TIAN GUAN CI FU Fan fic stories

HOLD THE QUIET OF MY HEART

CHAPTER 1 :Someday when I'm awfully low

At eleven a.m. on a Monday morning, Xie Lian walks into his first lecture of the day two minutes late.

"I'm sorry," he says, books clutched against his chest and eyes frantically apologetic, "is this seat taken?"

It's not the only empty seat, no, but it is the closest. Thirty-or-so pairs of eyes have already turned to see what all the commotion is about, and in all honesty, Xie Lian would very much like to have that changed as quickly as possible. The man that is sitting next to the seat looks up from where he's languidly stroking the tip of his stylus against his tablet's screen, posture lazy and awfully relaxed.

Xie Lian blinks, surprised.

The man is seated, yes, but it's quite easy to tell that he's exceptionally tall. Flaming locks of ink-colored hair cascade down his back, bangs obscuring his right eye like a sheepdog. Beneath it lies a thinly veiled eyepatch, its black color contrasting beautifully with his hair. His fingers are curled around the thin white pen, paused in their motions as he stares up at Xie Lian.

Xie Lian freezes. "Uh—"

"Ah," says the man, gently placing his stylus down onto the table next to his tablet. There's a lilt in his voice—a rising hum. He reaches down to clasp the sides of his seat, physically moving his chair over to make more room.

Xie Lian's eyes soften, hands tightening around the spine of his textbooks. He quickly slips himself onto the hard seat, setting his things out in front of him. Clicking a blue ballpoint pen to life, he takes out his favorite college-ruled notebook—the one Shi Qingxuan got for him in a slick pack of two, wrapped in crisp clear plastic—and turns to a fresh page. The binding is a bright sunflower yellow, the first few pages parched ivory from use. On the corner of every sheet lies a small drawing of a fox.

The man sitting next to him seems to take notice.

"A fox?" he asks, making Xie Lian startle in surprise. He's smiling down at the small cartoon image, and the gesture seems whimsy on his lips.

Xie Lian looks over, eyes raking over the man's figure once more. He's wearing a thick red sweater with the sleeves cuffed at his wrists, the fabric looking especially soft to the touch. His visible eye is trained on Xie Lian's face, and the revelation almost makes him jump again. The man's expression isn't...unkind, however. On the contrary, he seems to be genuinely interested.

So Xie Lian smiles and nods. "This notebook came in a set of two," he explains. "The other one has a pattern of ferrets."

"Ferrets," the man echoes.

"Right!" says Xie Lian. He chances a glance at the man's own notebook, finding it unopened and sitting in the space between them. There's a label on the top left corner, and he peers down at it closely. "...San Lang?"

The man's eyebrows raise for a short moment, and then he's chuckling. It's low and sweet, laced with a hum of amusement.

"Yes," the man says. He reaches out and thumbs his finger over the label. It's slightly battered, brown around the edges. "San Lang." His eyes gleam thoughtfully. "And you?"

"Xie Lian," says Xie Lian. "I'm, ah, I'm a senior. It's lovely to meet you, San Lang."

"It's lovely to meet you too, gege," says San Lang. "This one is a first year."

Words are then exchanged in the back of the crowded lecture hall, mere hushes to prevent wandering ears. Xie Lian learns that San Lang is an art major with illegible handwriting, that he is the third in his family, and that he'd also rather not talk about his family ("Don't worry about it, gege.")