This came to me as I was getting my chest tattooed. Ngl, it really did help me get through the pain.
It should be said that the tattoo info is relatively accurate, but I’m bullshitting literally everything else. I don’t know anything about hospitals and lawyers- so if you do, sorry.
Okay, to set the scene:
Yan Wushi, acclaimed tattoo artist with a specialization in black and grey realism. The shop he owns has won multiple awards (the yelp reviews are polarizing.) He’s booked out two years in advance. He won’t take on any projects he doesn’t like. He’s only ever taken on two apprentices. His first apprentice (Bian Yanmei) still tattoos but has taken over more of the managing of the shop. His second apprentice (Yu Shengyan) is close to graduating, but he’s still taking clients at a discounted rate.
Shen Qiao, Chief of Surgery at Xuandu Hospital. Recently became a single father after his godchild, Shi Wu’s, parents die in a car accident. After a highly publicized malpractice lawsuit against Shen Qiao goes to court, he’s forced by the hospital to go on administrative leave. To pass the time while Shi Wu’s at school, he takes on a part-time job at a local bar near his house.
Yan Wushi, frequent patron of Banbu Divebar, takes a liking to the new, sweet, blissfully naive server/barback. He delights in ruffling his feathers and decides he’s going to get this gorgeous younger man into his bed at least once.
As time passes, Yan Wushi watches as his incessant flirting causes Shen Qiao’s polite customer mask to drop around him. He learns about how Shen Qiao is facing legal trouble after a false malpractice accusation, and he’s worried he might lose his job. Shen Qiao learns he’s a tattoo artist but doesn’t quite understand how big of a deal he is in the tattoo world.
Eventually the rizzing works and Yan Wushi manages to get Shen Qiao to take him home one evening when his adopted son (YW’s not a fan of that part) is staying at a friend’s house.
They fuck
While Shen Qiao sleeps, Yan Wushi makes his way to the balcony for a smoke when he notices a tin labeled “Tips” on Shen Qiao’s desk. Without hesitation he nabs the money and leaves after he finishes his cigarette. Shen Qiao can't help the disappointment he feels when he wakes to an empty bed the next morning.
Life gets worse when he’s called to the hospital. Due to too much pressure from the media, the board asks him to resign. He does not, so they fire him. On his return home, he immediately takes to getting his finances in order to see how long he has until things could get dicey. He takes out his can of tips (an extra savings of sorts) and finds a sticky note inside the empty tin that reads “You should invest in a safe.”
Shi Wu finds Shen Qiao standing in the living room looking hurt and furious when he gets home from school. He almost steps back out of the house from the shock of seeing so much emotion on his normally calm adopted father’s face.
Life continues. Shen Qiao doesn’t see Yan Wushi at the bar anymore despite now working there full time. He’s grateful that their neighbor in the new apartment building is willing to watch Shi Wu for the two hours his shift lasts past the school day. No hospital within the county is willing to take him- the sheer publicity of his case blacklisting him.
Sometime later, Banbu Divebar gets a new regular. Zhao Chiying finds herself getting along quite well with her usual server Shen Qiao. She learns the whole story about the false claims against his medical career and he finds out she’s the vice-president of a private ambulance company. She offers to sponsor him through their EMT course with a job at the end. He accepts
Shen Qiao passes with flying colors and becomes an EMT for Bixia Emergency Services wherein he and Shi Wu find themselves back in the comfort of stability. After almost a year on the job Shen Qiao is driving home one night when he sees a figure slumped against a building, almost falling into an alley. He pulls over to help. He has a million guesses as to how this person came to find themselves in such a sorry state, but the last thing he expects is to find a very battered Yan Wushi- barely recognizable from all the swelling and barely breathing as the stab wounds are bringing him closer to death.
Without hesitation, Shen Qiao grabs his kit from his car as he calls for an ambulance and tries to stabilize his old acquaintance as he waits for his own company to arrive. They make it in time and Shen Qiao rides with them to the hospital.
A few weeks later Shen Qiao is shocked to find Yan Wushi waiting for him at his job. Still looking worse for ware, but nothing like the man waiting on death’s door. He pulls him aside and Shen Qiao struggles to not be put off as the man interacts with him in the same flirty manner he had used over a year ago in the little dive bar close to his old house.
Ultimately Yan Wushi is there to satisfy his curiosity as to why Shen Qiao chose to save him. In his shoes, Yan Wushi would have passed by an old face that had wronged him and celebrated his downfall. Surprised to hear Yan Wushi had been conscious enough at some point to recognize him, Shen Qiao tells him past affairs have nothing to do with saving someone. The conversation doesn’t last much longer than that, but Shen Qiao is startled when Yan Wushi thanks him for saving his life. He swears Yan Wushi is looking at him differently as he leaves.
A month later Shen Qiao is invited out with his coworkers to get matching unit tattoos. Despite his repeated refusal to get a tattoo, they manage to coerce him along for the ride regardless. They find themselves at a very reputable shop. Their main artist is Yu Shengyan (about a year post apprenticeship at this point) and whoever else has time to help such a large group. Shen Qiao politely sits with the group waiting in the lobby for their turn.
Yan Wushi takes a break on the leg sleeve he’d been working on all day for a cigarette, his client following him out to do the same. He almost does a double take when he catches site of a familiar face in his lobby. Laughing, he saunters over to the lobby and sits down amongst the group of EMT’s, eyes glued to one in particular.
“This is the last place I’d expect to run into you” Yan Wushi says
Just as surprised, Shen Qiao responds in turn, “I didn’t expect to see you as well”
“I assume you don’t know who the owner of this shop is.”
Shen Qiao grasped his meaning immediately. He didn’t dwell on the past often, so it had slipped his mind that Yan Wushi had mentioned way back that he owned a tattoo shop. Yan Wushi tells him he’ll personally do his tattoo for him, emphasizing how big of an honor that is. Shen Qiao declines, letting him know he’s only there for company.
Faced with an unrelenting beauty, Yan Wushi beckons Shen Qiao to join him for his smoke break. Too shocked by the whole ordeal to decline, Shen Qiao follows him out. Yan Wushi starts the new conversation off by getting Shen Qiao to explain how he feels about him now. Shen Qiao indulges him and tells him that he’s long since stopped dwelling on what happened between them. He even laughs as he tells Yan Wushi he took his advice and got a safe.
As he’s finishing his cigarette, Yan Wushi turns to his client- leg wrapped in Bactine and saran wrap- and calls him over. His client turns out to be a high-profile lawyer willing to trade a leg sleeve for his services. Not knowing how to react Shen Qiao tries to decline, but Yan Wushi manages to twist the conversation so well that in the end not only does Shen Qiao agree to accepting the help, but he also agrees to a date with Yan Wushi in exchange for the man’s chivalry.
The new lawyer proves to be invaluable as he steers the case in Shen Qiao’s favor- even managing to garner public favor for him. A new investigation in the case reveals that one of his coworkers- Yu Ai- had convinced one of his former patients to falsely sue. But it had been Tan Yuanchun- a more senior surgeon- who had falsified records to build the case against Shen Qiao. One motivated out of false convictions and the other jealousy, they were both fired, and Shen Qiao reinstated to his former position.
Shen Qiao is shocked to find that their date goes so well. Yan Wushi being as he remembers- relentlessly teasing yet so utterly confident and charming. Yan Wushi tells him he’s different than most people he meets and that he wants to try courting him again, this time genuinely. Shen Qiao can’t help the magnetism that seems to pull him into this man’s orbit and Yan Wushi manages to charm his way into Shen Qiao’s bed once again.
Shen Qiao wakes the next morning with nerves pulled taut. He can’t feel the presence or the heat of another person lying next to him. A pit carving its way through his stomach, hollowing him out as he opens his eyes to an empty bed.
He manages to haul himself out of bed, fueled by the thought of needing to pick up Shi Wu from his friend’s house in a few hours. Shuffling out of his bedroom, Shen Qiao’s ears perk up to the sound of sizzling and dishes being moved. Stunned would best describe Shen Qiao as he watches Yan Wushi in just boxers, hair up in a messy bun, cooking breakfast. Two plates already set out on the table and a pot of coffee offering up it’s aroma to the kitchen.
The food was delicious
Small extra:
Shi Wu does not like Yan Wushi. He puts up with him cause he can tell his dad is happy, but ultimately there’s an unspoken agreement between the two of them that they’ll tolerate each other for Shen Qiao’s sake.
After 6 months of dating, Yan Wushi bribes Shi Wu by telling him he’ll give him $50 every time he makes an excuse to stay the night at a friend’s house. Shi Wu agrees immediately
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