Title: Cut by Occam's Razor
Fandom: Guardian
Rating: G
Length: 810 words
Notes: Shen Wei/Zhao Yunlan, pre-relationship. Set sometime after ep 5; spoilers for later in the show. Much thanks to trobadora for beta. No Warnings.
Summary: He had always been magnetic, drawing Shen Wei’s body and attention towards him like iron filings. Ten thousand years hadn’t changed that at all.

Neither had their becoming strangers to each other.




“Ah, Professor, you’re just getting home now?” Zhao Yunlan’s keys were dangling from his fingers as he pulled his flat door shut behind him, obviously on his way out. He looked tired. Had a case interrupted his rest? Would the Envoy be needed?

Shen Wei should let him pass with a polite greeting and survey the city with his dark energy. Perhaps he could arrive on the scene early this time and save the SID from unnecessary risk. But he couldn’t ignore the way his heart lifted at the sight of Zhao Yunlan, the longing to speak with him. “Yes, I had a faculty meeting, and then I walked home.”

Zhao Yunlan’s gaze sharpened, perhaps sensing something left unspoken, or intrigued by Shen Wei’s volunteering this information. “You don’t have a car, do you? You know, anytime you need a ride—”

“You’re a busy man, Chief Zhao.” Appealing as the offer was, Shen Wei couldn’t let Zhao Yunlan track his comings and goings, not if he wanted to maintain the secret of his identity. And as for the possible case tonight, well, he could just ask. “You haven’t been called out on SID business, I hope?”

“What? Oh, no—Booze run.” Zhao Yunlan twirled his keys around his forefinger and caught them in his palm, then stopped, mistaking Shen Wei’s non-response for incomprehension. “I’m out of wine.”

“Ah.” It was still distracting, seeing Kunlun in these modern clothes. Distracting and alluring. Shen Wei had long since grown accustomed to wearing trousers himself, of course, and on others it seemed quite natural, but with Kunlun—with Zhao Yunlan—his long skirts abandoned for jeans that hugged his lean thighs and calves, the way his thin t-shirt clung to his chest under his jacket— But then, he had always been magnetic, drawing Shen Wei’s body and attention towards him like iron filings. Ten thousand years hadn’t changed that at all.

Neither had their becoming strangers to each other.

Zhao Yunlan was watching him, dispassionate on the surface, but with an intensity in his eyes, a spark: was that suspicion, still, or—? Regardless, he seemed to shrug it off, yawned without covering his mouth and gestured towards the exit. “Well, I should…”

“Of course.” Shen Wei had let the silence stretch too long. He ignored the attraction tugging at him and stepped aside politely, switching his briefcase to his other hand so he could take out his own keys. Zhao Yunlan headed for the stairs.

Shen Wei had known when he moved here, into this building, this flat across the hall, that there would be temptations. He was prepared to be careful to keep his feelings and their history hidden. His purpose here wasn’t to indulge himself—not with a man who didn’t remember him and regarded him warily. Perhaps one day, they would regain their old intimacy. Surely, in time. But for now, Shen Wei was staying close to Zhao Yunlan to watch over him, so the past could play out as it was supposed to.

Of course, external threats weren’t the only dangers Zhao Yunlan faced. “Chief Zhao.”

Zhao Yunlan stopped, half-turned, his mouth pursing in query.

“Have you eaten? I’m about to make dinner.”

Zhao Yunlan’s gaze met his, searching, and—was that recognition? Could Shen Wei be wrong about the time loop? Perhaps this was his Kunlun, transported from the past by the Hallows. Perhaps Kunlun and Da Qing had lost their memories together in the course of some misadventure, and now the haze of forgetting was lifting— The SID’s paperwork, Zhao Yunlan’s history—they could have been forged like Shen Wei’s own Haixing identity. But the lollipops—

Zhao Yunlan pointed at him. “A generous offer, but it’s been a long week. I’ll definitely take you up on that next time, though.”

His tone suggested he’d use the opportunity to interrogate Shen Wei again.

Shen Wei swallowed the rush of desperate theories, adding them to the mental file of unlikely possibilities that assailed him from time to time. The universe was far stranger than most people credited, but in this case, all the evidence pointed to the truth that stood before him: a Zhao Yunlan who didn’t know him. A Kunlun who was not yet Kunlun. He forced a smile. “Next time, then. Goodnight.”

Zhao Yunlan flipped his keys again and turned away, and Shen Wei let himself into his silent flat, set his bag on a chair, and stood perfectly still, waiting for his feelings to quiet. Next time. And if not, he would continue to make himself useful to the SID, continue to earn Zhao Yunlan’s trust, so that if and when he could be of service, Zhao Yunlan wouldn’t hesitate to turn to him.

For now, it was all he could do, all he was prepared to do. For now, it had to be enough.


END