"Yes, please," he says, and tries not to think about how much of this is wanting to do it right and how much of this is wanting cute boys to touch his face.

Ennis produces from his pocket a very pretty compact mirror, and starts concealing Jiang Cheng's various blemishes with lots of taptaptaptapping. He keeps up a bit of a running commentary during the process, which Gail translates while revolving slowly on the spot to keep watch. "You have fantastic bone structure," Ennis says, "if you put on a little eyeliner too you'd look great, everyone looks good in black eyeliner - maybe a little eyebrow pencil, especially if you look pissed off all the time, might as well play it up -"

"Does eyebrow pencil make you look better if you look pissed all the time?" What is an eyebrow pencil.

"Well, you're constantly doing the angry eyebrows thing, people are going to look at your eyebrows more than they look at most people's eyebrows, so filling them in wouldn't hurt."

"I'm not constantly doing the angry eyebrows thing," he says, doing angry eyebrows.

"It won't do you any harm if you look happy for a moment either. But I don't have an eyebrow pencil yet, I didn't bring any makeup in, I'll have to make it all here." Conceal conceal.

"I could buy one. Maybe. Especially if it's magic."

"I don't have magic for eyebrow pencils yet. I can ask the void."

"Can't you just put the same spell in it?"

"No, it has to be relevant. An eyebrow pencil wouldn't be a painkiller or a disguise from mals. I'm not actually sure what an eyebrow pencil could be enchanted for, to be honest."

"Something related to anger. Apparently."

"Not really something I've given thought to." Taptaptap and Ennis adjusts the mirror so Jiang Cheng can see.

With the zits invisible he really does have amazing bone structure.

"I look. Okay."

"Well, if you want to look stunning try me again in six weeks when I have more products." He scrapes the rest of the concealer into a jar for Jiang Cheng and hands it over. "I'll let you know when I think of a favor."

"Thank you," he says.

"You're welcome. Let me know when you need another batch, maybe I'll have the mal-repellent part worked out."

"I will," he says.

And then he runs away from the cute boy.

...well that's kind of dumb but it's the first week and probably won't get him killed. Gail and Ennis go up the stairs more sedately.

Jiang Cheng runs to the nearest bathroom and looks in the mirror.

He looks... okay. He's still not Lan Wangji, who if the magic thing doesn't pan out could take up a second career as an idol, but he looks serviceable. It is possible, maybe, to imagine that someone might want to kiss him. 

Apparently he has good cheekbones. He looks at them suspiciously. He's never thought of any part of his body as being good before. Mostly they range between "bad" and "barely acceptable."

Without thinking about it he turns on the water and angrily splashes it onto his face. He scrubs until all the concealer is off. 

The face in the mirror is more familiar. He'd say it was a face only a mother could love but, well.

He goes back into his room and shoves the concealer underneath his mattress and closes his eyes and pretends to himself that he's not thinking about it.