Red Rose [Never Let You Go, Again Book 3]

16: He's Waiting

A/N: The dedication's because @RovenaNatasha has officially adopted Xiao Xiang as her daughter 😂 And it has a lot of Xiao Xiang in it, our caring and loving Scarlet Seductress, so yeah! Enjoy, pals! ❤️

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With the gentle light of sunrise falling on his silky hair, Lan Wangji's eyes slowly fluttered open. "Mm," he groaned as a sharp pang of agony shot from his hand, through his arm, and right up his spine into his aching head.

"You woke up," a soft voice called out. Sunny and bright with a trace of worry.

"A-Ying?" Lan Wangji turned his head to the left.

The caller shook his head as he sat on the side of the bed and took his paining hand. "Wangji, it's me."

"Gege..."

Lan Xichen smiled sadly at his tone: realisation curbing around disappointment. "How do you feel?"

"Hand pains a lot..."

Lan Xichen stroked around the bandage which had replaced his headband last night. "I bet it would, there'd been poison in that thing's fangs."

"What? The children..."

"Are alright. A few had cuts from its claws, not too bad. Jin Ling had taken a bite to the leg but Xiuying had brought along two fangs dripping with the venom and it worked on him. They kept one fang and gave the second to us to let you heal... But I don't know why it isn't working as fast as it did for him..." Xichen's frown grew deeper and deeper. "We better see a Healer about this."

"Good morning! Finally woke up, Lan Wangji?" Jiang Cheng burst in.

"Mn," Wangji nodded. Through the month, the two younger brothers had gotten almost as close as the older brothers Xichen and Wuxian were.

"Any better?"

"No, his hand is taking too long to heal," Xichen moaned.

Smiling, Jiang Wanyin laid a hand on his shoulder. "Calm down, we'll find a doctor when we go outside. Are we leaving now? Better to–"

"Hanguang-Jun woke up!" A cheerful voice sang out. 

"Hm?" All three turned to the window, from whence something drifted in and materialised near the bed.

"Hanguang-Jun, thank goodness you woke up!"

"Lady Xiao?" Lan Wangji blinked.

"Xiangxiang! You gave me such a fright!"

"Zewu-Jun, terribly sorry," Xiao Xiang giggled. "Hello, Zewu-Jun!"

"Ahem!"

"Ah, Sandu Shengshou, he's just a friend, no need to be so jealous," she laughed before bowing to Jiang Cheng. "Sect Leader Jiang, good morning."

"Morning," Jiang Cheng nodded. "I was wondering how I was to give the flowers if I'm all the way here and Meilien is in Yunmeng. You brought them?"

"Flowers?" Xichen looked up at them.

"Yes," Xiao Xiang nodded and brought out a posy from her sleeve. "Hanguang-Jun," she held it up to his face.

Lan Wangji slowly sat up on the bed and looked at the bouquet. He raised an eyebrow.

"Er... No, Hanguang-Jun, don't take me wrongly, it's not from me. Master sent this. Happy first-day-of-the-month!" She smiled.

Lan Wangji gasped. He remembered? He actually sent it? Tenderly taking the bouquet in his hands, he stroked the petals of the golden flowers. Daffodils. Sunny and bright as him, Lan Zhan smiled.