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Diluc must’ve been cursed, it was the only explanation for his current nightmare.
He wasn’t expecting he and Kaeya to remain alone at the rink on a Thursday night, and yet there they were. Diluc was supposed to warm up for his session, but it was turning out to be impossible since Kaeya was taking up more than half of the rink with his routine.
Diluc scowled, a frown appearing between his brows. He didn’t like to share but accepted it most of the time as long as no one invaded his space, which was the opposite of what Kaeya was doing.
For some reason, Diluc felt as if the man was annoying him on purpose, just to get a rise out of him. He liked to taunt Diluc, to push his buttons until Diluc was shaking and barely holding on to his anger- and yet, he never let that anger take over him because his father taught him better than that.
Kaeya was flashy and arrogant and reminded Diluc of a peacock, the sort of animal that was fine to admire from afar but wouldn’t want to get too close to. It didn’t matter that he was a fine specimen, Diluc knew better than to fall for his charms and oh so tempting advances. Or better yet, he was far too repressed to let anything more than annoyance transpire during their interactions.
Diluc took off his blade guards, resigning himself to suffer through his session. He slipped his gloves on and stepped onto the ice, pointedly avoiding any form of eye contact coming from Kaeya- perhaps, if he ignored him, he could pretend he wasn’t there.
But, since life hated Diluc, his plan failed miserably.
“Well, look who’s here.” Kaeya sauntered to him, looking carefree as always. Sometimes, Diluc wondered if he was the only one holding a grudge, or if Kaeya just liked to fuck with him. “Good evening, firefly.”
Diluc nodded stiffly, barely acknowledging Kaeya’s presence in favor of putting his gloves on.
“Oh, come on, cat got your tongue?” he teased, leaning on the balustrade.
“Perhaps not everyone is as talkative as you,” Diluc pointed out. He didn’t feel like talking to Kaeya, he was afraid that he was going to slip up and play right into his hands- because Diluc was sure that it was a game to Kaeya, teasing Diluc until he got a rise out of him.
Kaeya chuckled, looking genuinely amused by Diluc’s behavior. “Someone’s gotta make up for it, am I right? But I got it, I’ll leave you to your training- don’t miss me too much, sunshine.”
Diluc refrained from pointing out that they were going to be less than thirty meters apart, just because he wasn’t as petty as Kaeya.
Kaeya had always been like that, ever since he transferred to his rink when he was little: a social butterfly, someone who got along with everyone without having to try. He wasn’t shy and awkward like Diluc, the kid who preferred to stick to his father rather than go out of his way to make friends. And yet, Kaeya had approached him, unrelenting and determined to befriend him.
It didn’t matter that Diluc wouldn’t give him the time of day, he stuck with him until he begrudgingly accepted his presence. Still, Diluc wouldn’t consider them friends, more like rivals who sometimes got a drink (read: something non-alcoholic) together.
Diluc decided that he spent enough time idling about and it was time to start warming up.
He began his laps around the rim of the rink to get a feeling of the ice, alternating between some swizzles and russian strokes to warm up those edges. He extended his arms over his head, his muscles a bit stiff even with the exercises he did off-ice.
Diluc was trying to keep his half-circles as small as possible, but still managed to bump into Kaeya around his third lap.
Diluc was leaning into a deep inside edge and he had his free leg extended behind him, so it wasn’t like he couldn’t have avoided Kaeya. And yet, he stared dumbly at his back, too transfixed by the way Kaeya’s pants hugged his ass to move.
It wasn’t pretty when their bodies crashed into each other.
They laid in a mess of limbs, chest heaving and Kaeya’s breath too close to his face for his comfort.
Somehow, Kaeya ended up sprawled on top of him with one elbow on Diluc’s chest and the other on the ice. But most importantly Kaeya had one fucking thigh pressed against his crotch. and it was driving Diluc crazy.
“Are you stupid?” Diluc glared at him, glad that he could blame his flush on the cold.
Kaeya blinked at him. “What?”
“You didn’t even check who was behind you! That's stupid,” he glanced sideways, avoiding his piercing eye. Why was he still on top of him? On one hand, Diluc wanted Kaeya to stay there but on the other, his brain was screaming to push him away.
Diluc was starting to feel increasingly warm, a sudden urge taking over him to tuck one of Kaeya’s strands behind his ear or kiss his stupid mouth until they were red and swollen like cherries.
Kaeya arched one eyebrow, pointing at his eyepatch. “I tried my best. That’s very mean of you, Luc.” He pouted.
Fucking hell, he looked like a kicked puppy.
Like he was the villain there.
“Still. Be careful,” Diluc scowled. Or at least tried to, but it felt impossible to put on a facade when Kaeya leaned down and smoothed the frown between his brows with his thumb.
“Are you worried about me?”
“No.” He said, pretending he wasn’t cherry red by that point.
“Liar,” Kaeya’s smile was all smug, very punchable. Diluc had the urge to do just that, but before he could, Kaeya got off of him and stood up.
He offered a hand to Diluc, who had half a mind of ignoring him so Kaeya just picked him up by the waist before he could. “Huh, you’re light.”
“Could you let go of me?” Diluc spluttered, trying to wiggle free from Kaeya’s hold. He was going to die, Kaeya was just too much for his heart.
Kaeya must’ve realized he was still holding onto him and let go albeit with reluctance. He glided backward, putting distance between them, looking as innocent as ever. “Have a good practice then, princess.”
At that moment, Diluc had a strong urge to take off his skates and throw them at Kaeya to make him shut up.
It wasn’t unusual for Diluc and Kaeya to play around.
It was nothing more than fleeting touches and flirty remarks, something Kaeya was so accustomed to doing with everyone that surely it was all the same to him.
So no, Diluc wasn’t so naive to think that he was the only one on the receiving end of Kaeya’s affections. Despite that, the memories of that late-night practice lingered in the back of his mind for the following week, a constant reminder of his foolishness.
He decided that he couldn’t continue to go on like that -like some sort of wistful maiden- and so on a Friday night, he caved in and accepted Jean’s invite to go out. She took him to a bar he never heard of but that, apparently, her girlfriend Lisa loved. If Lisa’s tastes were anything to go by, he suspected it was more of a strip club than a bar.
Despite Diluc’s grim predictions, the place was actually nice. It felt high-end with its white leather couches and coffee tables scattered around the floor and the servers in black uniforms carrying buckets of champagne- apparently, people in that place were rich enough to throw away their money like that.
He glanced at the menu on the fine glass table, deciding against bothering with it: he wasn’t great at holding his liquor, therefore he had no intention to make a fool of himself that evening. Jean knew that, so he didn’t understand why she’d brought him there.
He discovered her intentions soon enough when a blue-haired man in a black suit appeared from behind a staff-only door.
“Really?” he gave Jean a flat stare, his lips pressing into a thin line. He couldn’t believe she would coerce him into going out with her to- whatever her plan was. He was annoyed and pissed off, but would never take it out on Jean: he was polite enough to hold off his temper for the moment being.
“It was Lisa’s idea,” she conceded, fingers playing with the edge of the menu. “You know how persuasive she can be.”
Oh, he knew.
He had the pleasure of making Lisa and Jean’s acquaintance during his years as a young figure skater and had gotten to know them better throughout the years, so he understood the kind of devious strategies Lisa was capable of employing- Diluc witnessed them every time she wanted to get free drinks for her and her girlfriend.
“Why?” he sighed, sinking into the plush sofa and hoping to hide from Kaeya. It was embarrassing enough to think about their last interaction at the rink, he didn’t need to humiliate himself further and make Kaeya think that he was somehow following him. Definitely not like one of his many female fans.
Diluc was familiar with the way they showed up at practice and tried to drink from Kaeya’s water bottle. Which was unsanitary and he didn’t understand why anyone would want to do that.
“She thought you could use a reality check.” He glared at her, his pride a bit hurt. “Her words, not mine.”
Diluc huffed, suddenly springing upright. “What does that even mean?”
“You have a big, fat crush for Kaeya but are too much of a coward to admit it,” a pair of hands slid over his shoulders, long nails scratching his shirt - for some reason, he felt as if some nails were shorter than the others, but he was too stunned to care. He almost had a heart attack on the spot, until he recognized Lisa’s voice. “Consider this an intervention.”
“She’s not wrong, you two have been at it for years,” Jean supplied, extending a hand towards her girlfriend, tugging her towards her and in front of the couch.
Diluc was starting to feel uncomfortable, more like a third-wheel and less like a wanted guest. Also, he suspected that Lisa might ask Jean to sit on her lap since there wasn’t much space -there was, but Lisa didn’t find it relevant- on the couch.
“It’s been a pl-,” before he could get up and excuse himself -and possibly escape without having to face that whole situation- Lisa signaled to a waiter to come over.
Diluc had a sinking feeling in his gut as if his body knew what was coming before he could actually experience it. At least he was saved from the embarrassment of having Jean sitting on Lisa’s lap since Lisa decided that perching on the table (could it even hold her weight?) was socially accepted. Diluc frowned, remembering all the etiquette that had been drilled into his brain when he was a child.
“Oh my, look at who’s here, my beautiful ladies ~” Kaeya was standing beside Diluc with a devious smirk on his face, eye pointedly looking at him.
Diluc was split between spluttering furiously and glaring at Kaeya, so in the end, his face ended up doing something funny against his will. He probably looked like someone who ate something too spicy.
“Good evening, Kaeya,” Jean greeted him politely.
“Hello sexy,” Lisa winked at Kaeya, falling into a pattern that was all too familiar to Diluc. He suspected that they were the same person but of opposite sex, and that Lisa’s extra eye was actually made of glass. “Diluc insisted so much on coming here, now I can see why~.”
“I did?” he mumbled, feeling dread starting to pool in his gut. His infatuation (when did he come to terms with that?) couldn’t be exposed! Kaeya would surely make fun of him and then crush his heart, just like he did to all the fools who dared to get too close.
“Oh?” Kaeya chuckled, low and deep, and suddenly Diluc felt very hot. “I’m flattered, firefly. Maybe I can offer you a drink to make it worth your while?”
Diluc scoffed, crossing his arms and raising an eyebrow. “I’m not one of your flirts.”
“You could be,” Kaeya winked, but something in his whole demeanor felt forced, almost as if he was forcing himself to be his casual, flirty self.
“Well,” Jean interjected, trying to deescalate the situation, “I’d like to order a piña colada, and a negroni for Lisa.”
“Let me guess, some juice grape for you?” at least, this time Kaeya’s amusement was real, as it was every time Diluc ordered his drink of choice.
Diluc nodded, torn between feeling disappointed that he spent so little time with Kaeya after a week or relief that he wouldn’t make a fool of himself any longer. Despite everything, he genuinely enjoyed Kaeya’s company when he wasn’t being an asshole, even though he liked to pretend otherwise.
Diluc watched him go, feeling frustrated at himself for being incapable of expressing what went through his mind, wondering why Kaeya even bothered to hang out with him.
“Is something wrong, Diluc?” Jean placed a hand on his knee, or as well as she could with Jean between them, a frown marring her face.
“I think he’s sad to see lover boy go.”
“If you truly feel like this, perhaps you should ask him out. It worked for me,” she pointed out, clueless to Diluc’s growing awkwardness.
Lesbians were scary, and too perceptive for Diluc’s thin face. He didn’t think that Lisa and Jean were a model example of a relationship considering that they moved in together two months after dating, and got a dog together after one.
“He’s not interested, he’s just too friendly with everyone.”
“Are- are you serious?” Lisa was baffled, her lips twitching as if she was physically forcing herself not to laugh.
“Diluc,” Jean leaned forward to properly look at him, a haunter expression twisting her features, “you’ve not heard what we heard.”
“W-what did he tell you?”
“Very horny things. But also weirdly cute? You should ask Kaeya, I bet he’d love to share,” Lisa gestured in Kaeya’s direction, the man in question making his way over to their table with a tray balanced on his hands.
“Alright, see you next time. I have urgent business to attend to,” he made to escape, possibly from the nearest window, but Lisa’s hand shot out to trap him in place.
“You two really gotta get your shit together,” she pointed out, making it seem as easy as landing a fucking waltz.
“Yeah, thanks for the advice.”
Ever since Jean and Lisa gave him an insight into what went through Kaeya’s head, he couldn’t stop thinking about their interaction in a new light, even though he wasn’t fully sold- he knew how sly Lisa was, he wouldn’t believe anything she said until he heard it straight from Kaeya.
With that in mind, Diluc made a new resolution for the next time they had practice together.
Unfortunately, Diluc was a man of principles and of his word.
It meant that, even if he was tempted to, he couldn’t procrastinate the talk he needed to have with Kaeya. He should’ve waited until the end of their session, for if he was mistaken and Kaeya was nothing more than a flirt, he always had the chance to sulk in his car. However, anxiety and quiet desperation to know had been building under his skin for days, and he was too restless to wait.
“We need to talk,” he deadpanned, no inflection in his voice just in case Kaeya sensed his nervousness.
Kaeya tilted his head, raising an eyebrow in a silent question. When he received no answer, he gave up and sat up from the bench where he finished putting his skates. “Why so serious, princess? I didn’t even have the time to tease you yet!”
“Just- follow me.” Diluc grabbed his arm, dragging him away from the locker room and into a more secluded space.
“Oh, now I’m intrigued…could it be that you’ve finally fallen for my charms?” he teased him, sticking uncomfortably close to his back.
Diluc stopped in his tracks, making Kaeya bump into him.
“Why are you…” Diluc clenched his fists, feeling all his courage from before evaporate. He remained with his back turned, too much of a coward to face Kaeya. “Do you do this with everyone? Flirting with them even if you don’t mean it.”
“Diluc- what…are you saying?” for once, it was Kaeya’s turn to be speechless.
“Like, you make them feel special and seen, and you know when to say all the right words so- you know, they think maybe I really like him, he’s not so bad after all but then five minutes later you’re with another person, doing the same thing. Which is fine, who cares, but leave them some face and do your thing somewhere else.”
Probably, he wasn’t making sense, he was rambling and rambling, throwing his well-constructed speech out of the window. There, in the moment, he couldn’t help but vomit all of the feelings he amassed over the years on Kaeya, it was therapeutic and embarrassing at the same time but he was fairly sure that Kaeya was too stunned to process anything.
“Wait Luc, sunshine, slow down. Are you saying that you’re jealous?” Kaeya was baffled, his voice strained but with an edge of something warm in it, almost giddy.
“Of course not! Who talked about my feelings.”
Kaeya hummed. He placed his hands on his shoulders and slowly turned Kaeya around, revealing a mess of a human. Or at least Diluc felt like it, with his bitten lips and all fifty shades of red painted on his face.
“You’re right, maybe I didn’t make my intentions clear, but I just-” he slid a hand through his hair, a frown appearing between his brows, “I didn’t want to put myself out there, not completely at least. I thought that maybe you barely tolerated me, Christ I’m not too sure you don’t actually hate me even now, so I didn’t dare to push too far.
“But that thing you see me doing with all the other people? That’s bullshit, I don’t care about them. I need to ingratiate myself with them, to know where my competition stands, and if I need to bat my eyelashes and compliment them then so be it.”
Diluc rolled his eyes, crossing his arms in front of his chest. “I don’t hate you, idiot. I would’ve punched you in the face ages ago, if that were the case.”
“Really? I swore I felt you shooting daggers at me whenever I skated too close,” Kaeya smirked, leaning forward, invading Diluc’s space until he was forced to take a step backward.
And another one.
Until he hit the wall.
“Perhaps you could apologize with a kiss?”
That- that cheeky bastard! He was taking advantage of the situation, tempting Diluc with a stupid cleavage and crooked smile. “I never said I liked you,” he protested.
“You’re right,” Kaeya tucked a crimson strand behind his ear, his breath now tickling his mouth whenever he spoke, “maybe I should make you work for that kiss.”
Diluc spluttered, planting his hands on Kaeya’s chest and pushing him away. “We have practice!”
Kaeya’s hands found their way to Diluc’s waist instead. “Then later, firefly?”
Later what? Kaeya’s head must’ve been filled with utter filth, even though Diluc couldn’t bring himself to mind too much. “I’ll think about it…and don’t call me that!”
Kaeya deposited a kiss on his forehead, taking him by the hand. “Sure thing, kitten.”
He started tugging Diluc towards the rink, both of them unaware of Lisa and Jean standing nearby, both of them sporting matching grins.