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sandusengshouTitle: Hangover Pussy (Jiang Cheng and Chickyi log after the strip bar fiasco)
Who: Jiang Cheng and Lan Jingyi
Tags: Lots of teasing, flirting, did i say lots of teasing?, fluff
Jiang Cheng groaned painfully when he woke up. In the end, because of one walking Lan hazard by the name of Lan Jingyi, they ended up sleeping at the cafe because it's the closest one from the bar.
The kid was puking all over and Jiang Cheng was just thankful that he kept some extra set of fresh clothes in his office/pseudo bedroom at the cafe. After dumping the kid upstairs with the cats, he then went straight to clean up.
Fucking Chickyi actually barfed on me.
Disgusting.
Deciding to check on the younger Lan, Jiang Cheng went upstairs with a pounding headache and saw Chickyi already awake and surrounded with cats. He stayed at the edge of the stairs and examined the brat.
He looked like a mess with his hair sticking all over his head and he must admit, it was quite a sight.
"Good morning, Chikyi. Rough night, I see."
Meow. Jingyi shifted and felt his nose tickle, he had been asleep and just now was finding himself stirring. He managed to crack up an eye, eyesight blurry as he noticed a small bit of light and purple cross his sight.
Meow
His head was pounding as he finally opened his eyes and looked up to see a cat peering down at his face. Meowing once more.
What the fuck
He propped himself on his elbow and noticed multiple cats surrounding him, Xiao Ai sleeping on his stomach.
Jingyi was at Catupurrcino. How the hell did he even get there!?
He pressed his hand to his face and pushed himself up, making sure to keep Xiao Ai in his lap.
All he could remember was that he had been at Paradise Manor. He probably drank more than he was supposed to and who knows how he ended up with Jiang Cheng at the cafe.
He didn’t have much time to think before hearing said man speak to him. Even his mouth was dry as he responded groggy.
“How?”
With his arms crossed around his chest, Jiang Cheng moved closer to the brat and sat on the chair closest to him.
“You don’t remember what happened last night?” He started with a deep scowl. Fucking Lans and their disaster genes. This kid was way worse than his older cousin. He took in the sleep-induced appearance of Jingyi and Jiang Cheng’s breath almost hitch when he saw that the oversized v-neck purple shirt that he lent the kid last night was hanging low on his shoulder, showing some skin.
Fucking headache making him think about stuff.
“Get up,” getting on his feet, he started walking back to the stairs, “I’ll make you some breakfast. Go and refresh in the bathroom. I’ll take you to my private office.”
The gears in his brain did not want to function. He whined once and managed to get himself on to his hands and knees, Xiao Ai jumping off his stomach to follow her owner.
No, he couldn't remember much still, the constant throbbing didn't help. He'd have to have Jiang Wanyin help him piece together last night.
He groaned and managed to crawl towards the stairs, "Wanyin-ge...Can it be pancakes?" Pancakes always helped him with a hangover.
Jiang Cheng stopped on his tracks and whipped his head towards the crawling hazard and blinked for a couple of times as he tried to process his mind as to what Chickyi had just called him.
“W-what did you call me again?” He asked once again. He can feel a light blush tainting his cheeks but he couldn’t help but tug his lips upward into a smile. He bent down to pick up Xiao Ai - mostly to hide his face and smile.
One..two..three
Lan Jingyi finally managed to pick himself up and quirked a brow at the cafe owner, he had a weird look on his face that made him squirm. Maybe because he was smiling? He walked past Jiang Wanyin with a light pout. God, he felt like shit and trying to make sense of things was even harder.
"What are you even talking about?" He yawned once as he made his way down.
He was starving and thirsty.
"DO you prefer I call you old man?"
Jiang Cheng’s smile then turned into a scowl as he stood up with Xiao Ai on his lap. Turning his back on the kid, Jiang Cheng informed him, “Come downstairs. You need to hydrate, kid.” He didn’t wait for Jingyi to answer as he hastily descended the stairs and set Xiao Ai on the floor. He made himself a cup of latte with tons of sugar to cure his ailing head. He also made some honey ginger tea for Jingyi to cure his hangover.
It had been 10 minutes and he was halfway his coffee and the kid still didn’t appear.
I wonder what’s wrong? Don’t tell me, he went back to sleep again?
He glanced at the clock and it was already 4:45 am. In 15 minutes, his morning shift employees would show up to prepare for the day. Deciding to check on the kid, Jiang Cheng scrunched his face in annoyance as he descended the stairs again.
[OOC: Cafe will open by 6 am and employees still need to calibrate the coffee huehuehue]
Jingyi did need to hydrate. Jingyi needed many things but first he would at least try and make himself look presentable to go home. Every step made his head pound as he found the bathroom and bee lining first to wash his face. He wasn’t looking great, paler than usual. His hair he managed to tame at least slightly pulling most of it back into a messy bun.
He took a look down at the large purple shirt he was wearing. At least he was still wearing his pants. Jingyi would have to ask where the rest of his clothes went.
Groaning, he made his way to the toilet and sat on it, shutting his eyes to give himself a breather. What time was it anyways? He really didn’t know what was going on.
“Fuck, I’m never drinking again.”
When Jiang Cheng got upstairs, he went a bit fazed when he saw that Jingyi was nowhere to be seen. He checked every nook and corner of the second floor and his heart started to beat erratically.
Shit, Xichen-ge might kill me for losing his baby cousin!
Jiang Cheng tried to call out his name as he went down to the first floor again.
“Jingyi? Where are you?”
That voice
He furrowed his eyebrows. The young Lan had managed to make himself comfortable for a moment by resting his face in his hands, he could have almost fallen back asleep but no. The brain still throbbed and he felt like his kidneys would die on him.
With a deep breath, he managed to croak out, " I'm in the bathroom. "
Jiang Cheng followed the voice and ended up standing in front of the bathroom. Based on the weak voice, Jiang Cheng knew that his patient was still hungover. He felt another wave of a massive headache coming his way. At least, Jingyi was a bit tamer than his cousin.
He knocked once before he said, “I’m making you some pancakes. Go to my office, Jingyi. My employees will be here in 10 minutes. Rest there instead. Just follow this small path in between the kitchen and the pantry then on the right at the end of the path, there’s a wooden door.”
He instructed before he retreated and went back to the kitchen to fix their breakfast.
[OOC: JC’s bedroom/office:]
Those knocks went in line with the pulsing in his head but the magical words of pancakes somehow managed to get him off the toilet.
It had to be early if the staff was coming in. Whining once more he let himself out and padded towards the hall and door that Jiang Wanyin mentioned.
Opening the door to the office, he gave it one look around before plopping on the bed and hugging a pillow. Pressing it against his eyes to not feel the light as much.
Jingyi was sure that the cafe owners office was even nicer looking than his entire apartment..it probably was as big as his apartment.
Jiang Cheng was in the midst of doing Jingyi’s breakfast request when his first employee, his barista, came to work. The youngster greeted him with a surprised expression but didn’t ask what he was doing at the cafe so early. Jiang Cheng just nodded to him and ordered him to get him a latte once he’s done calibrating the coffee beans.
Fifteen minutes later, Jiang Cheng was already setting the pancakes, the honey ginger and lemon hot tea and a cafe latte for him on the tray when a few more of his morning shift employees arrived. They looked at him in confusion as he exited the kitchen holding the massive tray. He glared at them in return, clearly saying, “Scram” and went on his merry way.
When he arrived in his office, Jiang Cheng noticed that the kid indeed fell asleep again and carefully set the tray on the floor as he sat at the edge of the bed. Sighing softly, Jiang Cheng shook the kid hard in order to wake him up.
“Jingyi, wake up. Breakfast is ready.”
It hadn't taken long for the young man to slip back into sleep. Not when he slept in a comfortable bed, even the pillow tucked against his nose smelled nice, Jingyi couldn't quite figure out what , not in his hazy mind.
It only felt like a minute that he slept but he was already being jostled. He managed to crack an eye open to see Jiang Wanyin. He whined once and pressed his back against the comforting pillow.
"Five more minutes Gege."
Jiang Cheng sighed for the nth time. It’s not even 6 am yet and here he was, sighing to oblivion. He was just hoping that his day would get better soon. Not perturbed by the adorable display, Jiang Cheng tried to coax the kid once more.
“No. The pancakes are gonna get cold and they’re not going to be jiggly anymore. Eat first then you can sleep after.” He then tucked some strand of Jingyi’s hair behind his ear to get a better view of his face. He still looked a bit pale and Jiang Cheng wasn’t going to let him go until he’s sure that Lan Jingyi was okay to go.
Maybe, he could even drive him home.
It would depend if the cafe’s not busy.
Pancakes It was his calling once more as he opened his eyes to see Jiang Wanyin touch his hair, he could even feel how his fingers brushed his ear and it was enough to make the young adult flush and hide his face back into the pillow. Why did he have to react like that?
“I get it, I’m up, I’m up.” He croaked into the pillow. Fuck, it was too early for this He pulled the pillow away and hoped that if he was blushing he could blame it on being drunk.
His eyes slide to the beautifully presented tray of food. Wanyin had put effort into making all of that for him. He could have just told him to fuck off and threw a piece of bread at his face but he didn’t and it made his heart feel fuzzy and it was definitely weird. Maybe because he liked making desserts? It had to be it. The man was a perfectionist.
He lifted his hands and like a petulant child made a grabby hands motion.
Jiang Cheng couldn’t help but tug his lips upward in a smile after seeing the adorable display of Jingyi.
He really is a kid.
Having only met this kid twice, Jiang Cheng couldn’t help but notice that he mostly didn’t get annoyed with the baby Lan’s antics. Instead, he found himself getting drawn closer. He seriously needed to rethink his actions and thoughts towards the younger Lan to save himself from…something.
He grabbed the tray and set it on the bed, in front of Jingyi. “Drink the tea first while it’s hot. It’ll help with your hangover.” He replied patiently and took his coffee to take a sip as he watched Jingyi behind his cup.
Tea would definitely help. He was rather thirsty. He listened to Jiang Wanyin’s instructions and pressed the cup to his mouth and took a long sip. The taste of ginger was there and Jingyi could feel the warmth as it went down his throat. It was really good and reminded him of the type of tea his cousin brewed.
He finally set the cup down and turned to Jiang Wanyin. “Thanks...for taking care of me.” Jingyi was embarrassed that he even got to this point. If it hadn’t been for the older man he wasn’t even sure where he’d be. Maybe on a park bench somewhere.
“Did...I do anything weird?” He paused and looked down at the oversized shirt, “Ah...Did I puke?”
God, Jingyi hoped he didn’t.
Jiang Cheng suddenly looked bitterly toward the kid and sighed. He could still feel disgusted by just thinking about what happened last night when he had to clean the entrance of his cafe in the middle of the night after throwing the kid upstairs. His soiled clothes were still soaked in detergent water to remove the awful smell.
He wanted to reprimand the kid for drinking more than he could actually take. But seeing his vulnerable state was stopping him from doing so.
Setting his coffee on the tray, Jiang Cheng finally responded, “Why don’t you look at the mirror? But finish your food first.” He then started to eat his pancake fix. The fluffy texture and the sweet taste of the pancake he was savouring was nice. He really loved this hangover food that his sister would usually make for him and his brother.
Jingyi’s face soured as he pouted up at the man, “I did. I look terrible.” So maybe he did puke. He was finally starting to gain some clarity but maybe pancakes would help. So without waiting any longer he forked a strawberry and a nice big piece of pancake and shoved it in his mouth. It made his cheeks feel full in the best way possible. It was fluffy and had the right amount of sweetness.
IT WAS SO GOOD.
He had a big smile while he chewed and then went in for a few more bites.
“ This is amazing!”
Seeing the kid devour the pancake with such vigour, Jiang Cheng let out a small smile as he ate his share of food. However, seeing the kid looked like a squirrel with his cheeks puffed out, a hearty laugh escaped him.
“I can see that you like pancakes, huh?” He remarked quietly as he took another sip of his caffeine. His hand was itching to wipe the cream from the corner of the kid’s mouth but he tried to ignore the urge.
Fuck, Jiang Cheng! Control yourself. Remember that this is your best friend’s baby and you’re just a stranger.
Jingyi hummed appreciatively as he continued his onslaught. His appetite had come back and he was certainly enjoying himself. Jiang Wanyin’s laughter rang in his ear. The man had a nice laugh and smile and he felt like there was something he wanted to remember.
His head still was pounding but he did feel at least a tiny bit better.
Placing his fork down, Jingyi went back to his tea, he did need to hydrate after all.
"I'm surprised you just didn't cart me off to Xichen-ge." At least that's what he should have done, Jiang Wanyin probably found him a pest at best and having to take care of him for his Geges sake proved it.
When his laughter died down, Jiang Cheng pointed on his face near his lips, “You’ve got cream on your mouth.”
“Nah, Xichen-ge was too busy to look after you. Besides, I just wouldn’t leave a lost chicken, would I? I wasn’t raised to abandon a lost chickling.” He indignantly told the kid. Maybe, he was thinking that it’s not just like him to bear some sort of responsibility given their first meet-up wasn’t so stellar.
If it was another person...he’d just leave them out in the cold.
But Jingyi...he was different.
How different? The voice in his mind suddenly asked him and Jiang Cheng was lost for words. Trying to distract himself from his inner voice, he suddenly reached out his arm and wiped the cream on the corner of Jingyi’s mouth absently. However…
What seemed to be an innocent gesture became something more when he realized a bit too late that his thumb hiked up on Jingyi’s cheek.
Cream?
He stuck out his tongue and licked the area, he probably got it.
“I wasn’t lost.” He argued, “Just...in a different realm.” Jingyi was finally starting to remember some bits and pieces, though remembering his cousin eating face with that dog guy was something he definitely didn’t want to remember.
“You-” His eyes grew big as he saw Jiang Wanyin’s hand approach his face. Feeling them on his skin. Oh,god He could feel his cheeks warm at his touch and he jerked away.
Was his head pounding? Or was his heart? Probably both. This was fucked. He didn’t need to stare at hot uncle.
Jiang Cheng had realized what he was doing too late when Jingyi jerked away. He instantly withdrew his hand as he felt his face getting hot. As a defence mechanism, Jiang Cheng stabbed a massive pancake with a fork and downed it on one go. He didn’t care what he looked like now - probably something dumb. He’d accept Jingyi laughing at him anytime.
Anything to distract and lift the sudden awkward tension between them.
Clearing his throat, Jiang Cheng croaked out a weak, “sorry” and avoided the kid’s face while doing so.
Jingyi wanted to punch himself, what a dumbass he was. Now he made it even more awkward. All Jiang Wanyin was trying to do was help him clean his face. Yes, that’s right. He didn’t want to believe it was anything but that.
The older man wasn’t the only one to take the opportunity to scarf down some more pancakes, the sound of scraping utensils and plates was enough to help keep the two of them busy.
The younger Lan looked back at him and noticed his embarrassment. It was really cute. Fuck these thoughts!
“No, it’s fine.” He blurted, “You were just trying to clean my face. Probably annoying to see this brat as you’d call me not eat properly.”
Jiang Cheng was about to wolf down another slice of stabbed pancake when he heard what Jingyi said. His arm froze on the air as he looked at Lan Jingyi. His eyes glazed and he really wanted to curse himself for calling Jingyi a brat so many times in the past.
“Does calling you a brat really get to you?” He asked with a serious expression plastered on his face. He really didn’t mean to make Jingyi feel bad...it’s just that he’s having this serious inner turmoil when the younger Lan was around him.
“I’m sorry, Jingyi.” He whispered softly as he nudged the tea closer to the youth. “I didn’t mean...anything by it. I was just teasing you.”
Jingyi hadn’t expected that kind of reaction from the cafe owner. Apologizing to him. He wouldn’t deny that in some ways it did bother him, mainly from hearing it from his extended family but it was silly.
Maybe, he was still drunk? Or seeing things? Why was Jiang Wanyin being so....nice?
He picked up the tea cup and let out a breath, “It’s fine, you don’t have to apologize. I was kidding around anyways. Looking sad isn’t a good look on you.” Yes, preferably Jingyi enjoyed the Wanyin who laughed or smiled. It was a sight to see.
“Hm,”
Was Jingyi trying to cheer him up? If so, then he looked ridiculous doing it.
“To be honest, I used to hate being called a brat as well. I am the youngest in my family and they would always see me as a brat just because I’ve always been grumpy.” He responded bitterly. “I only ever have fun when I’m with Xichen-ge.”
He smiled absently as he mentioned his light and anchor. “It’s fine, Jingyi. I’ve been calling you a brat too many times but we’re quits now, you’ve been calling me a hot uncle since last night.” He informed him smugly.
“You are grumpy…” He answered, “But like one of the grumpy cats that you still enjoy having around.” He grinned. The man did frown a lot but when he smiled it was really- NO. He did not need to think about how pretty the man's smile was...Too late for that.
Jingyi was about to talk about his wonderful cousin when he felt his words leave him. Did he say that?
”No, there's no way I’d say that.” Man, he’d always been a shit liar and now that he was thinking about it more and more. It was even worse. “You’re not an uncle so remove that.”
Wait by saying that, that just left that he meant that Jiang Wanyin was Hot Ah, fuck a duck.
Jiang Cheng was about to take another sip of his coffee when he froze midway. His eyes widened in surprise when he realized Jingyi’s statement.
He just called me hot.
He felt the tips of his ear getting hot whilst he gawked to the younger Lan. His heart started pounding erratically and his feelings suddenly bloomed with strange happiness that he had never felt before. It was all so foreign to him. Never in his life that he had felt this way with a kid.
Making up his mind, Jiang Cheng tried to croak out a word albeit failing in a fucked up way.
“D-Did you...just call me hot?”
A little voice inside Jingyi was screaming as he watched the man's reaction. His mouth was sometimes faster than his brain.
He couldn't lie and blame it on the alcohol, not even the tea! Jingyi was practically sober.
A feeling was creeping up inside that he was ready to toss out the window.
"I said you weren't an uncle." He managed, trying to ignore his own embarrassment. Jiang Cheng really was going to think he was a stupid kid now.
A sly smirk made its way on his lips as Jiang Cheng sipped on his coffee. Still smirking behind the cup, he watched the younger Lan getting uncomfortable in front of him. This kid had no filter on his mouth and he’s awfully honest.
He kind of liked it.
It was adorable.
“If you omit the uncle from your statement, what will that leave you?” He replied sarcastically and went on to continue eating his pancake. He might look calm on the outside but inside, he was already doing somersaults.
But there’s no way in hell that he would admit that. Over his dead body.
Did his mouth really need to be that huge? Apparently it did so he decided the best way to mitigate any more slip ups was to shove more delicious pancakes into his mouth.
Jingyi thought and he thought until he finally swallowed and with all seriousness said. " Maybe it means you might need to check your temperature. You might have a fever."
Really? That was the best way to avoid saying that the man was attractive!?
If only his Xichen-ge could see him now.
Rolling his eyes in distaste, Jiang Cheng rebutted, “Try harder, Chickyi. You don’t even remember what you did last night. You were clinging on me like a leech.”
“And no,” he continued, “I don’t have any fever. Maybe you’re still drunk.” Seeing that the Jingyi’s share of pancakes was almost finished, Jiang Cheng transferred his last whole pancake onto Jingyi’s plate.
“Eat more.” He ordered as he finished the rest of his pancake in one bite.
Damn, he could feel himself flushing, had he really been that bad?
"You could be lying.." He questioned slowly...One of the things that he was starting faceplate remember, even if it was hazy it was exactly that.
Could he embarrass himself anymore? He could facepalm but that would be giving him away.
As he contemplated this another pancake appeared on his plate. Jingyi blinked slowly and looked back to Jiang Cheng.
"Aren't you hungry?"
Jiang Cheng raised his hand in stop motion and replied petulantly, “Nah, I really don’t eat breakfast that much unless I’m in my sister’s house. She just loves feeding me, you know? I usually eat as I’m working in my office so just take it and eat.”
“And I’m certainly not lying,” he continued as he stood up and went to his desk to get his daily planner for the day. He skimmed over his day and there was only a delivery coming.
Hm, there’s another delivery of coffee beans. My barista can check on them. He thought absently. He could probably let this chickling sleep more and just drop him home when he’s ready. He’d just mostly spend his day chilling in his cafe for the time being.
When he snapped the planner close, Jiang Cheng turned back his attention to Jingyi and snipped, “You were also drooling on the backseat of my car.”
The man didn’t have to tell him twice as he went in seconds as he listened to his explanation. “Must be nice to have a sister.” He sighed as he finished swallowing, “Only child but I guess gege is kinda sisterly at times.” HIs cousin had it all.
As Jiang Cheng turned around, he stuck his tongue out before going back to his pancakes.
“At least it was drool, could have been worse.” It’s not like he barfed in his car, at least that’s what he thought. Jiang Cheng probably would have thrown him into the ocean.
“Hm,” Jiang Cheng sat beside Jingyi and reached for his coffee.
“Yeah, you should meet my sister. Xichen-ge knows her as well and she’s an absolute angel.” He stated proudly.
“If you’re done with breakfast, you can still sleep here until you’re ready to go. I need to take another shower and check my clothes from last night because you retched on me and soiled my clothes.” He added as he finished his coffee and set it on the tray. Jiang Cheng then went to the closet opposite the bed and pulled out some fresh clothes for him and Jingyi. He put the clothes on the bed and muttered, “I’m going to take a shower. Just put the tray on the floor and I’ll bring them downstairs after I’m done.” And with that, Jiang Cheng walked towards his mini bathroom just beside the entrance of his room and left Jingyi alone for now.
“So an Angel to balance out with you, hmm? He teased, taking another sip of his tea.
Oh
So that who he ended up barfing on. Jingyi leaned back and scratched at his head, looking sheepish. Man, he sure did fuck. Even after vomiting on Jiang Wanyin he did all this.
The young Lan really was going to owe him. Jingyi watched him slink off and took that moment to set the tray down and snuggle back up into the sheets, facing the door. He’d try and stay awake until Jiang Wanyin got back but he was going to find that difficult. Now that his stomach was full and for some reason his heart as well.
The moment he was inside his bathroom, Jiang Cheng instantly removed all his clothes and jumped on the shower. He needed a cold shower to ease the hotness that was stirring inside him. Seeing Jingyi on his clothes was making his mind run wild.
This is insanity! Calm yourself, Jiang Cheng! This is your best friend’s baby cousin!
He kept on repeating the same sentence over and over again as he scrubbed his body with a loofah forcefully until his skin was red and raw. He wasn’t some kind of a fucking teenager to go through another puberty stage of having his first crush.
This was fucking ridiculous.
He turned off the shower seeing that his fingers were turning into a prune. He was already showering for about 30 minutes when in fact, he usually did it under 15. He looked around his bathroom to find his fresh set of clothes but cursed out a loud fuck. He noticed that he forgot to take them with him. He must have put it on the bed along with Jingyi’s.
Clicking his tongue in annoyance, Jiang Cheng dried himself using his bath towel and wrapped it tightly on his hips. His hair was still wet, droplets of water sliding down his back and pectorals. He exited the bathroom and went straight to the bed to get his clothes only to see Lan Jingyi being comfortable again on his bed.
Jingyi waited and waited, he didn’t know how much time had passed, he wasn’t even sure where his phone was. All he wanted to do was thank Jiang Wanyin and the man decided to disappear and never come back. He’d been drowsy, his eyes drooping and he managed to nod off.
Only waking up when he noticed that he did but he kept having a hard time keeping his eyes open. As he was about to shut them again, he heard the door open and with half hooded eyes he looked up to see Jiang Wanyin but actually seeing what was in front of him made his mouth go dry and his eyes grow big.
Whatever drowsiness that he had was gone. A half-naked Jiang Wanyin was not in his cards.
“Fuck..”
Wait, did he say that out loud!?
He could feel his face flush as he tried to keep his composure. It was hard when the man looked like he had literally just stepped out of the shower. His eyes dropped to the man’s chest and then to his abs. Jingyi was sure he could eat off of there.
Seeing that he was screwed he decided to just swallow down the apparent thirst that he had and managed to let out a strangled, “Welcome back.”
[OOC: PLEASE IMAGINE THIS: https://photos.google.com/share/AF1QipNehz832CFqKRGomcNqBBBtLTsLmZHaeqhr0ZnDPOS5jX_MsW5hwfEL7h2PYDB1Tw/photo/AF1QipML1Vm39tmghohapGMcgz15BfFQkZUYeCAI0B1V?key=TVpMS18yeXVpNWtMMm9YUEJyU1FxWHQwU3RaOU9B]
Jiang Cheng jerked back a bit in surprise as he was drying his hair when Jingyi suddenly talked. He thought he was sleeping so he was aiming to stealthily come and go. But it’s too late now. And did he just hear him curse out a fuck?
Jiang Cheng let out a shit-eating grin and asked, “Like what you see?”
It was such a delight seeing Lan Jingyi getting all flustered by his state of...undress. He didn’t mean this to happen but because of his dumbness, it did.
Now it’s your turn to get flustered, Chickyi. He ecstatically thought in his mind.
He looked down on Jingyi as he went closer until he was standing on the side of the bed only to see that his clothes were all crumpled under Lan Jingyi’s body.
Wanting to rile up the kid further, Jiang Cheng hovered over and tried to get his clothes underneath Jingyi. The water on his hair was dripping down on Jingyi’s agape face but he didn’t care.
He actually liked what he was seeing.
This time, Jingyi managed to bite his tongue. This was his cousins best friend , he couldn't be ogling the older man.
He rolled his eyes instead and pouted, "Ha Ha."
It wasn't an answer to the question but it was hopefully enough to keep Jiang Wanyin from egging him on.
Except he did, and there was a chiselled chest in front of his face, not even the droplets rolling on to his face could save him from the mental gay breakdown that he was having on the inside.
This was so fucked in so many ways.
Jingyi pulled the sheets over his head to save him from added embarrassment. He felt so warm. "You're getting me wet." He complained.
Jiang Cheng’s smirk further widened seeing that Chickyi was so affected by his continued teasing. It was fun to see this boisterous kid getting awe-struck and flustered. Even his reply sounded forced as he croaked out that weak laugh.
He really was so adorable.
He certainly wanted to pinch his cheeks seeing that the tips of his ears were glowing red. He let out a chuckle when Jingyi decided to bury himself underneath the blanket. Wanting to tease him further, Jiang Cheng leaned even closer until they were only an inch away. Though the kid was under the blanket, he could see him squirming uncomfortably and he was absolutely enjoying this. Once he got his clothes, Jiang Cheng decided to dress in the room. But first, he took a seat on the side of the bed, awfully close to Jingyi and started wiping his legs dry, the towel was hiking up on his thighs.
Wait why was he still leaning in!? HIS Clothes can't be that far?
Jiang Wanyin had to be doing this on purpose. "Can you get off of me already? Or are you really straining there, old man?" His tone showing his annoyance.
He eventually was off and that was when Jingyi decided to peek out and still, there was the man right next to him drying himself without a care in the world.
Jingyi narrowed his eyes and just pouted at the Cafe Owner. He refused to give the man any more amusement.
Shrugging his shoulder nonchalantly, Jiang Cheng continued with his business as if he wasn’t being spectated. Once he was done with his right leg, he decided to work on his left. He could feel Jingyi narrowing his eyes but didn’t do anything to avert his gaze.
After a moment, Jiang Cheng stood up to grab his boxer briefs and wore it in front of Jingyi without flashing anything. Jokes could be fun but he didn’t want this kid to see his gun. Once he was sure that he’s covered down there, he removed the towel and turned his back on Jingyi as he worked on wearing his trousers.
Jingyi had to say, Jiang Wanyin probably was almost as shameless as him.
Now he acted like he wasn't even there. Now he had some briefs on but he could see muscled thighs and a scrumptious ass to boot. WHY was this happening to him!?
He turned around and hugged his pillow, Jingyi would pretend this never happened and would stop thinking about the man’s ass even if his eyes were closed.
Jiang Cheng was having a blast teasing the younger Lan. Since the door of his closet was a mirror, he could see Chickyi struggling whether to turn around or continue to ogle at him. He let out a lewd smile as he caught him turning around and hugged his pillow like he couldn’t take it anymore. Once he’s done putting on his light purple v-neck shirt, Jiang Cheng then turned around to face him. He could still see Jingyi pouting lightly as he clung on his pillow as if his life depended on it.
Bending his knees to get the tray, Jiang Cheng then decided to speak.
“I’m going out to help out at the cafe. Take your time resting. You can use the bathroom and use the clothes that I set out for you. I’ll take you home when you’re ready.” Without waiting for Jingyi to answer, Jiang Cheng exited his office/pseudo room and went to work.
Jingyi waited until Jiang Wanyin was gone to sigh and turn back to look up at the ceiling. This was not how he was supposed to start his day. He was supposed to rest but that was looking to be hard considering that the Cafe owner had managed to rile him up.
He closed his eyes and took in a few deep breaths. Sleep was needed. He needed to function when he woke up, enough to deal with the man that had just left.
The cafe was quite busy since it’s a weekend and before he knew it, the lunchtime rush was done. He glanced at his wristwatch and saw that it was already past 1 pm. He still hadn’t seen Jingyi emerging from his room and Jiang Cheng thought that he must be starving by now. Telling his employee that he’s going to check on his patient, Jiang Cheng prepared his food.
His chef-prepared mapo tofu and he wasn’t sure if Jingyi would be able to take it. Knowing the Lans’ bizarre taste buds, he was sure as hell that Jingyi was the same as his cousin.
But Jingyi needed to eat. Sighing softly, Jiang Cheng went to their walk-in freezer and took out some frozen chicken wings that they marinated before and decided to fry them. While the chicken wings were cooking in the fryer, Jiang Cheng whipped up some homemade barbeque sauce and homemade ranch dip. Once he was sure that everything was cooked up and done, he set Jingyi’s food on the tray with rice and mapo tofu on the side.
With a tray on his hands, he started to walk towards his office and entered without knocking. Jingyi was already awake although it seemed like he still hadn’t showered yet seeing that he’s still wearing his clothes from last night.
“You must be starving,” he said as he set the tray in front of him. “Eat. I’ll take you home after. Feeling better now?”
When Jingyi finally woke, he felt so much more energized than he had been in the early morning. The embarrassment that he had felt was practically gone. Now he really just needed to head back home.
Looking around he noticed his phone was on the floor and looked at the time.
Was it that late already!?
Jingyi let put a groan and pulled the sheets off before sitting up. Jiang Wanyin had left him clothes to wear so he should probably change. Or maybe he could just head back home in the state that he was.
As he thought about it the door opened to reveal the Cafe Owner with another tray of food.
"You're really going to keep on feeding, aren't you?" He said maybe a little too giddy. The younger Lan did enjoy being doted on and the offerings on the tray looked extremely tasty. Enough to awaken his appetite.
"Ah, you don't have to worry, I'll take the metro back home. He really couldn't further inconvenience Jiang Wanyin; it almost felt like taking advantage of him.
Taking a seat on the bed adjacent to the younger Lan, Jiang Cheng fished out his phone to check his messages. He got one from his sister telling him to go to her apartment because she cooked his favorite. He let out a gentle smile as he typed his reply to his sister. He could hear Lan Jingyi talking and Jiang Cheng peered up to him from his phone.
“I like feeding people,” he answered flatly with a quick shrug.
Once he hit the send button, he finally faced Jingyi who was already devouring the chicken wings like there’s no tomorrow. Jiang Cheng’s heart always swelled in happiness every time someone liked his food.
He felt validated.
“Nah, it’s okay. I’m going to my sister’s house anyway so why not drop you on the way? Besides, you look like a mess and inebriated to even walk straight.”
Since Jiang Wanyin took the trouble of preparing it, he might as well dig in. Jingyi really was going to owe the man quite a bit after this. What could he even do to make it up?
The problem for Lan JIngyi of tomorrow, instead he picked up a chicken wing and gave it an impressionable bite. It was nice and crunchy and seasoned perfectly.
He was going to eat every last one.
“I’m glad that you like feeding people. Especially me.” He joked as he swallowed.
Though he did have to raise an eyebrow as he accused Jiang Cheng with a Chicken wing, “Hey, I’m not even drunk anymore. I could totally walk straight.”
Jiang Cheng almost laughed at the comical way Jingyi was trying to reprimand him by his statement. The chicken wing on his hand was enough to make this situation hilarious. While still holding his phone, Jiang Cheng had this idea.
Tapping the camera button, he snapped a photo of Jingyi devouring a chicken wing. When he saw it, he couldn’t help but let out a laugh. Lan Jingyi’s mouth was smeared with barbeque sauce, his mouth was open in the midst of biting the chicken wing. He looked so cute in Jiang Cheng’s eyes.
Badump.
Fuck.
This shouldn’t happen. He just met this kid a week ago and there was no way in hell he’s feeling like this. Deciding to get up, Jiang Cheng instantly looked away and slid his phone in the pocket of his trousers. He trudged towards the door but before he exited, he looked back at Jingyi and informed him, “Just go down with the tray when you’re ready.”
As Jiang Cheng was walking back to the counter, there’s only one thing that he could think of.
I’m fucked.
Jingyi didn't pay much mind as he went back to eating. Jiang Cheng seemed to still be busy with his phone so continued enjoying his lunch. Eating chicken wings was always a messy experience. His eyes slid over to the mapo tofu and wondered if this was some challenge from the man.
He was about to ask when he saw Jiang Wanyin get up and leave only to tell him to take his tray down.
He nodded once and almost felt sad to see the man go, he wanted to rattle him some but it looked like he'd leave that for later.
It was getting late so Jingyi gave the tofu a shot, it really was spicier than he could handle as he coughed. The younger Lan was brought up to not waste food so it he would. Even if he ended up being a sniffling mess with swollen lips.
Having finished he quickly got changed into the clothes Jiang Wanyin provided. The shirt and pants being large on him. At least the black sweatpants didn't slide off his ass.
Putting his phone in his back pocket, he cleaned up, making the bed and folding the clothes that he had slept in. That was the least he could do.
Grabbing the tray, he made his way down and looked around the cafe. Everything was in full swing. It was great to see that the cafe was a hit.
Maybe he'd take another picture since the last one did so well.
Making himself distracted by calibrating and tasting more coffee, Jiang Cheng could be found behind the counter. He was keeping himself busy so as not to think more of Jingyi. He hated this. He wasn’t supposed to feel this way.
It’s unnerving.
As he turned around, he saw Jingyi standing by the kitchen door holding the tray. He was looking around the cafe and it didn’t seem like he had yet to notice him. Jiang Cheng just watched him from the corner of his eyes while he pretended to focus on his current task.
Lan Jingyi was standing there wearing his clothes. He looked like he’s drowning in it but the way the younger Lan carried his clothes made him look absolutely wonderful. As expected, purple looked good on him.
When Jingyi finally took notice of him, Jiang Cheng softly sighed before he walked towards him and held out his arms to get the tray and passed it to his server.
“Are you ready to go?” He asked as he took a side glance to the younger Lan.
Lost in his thought for a moment, his brown eyes finally found themselves gazing at the Cafe Owner. He looked to be busy and there was something familiar about watching the man work in his environment that made him stare longer than we would have liked.
Jingyi only stopped once Jiang Wanyin started to approach him. He gave the man the tray and watched it disappear off into the back with a server.
“Yeah, I’m ready but need to do one last thing.” He said as he pulled out his phone and tapped on it.
He pressed himself closer to Jiang Wanyin and pulled up his phone, “Come on, we’re taking a selfie. It’ll be good for my followers to know who’s running this place.”
Jiang Cheng instantly stiffened the moment Jingyi pressed his lithe body against his. His mind suddenly went misty as he just dumbly looked at Jingyi who was already doing some sort of a millennial pose. He didn’t know what he’s supposed to do as he continued to stare at the now grinning Jingyi. The fleeting look he was giving Jingyi was enough to garner the attention of his barista who was now ogling at them with mouth agape.
Jiang Cheng glared at him and he was thankful that his barista backed out instantly. Jiang Cheng didn’t know what pose he’s about to do and he’s not one to smile in photos.
Letting Jingyi do what he wanted, he let him take a selfie with him. However….
One of his servers was mopping the floor when she accidentally swung the mop back and forth a bit too forceful and not seeing that there were people behind her. This made Jiang Cheng jerked closer to Jingyi to avoid getting hit.
At the same moment, Jingyi decided to look at him and Jiang Cheng’s lips landed on his forehead.
And the photo that Jingyi took was the accidental kiss on the forehead.
Jingyi really wasn't one to take that many selfies, only ever really did for his social media accounts and his followers. Of course, he'd take some with Xichen-ge but even then his cousin was the one to whip out his phone.
He put his phone up and moved the screen to see how best to work the photo. The Catupurrcino sign could be seen in the back as long as he kept the camera where they were at.
Perfect
He grinned at the camera but noticed that Jiang Wanyin seemed to not be paying attention.
Just as he turned his head to ask him why lips had descended on his forehead. His eyes widened as he gripped his phone out of surprise. The sound of a shutter went off as his brain finally decided to start up, his eyes locked once with the older man and his cheeks flared as he finally jerked away. "Why did you do that!?" Jingyi blurted out touching the skin where the Cafe owner had just pressed his lips.
It was so embarrassing. Was he trying to mess with him?
Jiang Cheng blinked profusely as he stared speechlessly. He was rooted in his place and didn’t dare to make any movement until Jingyi jerked away, waking him from his stupor. Jiang Cheng automatically turned red from the neck up to the tips of his ears as he covered his face with his hand.
“I-I’m sorry I just…I’m trying to a-avoid getting hit. I didn’t know you’d turn your head all of a sudden,” he managed to croak out, stuttering. He avoided looking at Jingyi as he hurriedly went back to the counter and whipped some cold brew for him and Jingyi. He needed something to cool down.
What had transpired was so humiliating that Jiang Cheng couldn’t even look at his employees. He really didn’t mean for this to happen.
He drew some deep breaths to calm himself as well as his rapid heartbeat. His face still felt warm, his heart thumping so loudly against his ribcage that he couldn’t hear the relaxing jazz music playing in the cafe. He could only hear his own heartbeat and feel the pulsating of his ears. Though he must admit, Jingyi smelled so good but he shouldn’t take advantage of him like that. He was the adult here and yet he was acting like a fucking brat.
Once he’s done with the cold brew, he went back to Jingyi who was still pouting and flushed. He handed him the cup and apologized again, “It’s not intentional, I swear in Xiao Ai’s paws.”
Whatever embarrassment that Jingyi had felt was swept away by the schoolgirl like reaction of Jiang Wanyin, he was so flustered, emoting with his hand and everything.
It was cute
Jingyi found himself trying not to grin instead. Oh boy, he would have loved to tease the older man but he jetted off to the counter instead leaving him alone a few moments.
It felt like some type of karma after the way the older man had purposely teased him. He looked at the picture and smiled. Even though they both weren't expecting it, it turned out rather cute.
Jiang Wanyin appeared with coffee and an apology. Jingyi took the coffee and shrugged, waving the man off. "Don't worry about it, I know.I doubt you'd want a picture like that uploaded for the world to see."
Taking a look at the cold brew in his hands an idea formed, "Oh, it's good you brought this coffee we can take a picture with it. It'll be a good add on." Jingyi wasn’t about to give up in his attempt at taking a picture with the man for the cafe.
Jiang Cheng could tell that Jingyi was laughing at him openly, at least. The smug grin etched on his face was enough to make Jiang Cheng scowl deeply as he handed him the drink with another explanation.
Gods, he just wanted this day to end. He couldn’t take another humiliating situation in front of this walking hazard. When Jingyi accepted the drink and told him another idea of taking one more photo, Jiang Cheng groaned loudly. He didn’t want to offer himself as another sacrificial lamb to this evil incarnate by the name of Lan Jingyi.
One embarrassment in a day was enough to haunt him a lifetime.
“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” he informed him with an obvious whine, “...but I can take your solo photo if you still want it.” He finished as he felt his trouser pocket for his car keys. Whenever Jingyi would be ready to leave, they could at any time.
Oh? It looked like Jiang Wanyin wasn’t too happy but he’d have to get over it. Jingyi didn’t have much sympathy for the man at the moment.
“I’ll get you in one of the photos one day.” He affirmed, moving his phone and taking a picture of just his drink with the catpurrchino sign, “Nah, this will be good enough...Although.” His smile turned into a sort of devilish smirk, “I could always just post the one that I just took.”
There was no way he would but he wanted to continue stirring the Cafe Owner up. “We can head out if you want. I wouldn’t want you being late for your sisters because of me.” Jingyi was at least thoughtful enough!
Jiang Cheng let out a sour face and snipped, emphasizing every word, “Don’t. You. Fucking. Dare. Chickyi.”
The previous flushed face was now replaced with some sort of a distressed expression. He had a feeling that Jingyi was a shameless walking human hazard and that he’d do what he had just said. Jiang Cheng started massaging his temples for some stress relief when he heard Jingyi stating that he’d get him to have a photo with him one day.
“In your dreams, brat. I don’t grace my face for a photo to anyone -- especially not with you. And yeah, just do that. I appreciate you promoting my cafe.” Jiang Cheng then nodded as he fished out his car keys from the pocket of his trousers and started walking towards the exit.
“Let’s go.”
Once they got to the car, Jiang Cheng had to remind Jingyi to put on his seatbelt. Jiang Cheng was still amused about the way Jingyi looked; he was drowning in his clothes but the shade of deep purple absolutely looked fantastic on him.
“Just tell me the direction to your house,” he told Jingyi as he started to drive away. It felt so foreign having the younger Lan in his car. He was snooping and looking around until he accidentally opened the audio and the music blasted in the car.
“What the fuck, Chickyi?” Jiang Cheng yelled as he turned down the volume. Some tasteless modern music was playing and Jiang Cheng mostly preferred classical songs. He let out a sigh of exasperation as he just continued to drive Jingyi home based on his directions.
Once they reached a shit looking building, Jiang Cheng stopped the car and took a side glance at Jingyi.
"Here’s your stop.”
A bubble of laughter escaped Jingyi. He couldn't hold back, not with Jiang Wanyins reaction.
"Are you sure? It didn’t look like you had an issue taking one earlier." Shaking his head, he shoved his phone back into his pocket.
"Don't worry, I'm not going to upload it." Just keep it.
He soon followed the older man to his car and slid into the passenger seat. Jingyi had been in this car the previous night but much memory of it was lost, his eyes slid to the back and he found himself feeling sheepish.
A memory fizzing up, Jingyi resting against Jiang Wanyin and the man holding him.
His thought was interrupted by the same man.
Clicking in his seat belt, he pointed and told him the neighborhood. He was starting to feel fidgety especially as he kept thinking about it so his hands traveled to the consol and pressed what looked like the way to turn it on.
Music blared and he jumped once as Jiang Wanyin took the liberty of turning it down.
"I didn't do it on purpose." He mumbled, looking out the window as the signs of his older looking neighborhood coming into view.
The rest of the ride was quiet until the car lurched and finally stopped.
His eyes looked back to Jiang Wanyin’s face, " Hey, thanks for helping me out.." Why was he feeling awkward?
To mitigate he grinned and unbuckled his seat belt and stepped put of the car, turning back to the man. "If you ever get wasted, let me know and I'll take care of you."
Jingyi bid Jiang Wanyin a goodbye before shutting the door and heading straight to his apartment.
When Jingyi looked in his direction, Jiang Cheng noticed the sudden change in his facade and he looked a bit awkward at least. Jiang Cheng almost frowned but Jingyi suddenly shifted his mood once again into his little sunshiny self. Jiang Cheng arched his brow after hearing Jingyi’s statement and he felt like he needed to say something at least. Now that Jingyi was gonna be out of his hair for the day, Jiang Cheng couldn’t help but start feeling a bit empty and he just didn’t fucking know why.
“Just to let you know,” Jiang Cheng started, “...that I have a massive alcohol tolerance. I’m not like you who passes out after a bottle or two. But, yeah, I’ll remember that offer then. Goodbye, Jingyi.”
When Jingyi finally exited his car with a loud bang coming from the car door, Jiang Cheng took a moment to steady himself. He watched as Jingyi walked towards his dilapidated apartment building. Once he was sure that he’s inside, Jiang Cheng only then drove off to see his sister.
Today was a bit...exciting.
He actually enjoyed taking care of and feeding Jingyi. He looked like the type to eat anything you’d serve him. He also noticed that he finished the mapo tofu that he put on the tray. He knew that the Lans were trained not to waste food but he really didn’t have to finish it if it’s too spicy.
With everything that happened, Jiang Cheng felt slightly satisfied for today; a small smile was playing on his lips during the whole duration of his drive.
And he swore it’s not because of a walking hazard by the name of Lan Jingyi.
[end]
Who: Jiang Cheng and Lan Jingyi
Tags: Lots of teasing, flirting, did i say lots of teasing?, fluff
Jiang Cheng groaned painfully when he woke up. In the end, because of one walking Lan hazard by the name of Lan Jingyi, they ended up sleeping at the cafe because it's the closest one from the bar.
The kid was puking all over and Jiang Cheng was just thankful that he kept some extra set of fresh clothes in his office/pseudo bedroom at the cafe. After dumping the kid upstairs with the cats, he then went straight to clean up.
Fucking Chickyi actually barfed on me.
Disgusting.
Deciding to check on the younger Lan, Jiang Cheng went upstairs with a pounding headache and saw Chickyi already awake and surrounded with cats. He stayed at the edge of the stairs and examined the brat.
He looked like a mess with his hair sticking all over his head and he must admit, it was quite a sight.
"Good morning, Chikyi. Rough night, I see."
Meow. Jingyi shifted and felt his nose tickle, he had been asleep and just now was finding himself stirring. He managed to crack up an eye, eyesight blurry as he noticed a small bit of light and purple cross his sight.
Meow
His head was pounding as he finally opened his eyes and looked up to see a cat peering down at his face. Meowing once more.
What the fuck
He propped himself on his elbow and noticed multiple cats surrounding him, Xiao Ai sleeping on his stomach.
Jingyi was at Catupurrcino. How the hell did he even get there!?
He pressed his hand to his face and pushed himself up, making sure to keep Xiao Ai in his lap.
All he could remember was that he had been at Paradise Manor. He probably drank more than he was supposed to and who knows how he ended up with Jiang Cheng at the cafe.
He didn’t have much time to think before hearing said man speak to him. Even his mouth was dry as he responded groggy.
“How?”
With his arms crossed around his chest, Jiang Cheng moved closer to the brat and sat on the chair closest to him.
“You don’t remember what happened last night?” He started with a deep scowl. Fucking Lans and their disaster genes. This kid was way worse than his older cousin. He took in the sleep-induced appearance of Jingyi and Jiang Cheng’s breath almost hitch when he saw that the oversized v-neck purple shirt that he lent the kid last night was hanging low on his shoulder, showing some skin.
Fucking headache making him think about stuff.
“Get up,” getting on his feet, he started walking back to the stairs, “I’ll make you some breakfast. Go and refresh in the bathroom. I’ll take you to my private office.”
The gears in his brain did not want to function. He whined once and managed to get himself on to his hands and knees, Xiao Ai jumping off his stomach to follow her owner.
No, he couldn't remember much still, the constant throbbing didn't help. He'd have to have Jiang Wanyin help him piece together last night.
He groaned and managed to crawl towards the stairs, "Wanyin-ge...Can it be pancakes?" Pancakes always helped him with a hangover.
Jiang Cheng stopped on his tracks and whipped his head towards the crawling hazard and blinked for a couple of times as he tried to process his mind as to what Chickyi had just called him.
“W-what did you call me again?” He asked once again. He can feel a light blush tainting his cheeks but he couldn’t help but tug his lips upward into a smile. He bent down to pick up Xiao Ai - mostly to hide his face and smile.
One..two..three
Lan Jingyi finally managed to pick himself up and quirked a brow at the cafe owner, he had a weird look on his face that made him squirm. Maybe because he was smiling? He walked past Jiang Wanyin with a light pout. God, he felt like shit and trying to make sense of things was even harder.
"What are you even talking about?" He yawned once as he made his way down.
He was starving and thirsty.
"DO you prefer I call you old man?"
Jiang Cheng’s smile then turned into a scowl as he stood up with Xiao Ai on his lap. Turning his back on the kid, Jiang Cheng informed him, “Come downstairs. You need to hydrate, kid.” He didn’t wait for Jingyi to answer as he hastily descended the stairs and set Xiao Ai on the floor. He made himself a cup of latte with tons of sugar to cure his ailing head. He also made some honey ginger tea for Jingyi to cure his hangover.
It had been 10 minutes and he was halfway his coffee and the kid still didn’t appear.
I wonder what’s wrong? Don’t tell me, he went back to sleep again?
He glanced at the clock and it was already 4:45 am. In 15 minutes, his morning shift employees would show up to prepare for the day. Deciding to check on the kid, Jiang Cheng scrunched his face in annoyance as he descended the stairs again.
[OOC: Cafe will open by 6 am and employees still need to calibrate the coffee huehuehue]
Jingyi did need to hydrate. Jingyi needed many things but first he would at least try and make himself look presentable to go home. Every step made his head pound as he found the bathroom and bee lining first to wash his face. He wasn’t looking great, paler than usual. His hair he managed to tame at least slightly pulling most of it back into a messy bun.
He took a look down at the large purple shirt he was wearing. At least he was still wearing his pants. Jingyi would have to ask where the rest of his clothes went.
Groaning, he made his way to the toilet and sat on it, shutting his eyes to give himself a breather. What time was it anyways? He really didn’t know what was going on.
“Fuck, I’m never drinking again.”
When Jiang Cheng got upstairs, he went a bit fazed when he saw that Jingyi was nowhere to be seen. He checked every nook and corner of the second floor and his heart started to beat erratically.
Shit, Xichen-ge might kill me for losing his baby cousin!
Jiang Cheng tried to call out his name as he went down to the first floor again.
“Jingyi? Where are you?”
That voice
He furrowed his eyebrows. The young Lan had managed to make himself comfortable for a moment by resting his face in his hands, he could have almost fallen back asleep but no. The brain still throbbed and he felt like his kidneys would die on him.
With a deep breath, he managed to croak out, " I'm in the bathroom. "
Jiang Cheng followed the voice and ended up standing in front of the bathroom. Based on the weak voice, Jiang Cheng knew that his patient was still hungover. He felt another wave of a massive headache coming his way. At least, Jingyi was a bit tamer than his cousin.
He knocked once before he said, “I’m making you some pancakes. Go to my office, Jingyi. My employees will be here in 10 minutes. Rest there instead. Just follow this small path in between the kitchen and the pantry then on the right at the end of the path, there’s a wooden door.”
He instructed before he retreated and went back to the kitchen to fix their breakfast.
[OOC: JC’s bedroom/office:]
Those knocks went in line with the pulsing in his head but the magical words of pancakes somehow managed to get him off the toilet.
It had to be early if the staff was coming in. Whining once more he let himself out and padded towards the hall and door that Jiang Wanyin mentioned.
Opening the door to the office, he gave it one look around before plopping on the bed and hugging a pillow. Pressing it against his eyes to not feel the light as much.
Jingyi was sure that the cafe owners office was even nicer looking than his entire apartment..it probably was as big as his apartment.
Jiang Cheng was in the midst of doing Jingyi’s breakfast request when his first employee, his barista, came to work. The youngster greeted him with a surprised expression but didn’t ask what he was doing at the cafe so early. Jiang Cheng just nodded to him and ordered him to get him a latte once he’s done calibrating the coffee beans.
Fifteen minutes later, Jiang Cheng was already setting the pancakes, the honey ginger and lemon hot tea and a cafe latte for him on the tray when a few more of his morning shift employees arrived. They looked at him in confusion as he exited the kitchen holding the massive tray. He glared at them in return, clearly saying, “Scram” and went on his merry way.
When he arrived in his office, Jiang Cheng noticed that the kid indeed fell asleep again and carefully set the tray on the floor as he sat at the edge of the bed. Sighing softly, Jiang Cheng shook the kid hard in order to wake him up.
“Jingyi, wake up. Breakfast is ready.”
It hadn't taken long for the young man to slip back into sleep. Not when he slept in a comfortable bed, even the pillow tucked against his nose smelled nice, Jingyi couldn't quite figure out what , not in his hazy mind.
It only felt like a minute that he slept but he was already being jostled. He managed to crack an eye open to see Jiang Wanyin. He whined once and pressed his back against the comforting pillow.
"Five more minutes Gege."
Jiang Cheng sighed for the nth time. It’s not even 6 am yet and here he was, sighing to oblivion. He was just hoping that his day would get better soon. Not perturbed by the adorable display, Jiang Cheng tried to coax the kid once more.
“No. The pancakes are gonna get cold and they’re not going to be jiggly anymore. Eat first then you can sleep after.” He then tucked some strand of Jingyi’s hair behind his ear to get a better view of his face. He still looked a bit pale and Jiang Cheng wasn’t going to let him go until he’s sure that Lan Jingyi was okay to go.
Maybe, he could even drive him home.
It would depend if the cafe’s not busy.
Pancakes It was his calling once more as he opened his eyes to see Jiang Wanyin touch his hair, he could even feel how his fingers brushed his ear and it was enough to make the young adult flush and hide his face back into the pillow. Why did he have to react like that?
“I get it, I’m up, I’m up.” He croaked into the pillow. Fuck, it was too early for this He pulled the pillow away and hoped that if he was blushing he could blame it on being drunk.
His eyes slide to the beautifully presented tray of food. Wanyin had put effort into making all of that for him. He could have just told him to fuck off and threw a piece of bread at his face but he didn’t and it made his heart feel fuzzy and it was definitely weird. Maybe because he liked making desserts? It had to be it. The man was a perfectionist.
He lifted his hands and like a petulant child made a grabby hands motion.
Jiang Cheng couldn’t help but tug his lips upward in a smile after seeing the adorable display of Jingyi.
He really is a kid.
Having only met this kid twice, Jiang Cheng couldn’t help but notice that he mostly didn’t get annoyed with the baby Lan’s antics. Instead, he found himself getting drawn closer. He seriously needed to rethink his actions and thoughts towards the younger Lan to save himself from…something.
He grabbed the tray and set it on the bed, in front of Jingyi. “Drink the tea first while it’s hot. It’ll help with your hangover.” He replied patiently and took his coffee to take a sip as he watched Jingyi behind his cup.
Tea would definitely help. He was rather thirsty. He listened to Jiang Wanyin’s instructions and pressed the cup to his mouth and took a long sip. The taste of ginger was there and Jingyi could feel the warmth as it went down his throat. It was really good and reminded him of the type of tea his cousin brewed.
He finally set the cup down and turned to Jiang Wanyin. “Thanks...for taking care of me.” Jingyi was embarrassed that he even got to this point. If it hadn’t been for the older man he wasn’t even sure where he’d be. Maybe on a park bench somewhere.
“Did...I do anything weird?” He paused and looked down at the oversized shirt, “Ah...Did I puke?”
God, Jingyi hoped he didn’t.
Jiang Cheng suddenly looked bitterly toward the kid and sighed. He could still feel disgusted by just thinking about what happened last night when he had to clean the entrance of his cafe in the middle of the night after throwing the kid upstairs. His soiled clothes were still soaked in detergent water to remove the awful smell.
He wanted to reprimand the kid for drinking more than he could actually take. But seeing his vulnerable state was stopping him from doing so.
Setting his coffee on the tray, Jiang Cheng finally responded, “Why don’t you look at the mirror? But finish your food first.” He then started to eat his pancake fix. The fluffy texture and the sweet taste of the pancake he was savouring was nice. He really loved this hangover food that his sister would usually make for him and his brother.
Jingyi’s face soured as he pouted up at the man, “I did. I look terrible.” So maybe he did puke. He was finally starting to gain some clarity but maybe pancakes would help. So without waiting any longer he forked a strawberry and a nice big piece of pancake and shoved it in his mouth. It made his cheeks feel full in the best way possible. It was fluffy and had the right amount of sweetness.
IT WAS SO GOOD.
He had a big smile while he chewed and then went in for a few more bites.
“ This is amazing!”
Seeing the kid devour the pancake with such vigour, Jiang Cheng let out a small smile as he ate his share of food. However, seeing the kid looked like a squirrel with his cheeks puffed out, a hearty laugh escaped him.
“I can see that you like pancakes, huh?” He remarked quietly as he took another sip of his caffeine. His hand was itching to wipe the cream from the corner of the kid’s mouth but he tried to ignore the urge.
Fuck, Jiang Cheng! Control yourself. Remember that this is your best friend’s baby and you’re just a stranger.
Jingyi hummed appreciatively as he continued his onslaught. His appetite had come back and he was certainly enjoying himself. Jiang Wanyin’s laughter rang in his ear. The man had a nice laugh and smile and he felt like there was something he wanted to remember.
His head still was pounding but he did feel at least a tiny bit better.
Placing his fork down, Jingyi went back to his tea, he did need to hydrate after all.
"I'm surprised you just didn't cart me off to Xichen-ge." At least that's what he should have done, Jiang Wanyin probably found him a pest at best and having to take care of him for his Geges sake proved it.
When his laughter died down, Jiang Cheng pointed on his face near his lips, “You’ve got cream on your mouth.”
“Nah, Xichen-ge was too busy to look after you. Besides, I just wouldn’t leave a lost chicken, would I? I wasn’t raised to abandon a lost chickling.” He indignantly told the kid. Maybe, he was thinking that it’s not just like him to bear some sort of responsibility given their first meet-up wasn’t so stellar.
If it was another person...he’d just leave them out in the cold.
But Jingyi...he was different.
How different? The voice in his mind suddenly asked him and Jiang Cheng was lost for words. Trying to distract himself from his inner voice, he suddenly reached out his arm and wiped the cream on the corner of Jingyi’s mouth absently. However…
What seemed to be an innocent gesture became something more when he realized a bit too late that his thumb hiked up on Jingyi’s cheek.
Cream?
He stuck out his tongue and licked the area, he probably got it.
“I wasn’t lost.” He argued, “Just...in a different realm.” Jingyi was finally starting to remember some bits and pieces, though remembering his cousin eating face with that dog guy was something he definitely didn’t want to remember.
“You-” His eyes grew big as he saw Jiang Wanyin’s hand approach his face. Feeling them on his skin. Oh,god He could feel his cheeks warm at his touch and he jerked away.
Was his head pounding? Or was his heart? Probably both. This was fucked. He didn’t need to stare at hot uncle.
Jiang Cheng had realized what he was doing too late when Jingyi jerked away. He instantly withdrew his hand as he felt his face getting hot. As a defence mechanism, Jiang Cheng stabbed a massive pancake with a fork and downed it on one go. He didn’t care what he looked like now - probably something dumb. He’d accept Jingyi laughing at him anytime.
Anything to distract and lift the sudden awkward tension between them.
Clearing his throat, Jiang Cheng croaked out a weak, “sorry” and avoided the kid’s face while doing so.
Jingyi wanted to punch himself, what a dumbass he was. Now he made it even more awkward. All Jiang Wanyin was trying to do was help him clean his face. Yes, that’s right. He didn’t want to believe it was anything but that.
The older man wasn’t the only one to take the opportunity to scarf down some more pancakes, the sound of scraping utensils and plates was enough to help keep the two of them busy.
The younger Lan looked back at him and noticed his embarrassment. It was really cute. Fuck these thoughts!
“No, it’s fine.” He blurted, “You were just trying to clean my face. Probably annoying to see this brat as you’d call me not eat properly.”
Jiang Cheng was about to wolf down another slice of stabbed pancake when he heard what Jingyi said. His arm froze on the air as he looked at Lan Jingyi. His eyes glazed and he really wanted to curse himself for calling Jingyi a brat so many times in the past.
“Does calling you a brat really get to you?” He asked with a serious expression plastered on his face. He really didn’t mean to make Jingyi feel bad...it’s just that he’s having this serious inner turmoil when the younger Lan was around him.
“I’m sorry, Jingyi.” He whispered softly as he nudged the tea closer to the youth. “I didn’t mean...anything by it. I was just teasing you.”
Jingyi hadn’t expected that kind of reaction from the cafe owner. Apologizing to him. He wouldn’t deny that in some ways it did bother him, mainly from hearing it from his extended family but it was silly.
Maybe, he was still drunk? Or seeing things? Why was Jiang Wanyin being so....nice?
He picked up the tea cup and let out a breath, “It’s fine, you don’t have to apologize. I was kidding around anyways. Looking sad isn’t a good look on you.” Yes, preferably Jingyi enjoyed the Wanyin who laughed or smiled. It was a sight to see.
“Hm,”
Was Jingyi trying to cheer him up? If so, then he looked ridiculous doing it.
“To be honest, I used to hate being called a brat as well. I am the youngest in my family and they would always see me as a brat just because I’ve always been grumpy.” He responded bitterly. “I only ever have fun when I’m with Xichen-ge.”
He smiled absently as he mentioned his light and anchor. “It’s fine, Jingyi. I’ve been calling you a brat too many times but we’re quits now, you’ve been calling me a hot uncle since last night.” He informed him smugly.
“You are grumpy…” He answered, “But like one of the grumpy cats that you still enjoy having around.” He grinned. The man did frown a lot but when he smiled it was really- NO. He did not need to think about how pretty the man's smile was...Too late for that.
Jingyi was about to talk about his wonderful cousin when he felt his words leave him. Did he say that?
”No, there's no way I’d say that.” Man, he’d always been a shit liar and now that he was thinking about it more and more. It was even worse. “You’re not an uncle so remove that.”
Wait by saying that, that just left that he meant that Jiang Wanyin was Hot Ah, fuck a duck.
Jiang Cheng was about to take another sip of his coffee when he froze midway. His eyes widened in surprise when he realized Jingyi’s statement.
He just called me hot.
He felt the tips of his ear getting hot whilst he gawked to the younger Lan. His heart started pounding erratically and his feelings suddenly bloomed with strange happiness that he had never felt before. It was all so foreign to him. Never in his life that he had felt this way with a kid.
Making up his mind, Jiang Cheng tried to croak out a word albeit failing in a fucked up way.
“D-Did you...just call me hot?”
A little voice inside Jingyi was screaming as he watched the man's reaction. His mouth was sometimes faster than his brain.
He couldn't lie and blame it on the alcohol, not even the tea! Jingyi was practically sober.
A feeling was creeping up inside that he was ready to toss out the window.
"I said you weren't an uncle." He managed, trying to ignore his own embarrassment. Jiang Cheng really was going to think he was a stupid kid now.
A sly smirk made its way on his lips as Jiang Cheng sipped on his coffee. Still smirking behind the cup, he watched the younger Lan getting uncomfortable in front of him. This kid had no filter on his mouth and he’s awfully honest.
He kind of liked it.
It was adorable.
“If you omit the uncle from your statement, what will that leave you?” He replied sarcastically and went on to continue eating his pancake. He might look calm on the outside but inside, he was already doing somersaults.
But there’s no way in hell that he would admit that. Over his dead body.
Did his mouth really need to be that huge? Apparently it did so he decided the best way to mitigate any more slip ups was to shove more delicious pancakes into his mouth.
Jingyi thought and he thought until he finally swallowed and with all seriousness said. " Maybe it means you might need to check your temperature. You might have a fever."
Really? That was the best way to avoid saying that the man was attractive!?
If only his Xichen-ge could see him now.
Rolling his eyes in distaste, Jiang Cheng rebutted, “Try harder, Chickyi. You don’t even remember what you did last night. You were clinging on me like a leech.”
“And no,” he continued, “I don’t have any fever. Maybe you’re still drunk.” Seeing that the Jingyi’s share of pancakes was almost finished, Jiang Cheng transferred his last whole pancake onto Jingyi’s plate.
“Eat more.” He ordered as he finished the rest of his pancake in one bite.
Damn, he could feel himself flushing, had he really been that bad?
"You could be lying.." He questioned slowly...One of the things that he was starting faceplate remember, even if it was hazy it was exactly that.
Could he embarrass himself anymore? He could facepalm but that would be giving him away.
As he contemplated this another pancake appeared on his plate. Jingyi blinked slowly and looked back to Jiang Cheng.
"Aren't you hungry?"
Jiang Cheng raised his hand in stop motion and replied petulantly, “Nah, I really don’t eat breakfast that much unless I’m in my sister’s house. She just loves feeding me, you know? I usually eat as I’m working in my office so just take it and eat.”
“And I’m certainly not lying,” he continued as he stood up and went to his desk to get his daily planner for the day. He skimmed over his day and there was only a delivery coming.
Hm, there’s another delivery of coffee beans. My barista can check on them. He thought absently. He could probably let this chickling sleep more and just drop him home when he’s ready. He’d just mostly spend his day chilling in his cafe for the time being.
When he snapped the planner close, Jiang Cheng turned back his attention to Jingyi and snipped, “You were also drooling on the backseat of my car.”
The man didn’t have to tell him twice as he went in seconds as he listened to his explanation. “Must be nice to have a sister.” He sighed as he finished swallowing, “Only child but I guess gege is kinda sisterly at times.” HIs cousin had it all.
As Jiang Cheng turned around, he stuck his tongue out before going back to his pancakes.
“At least it was drool, could have been worse.” It’s not like he barfed in his car, at least that’s what he thought. Jiang Cheng probably would have thrown him into the ocean.
“Hm,” Jiang Cheng sat beside Jingyi and reached for his coffee.
“Yeah, you should meet my sister. Xichen-ge knows her as well and she’s an absolute angel.” He stated proudly.
“If you’re done with breakfast, you can still sleep here until you’re ready to go. I need to take another shower and check my clothes from last night because you retched on me and soiled my clothes.” He added as he finished his coffee and set it on the tray. Jiang Cheng then went to the closet opposite the bed and pulled out some fresh clothes for him and Jingyi. He put the clothes on the bed and muttered, “I’m going to take a shower. Just put the tray on the floor and I’ll bring them downstairs after I’m done.” And with that, Jiang Cheng walked towards his mini bathroom just beside the entrance of his room and left Jingyi alone for now.
“So an Angel to balance out with you, hmm? He teased, taking another sip of his tea.
Oh
So that who he ended up barfing on. Jingyi leaned back and scratched at his head, looking sheepish. Man, he sure did fuck. Even after vomiting on Jiang Wanyin he did all this.
The young Lan really was going to owe him. Jingyi watched him slink off and took that moment to set the tray down and snuggle back up into the sheets, facing the door. He’d try and stay awake until Jiang Wanyin got back but he was going to find that difficult. Now that his stomach was full and for some reason his heart as well.
The moment he was inside his bathroom, Jiang Cheng instantly removed all his clothes and jumped on the shower. He needed a cold shower to ease the hotness that was stirring inside him. Seeing Jingyi on his clothes was making his mind run wild.
This is insanity! Calm yourself, Jiang Cheng! This is your best friend’s baby cousin!
He kept on repeating the same sentence over and over again as he scrubbed his body with a loofah forcefully until his skin was red and raw. He wasn’t some kind of a fucking teenager to go through another puberty stage of having his first crush.
This was fucking ridiculous.
He turned off the shower seeing that his fingers were turning into a prune. He was already showering for about 30 minutes when in fact, he usually did it under 15. He looked around his bathroom to find his fresh set of clothes but cursed out a loud fuck. He noticed that he forgot to take them with him. He must have put it on the bed along with Jingyi’s.
Clicking his tongue in annoyance, Jiang Cheng dried himself using his bath towel and wrapped it tightly on his hips. His hair was still wet, droplets of water sliding down his back and pectorals. He exited the bathroom and went straight to the bed to get his clothes only to see Lan Jingyi being comfortable again on his bed.
Jingyi waited and waited, he didn’t know how much time had passed, he wasn’t even sure where his phone was. All he wanted to do was thank Jiang Wanyin and the man decided to disappear and never come back. He’d been drowsy, his eyes drooping and he managed to nod off.
Only waking up when he noticed that he did but he kept having a hard time keeping his eyes open. As he was about to shut them again, he heard the door open and with half hooded eyes he looked up to see Jiang Wanyin but actually seeing what was in front of him made his mouth go dry and his eyes grow big.
Whatever drowsiness that he had was gone. A half-naked Jiang Wanyin was not in his cards.
“Fuck..”
Wait, did he say that out loud!?
He could feel his face flush as he tried to keep his composure. It was hard when the man looked like he had literally just stepped out of the shower. His eyes dropped to the man’s chest and then to his abs. Jingyi was sure he could eat off of there.
Seeing that he was screwed he decided to just swallow down the apparent thirst that he had and managed to let out a strangled, “Welcome back.”
[OOC: PLEASE IMAGINE THIS: https://photos.google.com/share/AF1QipNehz832CFqKRGomcNqBBBtLTsLmZHaeqhr0ZnDPOS5jX_MsW5hwfEL7h2PYDB1Tw/photo/AF1QipML1Vm39tmghohapGMcgz15BfFQkZUYeCAI0B1V?key=TVpMS18yeXVpNWtMMm9YUEJyU1FxWHQwU3RaOU9B]
Jiang Cheng jerked back a bit in surprise as he was drying his hair when Jingyi suddenly talked. He thought he was sleeping so he was aiming to stealthily come and go. But it’s too late now. And did he just hear him curse out a fuck?
Jiang Cheng let out a shit-eating grin and asked, “Like what you see?”
It was such a delight seeing Lan Jingyi getting all flustered by his state of...undress. He didn’t mean this to happen but because of his dumbness, it did.
Now it’s your turn to get flustered, Chickyi. He ecstatically thought in his mind.
He looked down on Jingyi as he went closer until he was standing on the side of the bed only to see that his clothes were all crumpled under Lan Jingyi’s body.
Wanting to rile up the kid further, Jiang Cheng hovered over and tried to get his clothes underneath Jingyi. The water on his hair was dripping down on Jingyi’s agape face but he didn’t care.
He actually liked what he was seeing.
This time, Jingyi managed to bite his tongue. This was his cousins best friend , he couldn't be ogling the older man.
He rolled his eyes instead and pouted, "Ha Ha."
It wasn't an answer to the question but it was hopefully enough to keep Jiang Wanyin from egging him on.
Except he did, and there was a chiselled chest in front of his face, not even the droplets rolling on to his face could save him from the mental gay breakdown that he was having on the inside.
This was so fucked in so many ways.
Jingyi pulled the sheets over his head to save him from added embarrassment. He felt so warm. "You're getting me wet." He complained.
Jiang Cheng’s smirk further widened seeing that Chickyi was so affected by his continued teasing. It was fun to see this boisterous kid getting awe-struck and flustered. Even his reply sounded forced as he croaked out that weak laugh.
He really was so adorable.
He certainly wanted to pinch his cheeks seeing that the tips of his ears were glowing red. He let out a chuckle when Jingyi decided to bury himself underneath the blanket. Wanting to tease him further, Jiang Cheng leaned even closer until they were only an inch away. Though the kid was under the blanket, he could see him squirming uncomfortably and he was absolutely enjoying this. Once he got his clothes, Jiang Cheng decided to dress in the room. But first, he took a seat on the side of the bed, awfully close to Jingyi and started wiping his legs dry, the towel was hiking up on his thighs.
Wait why was he still leaning in!? HIS Clothes can't be that far?
Jiang Wanyin had to be doing this on purpose. "Can you get off of me already? Or are you really straining there, old man?" His tone showing his annoyance.
He eventually was off and that was when Jingyi decided to peek out and still, there was the man right next to him drying himself without a care in the world.
Jingyi narrowed his eyes and just pouted at the Cafe Owner. He refused to give the man any more amusement.
Shrugging his shoulder nonchalantly, Jiang Cheng continued with his business as if he wasn’t being spectated. Once he was done with his right leg, he decided to work on his left. He could feel Jingyi narrowing his eyes but didn’t do anything to avert his gaze.
After a moment, Jiang Cheng stood up to grab his boxer briefs and wore it in front of Jingyi without flashing anything. Jokes could be fun but he didn’t want this kid to see his gun. Once he was sure that he’s covered down there, he removed the towel and turned his back on Jingyi as he worked on wearing his trousers.
Jingyi had to say, Jiang Wanyin probably was almost as shameless as him.
Now he acted like he wasn't even there. Now he had some briefs on but he could see muscled thighs and a scrumptious ass to boot. WHY was this happening to him!?
He turned around and hugged his pillow, Jingyi would pretend this never happened and would stop thinking about the man’s ass even if his eyes were closed.
Jiang Cheng was having a blast teasing the younger Lan. Since the door of his closet was a mirror, he could see Chickyi struggling whether to turn around or continue to ogle at him. He let out a lewd smile as he caught him turning around and hugged his pillow like he couldn’t take it anymore. Once he’s done putting on his light purple v-neck shirt, Jiang Cheng then turned around to face him. He could still see Jingyi pouting lightly as he clung on his pillow as if his life depended on it.
Bending his knees to get the tray, Jiang Cheng then decided to speak.
“I’m going out to help out at the cafe. Take your time resting. You can use the bathroom and use the clothes that I set out for you. I’ll take you home when you’re ready.” Without waiting for Jingyi to answer, Jiang Cheng exited his office/pseudo room and went to work.
Jingyi waited until Jiang Wanyin was gone to sigh and turn back to look up at the ceiling. This was not how he was supposed to start his day. He was supposed to rest but that was looking to be hard considering that the Cafe owner had managed to rile him up.
He closed his eyes and took in a few deep breaths. Sleep was needed. He needed to function when he woke up, enough to deal with the man that had just left.
The cafe was quite busy since it’s a weekend and before he knew it, the lunchtime rush was done. He glanced at his wristwatch and saw that it was already past 1 pm. He still hadn’t seen Jingyi emerging from his room and Jiang Cheng thought that he must be starving by now. Telling his employee that he’s going to check on his patient, Jiang Cheng prepared his food.
His chef-prepared mapo tofu and he wasn’t sure if Jingyi would be able to take it. Knowing the Lans’ bizarre taste buds, he was sure as hell that Jingyi was the same as his cousin.
But Jingyi needed to eat. Sighing softly, Jiang Cheng went to their walk-in freezer and took out some frozen chicken wings that they marinated before and decided to fry them. While the chicken wings were cooking in the fryer, Jiang Cheng whipped up some homemade barbeque sauce and homemade ranch dip. Once he was sure that everything was cooked up and done, he set Jingyi’s food on the tray with rice and mapo tofu on the side.
With a tray on his hands, he started to walk towards his office and entered without knocking. Jingyi was already awake although it seemed like he still hadn’t showered yet seeing that he’s still wearing his clothes from last night.
“You must be starving,” he said as he set the tray in front of him. “Eat. I’ll take you home after. Feeling better now?”
When Jingyi finally woke, he felt so much more energized than he had been in the early morning. The embarrassment that he had felt was practically gone. Now he really just needed to head back home.
Looking around he noticed his phone was on the floor and looked at the time.
Was it that late already!?
Jingyi let put a groan and pulled the sheets off before sitting up. Jiang Wanyin had left him clothes to wear so he should probably change. Or maybe he could just head back home in the state that he was.
As he thought about it the door opened to reveal the Cafe Owner with another tray of food.
"You're really going to keep on feeding, aren't you?" He said maybe a little too giddy. The younger Lan did enjoy being doted on and the offerings on the tray looked extremely tasty. Enough to awaken his appetite.
"Ah, you don't have to worry, I'll take the metro back home. He really couldn't further inconvenience Jiang Wanyin; it almost felt like taking advantage of him.
Taking a seat on the bed adjacent to the younger Lan, Jiang Cheng fished out his phone to check his messages. He got one from his sister telling him to go to her apartment because she cooked his favorite. He let out a gentle smile as he typed his reply to his sister. He could hear Lan Jingyi talking and Jiang Cheng peered up to him from his phone.
“I like feeding people,” he answered flatly with a quick shrug.
Once he hit the send button, he finally faced Jingyi who was already devouring the chicken wings like there’s no tomorrow. Jiang Cheng’s heart always swelled in happiness every time someone liked his food.
He felt validated.
“Nah, it’s okay. I’m going to my sister’s house anyway so why not drop you on the way? Besides, you look like a mess and inebriated to even walk straight.”
Since Jiang Wanyin took the trouble of preparing it, he might as well dig in. Jingyi really was going to owe the man quite a bit after this. What could he even do to make it up?
The problem for Lan JIngyi of tomorrow, instead he picked up a chicken wing and gave it an impressionable bite. It was nice and crunchy and seasoned perfectly.
He was going to eat every last one.
“I’m glad that you like feeding people. Especially me.” He joked as he swallowed.
Though he did have to raise an eyebrow as he accused Jiang Cheng with a Chicken wing, “Hey, I’m not even drunk anymore. I could totally walk straight.”
Jiang Cheng almost laughed at the comical way Jingyi was trying to reprimand him by his statement. The chicken wing on his hand was enough to make this situation hilarious. While still holding his phone, Jiang Cheng had this idea.
Tapping the camera button, he snapped a photo of Jingyi devouring a chicken wing. When he saw it, he couldn’t help but let out a laugh. Lan Jingyi’s mouth was smeared with barbeque sauce, his mouth was open in the midst of biting the chicken wing. He looked so cute in Jiang Cheng’s eyes.
Badump.
Fuck.
This shouldn’t happen. He just met this kid a week ago and there was no way in hell he’s feeling like this. Deciding to get up, Jiang Cheng instantly looked away and slid his phone in the pocket of his trousers. He trudged towards the door but before he exited, he looked back at Jingyi and informed him, “Just go down with the tray when you’re ready.”
As Jiang Cheng was walking back to the counter, there’s only one thing that he could think of.
I’m fucked.
Jingyi didn't pay much mind as he went back to eating. Jiang Cheng seemed to still be busy with his phone so continued enjoying his lunch. Eating chicken wings was always a messy experience. His eyes slid over to the mapo tofu and wondered if this was some challenge from the man.
He was about to ask when he saw Jiang Wanyin get up and leave only to tell him to take his tray down.
He nodded once and almost felt sad to see the man go, he wanted to rattle him some but it looked like he'd leave that for later.
It was getting late so Jingyi gave the tofu a shot, it really was spicier than he could handle as he coughed. The younger Lan was brought up to not waste food so it he would. Even if he ended up being a sniffling mess with swollen lips.
Having finished he quickly got changed into the clothes Jiang Wanyin provided. The shirt and pants being large on him. At least the black sweatpants didn't slide off his ass.
Putting his phone in his back pocket, he cleaned up, making the bed and folding the clothes that he had slept in. That was the least he could do.
Grabbing the tray, he made his way down and looked around the cafe. Everything was in full swing. It was great to see that the cafe was a hit.
Maybe he'd take another picture since the last one did so well.
Making himself distracted by calibrating and tasting more coffee, Jiang Cheng could be found behind the counter. He was keeping himself busy so as not to think more of Jingyi. He hated this. He wasn’t supposed to feel this way.
It’s unnerving.
As he turned around, he saw Jingyi standing by the kitchen door holding the tray. He was looking around the cafe and it didn’t seem like he had yet to notice him. Jiang Cheng just watched him from the corner of his eyes while he pretended to focus on his current task.
Lan Jingyi was standing there wearing his clothes. He looked like he’s drowning in it but the way the younger Lan carried his clothes made him look absolutely wonderful. As expected, purple looked good on him.
When Jingyi finally took notice of him, Jiang Cheng softly sighed before he walked towards him and held out his arms to get the tray and passed it to his server.
“Are you ready to go?” He asked as he took a side glance to the younger Lan.
Lost in his thought for a moment, his brown eyes finally found themselves gazing at the Cafe Owner. He looked to be busy and there was something familiar about watching the man work in his environment that made him stare longer than we would have liked.
Jingyi only stopped once Jiang Wanyin started to approach him. He gave the man the tray and watched it disappear off into the back with a server.
“Yeah, I’m ready but need to do one last thing.” He said as he pulled out his phone and tapped on it.
He pressed himself closer to Jiang Wanyin and pulled up his phone, “Come on, we’re taking a selfie. It’ll be good for my followers to know who’s running this place.”
Jiang Cheng instantly stiffened the moment Jingyi pressed his lithe body against his. His mind suddenly went misty as he just dumbly looked at Jingyi who was already doing some sort of a millennial pose. He didn’t know what he’s supposed to do as he continued to stare at the now grinning Jingyi. The fleeting look he was giving Jingyi was enough to garner the attention of his barista who was now ogling at them with mouth agape.
Jiang Cheng glared at him and he was thankful that his barista backed out instantly. Jiang Cheng didn’t know what pose he’s about to do and he’s not one to smile in photos.
Letting Jingyi do what he wanted, he let him take a selfie with him. However….
One of his servers was mopping the floor when she accidentally swung the mop back and forth a bit too forceful and not seeing that there were people behind her. This made Jiang Cheng jerked closer to Jingyi to avoid getting hit.
At the same moment, Jingyi decided to look at him and Jiang Cheng’s lips landed on his forehead.
And the photo that Jingyi took was the accidental kiss on the forehead.
Jingyi really wasn't one to take that many selfies, only ever really did for his social media accounts and his followers. Of course, he'd take some with Xichen-ge but even then his cousin was the one to whip out his phone.
He put his phone up and moved the screen to see how best to work the photo. The Catupurrcino sign could be seen in the back as long as he kept the camera where they were at.
Perfect
He grinned at the camera but noticed that Jiang Wanyin seemed to not be paying attention.
Just as he turned his head to ask him why lips had descended on his forehead. His eyes widened as he gripped his phone out of surprise. The sound of a shutter went off as his brain finally decided to start up, his eyes locked once with the older man and his cheeks flared as he finally jerked away. "Why did you do that!?" Jingyi blurted out touching the skin where the Cafe owner had just pressed his lips.
It was so embarrassing. Was he trying to mess with him?
Jiang Cheng blinked profusely as he stared speechlessly. He was rooted in his place and didn’t dare to make any movement until Jingyi jerked away, waking him from his stupor. Jiang Cheng automatically turned red from the neck up to the tips of his ears as he covered his face with his hand.
“I-I’m sorry I just…I’m trying to a-avoid getting hit. I didn’t know you’d turn your head all of a sudden,” he managed to croak out, stuttering. He avoided looking at Jingyi as he hurriedly went back to the counter and whipped some cold brew for him and Jingyi. He needed something to cool down.
What had transpired was so humiliating that Jiang Cheng couldn’t even look at his employees. He really didn’t mean for this to happen.
He drew some deep breaths to calm himself as well as his rapid heartbeat. His face still felt warm, his heart thumping so loudly against his ribcage that he couldn’t hear the relaxing jazz music playing in the cafe. He could only hear his own heartbeat and feel the pulsating of his ears. Though he must admit, Jingyi smelled so good but he shouldn’t take advantage of him like that. He was the adult here and yet he was acting like a fucking brat.
Once he’s done with the cold brew, he went back to Jingyi who was still pouting and flushed. He handed him the cup and apologized again, “It’s not intentional, I swear in Xiao Ai’s paws.”
Whatever embarrassment that Jingyi had felt was swept away by the schoolgirl like reaction of Jiang Wanyin, he was so flustered, emoting with his hand and everything.
It was cute
Jingyi found himself trying not to grin instead. Oh boy, he would have loved to tease the older man but he jetted off to the counter instead leaving him alone a few moments.
It felt like some type of karma after the way the older man had purposely teased him. He looked at the picture and smiled. Even though they both weren't expecting it, it turned out rather cute.
Jiang Wanyin appeared with coffee and an apology. Jingyi took the coffee and shrugged, waving the man off. "Don't worry about it, I know.I doubt you'd want a picture like that uploaded for the world to see."
Taking a look at the cold brew in his hands an idea formed, "Oh, it's good you brought this coffee we can take a picture with it. It'll be a good add on." Jingyi wasn’t about to give up in his attempt at taking a picture with the man for the cafe.
Jiang Cheng could tell that Jingyi was laughing at him openly, at least. The smug grin etched on his face was enough to make Jiang Cheng scowl deeply as he handed him the drink with another explanation.
Gods, he just wanted this day to end. He couldn’t take another humiliating situation in front of this walking hazard. When Jingyi accepted the drink and told him another idea of taking one more photo, Jiang Cheng groaned loudly. He didn’t want to offer himself as another sacrificial lamb to this evil incarnate by the name of Lan Jingyi.
One embarrassment in a day was enough to haunt him a lifetime.
“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” he informed him with an obvious whine, “...but I can take your solo photo if you still want it.” He finished as he felt his trouser pocket for his car keys. Whenever Jingyi would be ready to leave, they could at any time.
Oh? It looked like Jiang Wanyin wasn’t too happy but he’d have to get over it. Jingyi didn’t have much sympathy for the man at the moment.
“I’ll get you in one of the photos one day.” He affirmed, moving his phone and taking a picture of just his drink with the catpurrchino sign, “Nah, this will be good enough...Although.” His smile turned into a sort of devilish smirk, “I could always just post the one that I just took.”
There was no way he would but he wanted to continue stirring the Cafe Owner up. “We can head out if you want. I wouldn’t want you being late for your sisters because of me.” Jingyi was at least thoughtful enough!
Jiang Cheng let out a sour face and snipped, emphasizing every word, “Don’t. You. Fucking. Dare. Chickyi.”
The previous flushed face was now replaced with some sort of a distressed expression. He had a feeling that Jingyi was a shameless walking human hazard and that he’d do what he had just said. Jiang Cheng started massaging his temples for some stress relief when he heard Jingyi stating that he’d get him to have a photo with him one day.
“In your dreams, brat. I don’t grace my face for a photo to anyone -- especially not with you. And yeah, just do that. I appreciate you promoting my cafe.” Jiang Cheng then nodded as he fished out his car keys from the pocket of his trousers and started walking towards the exit.
“Let’s go.”
Once they got to the car, Jiang Cheng had to remind Jingyi to put on his seatbelt. Jiang Cheng was still amused about the way Jingyi looked; he was drowning in his clothes but the shade of deep purple absolutely looked fantastic on him.
“Just tell me the direction to your house,” he told Jingyi as he started to drive away. It felt so foreign having the younger Lan in his car. He was snooping and looking around until he accidentally opened the audio and the music blasted in the car.
“What the fuck, Chickyi?” Jiang Cheng yelled as he turned down the volume. Some tasteless modern music was playing and Jiang Cheng mostly preferred classical songs. He let out a sigh of exasperation as he just continued to drive Jingyi home based on his directions.
Once they reached a shit looking building, Jiang Cheng stopped the car and took a side glance at Jingyi.
"Here’s your stop.”
A bubble of laughter escaped Jingyi. He couldn't hold back, not with Jiang Wanyins reaction.
"Are you sure? It didn’t look like you had an issue taking one earlier." Shaking his head, he shoved his phone back into his pocket.
"Don't worry, I'm not going to upload it." Just keep it.
He soon followed the older man to his car and slid into the passenger seat. Jingyi had been in this car the previous night but much memory of it was lost, his eyes slid to the back and he found himself feeling sheepish.
A memory fizzing up, Jingyi resting against Jiang Wanyin and the man holding him.
His thought was interrupted by the same man.
Clicking in his seat belt, he pointed and told him the neighborhood. He was starting to feel fidgety especially as he kept thinking about it so his hands traveled to the consol and pressed what looked like the way to turn it on.
Music blared and he jumped once as Jiang Wanyin took the liberty of turning it down.
"I didn't do it on purpose." He mumbled, looking out the window as the signs of his older looking neighborhood coming into view.
The rest of the ride was quiet until the car lurched and finally stopped.
His eyes looked back to Jiang Wanyin’s face, " Hey, thanks for helping me out.." Why was he feeling awkward?
To mitigate he grinned and unbuckled his seat belt and stepped put of the car, turning back to the man. "If you ever get wasted, let me know and I'll take care of you."
Jingyi bid Jiang Wanyin a goodbye before shutting the door and heading straight to his apartment.
When Jingyi looked in his direction, Jiang Cheng noticed the sudden change in his facade and he looked a bit awkward at least. Jiang Cheng almost frowned but Jingyi suddenly shifted his mood once again into his little sunshiny self. Jiang Cheng arched his brow after hearing Jingyi’s statement and he felt like he needed to say something at least. Now that Jingyi was gonna be out of his hair for the day, Jiang Cheng couldn’t help but start feeling a bit empty and he just didn’t fucking know why.
“Just to let you know,” Jiang Cheng started, “...that I have a massive alcohol tolerance. I’m not like you who passes out after a bottle or two. But, yeah, I’ll remember that offer then. Goodbye, Jingyi.”
When Jingyi finally exited his car with a loud bang coming from the car door, Jiang Cheng took a moment to steady himself. He watched as Jingyi walked towards his dilapidated apartment building. Once he was sure that he’s inside, Jiang Cheng only then drove off to see his sister.
Today was a bit...exciting.
He actually enjoyed taking care of and feeding Jingyi. He looked like the type to eat anything you’d serve him. He also noticed that he finished the mapo tofu that he put on the tray. He knew that the Lans were trained not to waste food but he really didn’t have to finish it if it’s too spicy.
With everything that happened, Jiang Cheng felt slightly satisfied for today; a small smile was playing on his lips during the whole duration of his drive.
And he swore it’s not because of a walking hazard by the name of Lan Jingyi.
[end]
