[Fic] carve the root from the tree branch (Meet You at the Blossom)
- Fandom: 花开有时颓靡无声 | Meet You at the Blossom (TV)
- Pairing: Jin Xiaobao/Zongzheng Huai'en
- Tags: Sugar Daddy
- Word-Count: 803
- Status: Complete
- First Published: 2024-08-10
- Disclaimer: I do not own 花开有时颓靡无声 and make no profit from this—it is solely a hobby for fun, with no financial compensation.
Summary:
In which sugar daddy Jin Xiaobao is the best sugar daddy. (Or: The Emperor sure has been wearing a lot of new jewelry lately. Wonder what that's about?)
Notes:
behold: mutual dumbassery, the fic
(i'm at the point where Hauien just found out Xiaobao went to Yicui and i have the feeling Shit Is About To Hit The Fan and so i am, ehem, stalling for time to prepare my heart by writing cracky fluff fic. you're welcome :D)
Work Text:
"And this," Jin Xiaobao says, holding up the box and displaying the hair jewelry for perusal, "Is the most expensive thing in this market. And I got it for you! Isn't it pretty?" He blinks, staring at Zheng Huaien in waiting of a reaction.
Studying the jewelry, Zheng Huaien finally declares, "Acceptable," and grabs the box. Jin Xiaobao grins, pleasure curling through him as he rests his head on his hand, leaning further over the table in the inn, staring at his... his lover, he supposes. They're lovers, he thinks; Zheng Huaien is the prettiest person Xiaobao has ever seen, and upon their very first meeting Jin Xiaobao wasted no time in proposing.
He was rejected, sadly. (Sniff.) But Huaien hasn't stopped indulging him yet, letting Jin Xiaobao drag him around, give him jewelry and food and going to the opera with him. Xiaobao thinks they're lovers, now, and every time he gives him something Huaien smiles---that small, otherworldly smile that utterly bamboozles him, sinks into his brain and burrows deep, carving room for itself until it's all he think of, and Xiaobao isn't even sorry about it. Not when Zheng Huaien looks at him like that, smiles like that, allows Jin Xiaobao to exist around him, to flutter around him, granting him the joy of his presence.
And sure, he thinks, Su Yin's reaction to finding Zheng Huaien in Xiaobao's home was kind of weird, but Su Yin is a weird person and Xiaobao tries not to judge people based on him.
Slowly, Jin Xiaobao pushes his hand further over the table, gaze on Huaien to track his every reaction, and when nothing happens, he grabs onto Huaien's sleeve. The fabric is soft, expensive, he thinks, and he purses his lips at the idea that Zheng Huaien might be letting other people also buy him things. Give him things.
Obviously, Jin Xiaobao's gifts are the best.
"You like me the best, right?" Jin Xiaobao asks, fluttering his eyelashes, leaning over the table. Huaien stares at him, gaze dark, and then he turns his hand, tears his sleeve out of Jin Xiaobao's grip. It's fine, though; before Xiaobao has time to do more than pout, Huaien has grabbed his hand, tangled their fingers, and he raises Xiaobao's hand, presses a gentle, possessive kiss to the back of it, his touch lingering as he stares into Xiaobao's eyes.
"I like you the best," Zheng Huaien says, pressing his cheek to Jin Xiaobao's hand. His eyes don't ever look away from Xiaobao and he smiles, says, "You like me too, right?"
"Of course!" Jin Xiaobao straightens. "You're the prettiest person I've ever seen. No-one on this earth can possibly compare!" And Huaien's eyes narrow, and so Jin Xiaobao clears his throat, ducking his head and huffing an awkward kind of laugh. "I mean," he says, trying to think of something flattering to say that will distract Huaien from whatever Xiaobao did to summon that gaze, "When I look at you, I can't even think of anybody else." He grins, pleased with himself for solving the issue.
Huaien sighs, rolling his eyes in the most minute of motions. It's adorable, Jin Xiaobao thinks, and his stomach flutters, his heart skipping a beat. He exhales, and they continue to hold hands as they eat, even when the servers come and remove the empty dishes. Huaien is elegant to a fault, no matter the situation, Xiaobao thinks, and he really can't look away.
Wearing the outer clothes Jin Xiaobao bought him, Zheng Huaien is a heavenly vision, like something out of mythology, like a legend, and Xiaobao wakes every day in awe that Huaien is content to be with him. Jin Xiaobao has a lot, yes, but there are doubtlessly people that have more money than him, that have more connections, and Huaien is the prettiest man in the world; who wouldn't covet him? Who could look at him and not desire to have him, to be had in turn?
"What are you thinking?" asks Huaien as they walk the streets in the falling light, people walking out of their way.
Jin Xiaobao smiles, looking up at the stars and clinging to Huaien's arm, resting his head on his shoulder. "You, I guess," he says, and grins when Huaien's breath hitches, his eyes widening. Huaien gazes down at him with wide eyes, expression so open that Jin Xiaobao can't stop himself from kissing him on the cheek. He nuzzles his head into Huaien's shoulder, than, exhaling as warmth coursing though him, his grip flexing on Zheng Huaien, his lover.
It's a little bit weird, Jin Xiaobao is willing to admit, though, that Huaien is always followed around by so many guards. But he gets it; Zheng Huaien is the beauty of the century, and must be protected!