Chapter Text
Alhaitham has never been very good with words, despite his reputation as the best student the Haravatat Darshan has ever seen.
But it's not because he's bad at reading, writing, or decoding runes. No, not at all. At the end of the day, Alhaitham's struggles with language all come down to his interactions with other people. This much is evident in his daily exchanges with his roommate.
He had argued with Kaveh that morning. It was an unusually bitter fight. Alhaitham didn't want to try and recall the details, since it certainly wouldn't help him now. But the incident was weighing particularly heavy on his heart.
He had turned tail and fled from their shared house, wandering through the streets of Sumeru. It was an uncharacteristically cowardly move. Or maybe it wasn't, considering he had always done everything in his power to avoid any meaningful emotional discussions with Kaveh.
Having somehow deluded himself into thinking that constant jabs and mean remarks were enough to maintain good relations with his roommate, Alhaitham had very much been caught off-guard when Kaveh finally snapped.
The day had started quite normally, at least by their standards. Kaveh made the two of them coffee, which Alhaitham complained was far too sweet despite the fact that the architect had not yet added any sugar. Of course, this began a small quarrel, but Alhaitham hadn't really realized anything was amiss at first. After all, they argued every day. It was a part of their routine, plain and simple- except this time, it just kept on going. Back and forth, every sentence becoming more and more heated until it had devolved into a full-on shouting match.
What went wrong? Maybe it was Alhaitham's stress over troubles at work, maybe it was Kaveh's lack of sleep. Maybe it was the way that their first argument, back when they were students, had shaken their friendship to the core, and allowed for years of unresolved frustrations to build up.
They had screamed until their throats were sore and their voices were hoarse. The walls of their shared home shook from the sheer volume of their rage. It would surely raise an eyebrow from their neighbors and maybe even the city matra, but right now both scholars were too furious to care.
Alhaitham said some things he definitely shouldn't have. He had touched on topics that were not meant to be screamed at the top of your lungs, but spoken about gently, with great compassion.
Alhaitham had never been very good with reacting to the various emotional struggles that seemed to plague most people. That simple trait of his had been the root cause for many of his biggest regrets in life. Empathy does not come easy to a person unburdened by most social standards.
Regardless of the reason, however, it seemed his difficulties regarding empathy had finally managed to get to Kaveh. No, not just get to him- but utterly shatter him.
Contrary to popular belief, Kaveh was not a crier. He had cried only thrice in front of Alhaitham during their entire decade of knowing one another. Once was when they had their massive fallout as students. Twice was when Alhaitham had found him at the bar. He had offered him shelter, and a way of escaping from the streets and tavern booths that he had been living in.
Thrice was now. Kaveh's crimson eyes were welling up with tears. What had Alhaitham said to make him so upset? He couldn't even remember. It was something foul, he knew that much. Something he would never say, unless blinded by misplaced fury.
"Do it, then." The architect's tone was entirely flat.
"What?"
"Do you really hate me that much, Alhaitham?! I know you heard me!" Kaveh yelled, desperation leaking into his voice. "I'm not here just to leech off of you, for the love of Kusanali! How many times must I say that you are free to throw me out whenever you want to?"
Alhaitham's brain seemed to have become impossibly slow. He wished his mind had the same efficiency at home as it did at work, but adding Kaveh to the equation always seemed to completely blur out all rational thought. He remembers what he said now. It wasn't good.
Kaveh wiped his eyes furiously, staining his white sleeves with mascara, and took a shaky breath. "I've been without a home before. I can and will do it again. Just say the word, and I will go."
There was an awful silence in the living room. Alhaitham knew what Kaveh was implying- this time, he would not be coming back. No more second chances.
Kaveh was still glaring at him, heavy tears rolling down his cheeks. Normally, their arguments would end with the blonde simply averting his eyes and slinking away in defeat, but this time was different. The defiant crimson flames blazing behind his eyes were slowly burning Alhaitham's soul to ash.
He suddenly couldn't stand it.
He had turned away then, barely hearing Kaveh's confused spluttering, and bolted out the door.
It was midday, and the city was buzzing with people. Shocked whispers emanated from the crowds as the Akadeymia Scribe dashed haphazardly through the streets, knocking over flowerpots and occasionally bumping into fenceposts.
The Matra stationed outside the city gave him strange looks as he sprinted down the dirt path leading away from Sumeru City, but didn't dare question him.
Alhaitham wasn't quite sure where he was going. He had certainly managed to bring a sudden end to their fight, but he couldn't bring himself to go home and face Kaveh after that.
Maybe this was fate, and Kaveh's bad luck had finally transferred over to Alhaitham. He'd have to find a new place to live, that was for sure. He had finally given up his place in Kaveh's life by running away, but he also didn't have the heart to kick the architect out. Even if he did, the house would never be the same without Kaveh- living there simply wasn't an option anymore.
Maybe he could smuggle some of his grandmother's old books into his new apartment while Kaveh was out of the house or something, and then that would be it. They'd be out of each other's lives for good.
It was for the best, Alhaitham reasoned.