The ability users had an entire floor dedicated to them and there were plenty of empty rooms. There were only 3 other ability users in the camp including Su Ling.

“You all can take any room without a nameplate.” Su Ling said to the group.

The only taken rooms were right beside each other. Instead of the full names, there were initials followed by their abilities.

“SL- Super speed”

“ZZM- Hydrokinesis”

And…

“XMH- Healing”

Jiayi debated whether or not he should clue Yan Xing in on Meihua being an ability user. He decided to do so, he didn’t want him to find out from her.

“Who is the healing ability user? I know you and Zhang Zimo already.” Jiayi asked.

“Oh? You could tell I have an ability?” Su Ling chuckled.

“That would be Miss Xu Meihua. She is our healer. She has an amazing ability…it’s a shame she can’t cure the virus though. Her ability only works on injuries, not illnesses.” Su Ling explained. Yan Xing immediately grabbed Jiayi’s arm tightly, his body shaking.

Su Ling noticed and looked very concerned.

“…Yan Xing and I will be sharing the room down there, he is not comfortable being alone after all that has happened,” Jiayi said and pointed to the room farthest from the rest.

The others had picked their rooms and were already inside so the only one there to question them was Su Ling.

Su Ling looked curious as he watched them.

“Hmm?”

—

The inside of the room was more luxurious than you’d expect from lodging in an apocalypse but the building was a repurposed hotel so it was to be expected. Jiayi remembered it from his past life so he wasn’t very shocked by the double bed and high ceilings.

Yan Xing was too busy clinging to him to really care about the surroundings.

“A-Xing. It’ll be fine.” Jiayi said and put down the stuff he was carrying from the car.

He hugged Yan Xing and stroked his hair.

“She can’t threaten you with your engagement or anything now. None of that matters.” Jiayi repeated, he already told him this before but Yan Xing clearly hadn’t listened.

“S-She has power, s-she can-!”

“I’m not going to let anything happen to you,” Jiayi said and smiled before kissing Yan Xing on the lips. Innocently, not in the exchanging of energy kind of way.

Yan Xing seemed like he was on the verge of tears before but now he was a bit better, mostly because the kiss made him a little less focused on Xu Meihua. He was just kind of staring up at Jiayi, trying to process what just happened.

“Just relax, A-Xing.”

—

Yan Xing had stiffly laid in Jiayi’s arms for a while before he fell asleep. He didn’t know what to do there for a while, his fear and anxiety over Meihua kind of disappeared as he tried to figure out why Jiayi was fine with kissing him and why he was fine with it too.

Jiayi was lost in thought once he saw that Yan Xing was asleep.

Yan never seemed to fear Meihua in the past timeline. They had probably not met at all since the apocalypse started but when Meihua and Yan met, Meihua, despite being incredibly agitated with Yan’s closeness to Jiayi, didn’t act in a way that revealed her true nature…and Yan seemed to have no trace of fear or even hatred toward her.

“Ah…Miss Xu. It’s been a while.”  Was what Yan said when he noticed the woman who had stopped in her tracks upon seeing him standing closely beside Jiayi.

“You’re still alive…?”

Jiayi seemed a bit surprised to hear that from Meihua’s lips and his brows furrowed as he looked at her. Yan just smiled.

“Haha I just got lucky and got helped by some people. And I’ve somehow made it so far.” Yan chuckled.

Meihua kind of took a step back after examining Yan’s demeanor.

“What’s with you…Yan Xing is not supposed to be like this?” Meihua kind of kept quiet because of Jiayi’s presence.

“You weren’t exactly like this before the apocalypse either, it changed everyone, Y’know? Not just us.” Yan kept smiling as he spoke.

Jiayi was a bit confused as he stood between them but Yan seemed to signal that it was all fine with his smile.

Meihua seemed to think otherwise and later on when she and Jiayi became more officially a couple, the first thing she told him was that Yan Xing had ALWAYS been a suspicious person. He wanted to believe her as her lover but he really didn’t. That was clearly a mistake but he wouldn’t know that for a while.

—

Jiayi didn’t manage to get any sleep that night. He knew they were farther along in the apocalypse and that the camp was as secure as it would get before zombie sensing technology became a thing in around a year but he really couldn’t help but remember his first night in the military group. 

They had been doing the standard neck and wrists check only and ended up letting someone who was infected through and before they knew it the lodgings were filled with many zombies.

He wasn’t sure if that actually happened in this timeline though. That event cost Zhang Zimo his life, but he seemed alive and well in his room.

Jiayi’s paranoid brain was really only soothed by the soft sleeping movements Yan Xing made. Yan Xing usually didn’t move while sleeping but today he moved quite a lot. Jiayi chuckled as he watched him. They actually became tangled together by morning and Jiayi laughed a little when he saw Yan Xing’s eyes sleepily open and the realization about their position kicked in.

Yan Xing’s cheeks were bright red. His legs were tangled with Jiayi’s and his arms were also wrapped around Jiayi. Jiayi reciprocated it with an arm around his waist but Yan Xing was incredibly embarrassed regardless.

Yan Xing originally planned to scurry away but when he could hear footsteps heading to the stairway near their room Yan Xing froze, remembering that it could be Xu Meihua.

“A-Xing. Remember what I keep telling you okay? Everything is going to be fine.” Jiayi whispered and stroked Yang Xing’s hair.

“You’re going to be fine so we’re just going to face her together okay?” Jiayi said and kissed Yan Xing’s forehead before sitting up and untangling the two of them.

‘Why do you keep kissing me?’ Was the biggest question on Yan Xing’s mind right now but he couldn’t really push the words out.

“You can wait to change your clothes. Zhang Zimo gives out water supplies to everyone once a week. We’ll be able to bathe soon.” Jiayi explained and moved their stuff near the bed.

“Keep your gun with you. You might not need it while we’re in the camp but it’s not a bad idea to keep it with you.” Jiayi said and unpacked his bag after handing Yan Xing his.

“We will go on expeditions once a week… we’re not expected to join this week but I’m probably going to go...You don’t have to join me.” Jiayi murmured.

“…No…I want to go with you…” Yan Xing murmured.

“…Alright.” Jiayi stroked Yan Xing’s fluffy hair with a soft smile.

—

“Ah…Zhao Jiayi.” Zhang Zimo happened to be walking to his room when Yan Xing and Jiayi walked out of their room.

“Been a while,” Jiayi said and shook Zimo’s hand.

“Sure has…figures that you’d be okay.” Zhang Zimo laughed.

“Who’s this?” He added as he looked at Yan Xing, whose fluffy hair could be seen peeking from over Jiayi’s shoulder.

“This is Yan Xing. He’s an ability user like us. I brought quite a couple of them with me.” Jiayi moved over slightly so Yan Xing could Peek out a little.

“Hello…” Yan Xing murmured in a small voice.

Zhang Zimo seemed a little intrigued by Yan Xing and Jiayi immediately noticed it. He wasn’t sure how it’d play out but part of him really didn’t want to let them get too close.

There was a hard-to-understand sound from Zimo’s radio and so he sighed and answered it quickly before turning back to Jiayi.

“Sorry, I’m needed outside. I’ll get you water before noon so don’t worry.” Zimo said before leaving.

“Water?” Yan Xing asked after Zimo left.

“His ability is to create and manipulate water. We don’t know about the state of the water that is coming from the city supplies so he just gives everyone water with his ability. That’s what the Silo is for.”  Jiayi explained.

“We’ll be able to bathe soon,” Jiayi added.

Yan Xing kind of brightened up a little. He had felt uncomfortable without bathing, especially after dying his hair. He was also hoping he’d have access to warm water soon.