Lonely Like A Bunny 1

@Wangjis_Cloud

Chapter 7: The Bunny Thief

Lan Wangji kept tumbling as he made his back, his senses were numb and his mind was in a haze, he had to rely on his memory to navigate safely through Cloud Recesses and make his way back to the Quiet Room, where his brother was waiting for him, standing still at the entrance.

The moment he saw Wangji he quickly approached him, worry filled his face as he saw the state his brother was in. Everyone was so used to the cold and composed Hanguang-Jun so watching him being such a mess was a real shock even for Xichen, and he knew there was only one person who was capable of turning his brother into such a mess.

"Wangji, what's wrong?" He asked, placing a hand on his brother's back to help him as he led him inside.

Wangjis allowed himself to be guided by his brother and he obediently sat down on the cushion his brother placed for him.

"Wangji." His brother spoke again, this time his tone was a bit louder than before. After a moment he also shook Wangji's shoulder lightly with his hand, finally getting his brother's attention.

"Hm?" Wangji managed to mumble softly.

"What happened?" Xichen asked again.

"He said..." Wangji looked up at his brother with a confused expression, he looked like a little lost child, Xichen's heart ached when he saw his brother like that, " he said he likes me."

Xichen didn't need to ask who, but what he didn't understand was why Wangji was like this if things had apparently gone the right way.

"And then?" he carefully asked, trying to get the information out of his brother.

"He asked if I wanted to raise the rabbits with him." Wangji replied

Xichen's eyes widened in surprise and his mouth dropped open a bit. He knew Wei gongzi was a bold young man but having been raised in such a strict household he couldn't help but be surprised by such attitudes.

"And what did you say?" he continued after he recovered from his shock.

Wangji just shook his head slowly.

"What did you do?"

"I... Walked away."

"Without saying anything?"

Wangji nodded affirmatively.

"Why?"

"I don't know." Wangji admitted honestly. "I felt happy, but I was also scared."

"Why were you scared?" Xichen questioned softly. His brother was obediently answering all of his questions so he must be careful and patient with him.

"What if I misheard?" Wangji said looking up at his brother, terrified, "What if he didn't mean it in the way I wanted? What if he was just playing with me like he usually does?

It was clear to Xichen that Wangji's mind was in turmoil. Wei Ying had wanted to talk with Wangji to clear the misunderstanding and let him know his honest feelings but his words ended up having the opposite effect.

He was also surprised with his brother. He was such a strong and intelligent individual but it amazed him how defenseless he was whenever something concerned Wei Wuxian. It was a quite complicated and frustrating situation to watch. Both of them clearly cared and loved each other deeply, everyone around them could see it as clear as day except for the two of them, who were completely oblivious to each other's feelings. 'The matters of the heart were truly the most complicated once to solve', Xichen thought as he observed his brother.

...

Wuxian went back to his room. He tried to get some sleep but itn the state he was, that proved to be an impossible task so he gave up and went up to the roof instead. He laid back on the tiles and rested his head on his arm, looking up at the dark sky and the shining moon with a deep frown on his face. 'Why had Lan Zhan walked away without saying anything at all?' 'Had he at least managed to appease his anger or had he just added to the flares?', he wondered.

A sudden noise to his right startled him and brought him out of his thoughts. When he looked to the side he found Jiang Cheng standing beside him, peering down at him with a worried expression, he held a jar of liquor in his hand. At the sight of this, Wuxian's face lit up and he sat up as he called his brother's name happily.

"What's wrong with you? Why are you sulking up here all by yourself?" Jiang Cheng asked as he sat down next to his brother.

"I told Lan Zhan that I liked him but he just ignored me and walked away with no reaction at all." Wuxian honestly confessed, confiding his worries to Jiang Cheng.

"You did what?!" Jiang Cheng practically shouted with a baffled expression as he got up, the hand that was holding the liquor opened and the bottle fell from his hand.

"Ah, Jiang Cheng, be careful!" Wei Ying called out as his hand quickly moved to catch the bottle of Emperor's Smile before it crashed into the roof, once it was safely in his grip he let out a sigh of relief before he pulled Jiang Cheng's robes and said, " Stop shouting and sit down or the disciples of the Lan Clan will come after us for causing a ruckus in the middle of the night."

Jiang Cheng cautiously looked around as he covered his mouth with his hand. After confirming they hadn't been found out, he relaxed and sat back down once more.

He opened his mouth and closed it again a few times before he finally settled for what he thought were the right words, "Why did you finally decide to tell him?"

His voice was softer than usual and he looked at his brother with kind eyes. He wasn't reprimanding him or accusing him, he just wanted to help him sort his worries.

Wei Wuxian looked back at him with a lost expression and repeated his words, "What do you mean finally?"

Jiang Cheng was also stricken with surprise as he carefully scrutinized his brother's face, looking for any signs that he was playing with him, but he seemed genuinely at a loss. With this Jiang Cheng confirmed that the fool he had for a brother hadn't even realized his own feelings.

He let out a bitter laugh as he shook his head astonished, "Wei Wuxian, Wei Wuxian, you really are a fool."

"Jiang Cheng!" Wuxian complained as he hit his brother on the chest.

This only made the other laugh harder. "You can't blame me for laughing, blame your own stupidity instead. I mean, you've been in love with the guy for so many years but you just realized it now?"

"I─ I'm not─" Wei Ying stuttered before he shut his mouth again, embarrassed that his brother had figured him out, but even so, he wasn't able to deny that he loved Lan Wangji. While it was true that he had just become aware of his feelings, it was also true that he had never been as sure of anything before. Once he was aware, he couldn't dare to deny this feeling anymore.

"So you really did tell him?" Jiang Cheng asked, turning serious as he silenced his laughing.

"Yeah."

"And he said nothing?"

"He just walked away." Wuxian replied with a deep frown in his face. "Jiang Cheng, what does that mean? Does he really hate me?"

Jiang Cheng's expression turned soft as he saw the pain on his brother's face. He thought it over for a moment and finally replied, "I don't think he hates you but given Lan Wangji's personality he is probably as confused as you are right now. Maybe he even thought you were messing with him again."

Wuxian looked at Jiang Cheng with a hopeful expression, his eyes shining desperately. "You think so? Do you really think so?"

Jiang Cheng was left speechless for a moment, he had never seen his brother so defenseless and hopeless. He was completely at Lan Wangji's mercy. He shook his head slightly and hurried to calm Wuxian, "Of course, I know I'm right so just trust me. Besides, you have a bigger problem to worry about right now."

"What do you mean?"

"Father just came back."

"So what?" Wuxian said but then he shot his mouth and his expression sharpened as he thought, then he said loudly, "The rabbits!"

"That's right." Jiang Cheng confirmed. "He said Lan Qiren summoned Lan Wangji the moment he set foot into Cloud Recesses."

"Shit." Wuxian cursed as he stood up and passed the bottle of liquor over to Jiang Cheng.

"You better run now and think of something quickly along the way." Jiang Cheng urged.

Wuxian nodded as he thanked Jiang Cheng and then rushed back towards the cave, leaping through the rooftops of Cloud Recesses, causing the disciples that were patrolling the halls to look up and gaze at the flying figure in blak¿ck robes that danced through the ceiling under the moonlight.

Wei Ying quickly found his way to the cave and approached it quietly. The moonlight lit up the inside of the cave with a faint light, but it was enough for him to find his way through and not fall down. He kept walking deeper into the cave and stopped when he saw a figure in white robes kneeling down in the center of the cave. A talisman that emitted a faint blue light was lit up inside the cave. He was just able to see the back of the person but with just one glance he was able to tell who it was. It was no other than Lan Wangji.

Wanting to take a closer look at him, Wei Ying slowly continued to move through the cold water, making as little noise as possible so Lan Zhan wouldn't notice him. He kept moving until he was just a few meters away from him. From where he was he was finally able to see him clearly: Lan Zhan was kneeling down, his white robes matched the snow perfectly, in front him stood the pair of rabbits and he had one hand on each of their heads, petting them gently.

The rabbits rubbed their heads against Lan Zhan's palm, enjoying the delicate touch of the young man; their ears twitched, touching Lan Zhan's fingers. The young man in the white robes wore a pure and kind smile.

Wei Ying was mesmerized with the sight that laid in front of him. He had never seen Lan Zhan acting in such a cute way before, and contrary to his usual cold and stoic face he was wearing the most beautiful smile he had ever seen. It made his heart flutter and his chest fill with a warm feeling. Drawn in by that mesmerizing Lan Zhan, Wie Ying started walking towards him, completely forgetting about the guqin that could attack him at any moment and not caring anymore if he was noticed by Lan Zhan in the process.

As he got closer he saw how Lan Zhan's lips moved slowly as he muttered something to the pair of bunnies and patted them carefully. The bunnies seemed to understand that he was saying his goodbye to them and put on a sad expression as they scooted closer to him.

When Wei Ying's feet sank into the snow Lan Zhan finally sensed his presence and instantly stood up. When their eyes met Lan Zhan's face was covered with a faint and almost imperceptible blush. Wei Ying looked intently at him and gave him a soft smile.

Embarrassed Wangji quickly turned around, showing his back at him as he muttered, "What are you looking at?"

Wei Ying thought his reaction was really cute and couldn't hold back a small laugh as he replied, "I'm looking at you."

Lan Zhan refused to turn around and face him. The rabbits looked back and forth between them in confusion.

"Lan Zhan." Wei Ying called softly. His eyes glued to Lan Zhan's back. It was until this moment that he noticed there was something on Lan Zhan's back: he was carrying the guqin on his back. That was why he had been able to get this close without being attacked! he thought as he felt something melting inside him.

After a long moment Wangji slowly turned his head back to face Wei Ying and said a single word, "Leave."

"Come on Lan Zhan," Wuxian complained, " weren't you expecting me? Isn't that the reason why you removed the guqin?"

"Nonsense." Wangji denied stubbornly as he made a quick movement of his hand and extinguished the faint light of the talisman.

After that light was gone they were covered by the darkness of the cave. Wei Ying was still able to make out Lan Zhan's figure and heard as he started walking away. He quickly took a step towards him as he moved his hand to try and catch him but all he was able to grab was thin air.

"Lan Zhan, wait!" he desperately called out, " I really meant what I said earlier, I wasn't messing with you. I really do like you."

Lan Zhan's light footsteps halted for a moment as he hesitated, it seemed like he was about to turn back but then both of the boys were startled by the sound of approaching footsteps and voices from outside.

"Quickly, seize the cave!" Lan Qiren's stern voice came from outside.

Lan Zhan kept walking towards the entrance of the cave and just when he was about to step outside he paused for a moment.

"Wei Ying," Wangji said as he turned back to face him, " I do want to raise the rabbits with you."

As he said this, Lan Zhan wore the most precious smile on his face, however, since there was not much light inside, Wuxian wasn't able to see it. But if he thought the smile Lan Zhan gave to the rabbits was beautiful he would have died if he had seen the smile Wangji gave him.

But even though he couldn't see his smile, he was still able to fully understand the meaning behind Lan Zhan's words and a wide smile spread across his face as he quickly knelt down and reached for the rabbits. This time he held them carefully and with the utmost care.

He moved through the shadows of the cave towards the exit and saw Lan Zhan walking out and approaching his uncle. Once he was in front of him he bowed respectfully as he greeted him. Wei Ying used this moment to scurry away and hide behind a bush. The sudden noise and movement alerted some of the Lan disciples that were accompanying Qiren but Wangji rushed to gain their attention as he urged them to go inside the cave. He stayed there and carefully pressed the little rabbits against his chest as he held his breath.

After giving one final glance towards the bush they finally let it go and followed behind Lan Qiren who rushed into the cave. Wangji stood there as he waited for everyone to go inside.

Wangji followed behind them and stopped at the entrance. Then he looked directly at the bush where Wei Ying was hiding.

Wei Ying knew that he wasn't able to actually see him, but the moment Lan Zhan's eyes laid on the bush it felt like everything else disappeared and it was just the two of them.

Their eyes met and they were both looking intently at each other, they couldn't say anything but their hearts had already understood each other, there was no need to say anything else right now. Still looking at him, Lan Zhan smiled, and this time, Wei Ying saw it. His heart almost stopped right there, but he wasn't able to look away from that mesmerizing smile.

Lan Zhan opened his mouth and articulated a few words. He was far away so Wei Ying had to look closely to make out what he said: "I like you too."

At that moment he got up, revealing where he was hiding, but luckily there wasn't anyone else there. He rushed out of the bush to try to get to Lan Zhan but before he could take a step forward Lan Zhan turned around and disappeared inside the cave.

Wuxian stood there for a moment looking at the empty spot where Lan Wangji had stood a moment ago. Holding the white rabbit on his left hand and the black rabbit on his right hand. After a long moment he was finally able to compose himself and turned around to leave, dashing into the darkness of the night.

And that's how the bunny thief left, taking not only the two rabbits that Wangji adored, but also Lan Zhan's heart along with him.