Fluffy WangXian Oneshots Book Two

Music And Memories Part 19

The Magnolia tree arrives in March with instructions on where and how to plant it. Lan Zhan carries it with the plant pot after Wei Ying boasted he could and then could not, with an indulgent smile as if he enjoyed being the stronger of the two.

It turns out that the spot Wei Ying singled out for it is perfect, and the instructions say that late autumn or early spring when the ground is not frozen is the best time. They trek up the mountain path to the wide ridge where the whole of Caiyi Town is visible like a finely woven carpet beneath their feet, full of bright colours and the intricate patterns of roads and buildings forming a natural symmetrical beauty.

Up here in the mountains, the last of the snow disappeared a few weeks back and even the frosty mornings have warmed to light sunshine. The sun rises earlier and for Wei Ying, that's the downside because then, Lan Zhan makes him get up a bit sooner for their daily yoga practice. Just that morning, he had run downstairs to find Lan Zhan, too excited to shower first, and all the way down to the kitchen, he'd been shouting with exhilaration.

"LAN ZHAN, LAN ZHAN! I CAN'T BELIEVE IT?!! LOOK WHAT HAPPENED!!"

Lan Zhan had raced out of the kitchen in a panic to find Wei Ying almost crashing into him, a massive smile lighting up his whole face.

"Are you hurt?" Lan Zhan had demanded, and Wei Ying had laughed, dancing around in a circle and stepping back from him.

He'd lifted up his t-shirt to show Lan Zhan what he was talking about, too obsessed with what he had seen in the mirror just a minute ago.

"Look! All that yoga has paid off!! I have abs!! They're babies and, okay, they're not fully developed like yours but then to be fair, you've been doing it for longer-what are you doing?" Wei Ying had been caught up in his word vomit, and not noticed how Lan Zhan's eyes had gone so dark, primal and fierce as he slid to his knees in reverence. He held up Wei Ying's t-shirt with his thumbs, his huge hands holding Wei Ying's torso effortlessly, fingers spread on his back like reverse ribs, and he was closely examining the newly shaped muscles that were now properly defined.

Wei Ying's mouth had gone dry with the impatient hunger apparent in Lan Zhan's gaze, and then his lips parted as soon as Lan Zhan had leaned in to kiss each section worshipfully. All the way down.

So...they were late to yoga.

And, well, everything.

Now, watching Lan Zhan dig the softening ground deep enough for their baby tree sapling is both endearing because of the amount of care he's taking to get it right, and also incredibly hot because he's so efficient at it. Halfway through, Lan Zhan discards his white jacket and the baseball cap, and now Wei Ying is drooling because all of his muscles are on display, biceps, triceps and whatever the shoulder muscles are called - Wei Ying doesn't care much for technical terms as long as he gets to touch, taste and feel...later.

But Lan Zhan proves to be tempting, and Wei Ying knows it would be detrimental to their task of planting the tree if he launched himself at his boyfriend's back just because he is a weak, weak man when it comes to those super strong defined muscles, even across his back. He forces himself to look at the plant instead.

Its gorgeous shiny leaves are as deeply green and similar to the jade plant, otherwise known as a money tree, but these leaves are as long as his hands though half the size in width. They're smooth and hard on one side and there's a lovely strength about them. He turns one over gently, letting his fingers trace the veins running along the centre of it to the stem. This is an evergreen tree, and while it might shed some leaves throughout the year, for the most part it will always look like this, richly verdant and strong.

To distract himself from jumping his boyfriend's bones and therefore, delaying the day's proceedings, Wei Ying starts chatting, knowing that Lan Zhan is really listening to him while he works. They've had conversations in the past and every time Wei Ying challenged his memory on what was said, Lan Zhan has perfectly recalled every word. The last time was a teaching moment, because Lan Zhan insisted on giving him a bite for every word. Lucky for Wei Ying, it was a short conversation he'd asked about.