Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Hu Tao stood shifting her weight from leg to leg frantically inside the dimly lit kitchen. The only light in the whole room was coming from the cross-shaped window.
"Uhhh... Uh..." she stammered.
A few seconds passed, the girl's face lit up; She motioned to you, and Xiao, who was standing in the doorway in front of Zhongli.
"This way, quickly, Zhongli go to the door", Hu Tao started making her way past Xiao and up a staircase around the corner which made you and Xiao follow.
Having Zhongli answer the door was the right call, Zhongli doesn't get flustered over these sorts of situations, and having him answer the door should take away any suspicion. You start to make your way upstairs and take a look back at Paimon who has a worried look but follows Zhongli. You try not to wince from your wound when you're walking up the stairs, Xiao is right in front of you and you feel a deep knot of regret in your stomach.
You hear a door screech open and Zhongli's voice.
"Good Morning, are you here for the business of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlour?" the man asks whoever was outside.
You, Xiao, and Hu Tao make it upstairs and the director opens the door to a room and ushers the two of you in.
"Just stay in here until they are gone," she says before shutting the door "go out there if you need to," she points to a window opposite the door, your emergency exit.
"Thank you, Hu Tao," you say gratefully and she gives you a wink in return before disappearing downstairs.
You don't say anything to Xiao who is standing behind you this time and he has his arms crossed. You kneel on the floor attempting to listen to the conversation below so you know if you will need to use that emergency exit.
The voices below were muffled but you could still make them out, it was better to look like you were doing something proactive as you doubt trying to fill the awkward silence would work.
"-official business, orders from the Qixing," it was a female voice which was backed up by a male voice assuring her claims "please step aside, we have heard sightings of two, one of them matching the appearance of a fugitive".
shit.
"Why would we be safeguarding fugitives?" Hu Tao asked.
"It's just common protocol, now please step aside".
"They know we're here," you say to Xiao, panicked.
"Of course they do, how long did you think we would be able to go undetected" he responded, folding his arms.
You felt the hostility from him and it made you feel sick, you wish you could go back in time, Xiao really has done so much for you and you're just being selfish but you can't help to feel that neither of you are seeing each other in the same way.
