hualian college au

chapter 1: after the summer comes the fall

xie lian didn't know whether to laugh or cry. professor jun wu had assigned him way too much work on top of his research project again. and today was the weekend, saturday specifically!! xie lian heaved a deep sigh and stared back at the blank walls of his dorm, a stark juxtaposition with his lively roommate's side of the room. looking back on freshman year, xie lian couldn't help but feel remorseful. his current problems all a product of his simply unnecessary intervention in the affairs of others. the subsequent fire which ate through the fashion department's stockpile of ornate fabrics and the outrage of his so-called friends who abandoned him haunted him still. and now he was lost, alone, and conflicted about commitment.

xie lian could not stand to pity himself any longer. his dull life and his drab environment went hand in hand, and if he were really to do something about himself, he'd start by taking care of himself more.

"but where do i start?" he wondered.

he heard of terms like "self care" and "mindfulness" before, but surely didn't professor jun wu say to not pay attention to those? in any case, professor jun wu had been quite awful to him this week, so instead xie lian decides to wait for his roommate to come back home. his roommate had always been considerate of his feelings and would often pay for his meals too! (note: xie lian is your typical broke college student.)

in the meantime, he grabs his phone and scrolls through pinterest. he'd rather not admit this pastime to anyone, but ever since his whole debacle with the fire, he began researching more and more about fashion. on his camera roll were stunning photos of a young man around his age wearing gorgeous statement pieces with fitted silhouettes accompanied with a brooding vibe that honestly made xie lian's heart flutter a little. today, he found another outfit that was really attractive: a boxy asymmetrical black blazer with small maroon jewels evenly spaced in a grid-like pattern on the left arm paired with fitted slacks and combat boots. the model's hair looked so fluffy, contrasting the rather grim, almost expressionless look he wore on his face. xie lian pressed the "save to phone" button at light speed.

"hey! what are you looking at?"

xie lian fumbled with his phone, nearly dropping the poor thing face side down on his waxy wooden desk, whose surface had long lost its original shine; the areas closest to his reach now had a sort of muted grayness to them. it was his roommate, shi qingxuan. if xie lian had to describe this friend in just a few words, those would be "stationery lover, the type of person to color-code their notes for no real purpose other than making it look aesthetic". shi qingxuan was amiable, a bit of a party freak, and would indulge in him a bit much for xie lian's comfort. regardless, for someone he just met this year, xie lian would be remiss to say that they hadn't grown close, maybe just not super close like his old childhood friends.

"uh nothing, just searching something. . ." but internally xie lian panics, "act normal. ACT NORMAL!"

shi qingxuan seems to not take notice of xie lian's inner turmoil and instead helps himself to some water from the mini fridge. xie lian can tell from his body language that shi qingxuan is a bit tired, but not quite in the same way as himself. shi qingxuan looked like he was fresh off of a high feeling, as if he were a kid staying up way past his bedtime. he was intoxicated not in alcohol, but another drug of some sort.

"yooo, i just met the nicest guy tonight, and he invited me to some sort of fashion gala tomorrow! would you be my plus one pleasee, xie lian??" pleaded shi qingxuan.

"uhm, shi qingxuan, this is a bit sudden. could i have some time to think about it? and who is this guy?" replied xie lian.

deep down, xie lian knew he couldn't go. he had already disgraced the fashion students at his school. some would often go out of their way to taunt him still, namely this one dude with a particular fixation on the color green. if xie lian showed his face at a high profile event like that, there'd certainly be a fashion student amidst the crowd, and xie lian couldn't be sure if he could handle himself in that awkwardness. in addition, he still had an array of problems to deal with.

shi qingxuan had expected this and began cutely pouting, saying:.

"lian lian, but if you don't go, they might have a bad impression of me. can't you accompany me in case everyone there is big and scary? plus i promise i'll buy you some buns from the street food stalls after!"

"I don't know. . .", murmured xie lian.

"alright fine, lian lian, but just know i won't be at home for about half of the day, so remember to feed our ferret, okay? I was originally going to find a pet sitter; I heard he's also good with fish, but I guess we won't need him anymore!"

after a moment of silence, xie lian blankly said "okay", slightly disappointed that his friend had other matters to attend to. talking about himself at the gala would be stealing away attention from shi qingxuan that could be spent socializing and meeting this mystery man he talked about. the more he thought about it, this seemed like the right decision.

"just watching our ferret wouldn't be so bad," reassured xie lian to himself, xie lian and shi qingxuan kept a secret pet in their dorm, named milk for its charming white fur. xie lian had to admit milk was the cutest, and he'd be fine watching her at home as long as shi qingxuan promised he'd be responsible. plus, he'd have the chance to reflect a bit more, catch up on work. if shi qingxuan was busy, he wouldn't bother him.

with that conversation out of the way, both of them prepared to go to bed. determined to commit the next day to catching up on his schoolwork, xie lian decides to take some time for himself on his phone right before bedtime. unlike most other people, xie lian's not a big fan of using social media, and is more of a lurker than anything. however, impulse came over him again when he saw the same handsome pinterest man from before on his feed, announcing that he'll attend the same fashion gala shi qingxuan had tried so hard to convince him of earlier. the words "WAIT OMG SDHSJD I KNOW YOU" came out naturally and xie lian was mortified. he had accidentally pressed send.