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“Oi, Diluc!” A man by the counter calls out to greet the coffee shop’s owner, who was busy by the coffee machine. Diluc smiles to himself, recognizing the voice right as he heard it. He turns around from the latte he was preparing. “Zhongli, hold up. You want the usual I assume?” He delivers the glass to the pickup table before sauntering off back to the cashier. “You know it. I didn’t think you’d be here today.” “Ah, a barista had to take a leave so I had to step in. Wasn’t planning to, not my shift after all.”
“You know, you should drop in often on other days,” Zhongli started as he took out his wallet to pay. “Might find other customers you don’t get to see often.” “Yeah. I’d much prefer to be at home, believe it or not.” They shared a laugh. “I’ll come to you if nobody else walks in after this. We can catch up,” Diluc mentioned as he handed the other his receipt, watching as he walked out to the outdoor seating area. He then glances at the clock. Almost 3 pm, Diona should come in soon.
The ring of a bell pulled him back to reality, quickly cleaning the countertop as he returns to the cashier. “Welcome to Dawn and Dusk Brewery. What can I get y-” Diluc’s words fell as he saw who had approached. On the other side of the counter was a tall, tan-skinned man, his blue locks tied into a messy ponytail. He, too, seemed shocked. They both stood there for a moment, staring at one another in disbelief before the man finally spoke. “... Diluc?”
Hearing that voice call out his name made something bubble up inside of him. No, just ignore him . He thought to himself, shifting his eyes to the register. “What’ll you be having?” He says rather coldly, not even bothering to look him in the eyes. Kaeya sensed the change of tone and decided to not push it further. “I’ll just get an Americano. Iced.” Diluc didn’t say a word nor spare a smile. He hurriedly rings up the order, not wanting to get even more involved in his feelings. “Here. Come pick up when it’s done.” He hands him his receipt. The man, however, didn’t quite think the same. “You’re a bit harsh, considering you’re talking to your brother.” He says with a smirk. Diluc didn’t respond, turning the cold shoulder towards him as he walks on over to the station.
To Diluc’s disappointment, the man didn’t leave, lingering by the pickup station instead. He just shrugged it off, making the two orders he was tasked with in a rush. Just then, a girl emerges from the staff room. “Diluc sir, I’m here for my shi-” “Give the man his drink. I’ll be outside with Zhongli.” He replied, his tone rather sharp. Diona, the staff who innocently just walked into this feud, merely nodded as she does as she was told. Diluc didn’t stand around watching either. He picks up Zhongli’s order along with some leftover pastries for himself before walking out to where he was sitting.
Zhongli saw the man approach, a disgruntled look on his face causing the older man to laugh. “Geez, what’s with the grumpy face, old man?” He watches as Diluc slumps into the chair across from him. “Oh, shut up.” “Hm, sensitive. Met an ex?” Zhongli teases, taking a sip of his coffee. Diluc stayed quiet, unwilling to talk about what happened. “Well?” Zhongli asked, taking interest in why his friend was suddenly acting so quiet. “You said you wanted to chat.” Diluc finally gives in, letting out a sigh of defeat. “I met him. Kaeya.”
Zhongli paused for a moment, furrowing his eyebrows. “Oh, your brother? Well, didn’t you say hi?” “Okay, first of all, we’re no longer brothers. The moment he ran from home was the moment he decided to leave dad to me. He didn’t even leave his number or anything.” “Oh, Diluc..” Zhongli purses his lips, shaking his head quietly. “You’re still upset about that? He was young. He turned 18, young adults do that.” “My father was the one who took him in from the orphanage. He left him in my arms, for me to care for while he goes off doing god knows what.” Diluc’s voice shook, anger evident in his voice.
Zhongli looked at the younger one, his gaze full of concern. He kept quiet to himself for a bit, before carefully approaching the topic once more. “Well, he’s inside now. You can just talk to him.” Diluc scoffed, sinking back to his seat as he looked off to the side. “Not a chance.” He mutters under his breath, looking off to the streets to distract himself. It’ll be the last time you see him. Just get through it.
An hour or two passed and Zhongli decided to head out first. Before leaving, he held Diluc back for a moment. “Listen, don’t forget. You can’t ignore him forever.” “Yeah, well I can damn well try.” Zhongli shrugged, quietly sighing before leaving the man to think by himself. Diluc just sat there, an exasperated sigh left his lips. He knew Zhongli was right, he always was, but he didn't want to.
"Uhh, hey." A voice calls out from behind him, causing him to turn around with a slight glare, and there he was. Kaeya stood over the man, a smile on his lips. "The owner, right? Diona told me. Mind if I bother you for a se-" Diluc cut him off by standing up, grabbing the jacket he had taken off before, and headed towards the exit. "If you have any questions about the cafe, just tell Diona. It's her shift." "No, that's not what I mea-" But it was too late. Diluc rushed off out the exit, quickly running back to his place nearby. Never again, Kaeya.
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Days passed seemingly normal, though Diluc couldn't help but think about that day. He hadn't been back in his cafe, out of worry he might bump into the familiar stranger again. The usually quiet man seemed even quieter than usual, even during dinner time. As he sat, quietly thinking about what Zhongli had said, his father suddenly called out, getting him up on his feet. "Diluc?" Crepus, his father, beckoned him to come as he sat on his bed. "Mm, yeah, dad?" Crepus smiled, sensing an uneasy vibe that'd been lingering around his son. "Are you busy, boy? Can we talk for a moment?"
A bit confused by his father's request, Diluc sat down anyways, settling himself into the chair right by his bed. "You seem to be a bit troubled these days. Is everything okay?" Diluc bit down his lips, firm in his decision not to tell his father. He nods. "Yeah. Diona and the others seem to be handling it quite well, so I thought I'd give myself some time off." However, Crepus wasn't easily fooled. He placed a hand over Diluc's, looking into his eyes. "You're lying, aren't you? I've raised you for almost 30 years now, you think your old dad here wouldn't notice." Diluc hesitated for a bit. He couldn't tell him, of course. He didn't want to break his heart or remind him of what happened in the past.
"Well, I... I met an old... friend the other day." "Oh, is that so? Do I know the guy?" "Ah, no. Someone from school." "Mm, well that must have been interesting. Why are you so bummed about that?" "Well, the memories I have of him aren't... the best." Crepus noticed there was something different in the way Diluc was hiding away from the glance. Around him, Diluc was a confident young man, reserved but kind towards others. He had morals. But the Diluc now in front of him seemed defeated, like all he wanted to do was hide.
Crepus decided not to push any further. "Ah, I see. Well, in that case, I hope you work it out soon. You haven't been going to the cafe as much, maybe swing around to see how things are doing." Diluc nodded at his words. "I'll swing by tomorrow, for a bit." He mumbled as he got back up. "Oh, and one more thing, Diluc?" He turned back to face his dad. "Let things that happened in the past become memories. People change, you know. You'll be surprised to see how much." Diluc lets out a silent sigh. "I'll consider that." He nodded, walking back out towards the living room. Like hell they do.
As promised, the next day, Diluc readied himself up for a visit to his coffee shop. "Just a quick pop in and out. You can't possibly meet him." He reassured himself, fixing his shirt in the mirror. Tucking his phone, wallet, and keys into his pocket, he says his goodbyes to his dad and heads on his way to the cafe. And, of course, as he predicted, Kaeya wasn't there, which was a breath of relief for the red-haired man. That was until one of his employees called out to him. "Mr. Diluc!" Diluc turned towards the source of the voice. "What's wrong, Charles?" Charles took out what seemed like a little folded up piece of paper, offering it to the man. "A customer left this for you the other day. He seemed upset he wasn't able to see you." Diluc eyed up the note in his hand, hesitantly taking it from him. He gave it a brief read, skimming through the text as his lips pressed into a thin line.
'Hey, big brother! We didn't get to chat the other day. I came back here in hopes I'd see you again, but Diona said you weren't doing your shifts anymore. Anyways! Call me up when you want to chat. My number's XXX-XXXX-XXXX. MISS YOU!! -K.'
That idiot. Diluc thought to himself, crumpling the paper back up before tossing it to a nearby trash can. "Thanks, Charles. I'll be off now. Keep up the good work." He said with a brief smile as he walked out the door. Okay, time to head home and just sit back, rela- His thoughts were disturbed by the familiar buzzing in his pocket. It was Zhongli, calling him up for god knows what. "Hello?" "Diluc! Hey, so uhh, I'm having dinner with this guy tonight and I need your help." Diluc's eyebrows furrowed. "You want me to book a place?" "Oh, no-no. Nothing like that. It's just a little... friendly get together. Do you want to come?"
The way Zhongli spoke seemed a bit suspicious to Diluc. "Are you setting me up for a blind date?" "What? No! We're just gonna get a burger. God knows you need friends to hang out with anyways." "Oh, look who's talking." Diluc sighed in defeat, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Alright, I'll come." "Oh great! Just meet me there at like.. 7 pm tonight. See you!" And with that, Zhongli hung up, leaving Diluc rather dumbfounded. "What was that about?" He muttered under his breath, shoving his phone back into his pocket as he walked back home to get ready for the sudden occasion.
"Zhongli!" Diluc called out as he hobbled into the restaurant, clutching onto his jacket. He takes a seat next to his friend, who was smiling from ear to ear. "Ah, you made it. Sorry for the sudden heads up." Zhongli mutters out, quietly munching on a fry. "It's alright. Sorry, I'm late, though. Had to fix dad his dinner before rushing here." Diluc took a look around the place. It was mostly empty, save for a few couples and a young family sitting in the corner. "Where's your friend?" "Oh, he'll be here, don't you worry. Why don't you get some food first? You must be hungr-"
"Zhongli! Sorry, I'm late!" Diluc froze in his spot, eyes wide as he knew whose voice it was. He snapped his head towards the source of the voice as a brightly beaming Kaeya walked in, waving towards the dark-haired man. Kaeya turned his head to the red-haired man sitting next to him, his smile growing wider. "Oh, Diluc's here too! Glad you came along!" Diluc merely grumbled, shooting a sharp glare at Zhongli's direction, who was purposely ignoring Diluc's death glare. "Ah, Kaeya, you made it! Diluc's about to order his food, maybe you two could order together?
Diluc stayed in his seat, quietly cursing himself for not knowing any better that Zhongli was up to something. "Oh, sure! Come on, Diluc." "No, you go on ahead," Diluc answered briefly, looking away from the other two. Kaeya paused for a moment. "Huh, well… Alright then." He shrugged it off, going up to the counter to get himself dinner.
Once Kaeya was out of view, Diluc looked back to Zhongli, who was already looking at him with a knowing smile. "The fuck did you do?" "Language, Diluc." Zhongli chuckled, grabbing another fry from his plate. "You need to talk to him somehow. I just made it easier for the two of you to find each other. Plus, it wasn't really my plan." Zhongli shrugged nonchalantly. "He approached me one day while you were out, asked if I was your friend so I said yes. We started talking for a bit and he asked for my help if there was any way for the two of you to meet. So... I did this. You're welcome." He tipped his head lightly. Diluc leered at him, fists balling up. Once again, however, he couldn't do anything about it. Zhongli was right and he hated to admit it.
"I'm back!" Kaeya called out as he approached the table. Diluc quickly stood up, leaving the table without a word to go get his own food. Before leaving, however, he leaned in close to Zhongli. "Don't you dare leave me with him." "Hm, no promises." Zhongli lightly patted his back, ushering him to go and get his order, which he did.
"Order 54!" Diluc came up to the counter, thinking of what to do now that he was forced to be there with the one he'd been avoiding for almost a week and probably for the past ten years or so. He thanked the cashier and walked back to their table in silence. To his surprise, Zhongli’s seat was empty, leaving Kaeya sitting by himself, enjoying his dinner. “Where’s Zhongli?” Diluc asked as he sat back down, avoiding any eye contact with the one sitting across from him. “Mm, he said he needed to go out for a bit.” Oh, isn’t that great…
They both sat eating in silence for a while, Diluc’s head lowered. Anyone passing by could feel the tension between them, it was awkward. Finishing up his meal, Kaeya was the first to speak up. “So, how’s business?” Diluc ignored him, focused on finishing his meal. “Woof, sorry I asked.” Kaeya shrugged going back into silence. Diluc glanced at his watch. It’s been almost half an hour. That fucker left me with him, didn’t he?
With their meals now finished, Diluc saw there was nothing much they could do and stood up to get rid of his trash before heading out the door. “Hey, Diluc, wait.” Diluc halted for a moment, cursing himself for doing so in reflex. “Wow, didn’t think that would work.” Kaeya came up, snickering behind him. “Is dad still with you?” “/My/ father still lives with me, yes,” he answered, not paying much attention to the guy. “Can… I come and visit?”
Stopping himself from saying anything hurtful, Diluc merely sighed. He put on his most courteous smile, lightly shrugging his head. “I believe it’s getting late, Kaeya. He might be asleep by now. Wouldn’t want to get you into any trouble?” “Oh, well then, I’ll swing by tomorrow.” “And what makes you think I would let you?” Kaeya widened his eyes in surprise from the sudden question. Diluc seemed furious as his fists balled up once more. “Excuse me?”
“You heard what I said.” Diluc sighed, finally looking over at the man standing next to him. “You left dad with me almost 10 years ago. You left us, got rid of our contacts. You didn’t even think twice about doing it. And now you want to go back and act as if nothing happened? To hell with that.” And with that, Diluc stormed off, leaving the other behind as he rushed back home. It was a clear summer night, but for some reason, Diluc came home that night, his eyes stained with tears from pent-up frustration.
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The next day soon rolled in, with Diluc not getting nearly enough sleep. Before heading back to check up on the coffee shop, he made sure to keep his dad’s needs in check. “Hey, dad,” the man peeked into the bedroom. “I’m gonna leave for work soon. Do you need anything?” “Ah, no, nothing. Your old man’s good.” Diluc smiled, bringing in his father’s lunch before double-checking his meds. “I need to stop by the hospital soon, your prescription’s almost done.” He mentioned under his breath.
Then suddenly, a ring at the door. “Oh, Diluc, can you go get that before you leave?” His dad mentioned, carefully putting on his slippers. “Mm, will do, dad.” Diluc ran up to the door as he tied his wavy locked back in a ponytail. “Coming,” he called out, opening the door. “What can I help y-” Diluc immediately sighed when he saw who it was. On the other side was Kaeya, grinning with a basket of fruit in one hand, waving with the other. “Hey, Diluc! Is dad home?”
Just as Diluc was about to close the door on him, Crepus had finally gotten out of bed and, with the help of his walker, carefully made his way to the living room. “Diluc, who is it?” Once Crepus saw who it was, his eyes widened, lips curving into a wide smile. “Kaeya?” He quietly mumbled, unable to believe what was happening before him. “Dad!” Kaeya quickly ran in, haphazardly leaving his shoes by the door before coming up to give his dad a warm hag. Crepus chuckled, giving the man a small pat on the back. “God, it’s been ages, Kaeya! Diluc, you never told me you tracked your brother down again?”
Seeing the rush of joy on his father’s face, Diluc couldn’t help, but smile, though it soon faded when he remembered who was the cause. “I met big bro when I visited his cafe the other day. Who knew he’d be a barista?” Kaeya let out a joyful giggle, placing an arm around his dad’s figure. He scanned his brother’s attire.
“Are you heading off to work? I can take care of dad while you’re away if you want.” “No, I don’t think that’s ne-” “Oh, of course! We have so much to catch up about!” Crepus laughed heartily, something Diluc hasn’t seen in a while. How could he not let him stay in this case? “Alright then. I won’t be long.” He said, grabbing his necessities before shoving them into his pockets. Diluc quickly rushed off to the cafe, having mixed feelings about his long-lost brother now staying at home with his dad.
Unfortunately for Diluc, his shift that day had to last a little longer than he wanted. After the last of the day’s customers were served, the man picked up his things, said his goodbyes to the staff clearing up the store, and immediately headed back home. Once he entered the house, to his surprise somehow, everything was still in order. Well, except for the fact that Kaeya was now sitting in front of the TV with… a different set of clothes.
The navy haired man turned his attention to his sibling. “Oh, you’re back!” He turned off the TV, getting up from the living room couch. “Dad felt a bit tuckered out from catching up, he’s already asleep so I don’t suggest you come in or make a ruckus.” “Huh.. Okay…” Diluc mumbled under his breath, hanging his jacket by the door. “I’ll just… go change out then.” “Cool, you had dinner? I made something earlier, not the best but it’s not inedible.” “Oh, uh, I’m good.” He nodded quickly before heading into his room to change.
When Diluc went back out, the man was still on the couch. He was still a bit weirded out by the new addition, but something about it felt almost normal. “Are you… staying over for the night?” “Hm, for tonight, yeah. The old guy asked me to so I guess I’m camping out on the couch.” Kaeya snickered, quirking an eyebrow up at him. “Unless you want me to come with you and get all snuggled up with my big brother?” Diluc scoffed, shaking his head as he settled down on a nearby armchair. “Not a chance…” They fell into silence for the next few minutes, with Kaeya busying himself on the phone and Diluc with his thoughts. I need to say something.
“Hey, Kaeya?” Diluc suddenly spoke up. Kaeya continued to scroll through his phone. “Hm? What’s up?” “Uhh, thanks. For coming back, I guess. Dad seemed really happy.” Kaeya paused for a moment, glancing over at the man who was now looking right at him. “Hmm, no problem. I missed him. After seeing you that day, I guess I owe him an apology for disappearing like that.” Kaeya chuckled, sitting up into an upright position. “And an apology to you too. It was a douchey thing for me to do back then. Not surprised if you hate me after that.” “I, uhh, it’s okay. I guess.” Diluc shifted his gaze elsewhere, which made Kaeya giggle quietly.
He then got up with a stretch, walking his way over to the fridge. “Ooh, never knew you were a big beer guy. You want one?” Kaeya leaned in, grabbing a can of beer for himself. “That’s really more for my friends. Just grab me a Fanta while you’re there.” The man by the fridge burst into laughter, though he obliged. “Damn, you still don’t like alcohol, huh.” He walked back and handed him his drink. “Oh, shut up or give me back that beer.” “Hey, I’m just saying..”
Diluc smiled to himself as popped the can’s tab. “You know… I don’t hate you.” He started off before taking a sip of his drink. Kaeya turned to face him, eyebrows furrowed in confusion. “I never said I did. I am mad at you, for leaving, but I can’t exactly blame you. I realize that now…” Diluc toys with the can in his hand. “You were growing up. I was busy with work and college. Dad was sick. It wasn’t even your choice to make to be part of our family. So… I’m sorry for being so hard on you yesterday. He’s still your dad and… you’re still my brother.”
Kaeya looked down on his feet, a small smile on his lips as he thought of those words. “Hm, thanks... I guess. I would have done the same if I were you, to be honest.” They got quiet again for a moment, both keeping things to themselves. Diluc decided to change the topic. “So, you… got any plans? Or a job, for that matter?” “Oh wooow. Do you think I’m that bad at life? I got myself a pretty sweet position for the government.” “God, not those dudes. Now I might actually start hating you,” Diluc laughed, rolling his eyes.
“Well, it’s not all bad. I get good money out of it, have connections here and there. Yeah, I need to do some schmoozing with certain people, but nothing I can’t handle. I even got myself a place to stay.” Kaeya paused for a moment. “But, if Dad wants me to stick around, I think I can find a place close by or... come live with you guys again. I don’t think I want to disappear anymore.” Diluc thought it over for a while. “We’ll… talk about it in the morning. For now, let me just sit back and relax after actually doing my job.” Kaeya smiled, holding his can up towards him. “Cheers to that, brother.”