Chapter 36—The Fridge

by Bocchan13

*sorry for the late chapter!!*

Lan Zhou could hear that Song Yu did not leave. He heard rustling and thumping on the other side of the door, but didn’t have someone go investigate. He gently touched his abdomen with the gauzed wound aching slightly.  The numbing agent had already dissipated, so he took another dose of painkillers.

“Send me to the bed and have Xiao Zi put in the next room. Lu Jingxiu, stay with him until he wakes up. Wang Cheng as well, take the cots and lay them down in the room. Yu Ci and I will stay outside. My wounds aren’t that serious anymore, Yu Ci can sleep on the sofa.”

The group got to work. Inside the rest area, the bed was big enough for only one person. Seeing that Xiao Zi was injured, he got it. Wang Cheng set down two cots, one close to the bed and one near the wall. Yu Ci lifted Lan Zhou onto the bed used for X-rays and set him down comfortably, all the while Lan Zhou taking inventory of where they were.

Judging by the echo in the room and the sounds outside, they were in an isolated area of a big building. It could be a manufacturing plant or a storage unit. He thought deeply, but didn’t think that there were any in the vicinity.

Wang Cheng had said that the horse was faster than a car and it took 2 hours northward. They were…definitely close to the border of A country. Lan Zhou was curious, but he didn’t want his curiosity to make Song Yu defensive. He will tell him when he was ready.

At least…that’s what he hopes.

“The waters clean. Song Yu wouldn’t have made you wash your hands otherwise. I’ll ask Song Yu if we can fill water bottles in later.”

Yu Ci also observed the surroundings, his eyes landing on a mini fridge. Opening it, he expected it to be off. Not only that, there were…soft drinks, drip coffees, energy drinks and even a packet of snacks. Yu Ci’s eyes widened, his mouth gaping like a fish.

Gently closing the fridge, he opened it again. Yep. Still there. He did it again, this time faster. They’re still there. One more time. My God!

“B-boss. Check the fridge! There are drinks inside.” Lan Zhou turned his head and saw the filled mini-fridge.

“Don’t drink anything. Song Yu didn’t say we can. We shouldn’t covet someone else’s things.”

“Yes, boss! Can I just stare at them for a bit?”

Lan Zhou rolled his eyes, “Go for it.”

Yu Ci’s eyes sparkled as he gently took stock of the beautiful drinks in front of him! Lan Zhou heard some more rustling outside, it sounded like…mats?

The door opened and Song Yu entered once again. Once he entered, the smell of meaty stir-fry pervaded the space. Wang Cheng from the other room scurried out and watched in awe as Song Yu set down a large plate of stir-fry and a gigantic bowl of rice.

Song Yu awkwardly turned to Lan Zhou.

“You can drink the stuff inside the fridge. I made dinner. If it’s not enough, let me know.”

Out of nowhere, Song Yu had several spoons in his hands and dipped them in the gigantic bowl of rice, running out as soon as he entered. Everyone excluding Xiao Zi had their hungry eyes on the two big servings.

“Um...boss? Can I now drink the C*la?”

Lan Zhou nodded.

“Yes!” Wang Cheng and Yu Ci hurried to the mini fridge and took out several soft drinks. Setting them on the small counter, they huddled together, ready for Lan Zhou’s orders to eat. Lan Zhou sighed and waved his hand.

Like children at a daycare, they cleanly divided the portions and placed them on metal trays on the side of the counter. Yu Ci generously heaped rice, his smiling face euphoric and excited. Lan Zhou got his share and couldn’t help but swallow his saliva.

Does this count as a love bento?

Dipping his spoon into the fluffy rice, he inhaled the first bite. The standard for good food had dropped way too much, but even if there wasn’t an apocalypse, the food felt like the homemade love of a mother to her child.

The room was silent save for the clacking of metals and slurping noises. The wondrous meal was finished all too soon, not even a single grain of rice was spared. Lan Zhou and the group sighed happily.

“To be honest, I don’t care if I have to live the rest of my life in here if we get this kind of food.” Yu Ci massaged his full belly in contentment.

Wang Cheng had to agree as well. Lu Jingxiu was otherwise pre-occupied with finishing his meal and checking Xiao Zi’s IV. The drip would finish in less than 2 hours, so he had to prep another one.

 

After finishing his meal, Lu Jingxiu took a small basin and wet a clean white towel inside the other room. Seeing that Xiao Zi was sleeping, he gently placed the basin down and stared at his lover's face. Despite his hurt body, Xiao Zi still looked extremely beautiful.

Unlike the others who were all bosom buddies in high school, Lu Jingxiu didn't enter their group until they were freshman's in university. So when he met Xiao Zi, it was at the most opportune time of rebellion, fun, carelessness and a downright path to adulthood. He could clearly remember the day he saw Xiao Zi walking next to Lan Zhou, his golden rimmed glasses slipping down the slope of his nose, and his pale white skin crisp against the dark black t-shirt. 

Lu Jingxiu had fallen in love at first sight. As he embedded himself into the group seamlessly, felt the camaraderie of friends and understood that his sexuality was different than others, the only thing he could do was hide from his desires and keep that cool distance between friends. Years and years spent longing for him, to one day find out that Xiao Zi had died, caused Lu Jingxiu's heart to break. So, their second chance at life began, he vowed to love and cherish every moment he had with Xiao Zi. 

Rubbing his tired eyes, Lu Jingxiu prepared to scrub Xiao Zi down. Opening Xiao Zi’s shirt, he couldn’t help but squeeze his hands tightly at the sight.

Despite not having broken ribs, the discoloration of the bruising was truly terrifying. Purple and blue blotches spanned his entire chest, and there were several raised bumps as those skin vessels clotted. He lightly tapped the bruised areas with the warm cloth, trying to massage the skin.

“Are you trying to take advantage of me?”

Lu Jingxiu looked up and saw that Xiao Zi was awake. Dropping the wash cloth, Lu Jingxiu dove straight to Xiao Zi’s face and clenched it in his hands. Tears pooled down his cheeks as he nuzzled his forehead with Xiao Zi’s.

“I thought you weren’t going to wake up.” His whispered words penetrated deeply through Xiao Zi. He shakily put his hand on Lu Jingxiu’s head and stroked his sweat-soaked hair, a small smile grazing his lips. He kissed Lu Jingxiu’s cheeks as they settled in a more comfortable position. Lu Jingxiu laid down, careful not to jostle Xiao Zi.

When they were fully embraced, Xiao Zi tried his best to comfort, patting Lu Jingxiu’s back like a child.

“I’m okay. I’m okay. We’re okay.”

“We’re gonna stop. We’re gonna find a nice place to stay and live a good life with each other. I don’t care about the mission anymore. I want us to just be happy.”

“I know. I know. I trust you, and I trust Lan Zhou. We will definitely find a new home…”

Behind them, Wang Cheng slowly closed the door for privacy.

“Xiao Zi looks like he’s going to be fine. I reckon after he gets better, we can go.”

Lan Zhou nodded his head. He still felt Song Yu’s presence here, so he didn’t want to expose what his plans to stay was.

“Get some rest. We can discuss how to thank Song Yu tomorrow. For now, we can sleep. No need for patrol or night duty.”

Wang Cheng nodded and tactfully dragged his other cot from the lover’s room and settled it next to Yu Ci’s, who went to sleep after cleaning up. Lan Zhou closed his eyes, but his vigilance was still up.

On the other side of the door, Song Yu was still there…he worried that Song Yu would catch a cold or not fall asleep tonight. He didn’t want him to be guarded against him…how could he show Song Yu that the only thing he coveted was Song Yu himself? More than any food, electricity, or safety, Song Yu mattered the most.

As henpecked as he was, Lan Zhou did realize that the feelings he harbored towards Song Yu didn’t make sense. But the aching in his heart and the feeling of wanting to hold Song Yu forever was like a deeply embedded fissure in his soul.

He needed Song Yu.

He wanted him.

Now that they had reunited, like a sirens song, he wanted to move towards him.

 A small headache formed, causing Lan Zhou to rub his head lightly. The slash on his forehead had been cleaned, but there definitely would be a scar. Absently rubbing the bandage, he couldn’t help but analyze his thoughts.

Lan Zhou had a sense that he had forgotten something.

Something very very important.