Stuff I've Written

A ficlet. Even a super-sleuth like Lu Yao gets nightmares. Fortunately someone’s watching over him. 

No spoilers. But it helps to have watched episode 22-23

Excuse the grammar.

**

He’s running. His breathing uneven and rough. His footsteps are clumsy, and he hits a loose tile. Like slow motion, he feels himself losing balance as he tumbles into a half stumble, but just as quickly he picks himself up again. His feet move automatically forward. The sound of his heartbeat drums loudly in his ears, like loud waves crashing against the seashore. He doesn’t look behind, but he knows they are close. His chest tightens. Exhaustion assaults his senses. But still he keeps on running.

*

Lu Yao awakens with a start; his pyjamas drenched in sweat. He blinks, barely focused on the scene in front of him. The pale moonlight streams through the window and his mind registers his bedroom.

‘I’m home’. A question. Or a statement. He doesn’t even know himself. His temples ache a dull pain, his body feels heavy. Finally, he gets up, his feet search clumsily for his bedroom slippers. He wonders momentarily if he left his copy of “The Hound of the Baskervilles” in the living room; after all, there will be no more sleep for what’s left of the night.

*

“You look like crap. Just how much did you drink last night? Or did you stay up reading your silly mysteries again?”

There is bite in Youning’s voice, but also concern. She knows Lu Yao would sense something amiss if she didn’t greet him with their usual barb.

“I think, that maybe I had a bad dream.”

Youning waits, wondering how much Lu Yao remembers. But Lu Yao offers nothing more but a barely perceptible shake of the head, as if clearing the cobwebs of last night’s memories.

Youning forces a laugh, “Aww, little Santu had a nightmare. Did you overeat at Heping Hotel; you know that indigestion can give you nightmares.”

Lu Yao gives her a look, opens his mouth, then closes. Without responding further, he turns his attention back to his plate of bacon and eggs. Visibly alarmed, Youning was about to charge another verbal attack when Chusheng stroll purposefully into the living room. He pretends he doesn’t notice Lu Yao’s pale pallor or Youning’s gaping mouth.

“Let’s go. There’s been a murder.”

*

Lu Yao is quiet during the car ride. Even his usual dramatic flair was visibly subdued at the crime scene; so much so that Ah Dou and Salim looked concern. But Chusheng’s hard stare stopped them from verbalising their worry aloud.

With Lu Yao preoccupied with questioning an eye witness, Chusheng raised an eyebrow pointedly towards Youning, his voice quiet, “Did you tell him what happened last night?”

She kept her eyes on Lu Yao, before answering, “He says he had a nightmare.”

Chusheng cocks his head sideway as a cloud of confusion passes through – the egotistic Lu Yao frightened by a nightmare? It made little sense to Chusheng. Only when Lu Yao gestured to them impatiently did he break out of his stupor.

“This isn’t the primary crime scene. The body was moved here afterwards.”

Chusheng nods. “So where do we go now?”

*

The bodies started piling. What appeared to be a simple murder case turned into a serial murder, taking the trio all over town. Lu Yao seemed oddly subdued as the case dragged out, neither once whining to Chusheng for the multiple late nights and lack of fixed meals, nor did he resort to exchanging barbs with Youning. While Chusheng was pleased over the absence of nonsensical bickering, he couldn’t help but notice Lu Yao nodding off at random moments, once even in the middle of questioning a suspect. It doesn’t take a detective to deduce that Lu Yao hadn’t been sleeping well - the dark circles under his eye-bags were a dead giveaway.

“I want to go through the files again. We must have missed something,” ventured Lu Yao after yet another lead gone south. As they went through the documents in Chusheng’s office, Youning suddenly gasped, “My dinner plans!”

She gave both men a curt nod and picked up her bag, “Don’t wait up!” she called out merrily before marching out.

With a disbelief look on his face, Chusheng then turned automatically towards Lu Yao. If he was expecting a fiery retort, he was sorely disappointed; Lu Yao was fully engrossed in the document before him, and didn’t shift his attention to look at Youning as she exited the room.

Chusheng rubbed his temples; as much as he appreciates the calm, he couldn’t help but miss the old Lu Yao.

“Lu Yao…”

No reply.

“Santu…”

Still no reply.

Chusheng moved. Waving a hand in front of Lu Yao’s face, he realised that his consultant had fallen asleep. Chusheng shook the young man’s shoulder, raising a sudden gasp of alarm as Lu Yao jumped in his seat.

“What the –“ He slapped the hand away, “Are you trying to send me to an early death?”

Chusheng looked worriedly at Lu Yao, “You fell asleep.”

The usual pout and a hard shake of the head, “I was thinking.”

Chusheng sighed but didn’t call his bluff, “Why don’t we take a break and grab some dinner? We can continue later.”

Chusheng was sure he heard a low grumble. To his surprise, Lu Yao took a long deep breath before answering firmly, “No, I’m fine. You go ahead.”

Chusheng moved his hand towards Lu Yao’s brow, half teasing, “Did you just say ‘no’ to food? Is Mao Mao having a fever? Or did he hit his head getting out of bed this morning?”

For the second time that evening, Lu Yao swiped the hand away irritably, his reply terse, “Stop calling me Mao Mao. I’m not a child.”

Burying his worry, Chusheng sighed dramatically, “Well if you’re going to stay here, be my guest. I’m going to the Western Hotel for a bite.”

An expected pause but Lu Yao merely turned a page, not rising to the bait.

“Are you sure you don’t want anything?” Chusheng asked again as he grabbed his jacket.

“I’m fine.” Came the gruff reply.

At the door, Chusheng looked back once more at his desk where Lu Yao remained seated. A worried frown passed his features. Ah Dou who had jogged up to the stairs looked expectedly at Chusheng.

“Inspector Qiao?”

Chusheng shook his head, “Nothing.”

*

He had no intention of staying out long; just a quick bowl of noodle soup at the open stall downstairs. But a colleague from a neighbouring district happened to pass by and Chusheng ended up staying to listen to the elder’s rant. By the time he stood up, at least three hours had passed. Chusheng gestured for the owner to wrap up some buns – just in case.

The police station was quiet; but the light in his room was still on. As he opened the door, he found Lu Yao asleep on his couch, documents littered around the coffee table, the couch and on Lu Yao himself. Chusheng gave a half smile as he placed the buns on the coffee table, before bending to pick up the littered documents.

Whether it was the scent of the buns, or the movement in the room, Lu Yao shifted uneasily in his sleep as a half moan escaped his lips. The brows furrowed deep as a sudden twitch in Lu Yao’s left hand resulted in a noticeable paper crinkle in the document. Chusheng moved hesitantly forward, his left hand balanced against the head of the couch as his right hand reach steadily towards the paper still in Lu Yao’s hand.

“Don’t leave me!”

A sudden shout as Lu Yao sat up without warning, his forehead slam right into Chusheng’s chest, his right hand reached out and grip tight onto Chusheng’s arm.

“Owww!”

Lu Yao’s sudden momentum had knocked Chusheng off balance as he slipped, landing squarely against Lu Yao’s legs.

“The f*ck –“

A tangle of hands and legs as Chusheng tried to sit up, a feat rendered somewhat difficult by the fact that Lu Yao still had his arm in a death grip.

“Santu, you’re hurting me.”

Lu Yao released the arm as if it burned his fingers, but his eyes remained confused at the scene before him. It was rare to find Lu Yao in a befuddled state and Chusheng found his lips twitching upwards as he teased, “Is Mao Mao still dreaming?”

Eyes blazing, Lu Yao gave him an unceremonious kick against the ribs, and pulled his knees close to his chest, “What are you doing here Chusheng?”

He inwardly rolled his eyes; did Lu Yao forget this was his office? Seeing the space opened up, Chusheng chose instead to settle himself comfortably on the couch before responding airily, “Rescue mission.”

“What –“

Lu Yao’s eyes followed Chusheng’s towards his own hand, the paper now crumbled into a tight ball. The fingers loosen as Lu Yao mumbled incoherently under his breath. Taking advantage of Lu Yao’s discomfort, Chusheng inched closer.

“Lu Yao…”

The eyes looked up warily. Holding Lu Yao’s eyes, Chusheng breathed out, “I won’t leave you.”

The baby doe eyes widened as a slight pink brought colour to the pale cheeks, “Wait what?”

Chusheng smirked, “Just now, when you screamed in my ear, remember?”

A tinge of red marked Lu Yao’s ears as he averted Chusheng’s eyes. “I don’t know what you mean.”

Chusheng stretched lazily, a playful dance on his lips as he observes Lu Yao’s poor attempts to curl himself into a ball, further against the other side of the couch.

He reached out a hand tentatively towards Lu Yao’s cheek. A slight quiver but Lu Yao stayed his place. After a moment, Lu Yao finally turned towards Chusheng. He breathed in deeply against Chusheng’s palm, like a cat waiting to be petted.

“I’m not going anywhere. I promise.”

Lu Yao nodded. That night, he slept without dreams.

A ficlet. Qiao Chusheng likes spoiling Lu Yao. Lu Yao is happy to be spoilt. Bai Youning is not happy.

No spoilers. I’m just trying to get into QCS’s head a bit. Not too sure where and if this ficlet will go any where.

Excuse the grammar. If you like it come say ‘hi’!

**

Qian Chusheng makes no secret over the fact that he enjoys indulging Lu Yao. Anyone with half a mind could see his obvious give-ins to Lu Yao’s every whim and fancy. All it takes is a slight downward pout of those very kissable lips, plus the barely there widening of baby-doe eyes, and Chusheng acquiesces without any further hesitation.

“You need to stop spoiling him,” chides Bai Youning as Lu Yao exclaims with unmasked glee over the receiving of yet another expensive present.

Unperturbed by the tightening of her thin lips and the glaring dark eyes, Chusheng humours her with the standard, “I’m not. It’s parked under his consulting fees.”

But as her nagging became a regular mantra, Chusheng starting plying his responses with mild bite.

“It’s not like I’m not paying for your meals too.”

“Did you forget about the time I paid for the apartment’s renovation? Last time I recalled, you lived there too.”

“Aren’t you getting front page by-lines each time he completes the case? Shouldn’t you be happy that Lu Yao is willing to continue working for me, and therefore allowing you first-hand access to all the clues and solution?”

But the bites don’t do anything to inhibit Youning’s onslaught; if anything, they rile up the daughter of one of Shanghai’s most revered mafia bosses even more. The Mercedes Benz was probably the straw that broke the camel’s back as she proclaimed loudly in exasperation, “Chusheng-ge! Have you gone mad? Don’t forget your position as Inspector. What will people think? It’s not right to let him wrap you around his fingers like that!”

Chusheng’s eyes narrowed dangerously, the words, ‘those who live in glass houses should not throw stones’ on the tip of his tongue. But he bites them back; he does not relish the thought of being called up by Bai Qili on claims that he was ‘bullying his precious princess’. From the day he was adopted by the Bai patriarch, he learned that there are dire and painful consequences to saying ‘no’ to Youning. Bai Qili’s threatening snarl to throw him back out into the streets was more than enough to keep Chusheng silent on all of Youning’s future shenanigans. For the sake of survival, he chose instead to smile blithely at her orders. Call it being ‘grateful’, ‘knowing one’s place’; it doesn’t really matter because the truth is, without Bai Qili, there is no Qiao Chusheng. He may not be a learned man, but he is not stupid. Chusheng knows that there is no such thing as a free meal; Bai Qili didn’t pick him up because he took pity on him, but because he knew how to use Chusheng’s fists and street smarts to his favour. Bai Youning doesn’t throw a princess tantrum for no reason, it’s because she enjoys pushing Chusheng’s buttons and seeing how far he would go to take her side instead of her father’s.

Qiao Chusheng is also acutely aware that the fist can only command so much respect, and it is useless when it comes to stopping people from gossiping. Since he accepted the role as police inspector, he knows people give him a wide breath because of who his benefactor is; without Bai lao-ye, he is no one. So despite whispers within and outside his force that he was nothing more than a puppet for the Bai patriarch, Chusheng continues to turn a blind eye on Youning’s so-called ‘investigative reporting’; so long as the case is cracked and Bai Qili doesn’t lose face over the incident, he can withstand all forms of backstabbing and slander.

Having lived most of his adult life on the whims of others, even at the expense of his own wants, Chusheng is thus, more than familiar to the idea of being being used. And if push comes to shove, he has no qualms either of using others as tools to get what he needs. 

That is, until he meets Lu Yao.

To the untrained eye, Lu Yao appeared no different from the Bai family; their relationship was after all, build upon a business transaction – you help me solve the case, I pay you for your services. But unlike the father-daughter duo who wanted to use Chusheng for their own personal gain, Lu Yao seemed genuinely vested in building a relationship with him, even to the point of wanting to help him hone his skills and earn the respect of his fellow peers.

“Aiya Inspector Qiao, can you use your eyes for once and look at the crime scene properly?”

“Come on Inspector Qiao, use that brain of yours and think, I’m sure you can see there are loopholes in his alibi.”

“I know it’s late, but since your lights were on I figured you’re still working on the case. Well you can put that thing on hold because I’m hungry. If you pay for supper, I’ll share my thoughts.”

“I haven’t touched anything! I swear! A-Dou can vouch for me. I was waiting for you before I started investing the scene.”

“Of course I didn’t run away! I was worried about you!”

“Bravo Inspector Qiao! You’re finally using your eyes and that clever brain of yours.”

He had entered the agreement with full knowledge that Lu Yao saw him as a ticket to a free meal, both literally and figuratively. And for the most part of their early interaction, Chusheng treated Lu Yao as nothing more than just another means to an end, an end that would expand Bai Qili’s influence in Shanghai. But somewhere along the way their barter came a change. Though Lu Yao asks for many things, a German-made oven, a British toaster, and other random odds and ends, he never seemed to recall what he asked for, and is always genuinely surprised and grateful for the gifts. Increasingly, there are even moments of embarrassment, as if Lu Yao is caught with his hands in the cookie jar, while his mouth is already stuffed full of cookies.

Such moments give Chusheng pause; he has no doubt over Lu Yao’s excellent memory, and so can only wonder if Lu Yao actually cares for his gains, or does he use the exchange as an opportunity to test the boundaries of their relationship?

“Are you absolutely sure I can have this?”

“Well, maybe not the big vase, how about the little one?”

“You know I’m going to bake you a cake next time you visit. Put lots and lots of strawberries because I know you like them.”

“If you get the wine I promise I’ll cook you dinner. Need to break out the new stove you know.”

Each time Youning interjects with ‘That’s too much!’, Lu Yao wiggles an eyebrow and huffs, “Bai Youning you keep quiet. You’re not the one paying.”

Chusheng can’t help but laugh at the bickering; he may not be able to openly counter Youning, but through Lu Yao, he feels a sense of triumph that finally, there is someone with the guts to push back.

“Qiao Chusheng, what’s with that devious grin on your face?”

Chusheng breaks out from his reverie as he turns his attention to the lanky man on the sofa seat next to him; all long arms and legs spread out as if it was the most comfortable position in the world. He doesn’t miss the playful glint in the doe-eyes.

“I was just thinking that you would look nice in a blue jacket,” he responded airily.

Lu Yao had the decency to blush, “If you keep buying me nice things I’m never going to want to leave you.”

Chusheng stares back, as a slight pink creeps into Lu Yao’s pale cheeks. His consultants averts his eyes as he pulls himself upright before mumbling, “Ah, well, you know, what I mean to say is, I haven’t solved this case yet.”

Chusheng finally smiles, as he leans forward into Lu Yao’s space, “But you will.”

Lu Yao rolls his eyes, but his smile matches Chusheng, “But I will.”

Chusheng enjoys indulging Lu Yao. And no one is going to tell him to do otherwise.