Letting go of self-restraint 5 - Great happiness in a small package

Chapter 48

Wen Ning watched how Lan Wangji seemingly cold-bloodedly left his apparently suffering and panicking husband kneeling on the ground. His mouth came open in shock and he could not move for almost a whole minute. Lan Xichen was at least trying to call after his brother but all Wen Ning was good for was staring and being confused.

He had seen Lan Wangji interact with a distressed Wei Wuxian on more than one occasion. He would always manage to calm him down sooner or later. They were made for each other and they both knew it.

"Or at least this is what I have been thinking until this moment. How could Second Young Master Lan just leave Young Master Wei like this? What could be more important than supporting his husband in this hard time?" Suddenly, Wen Ning wanted to slap himself for not realizing this earlier. "Of course Second Young Master Lan would never leave his husband, not like this, unless he had a good enough reason that is. He must have gone looking for their son, knowing that it would most probably be the only thing which could snap Young Master Wei out of his grief."

Wen Ning looked down at the other Omega whose hand he was still holding in his own. He continued rubbing soothing circles into it, trying to provide what little support he could. He had always known that there was a special kind of bond between Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian, he had however never realized how strong that bond was. It seemed like with his husband gone from his side, the Omega started to hunch into himself even more.

Wen Ning was afraid that if he would do nothing, they could lose him completely. He had seen him dissociate like this several times in the past, and it had always had to be the Second Jade who came to the rescue before Wei Wuxian was too far gone. Not this time though, this time, Lan Wangji went away on his own, leaving his bonded Omega vulnerable and alone. Even if the Dafan Wen doctor understood the logic behind such decision – and he could also imagine how much it must have cost Lan Wangji to leave – he could not say with clear conscience that he agreed with this course of action.

"Second Young Master Lan should have stayed here and looked after his husband. It is clear even to me, a complete outsider, that Young Master Wei needs him more than ever now. And there are already so many people searching for A-Yuan, what difference would one more make?

Although I do not fully understand his motives, I can still see where he is coming from. Is this what it means to be a parent? Do you put your child's well-being even above that of your fated soulmate? I cannot quite imagine it, A-Cheng and I do not any have children as of yet... Still, somehow, deep down, I understand. It is protecting their child that is the most important job of a parent. Lan Wangji is just following his inner most instincts. Hopefully, he or someone else will be able to find A-Yuan soon, Young Master Wei will for sure get better after seeing his son unharmed."

Even if Wen Ning did not believe he could make much of a difference, he still tried to sooth the crying Omega as best as he could: "Young Master Wei, I know it may seem impossible right now, but you need to calm down. Second Young Master Lan did not leave because he does not believe you or love you anymore. The opposite really; he wants to help you and A-Yuan at the same time. He went to search for him."

Lan Xichen kneeled down to join them and he also did his best to calm Wei Wuxian down: "Wuxian, please do not blame yourself. It was my fault that A-Yuan run off on his own. We have not kept a close eye on him and for that, I am sincerely sorry. I know I will never be able to make up for this to you..."

The Gusu Lan sect leader closed his eyes, pained, and took a deep breath. When he looked at Wei Wuxian again, there were no more signs of him feeling guilty, he was as determined as ever. Even his voice became sharper and more confident and authoritative: "I will apologize a thousand times later. Now, we need to find A-Yuan. Wuxian, you can continue sitting here, doing nothing, or you can pull yourself together and join the search party. What do you choose?"

It seemed like the pretended harsh tone of the Gusu Lan sect leader's voice and his hard words were in fact the thing that Wei Wuxian needed to snap out of his panicked stupor. Wen Ning watched with awe how he lifted his head and looked in turn at Lan Xichen and then him. There were no more tears running down his cheeks and the expression on his face had hardened. He looked as determined as ever.

Wen Ning tried to help him to his feet when it was clear that the Omega was about to attempt standing up. His offer was however rejected – or ignored more like it, it did not seem like Wei Wuxian had even noticed it in the first place – and before he knew it, the previously broken parent was now standing in front of him, resembling more a vengeful deity than a human being. The Dafan Wen sect doctor was actually feeling sorry for anyone who could have thought about harming A-Yuan.

"You are right Xichen, I cannot leave everything to Lan Zhan all on his lonesome. We should be looking for A-Yuan together. If someone dared to kidnap him, they better be ready. Because I am coming for them."

Wen Ning's head was now starting to spin as he hurried to stand on his feet as well, mimicking the two other cultivators. Looking at Wei Wuxian's face, he could barely believe the stark difference. The Omega parent truly looked like he could murder a person, granted that that person had hurt even a single hair on his son's head.

Wen Ning had never seen him like this and it was making him tremble in fear before the other. He remembered now why Wei Wuxian was called one of the strongest cultivators of their generation; and him being an Omega did nothing to soften his look and demeanour. Wen Ning would for sure not want to meet him in the middle of the street like this, much less if he was the one who had caused A-Yuan to go missing from his father's side.

Another chill run down his spine when Wei Wuxian smiled. It was not a nice or reassuring one. He was on a hunt and would destroy all the obstacles in his way in order to reach his target. He looked positively terrifying and Wen Ning did suddenly not want to be anywhere around when he would unleash the rage hidden inside of him. He watched as Wei Wuxian turned around, ready to turn the whole world upside down to find his baby.