Fluffy WangXian Oneshots Book Two

THE WHISPER OF ART

The first time Lan Zhan notices Wei Ying, he is painting in the shared art studio with Nie Huaisang.

XiChen has sent him with a tin of cookies that Nie Mingjue wanted delivered to his younger brother, and it so happened that the art studio was located in between the Lan building where Lan Zhan worked as the CEO, and his home, a two bedroom apartment close to where he works.

As XiChen works from home these days, they often play pass the parcel with one thing or another, acting like go-between delivery people in their four person group, all because XiChen and Mingjue have recently moved in together in a third property, leaving their brothers as single tenants.

The art studio is full of people, something Lan Zhan has had to train himself to be okay with. In half an hour, he's going to be at home with Chonk and Delilah, and this day will have mercifully come to an end.

He walks past a pretty young lady elbows deep in wet, messy clay, who winks at him when he pauses by her door.

“Lan Zhan! Good to see you!” She shouts, laughing at his wince. “If you're looking for Huaisang, he's with the new guy, two doors down.

“Mianmian.” Lan Zhan nods politely and carries on, past the eyesore technicolour sofas and artfully arranged beanbags surrounding a low table with reading materials casually tossed onto it.

The walls are white, a stark contrast to the exploding colours surrounding him, and Lan Zhan has a surreal moment of imagining that he's walking through a giant's kaleidoscope, immersed in the different colours. It's a communal sitting area, presumably for visiting patrons and guests.

The second door is closed, but there's a sudden shout from the third one, and a little boy, maybe eighteen years old, runs out giggling, hands dripping with paint. He doesn't stop but grins at Lan Zhan before entering the restroom at the end of the corridor.

“That A-Yu!” He hears Huaisang say, but he is seeing the perfect pair of rounded, bare heels on the ground, slightly pink and definitely soft-looking.

Lan Zhan follows the image, dragging his eyes up the smooth bare calves which have a dusting of fine hair on them, but the knees are covered in baggy black shorts. Lan Zhan blushes and thankfully, it's only his ears that do the chameleon thing of changing colours, as he notices the generous backside filling out the shorts, and he moves on quickly to the red vest t-shirt, more a tank top hugging a lean torso.

The young man is standing with his back towards Lan Zhan, his hair a riot of black mid-length locks with scarlet highlights. His ears are pierced and oh! Are those bunny earrings?

Huaisang is standing next to him, looking at Lan Zhan, with a knowing gleam in his eyes, a glimpse into his calculating brain. It's gone in a flash as soon as he realises Lan Zhan is looking at him.

“A-Zhan! Just the person I was hoping to see!” Huaisang says, way too cheerfully, and Lan Zhan unconsciously steps back.

Huaisang chuckles, but Lan Zhan ignores him because the other man has turned around.

He's gorgeous.

Better than that.

Lan Zhan’s mind is blank, because he's staring at two works of art, and both are incomparably magnificent, though he might be a tad biassed towards the one with two legs and the bunny smile.

It automatically makes him want to mimic that brightness, unable to look away.

“A-Zhan, let me introduce you to Wei Ying, our newest resident artist. Wei Ying, this is Lan Wa-”

“Lan Zhan.” Lan Zhan is currently mortified, because he's never interrupted anyone in his life before, but it seemed urgent that those two words should come out. He cannot bear the thought of this beautiful man calling him anything else.