Xue Yang watches, expectant, then blinks when the name is left unsaid. It confuses him.

But then...

There's still a fair bit about Xiao Xingchen that surprises him. Reaches him, in ways he'd never thought still exist.

The laugh surprised out of him is short, maybe a little sharper than the usual ones he lets out around Xingchen. He could lie. He could just...not answer.

Instead, his gaze lowers to the path before them.

"...You're here, Daozhang." Quiet. Simple.

Painfully.

Honest.

Baring himself like that, even with Xiao Xingchen, sits uneasily in his chest. But he can't take it back.