Work Text:
It was obvious to everyone when the change happened: it started with the way Xie Yun relentlessly praised him, the way Xie Yun would compose entire poems of his powerful feats for his audience far and wide, and then it shifted suddenly—with the way Tang San no longer blushed and avoided eye contact from the flattery, the way he even sassed back Xie Yun with a dimple on his cheeks.
It only served to fuel the simmering spark of attraction between them, the distance between them growing smaller and smaller.
They’ve been traveling together for a while now, stopping at inns here and there while on a quest to find the martial soul master who had been setting soul beasts loose on the 48 Strongholds. Xie Yun had thought it more convenient to go along with Tang San’s group, really, it didn’t have anything to do with his plans to court him. He could have done that from afar anyway. This way, it’s just easier.
And perhaps less of a headache on his own entourage, but the amused glances are worth it. Xie Yun is usually too busy coming up with new nicknames or proudly watching him train to notice. The grin on his face is unmatched by the shy delight in Tang San’s eyes.
Tang San doesn’t think twice when it comes to justice or protecting the people, he thinks, but when it comes to matters of the heart, he’s so innocent. Xie Yun wants to protect that innocence—as well as defile it himself.
The first time Tang San kisses him, it’s because Xie Yun had found out Tang San had been moping while he’d been away for a few days gathering information with Zhou Fei. Xie Yun has backed him into a wall in Tang San’s room, feigning ignorance and wondering aloud, “Oh, what could this mean? Did my beauty miss me?” He tilts his head as he smiles at Tang San’s gaping face.
“What could it be, what could it be?” Xie Yun continues, hand resting low against the wall next to Tang San’s waist, and he doesn’t miss the way Tang San’s body shifts towards that hand.
“I don’t know,” Tang San mumbles, but his voice wavers with a pitch of breath. Oh, he’s always been so bad at lying, it’s simply adorable.
“What do you mean?” Xie Yun asks sweetly, and he tilts his chin up to stop Tang San from avoiding his eyes. “Don’t you know my heart yearns for you?”
Tang San bites his lower lip, gaze fixed on his mouth. His cheeks are pink, so pink, and Xie Yun wonders if the rest of his body is turning the same shade of pink underneath his robes, thumb idly stroking Tang San’s waistband but not yet holding him.
“Oh, I know. You like m—” Xie Yun attempts to say, but it’s cut off when Tang San grabs the collar of his robes and kisses him. Xie Yun finally sets his hands on that tiny waist and bumps them hard against the wall, their teeth clacking in their enthusiasm.
Tang San opens up for him wonderfully, so pliant and obedient like Xie Yun thought he’d be. He always tries to do his best, to be fair and compassionate to every living being he meets, even at his own expense. He deserves a little break once in a while, but Tang San isn’t the kind to notice when he needs it. He’s looked out for himself long enough; now it’s time for him to be taken care of. Xie Yun kisses him slowly and open-mouthed, until Tang San is making these tiny high-pitched breathy sounds, until Xie Yun cannot possibly be pulled in any closer, until he has to pull away for air, biting Tang San’s lower lip before he goes.
Xie Yun barely registers the saliva on his mouth when Tang San looks at him with wide eyes, shiny with unshed tears. “Why did you stop?” Tang San asks, even though he’s gasping for breath. His lips are bright red, and Xie Yun wants to leave him another bruise.
“Tang San,” he says in a rough voice. His mental encyclopedia of flattering compliments has vanished, too filled with the desire to bring him to his bed and leave him writhing and worn out in pleasure. “If we keep going, I won’t be able to stop.”
Tang San looks at him expectantly, pouting in confusion. “So don’t.” He pulls him back in for another kiss that Xie Yun entertains for a second until he gently pushes Tang San back.
“Not here,” Xie Yun whispers. Then he smiles mischievously. “Let me make love to you in your bed.”
The slightly faded blush on Tang San’s cheeks comes back full force, and Tang San clicks his tongue as he pouts. “Why do you have to say it like that?”
“Like what?” Xie Yun replies, brushing Tang San’s soft, undone hair away from his face. “It’s the truth.” As much as he enjoys flustering Tang San, he means every word he says. The gentle, trusting gaze of Tang San’s eyes makes him think he believes them too.
Xie Yun had arrived late, only to find Tang San still awake, reading a book he’d found about martial soul theory. According to Xiao Wu, who he’d found about to barge into Tang San’s room, he’d been staying up late making all sorts of thudding noises—possibly to test out the theories he’d been reading about. She was going to check on him tonight, but instead, Xie Yun encouraged her to sleep after what had probably been a long day. She nodded vigorously, thanking him before she skipped off.
At least Xie Yun won’t have to worry about noise in this inn—he can focus on the beauty before him in all his brilliant glory.
Pecking him once on the mouth, Xie Yun pulls him across the room to Tang San’s bed, settling himself down like the room is his. Whenever they’re at an inn, he rarely spends time in his own room anyway, only leaving Tang San’s in the middle of the night. They tend to stay up chatting, Xie Yun smiling fondly as Tang San tells him about his newest discoveries with Master Yu, his curious passion lighting up the entire room.
Xie Yun kisses the trembling hand intertwined with his own, squeezing once before pulling Tang San to sit over his lap. Tang San’s eyes are fixed on his mouth again, and this time, Xie Yun lets him take while he strokes his thigh, running his hand under the edge of the robe, getting closer to where his thigh meets his hips.
Tang San squirms a little bit, inhaling sharply when Xie Yun gets dangerously close to his growing arousal, but his kissing grows frenzied, trying to learn the theory of Xie Yun’s mouth, the way it works, the way Xie Yun’s tongue licks along his own, the warmth of their breath mixed together.
“You really like kissing, don’t you?” Xie Yun breathes through a chuckle.
“I like kissing you,” Tang San replies, licking his lips, though he tries to hide the action from view.
“Hmm,” Xie Yun hums indulgently, and he steals the next kiss while guiding them to lie back on the bed. He’s even slower this time, deeper, while Tang San leans awkwardly over him, struggling to keep himself upright. It’s not until Xie Yun nudges his knees apart that Tang San’s breath hitches in Xie Yun’s mouth, their lower bodies meeting instantly.
He’s trying so hard to focus on kissing, Xie Yun thinks, grinning into the kiss, and maybe Xie Yun isn’t really making it fair with the hands he continues roaming over Tang San’s thighs.
Every time Xie Yun’s hand skims close to Tang San’s butt, Tang San makes a muffled noise of surprise. He’s so skittish, and Xie Yun is briefly overcome with the thought of poking and prodding him everywhere to find out what other sorts of sounds he can make.
“Xie Yun,” Tang San whines, after Xie Yun pinches his butt once. He’s dutifully trying to rub himself against Xie Yun’s thigh, body warm all through his clothes.
Xie Yun draws a circle onto his flank. “What’s wrong, my beauty?”
“Mmh,” is all Tang San can manage after a good moment of friction, burying himself in Xie Yun’s neck.
He’s so cute. Xie Yun holds Tang San’s hips down to help him rub against his thigh, and the sound he’s rewarded with is heavenly, a series of erotic, broken-off gasps in his ear. Xie Yun’s own arousal strains in his underwear, unable to even undress them before he rolls them over and starts grinding himself against Tang San roughly.
Tang San’s moans are louder now, barely swallowed by Xie Yun’s deep kisses, and his legs curl naturally around Xie Yun’s strong waist. They’re both so hard through all these layers of clothing, and Xie Yun curses himself for the eventual wash they’ll have to do, but all he can focus on is the way Tang San arches up higher and higher with every thrust, until he keens with an, “Oh,” coming undone. The noise he makes sends Xie Yun overboard, and he bites Tang San’s lower lip through it.
Even through Tang San’s bonelessness, he still manages to shift while Xie Yun finally removes their sticky clothing. “That felt so good,” Tang San breathes when Xie Yun presses their sweaty foreheads together. Xie Yun can’t tell if the mark next to his eye is sweat or a teardrop, but he kisses it away regardless.
“You were so good for me,” Xie Yun praises. He licks down a line from his throat, and Tang San’s Adam’s apple bobs as he presents his neck. “Such a good boy.” Tang San’s arousal twitches in interest at the words, and he almost looks mortified until Xie Yun briefly sucks at one of his nipples. “Even your body is so honest with me.”
“A-Ah,” Tang San moans, a hand clutching at Xie Yun’s hair. “I’m still…”
“Still what?” Xie Yun asks, kissing back up to his mouth until he makes eye contact with Tang San. Again there are the unshed tears, but his pupils are blown wide, hungry in the same way he is when he wants to know more.
“Sensitive,” Tang San says meekly.
“Oh? Do you want me to stop?” Xie Yun asks. He wipes stray saliva away from his chin, thumb stroking over his mole. For all the power in the world that Tang San may have, Xie Yun doesn’t think he has much experience asking for things.
“No,” Tang San replies after a moment. “Please.”
Xie Yun doesn’t think he could deny him anything, not with those pleading eyes. “I’ll make you feel good,” Xie Yun promises.
He wraps a hand around both of their arousals, and Tang San just releases another breathy gasp, eyes falling shut and legs falling open. He coats the fingers on his other hand in the oil he’d found while he moved their clothes away, and slowly he begins to press one inside of Tang San.
Despite the twitch of his body, Tang San doesn’t protest. In fact, his legs spread open just a tad further. Xie Yun’s eyes rove over this display—Tang San’s body is so pink.
“My beauty, you look so lewd like this,” Xie Yun says. Precome slides out of Tang San’s arousal and he swipes his thumb across Tang San’s lower lip.
Tang San licks up the precome, blinking slowly as he meets Xie Yun’s gaze. Xie Yun swears, and he halfheartedly finishes prepping before he coats himself in oil.
The slide in isn’t very smooth, but it makes them both groan in pleasure while Tang San clenches the bedsheets. Xie Yun hovers over him to watch his face for any signs of discomfort.
“Relax for me, A-San,” Xie Yun whispers, kissing his jaw. He strokes his arousal again, and Tang San exhales out some of the tension.
After some time, Xie Yun feels him relaxing further, and Xie Yun slides the rest of the way in. “Okay?” he asks, wiping the single tear that slipped out of Tang San’s eye.
There are still tears sticking to Tang San’s eyelashes when he smiles at him, but he gives him that trusting gaze once more. “Mmhmm,” he replies warmly. “You can move.”
Xie Yun moves slowly at first, reaching all the way in and moving out almost completely. Tang San’s mouth opens in a silent moan, holding onto Xie Yun’s arms. He reaches inside of him so deeply, and it feels so tight and hot. He’s never known pleasure like this, and he struggles to keep his steady pace.
Tang San seems quietly lost to pleasure until Xie Yun changes his angle, and then he throws his head back and cries out. He clutches higher on Xie Yun’s arms, and he can barely string the words together when he says, “So—ah—good,” he says. “More.”
“My beauty, who knew you could be so wanton?” Xie Yun says, biting at his throat playfully. He raises Tang San’s leg up over his shoulder, turning him sideways, and he thrusts in faster.
It makes Tang San turn and bury his face into the bed, his eyes shut as he tries in vain to meet every thrust. His arousal keeps spilling precome onto the bed, toes curling as Xie Yun’s speed increases, but when Xie Yun squeezes the weeping head of his arousal, tears fall from Tang San’s eyes, and then he comes again.
Xie Yun sees white when Tang San reflexively clenches around him, and it only takes a few more thrusts for Xie Yun to finish, swearing colorfully as his second orgasm overtakes him.
Neither of them move for a good few minutes, until Tang San’s leg starts to cramp and Xie Yun pulls out and settles them more comfortably along the bed. He’s perched over Tang San, kissing away the tears that had fallen though Tang San is embarrassed by them, trying to wipe them away himself.
“How did that feel?” Xie Yun asks. His own hair is sticking to his face too, and in a while he’ll carry them to the bath.
“I didn’t know it could feel like that,” Tang San mumbles shyly. His eyes are a little red, but he looks so sated, even dreamlike. Xie Yun wants to remember this look on him forever.
“We’ll have to do it again,” Xie Yun says matter-of-factly. “It may even be good for your stamina.”
Tang San widens his eyes a bit. “You’re right. Please take care of me, Xie Laoshi.”
Xie Yun thinks he’s serious until Tang San winks, and then his heart nearly stops. He doesn’t realize he’s even gaping until Tang San giggles and pulls him down for another kiss.
After that, Tang San gets thorough lessons on the martial theory of pleasure, as taught by Xie Yun.
Or as Tang San starts calling it, making love.