Chapter Text
A shot tore through the silence of the night. A sharp pain exploded in Lu Guang's left side, causing him to stagger. But he regained his balance and kept running. Now was definitely not the time to rest, not until they had gotten away from here.
But would they even make it?
They had been running from that red-haired bastard for a while now. Even before the shot, Lu Guang had been at the end of his strength. He was many things, but certainly not someone with a lot of stamina. He could keep up in some sports, but running was definitely not one of them.
It didn’t really matter what happened to him. As long as Xiaoshi got away, everything would be fine.
He was certainly not going to let him die again. It was time for him to protect him. After all, Lu Guang owed his best friend a life. And he would do anything to ensure that at least this Cheng Xiaoshi had a future.
He hoped that this idiot of a friend would manage to shape his future the way he wanted.
Even if he wasn’t by his side.
"Are you okay?" Xiaoshi called anxiously.
He was, like Lu Guang, out of breath. He knew that Cheng Xiaoshi was matching his pace so he wouldn’t be left behind. He would never just leave him behind. He had to reassure him, that everything was alright.
"Yeah. Run!" Lu Guang shouted as the next shot rang out.
The bullet ricocheted off somewhere to the left of Lu Guang, hitting one of the walls. Vein was such a terrible shot that it almost embarrassed Lu Guang to have even been hit by him.
"You can’t escape me!" Vein laughed. His voice echoed down the alley they were in.
Lu Guang tried to recall the surroundings. It was dark, but if he remembered correctly, there was a construction site nearby. At least they had to make it there. He pressed his hand against the bleeding wound, as if the pressure could stop the blood from flowing out of his body.
"Right!" he gasped.
Cheng Xiaoshi obeyed without hesitation and immediately ran down the right alley. They worked now together for so long, that they blindly trusted each other. The next shot rang out just as Lu Guang turned into that alley, missing him by a hair’s breadth.
Damn, he was getting dizzy. He wouldn’t last much longer. His blood rushed in his ears.
He stumbled and nearly fell when Cheng Xiaoshi grabbed his hand and pulled him along.
"Where to now, Lu Guang?!" he called.
"L-left!"
Cheng Xiaoshi looked around. "The construction site? Good idea!" he shouted excitedly and even sped up his pace.
Sometimes, maybe he wasn’t the complete idiot Lu Guang saw in him. Lu Guang smiled weakly. Cheng Xiaoshi would make it. For sure, but first, he had to manage to take down Vein once and for all. That damn parasite would keep trying until they both ended up dead. But he could forget that. He wasn’t going to let Cheng Xiaoshi get killed again. Not over his dead body.
When they arrived at the construction site, Cheng Xiaoshi dragged Lu Guang further with him. Lu Guang looked down at the ground. His bloodstains marked the path they had taken. His steps were growing slower and more uncontrolled. He looked at the hand his best friend was holding and wished he would never have to let go of it.
But he would have to let go of his hand.
He would have to leave him behind if he was going to make it. Thankfully, Lu Guang had decided to wear dark clothes that day. In the darkness, the blood wouldn’t be as noticeable. Cheng Xiaoshi wouldn’t notice. He just needed to hold on for a little longer.
"Wait," Lu Guang said, putting all his strength into the words.
He pulled his best friend into the darkest corner nearest to them, leaned against the wall, and gasped for air.
"Puaaaah! No idea… hah… when I last ran like this… hah..." Cheng Xiaoshi panted. "Do you think we lost him?"
He wiped the sweat from his forehead as he struggled to breathe.
Lu Guang had trouble staying upright. His heart was beating far too fast, he felt dizzy, and all he wanted to do was close his eyes. The asphalt had never looked so soft as it did in that moment. So soft, like the best bed in the wide, wide world. He had never had trouble falling asleep anywhere. Any place was his sleeping spot.
Although it had never been his plan to lay down for the last time in such filth, sometimes you couldn’t choose the circumstances. He took a deep breath.
"We need to keep going," he said in the calmest tone he could muster.
He took a deep breath; standing still at least helped fill his poor lungs with much-needed air. He avoided pressing his hand to his wound. Instead he hid the one he pressed before on it. Hopefully his best friend wouldn't see what was going on. They were standing in complete darkness, and he didn’t want to do anything that would make Cheng Xiaoshi worry about him.
"Can you still go?" his best friend asked quietly.
"Hah… What do you think, who are you talking to? A little sprint won’t kill me."
Cheng Xiaoshi wiped his forehead again. Then he clapped his hands gently against his cheeks.
"If Guang Guang still has energy, then we can do this with ease!" he said enthusiastically, just like Lu Guang knew him.
The nickname made Lu Guang’s heart ache. How he wished he could hear more of it. He wanted to hear as many versions of his name as Cheng Xiaoshi could say. His best friend grinned widely at him, with that goofy smile that always seemed to stick to his face. He would protect that smile.
"We should split up. The guy will have to decide who he's going to chase. Maybe that will buy us some time," Lu Guang suggested. "We could meet later, he doesn't know where we live. We could meet at the studio."
"If only he didn’t have that damn gun," Cheng Xiaoshi hissed.
"He can’t have many shots left. His gun is pretty old. Unless he's carrying a lot of spare bullets, the magazine should be empty soon."
"He really shot a lot," Cheng Xiaoshi agreed. His grin became mocking. "And then this idiot doesn’t even hit anything. Kind of embarrassing."
"Stop messing around," Lu Guang said wearily, glancing demonstratively at his watch. "In 15 minutes, at the photo studio. If one of us doesn’t show up, the other didn’t make it."
"We’ll make it," Cheng Xiaoshi said confidently.
"If one of us doesn’t make it, the other hides," Lu Guang said. "Promise me you won’t do anything stupid."
He looked at his best friend with a penetrating gaze and raised his hand so they could do their usual high five. He just wanted to feel their silly little ritual one last time. Vein shouldn’t have many bullets left. He had already fired 10 shots. If his gun had six shots in a loaded magazine, he had already reloaded once. That meant there were at least two shots left.
With some luck, he had two bullets left.
With a lot of bad luck, his gun was fully reloaded and ready to kill.
Either way, they couldn’t waste any more time. He needed to distract Vein and make sure Cheng Xiaoshi escaped. There was no other option.
Cheng Xiaoshi slammed his hand against Lu Guangs.
"We’ll both make it home," he said again. "The first one to get there will put the kettle on."
"Sounds good," Lu Guang said. "Since you’ll get there first, you can run a bath too. The dishwasher still needs to be emptied, and the laundry should be washed. Remember to take off your dirty shoes before you mess everything up, and you’d better take off your dirty clothes before you flop on the couch. You never think about stuff like this."
"Whhaaat? You want me to do all that work when I get home, Guang Guang?!" Cheng Xiaoshi whined. "Can’t we do it together?"
Lu Guang bit his lower lip. "Okay," he said quietly. He couldn’t bring himself to say anything else. "Remember to be quiet so you don’t wake up Qiao Ling. Also, someone is coming tomorrow to pick up an order. I’ve put it under the counter, you should be able to find it quickly."
"Lu Guang, you... is everything okay?" Cheng Xiaoshi asked, worried.
"Don’t worry. After all that running, I definitely won’t be waking up early tomorrow. You’ll have to run the shop," he said. He had talked way too much.
"Come out, come out, wherever you are!" came Vein’s distant chanting.
It was high time to go.
"Damn, the guy is as annoying as he is creepy," Cheng Xiaoshi hissed.
"Let’s go now," Lu Guang said quietly. "Make sure he doesn’t see you. 15 minutes at the studio. No matter what you hear, don’t turn around."
Cheng Xiaoshi took a deep breath. "Okay. See you soon!" he said and started running. "Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do."
"Don’t worry, I’ve just planned a little distraction for him. Go on. I’m right behind you!"
He watched Cheng Xiaoshi run off, feeling a sense of relief. For a moment, he closed his eyes with a tinge of sadness.
He had somehow known that their time together would end this way. They had faced so many challenges together that he had almost believed they would overcome any difficulty.
But it seemed their future had always been set in stone. One of them had to die. By Vein's hand. But this time, he wouldn’t let it be Cheng Xiaoshi. He would protect his smile.
Lu Guang pushed himself off the wall. Everything spun, and he forced himself to stand upright. It took a moment before the world around him stopped spinning. He had to stop Vein. He quickly scanned his surroundings—he wouldn’t be able to pull off any big stunts now. His vision kept blurring, and he had lost so much blood that Vein could easily follow his trail.
A smile tugged at his lips.
At least this way, he wouldn’t be following Cheng Xiaoshi. He would be safe before Vein could catch him. Besides, this was a personal matter between them.
He looked around for something he could use to hit the guy. It needed to be heavy enough to smash his damn skull in. It didn’t take him long to find a metal pipe. He carefully picked it up, making sure it didn’t make any sound that might give him away. He looked in the direction where Vein’s voice had come from earlier.
His stomach ached where the bullet had pierced him. He was breathing heavily, and the adrenaline seemed to be wearing off. He needed to finish this before he bled out or couldn’t move from the pain. He raised his hand slightly and felt how soaked his shirt and pants had become. He pressed himself into the shadows, hoping that Vein wouldn’t spot his noticeably white hair before he could strike.
Quickly, he grabbed his phone and made an emergency call. He silenced the sound and let the call keep running. That way, they could track his phone. He left the phone on the ground and said nothing more. Hopefully, the police wouldn’t hang up before Vein started shooting again.
He peeked out from his hiding spot and saw the red-haired devil heading straight for him, humming as he followed his blood trail. He was humming an old Chinese song and moving the hand holding the gun like a conductor’s baton.
What a damn psycho...
He would make it. No, he HAD to make it. He had already killed so many butterflies, so he could rip the wings off this one too. Even if it was the second time. He just hoped that Vein really didn’t know where they lived. That he would never lay his filthy hands on Cheng Xiaoshi.
He couldn’t rely on his strength. He was far too weak to keep it up. It was all or nothing. He had no other options. He gripped the metal pipe, his bloodstained hand slipping along the pipe. Just a little more, and he would be there. Lu Guang’s heart was pounding fast and hard. He could feel his blood running down his leg.
He slowly lifted the pipe. When Vein was close enough, he would smash the damn thing over his head.
But suddenly, Vein went silent. He stopped, raised his arm, and aimed before he fired. A wide, crazed grin spread across his lips. He hadn’t aimed at Lu Guang, the shot hadn’t been directed at him.
That could only mean...
Please, no...
Vein started humming a new song and walked toward the direction he had just shot. Lu Guang did his best to stay silent. He couldn’t give himself away. This could be his chance to surprise Vein. To take him out.
A tear ran down his cheek. He was scared for Cheng Xiaoshi. The pain was overwhelming. His body was moving purely by willpower. When he left his cover, Vein shot again. He saw his best friend dodge and keep running. Lu Guang sneaked up behind Vein, who was still humming loudly.
Cheng Xiaoshi is fine, calm down, Lu Guang! he scolded himself.
"I got you!" Vein said triumphantly, as he had cornered Cheng Xiaoshi in an alley.
He was trapped like a mouse in a trap. But there was no blood on his light shirt. Vein was really a lousy shot. Humming, he reloaded his weapon with four bullets, if Lu Guang had counted correctly.
Vein was getting closer to Cheng Xiaoshi, aiming his gun at him and firing. Somehow, Cheng Xiaoshi managed to dodge, stumbling in another direction. His eyes met Lu Guang’s, who stood up behind Vein and raised the pipe to strike. He was going to kill this bastard here and now. How dare he attack Cheng Xiaoshi and threaten him with his cheap gun.
The bloodlust coursed through his veins like ice as he swung.
Vein fired again and barely missed Cheng Xiaoshi’s head. His cheek was torn open, and blood ran down. Lu Guang saw nothing but red. He swung and hit Vein hard on the back of his head.
"Ugh…!" was all Vein managed to say. He collapsed, falling to the ground, gasping for air as Lu Guang stood over him.
"Lu Guang!" Cheng Xiaoshi called, horrified. "You're hurt!"
Lu Guang’s knees were shaking as he could no longer keep himself upright. Vein stirred—had he not hit him hard enough?
"Don’t come here!" he shouted at his best friend, who was desperately running toward him.
Cheng Xiaoshi froze in place, while Vein kicked Lu Guang violently in the shin, causing him to collapse and lose his balance. Cheng Xiaoshi kicked Vein in the head and followed up with a punch. When he tried to lift his gun, Cheng Xiaoshi simply kicked it away, and Lu Guang watched as the damn thing slid out of Vein’s reach. As the gun hit the ground, another shot fired.
Thankfully no one seemed to be shot. Lu Guang gulped.
He could hear the two of them fighting, exchanging heavy blows. He crawled toward the gun. If he could get to it before Vein, he could just shoot the bastard. But his body was so heavy, and the longer he stayed on the ground, the more gravity seemed to take hold.
Hold on, Xiaoshi...
"Agh!" he heard Cheng Xiaoshi groan. Someone fell to the ground, got back up only to fall again.
Lu Guang was almost at the gun. Just a few more centimeters, no, millimeters, separated him from it. He heard Vein’s triumphant laughter, and every sound made Lu Guang’s spine chill.
Vein clicked his tongue disapprovingly, his light footsteps approaching Lu Guang, and the next thing he felt was a harsh kick to his side. He briefly saw the starry sky before curling in pain and falling back to his side. He coughed, tasting blood in his mouth.
"What do you think, half-dead, you're doing here, huh?" Vein asked as he knelt beside Lu Guang. "You keep breaking the rules. Be good and accept your punishment."
He raised his gun, checked the ammunition, and loaded it for another shot. "One more bullet," he said, satisfied. He examined Lu Guang with his red eyes. "You’re almost dead anyway, I’ll use it for your friend, okay?" With that, he stood up. He turned to Cheng Xiaoshi, who was just getting back up from the ground, coughing.
"Don’t!" Lu Guang shouted, reaching his hand out as if he could stop him.
He felt his power surge and move into his eyes. It was as though he could hear Vein’s heartbeat, he could almost see his heart beating. Lu Guang grasped onto it and squeezed. Vein groaned and sank to his knees. He hadn’t reached Cheng Xiaoshi yet, that had to be enough. His strength faded away. He coughed up a mouthful of blood. Gathering every ounce of strength, he got up and staggered toward the two.
Vein stood up and aimed his gun at Cheng Xiaoshi again, and Lu Guang quickened his pace one last time. Not again. He wouldn’t let him kill him again. He had to make it. Then Cheng Xiaoshi could finally kill him, and they would be rid of Vein. The shot rang out, and for a moment, Lu Guang thought he hadn’t made it when he felt the sharp pain of the bullet piercing him again. His chest felt numb where he’d been hit.
"Lu Guang!" Cheng Xiaoshi cried desperately.
He could feel the life running out of him.
"Stay where you are! Hands up!" someone suddenly shouted.
From the edge of his vision, Lu Guang saw Vein being pinned to the ground and his gun taken away. They had made it, and just in time.
Everything felt so far away.
Everything was growing numb and cold.
Had he made it? Had he protected him?
He was turned onto his back, two familiar arms lifting him up, and the scent he could never forget surrounded him. Cheng Xiaoshi’s face moved into his field of view. Something wet dripped onto him. Was he hurt after all?!
No, no, no, please not he had given everything...
"Lu Guang! Lu Guang! Can you hear me?" Cheng Xiaoshi called desperately.
Lu Guang moved his lips, wanting to ask if he was hurt. But no sound came out. He felt the hard ground beneath him again, then Cheng Xiaoshi braced himself against the gunshot wound on his chest with all his strength. Lu Guang let out a weak scream.
"I’m sorry, Lu Guang! Hold on! Please stay with me!"
He felt tears running down his cheeks. He tried to focus on Cheng Xiaoshi, but everything was blurring more and more.
Thank goodness you’re safe...
"Lu Guang, you have to survive! What am I supposed to do without you?! I couldn’t even tell you... Lu Guang! I love you! Do you hear me?! You have to stay awake! Don't leave me alone...not you..." Cheng Xiaoshi sobbed.
Lu Guang didn’t understand a word his best friend was saying. The darkness had already taken hold of him, and he was barely conscious. He was freezing. Nothing made sense. He just had to close his eyes and surrender to the darkness.
He had protected him.
That was all he could wish for.
Lu Guang sighed one last time and closed his eyes.