💙 All the ways that you remain by Spodumene
💙 All the ways that you remain
Summary: When Lan Zhan must return to Shanghai for a month, he leaves his beloved home in the care of Wei Ying, a timely new acquaintance. But what happens when Lan Zhan returns to find that Wei Ying has nowhere else to go?
Kay's comments: The yearning in this story was strong! My yearning! To live this kind of cottagecore dream life! Lan Zhan being in Shanghai isn't a large portion of the story, because he cuts his visit short relatively soon after tensions arise between him and his uncle and also there's a gas leak back at the cottage that Wei Ying is watching. Since he returned early, he offers Wei Ying to stay with him for the remainder of the month and what follows is so much soft yearning and falling in love and just a story about two people who grow to call each other their home.
Wei Ying is also a landscape architect in this and starts reviving the yard behind the cottage, while Lan Zhan works to archive his mother's writings. Both of them carry burdens with them, which they'll eventually share. Ah, just this story! Such a soft and comforting slow-burn, really what my heart needed in this cold, cold winter.
Excerpt: “Lan Zhan,” Wei Ying says again, voice wavering just a little. “You really don’t have to.”
“I want to,” Lan Zhan repeats. “Wei Ying. Please stay.”
Something dark flickers across the surface of Wei Ying’s eyes, but it disappears so fast, Lan Zhan wonders if he imagined it. He’s gone perfectly still, staring at Lan Zhan like he’s never seen him before, and Lan Zhan waits, his heartbeat loud in his ears.
Finally, Wei Ying speaks.
“Okay,” he says, his voice small and tentative, and Lan Zhan can feel his own shoulders relaxing. He hadn’t realized just how tense he’d become.
Excerpt²: Lan Zhan watches as Wei Ying crouches down, offering each rabbit a treat as they emerge. Yin takes his immediately, but Yang sniffs suspiciously at Wei Ying’s fingers before finally accepting the tasty morsel. Wei Ying pets them both in turn, cooing softly as they respond to his ministrations, and Lan Zhan feels another incessant tug.
“I knew I’d win you over,” Wei Ying is saying to Yang, who is nosing at Wei Ying’s hand in hope of more treats. “You totally love me.”
Lan Zhan flushes from head to toe, his whole body suddenly aflame.
Oh no, he thinks.
modern setting, modern no powers, canada, romance, first meetings, cottagecore, first meetings, there was only one bed, mentions of parent death, getting together, getting together, soft wangxian, pov wei wuxian, landscape artist wei wuxian, archive worker lan wangji, @spodumene
(Please REBLOG as a signal boost for this hard-working author if you like – or think others might like – this story.)