Chapter Text
When he woke up - it took some time to look around the room to remember where he was: a standard one-bed room in Wangshu Inn.
Aether was still groggy and did not want to get up just yet. And for a good reason: he had to travel for 30 hours in a row on a train to Liyue right next to a family with a snoring old man and crying child. Still, he did not want to waste time by sleeping through the whole first day of being here, so he eventually got up and went to a shower.
The room was not big but nice: not overly decorated, but all of the furniture here was made from a colourfast wood and there were a little to no cracks on a wall. Quite nice by Aether’s standards.
Life full of travels seemed like a dream come true for most people, but for Aether, even though it’s pros out weighted it’s cons, this lifestyle came at a price of unstable living conditions and income, which made him take all sorts of commissions to get by, like being a test subject in a totally-legal Monstad researches for a totally-legit blond scientists or help a local chuuni with a cosplay photoshoot.
This time, however, he had enough to not only survive but thrive in a country that was perfect for tourism and shopping. He also had enough time to buy something for her…
Speaking of which. When Aether came out of shower, he checked a message he sent to Lumine and she had not replied. She’s probably too busy with work. Again…
For a moment room became brighter, the sun peeking through clouds at the city one last time before it would reach horizon. And it would do so quite soon: it was already 8pm. Aether was too tired to explore Liyue, but definitely too well rested to just go sleep again. He dimly remembers sign on a hotel’s door with its bar’s schedule.
Might as well have a drink to celebrate surviving the end of the tiring trip.
___
The bar looked like an average fancy place that sells customers overpriced drinks, although Liyue’s motif definitely gave this place unique charm. The interior design consisted of opposite details combined in a harmonic way: the geometric and minimalistic patterns on tables and bar stand were contrasted by curvy lines of dragon statuettes and plants; the calm colours of cedar wood furnishing giving the spotlight to terracotta red koi fish paintings on the walls and emerald chair upholstery.
In a corner of a room, he saw a figure at the bar stand and came up closer.
“Hello. What would you like to drink?”
Aether sit there silently for a second taking in a sight before him. A barman was a petite mint-haired man with cat-slit amber eyes accentuated by red eyeshadows. He was wearing black button up with rolled up sleeves and black slacks; his left forearm had some green pattern on it, as though it was a part of bigger tattoo. He was… attractive in a unique way; his look and style looked edgy, but his face and figure were soft and almost endearing.
Aether quickly sat up at the nearest stool.
“Hello, I would like to try out some rice wine if you have it? My friend from Monstad told me it’s something I ought to try while I’m in Liyue!”
“We do have it.”
Barman wasted no time in getting a wine bottle and pouring a drink, his eyes only meeting Aether’s when he put the glass on the counter.
Aether took in the barman’s appearance again. He would brush it off as a mere attraction to a handsome guy, but there was something else catching his attention, but he couldn’t put his finger on it.
Maybe I should start a chat with him, Aether mused as he took a sip.
“Hey, that wine is really good! I didn’t know what other drinks Liyue is famous for so I picked this one, but I wonder if you can recommend something different?”
Barman pulled out cleaned glasses from dish washing machine and began to wipe them off of water droplets, his answer absent-minded:
“We have a number of lychee drinks: juice, wine, and schnaps, as well as rice schnaps and a selection of teas.”
“Sounds good! Say, have you tried some of this schnapps yourself?” Aether leaned in a bit closer. “Or do you get asked about your age whenever you go out buying alcohol just like me?”
If lips pressed into a thin line were anything to go by - it was probably not a good conversation starter.
“Alright-alright, I’ll just order some of the stuff you you mentioned next time. Drinking too much on an empty stomach is not a good ide-“
Wait a minute.
“Goddamnit, I forgot that I haven’t eaten today!”
And sure enough, now that his tiredness after nap stars to wear off - he starts to feel hungry. Lumine would always think about stuff like that in advance.
“If you are looking for a place to eat - a Three-Round Knockout will for for about two more hours.”
“Oh? Thank you so much!“
Stranger nodded and resumed wiping glasses.
“If you don’t mind me asking - what’s your name?”
“…why?”
Barman didn’t turned his head fully, looking at the general direction where Aether was sitting. The tone of the question was more confused than anything, but the expression was guarded and tense, as though he was bracing himself for something.
“Well, I’ll be staying there for a while and visit this place frequently, so might as well call you by your name?”
“That won’t be necessary.”
Ouch.
And here’s what was unusual about this guy aside from his looks: he was too blunt for his job. There was no polite smile or an attempt to make clients order more drinks; he didn’t even try to pretend he wants his shift to end as soon as possible.
Oh well. Aether actually likes people who are upfront and don’t waste time on mannerisms, but if those people did not like him - he should not bother them.
“Well then, I’ll take my leave. Goodbye!”
—-
If all Liyue’s food is as good as in Third-Round Knockout - Aether will have to be extra mindful of his savings to not spend everything on local dishes. Although it is ironic to think about that after eating two bowls of Jade Parcels and buying Almond Tofu as a takeaway afterwards.
It was pretty dark and cold outside, so Aether run through the stairs to his room (or at least as quickly as he could with his stomach still full) until he almost ran into certain someone.
The guy he saw in bar was now wearing a buggy hoodie on top of his formal wear, with energy drink in one hand and a bag of chips in another one. His hair was a little messy and he slowly dragged his feet up the stairs until he saw Aether.
Perhaps he should say something.
“Oh hi there! Did you yourself night snack as well?”
Stranger looked at his belongings.
“That’s my dinner.”
“That’s it?! You sure it’s enough?”
“I’ll manage.”
Aether furrowed his eyebrows and looked at the takeaway bag in his hands, the solution coming to his mind in the matter of seconds. When he looked back at the stranger, he already turned around and continued going upstairs.
“Wait!”
He run up and put the bag into the other man’s hand.
“At least have this! It’s an almond tofu; that should be enough for a proper meal.”
“..Huh?”
Something flickered in the tired eyes, adding more warmth and depth to its amber colour. Aether smiled at the image that was not unlike the one of kid opening up gift for Christmas to see he got exactly what he asked Santa to bring him.
“You don’t have to.”
Aether had to stop the hands trying to return the tofu with his own.
“I already had a proper dinner, so don’t worry about me, alright?”
Aether knew what it’s like to have a little to nothing for dinner, and he was not about to see others go through the same while he overeats in a comfortable room. His dedication must have shown on his face, because at last the boy pressed the wrap to his chest.
Good. Aether smiled one last time before moving past the other guy and go to his room to-
“What’s your name?”
Oh?
Aether blinked once before he fully understood the question.
“Aether. Yours?”
“Xiao.”
Xiao... A big contrast to common Monstad names, but in a good way.
“Nice to meet you, Xiao. Well then, I’m not gonna hold you there any longer, you are visiting someone there, right?”
Xiao shook his head and pointed at the ceiling.
“I live there, on the 5th floor.”
“Really? Not having to spend hours getting from home to job and back sounds nice!”, he put a hand on the stairscase rail and started turning away to continue his way up. “Then good night!”
“Goodnight.”
When Aether was going to his room, he noticed he had a little more jump in his walk. His mind jumped between the tiny details in Xiao’s appearance during their conversation: the softened look at Xiao’s face, the way oversized hoodie made him look even more petite, the lightly smudged eyeliner and a couple of light green locks giving more volume to the overall dark hair.
Aether mused to himself that he definitely needs to try out more traditional Liyue drinks in the bar while he’s still there.