Midnight, the Stars and You [ G. Impact ]

three | III

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"Are you following me?"

"You wish."

The Inn was more complex on the inside than you had predicted. You hadn't meant to trail behind Xiao for so long, but after the first five minutes of being lost, you figured the safest bet would involve keeping him in your sights. Who knows where you might have ended up otherwise.

Xiao stopped in the middle of the hallway and decided to lean against the wall out of the blue. You slowed your gait before you could pass him. He closed his eyes, crossing his arms over his chest and humming softly.

The closer you got to him, the slower your footsteps became. You soon came to a hesitant halt.

Perhaps he saw through your fib after all.

He opened one eye, and you refused to meet it.

"..."

Feeling intimidated by his silence, you sighed in defeat. "May I ask one more favor?"

"I'm freshly out of those."

"You're insufferable," you murmured under your breath.

"Hmm?"

"I didn't say anything."

Xiao's eyebrows met in the middle. "You're gaslighting me right now."

"I don't even know what gaslighting is," you lied. He looked like he wanted to laugh, but he quickly wiped the twinkle from his eye.

You couldn't tell if his cool-guy facade was indicative of who he truly was, or if it was only a front he put on. The thought of getting to know his inner workings made your stomach twirl. You're getting ahead of yourself, you scolded your inner consciousness.

"Well, I'm good right where I am. Feel free to be on your way," he said matter-of-factly, resuming his previous quietude.

...Maybe you were laying it on too thick. He did seem set on being alone—or at least far from you. Xiao already helped you before, so perhaps you had taken things too far. Remorse quickly pooled in your gut.

A faint red settled on your cheeks. "Right, I'm sorry. I'll let you be."

The genuine tone of your voice seemed to catch him off guard. Xiao's eyebrows rose as he watched you continue towards the end of the hall without sparing a second glance. You could only hope there would be some sort of direction along the way.

Before you turned the corner, Xiao's voice called out to you from behind. "Hey."

Your palm brushed against the corner where it formed the intersection of the perpendicular walls. Upon looking towards him one last time, he inspected the way your lips parted with unawareness. Swallowing thickly, he pointed towards a stairwell sign above your head.

"Go down three levels. Take a right, another right, then follow the hallway until it ends."

Your lips curved into a sweet smile, and you failed to notice his spellbound expression. "Thank you," you mouthed before disappearing from his sight.

"I thought I was gonna have to send out a search party," Zhang said upon your return. He squeezed your shoulder and pulled you into his side, which you fell into with an oomph.

"I wasn't gone that long..."

"Another five minutes would have made it twenty."

You blinked. "Oh. This place is like a labyrinth, I just got a little lost is all."