Jin Ling was somewhat startled by this sentence. Lan Jingyi and Lan Sizhui each hadn‘t had much opportunity these days to see Jin Ling, so when the three of them found out that members of their clans would attend this night-hunt, all parties had been looking forward to it.
The moonlight was shining brightly and the air was cold. With Lan Sizhui’s guqin falling silent after the hunt was finished the night was quiet again, only the sound of leaves in the wind accompanying them.
Jin Ling stood looking at them with his eyes wide open, blinking at them as if he hadn‘t heard right. Never had anyone invited him so happily and readily. And never had he been to Gusu before.
Lan Jingyi groaned in exhaustion at the lack of a reaction and took a few steps forward, grabbing Jin Ling’s wrist and pull him closer. Lan Jingyi looked him into the eyes and sighed, his hand slowly gliding into Jin Lings. “We mean it. Come with us, even if it’s just for a little while.“
The night-hunt hadn‘t been difficult, but it was tiring nonetheless. Lan Jingyi’s patience was short to begin with, and had run low. Not to mention that in front of Jin Ling he didn‘t need to hold back as much. Lan Sizhui had missed Jin Ling just as much as Lan Jingyi, but was better at controlling himself. The very second he saw Jin Ling before the night-hunt had started, Lan Jingyi had hurriedly walking up to him, barely holding back from throwing his arms around Jin Ling but the shine in his eyes and the warm smile on his lips had told the bystanders more than words ever could. Even Lan Sizhui couldn‘t help himself from chuckling at the view. Even if they wanted to tone it down out of courtesy for being in public it was obvious to everyone what was going on between the three with Lan Sizhui radiating joy and excitement just upon laying eyes on Jin Ling.
Jin Ling had noticed it too of course and could barely hide the slight blush creeping up his face at the sight. This fool, how was he so bad at holding back! And why did he always have such an effect on him!
Now that the participants had mostly dispersed the three no longer had any reason to keep away from each other anymore. Jin Ling threw a short glance down to his hand in Lan Jingyi’s. The young man's skin was always warm, and his hands surprisingly gentle considering his demeanor. Jin Ling slowly closed his hand around Jin Ling’s and gave him a light smile.
It was enough of an answer for Lan Jingyi to turn around to Lan Sizhui and pull Jin Ling after him to prepare for their way to Gusu.
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Night-hunts were exhausting - physically and mentally. Whilst this one hadn‘t been life-threatening and neither of the three had any injuries, they still felt sore so Lan Sizhui had asked for allowance to enter the cold springs together with Jin Ling.
Watching the two Lans entering without even flinching Jin Ling thought to himself that this couldn‘t be as bad as it sounded. It was a mild night in late spring, not a single cloud covered the sky and one could clearly see the moon’s reflection in the water. It slowly distorted as the youths walked into the water, their skin nearly as pale but even more beautiful than the moon shining down on them.
After folding his clothes—something he took his time with after seeing just how neatly the other two folded them, even Lan Jingyi - he decided to climb into the cold spring himself. However upon entering he had to fight back the urge to climb out again instantly. Cold was an understatement! How could these two handle this, even walking in deeper as they chatted happily with each other! Jin Ling was drawing in a barely audible shuttered breath as goosebumps rose on his skin all over and he curled his toes under the water and pressed his arms close to his body. He didn‘t want to show any weakness to them but it was hard to suppress the natural reactions of his body to the cold water which kept rising the deeper he went in.
Noticing that Jin Ling wasn‘t following them as fast the two turned around to see that he had barely taken a few steps in, shivering slightly. His hair was still in a ponytail and his arms didn‘t do much to cover the expanse of his chest.
His skin looked silky and white, and the effect of him freezing was very apparent. This time it was the two of them to have trouble holding back with the blush. Quickly looking away, the two waited for Jin Ling to come closer; letting him in between them. Feeling their body warmth he could relax a little, slowly getting used to the water’s temperature and appreciating its refreshing effects whilst complimenting these two in his mind for being able to endure this without a problem.
Maybe if he had a chance to come here more often he would also grow accustomed to the spring as much as they were.
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Naturally Fairy had been with Jin Ling. Before heading to the springs they had brought the dog to the room Jin Ling would be staying in. Hearing his master return Fairy got up and walked towards the door, tail wagging and restless. However—the first to kneel down and pet Fairy was Lan Jingyi.
Befriending Fairy was one of the first things he had done when this relationship with Jin Ling started. After all, how could Jin Ling trust him if Fairy was skeptical of him? It had taken a few rounds of tag—with Lan Jingyi being the one who was chased every single round - but Fairy was by now nearly as happy to see Lan Jingyi as he was when he saw Jin Ling. Lan Sizhui gave Fairy a little pet on the head as well before taking a seat. It had been a lot easier for him to gain Fairy’s trust and that was partially to blame on Jin Ling who had taught Fairy to treat Lan Sizhui well. He couldn‘t deny that he hadn‘t enjoyed seeing Lan Jingyi bickering with Fairy so he left the two to their devices, knowing full well that if Fairy really would have seen him as a threat, he wouldn‘t have played around with the youth like that.
This room was supposed to be for guests and only Jin Ling was supposed to stay in here, but if anyone believed that these two would leave Jin Ling alone they were sorely mistaken. After the door had barely closed it was Lan Sizhui this time who took Jin Ling’s hand in his and led him closer inside. The two were eager to give Jin Ling attention so he soon found himself sitting between them with Lan Sizhui playing the guqin and Lan Jingyi sharing a bit of food with him.
While quiet evenings weren‘t rare they still enjoyed them the most when the three of them could spend them together. Jin Ling absentmindedly petted Fairy who was already dozing while thinking about how it came to this. He wasn‘t unhappy with these two, far from it. But he would have never expected that he would end up with another man, let alone two.
It had all started with a very clumsy stuttered confession from Lan Jingyi who had been ready to run away the moment he spoke the last word. Lan Sizhui had been there to support him and Jin Ling had been rendered speechless. At his lack of reply and seeing the embarrassed mess Lan Jingyi Lan Sizhui had taken it upon him to get Jin Ling to consider. In a panic Jin Ling started stuttering just as much as Lan Jingyi had. He was bad at showing it but he cherished these two a lot and considered them his closest friends. It has been some time already since he had started to doubt his exact feelings because each time they met he could feel his world light up and demanded to show them around and proudly tell them things every cultivator knew off. He knew how embarrassing that behavior was but he tended to only realize it after the deed and yet these two never made fun of him for it, aside from Lan Jingyi’s occasional teasing which would result in them sparring to settle their dispute. With an exasperated sigh Lan Sizhui would act as their judge but smile nonetheless. None of these arguments were serious and the bickering belonged to their relationship and neither of them hid the smiles on their faces when they clashed swords in training.
So when Lan Jingyi confessed to him some months ago he blurted out in his panic how he felt about the two of them. That it felt unfair. That he couldn‘t decide. That he didn’t want to decide. The distress and insecurity in his voice was apparent and both of their mouths felt dry hearing his response. It was that moment that Lan Sizhui also looked at him wide-eyed and his cheeks slowly turning red, stunned silent. Lan Jingyi had also finally looked up and his gaze drifted from Jin Ling to Lan Sizhui, his mouth hanging open. If Jin Ling had known that these two were talking about this beforehand and that Lan Sizhui had agreed to step back and give Lan Jingyi the chance! The wide usual smile had crept then back on Lan Jingyi’s lips and with eyes shining more brightly than the stars he told him everything without thinking, not noticing how Lan Sizhuis gaze turned horrified, his face changing colour between red, green and purple. While Lan Jingyi was as dear to him as Jin Ling he had never thought about it—he had never seen it or considered it! And yet Lan Jingyi was talking about it so openly. Jin Ling looked at the two of them, stunned by Lan Jingyi as much as Lan Sizhui before turning red than ever before. Silence filled the space around them before he looked away shyly, his fingers fidgeting with his clothes, the air around them suddenly feeling to hot with not enough oxygen to breathe, his clothes too tight and restrictive. After a few seconds later with his gaze shifting all around them he agreed in a barely audible voice.
The next he remembered was both of them holding one of his hands each and promising him to treat him well. So cheesy! However as neither of the three had any experience on that topic with one partner—let alone two - their relationship advanced slowly. Not that they were bothered by it but being used to being usually so confident about everything the confusion and nervousness really didn’t help. Much to Lan SIzhui’s amusement the quarrels between Jin Ling and Lan Jingyi came naturally to them and often helped to dispel any awkward atmosphere. However Jin Ling felt bothered by Lan Sizhui laughing at their misery. Not thinking much about it—something he probably got from Lan Jingyi—he leaned forward and had grabbed Lan Sizhuis collar and pulled him close for their first kiss on the smiling lips. Lan Jingyi had instantly forgotten what they were talking about at the scene in front of his eyes and stared at them mouth gaping open before coming back to reality and exclaiming that he felt treated unfairly—resulting in Jin Ling giving him the same treatment as Lan Sizhui who was hiding his flushed red face in his hands.
Jin Ling looked at Lan Sizhui who was absorbed in playing for them. He looked so serene, a light smile on his lips and his aura completely calm. Despite having played so much earlier in the night, Lan Sizhui never seemed to be out of energy or motivation. Knowing the other two enjoyed his play he chose a relaxing yet happy melody, trying to mirror the atmosphere and his current feelings as best as he could with his playing.
Jin Ling suddenly felt something warm brush his shoulder, and looking to his right he saw that Lan Jingyi had started to lean against him. His eyes were fixed on Lan Sizhui who’s fingers nimbly danced on the guqin, a proud and satisfied smile on his lips. Jin Ling slowly extended his hand to put it on top of Lan Jingyi’s. The latter’s eyes widened and he looked up to him, another blush slowly creeping up his cheeks. For all the confidence he had, these kinds of things were still somewhat new to him and it was rare that Jin Ling initiated them! However the latter seemed to master them faster than himself. Lan Jingyi really needed to work on himself! Somewhat awkwardly, he returned the gesture and intertwined their fingers before continuing the watch Lan Sizhui play. Jin Ling gave him a short kiss on the black hair before joining him and listening to Lan Sizhui’s soothing music.
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Jin Ling stirred awake as he felt movement beside him. He slowly moved his head to the side as he saw Lan Sizhui climbing into the bed, casting him an apologetic look because he woke him up. Jin Ling wanted to muster a small smile to tell him it was alright but didn't quite know if it worked in his daze. It was him who should feel apologetic anyway. Lan Sizhui had been playing the guqin for him and Lan Jingyi late into the night, and both fell asleep during the middle of his performance. How embarrassing. Lan Sizhui didn't seem to mind however so Jin Ling started to wonder whether the song he played wasn't even supposed to have this effect. The past few days they three didn't get much rest, and his stay in Gusu was due to them having returned from a night hunt together.
Jin Ling heard a small and tired whimper and looked down at himself. Lan Jingyi had fallen asleep lying on top of him and was burying his face in his chest, grabbing his robes. His brows were furrowed and he breathed a little heavily, probably dreaming of the ghosts they had fought. Really, what kind of cultivator was afraid of ghosts? Jin Ling put a hand on top of Lan Jingyi’s head and pressed his lips against his hair to calm him down as he slept, gently petting him as well. Lan Jingyi moved up a little so he was close to his neck and Jin Ling could feel his warm breath tickling his skin. He put the other arm lose around him, and Lan Jingyi relaxed immediately, seemingly feeling a lot more safe and comfortable. Jin Ling cast another glance up to Lan Sizhui who had watched these two with an amused smile. He then finally laid down beside Jin Ling, giving him a short kiss before resting his head on the pillow and putting an arm over the other two.
Jin Ling leaned a bit into his warmth and couldn't help it but to remove the hand from Lan Jingyi’s head and put it atop of Lan Sizhuis. A small blush crept on his cheeks as he felt Lan Sizhui lazily intertwining their fingers and whispering a tired "good night" into his ear.
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