Inside the club, the bass pounded so hard it rattled through bone. Electric music bled through the walls, neon lights flashing wildly over dancing bodies.

The people danced, drank, laughed and smoked while others pressed against each other in dark corners, mouths tangled, hands wandering.

The whole place smelled like sweat, expensive liquor, and pure sin.

Wenzhi moved through it easily, the lollipop hanging loose between his lips as he bobbed faintly to the rhythm.

Xinyuan stayed behind him, watching.

Suddenly, a woman broke away from the group she was dancing with and stepped directly into Wenzhi’s path, blocking his way with a sultry smile.

She was a striking, beautiful woman with a shaved head, tattooed throat, and a silver ring pierced through the center of her lower lip. Her eyes swept over Wenzhi slowly, greedily.

"Hi," she said, smiling. "Want to dance?"

Wenzhi’s brows lifted. He pulled the lollipop from his mouth. "I would, but..."

He stopped. Because the woman was no longer looking at him. She was staring at Xinyuan who loomed behind him.

Those warm brown eyes were dark crimson now and the shadows of the club seemed to crawl over his face, swallowing the neon around him.

The woman visibly paled and took two steps back.

"Well," she muttered. "That’s definitely a no."

She turned on her heel and vanished back into the crowd.

"Hmm?" Wenzhi glanced back at Xinyuan, whose eyes were warm brown again like nothing had happened. He popped the lollipop back between his teeth and smirked. "Down, boy."

Xinyuan gave him a flat look.

That only made Wenzhi laugh. This was getting fun.

"Come on," Wenzhi said. "We want them to see us."

His eyes flicked toward the upper floors. "Then you can burn this place down."

They made their way toward the VVIP section where a bulky security guard blocked the velvet rope.

At the entrance, Wenzhi slipped his hand into his pocket and pulled out a sleek, black-and-gold card. "Give us your best room with the best drinks."

The guard scanned it.

Green.

Immediate access.

The VVIP section was less crowded, more expensive and dangerous.

The air was thick with drugs and perfume. Bodies tangled across velvet couches while money rained over polished floors.

They were led into an empty, lavishly decorated booth hidden by heavy, dark crimson curtains. Once the staff finished arranging an assortment of premium liquors and wines on the glass table, they bowed, leaving the two of them in the dim, red-tinted space.

Xinyuan reached out, uncorking a bottle of wine and pouring a generous amount into a crystal glass. But just as he lifted it toward his lips, Wenzhi snatched the glass right out of his fingers.

"Do you not remember the beer?"

Xinyuan blinked. "It was one sip."

"And one sip ruined my night."

"I’ll be fine."

Wenzhi ignored him and drank the wine himself.

Xinyuan stared at him, a small smile on his lips.

Wenzhi leaned back. "Did they see us?"

Xinyuan’s gaze shifted beyond the curtain. "There were four Espers downstairs."

His eyes darkened. "The rest are here. Including Jingxin."

"Okay..." Wenzhi pulled his lollipop from his mouth again

Xinyuan immediately slid closer to him, entirely closing the space on the couch that separated them.

Wenzhi didn’t even look surprised. He just watched the Esper over the rim of his empty glass.

"Do you feel better?" Xinyuan suddenly asked.

Wenzhi gave him a flat look. "I wasn’t feeling worse earlier."

Xinyuan shook his head. "I mean after last night, and this morning, and in the truck... you were trying to distance yourself."

Under that unblinking, hyper-focused brown gaze, Wenzhi bit down, crunching the rest of the hard candy in his mouth before looking away. "We are fine, Xinyuan."

"You said we aren’t reality." Xinyuan reminded and Wenzhi knew right then that the Esper wasn’t going to let this go.

Nothing about the faction was bothering Xinyuan. Nothing about the meeting they had just pulled off with the Rift Bureau earlier was affecting him, and nothing about shooting Jingxin, or the fact that Jingxin was currently walking around a club in a stolen skin was bothering him either.

No, not really.

The only thing bothering Xinyuan was Wenzhi.

Wenzhi was becoming intensely aware of just how completely absorbed Xinyuan was by him. He knew Jingxin and Xinyuan had never been the best of friends, but Xinyuan wasn’t even dedicating a single percentage of his thoughts to his brother right now.

"We are reality." Wenzhi murmured.

"You don’t sound like you mean it," Xinyuan whispered.

"What do you want me to do? Go down on one knee and propose to you?" Wenzhi asked, his brow creasing into a proper frown this time. "There are more important things to think about right now than talking about me guiding you, Xinyuan."

"We slept together. You let me touch you. That wasn’t guiding." Xinyuan said softly.

Wenzhi gave him a slightly pained, annoyed look, but underneath the irritation, a wave of realization hit him.

This was the first time Xinyuan had ever experienced that kind of intimacy.

For Wenzhi, body and soul, it wasn’t his first time, but seeing how completely consumed and affected Xinyuan was by it was... something else.

Xinyuan looked like he wanted to crawl into Wenzhi’s skin and stay there. His ears were bright red against his dark hair, and his lips were slightly parted, his breath shallow, like he couldn’t get enough oxygen through his nose alone.

Wenzhi let out a heavy breath, his shoulders dropping. "Fine. I admit I was overwhelmed."

"In a good way?" Xinyuan leaned his face in closer instantly, his eyes brightening with a sudden, desperate hope.

"You said yourself you heard my heart racing, so yes. In a good way," Wenzhi said.

A massive smile broke across Xinyuan’s face, dimples flashing on his cheeks.

"Did you really like it?" Xinyuan asked greedily.

He knew the answer, and he could undoubtedly hear the sudden, rapid thumping of Wenzhi’s pulse right now, but the flush in his ears only deepened.

Wenzhi exhaled heavily, the heat in the small booth suddenly feeling much more oppressive than the club outside. "Yes, I liked it. Are you happy now?"

Xinyuan looked incredibly happy, but a dangerous, playful spark in his eyes showed he wasn’t entirely satisfied.

"I am happy," Xinyuan murmured, his voice dropping into a low purr as he tilted his head. "But... Can we do it again?"