Messed up love

Chapter 4- Braids

"Xiao Xingchen?!" The men yelled.
The man nodded with a smile, "Yes, I'm surprised you didn't notice."
"Bu-but how?" Wei Ying asked, "Didn't you leave with Song Lan?"
"I did, but we parted paths and I just decided to travel. I ended up night hunting close by and heard fighting, so I came to help," Xingchen said.
"Why did you wear a mask?" Jiang Cheng asked.
"To hide my identity," Xingchen said, "now you should get going."
"What about you?" Wei Ying asked, "Aren't you coming with us?"
Xingchen locked eyes with Xue Yang briefly before turning back to his nephew. He cleared his throat, "I-I mustn't get attached to any clan."
"Then stay with me," Xue Yang said, "I'm going to Yunmeng with Wei Wuxian but I won't make myself known. You can stay there for a while before leaving, I might leave if I cause any trouble."
    Xingchen pondered over his words for a moment, "Fine, I will come with you. But I will leave after a couple if weeks."
    "Great!" Wei Ying exclaimed, "I'm glad you agreed, now let's go." Xingchen smiled at the enthusiastic man and nodded, he walked beside Xue Yang who smirked.
    He leaned over to the man in white and whispered, "Are you next to me to make sure I won't do anything?"
    Xingchen shuddered at the hot breath on his ear, "Yes," he said, "I don't trust you completely yet."
    "'Yet' huh?" Xue Yang chuckled softly, "you want to trust me don't you?"
    "Maybe," Xingchen said, he had a straight face but his eyes said otherwise. They weren't looking at Xue Yang whatsoever.
    "Look at me while I'm talking won't you pretty one," Xue Yang teased.
     "I have no reason to look at a disgusting person such as you," Xingchen spat in a low voice.
    "Aww, are you mad I called you pretty one? I can call you something else you know," Xue Yang slithered an arm around Xingchen's waist and pinched the man softly. "I can call you, gorgeous, kitten, petal, darling, beautiful, honey, or, starboy."
    Xingchen's face showed no reaction but his cheeks were dusted with red. Xue Yang smiled, and got closer to the man, he gently licked Xingchen's earlobe and bit it.
   "S-stop," Xingchen whispered harshly, "quit it!"
  Xue Yang chuckled, "Why?" He mumbled, "It's fun teasing you."
    Xingchen pulled away from the man and stalked away. Xue Yang muffled his laugh, he liked teasing young women like this as well it always made them fall for his tricks. But not Xingchen, he was more stubborn than anyone Xue Yang had known.
    Xue Yang would continue trying though, to make the man break.

    They arrived at Yunmeng where Xue Yang and Xingchen left the brothers. They walked to a nearby pond near the building and sat down, "Xiao Xingchen, what clan did you come from?" Xue Yang asked.
    "I didn't come from any clan, I was raised by Baoshan Sanren," Xingchen said.
     "The Baoshan Sanren?" Xue Yang asked.
     "Yes," Xingchen nodded.
      "Wow, no wonder you're so good," Xue Yang commented.
      Xingchen turned a bright pink, "I guess."
    Xue Yang laughed softly, "Do you always get shy because of compliments?"
    The man nodded shyly, "Y-yes, I was rarely praised as a child so I never knew how to react to them."
    "You must get a lot of compliments," Xue Yang said, laying down on the floor.
     "No," Xingchen said, "the only compliment is 'good job' nothing else."
      "What?" Xue Yang shot up and stared at Xingchen with wide eyes, "You never got told that you're handsome or beautiful or anything?"
     "Sometimes," Xingchen said, "but not a lot."
    "How?" Xue Yang asked, "I thought everyone would be calling you beautiful or handsome or perfect or something!"
    "I don't know," Xingchen mumbled, "I don't think I'm that good looking."
     "No, shut up," Xue Yang covered Xingchen's mouth, "I will never EVER accept anyone talking bad about themselves, even if I'm about to kill them."
     "That's surprising," Xingchen said.
     "I'm still human you know," Xue Yang muttered.
      "You're not human if you kill innocent people," Xingchen snapped. 
      "Why do you always start off nice then become mean all of a sudden?" Xue Yang asked.
      "I don't know, but I'm pretty good at suppressing my anger," Xingchen said.
     "I guess you are," Xue Yang said. They sat there without saying anything, then Xue Yang broke the silence, "Can I braid your hair?"
    Xingchen looked at him, "Why?"
    "Because I'm bored," Xue Yang said, "and I can't stand boredom."
     Xingchen sighed, "Fine," he took off any pins and ornaments from his hair and sat them on his lap. His hair was long and dark, it was soft also.
    "Thanks," Xue Yang said. He sat behind Xingchen and began separating the pieces of hair, "Did you know that in the Nie Sect of Qinghe they weave a braid into their hair for every victory?"
    "No, I did not," Xingchen said, "why do they do that?"
     "It gives them a sense of pride, and if their leader has many braids they feel safe," Xue Yang said as he braided the soft hair.
     "How do you know all of this?" Xingchen asked.
     "A friend told me," Xue Yang said, "how many victories do you have?"
     "I don't know, I don't keep count," Xingchen said.
     "Well, think about how many things you feel proud of," Xue Yang said, "I'm sure there's many things."
     "Helping people," Xingchen said smiling.
    "Do you know how many people you help in a day?" Xue Yang asked, he moved to another piece of hair and began braiding it delicately.
   "Not many, maybe 5 to 10," Xingchen said.
   "Alright," Xue Yang said, "that's better than me so you're fine."
    Xingchen laughed, "I'm sure you help some people."
    "I mean I do give the kids candy a lot," Xue Yang said, "but they finish it all."
    "That's one good thing," Xingchen chuckled.
    "I guess so," Xue Yang said smiling.
    "You know, you're not really that bad," Xingchen said suddenly, "you're actually really nice and sweet."
    "That's what people don't know about the villains, they are human too and in reality need help," Xue Yang said wistfully, "I remember when I used to think of the world as beautiful, but that changed when I realized that children are seen as nothing. I was beat a lot as a kid, so I felt like I needed revenge."
   "That actually makes sense now," Xingchen said, "I mean, I would've wanted to have revenge on those who hurt me too."
    "See? Villains aren't all that bad," Xue Yang said, "and I'm finished with the braids." He moved back and let Xingchen gingerly touch his hair, "What do you think?"
    "I love it," Xingchen said turning to the man, "thank you."
    "No problem, now can you do mine?"