no commitments to do a full thread but modern mdzs au where wwx climbs into his uber slightly tipsy after a shitty night and a shittier work day and ends up venting to the uber driver, but actually the car he had gone in was not an uber. it's a stranger's car. or so he thought.

i realize that this sounds conventional but consider that lan zhan the driver is actually lan zhan the university roommate who he hasn't seen in 3 years bc wei ying ghosted everyone the moment they finished that last semester and didn't even turn up for the ceremony

back to the present, wei ying is actually a good passenger who confirms his address to the driver by repeating it the moment he opens the car door. tho lan zhan is shocked at a) seeing wei ying and b) being mistaken for an uber, he also has great audial (?) memory

lan zhan enters the address into his gps and slowly drives, heavily concerned at a) wei ying being distracted to the point where he can get himself uber kidnapped, b) wei ying's rly shitty day, and c) what wei ying will do when he discovers lan zhan is his driver

"my kid is going to die," wei ying admits dramatically, face-planting his head onto the seat.

lan zhan is processing too much information and is distraught. his hands clench the steering wheel. wei ying is here. wei ying has a kid. wei ying's kid is dying.

what does he do?

listen guys it's actually 4 am and i have ideas but my brain is also half-dead hahahaha will see how long i can last for tonight

"hey," wei ying continues, "i know a lot of drivers hate this because drivers aren't therapists, but i promise that I'm not drunk enough to throw up in your car, so I'm far from the worst passenger you'll get here."

through the rearview mirror, lan zhan sees wei ying sigh.

lan zhan feels guilty for taking advantage of wei ying's mistake, but he is relieved to see and hear that despite the problems wei ying seems to be facing today, he is more or less physically well with a job that pays and friends who actually support him now.

to his own shame, lan zhan knows that this was more than what wei ying had 3 years ago.

“i do not mind,” he says, soft but sincere. he wonders if wei ying will recognize his voice. a quick glance to the mirror shows that he doesn't. lan zhan is both disappointed and relieved.

wei ying laughs, tiredly. "great! that's cool. you're cool. the coolest uber driver, second only to that person who prayed for me for twenty minutes on the way to the airport once."

and at hearing this, lan zhan's heart lets out a wistful sigh. wei ying is still wei ying.

“do you need to go to the hospital?" lan zhan asks because even though the address he'd been provided with was a residential one, wei ying had mentioned his child was ill.

“what?” wei ying responds, confused. “do i look that bad? I promise I'm not actually dying.”

“you mentioned your child was ill.”

wei ying grimaces, fingers pinching his brow. “in hindsight, I'm a terrible parent. who even says that? that's asking for trouble. no, actually, mr nice uber driver sir, I'm just being threatened at work. no job means no money. no money means

no food. no food means malnutrition. and malnutrition may lead to death. you'd be surprised with how things spiral down so quickly. I don't want a-yuan to have to go through that.”

“you speak from experience,” lan zhan states. because he knows at least half the truth.

“i do,” wei ying affirms. despite his promise of venting out his woes, he stays quiet afterwards.

it is strange. in the silence, lan zhan finds himself with the time to think. this is not coincidence. after all, nie huaisang has always been adept in acquiring information.

huaisang has probably never needed the calligraphy brushes lan zhan has been asked to drop off in the first place.

so here they are now: lan zhan, a fake uber driver, and wei ying, his maybe kidnapped passenger. they are in the strange liminal space of a moving car.

the static distance between them comes from the division of identity: a driver and his passenger.

it is overcome quickly.

if lan zhan were to look back now, he would see wei ying frowning down at his phone, thumb rapidly scrolling through messages.

"hey," wei ying calls a little too flatly. "mr nice uber driver sir, my friend wants me to send a link to the ride tracker because i can't be trusted right now. but nothing shows up on the app. can i ask for the car's model and plate number?"

lan zhan complies.

wei ying hums, typing out his responses. "okay."

lan zhan blinks. "is that all?"

wei ying clicks his tongue. "i just want to say that if you aren't actually an uber driver and are kidnapping me for ransom, i am poor and have no friends and family.”

lan zhan inhales deeply. there are many things to unpack.

a) lan zhan: you have a child.
wei ying: children have no money

b) lan zhan: you are texting your friend.
wei ying: she also has no money.

c) lan zhan: do you have any sense of self-preservation

wei ying: i already said i have no money.

through the rearview mirror, lan zhan sees wei ying put his phone down.

"you know, mr nice uber driver sir, you aren't making a really strong case here," wei ying muses. "if you aren't after money, are you going to harvest my organs?"

lan zhan now is truly concerned. wei ying has always been reckless, but this is a self-endangering level of apathy.

“I am not going to harvest—”

there's a clicking sound of the door lock being undone. lan zhan's eyes widen in horror.

“wei ying, what are you doing—”

the car door swings out, wide open. another passing vehicle swerves slightly to the right and curses them out loud.

luckily, they're on a narrower street, already near as they are to wei ying's apartment complex. lan zhan parks the car quickly by the side of the road.

"holy shit," wei ying says. lan zhan releases a deep exhale. not even an hour with his former roommate, and already a near-death experience had transpired.

lan zhan takes a glance back to his not-passenger/not-best friend and sees wei ying actually looking at him.

oh.

"that was reckless," lan zhan tells him sternly, not knowing what else to say.

wei ying laughs. it isn't a particularly bright sound. lan zhan frowns.

"wei ying—" he starts again.

"wow," wei ying interrupts, a humorless smile on his lips. "this really is a shitty day!"