Chapter Five

The cliffs outside are beautiful. The sun dapples them in soft light and the water washes cleanly over the rocks. It's a soothing kind of noise, repetitious and unsteady. In any other situation, Wangnan would have paused to sit and watch them.

Right now he just wants to get back to their apartment and rest his entire body in a ball of exhaustion on the couch.

Viole trails after him. His hands are limp at his sides and he looks worn thin. He keeps his gaze firmly fixed on the sky above and only really seems calm when they're back on cool sand.

Arkraptor offers Viole his shoes and Viole takes them with a weary smile. He doesn't put them on, but into his pocket, as they trudge along.

"The people who bombed the cave got arrested by the army," Horyang says quietly after a while.

"Why?"

Wangnan is not sure if the question is "why Jahad's army?" or "why were they arrested for attacking a known criminal" and that's way too much for him to unpack right now. Shrugging his shoulders, he answers anyway. "That cave leads to a nature preserve that Eurasia Blossom uses as a napping place. Disturbing her is equivalent to death apparently. It sounds like they got off easy."

Viole hums, whether in agreement with Wangnan or not, it's hard to tell. "They won't be in there long. No one is."

Ehwa sputters. "I'm sure Jahad's forces are-"

"Competent," Viole says, interrupting in a clipped soft voice, which makes them all pause. He never really interrupts them. Must be the cave and the long day getting to him. "They are competent with criminals but unless they're powerful, the army simply kills the lesser criminals, gives them a mild scolding, or puts them somewhere they won't come out of for a hundred years. They have quite a few jailbreaks as a result. Or attempts at jailbreaks."

Ehwa swallows. "I had wondered if the statistics were forged."

Viole's eyes flick towards her. "I don't know," he admits.

"I doubt the released statistics would be accurate either way," Arkraptor adds. "News skews this shit all of the time. So either way, you're both probably right."

Viole inclines his head slowly. Then he sighs. "My apologies, Ehwa-ssi, I am not angry with you."

"I know!" she says hurriedly, flushing to her ears. Then she shakes her head. "I accept your apology regardless."

Arkraptor and Wangnan share a look but don't comment.

It's hours later, in private, that Viole seems to crumble a little. Not break. Wangnan can't recall seeing Viole ever break outright in public, let alone in the privacy of their shared room.

Out of the shower, his long hair is fluffy and curling in the brush as Wangnan works through it. Wangnan doesn't remember when he started doing this. Perhaps it was an impulse, a wish for safer skin-to-skin contact without fear of what he could or couldn't do. What was comfortable and safe. So he'd bought a brush and a comb and taken it to Viole's hair.

Admittedly this had given free real estate to everyone else, but Viole doesn't seem to mind. But he's the most placid with Wangnan, and that's what makes this a good thing.

Right now, however, Wangnan wants to keep this for himself, to themselves. The touch of Viole's hair, the comfort of his warm body, the knowledge that another person he cares about still lives on.

Sitting behind him now, he watches the tense line in the other's shoulders slowly falter. He doesn't relax, and Wangnan knows he won't for a while. But with dim lights and just the two of them, it might be a little easier.

"Claustrophobia?" he finally dares to guess. "Or speluncaphobia?"

Viole swallows and manages a tiny shake of his head. "I was in the dark for a long time," he finally says. "But it wasn't scary. It was just where I always was." He sighs. "I don't want to go back. But if I wasn't alone, I could stay. That's what I think."

"Why would you be okay with staying in the dark?" Finishing one part, Wangnan starts to detangle another. "If you suffered there, why would you go back?"

"The dark is awful," Viole says thoughtfully. "But the lacking, the lacking is worse."

"Why can't you not have both?" It's an idealistic question, steeped in something else. "You're in FUG. You're rich and strong. Why can't you have the people you love and the light?" Why can't you take back your friends and continue forward?

Viole doesn't laugh and Wangnan appreciates this. It was a rather optimistic question. "The tower is taking a lot from me. I don't want it to take more."

"It won't take us." Wangnan believes this because he has to, not necessarily because he wants to. "No matter what happens. I won't, we can't, let it take us."

They sit in silence for a long time as Wangnan finishes running the comb through. He picks up the strands he'd put close together. Then he begins to braid the long, thin locks. When he's done, they're in a careful braid that he ties off.

"Thank you, Wangnan-ssi," Viole says.

"You're welcome, man. I love doing this." I love being able to breathe. Wangnan pauses. "Can I uh… sleep in here tonight?"

Viole turns to him, blinking, and nods. His lips twitch into a smile.

Cute, Wangnan thinks. "Sorry, were you going to ask first?"

Another small nod.

Cute. "Let me go change."

Wangnan changes and gets ready for bed quickly. He pauses in the living room to find Miseng sleeping peacefully in Goseng's lap. Goseng grins at him over her lighthouse screen.

"She worked hard."

He grins back. "Sure did. She's earned this."

"I'll put her to bed soon." Goseng winks behind her glasses. "Don't stay up too late."

Wangnan sputters at her and returns to Viole's room. What were they going to do? They're just sleeping.

Viole is already laying down on his side, eyes closed and breathing slowly. Not sleeping, not yet. Turning off most of the lights, Wangnan slides into bed beside him. Cautiously, he pulls Viole so his nose is nestled in the brown hair.

Wangnan breathes and finally relaxes. They all made it out. They're all okay.

"Thanks," he mumbles. "For protecting Miseng again and… coming back."

There's a short pause and then, "Thank you for welcoming me back."

"Always."

A/N: See? I can write fluff. I hope you enjoyed!