19 Days - One Shots

A Comforting Embrace

One Day

Mo Guan Shan had a bad feeling. He was walking with He Tian to his apartment after leaving the train station. He glared at He Tian's back as they walked. The demon had had nothing but a smirk on his face the entire day and Guan Shan couldn't help but think that he was up to no good. Guan Shan had kept a small distance between them just in case something happened.

"So," He Tian called over his shoulder. "what are you cooking for dinner?"

Guan Shan shrugged his shoulders. "What do you want?"

"A hotpot sounds real good right now. What do you think?"

He shrugged again, already thinking of the ingredients he would need, knowing He Tian's kitchen had it all. "Shouldn't be a problem."

*

A creaking chair caused Guan Shan to turn from the boiling bot to see He Tian sitting at the breakfast bar with his chin resting on his hand, that same smile on his face. Guan Shan glared at him with suspicion. "You've been freaking me out all day, bastard. What shady shit are you up to this time?"

He Tian sat back and placed his hand against his heart, mock hurt on his face. "Me? Shady? Never. I'm as good as gold."

You've been eerily quiet all day and you've only just shown up in the kitchen since we got here. What the fuck have you been doing?"

"I have to say, Little Mo, I'm hurt you would accuse me of doing anything shady. All I want to do is eat hotpot and go to bed like a good student. We have school tomorrow you know." Guan Shan could see straight through the fake halo to the devil horns that sat atop the demon's head. Deciding not to respond, Guan Shan turned back to the food.

After eating and wiping down the kitchen, Guan Shan made his way to the front door to pick up his bag only to find it was nowhere to be seen. He frowned and called out to He Tian who had disappeared into the bathroom.

"Hey fucker! Did you touch my shit?"

He Tian emerged from the bathroom with a toothbrush in his mouth. "What shit would this be, pray tell?"

"My school bag, you know - the only shit I came here with." He pointed to the door next to his shoes. "I left it there when we came in."

He Tian continued to brush his teeth as he shrugged. "Haven't a clue. Sorry." He Tian took the toothbrush from his mouth and gave that same sly smirk. "Why don't you just stay the night."

Guan Shan should have trusted his instincts and gone home. He knew he had a bad feeling about today and he was right. "You've hidden my bag haven't you, fucker? Where is it?"

"Stay the night, Little Mo. Auntie is okay with it." He Tian disappeared back into the bathroom as Guan Shan shuffled around in his pockets trying to locate his phone. Unable to find it, he went back into the open kitchen to find it sitting on the breakfast bar.

When the fuck did he take it from my pockets? Guan Shan went straight to his contacts and saw the messages he had apparently sent.

Guan Shan shook his phone as rage took over. That sneaky fucker. He stormed into the bedroom and stopped to see He Tian standing in his boxers as he pointed at the bed. "Bedtime." He reached forward and grabbed Guan Shan's shirt and ripped upwards, pulling it off in one swift motion.

"Stop it, asshole! Give me back my shirt and my bag! I'm going home." He glared

He Tian stopped and sighed, his excitement seemingly have died down a little. "Come on, Guan Shan. It's late and it's raining heavily. Just stay for one night. I'll even wake you up so you're not late for school in the morning."

Guan Shan frowned then turned to look out the windows. The black sky was pouring with rain. How had I not noticed that before?! He clenched his jaw and turned back to He Tian. "Seeing as you're giving me no fucking choice, I'll stay. But don't fucking touch me or you'll lose all your fingers and your tongue, you hear me?"

He Tian chuckled before raising his hands in surrender. "Understood. Now let's go to sleep."

*

Guan Shan woke up with a start. The first thing he noticed was it was still dark and still raining heavily. He couldn't have slept for more than an hour or two. The other thing he noticed was the jerking motion the bed was making. He raised his head slightly and turned when he heard muffled noises coming from next to him.

In the darkness, he could see a pained expression on He Tian's face as he was sleeping. Flashbacks of when he had returned after disappearing and had a nightmare in Guan Shan's bed appeared before Guan Shan's eyes. Not wanting to have his wrists crushed again, he decided to take the gentler approach.

Putting his hand on his shoulder, Guan Shan gently shook him. "He Tian? Hey, wake up. You're having a nightmare again." He shook him again with more force this time and it seemed to do the trick. He Tian woke with a start, gasping for air. His hand flew out and grabbed Guan Shan's arm, squeezing tightly. Guan Shan winced but ignored the pain. "Hey, you alright? You had a nightmare again. You're shaking."

He Tian seemed to come to his senses and loosened the grip on Guan Shan's arm. When he spoke his voice was wobbly, unlike anything Guan Shan had heard before. "I- I can't stop the shaking. I'm sorry..."

Growing concerned, Guan Shan scooted closer and shook his head. "It's okay, it's okay. Just breathe. You don't have to be sorry for anything. I've got you."

He Tian nodded and sighed heavily. He put his head against Guan Shan's chest and settled himself in close. Guan Shan stared for a moment, not sure what to do before he settled himself back into the pillow and began stroking He Tian's hair.

"Thank you, Guan Shan. I don't know what I'd do without you." He Tian mumbled into the redhead's chest. He seemed to have calmed down considerably but still twitched every now and then. Guan Shan nodded, wondering about this new, vulnerable side of He Tian he had gotten to witness once more.

"I've got you."