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[daozhangs]

WELCOME TO YOUR PRIVATE CHANNEL, XIAO.XINGCHEN. FOR SECURE COMMUNICATION, USE 018.07.154.55 *** XIAO.XINGCHEN has joined 018.07.154.55 <XIAO.XINGCHEN> You have reached Xiao Xingchen. <XIAO.XINGCHEN> I am often away from my laptop, but I will do my best to answer as soon as I'm able.

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[legbreakings]

[ What? Why is he...? How is he...? What! Jiang Cheng half scowls, half pouts, very confused by this change but also very certain that he does not like Xiao Xingchen leaving his lap - and very confused again on how he is supposed to voice his displeasure without actually admitting to being displeased at all.

He is far too tipsy for such complicated thoughts, really, so he just watches in dismay as Xingchen leaves his lap - leaving his lap cold and alone and tragically abandoned! - and lays down next to him. He hesitates for a moment before draping himself on the dock next to him, mimicking his position. ]

Fine. We can lay here. But I hope you realize when we are laying on our backs, we can't drink. Not without making a mess, anyway. [ Which just goes to show that his lap had been the superior place for Xingchen to be. And his lap still feels tragically abandoned, by the way. And how is also all squirmy and flushed and let alone with these very human feelings that feel startling and new for how long it has been since he had a human body to feel them with (not that he had another person to get quite so close and personal with before, but still.) He huffs. ] I liked it better before.

[ There. That's not admitting to anything, strictly speaking. ]

[daozhangs]

( soon enough, jiang wanyin has come down to lay beside him - and perhaps it's not so delightful and warm as his lap, but it's closer and xingchen finds that he quite likes when wanyin is closer. it's enough to disperse some of his stormy thoughts (unpleasant feelings are rather flighty for him at the best of times, let alone after far too much wine to keep track of why he felt unpleasant to begin with), to soothe a bit of the formless unease within him.

and so, when jiang wanyin claims that he 'liked it better before,' xingchen shifts onto his side to face him, one arm bent to serve as a pillow. the other hand lifts somewhere at the edge of xingchen's conscious attendance to brush light fingertips along his companion's shoulder and upper arm, a touch which might reasonably pass for the smoothing of wanyin's sleeve. ) You liked which part, exactly? ( the question lacks the gravity which might spell out that feelings have perhaps been bruised in this particular area, but it's also entirely genuine in its delivery. it seems like the simplest way to avoid... you know, all of the nonsense which they've just stumbled around in. )

[legbreakings]

[ That may seem like the simplest way to avoid it and that much may be true for Xiao Xingchen, but it is not at all true for Jiang Cheng. For him, this means having to own up to specifics of what he liked. Embarrassingspecifics.

He bristles, a defensive scowl already back on his face, though he leans into the small touch rather than leaning away from it. ]

I liked it! Everything. Why do you have to make it so complicated? [ He huffs a little. ] You sat on my lap and now you aren't.

[daozhangs]

( oh yes, xingchen is most certainly the one making all of this complicated. and yet when wanyin leans into the brush of fingers, xingchen shifts a bit closer in kind so that he might rest his forehead against the outside of his companion's shoulder.

but with it comes, ) But I'm not supposed to ask if you'd like me to sit there again. ( because that's the trouble here - that and, ) Nor am I to simply do so - there's something wrong with that as well, I've forgotten what.

( his fingers have thus far continued their light stroking of jiang wanyin's arm, but they stop now to grab little bits of sleeve as if with intent to tug. and perhaps his prior words may have hinted at something akin to disheartenment, the next carry a faint lilt of fond humor. ) Wanyin, my most treasured friend, I've had far too much wine for games of guessing or having thoughts. Grant me a clue?

[legbreakings]

[ Jiang Cheng growls his frustration at such steep demands and gives him a baleful look, complete with a finger poking him in the chest. ] You're not the only one who is drunk! Be more considerate! Now you're expecting me to think about my words!

[ He heaves a melodramatic little sigh, which leads to a melodramatic little pout. ] My head is very fuzzy and whooshy and I think I need more wine to fix that. [ Which, said and done, he grabs the closest jar and brings it to his lips for a good, large gulp. ] There. And now you should come closer or I'm not going to share any wine with you. [ Which is clearly a terribly efficient threat, right? It must be. Should be. ] And I won't let you sit on my lap again, either!

[daozhangs]

( no, no - he's not expected to think about his words, only about what it is that he wants. that's much easier, isn't it? the poke to xingchen's chest earns a tiny pout-adjacent huff of breath, which unknowingly matches the much greater pout on jiang wanyin's face.

and though he truthfully wants no more of the wine at the moment, 'you should come closer' is most certainly clue enough for xingchen. he stills, considering for a moment the best avenue by which to do so - and then the light grab of sleeve becomes a two-handed grip on the arm instead, so that he might lift it up and duck underneath it.

he settles there against the hollow where wanyin's shoulder meets his chest, releasing the arm to wrap around his shoulders or back however it pleases while his own hand rests on the chest in front of his face. and oh, this was an excellent idea. though the expected layers of robe lie between them, the parts of jiang wanyin beneath his cheek and his hand are unexpectedly soft, having so much more give than the porcelain. feeling so much more human. and-...

whatever else jiang wanyin might say goes unheard, at least for a moment. instead, in the next bit of silence comes a soft: ) Hm? Forgive me, I-... Your heartbeat. It's terribly distracting. ( because it's so close to his ear now, and also because it's something jiang wanyin hasn't possessed for much of their friendship so far. belatedly, he tacks on a murmurred: ) And soothing. ( meditative, almost, but for the fact that he's far too intoxicated to meditate. it isn't quite soothing enough to lull him to sleep just yet, but it certainly has the potential to if he isn't careful. )

[legbreakings]

Oh [ he exhales softly, quiet and flustered, and it would be with reddened cheeks if his face weren't long since red already. It was definitely easier to hide his body's reactions when in his porcelain-encased monster form.

He feels nice leaning against him like this, soft and warm - things which he had always been, and Jiang Cheng can now feel again - and probably so very, very, painfully aware of Jiang Cheng's stuttering heartbeat. Oh. ]

You... [ He clears his throat. ] Yes. Well. This isn't bad. [ So he wraps an arm firmly around him and buries his nose in his hair, while the other still holds on to the wine in at least a pretense of his mind being on drinking rather than on Xingchen. ] This is better than before. [ When he had been laying next to him, which is clearly too far away and should not be allowed. ]