Walking out of the rift while rubbing his sore wrist, Xinyuan wore an unusually serious expression.

He hadn’t expected to see Doctor Bai speaking to several reporters near the barricaded area.

His brows lifted in surprise. "What is she doing here?"

The rift had appeared in the middle of the city, which naturally attracted media attention, but thankfully there had been no casualties. Xinyuan had made sure of that before closing the rift.

The moment he noticed the cameras, he turned away with the intention of leaving as quickly as possible.

He sent a brief message through his watch to Commander Jiang, informing her that the mission was complete, then slipped into a nearby alley just as the rift sealed shut behind him.

The second he stepped into the narrow alleyway, his wavelength exploded outward violently.

Xinyuan stumbled, pressing a hand against the wall as his breathing turned uneven. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

Cracks instantly spiderwebbed beneath his fingers.

"No..." he breathed shakily. "No, no..."

He needed to get home. Now.

"Xinyuan!" A familiar voice suddenly called from behind him.

Xinyuan froze.

His eyes widened instantly before he turned around with a stunned, almost desperate hope flashing across his face.

"Wenzhi?"

And there, walking toward him, was a familiar figure with dark hair, soft features, and an irritated frown resting on his freckled face.

For one brief, horrifying second, Xinyuan genuinely thought it was him.

Then the figure stepped fully into the light.

From the warm brown hair to the dark gentle eyes and carefully friendly smile, Xinyuan recognized him immediately.

Not Wenzhi.

It was Gu Luhan.

"Oh," Luhan laughed awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck. "It’s me. Gu Luhan. Not..."

He paused briefly before forcing out the name with a smile that did not quite reach his eyes. "Lin Wenzhi."

The raw disappointment that crossed Xinyuan’s face was immediate.

"I’m sorry," he muttered automatically.

But his wavelength was becoming increasingly unstable.

Dark hostility poured from him in suffocating waves, so aggressive that Gu Luhan instinctively stepped backward in alarm.

It felt like Xinyuan’s entire existence was rejecting him.

"You’re entering backlash. I... I can help." Luhan spoke carefully, visibly hesitant since he could not even step properly into Xinyuan’s space without feeling the violent pressure of his wavelength.

"No." Xinyuan shook his head. "No, you can’t. You need to leave before you get hurt."

The rejection was instant. And obvious hurt flashed across Gu Luhan’s face.

But before Xinyuan could walk away, Luhan called out quickly, "We can still try!"

Xinyuan stopped.

"The only reason I haven’t died from your wavelength rejection is because our compatibility is still extremely high," Luhan continued hurriedly. "If we keep trying, you could eventually get used to my wavelength."

Hope lit up his expression the moment he realized he had finally gotten Xinyuan’s attention.

His hands clasped tightly together while his eyes brightened.

But Xinyuan’s attention wasn’t truly on him.

His left eye had already turned a deep, unstable red.

His gaze drifted past Gu Luhan, and suddenly, Wenzhi was there. Leaning lazily against the wall with a cigarette resting between his lips.

Those grey eyes. Freckles. That permanently annoyed expression.

The phantom Wenzhi glanced at him before frowning. "Why the hell are you looking at me like that?"

Xinyuan found himself smiling faintly.

"Shao Xinyuan," Gu Luhan called softly, placing a hand over his chest, "I don’t think those suppression pills are going to keep working forever. You need help... and I can help you."

The phantom Wenzhi suddenly vanished.

And Xinyuan looked back at Gu Luhan as though finally remembering he was there.

"No," Xinyuan said quietly. "You do not need to risk your life."

"I’m not risking myself," Luhan insisted quickly. "I’m trying to help because I want to."

His expression softened. "Your guide... Lin Wenzhi is dead. You’re obviously suffering from losing him. It’s understandable. Wang Chenxi is going through the same thing after losing Han Suye but I can—"

"No." Xinyuan interrupted him firmly and shook his head again. "No."

He turned away slowly, his unstable wavelength making the air feel unbearably heavy around them.

And under his breath, soft enough that it almost sounded unconscious, he murmured, "I want Wenzhi."

Gu Luhan froze.

Pain tightened across his handsome face as he watched Xinyuan walk away without looking back.

The hostility pouring from Xinyuan’s unstable wavelength distorted the air around him violently, but even then, he still left.

Gu Luhan’s hands slowly curled into tight fists. "What is so special about Lin Wenzhi?!"

~°~

When Xinyuan returned to the duplex, now fully repaired, he headed straight for the shower without stopping.

Steam filled the bathroom while water ran down his skin, the chain tattoo stretching across his back glowing an ominous red that matched the unstable hue of his left eye.

Even after the shower, the voices in his head never stopped.

After changing into loose lounge clothes, Xinyuan ran a hand through his damp hair before quietly making his way toward Wenzhi’s bedroom.

Nothing inside had been touched. Everything still belonged to Wenzhi.

The faint scent lingering throughout the room instantly wrapped around him. The warm, sharp, familiar scent of black coffee, clove cigarettes and cedarwood.

Xinyuan had been sleeping there every night for the past two weeks since leaving the research facility.

He had outright refused to remain under confinement any longer and surprisingly, Doctor Bai had not resisted nearly as much as before.

Not after Wenzhi’s death.

Xinyuan slowly settled onto the bed before pulling the blanket over himself.

Surrounded by Wenzhi’s scent, the screaming voices inside his head finally softened enough for him to breathe properly.

Enough for him to almost sleep.

Then suddenly, his phone buzzed inside his pocket.

Xinyuan pulled it out slowly and stared at the screen.

[Zhaohe: Are you feeling alright? I heard you were close to entering backlash.]

Xinyuan frowned.

He hated how Commander Jiang seemed to have eyes everywhere.

[Xinyuan: What happened?]

A few seconds later, [Zhaohe: It’s about Wenzhi.]

Xinyuan sat upright.

[Zhaohe: Apparently he got discharged today. From what people can tell, he’s completely healed.]

Xinyuan’s eyes widened.

[Xinyuan: Really?]

Another message appeared almost immediately.

[Xinyuan: Is there a picture?]

Then another.

[Xinyuan: Did he ask about me?]

Silence.

The lack of response made tension crawl beneath his skin.

Xinyuan slowly grabbed Wenzhi’s pillow and pulled it tightly against his chest while staring at the screen.

Waiting.

Waiting.

Then suddenly, Commander Jiang began calling him directly.

Xinyuan answered immediately. "Hello?"

"I think you should let him go, Xinyuan." Her voice was calm. Too calm.

"He’s dead to the public now. Dead to the government. Dead to the people who shot him in the first place."

Xinyuan’s expression darkened.

Zhaohe continued softly, "Xinyuan? If people discovered he was alive, things would only get worse for him. The leak exposing the true state of the shelters was traced back to him. So just leave him alone."

The room fell silent.

Xinyuan’s grip around both the pillow and his phone slowly tightened.

"Why would I do that?" he asked quietly.

His left eye flickered red again. "Did you actually think I was going to leave him alone?"

His lips slowly curled into a sharp smile. "I was waiting for him to recover."