Chapter Text
He clicks his pen once, twice. He sighs, rests his head on his hand and looks over to the clock mounted on the auditorium wall. Almost 11:30, nearing the end of the current period. He pushes his glasses back in place with one hand and readjusts his attention back to the lesson.
Literature class. The professor is going over the last few pages of the novel they’re currently working on. Normally, he’d be dead asleep on his desk, letting the professor’s soothing words fly right over his head. But this is his major, and his grades have also been suffering in literature class this semester, so alas, Xiao forces himself to keep awake, even though the few hours of sleep he had last night are begging him not to.
“-Naturally, he wants to do something about it. After all, with his beloved on her deathbed, they’re both nearing the end of the time they have with each other. So why is it that the protagonist doesn’t say his last ‘goodbye’s to her before he loses her forever?” The professor scans the room for any potential candidates to answer his question, before his eyes land a few seats behind Xiao. “Yes, miss Tao?”
Xiao turns instinctively to the source, watching as a girl a couple rows behind him stands up from her seat.
“Even though the protagonist knows that his beloved is almost gone, he’s much too overcome with grief to say something to her, almost as if he’s already mourning her. That is to say, death is something we mourn before it even happens. He’s been anticipating her passing long before this moment, hence why he has nothing to say to her. That is, perhaps, the truest of human emotion, the fear of our inability to stop the inevitable.”
Once the girl is finished, he turns back to the professor, who’s lightly nodding his head in approval. “Precisely, miss Tao. Very well, that’s all we had to go over for today. You’re all dismissed.” He says, and Xiao lets out a long sigh of relief at the words. Finally time for him to go back to his dorm and sleep. “Oh and one more thing, remember to bring “The Corpse in the Painting”, we’ll be starting with that next week.”
Xiao makes note of the title and leaves the auditorium hurriedly. Blessedly, its a Thursday, and since he has no classes on Friday he’s free to spend the rest of the day in his bed.
The next day, Xiao is back on campus. He makes his way past the common room and heads towards where the library is, brushing past the numerous people filling up the room. He’s usually never on campus on the days when he has no classes, opting to stay in his room to read a novel or try his best to get some sleep, but this time he’s been burdened with the task of getting a certain book by his professor, hence his current predicament.
The library is surprisingly unoccupied of students, Xiao realizes as he enters the large room. There are a few people here and there, most hidden behind a book or absorbed in a computer screen. He makes his way over to the rows of bookshelves, searching in a queue for the novel the professor requested. He mutters the novel’s name under his breath with every scan of his eyes over each book, looking for the ones that begin with the letter T.
When he tries and fails to find the novel from the bookshelves, he begrudgingly heads towards to where the librarian’s desk is, half-surprised to find that they’re not there. He rubs his temple in annoyance, and considers his options before deciding to exit the building.
There are quite a few things Xiao can appreciate in life – Almond tofu, a good book, spending time with Zhongli, etcetera etcetera. One of them also tends to be dark weather, as it is now, rainy days and damp pavements against his feet and the silence only filled by the splashing sound as cars go by next to him. He has an umbrella with him, of course he does, the fall season is far too unpredictable for him not to these dark cloudy days. The tippy tappy song of droplets hitting his umbrella momentarily distract him from the newfound chatter of the citizens as he enters the town square, looking twice before crossing the road. It doesn’t take long before he’s standing in front of a maroon painted building, glass window displaying a variety of novels with a bunch of fairy lights enwreathing them. He takes a look at the showcase for a moment, and then pushes open the door, making a small bell ring above it.
The space is relatively cramped, Xiao notices, due to its small size and various bookshelves from floor to ceiling as he enters. Thankfully, the building seems to be devoid of any human presence, not really a surprise, considering that this store doesn’t tend to attract many costumers in general. There is one occupant though, at the front desk, a ‘clerk’ of sorts, meowing at Xiao while he makes his way inside. He smiles to himself, half-heartedly convincing himself not to go up to it. After a few minutes of looking through the bookselves, he finally arrives at the T row, full of books of varying themes. At the ‘Psychological Thriller’ section there is a book that stands out, Xiao reads, ‘The Corpse In The Painting’. Smiling at himself, he draws out his hand and reaches to where the book sits.
Until it doesn’t.
Stunned, he looks at the now empty spot of where the book used to be a second ago, turning his head towards the sound of what seems to be.. Giggling?
There’s a girl. Two twin tails, a short black denim dress, his book in her hand, and a grin plastered on her face.
“Really sorry, I really am, dear stranger.” She covers her mouth with her hand, playful malice about to spill out. “But i’ll be taking this.”
Xiao is flabbergasted. He reaches out to try and grab the book back, failing as the giggling girl clutches it closer to her chest. “Wait-”
She takes a few steps back, looking at him right in the eyes, and books it before he has any chance to process what’s happening. The bell above the door rings goodbye, and Xiao just stands there frozen.
“-And just like that, she’s gone! Can you believe it?” Xiao fumes, looking for any sympathy at his adoptive dad’s features, who only gives a slight nod in acknowledgement, eyes closed as they walk together to Zhongli’s next class. “I mean, who even does that?” He grumbles. “People really have no shame these days.”
Zhongli simply hums. “Perhaps she needed the book, just as you need it now. There’s no telling this wasn’t her last option as well.”
Xiao mumbles curses under his breath. “Xiao, relax. I don’t think it’s that big of a deal. Besides, you can always ask that friend of yours, Venti, for the book?”
He pauses. “Venti?”
Zhongli nods. “Precisely. He used to be in that class, surely he must have it.”
Xiao looks at his father, lost in thought. “What a vexatious child. He used to be in my class, you see, I always had to be wary of him in case he came to class under various substances. Is he still up to the same habits as of today? If so, tell him he’s under the dean’s watch, quote unquote. How troublesome.”
Xiao merely nods, barely listening to what Zhongli has to say. Venti.. Might as well try.
A few hours later, Xiao is back on campus again, much to his dismay. He looks at his watch a couple times, tapping his foot against the stone path anxiously, waiting until he spots the multi coloured haired boy walk to class.
Xiao has known Venti ever since he enrolled. Venti is two years older than him, hence why he’s in year four and Xiao in year two. They met due to pure coincidence, Xiao was reading a book alone in the common room, even more closed off than he is now. And that’s when Venti approached him, asking him all sorts of questions and initiating converstations each time they bumped into each other. Soon enough, he inched his way closer into Xiao’s life and became his first (and only, at least for now) uni friend, and Xiao is grateful for it.. To an extent.
The boy with the braids is quick to spot Xiao to where he is standing. His face lights up, waving his hand excessively whilst walking up to him.
“Xiao! Where’ve you been, dear friend? I haven’t seen you in ages!” He exclaims, going in for a hug with his one hand, the other holding his bookbag. Xiao hugs back, a bit reluctantly.
“I’ve told you to not call me that.” He grimaces. Venti simply laughs.
“Grumpy as always, are we?” He mocks, cutting him off before Xiao has any chance to reply. “What are you doing here, by the way? I thought you had no classes on Fridays.”
He lets out a sigh. “I kind of.. Need your help with something. Do you happen to have this book?” He says, showing him a picture of the book in question on his phone.
He watches as Venti’s features process the image before him. “Hmm.. Why yes I do! It’s in my dorm room. You can come pick it up tomorrow night if you want.” Venti gets a hold of Xiao’s phone, noticing the time on the top left. “Oh shoot, I gotta blast. See you there!” He waves goodbye, and Xiao nods.
As he’s walking away, he turns for a split second to address him. “Oh and by the way, there will be people over, hope you won’t mind!” He says, quickly turning and running towards the builing, leaving Xiao to his own devices.
“What?”
“Bye Xiao!” And he’s gone. Xiao sighs and rubs his temple.
The next day, Xiao waits until dusk to head to Venti’s dorm. He’s never actually been there himself; But if he can rely on Venti’s descriptive directions, he’s positive of the location, so he knocks on the timber door a couple times. It only takes a few moments of patience before he’s greeted with the sight of his friend’s face, giggling at something behind him. As Venti turns around to address him, Xiao notices the faint pink on his face, alongside with the audible chatter emanating from inside the room, clearly indicating that the type of company Venti had suggested would be over wasn’t as short lasting as Xiao would’ve wanted. The verdict results in the form of a visible scowl on his face. He mentally condems the anonymous thief for placing him in this predicament.
“Everything okay, Xiao? You can come in, you know.” Venti suggests, prompting Xiao’s trail of thought to come to a halt. He regains composure and shakes his head.
“No need. I’m only here for the-”
He is cut off by the other male yanking him inwards. “The book, I know. And I’ll give it to you!” Venti closes the door behind them. “But you have to help us out first.”
As he is forcibly hauled inside the room, he pauses at the statement. “Hold on, what do you mean ‘us’?” He questions. Venti asseses his hesitation with a grin. “My club members are over. I’m hosting the book club in my dorm room, you know, as one does.” The promise of his revelation prevails before him as he enters the compact room. On the bedroom floor he spots various figures sitting in a circle, their faces turning to evaluate his arrival.
“Everyone, meet Xiao.” Venti introduces him to the crowd. Xiao forces his eyes to drag off the floor and glance at the others. “Xiao, this is Kazuha.” He points to a young man with white hair, a single strike of red adorning the rest. “This is Albedo, the dear that came to us for help with writing a love poem.” He continues, and Xiao follows his gaze as he points to each of the members. “This is Kokomi, and this is Hu-”
The audible gasp Xiao lets out is almost comical, and enough to interrupt Venti.
He can’t believe his eyes. The book thief, the person that put him in this situation in the first place.. Is sitting right before him!
“It’s you!!” He shouts, pointing menacingly at the girl sitting on the floor.
The room is silent. Venti blinks in shock.
“You guys know each other?” He laughs awkwardly, trying to lessen the tension in the room.
“You.. You!-”
Xiao is frozen, watching as the girl with wide eyes forms a smirk on her sly lips, unnoticed by everyone else.
“Oya? I don’t recall meeting you, stranger .”
Xiao is fuming. Absolutely, and precisely fuming. How even dare she?!
Venti lets out a small giggle, placing a hand on Xiao’s shoulder. “Doesn’t seem like it. Now, where were we?”
Xiao, against his will, is forced to drop it, and act normal for his friend’s and his own sake. He will resolve the matter with the book thief later.
“-That’s why I figured you may have a thing or two to say to him! How does that sound, Xiao?” Venti asks as they sit down with the others, and Xiao hums in thought.
“Look. I’m not adept in endearments myself, but... I’ll try my best.” He admits. “How much has been written thus far?” He leans over to where Albedo is holding a piece of paper in his hands, presumably blank.
“Great! We’ve only just begun, actually, so we’re not working with much yet.”
Xiao nods in acknowledgement. “The beginning is always the hardest, in my opinion. Once we get started, the writing process will flow more naturally.” The little imp- No, Hu Tao, points out. Their looks meet for a moment, and she smiles at him cheekily, and Xiao bites back any remarks ready to be thrown at her.
In the end, he hums in agreement.
He may not be dexterous with love poems, but he himself is quite intimate with the literary arts, so he fully recognizes the gravity of the situation. The wordless notebooks kept hidden in the confinements of his dorm room are proof of that.
Spending an abundant amount of time hauled over his desk at night and staring at a plaguing blank page, waiting for scenarios of love and tragedy to form on the paper in front of him isn’t something alien to him, as unfortunate as that may be. He empathizes with the quandary of the blond male sitting next to him, and endeavours to formulate a proper response to give him. He doesn’t have time to do so, though, because a girl in pastel clothing, presumably Kokomi, speaks up before he has the chance.
“You could start with telling her about how you’ve been feeling each time you’re together. Don’t tell her straight off the bat how you feel about her though.”
The white haired boy hums in agreement. “Kokomi’s right. Tell her that you’re appreciative of the time you have spent with her so far. This way she can calmly process your words without feeling overwhelmed at a sudden love confession.”
The writer expresses his understanding with a gentle nodding of his head. Tucking a stray blond piece of hair behind his ear, he sets about writing something Xiao can’t depict from where the blond looms over his notebook, before pausing with evident hesitation.
“This is only the first draft, so you can change the details later on. Just write your general ideas, and we will look over them once you’re done.” Hu Tao says.
Albedo visibly relaxes at the reassurance, nodding once more to convey his understanding of her words.
Xiao watches as the writer immeditely gets to work, pure focus and determination written all over his features. He pauses only to take a sip of the drink on the ground next to him, and Xiao doesn’t doubt the contents of it one bit, he being a friend of Venti’s and all.
He’s nudged by the white haired male at some point only to be offered a blunt, taking it from him before he has any time to process his decision and simpy nodding when he gestures for him to pass it around.
Reluctantly, he takes a whiff, barely feeling the need to cough. As much as he’d hate to admit it, he’s no stranger to consuming barely legal substances, purely just influenced by the type of friend(s) he hangs around with. Totally.
He passes it to Venti, who pauses on his drinking to do the same.
The boy with the braided hair inhales deeply, before setting a hand on Albedo’s shoulder. “Y’know, you shouldn’t worry about it that much. Worst case scenario, she doesn’t reciprocate your feelings, right? Big deal. Doesn’t mean your friendship has to end over it.”
The words seem to visibly upset the man, who puts his pen down and closes his eyes. “That’s precisely the problem. It’s already hard to maintain a friendship as a university student as it is, with her being so deeply focused on her studies. I don’t know how for how much longer I can keep pretending my feelings for her don’t exist.”
He sighs. “I want to write something that will make it known just how deep my feelings run for her.”
Venti frowns and keeps quiet, lost in thought. Everyone else does the same.
“...I’ve read so many books, so many articles, and I still make mistakes when reading. You told me ‘Good morning’, and I read it as ‘I love you’. No amount of scholarly education can bring me to stop thinking about you.” (1)
Xiao looks down as he finishes. “..You could write something like that.”
The room is silent. Xiao looks up to find Albedo with wide eyes, looking right at him. He pauses, and then starts writing.
After a moment, Venti is the first one to break the silence. “That was really good, Xiao! I’m sure Sucrose will love it.”
Everyone else nods in agreement, telling him their approval of his idea, and Xiao can’t help the small smile that forms on his lips. What he doesn’t notice, though, is the swooned stare of a certain brunette.