Chapter Text
The damage was worse than you expected. After a close examination by the well-known Baizhu himself in Liyue, you discover that the trauma as a child caused your shoulder blade to almost shatter, the bone tried to repair itself but is now partially deformed due to the lack of treatment. What mattered most was the miracle that not only you are still able to use your arm but also that you were alive. You didn't mention Khaneri’ah when he asked about the cause of the injury but you still pondered how you made it all the way to Mondstadt. Sure it was partially due to adrenaline, but you had this gut feeling you were somehow being led in the right direction and magically wound up at the gates.
Baizhu gave you a list of prescribed medicines and ointments that Qiqi fetched from behind the counter, her on her tiptoes to hand them over. It would help get rid of the pain by soothing the muscle and aching bone and a back brace strengthened your posture. Otherwise, you were instructed to do some light stretches and lay off for almost 2 weeks.
After a few days of relaxing around your house in Mondstadt and writing down bits of information of what you remembered in a journal, you hear a knock at your door. Surprised, you go to answer it. You were half expecting Jean to be there but also anticipated it to be Kaeya. You loved Jean with all of your heart but doubted she would have time to visit. There was so much to inform Kaeya about your findings, you had asked him for the same books he was given by Lisa after all.
Once you opened the door you saw it was indeed Kaeya.
"Oh. Hi." You look down at the floor. You weren’t upset but instead nervous.
"Hey, don't sound too disappointed." He puts a hand on his hip. "I brought a letter from Jean." He waves an envelope with a wax seal that you recognized. Your whole mood brightens as you perk up in excitement and he notices. "Wow, I see how it is," he teases as he hands you the envelope.
You ignore his comment and reach for it, only for him to pull it away just as your fingertips grazed it.
"Can I get a thank you at least? I made time out of my schedule for you, you know." He smiles mischievously and you put your hands on your hips.
"Really? Taking it out on someone who's injured? Fine. Whatever. Thank you, Kaeya. Shame on you though."
He seems satisfied and you quickly grab the envelope and open it.
"To my dearest friend,
I hope you are doing well and that you do not feel like a burden for taking time off for yourself. You are always the one to tell me to take it easy, but the same should go for you, you should value yourself as much as you do your friends. I apologize for being unable to see you in person, but as you are well aware, I am piled with work. I sincerely hope you are able to recover quickly and effectively as I cherish you as both a close comrade and soldier.
Best of luck,
Jean."
The letter was short but you hold the side of your face with your hand, your cheeks warming up. Although distant, she was one of the most genuine friends you have, and the memories you have with her you will favor forever. You do wish you could spend more time with her, but you never take it personally that the two of you couldn't. You look back up at Kaeya who is crossing his arms and leaning against the wall, waiting for you to finish.
"Hmm. Best friends?" You couldn't read his face. That's another thing you wrote in your journal. Back then as children, he could switch from serious mode to his regular playful self in an instant. You hold the paper to your chest.
"Yeah. What's it to you?" He gets off the wall, shifting his weight onto one of his legs.
"If I didn't know any better, I would say you have a little crush on Jean." Your shoulders rise in surprise and your face reddens more. “I’ve seen the way you look at her. You care an awful lot about her, don’t you?”
"What?!" Your mind begins to race. You've never felt or thought of her that way before. Either way, you know you only see her as a friend. "I truly admire and respect her as a friend and superior." You place a hand over your chest. "We have a lot of background with one another and we are fairly close, but I have never thought of her that way. Besides, I know who she's interested in-" You cut yourself off.
"The plot thickens, you're in a love triangle, aren't you? And don't worry, I already know about her and Lisa." He leans closer with a smile. "But it's adorable to see you so defensive." You’re confused at his sudden interest in the topic, why he was interrogating you about your relationships. You stop to examine the whole picture and feel like a switch flipped in your head.
"Are you jealous, Kaeya?" You raise an eyebrow as a taunt and then pretend to be naive, mirroring him by coming closer as well. "Don't worry, we're friends too, you know."
You see him broaden his smile but his eyebrows were furrowed from confusion. You back up and put your hand to your chin, acting as if you were lost deep in thought.
"Hmm. I've actually never thought about it that way until you brought it up. Maybe I do. Jean and I have been friends for so long… I did feel a bit hurt when she started going out with Lisa. Heartbroken perhaps." You wait a few seconds before looking back at him, his face is now emotionless as he is trying to see if you were lying. "But I understand. You and I were friends for a long while too." You give him another smile, slightly tilting your head to the side. He was still a playboy in your eyes, you’ve heard his comments towards your colleagues in the halls and him being overly friendly to shopkeepers while on your shift. You couldn’t hear clearly what he said, but the reactions of everyone he spoke with were always them being a blushing mess, ending up giving him a sort of special treatment one way or another. It made you jealous of how easy he could get what he wanted with just his demeanor. Whether or not you quickly grew close over the span of days, this was your little revenge.
"Hmm. I see." The seconds pass and you're unsatisfied with his response. You wanted to see him flustered again but didn’t have anything in mind to pile on to continue the conversation. You sigh and just give up.
"I'm kidding. Jean's just a friend.” You quickly change topics. “By the way, I made some more progress on remembering and have been cramming these books ever since I was given the week off." You open the door wider to welcome him in and he enters quietly. You find it suspicious but once the door clicks you feel a push against your uninjured arm and lean back onto the wall behind you.
Kaeya had you pinned as you were between both of his hands. You were both confused and panicked. He seemed so cold before and didn't laugh even though you admitted to lying.
He takes one hand off the wall, bending his elbow as he leans closer to you. He chuckles softly and gently lifts your chin with one hand.
"So you're telling me, there's a chance? For you and I?" You widen your eyes.
"I didn't say that." You try to move your head away from his hand but he doesn't let go. He comes even closer, his thumb stroking the side of your mouth to your lips, your faces inches apart.
"What do I have to do, Y/N, to prove that I'm serious about you? That I am truly. Interested."
You couldn't form words and you couldn't look away. The boy from the past you teased relentlessly because you had a crush on him was now holding you against the wall. You weren't going to tell him that part, but for now, you had to plan your next move. You didn't want to back away, but you didn't want to give in. In the few days alone with your thoughts, you finally accepted it. You do feel something towards Kaeya. Even if he was annoying and flirty with everyone and invaded your personal space. Although you made comments about him under your breath after he passed by, or rolled your eyes whenever you saw him, or even when you got upset, you knew what you felt. You tried to suppress it over the time you worked beneath him, but you couldn’t help but keep an eye on him. You didn't like it. You wish you liked anyone but him, but that was only because you were afraid of both rejection or being toyed with, the resentment you built towards him was the only way you could cope.
You didn't want this cocky man to win though. You grab the collar of his coat. Your heart thrummed hard. You tightly shut your eyes.
You push him away.
“I…don’t know.” The more you spent time together the more you realized there was more to him. Depth, sympathy, dorkiness. He wasn’t what you initially made him out to be. It hurt to keep him at a distance, but it all seemed too fast.
Your heartbeat slowed down but not completely as he was still looming over you. Your eyes were still closed, but you relax and slowly open them. He seemed more concerned than hurt.
“I’m sorry.” He backs up entirely, leaving you at the wall.
“No! I mean- you don’t need to apologize.” You didn’t want to elaborate so you quickly walk towards your room, hearing him follow shortly after.
Your bedroom was a mess once more, but this time littered with half-opened books, papers pinned onto the wall, and notes scattered about. You were completely caught up with the fall of Khaneri’ah. Most of the books repeated the same information so you quickly skimmed and took any new shred you could find, filling the blanks with your own memory.
The fall was nearly 20 years ago. The nation was one run without a god and was once full of peace. The Eclipse Dynasty, the rulers of Khaneri’ah, were encouraging of Rhinedottir's work, her creatures she claimed to be more powerful than the gods. At first, the Art of Khemia had been to aid the civilization as advancements would of course be harder to accomplish without an archon. It quickly got out of hand, the results of her experiments being dangerous and destructive, but Rhinedottir continued her practice despite the King and Queen’s orders to abandon the idea. However, it was difficult to keep it under cover. As she went through without approval, she continued to harness nature, it crippling away and killing the land wherever she practiced fueling her creations. It did not go unnoticed, and more villagers rushed to the King and Queen to report the strange occurrences. Rhinedottir had her own set of supporters and unleashed the Cataclysm without notifying the rulers, shoving the nation of Khaneri’ah into a war many hadn’t predicted nor wanted.
Oswald, your uncle, was head of the Royal Guard and you were the one to precede him one day. He sacrificed himself for you, and you turned to escort the remaining of the royal family away, but neither the King nor Queen had made it. There was no documentation if they had other relatives or children, the dead-end finally reaching the page.
You failed in protecting the royals. You failed your uncle. No one survived, or if they had, they had been cursed to become monsters who roamed Teyvat, mindless and confused.
But Kaeya did. You did. He must have been a butler or soldier in training for the royals, but he was your only friend. You had to save him.
It was late in the evening as you passed the last note to Kaeya. The two of you had started out standing, then sat in seats, eventually transitioning to sitting on the floor and bed as you both continued to link memories with each other, growing excited when they clicked. You stand and watch Kaeya read what’s on the paper as he laid across your bed on his stomach. You decide to sit by him, his elbows propping himself up near your legs.
You yawn. The two of you talked for hours, taking short snack breaks and rehydrating every now and then as if it were a study party rather than a serious investigation. Perhaps both of you wanted to lighten the mood, especially since this unraveling was heavy. You gaze at the window and suddenly gasp and slam your hand against your forehead.
“I didn’t even think about you missing work! Agh I got so wrapped up in this I didn’t even… I’m sorry!” Kaeya puts down the paper and looks up at you.
“Don’t worry about it. I meant what I said about taking time off to see you today. And by that, I meant all day.”
“But- Huh. No wonder Jean is so overwhelmed with work.”
“Hey.” The two of you laugh. “But I wanted to spend some time with you, although I was initially thinking dinner.”
“I did enjoy spending time with you today. This was actually really fun, even if it is hard to get through, it was easier doing it together.” You put your hand on his wrist. He had assured you that you hadn’t failed your uncle or the royals, that Oswald would be proud to see how far you’ve come, of the life you made. And you were grateful that you saved him, your past and current friend.
Kaeya gets up to sit on his knees, holding your hand back.
“Kaeya. About earlier…”
“It’s alright, you don’t need to explain.” You pull his hand closer.
“No, it’s just. Well, I don’t know how to say it.” He uses his other hand to completely hold yours.
“It’s okay, I don’t want you to feel uncomfortable. That was completely on me. Although, I was confused about what you had responded. But again, you don’t have to go into it if you don’t want to.” He is letting go of your hands and out of frustration you get on your knees and lean close to him, your hands propping you up. You wanted to be clear.
“I don’t hate you, Kaeya. Not even before we started officially talking.” Your eyes dart away from nervousness. “You’re a good friend. I was…wrong about you. I thought you were stuck-up and cocky. But even when I look back, that wasn’t you.” You look back at him and realize how close you were, but you don’t budge. Your voice grows quiet at the last few words. “I’m…well, interested too.”
Seconds go by as the two of you are silent. He suddenly smiles before looping his arms around your waist, pulling you down with him onto the bed before you had time to react. You clench your jaw out of embarrassment as your head rested on his bare chest where his uniform opened. His hands were on your back and he held you closer. You tried your best not to wriggle around but then heard his heartbeat. In curiosity, you press closer to him and find it was racing. You lift your torso off and look at him who was still grinning.
“Well, I’m glad that worked out. Otherwise, it would have been pretty awkward.” You laugh, it was nice to hear he was nervous about whether or not you liked him back.
“Yeah, it probably would have been.”
You put your hand on the side of his face and sweep away his bangs. You softly trace the edge of his eyepatch before slipping it off. He doesn’t tense up this time and you come closer, placing a light kiss on his upper eyelid, right on top of his scar. When you pull away he holds the back of your head and sighs.
The night was quickly approaching, but neither of you moved, letting the hours whiz by as you fell asleep still embracing one another, the sound of the loose papers swaying in the breeze from the open window emerging every now and then.