The devil's after both of us

It was not so much that he did not trust Sāng he would not keep him from falling down, it was more that he did not trust himself. One wrong step, a miscalculation and he would end up tumbling down. Given the many floors, it was high and the impact might cause his demise.

Míngzé shot Sāng a glare when he was called a wuss. It caused him to take a deep breath in through his nose with closed eyes. He did not know where on the roof they were. Was the edge close? Was it far? He hated every part of this. “Have I already told you that I hate you?” Míngzé asked Sāng the moment he felt the other’s soft touch. The first time they met, he had only growing hate for this man, but now that was no longer the case.

With some hesitation he let go of the doorframe and he held out his cane as an extra safety precaution that should tell him where the edge was if they ever got close. “I’ll just have to take your word for it.” As he reached down to find the ground before he sat down, he noticed how his hand was slightly trembling. It was rather embarrassing to be fair. First he found the wall and he used that as support to sit down.

The other had brought coffee and a blanket. “You came prepared,” he said, followed by a soft sigh. Now that he sat down, he felt at least a bit safer. He folded his cane and placed it on his lap, only to hold it like it was his lifeline. “So eh— do you come here often?” he asked the stupid line people often used as a pick-up line, trying to lighten the mood.

Míngzé raised an eyebrow before it ended up in him rolling his eyes. “Now who’s lying?” he said with a hint of amusement. A few weeks — or were it already months? — ago he might have preferred to push Sāng off this building instead of sitting here with him. Now it was nice to simply have someone to talk with.

A smile tugged at his lips at Sāng’s laugh. Míngzé was glad this time went better than last time. As long as he did not mention anything about curses and death, it should be fine. “Uh uh, yeah, totally.” More like he almost lost his ability to breathe when he first came here. The moment he felt the blanket over his shoulders, he grabbed on side and pulled it further over his shoulder. Sitting like this he could almost forget where he was. “I think I’ll stick to appearing on your doorstep out of nowhere. Which sounds very weird.” Míngzé was still smiling.

The question being asked made him turn his head to the side for a moment. This was one of the few things he did not mind talking about, probably because he did it so often.“They are too far away so kind of like— blent together I guess? It’s more like a few big beams of light.” It was always hard to describe what exactly he could and couldn’t see. Míngzé leaned back until his back properly hit the wall behind them. “My little christmas tree I’ve set up is also mostly a mess of lights with different colors. I’m pretty sure it looks awful.” Why he was telling him this, he did not know. Perhaps in an attempt to give him some more insight. It was not that they knew each other very well.

With a small smile on his lips he listened to Sāng and as he continued the smile widened. He hummed as if considering the idea. “Where would be the fun in that? This keeps it exciting.” This time it had nothing to do with any weird stuff that was going on, making it all a bit easier to joke about.

The city spread in front of him was bright, even at this time of the night. “It is not that bad actually, but I like everything with lights.” In his eyes every light was pretty, as it was the only thing he could always see. The burn in his house. “That burn is gone, luckily, I couldn't stand the smell anymore.” For a moment Mingze raised his arm.After his nightmare — or whatever it was — he had called someone to take care of it. “It also did not fit the aesthetics I was going for.”

Míngzé lowered his eyes for a moment, because what Sāng said implied that he had a lot of  troubles. But it was not his place to pry. “Pretty much, yeah,” Míngzé answered with a small smile. From up here and especially at this hour of the day he would not even notice a Salamance on the ground. “But I think I understand what you mean.” Or on top of the city. He looked aside at the gentle touch of the thermos and reached out to grab it. “Thanks.” Míngzé opened it after some feeling around and removed the cup. Normally this was the part where he would simply return it and say that it was probably best if Sāng did it, but now he didn’t.

Carefully he tried his best to fill the cup without spilling anything. "I forgot to ask, how is your hand?” While there were certain things he did not want to mention, Míngzé simply wanted to know if it was better. He took a sip from the coffee, before handing it over to Sang. 

For a moment it seemed like Sāng would behave himself, but then he came with another comment. This time it was his own fault. “Since you are the one who keeps bringing it up, I feel like you’re mostly talking about yourself.” He gently bumped Sang with his elbow.

Míngzé huffed at those words. “Black sure, the burned aesthetic however is not really my thing.” Although he did not really have another option left. His house had been an easy fix. His arm was another story entirely.

Míngzé did not know what he expected when he asked about Sāng’s hand. But this was not it. Had he really punched more stuff after that one day? “How strange, I thought that was what the doctor prescribed.” He could not help but shake his head a little as he had a small smile on his lips. It did not come as a surprise that Sāng tried to joke about it. “Just be careful, you only have two.” Meaning he did not want Sāng to lose a hand because of his own recklessness.

With a raised eyebrow he looked to the side, not knowing why Sāng asked about his dating life all of the sudden. When more information followed, he formed a silent ‘ow’ with his lips. Then he shook his head. “You really think I’ve swiped people?” He asked while pointing at himself. Because it worked both ways. “Haven’t opened the app since. Not the right time I guess.” It was not like his life was going smoothly right now. "And I would have no idea who exactly I'm swiping." Which was another great excuse.

Sāng was really impossible sometimes, but by now he had learned to live with it. Or maybe because he’d given him somewhat of a chance, he’d warmed up to him. Míngzé only shook his head, deciding that not responding was the better option here. But what followed after his advice made him look at him with raised eyebrows. “Did you just—” he started his question. This was the bad part about being able to understand Sāng. “Thank you for making me feel old,” he said jokingly.

The whole point of charm was swiping left or right because you liked how someone looked and if their bio’s were interesting. When he heard people talk about it, that’s always how it went. He gave Sāng a look, before he gazed back over the city with a soft ‘huh’. Slowly he sipped from his coffee as Sāng kept talking. “I never thought about it like that, you know?” Míngzé moved a bit and grabbed his phone to open the app. It all depended on the app itself, if that one was compatible with the software he had installed.

“How about you? Have all your pretty words managed to catch someone’s attention?” Míngzé asked while he was opening the app on his phone. Of course it had to install an update first, because it had been a while.

If he was getting old, then it might be time to indeed try some dating apps before it was too late. It had been a few years, so why not. Sāng on the other hand did not seem to have any troubles in that department. “Names, plural,” Míngzé remarked with an eyebrow. “Alright, so no one special on this app. How about at your work?” He was a bartender, so he met a lot of new people on a regular basis.

The update did not take long and the first profile appeared on his phone. Immediately the voice on there started speaking at a rapid pace, telling him everything.

Be for real right now

Send me some music suggestions

no, your personality can't be all about being a swiftie, that goes for all those generic boy pop bands too Jessica

This was definitely a start. “What the hell is a swiftie?” In any case it was better than whatever he expected. It was not some guy talking about how good they are in bed. He let his finger hover over his screen, first waiting for Sāng’s reaction.

When he first asked if there was someone special, Sāng had immediately given a very clear answer. No one on this app was worth enough to him to even remember their names. However now his reaction had been totally different. Míngzé raised an eyebrow as he listened and gave Sāng the space he needed to say something. Softly he hummed. “And is it worth it?” Míngzé carefully asked as he did not want to step out of line.

Míngzé blinked in surprise when all of the sudden his phone left his hands. His first reaction had been to grab it again, thinking it had somehow fallen out of his hands. Which was not what happend. It was Sāng who’d pulled it out of his hands. What followed was a wave of praise. Amused he looked at the other before shaking his head. “That’s it, you’ve completely convinced me, let me arrange this date immediately,” he said with the needed sarcasm and slightly raised hands. At least he sounded like a good guy, which was more than what he expected from anyone on this app.

The other leaned in, which was fine, until he started talking. Míngzé really had to force down the urge to stand up and completely move away from him. Instead he only leaned to the side a little bit while he looked at Sāng in a desperate attempt to catch a glimpse of his expression. Was this a joke? Surely. It had to be. An awkward smile formed on his lips. “On second thought, I think I prefer my neck over a relationship,” he tried to sound lighthearted as he made this joke. Unconsciously he rubbed his neck.

“How about the next one?” he asked after clearing his throat. His golden eyes were already on his phone that was still in Sāng’s hands.

There was no saying what kind of situation Sāng had found himself in. While Míngzé had a good understanding of the other, it was still a very hard egg to crack. He did not share much and was mostly all jokes and flirts. This side was something completely different from everything he had seen of him before.

Míngzé stayed quiet, giving Sāng the room to continue this conversation or to jump to the next topic. To his surprise, the other continued. He leaned back and pulled the blanket a bit more over his shoulder as he gazed over the city. “If he likes you,” Míngzé started carefully, trying to find the right words. “You have already shown him a part of you that is worth liking. That part might already make it feel worth it to him.” Maybe he was not the best person to give this kind of advice, since he’d thought his ex had been worth it too. There had been parts he’d liked and back then he thought those parts were worth it too. He let go of a deep breath through his nose as he rested his head against the wall. But Sāng was a better person than his ex would ever be.

It was just his luck that the first profile they came across was of someone Sāng knew. Knew a bit too well. Listening to Sāng praise had been amusing and he almost wanted to meet the guy just because of that. That was until he almost got a death threat if he were to ever break this man’s heart. “Not sure what you think my hobbies are, but breaking people’s hearts is not one of them,” he said in an attempt to keep it light- hearted.

The next few profiles were nothing interesting. SImply people talking about certain body parts, some making weird sexual jokes and all of these immediately got swiped left.

It became clear that Sāng did not agree with what he said, which was fine. What he said also made sense, which made it hard to argue. Especially since he knew barely anything about this situation. It was like walking on eggshells too as he did not want to say the wrong thing.

“Or maybe they don’t mind this current version,” Míngzé said with a short shrug. Fixing people was nearly impossible, especially if the other party did not want to get fixed. Or thought they did not need fixing. Telling Sāng that he was not a bad person did not seem like the right move, although Míngzé assumed that was what the other meant. That whoever he was talking about was too good for him. “‘Not everything needs to be fixed.” As no one was perfect.

Whoever this Alastor was, meant a lot to Sāng, which was good for him. Everyone deserves someone at their side that would always be there, no matter what. “He’s lucky to have someone like you at his side. no, wait— how often do you tell his dates that you will break their neck?” Míngzé had a smile on his face as he said that last part. The first part however he truly meant.  

Míngzé wished to believe he had a good understanding of Sāng at this point. While there was so much he did not know, he had an image of the man next to him and it was a good one. A bit of doubt however slipped in, caused by Sāng’s own insecurity about himself. A deep sigh rolled over his lips. “Maybe,” he muttered. It would not be the first time he was wrong about someone either. “I’m sure you’ll figure it out.” In the end it was Sāng who had to do this.

A soft chuckle sounded as Míngzé rolled his eyes. “Ever thought about the possibility that’s why he’s still single?” he joked. He could imagine how someone would be downright scared after hearing such a threat, whether true or false. Sāng was probably all bark and no bite, but he could bark very loudly and scare people away that way.

But it was time for another profile and Míngzé swiped again, his eyes directed at the light emanating from the small screen. The first words already made him frown and it got only worse as his phone carried on at a hundred miles an hour.

Johnny, 33, Sanctum City — Wake the fuck up, we've got a city to burn!
If you're good at something, never do it for free. So can I get a free kiss, to practice?

“How do people expect to get likes this way?” Míngzé asked as he looked at the profile with a hint of disgust on his face. This was more what he expected from people using charm.