Chapter Text
Amber woke up to chaos.
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“Damn it."
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Entertainment • Trending
#WenVenti
#DilucRagnvindr
#DILUVEN
#DCKZX4NEMO
my horoscope says i shouldnt @moanamona • 7h
THE WAY DILUC LOOKS AT HIM WTF
[Attached: screenshot from the broadcast]
probably eating rn @xianling._ • 7h
OOHHHH HE'S SO FINE HE GOT THE NATION'S BACHELOR HEAD OVER HEELS FOR HIM
prinzessin de veruteilung @fishell • 5h
THE WAY I WOULD DROP DEAD IF DILUC SMILED AT LIKE THAT
yu @tldrventi • 4h
thank the good lord above for allowing mrs wen to give birth to such a man
jengga @pinkgreenchop • 6h
where's the statement we know what you are
my way or the highway @yanf.eigrr • 3h
diluc needs to get in line oogling my bf like that
Amber felt like hurling as she got dressed, trying to think of what Mr. Hutchman's reaction to this will be. 4NEMO has had a few dating rumors and occasional shippers in the past but none of this caliber. This was explosive. This was fan-war worthy.
She absolutely could not let this go on.
She barely tied the bow on her low ponytail when the sound of her phone's ringtone play loudly from her bedroom. It was one of her employer's songs (embarassingly, that's why she usually put it on silent when she's with 4NEMO, she would die of embarassment if they learned how much of a die-hard fan she was before and even after she became their manager), and it made Amber shriek almost animalistically as she scrambled from the bathroom to her bedroom. She reached it a second too late, bursting through the door when the dial ended and her phone screen went dark.
"Mon, dial the last missed call." Amber said aloud, receiving a ding from her phone before she heard the dial tone. She was lucky she bought the latest phone from Mon Interprises (incidentally a brand under the artist Paimon), voice recognition made her life so much easier. The call didn't go through, and Amber dialled a few more times before rolling her eyes. Who calls once and completely vashishes like that? She thought annoyedly.
She quickly made herself a cup of tea before glancing at the clock. Five fifty in the morning. Life couldn't get any harder than this.
"The only way to go from here is up." Amber tried to cheer herself up, and promptly grabbed her keys and bag and exited her house.
She entered her car, checking 4NEMO's scheduele for the day first. Kazuha has a drama shooting at seven, both Aether and Venti has a brand endorsement photoshoot, Aether by nine, and Venti at ten. By five in the evening they have to get ready at the agency's building before going for the NING Summer Fashion show at eight tonight.
"Not too much today," Amber revved up the car, and began driving to the apartment complex her employer's stay at.
She smiled at the front guard (the nice old man was working the shift this morning it seemed), and stayed in her car for a couple of minutes. She continued scrolling through her feed, blinking furiously at all the comments about the SSA stage last week and feeling like she was some sort of spy.
Ever since working for Huffman Entertainment, she always managed to find new things to shock herself with about her employers. It's funny how just a couple of years ago she was just another one of their fans, and now she was the one behind the scenes and driving them around (and the pay was grand!). Although sometimes, she does wish for some free time to get her life together...
A ding from her phone broke the rapid train that was her thoughts, and Amber clicked it on. It was her alarm (one out of many), and she put her phone back down. It was six fifteen, and that was time for Amber to get Kazuha.
Kazuha just got a role in an upcoming drama (one he'd been begging for Amber for months because it was based on his favourite book), and the guy was overjoyed when he got the role. Amber smiled to herself, remembering Kazuha's exhiliration. It's been quite some time since she's been so happy over something. The last she could remember was getting this job, three years ago...
She clicked the doorbell, and added a few knocks just in case. She waited, and after a couple of minutes the door opened to a bright-eyed Kazuha.
"Morning, Amy." Kazuha smiled, hopping on one foot as he put on his shoes on the other. "Amy's here! Bye guys!"
"AMY?" Venti's voice was heard, and a few comically loud thumps were heard before a guilty-looking Venti appeared at the hallway. He power-walked over to the door, and clutched the doorsill tightly. He did one of his signature smiles. "Hi, Amy."
"Venti, hi." Amber greeted, and she knew he's seen the comments. That crazy glint in his eyes said so.
"So... have you, by chance, opened your phone this morning?" Venti said nonchalantly, and Amber almost burst out laughing. But she didn't, since it was too early and she was hungry (that pancake smell in the air didn't help).
"The first thing I do after I wake up is open my phone, Venti."
"But you haven't... opened your socials yet, have you?"
"If you mean my e-mails, then unfortunately, yes, I have."
"No I mean... like..."
"He means your TevFeed." Kazuha snickered, and opened up his phone. "He means these-"
"NO I DON'T." Venti took Kazuha's phone immediately and shoved it into the blonde's sweater's pocket. "No, totally not. I was just hypothetically asking. Have you?"
Amber smiled. "Hypothetically answering, yes, I have opened my TevFeed. Unfortunately." Amber added, endlessly amused at Venti's horrified expression.
"So, have you...?" Venti gripped tighter at the doorsill, peeking his head out the door farther that Amber was almost afraid that he'd fall through.
"We'll talk later about this, Venti." Amber checked the time, and shook her head. "Let's go, Kazuha. The building is a way's out from here so we should get a head start."
"Sure," Kazuha nodded, and shoved Venti lightly back in the door. "Go finish your breakfast. Maybe it isn't so bad. Maybe you're not fired. Is he?"
"Am I?"
"No, I don't think so. But all I can say that while it might not be bad, it's not good either." Amber shrugged, and Venti fake-wept at the floor of the door.
"So long, dramatic little one." Kazuha waved good-naturedly at Venti, and closed the front door. He looked at Amber, and shook his head. "Sorry, he's been a manic mess since he woke up. Is it really that bad?"
They started walking to the elevator, and Amber thought about it as they entered. "It's just baseless fan-made rumors, but considering how explosive they've been since the stage was uploaded, Monstadt Mail would probably start keeping tabs on the both of them. And considering Diluc's obvious infatuation with Venti, I'm thinking that MM will find out two hours after Venti and Diluc make it official between them."
"If they ever make it official. Diluc may seem confident but I doubt Venti won't freak out and move to Sneznaya if Diluc asked him out," Kazuha sighed, and they walked out of the elevator together to the car. "Mondstadt Mail are nothing but phony freaks who do nothing but butt in everyone's business. Nobody likes them so I doubt they'll find anything that fast."
"Yes, but you never know. They got Miss Gloria and Mister Godwin pretty quickly last time." Amber shrugged. Gloria and Godwin were famous chefs in Mondstadt, and MM caught them three months into their relationship (granted, they weren't really trying that hard to hide). But it never ceased to wonder her how nosy some people are.
"That was horrifying. But they're a good match so no one minded that much."
They both stopped conversation for a while as they got into the car and left the complex, and they rode in comfortable silence. They arrived at the first shooting site, and Amber noticed that Kazuha had dozed off in his seat. She check the clock. Seven twenty two.
I guess I can let him sleep in a little, Amber leaned back in her seat, mentally making an alarm to wake Kazuha up in five minutes. She opened her phone and made a face as she swiped through her messages. Her mother was asking when she'd be home, and Amber closed off her phone without replying. She didn't even open the chat, so her mother would never have known that she had seen the message.
A prickle of guilt ran up her arm as she thought of her family.
Her phone rang, and she straightened. She picked up the call, trying to be confident. It was not working.
"Hello, Mr Huffman." She said in her most professional voice.
"Amber, good morning. I hope you're not busy." Mister Huffman's voice was light and suspiciously happy, and Amber smiled despite knowing he couldn't see it. Was this about 4NEMO or was he being a prick asking her about her life again?
"No, of course not, sir. Did you have a good weekend with your brother, sir?" Amber asked politely.
"Yes, terrific. A weekend away really helps your perspective, doesn't it? How was your weekend, Amber?"
"Great, as always." I got three hours of sleep, which amounts to six for both days.
"You're funny, you know that?" Mister Huffman laughed, and some shuffling was heard on the other line. "How is 4NEMO doing? Still on schedule, I assume."
"Yes, sir. Me and Kazuha has just arrived at the EOT set, and we're starting the shoot in a few minutes now." Amber said, hoping the guy will take the hint and hang up. As much as she can say that she liked her job, she couldn't say much about her boss. And she doesn't like to lie about silly things.
"That's... Echoes of Tomorrow, right? I'm glad Kazuha got the role." Muster Huffman said absentmindedly, a few clicks of his computer heard. "I'm sure you're busy, so I won't bother you much."
Thank you lord-
"But I just want to ask, can you handle the situation with Venti? Heard from my brother— well, he heard from his girlfriend— about the little blow-up, want to make sure everything's okay."
"Yes, everything is fine. I can handle it, sir. Though I hope this doesn't send MM sniffing around again. Last time was a mess, and I don't think 4NEMO can handle another stalker again this soon." Amber glanced over at Kazuha, who was still fast asleep.
"I can handle that part. I'm pretty sure MM doesn't want a lawsuit on their hands anytime soon." Somehow Mister Huffman's voice sounded awfully ominous. "Good work, Amber. I won't bother you anymore. Any problems, don't call me. Foward them to my secretary."
"Of course, sir. Thank you for-" Amber was cut off when Mister Huffman hung up the phone. She stared at the screen, and sighed. So good, so long.
"Kazuha, morning." Amber tapped on Kazuha's arm lightly, and the boy's eyes sprung open. He looked at Amber groggily, and whined as he pulled himself up. She looked at the clock. Seven twenty seven. Right on time. "Sorry, but we need to go. You okay?"
"Yeah, sorry. We stayed up late last night." Kazuha said as he stretched his hands outwards, a yawn escaping his mouth. "Be honest, did you let me sleep in a little or did we just arrive?"
"I won't answer that. Come on," Amber unlocked the car and turned off the ignition, and they went inside. A couple of introductions and greetings and Amber was standing at the far wall as Kazuha started his script reading. This was always the boring part of dramas.
She checked her emails and was relieved none of the other managers bothered to talk to her. It was peak season, and they all had equally lots of paperwork to finish. This usually isn't the work for managers but since she managed one of the most popular groups of this decade, she had to look over their schedules (that was awfully packed...) and make sure they ate while she drove them around.
Around nine thirty, she whispered to Kazuha that she was going to slip out to get Aether to his photoshoot. He beamed up at her and waved her goodbye, and after excusing herself to the director Amber was on her merry way. She went back to 4NEMO's apartment and picked Aether up (it was easier if she picked Aether up from the start, but she was stubborn and didn't want to watch two idols at a time).
"Diluc called Venti earlier," Aether said ten minutes into their car ride. Amber tried not to take her eyes off the road.
"About what?"
"Just apologizing. Venti friend-zoned him, if you're wondering. I just thought you should know." Aether was silent for a minute, before snickering evilly. "You should've heard the way Diluc tried to end the call. He sounded so bummed out it was hilarious."
Amber smiled. "Really now? Venti okay?"
"No. He's a mess. I wonder if he realizes that he's starting to like the guy. Doubt it, but we can always hope."
They arrived at the shooting building and after half an hour Amber excused herself again to pick up Venti. Kazuha was supposed to end in another two hours, Aether might finish in an hour, and Venti...
She scrunched up her face at the thought of driving back to the building that SSA was based at later this week. It was stupidly far away (at the border between Liyue and Mondstadt) and she wasn't really up for seeing DCKZ. She wasn't very fond of them since knowing that Diluc had a thing for Venti (she wasn't discriminating, just that she didn't the implications of extra work she'd have to do if and when they got into a relationship), and she had the inkling that DCKZ's manager also had a thing for Kazuha...
She was pleased to see Venti already at the lobby when she arrived. He jumped when he saw her, and smiled wide.
"Hi, again." Venti walked to her, and Amber shrugged her shoulders.
"Hi, Venti. You're early." Amber joked, and grinned at the pout on Venti's face.
"Low blow, Amy."
"Sorry," Amber giggled. "Come on, I don't want you to be late."
The ride was suspiciously silent, and Amber was getting a little unnerved. She knew what to expect when she drove all of them together (nice chaos when they were happy, cozy silence when they were all tired and sleeping) and also what to expect when she drove them separately (Xiao was usually quiet and occasionally showed her some cat videos, Aether was talkative but polite, Kazuha slept half of the time while the other half he was scrolling through his phone, and Venti was talkative about numerous miscellaneous things), and right now Venti was being absurdly quiet.
"Penny for your thoughts?" Amber said.
Venti looked at her, and shook his head. "Um. Diluc... called me earlier."
Amber made a noise of disbelief, half wanting to hear the story from Venti's side and the other half not wanting to tell him that she already knew. "Really? About the blow-up?"
"Barbatos, don't remind me. I can't believe the nerve of some people." Venti covered his face with his hands and groaned. "It was nothing but people make it to be so much more. Diluc's just a friend and who cares if he smiled a lot with me? No one! Which is totally untrue, by the way, Diluc smiles a lot around a lot of people, thanks-"
"You're rambling."
"-and it isn't like Diluc is into me anyways. Sorry." Venti huffed and crossed his arms. "I mean, is he? I don't think so. He's just nice, and considering he's not..."
"Not?"
"...not my type. Not that much. I mean, would you be mad if I said he was?" Venti looked at her, owl-eyed and curious. Amber smiled at him, and sighed gratefully when she saw the building they were supposed to be at surface.
"It's up to you. Would you be okay if I said who you dated wasn't up to me?"
"You sure?"
"Just because I'm your manager doesn't mean I manage all of your life, Venti. Do what you want, I'm no snitch."
"Oh, okay." Venti looked at his hands, and was again silent for the car ride. Amber wondered what exactly is the magnitude of the impact of her words of Venti, but she didn't want to pry. She sincerely hoped that whatever doubts or crazy ideas Venti had, he would save it and not reveal to her at any given moment. After all, she couldn't worry over the things she didn't know about.
The rest of the day goes splendid (by her standards), and soon she found herself outside the waiting room of 4NEMO's dressing room for the fashion show. She scrolled on her phone (pointedly ignoring the messages from her grandfather and mother, vowing to answer them when the show started), and about three minutes passed before she felt eyes on her.
She snapped her head up, and blinked owlishly when she saw Eula a few steps in front of her.
"Amber, hi." Eula smiled, and Amber sighed inwardly. At least it wasn't some creep.
"Hi, what are you doing here?" Amber greeted, then shuffled to the side of the long chair she was sitting on. "Come here, don't just stand there."
Eula nodded and sat down tentatively beside her, and Amber closed her eyes for a moment when she got a whiff of Eula's scent. She wasn't a creep, but the odd smell of citrus can (unexpectedly) calm her feelings. It made Eula just a little bit likeable, especially with Amber's current suspicion that the woman liked Kazuha.
"Thanks." Eula cleared her throat. "And anyways, I'm here for the show. Well, not me, obviously, but Zhongli is a friend of Ningguang so." Eula explained simply. "I'm guessing you're here for 4NEMO?"
"Correct, but no prize for you." Amber rested her head against the wall. "I'm so ready to go home, take a warm bath and sleep."
"Long day, hm?"
"You bet." Amber sighed. "Say, do you mean just Zhongli or DCKZ as a whole?"
"Well, I mean-"
Their chatter was interrupted by a loud growl of a hungry stomach, and Amber's face went bright red when she realized that that hungry (and angry sounding) stomach was hers. She looked up at Eula slowly (like a victim looking up at a serial killer after accidentally discovering a body), and Eula blinked at her. They were silent for a few seconds, and Eula broke the silence.
"So... when did you last eat?"
"Um," Amber felt her face flush as she tried to think. "This morning?"
Eula looked at her quite severely before she whisked out a plastic bag out of thin air. "I went to a bakery before coming here but I don't have much. Do you like sausage buns?"
Amber felt like crying from this act of kindness. "Do I?" Amber looked at Eula, imagining the halo and wings on her back. "I absolutely do, the best thing for me."
Eula laughed at that. "You sound really hungry. Here," Eula handed her a warm sausage bun wrapped in tissue, and Amber was close to tears as she bit into it. Archons really did exist.
"Barbatos, this is so good. Where did you get this?" Amber smiled at Eula, noticing that the woman was watching her with an odd look in her eyes. She wasn't too sure what that look meant, but it didn't seem bad.
"Hm? Just down the road, don't remember what it's called. I could show you some time when we're both not too busy." Eula leaned in a little, and Amber was too busy in her bun to notice. "You should eat slowly, don't choke on it. I have more if you want."
Amber hummed and patted Eula on the knee. "You're too good. Why are you so good? You're an angel."
Eula's face reddened a little. "You're too much. I remember the times when I forgot to eat due to DCKZ's schedules, so. It wouldn't hurt to help another manager in need." Eula shrugged, and Amber felt her hope in humanity being restored with every bite into the bun. She was about to continue her spew of compliments at Eula again, when footsteps approach them from the hallway.
"Hey, there you are. Oh. Hi, Amber." Kaeya waved a little, and the rest of the group muttered polite greetings.
"Are we bothering you two?" Childe smiled sweet-naturedly, but his questioned seemed more directed at Eula for some reason.
"No, not at all." Amber shook her head. She continued finishing her bun, but scrunched up her face when she realized that DCKZ, fully as one unit. She wasn't sexist in the slightest, but she never did like male alphas that much. And the thing she hated more currently was-
The door to the dressing room opened. Amber felt like she had stepped out of this moment, just watching this scene like a bystander, watching the awkwardness unfold like a carnivorous flower that would eat up anything that got in it's path.
"Amber, I think I left my phone in the car- Oh." Venti's voice died down when he saw their company, and Amber looked away.
Embarrassing. She was going to steal the rest of Eula's sausage buns and jump off the roof.