Archive of Our Own

Kaeya bit into his chicken nugget as he scrolled on Twitter. He technically wasn’t supposed to have a Twitter, being an idol and all that, but all of the members had ones to see what fans were up to and creating. Today there wasn’t anything too interesting, the usual fan edits of all of them on stage, some fanart, some threads about wanting a comeback.

Being a co-ed group was a bit… odd, to say the least.

Shipping culture was something Kaeya couldn’t really understand, though that was probably just because of who he was often shipped with. He would’ve expected to be shipped with Jean the most since the two of them worked together a lot growing up by doing acting, but nope. Instead, he was often shipped with Eula, a model turned idol who was an incredible classical dancer.

A lot of the fan's reasoning was because their stylist enjoyed giving them somewhat matching outfits during comebacks and performances. Jean and Diluc got shipped together quite a bit too because of that same thing, but it wasn’t nearly as common.

The problem was because Eula was so well-loved, a beautiful woman with so many fans he couldn’t even fathom them all, Kaeya ended up getting a lot of online hate. People claimed that Kaeya was in the way of Eula finding a good man to date, that he wasn’t pretty enough to be with her, all sorts of things. Lately, it's been getting worse, enough that he’s received death threats and quite a bit of stalking.

It was funny because they were never together in the first place.

When their profiles first were announced, a lot of people had issues with the group's choices. It was impossible to keep Alpha and Omegas together in the same dorm, working together constantly. They were bound to mate with one another and create bonds, despite being a work setting. People said it was unprofessional.

Kaeya laughs at that now, because he realizes why the shipping culture surrounding RoyaL+ didn’t follow real life at all. Kaeya had to be shipped with either Eula or Diluc, who were both Alphas, and he spent way more time with the girls than Diluc, who often enjoyed being on his own or writing music.

He scrolled more, flipping to the trending tab to see RoyaL+ was trending along with his name.

“Diluc!” Kaeya yelled, his voice echoing throughout the dorm.

Diluc peeked into the living room where Kaeya was sitting, takeout food sprawled in his lap. His eyebrows furrowed, head tilted a bit as he shoved his hands into his black hoodie pocket. “What is it?”

Kaeya quickly placed his food on the coffee table in front of the couch he was sprawled on before standing on his feet and rushing over to Diluc’s figure that was leaning against the wall. He shoved his phone into Diluc’s face, causing a bit of an argument before Diluc yanked the phone from Kaeya’s hands to properly read the article.

It took a few minutes before Diluc handed the phone back to Kaeya with a shrug of the shoulders. “I don’t see what the big deal is.”

“Diluc! How do you not see the issue?! We’re not dating!”

Diluc nodded and left his spot to move into the kitchen to start cooking dinner. He was the type of member that enjoyed cooking more than eating out, so whenever Diluc had time he often made food for the entire group. “I know we’re not, dumbass. This might do some good, though. Maybe now you’ll stop being harassed about Eula when the two of you can’t even stand to hold hands for magazine shoots.”

Kaeya groaned and followed Diluc into the kitchen, knowing damn well that he hated when other people hovered around him while he cooked. “Okay, but why do you seem so unphased about this entire thing? This was a statement written by the company, isn’t that weird?!”

There were a few minutes of silence, Diluc moving around the kitchen for pots, pans, ingredients, and whatever else he might need. Kaeya pushed some of the stuff on the counter until he had just enough space to sit right next to the stove where Diluc had already begun to boil water.

“I don’t know why you’re watching me cook. If you’re going to be in here, at least help me, Kaeya.”

Kaeya leaned over and flicked Diluc’s forehead playfully, that dumb smirk on his face saying he had no intentions of helping or leaving, just being an annoyance as per usual. “For one, you never answered my question. Plus, I like eating stuff as you cook it. I can be your pasta tester!”

Diluc rolled his eyes as he started making the sauce for his pasta along with some chicken. He put the chicken in the oven, hoodie sleeves rolled up to his forearms, before actually responding. “I’m not surprised about the statement because our manager already mentioned it to me. I told her to go ahead if it would help you, and assumed she had already talked to you about it.” Diluc looked up at Kaeya sitting on the kitchen counter with his lips pressed together, “Guess I was wrong.”

The pasta was fine, Kaeya took it back to his room instead of eating with the rest of the members. He just needed time to think, wrap his head around this whole thing. Honestly, the real problem was how they were going to keep this from being exposed as a lie.

Diluc was abrasive, hard to talk to, and especially frustrating to deal with for more than twenty minutes at a time. How was he supposed to pretend they were dating in the first place?

All of the members woke up early the next morning, way before the sun had risen, in order to go to a radio show for their latest song. Any kind of morning performance or appearance meant going into hair and makeup hours before the actual event. It kind of sucked since Kaeya and Jean were both the types of people that struggled to sleep once they woke up, whereas Diluc and Eula could pass out in the car on the way to the salon.

Kaeya’s hair was in a half up half down style, a low bun with a few accent braids and bangs left out to frame his face. The makeup wasn’t any different than he usually wore, but when he saw Diluc he realized what the stylist had done. Instead of matching him with Eula, she matched the girls together and him and Diluc together.

“You look nice with your hair like that,” Diluc commented as the two of them walked out of the main salon room into a more private section of the building with their manager. “You pull it off way better than I do.”

Kaeya shook his head as they walked, “I think you look great. Everyone won’t be surprised that I’m wearing a fun hairstyle, but yours is always the same. You’ll be trending for sure.”

Their manager sat them down in a small waiting room, the two of them next to each other while she paced back and forth, biting her nails. She was nervous like she always was, but Kaeya knew she was worried this plan was going to crash and burn into the ground. Then the Entertainment company’s reputation, and her dignity, would be ruined forever.

“Guys, I really need you two the discuss this and figure out how to make all of this believable. If we don’t, so much could go wrong and—”

Kaeya raised a hand to interrupt her, “It’ll be fine. I have a few tricks up my sleeve and a few plans to make it through the interview without them asking too many questions.” She sighed and put her face in her hands after Kaeya’s words. Trusting Kaeya and Diluc to act like a couple felt impossible, but it was their only option at the moment.

The first part of the interview went fine, most of the discussion was about the new album, what the meanings of the songs were, and how everyone was feeling with a busy schedule. It all felt normal, Eula and Jean bouncing off each other’s conversations, Kaeya cracking jokes, Diluc only ever answering when asked a direct question.

You can never avoid scandals during interviews, though.

“Sooo, Kaeya and Diluc, talk to us about how the two of you got together. How long have you two been dating and what does this mean for your group work?”

Kaeya took the lead, adjusting his headphones with a smile, while Diluc took a sip of his water. He glanced over at Diluc who glanced back, a look of nervousness in his eyes silently begging Kaeya not to say anything stupid. “We’ve been dating for a few months now and honestly not much has changed. Diluc was always the kind of member that liked to be by himself instead of joining the rest of us in things like Karaoke and game nights. I think if anything, he’s come out of his shell a bit more.”

Diluc nodded in response, a small smile on his face as he swallowed to speak himself, “I think a lot of people expected to see a big change, but that’s just not the type of person I am. Taking things slow is better for me, and I’m not a fan of PDA, so it probably looks very awkward on camera.”

The interviewer laughed, going on a small tangent about how people who are fans of Diluc probably expected the two of them to look awkward on camera together. He also mentioned how a lot of the comments after the announcement brought up the lack of chemistry between the two. Kaeya easily brushed this off as something Diluc was just not super comfortable with, and that he can be very awkward about his feelings, so it looks very different to outsiders than the two of them.

Honestly, it could’ve gone way worse than it did.

Kaeya was tugging on his belt to take it off after their hour on the radio show, Diluc in the dressing room with him taking out his hair to put into a ponytail like it usually was. Their manager came in with two drinks for them, bubble tea, with nothing but praise. “I don’t know how you guys did it, but thank god you did. Just keep it up as much as you can, okay?”

Diluc nodded, taking the tea for both him and Kaeya and setting it on the counter while they returned the jewelry they borrowed from the stylist. They didn’t have long before the van would be there to pick up the group and take them back to the dorm for the rest of the day, but it was enough time to stab straws into their tea and chew on some tapioca balls.

“Come on, guys.” After knocking once, Eula peeked her head into their dressing room, “Van’s here and I do not want to be stuck in the crowd outside for long.”

The two of them followed Eula out to the back entrance of the radio station, security guards in the front to protect Eula, and one trailing behind the boys just in case. Diluc and Kaeya were more than capable of handling themselves but if they had to deal with a rowdy fan, that would just be a scandal waiting to happen.

The barriers were up, but security was on their side of the barrier trying to keep fansites and fans in control. Since the announcement went up, things have kind of exploded in both a good and a bad way. Fans were happy, but that didn’t stop hate from coming. It came with the job, to deal with hate comments.

To the left of them were some rowdy girls, KaeLuc tote bags with fanart of the two of them together. Surely they didn’t make those overnight, so these girls had to be shippers from before the announcement was made.

They were pushing back against the security guards when Kaeya walked past them, enough that one stumbled back into him and Kaeya lost his balance. Within a second a strong hand was on his waist, pulling him towards their body and holding him close. Their scent was sweet but deep, a strong but comforting smell that Kaeya could only pin as grape with pine.

“Are you okay, Kae?”

Kaeya looked up to see Diluc looking down at him with soft eyes. He blinked a few times, that same scent flooding his senses and making him feel weak in the knees. Diluc was really handsome, and he wasn’t sure how he hadn’t noticed that before. His bangs framed his face perfectly, a sharp jaw that made Kaeya jealous sometimes, and large soft eyes that sometimes made him look angry when he was just tired.

“I’m… I’m fine,” Kaeya whispered in return, his body unable to move. His brain short-circuited and he didn’t know how to respond anymore. His legs were frozen in place, his fingers gripped tightly around his drink.

Diluc led him to the van with a hand on the small of his back. He opened the door for Kaeya and let him slide across to the seat on the far side of the van before he got in himself. He quickly closed the van door and slumped into this seat with a sigh.

“What took you guys so long?” Jean asked from the row of seats behind them, Eula sat next to her on her phone. Jean was busy studying, a textbook in her lap since she still wanted a degree in case her idol days wouldn’t support her. “I thought you were right behind Eula.”

“We were,” Diluc started, tilting his head to the side with another sigh in an attempt to stretch it out. He looked tired and he would probably fall asleep on the way back to the dorm. “Then we got caught between some of the security guards, Kaeya almost fell, and I’m pretty sure the pictures will be everywhere within the next hour.”

Kaeya spent the car ride facing out the window, hardly touching his drink. Everyone else had fallen asleep, even Jean, and he was left alone to his thoughts. That scene was just replaying over and over in his head. A strong arm around him, the way he was pulled into Diluc’s chest, that scent he had never noticed before bringing him so much comfort and protection. None of this made sense, and he sure as hell was not going to bring it up to Diluc.

He looked over at Diluc who was resting peacefully with his head against the window, a small pillow underneath to make it more comfortable. Diluc’s hair had fallen into his face a bit, beautiful red hair draping over his shoulders. Kaeya shook off some of the thoughts he was having to check Twitter again.

Diluc was right when he said pictures were going to spread like wildfire.

Both of their names were trending on Twitter, a dozen articles with pictures from every angle possible. Kaeya sighed as he looked through them, unsure of what he was feeling. It was conflicting to think that he enjoyed it but couldn’t pinpoint why.

One of the top pictures after articles and official press was from a fansite, one of Diluc’s that Kaeya had come to enjoy. They were one of the few fansites that genuinely gave the group space and followed guidelines by the company for photography rules. She also happened to be really sweet and often took pictures of the other members for special events too.

She had this knack for catching things in Diluc that nobody else could on camera. His hand was strong against Kaeya’s back, his eyes full of worry and concern. Diluc’s lips were open slightly as if he was letting out a gasp in panic, his body reading graceful but instinctive. The entire picture looked as if it was in motion, as if Kaeya could relive the moment Diluc’s eyes met his, and all he could see was how they sparkled.

Kaeya heard rustling behind him, a tired groan from one of the girls’ lips as she stirred awake. He quickly saved the picture on his phone, closed the app, and then locked his phone. Jean had woken up from a bumpy ride and began whispering with Kaeya about how well they did at the radio show.

When they got back to the dorm Kaeya immediately went to his room to take a nap, most of the other members doing the same. He was pretty sure Diluc and Eula were going to get in a few hours of dance practice, but he was too exhausted to care. The next week was pretty usual, outside of a few changes.

Diluc and Kaeya sat next to each other at fansigns, so they talked and played around more, even though Diluc didn’t seem to enjoy most of it. They also got signed up for a magazine shoot, which was going to be… something to say the least.

“A couples shoot?”

Diluc’s voice was full of hesitance, glancing over at Kaeya, who didn’t look back. He didn’t have the heart to look at him when Diluc was obviously nervous and uncomfortable. “Yeah, I don’t think a couples shoot is going to be a good idea.”

Their manager shook her head, pacing back and forth in front of the couch in the dorm. “You two are the talk of the town right now. This is not only great publicity, but it's also for a major fashion studio, so I need you two to work with me on this.”

Kaeya turned to look at Diluc who had his head down but nodded. Diluc agreed to do this shoot in the best interests of his group and their company. He shouldn’t have to be put in uncomfortable situations like this if he didn’t want to. Kaeya could feel anger and frustration bubbling in his chest, and before he knew it he was blurting his feelings out.

“Diluc shouldn’t have to do this shoot if he’s uncomfortable. You can’t make us. Call them back and tell them no.”

There was a hand on Kaeya’s shoulder. He glanced over to see Diluc shaking his head, his eyes closed while he did. Diluc opened them to meet eyes with Kaeya, a strong gaze in an attempt to be convincing. “I’ll be fine, Kaeya. I’m not worried about doing a shoot with you, just about what everyone else will say.”

Kaeya bit his lip and bottled up his frustration. “Fine. We’ll do it, but if Diluc gets uncomfortable on set, they’re going to have to work with whatever shots they can get.”

It was a week until the shoot, and the group was doing the usual promotions. From what Kaeya could see, his “relationship” with Diluc was being well-received other than the “members from a group shouldn’t date each other” stupidity. The threats and harassment also mostly stopped and Eula was less stressed about her fans' reactions to working with Kaeya.

They were woken up in the early hours of the morning to get to the studio on time. As soon as the two of them arrived, they were ushered into hair and makeup while the photographer and assistants set up lightboxes and did test shots.

Kaeya was expecting Diluc and him to match, but it seemed that wasn’t the concept they were going for in terms of hair and makeup. Kaeya’s hair was down and slightly curled, his bangs were blow-dried to the side just enough to show both of his eyes. They didn’t make him wear contacts, his odd eye on display for the first time since he became an idol.

On his cheeks and across his nose was silver glitter and small stars to look like freckles, silver moon earrings that draped and blended into his navy blue hair. Kaeya was given black slacks to change into, a sheer black button-up blouse that had silver glitter and stars. After he changed he went onto the set and sat down on the grey blocks they had for the shoot.

The photographer asked Kaeya to do his solo pictures first, since he was done before Diluc was. They took a bunch of shots, Kaeya did a variety of things with his hands to frame his face and show off the beautiful makeup he had done. When Diluc was done with his hair and makeup, they added him into the scene.

Kaeya glanced up from where he was sitting on the set to see Diluc. The top half of his blazing red hair was pulled into a messy bun on the back of his head, the rest of the strands falling over his shoulders. It was messy, but masculine, with gold rings and details on the strands that were pulled back. His eye makeup had gold detailing all over the lids, an outfit to match his but in gold and white.

Diluc let out a small chuckle as he approached Kaeya on the set, sitting next to him with a smile, “Why are you looking at me like that?”

“You look really pretty— or, uh… I guess pretty isn’t the right word for you…” Kaeya blinked as Diluc laughed at his responses, a few camera flashes going off as Diluc pulled Kaeya’s hand into his own to hold.

“Pretty is the word to describe you, Kae. Not me.”

The photographer interrupted their moment to ask Kaeya to leave the set for Diluc to do his solo pictures. Kaeya agreed and jogged off the set, sipping on a coffee their manager had bought for him while he watched Diluc model.

Most people would think Diluc was an awkward model, which was why he usually didn’t get magazine offers. Those were often reserved for Kaeya and Eula, who were known to be the models of the group. However, seeing Diluc on set, he realized how much of that assumption was wrong.

Diluc was a natural model. He was aware of his body in relation to the camera, and was able to make small adjustments for pictures without needing much direction. He had a natural ability to be both graceful and strong at the same time. It made Kaeya wonder if he had ever taken ballet classes before.

Then Kaeya was ushered back onto set, a makeup artist fixing small issues with his makeup before joining Diluc. The photographer told them the concept for the both of them, and while Diluc was comfortable, Kaeya was a wreck.

Their cheeks were just barely touching, Diluc’s hand on the Kaeya’s other cheek to keep him from straying too far. Kaeya could feel his cheeks heat up as Diluc made small movements, their thighs touching from sitting so close to one another. It was hard to focus on making the right expressions when Kaeya could smell Diluc’s scent.

Before he knew it, the shoot was over. Diluc was pulling his hand away from Kaeya’s, his body moving away and taking that comforting scent with him. Kaeya wanted to pull him back, ask him to stay for just a little bit longer, but was interrupted by their manager running up to talk to him.

Kaeya didn’t remember what was even told to him. Maybe it was praise, maybe it was about their schedule tomorrow, maybe it was about the girls. He couldn’t really focus as the makeup artist helped him remove the glitter from his face and gave him a hair tie if he wanted his hair off the back of his neck. He threw it into a messy bun and changed back into sweats for the drive home.

When they got back to the dorm Kaeya quickly went to make some ramen in the kitchen, Diluc grabbing his things to go to practice. It was weird because Kaeya had this need to go with him. He hated practicing with Diluc because he was so hard on himself during rehearsals and everything. Strict dance practice was not what Kaeya wanted to deal with.

Kaeya sat on the couch in the living room while he ate his ramen, watching things mindlessly and thinking about the photoshoot instead. He really hoped the pictures would turn out well, especially since he really enjoyed the concept they had together. He sat on Twitter as he ate, scrolling through fan edits and pictures for anything of interest.

An anonymous account caught his eye when he noticed that people were speculating it was about him and Diluc. The post read “Worked on a shoot today with 113 and 43 — 43 was sweet even when 113 was nervous and shy, was expecting it to be the other way around”. Well, those were Kaeya and Diluc’s birthdays, and this definitely was about them.

He scrolled through the account to look if they had said anything else about the shoot, and the only thing he could find was a response to a comment asking what the concept was. It was a simple response, two emojis. Sun and moon.

When Diluc came back from practice he was sweaty and in need of a shower. A shiver ran down his spine as Diluc pulled off his shoes and said hello, only to disappear into the bathroom. Kaeya groaned at this reaction, annoyed with whatever his body was doing to react to Diluc like that.

Diluc came out from the shower a little while later, hair half dry but still leaving water droplets on the floor as he went into the kitchen. Kaeya quickly followed him, watching while he opened the fridge and looked around the kitchen to decide what to cook.

“What are you making?” Kaeya asked, making Diluc jump a little from not noticing Kaeya was standing behind him.

“I think I’m going to make homemade pizza, why?”

Kaeya swayed back and forth on his feet in nervousness before he realized how stupid he looked. He quickly stopped and blurted out his thoughts instead of hesitating. “Can I help?”

Diluc pulled ingredients out of the cabinet to place on the kitchen table. “Didn’t you eat ramen earlier?” He moved across the kitchen to grab a mixing bowl and measuring cups to place on the table as well.

“Yeah, but that was like two hours ago… please?”

Diluc nodded and referenced the sink for Kaeya to wash his hands. He happily did that before drying them and coming over to Diluc where he was already working on mixing a variety of powders into the mixing bowl. Kaeya assumed one of them was flour, probably salt, and maybe some other things. Yeast! You need that to make dough.

When Kaeya approached the table to wait for Diluc to give him instructions, instead Diluc let the whisk he was holding lean against the bowl. He brushed his hands on his sweatpants before grabbing a piece of fabric off the counter. It unraveled to show Diluc’s apron, which he draped over Kaeya’s head.

Diluc’s arms wrapped around Kaeya’s waist to cross the apron ties and bring them to the front. They were too long to tie in the back without it being uncomfortable, so Diluc tied a bow on the front of the apron. He asked Kaeya to continue stirring the ingredients together while he slowly added water, Kaeya complained about how his arms hurt from stirring once almost all the water was mixed in and the dough started to get more stiff.

Kaeya and Diluc switched places, Diluc mixing the dough while Kaeya finished adding the ingredients. He got to take a break while Diluc finished making the dough and placed it in a bowl to proof.

“Well, we have like an hour to kill. Want to go get coffee while we wait?”

“Are you paying?” Kaeya asked, hands on his hips and apron full of flour.

Diluc laughed and nodded, leading the way into the living room while Kaeya tugged off the apron to toss on the back of one of the kitchen chairs. The two of them put on shoes and left the dorm to go to the coffee shop just down the street.

The weather was nice now that the sun had set, a breeze making it cool. There were a few people sitting in the cafe, two girls definitely a fan of their group. Kaeya waved to them with a smile as Diluc led the way to the counter. He ordered for both of them, knowing Kaeya’s order by heart after all the times he was bribed into getting coffee for the whole group.

Kaeya noticed one of the girls was taking sneaky pictures of them, and with a smile, he tried to hide behind Diluc’s figure while they waited for their coffee to be made. “They’re taking pictures of us, you know.”

“It’s fine. I’ll keep you hidden until we leave.”

It was a few minutes until their orders were called out, Diluc going to grab them both from the counter before quickly leaving the cafe with Kaeya. They rushed back to the dorm and sat on the couch sipping at their drinks for a while, talking about a variety of things.

Kaeya didn’t realize how sweet Diluc was or how much of his interests involved the home. He was good at cooking and cleaning, enjoyed doing projects around his family home, and had a knack for bartending even though he wasn’t a fan of alcohol.

He didn’t even realize how long they had been talking and sipping on their coffee until an alarm went off on Diluc’s phone and they returned to making their pizza’s. Diluc split the dough in half, giving a ball of dough to Kaeya for him to knead out into a circle for his pizza. They were smaller circles than a pizza they would get delivered, but Kaeya found himself proud of his little pizza he made with Diluc.

They threw toppings on and put the pizzas into the oven, cleaning up the kitchen and doing dishes while they cooked. When they were finished Diluc pulled them out of the oven with lots of praise and they ate their homemade pizzas in the living room while watching a movie.

Eula opened the door after a few minutes, tossing her keys on the coffee table and kicking her shoes off. “You guys seem to be getting close. Diluc even let you make dinner with him, that’s impressive.”

Kaeya nodded with a thumbs-up through a bite of his pizza, “He bought me coffee too.”

She raised an eyebrow before walking away toward her room, leaving the boys to themselves. Kaeya didn’t quite understand what she was confused about or referencing, but he didn’t pay any mind to it. He was happy and Diluc was being nice, so he couldn’t complain. It looked like Diluc really was climbing out of his shell a little.

At the end of the week, the group needed to travel for a performance they were doing. It wasn’t so far that they needed to fly, but if they wanted to get their hair and makeup done on time, they would have to spend at least one night in the town.

Kaeya didn’t think much of it, everything was going to be the way it always was. Their managers and the girls will share a two-bed hotel, while Diluc and him would get another room. Yeah, that didn’t go as smoothly as he hoped.

When Kaeya said he and Diluc shared a room, usually that meant two beds, one for each of them. Apparently, because of this event they were performing at, the rooms were booked, and to save on space their agency was asked to get the boys a room with one bed. They agreed.

This had to have been a nightmare.

Diluc dried his hair after a shower when Kaeya climbed into bed, the hotel already dark, other than the light coming from the bathroom. He sighed when he turned to face the wall, bundling himself in blankets that smelled like a freshly cleaned hotel room.

The light in the bathroom turned off and Diluc made his way to bed, climbing under the covers with Kaeya. Kaeya couldn’t tell which way Diluc was facing, but either way this was pretty uncomfortable. The girls were comfortable sharing a bed and space, but Diluc always liked having his own things and people not being too close to him.

Kaeya worried that Diluc wasn’t going to sleep well if he was too close. He wiggled his way to the very edge of the bed, enough that he hoped he wouldn’t fall off in the middle of the night, before closing his eyes and trying to fall asleep instead of thinking about him and Diluc being under the same sheets.

“Kaeya.”

He hummed in response in a questioning way, for Diluc to continue.

“What are you doing?”

“Going to sleep?”

Diluc hummed in response to that, letting silence fill the room after. Kaeya thought he dropped the question instead of saying what was on his mind. Nope. “Why are you on the edge of the bed? You look like you’re going to fall off it.”

Kaeya grumbled to himself, moving back on the bed a bit. “Happy now?”

“I mean… I guess?” Diluc’s voice was tired and sleepy, that little rasp that made Kaeya feel things he didn’t understand.

His scent mixed with his shampoo and conditioner made Kaeya both tired and energized at the same time. Diluc smelled like berries mixed with the forest, a comforting smell that Kaeya wanted more of since that first time he was close to Diluc. Now, he didn’t want Diluc to be apart from him.

“Diluc… can I say something weird?”

A hum in response to say yes.

“You smell lovely.”

Diluc didn’t say anything after that, Kaeya wanting to crawl into a hole and die now. It wasn’t like he expected Diluc to say anything in response, but the silence was awkward and now he just felt embarrassed. “Sorry, I shouldn’t hav—”

“Kaeya. Turn toward me.”

It wasn’t exactly a command, but more of a request. Kaeya slowly shifted his body until he was facing Diluc, his eyes closed as he bundled back into the blanket. Diluc was going to say something to him about how weird he was, or how much he disliked sharing a bed with him, or maybe that he’s always hated him and—

A hand touched Kaeya’s cheek, fingers brushing away his bangs that had fallen into his face. The touch was warm, Kaeya slowly opening his eyes to meet Dilucs. He didn’t notice that Diluc had come closer at all, his hand moving to pull the sheets down off Kaeya’s shoulder to his waist.

“It’s cold,” Kaeya complained, trying to pull the covers back up. Diluc didn’t let him, just nodding and smoothing them back down.

“If you come closer, I can warm you up.”

Kaeya’s face flushed, surprise filling his eyes as his lips parted. He quickly covered his face with a groan, shaking his head at the sudden idea of being wrapped in Diluc’s arms. That was a terrible idea. Everything would smell like Diluc and then Kaeya would get even more attached to him and then he would never want to sleep anywhere without him.

Why the fuck was he so attached to Diluc anyway?

“Why are you hiding when I already know?”

Diluc gently grabbed one of Kaeya’s wrists to pull his hands away from his face. Kaeya didn’t budge, his arms working harder to keep himself hidden. Diluc didn’t force him, just gently rubbed his thumb against Kaeya’s skin. It was comforting. Why did he like it so much?

“Already know what?!”

“That you like me.”

Kaeya tugged so hard that Diluc was forced to let go. He tumbled back on the bed, rolling over again to avoid this conversation. He still wasn’t sure what he was avoiding, but he knew he didn’t want to be a part of it. He continued rolling until he fell off the bed with a bit of a thud, taking the blanket with him in an attempt to get away from all of this.

“Kaeya?!”

Diluc’s head hung off the side of the bed as he outstretched a hand to help Kaeya up. He shook his head with another grumble. “I’m down here by choice!”

There was a sigh, Diluc running a hand through his hair before looking around the hotel room at all of their things. He seemed to be thinking about something, but Kaeya had nowhere to look but him. Unless he wanted to look at the wall and suffocate in the blanket, that would be a viable option right now.

“Kaeya, would you just admit you like me already?”

“That I what?!”

Diluc stared at him for a while, but eventually pushed himself back onto his side of the bed and left Kaeya to himself. The blankets rustled and all Kaeya heard was a muffled ‘goodnight’ from Diluc. He pushed himself back onto the bed, sitting up as he gently poked Diluc’s shoulder.

“What do you mean… like you?”

Diluc shook his head, mumbling something that Kaeya couldn’t make out. He was whispering and facing away from him so it was hard to hear through the layers of blanket Diluc was bundled in. He asked him to say it again.

“Nothing, I guess I was wrong.”

Kaeya sighed, coming to terms with what Diluc had said to him.

Maybe Kaeya did like him. Diluc was very handsome and kind, he protected him whenever he was nervous or scared or in danger, and he smelled really good. In fact, Kaeya had never really noticed anyone’s scents that much unless they were in heat or rut, but Diluc’s he noticed all the time.

He noticed when Diluc saved him from tripping, when their cheeks were pressed together during the photoshoot, when he covered Kaeya from pictures at the cafe, and even when they were making pizza together. If he liked Diluc, a lot more things made sense. He saved that picture from the fansite of Diluc catching him and was not-so-patiently waiting for their magazine shoot to be published.

He disliked when Diluc was too far from him.

“I do like you, Diluc,” Kaeya blurted out. He gently pushed on Diluc’s shoulder in an attempt to get him to roll over. He wanted to see Diluc’s reaction, try to gauge the situation to not make things awkward in case that wasn’t what Diluc wanted to hear. “I guess I just didn’t realize it until now.”

Diluc rolled over slowly, eyes drooped from exhaustion. It had been a long day for the both of them. Kaeya lifted the blankets and slid under them next to Diluc’s figure, avoiding touching him at all, but still enjoying being so close to him.

“You don’t have to like me back, by the way.”

“You’re an idiot.”

Kaeya’s brows furrowed and he moved to say a complaint, but Diluc cut him off in a kiss. Kaeya hummed in surprise, letting Diluc cup his cheek as he melted into Diluc’s touch. The kiss was soft and sweet, a slight taste of berries on Diluc’s lips that Kaeya couldn’t help but want more of. Diluc pulled away after a few seconds, lingering close as Kaeya wrapped an arm around Diluc’s waist to pull him closer.

“Does this mean we’re dating… for real?”

Diluc chuckled to himself, sneaking a kiss on Kaeya’s forehead. “Guess they predicted our future.”