[ Dan Heng has always tried to appear as if he's the cold, aloof type. After all, when you're a high school student with a famous rockstar older brother, there's simply no saving you from the droves of teenage girls asking for information, or some sort of help getting something from him. Or, worse still, the one or two times he tried dating only to find out that he was being used to get them closer to Dan Feng.
At some point, he ended up changing schools; with that change came the decision to use cloudhymn magic to conceal the truth of his identity. People would still comment that he looked like the famous rocker, but—well, he was human, so he couldn't be related, right?
University, Dan Feng had promised, would be better, but in the end he's found it easier to maintain the disguise, to introduce himself as sparingly as possible, to stick to the small friend groups he's found along the way.
(March and Stelle are the only people who know the truth about him, too—something he regrets on occasion when March makes a silly comment far too loudly for anyone's liking, and he's forced to watch in disdain-concealed frustration as Stelle rushes to shut her up.)
So—
Right. The aloof thing. Really, it's just easier that way. And the less time he spends entangled with the band themselves, the better. It gives him plausible deniability, after all.
It also makes it significantly easier to hide the fact that he's among their biggest fans.
As it is, forced to come along to practice tonight by car troubles, he's had to cover up a laptop sticker or two, move his white-and-purple Blade wristband to an ankle, signs that in the real world aren't too obvious or attention-grabbing, but in this room will give him away faster than his tail suddenly popping back into existence. But he's done what he needed to, secured himself and found a corner and done his best to study despite the (wonderful) noise, thumbing through pages after pages of history and data analysis textbooks,
and really he thinks he's just about gotten away with it too, when a break comes and suddenly Blade, in all his glory his brother's friend Yingxing is sitting in front of him, all ridiculously-tight jeans and wild hair and wide smile.
Dan Heng's breath stutters. The wristband, hidden under his own lightweight pants, brands his skin with the heat of its burn. He tries to force a friendly—but distant—smile. What happens on his face instead is something infinitely more constipated and uncomfortable. ]
Yes... You're right. Long time no see, Yingxing. [ A breath, and he clears his throat. Saying his name sounds far too intimate—stupid, stupid— ] My car broke down, so I'm riding along with my brother for today.
no subject
At some point, he ended up changing schools; with that change came the decision to use cloudhymn magic to conceal the truth of his identity. People would still comment that he looked like the famous rocker, but—well, he was human, so he couldn't be related, right?
University, Dan Feng had promised, would be better, but in the end he's found it easier to maintain the disguise, to introduce himself as sparingly as possible, to stick to the small friend groups he's found along the way.
(March and Stelle are the only people who know the truth about him, too—something he regrets on occasion when March makes a silly comment far too loudly for anyone's liking, and he's forced to watch in disdain-concealed frustration as Stelle rushes to shut her up.)
So—
Right. The aloof thing. Really, it's just easier that way. And the less time he spends entangled with the band themselves, the better. It gives him plausible deniability, after all.
It also makes it significantly easier to hide the fact that he's among their biggest fans.
As it is, forced to come along to practice tonight by car troubles, he's had to cover up a laptop sticker or two, move his white-and-purple Blade wristband to an ankle, signs that in the real world aren't too obvious or attention-grabbing, but in this room will give him away faster than his tail suddenly popping back into existence. But he's done what he needed to, secured himself and found a corner and done his best to study despite the (wonderful) noise, thumbing through pages after pages of history and data analysis textbooks,
and really he thinks he's just about gotten away with it too, when a break comes and suddenly
Blade, in all his gloryhis brother's friend Yingxing is sitting in front of him, all ridiculously-tight jeans and wild hair and wide smile.Dan Heng's breath stutters. The wristband, hidden under his own lightweight pants, brands his skin with the heat of its burn. He tries to force a friendly—but distant—smile. What happens on his face instead is something infinitely more constipated and uncomfortable. ]
Yes... You're right. Long time no see, Yingxing. [ A breath, and he clears his throat. Saying his name sounds far too intimate—stupid, stupid— ] My car broke down, so I'm riding along with my brother for today.