ᴄᴀʟʟ ᴍᴇ | Xiao x Reader Slasher AU

1

Xiao sighed as he stepped through the lobby doors, immediately hearing a group of voices conversing at the other side. Though, conversing wasn't the right word, so much as arguing.

"Why does it even matter? My wife is dead right now and we still have no idea who killed her!" Huai'an's voice boomed from the lounge area, where he sat in one of the chairs, gripping his head in his hands. "I should be out there searching for her murderer right now; not planning an event."

"Mr. Huai'an, please listen." Another voice, this one more familiar to the dark haired boy, spoke now. "The detectives are doing all they can to find the killer. All you need to worry about right now is making sure your wife has a peaceful final rest. That is why you hired us, isn't it?"

There was a pause before the man finally took another deep breath in, nodding his head as he leaned back into the chair again. "I...Suppose so." He said finally. His voice was much calmer now so Xiao assumed the other person had been successful in calming him. She really had improved in dealing with clients this past year; when she first started, he knew it would have been impossible for any conversation between her and the family members of the deceased to go that smoothly.

"I just feel so guilty." Huai'an admitted finally as his voice broke, and as Xiao passed by the lounge, he saw the woman place a hand on his shoulder comfortingly. "I was the reason she was even working that night in the first place!"

"It's not your fault, Mr. Goldet." The girl assured him, "you had no way of knowing what would happen and I'm sure Mrs. Goldet wouldn't ever blame you for that."

"Do you think...Do you think she's watching over me now?" He asked, looking up at the girl's red eyes now.

"I'm sure she is." She replied. And though her tone was genuine, Xiao knew better than to buy into it. She'd just gotten better at selling her services in discreet ways; that was all.

"Then she'd probably be disappointed to see me like this," Huai'an continued with a sad smile, "I suppose I should pull myself together and get this funeral planned. After all, Verr deserves the best final ceremony I can offer." The girl smiled and nodded, removing her hand from his shoulder now that the work had been done.

"That's the spirit," she said, and the pun was not lost on the boy observing their interaction. He rolled his eyes but then her own red ones turned and locked onto his figure; a glint of surprise in them.

Knowing he'd made a huge mistake by letting himself be seen, he gripped the grocery bag in his hand a little tighter and headed for the elevator.

"In that case, please discuss your needs with Ming for a few minutes while I take care of something," The girl hurriedly spoke to her client as she stood from her seat now to follow Xiao, "I'll be right back!" And with that, she took off in what was almost a full-blown sprint towards the elevators.

He saw her coming and instantly pressed the 'close doors' button, but it was all for not as she threw a hand in between the doors right at the last second. They instantly opened, allowing her to step inside next to him.

Once again, Xiao rolled his eyes as he pressed the button for the third floor. She, however, made no move to even act like she had somewhere to go. She was about to open her mouth and speak when Xiao pulled out his phone and put in his earbuds to block her out. Her mouth was left hanging slightly open as she paused, deciding whether it was even a good idea to interact with him when he was like this.

They weren't exactly close anymore, and if she were being honest, they hadn't really been in years. Not since his dad switched professions and they stopped seeing one another at the funeral parlor, that was.