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Hua Cheng was probably one of the smartest people Xie Lian knew and he adored every new fact he learned from his best friend.
He made intelligence seem effortless, though Xie Lian knew in reality it was the product of a life spent in pursuit of knowledge and a healthy love for learning.
One of the very smart, very fun things Hua Cheng knew was Morse code. Hua Cheng had explained it to him one night at a restaurant. The way the telegraphs had once used a four digit commercial code to translate the characters into dots and dashes. The way pinyin gave him a shortcut to just learn the English system and use it like that.
Apparently, his silly, stupidly talented San Lang had learned Morse code to vent when someone pissed him off but not enough to bother speaking up. Or just when he was thinking through things as an alternative to speaking aloud too, but the couple across the table from them were irritating him and that was really what had prompted the whole discussion initially.
Xie Lian had promptly been taught several insults in Morse code, some he had not even known the pinyin for in the first place.
And that had inspired Xie Lian to, well, learn.
For some silly reason, he wanted it to be a surprise.
It really was exceedingly silly. He knew it would probably be better to just tell Hua Cheng and practice with him, but it… perhaps he just liked the idea of getting access to Hua Cheng’s idle thoughts before he censored himself with the knowledge Xie Lian understood.
So it was slow. But it was a fun secret to have. And if it resulted in him staring at Hua Cheng’s hands more than normal well, that was hardly a downside.
He was just about getting to the point though where he thought it might be more fun to just confess his newest hobby and practice with Hua Cheng when he managed to translate something that made him pause.
It was his name. Hua Cheng was tapping his name. It was odd, since it took many more taps than gege would but he was quite sure the pattern came up often in Hua Cheng’s idle tapping.
-..- .. . / .-.. .. .- -.
He knew it couldn’t be anything bad, Hua Cheng wasn’t the sort to talk behind your back if he disliked you. And it was clear he was closer with Xie Lian than nearly anyone else, but still.
He wanted to know what was being said.
***
It didn’t take too much longer to start to recognize that Hua Cheng tapped a bit larger of a pattern quite regularly. Xie Lian couldn’t hold on to all of what was tapped, but nearly every time, at least once in their time together, Hua Cheng would tap out a specific sequence. Maybe three words? He tried to commit them to memory, more focused on getting the tapping memorized perfectly than trying to decode in the moment.
After a week, Xie Lian was quite sure he’d gotten it down. He just had to translate it.
Just… had to translate it. It was as simple as that. He’d notated the code out himself and went through the notebook he’d been practicing in carefully, figuring he could parse out the pinyin afterwards.
It opened the same way every time. Xie Lian’s name tapped out like an address. And then a long one:
-..- .. -. ... .... .--.- -. --. .-. ..-.. -.
Beloved.
Xie Lian’s breath caught, giddiness filling him somehow overwhelming and distant at once.
Xie Lian, my beloved.
The beginning of half the things Hua Cheng tapped. An address to begin secret words Xie Lian had apparently heard for years and never understood.
And Hua Cheng still didn’t know he knew. Had no way of knowing he knew because Xie Lian had thought he'd surprise him.
He could ignore this if he wanted. If he told Hua Cheng he was learning morse code there was no doubt the man would stop whatever it was he kept saying. Xie Lian could pretend he had never heard. They could stay just as they were, just as they felt comfortable.
Or.
Or Xie Lian could trust the relief and hope swirling in his stomach and learn another phrase.
***
Xie Lian leaned against Hua Cheng as the movie played, smiling as he heard the tapping begin. He’d always assumed Hua Cheng was thinking out some snappy commentary on whatever they were watching before speaking up, but he recognized those taps. Xie Lian, my beloved.
More that Xie Lian couldn’t understand of course but he thought that was a good chance, poising his hand over Hua Cheng’s thigh to tap out the same phrase on repeat.
... .- -. / .-.. .- -. --. / -..- .. -. ... .... .--.- -. --. .-. ..-.. -.
San Lang, my beloved.
The first time Hua Cheng didn’t seem to give it much notice.
... .- -. / .-.. .- -. --. / -..- .. -. ... .... .--.- -. --. .-. ..-.. -.
San Lang, my beloved.
The second time Hua Cheng snuggled closer.
... .- -. / .-.. .- -. --. / -..- .. -. ... .... .--.- -. --. .-. ..-.. -.
San Lang, my beloved.
The third time Hua Cheng’s tapping overlapped just enough with Xie Lian’s tapping that he finally seemed to process Xie Lian’s tapping was familiar. His hand stilled.
... .- -. / .-.. .- -. --. / -..- .. -. ... .... .--.- -. --. .-. ..-.. -.
San Lang, my beloved.
Xie Lian did not look at him as he tapped it the fourth time, eyes ahead as he felt Hua Cheng shift, processing the tapping by joining in for the last word.
... .- -. / .-.. .- -. --. / -..- .. -. ... .... .--.- -. --. .-. ..-.. -.
San Lang, my beloved.
Hua Cheng tapped just a beat behind him the fifth time.
“Gege.”
Xie Lian’s hand paused. “Hm?” His heart was in his throat, a lightheaded wonder.
“Did you…”
“I’m not as good at it as San Lang is. But I thought I had figured out enough to join in.”
“To join in,” Hua Cheng seemed to test the words on his tongue.
“San Lang uses morse code to vent and tell secrets, right? I think it’s a good idea.”
“So gege is… venting?”
-..- .. . / .-.. .. .- -. / -..- .. -. ... .... .--.- -. --. .-. ..-.. -.
Xie Lian, my beloved.
“Telling secrets I think is a better term.” Xie Lian tapped out the response he’d practically ingrained into his bones by this point.
... .- -. / .-.. .- -. --. / -..- .. -. ... .... .--.- -. --. .-. ..-.. -.
San Lang, my beloved.
“But I can understand them. It’s not very good for keeping secrets.”
“I think,” Xie Lian settled a bit closer, still not meeting his eye. “I thought if it was San Lang it would be okay. You know all my other secrets.”
Hua Cheng was quiet for so long Xie Lian began to squirm.
“How much do you know?”
“Not much.”
... .- -. / .-.. .- -. --. / -..- .. -. ... .... .--.- -. --. .-. ..-.. -.
San Lang, my beloved.
“Enough to learn after I recognized that. I don’t know much else of what you say after though.”
Hua Cheng leaned in, the pull of his arm a loving tether. “Do you want to learn?”
“Very much,” Xie Lian admitted, looking up to see the wonder on Hua Cheng’s face. “I want to know which ones to tap back.”
You would’ve thought Xie Lian had ripped out Hua Cheng’s heart for how stunned he looked.
“San Lang?” Xie Lian resettled, reaching out to check he was alright. “Is that okay?”
In a blink Hua Cheng’s face became normal. And then turned mischievous. “Would gege like a small lesson then?”
“Oh, alright?” Xie Lian wasn’t sure what he’d expected from a confession like this, but he didn’t mind if Hua Cheng wanted to make a bit of a game of it while he sorted things out mentally. As long as it was with Hua Cheng he’d enjoy it.
“Like this.”
.-- . -. / .-- ---
Xie Lian tapped it back.
“Can you decode it?”
Xie Lian tapped it out again and again, brow furrowed. “Wan Wo?” With so many pinyin that overlapped and so little context this wasn’t exactly an easy game.
“This is Wan.”
.-- .- -.
“We’re doing this.”
.-- . -.
“Wen?” Xie Lian asked after a few more tries mimicking Hua Cheng.
“En.”
“Wen Wo? Wén? Wěn? Oh.”
Hua Cheng grinned. “What was that gege?”
There were many words “wo” could be, especially without accent markers, but if it was Wěn then it had to be Wǒ. His San Lang really was too much.
Xie Lian tapped it out.
“I’m sorry gege, I’m not quite sure I got that?”
Face red, Xie Lian looked back at this terribly wonderful man and translated for him. “Kiss me.”
So Hua Cheng did.