... I didn't get to say good bye, didn't get to say thank you for all he did for me, didn't get to give him a birthday gift... I want to do one last, nice thing for him before he returns to being..."
Cheng Xiaoshi's expression softened into quiet understanding, and a hint of pity. "Okay" he agreed, nodding along. "Let's... let's figure out how to set your dead boss up with that Jae Lee guy"
It sounded terribly stupid, even to Xia Fei's ears.
But Liu Xiao was openly affectionate with him, even managed to fluster Vein thrice across the five days they'd already spent here. Though, every time Jae Lee showed up the redhead vanished without a trace.
"Liu Xiao is on board" he said, as if that made it better. It didn't. He felt his nose scrunch up in distaste.
Cheng Xiaoshi, blessedly, didn't comment on it. He really could've kissed him for that. Except he couldn't, because Cheng Xiaoshi saw him as just a friend.
If he were alone, he'd have slammed his head into the table.
"... so, what's your plan?"
Vein really, truly, wondered on occasion why he loved Liu Xiao.
Well, he did know. The man was smart, entertaining and actually managed to surprise him in ways that didn't make him want to tear his throat out.
That aside, he did look like a snack.
Still, Xia Fei told him the youngest of the three of them wanted to meet up. Alone. The white haired kid had seemed utterly glad about it and vanished before him or the wolf could grab him.
That had been twenty minutes ago. He'd been sitting alone on the edge of the river, alone, for twenty minutes. Granted, one of the Keliks had settled in his laps and purred happily at the pets.
Peaceful as this world was, it irked him. Weren't they supposed to rehearse? He'd painstakingly forced the white haired brat to actually show up to rehearsal- each day! And now he was dragged away from it.
A twig snapped behind him, and he turned. Expecting to see Liu Xiao. Instead of him, he found himself eye to eye with Jae Lee instead. The man had the gall to offer what would've been a charming smile on anyone else. "Why hello, Kitten~"
Vein fought down several emotions at the familiar nickname, lips pulling back into a sneer. "Sergeant Jae" he greeted him stiffly, fought the urge to leave and get away as far as possible within this dream world.
Liu Xiao wanted to meet here, and who was he to disappoint?
A laugh reached his ears. "Now now, don't be so formal" the dark haired man smiled kindly, as if he wasn't a dirty, lying piece of-
Vein bared his teeth in a mockery of a smile, and told himself over and over that Liu Xiao wanted the guy alive. "I'm waiting for someone here" he said, tone clipped. "So I'd appreciate if you left"
The other hummed in thought, and sat down not too far from him. "I don't think I'll leave" he said, all too calmly. "There's people you hold dear here. Wouldn't want them to learn some secrets you've carefully kept all these years?"
At that, he went utterly silent. Without another word, he rose to his feet and stalked off. Fuming with barely withheld rage. How dare that bastard-
He'd seek out Liu Xiao, plans be damned.
Two days later, Liu Xiao invited him over to his house for the night. He didn't think much of it- he liked spending time with his boyfriend.
Except, the door slammed shut behind him and locked with an ominous click.
Silently, he stared at the man in the small-ish kitchen the tiny houses provided. Slowly, Jae Lee smiled. Clearly amused. "Hello to you as well, kitten" he greeted him, and Vein tried his hardest not to strangle him.
Then again, he no longer had to lie low. Perhaps killing him within the dream space would be less of an issue? Still, he only scoffed. After all, Liu Xiao had requested him to refrain from killing the man.
Considering he'd tricked him into getting locked up with that bastard, he wasn't surprised that he'd been reminded earlier that same day. He was, however, terribly offended. He'd told him that he knew that blasted officer and didn't want to spend anymore time with him.
And now here they were.
Silently, he breezed past him. A hand on his wrist stopped him from going far. When he glanced back, dark grey eyes were trained on him. To anyone else, perhaps it would've been unsettling. Vein, however, was not so easily bothered by such things.
"Not even a greeting? You wound me" Jae Lee smiled, but there was a hint of something nearly disappointed in his tone. In the redhead's opinion, he had truly no right.
Vein pulled his hand away, narrowed his eyes. "Why ever would I greet you, sergeant?" he asked, voice cold as ice. "Clearly, you and Liu Xiao tricked me. Why, I can't fantom"
Which was the truth: He had no idea why Liu Xiao would set him up like this. Perhaps he should've been clearer on... some things.
Though, for some reason, Jae Lee seemed genuinely confused. "You think I was in on this? He told me he wanted to meet up for rehearsal, that's all. You stepped in, and the door locked. That's not on me" he told him.
Vein hated how... honest he sounded about it. Then again, lying was what this man excelled in. "Right" he said, and didn't bother to conceal the sarcasm in his voice.
With a sigh, the other closed his eyes. "You're still upset?" he asked, but there was a surprising lack of judgement in his tone. As if he'd expected this but hoped to be wrong.
With a scoff, he started making himself a cup of tea. Taking care to make just enough for himself- he'd rather die again than do anything for that man. "Of course I am" he bit out, a hint more hostile this time.
"It's been five years" the sergeant pointed out, carefully neutral. Neither judging nor pleading. "And then you died, three years ago"
His lips twitched at the reminder, into a smile or grimace he couldn't tell himself. "I'm aware" was all he said, with his back turned. Searched through the shelf's of Liu Xiao's small home within the dream world for a tea that was worth drinking.
When he found one, he took a step back from the shelves- only to bump into Jae Lee. "How many more times need I apologize to atone?" the dark haired man whispered into his ear, and it took everything in him not to-
To what? Smack him? Strangle him? Yell at him what a dirty piece of-
With a measured breath, he shoved past him. "You'll sleep on the couch"
"It's been almost two weeks, the first performance is tonight... and no progress. Honestly, it feels like it's gotten worse" Xia Fei lamented, his head on Cheng Xiaoshi's lap. "Maybe asking Liu Xiao to help was a bad idea..."
The brunette was running his fingers through the lighter strands, frowning. "Did you ever ask why they had a falling out?" he asked and tilted his head.
At that, Xia Fei paused. He hadn't. Liu Xiao, allegedly, knew and thought that some communication might help- that Vein was definitely not over him... and that Jae Lee was still crushing on him, too.
And, really, Liu Xiao had made progress. According to the glasses-wearing bastard, the only thing left was to coax Vein into talking it out and making up. Except their plans so far failed miserably.
Right about now, they should be meeting for dinner- except he could see Vein storming their way. He went right past, grabbing Lu Guang by the back of his jacket. The book he'd been reading, all while skillfully ignoring the discussion of his boyfriends, dropped to the floor.
"Rehearsal. Now" Vein hissed, not unlike a wronged cat. Which was quite ironic, consider there was a wolf at his heels and a startled cat sat next to where Lu Guang had been seconds ago.
Distantly, the duo heard a rather angry "Fuck you" from their boyfriend that had both of them fight to stay composed.
In a way, Xia Fei pitied him. Then again, he'd won the argument of getting to 'shoot Vein dead' during their performance, or something along those lines. He'd looked smug and like he was plotting something.
Neither Xia Fei nor Cheng Xiaoshi wanted to know.
Be that as it may, the blond sat up with a sigh. "I'm gonna talk to the guy" he said, with all the confidence of someone who felt his end draw near.
"What did you do that made boss dislike you so much?" he asked, staring down at the man who sat at the river's edge and pet his animal companion with the air of someone who'd rather do anything but be disturbed.
Slowly, dark eyes wandered up to him. "I arrested him" Jae Lee told him, entirely too blunt. As if that explained the odd dancing around each other and the feelings that were allegedly still there. According to Liu Xiao.
Part of him was starting to wonder if it was a prank.
Though, he blinked when the words caught up to him. "That's it?" he found himself asking, a hint baffled. Of course he'd overheard Vein mention that he disliked cops... but was it really just-
"Of course not" Jae Lee sighed, looking nearly lost in thought. "I arrested him after we were hooking up for... hmm... a week or two?"
For a long, long moment he simply stared. "Hooking up" he echoed, in utter disbelief. Liu Xiao had sounded like it had been... much more serious than just that.
"You're a big boy, surely you know what hooking up is~" Jae Lee reached out to ruffle his hair, and the blond dodged just in time with a scowl.
"Fuck you-" he spat, narrowing his eyes. Then he frowned, looking him over critically. "But... I thought you were a couple or something?"
The officer sighed, petting the snow leopard that slowly snuck up beside him. He looked... almost guilty, in a way. Which was a hint fascinating, truly.
"Or something... I did like him, but trying to get him out of the investigation went wrong and there was nothing I could do but reveal myself as a cop and arrest him" the dark haired man looked like was outright pouting, ridiculous as that thought was. "You know he hates liars, don't you?"
The knowledge that Vein got arrested at the very least once wasn't very surprising- his boss didn't shy away from violence when it came to dealing with people causing trouble. He wouldn't be surprised even if he turned out an actual criminal.
Okay, no, that was a lie. Vein was too nice to be a criminal.
Xia Fei fought not to fidget when dark eyes seemed to stare right into his soul. Maybe his own animal companion the dream-space had assigned him was right for not getting close to this guy. "... I do" he admitted. After all, that was something everyone learned fast.
Slowly, Jae Lee nodded. "There's nothing I can do to fix that" he said, as if that was that. As if that was all needed to explain this entire situation.
"I mean... did you try apologizing and explaining?" Xia Fei asked, although he could imagine the response already.
"Noo, of course not~" Jae Lee smiled, his expression reminding him of Vein just a hint. Maybe they were both a little... odd. Then, the smile dropped: "He didn't believe me. Once a liar, always a liar... according to him"
He fought a wince. That... did make sense, in a way. And sounded like his former boss a lot. Of course he'd be too stubborn to forgive, even in death. "... did you tell him that you still love him and regret it?"
The officer froze, for a split second. As if he hadn't expected Xia Fei to point out his feelings so bluntly. With a sigh, he tipped his head back.
"You won't drop it unless I try that, hm?"
"I'm gonna go look for Vein, he disappeared right after the entry performance" Xia Fei sighed, though a smile snuck on his face when Cheng Xiaoshi kissed his cheek.
The brunet wrapped an arm around him. "C'mon, stay a couple minutes?" he pouted, glancing over to their other boyfriend. "Lu Guaaang, say something. Please?"
The white haired man sighed, adjusting his jacket. "If Xia Fei wants to look for... that guy, let him" he muttered, expression glum. "We have enough time to celebrate the first performance after he checked up on him"
Xia Fei beamed, slipping out of Cheng Xiaoshi's hold to kiss Lu Guang's cheek. "See? Lu Guang is on my side" he said, entirely oblivious that the seer simply felt guilty that the ex-model had lost his best friend... not that he'd ever change that decision.
The time-diver pouted, then stepped over to throw an arm around Lu Guang. "Alright, alright. We'll see each other by the front of the stage in... maybe half an hour?" he suggested, glancing around. "I wanted to check on Qiao Ling too, to be honest"
The blond nodded and kissed both their cheeks one last time, then hurried off to go look for his former boss.
On the way, Liu Xiao approached him. Falling into step beside him. "Jae Lee is gone" the dark haired man said, adjusting his hat. "Last I saw him, he was heading into Vein's direction"
They exchanged a glance, though no further word was needed. For once, they were on the same page: Finding the two.
When they rounded the corner and looked behind the stage, Xia Fei nearly squeaked in surprise. A hand landed over his mouth and pulled him back behind the corner.
He stared at Liu Xiao with wide eyes, too shocked to consider biting his hand. In any other situation, he would have. Quietly, they both peaked around the corner despite everything in him screaming that it was terribly rude to do that.
His eyes hadn't failed him- there the two were. Vein, with his back pressed against the wall of the stage, hands holding onto Jae Lee. Jae Lee, who had one hand pressed against the redhead's chest and cushioned the back of his head with the other.
They were making out.
His dead boss was making out with some guy who arrested him and he set them up, kinda.
He actually couldn't quite believe this really worked out.
"Guess you'll get both of them" he commented faintly and retreated back behind the corner, embarrassed that he'd watched the two for that long. It was rude to stare at two kissing people like that, wasn't it?
Liu Xiao hummed in agreement, and when Xia Fei glanced to him, that freak was still watching them like a weirdo. Baffled, he reached out to pull him back when the glasses-wearing man already retreated.
"I think they're French kissing" He looked utterly delighted. Xia Fei thought he was utterly deranged. That... that was far too much information.
Why is this guy such a freak?, he couldn't help but lament, only to wonder why he'd even decided to help him.
Instead of voicing his despair, he tugged on the sleeve of his white... blouse? He wasn't sure and too tired of him to care. "Let's just go before we get caught" He muttered, turning away.
"Such a killjoy, it was getting good"