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The clash of swords didn’t cease for a second, the blades glittered in the rays of the setting sun. A lunge, one step back, a parry, a dodge, one step forward, one lunge more. Kaeya watched Diluc's training with great interest. As always, he was the last to leave his training, and almost all the knights of the Ordo Favonius had the opportunity to be his opponents, including Kaeya himself earlier. He finished with his training a long time ago and changed his clothes. He admired Diluc's tenacity and his endless drive for self-improvement, which Kaeya himself could only dream of. Kaeya had enough strength to protect his family and the city of Mondstadt, and he was quite happy with it.
Kaeya focused on Diluc again: his movements were smooth and perfected by years of diligent training. His hair was disheveled in a fluffy cloud and shimmered with all shades of red in the light of the sunset. Finally, the sparring ended. Diluc exchanged a few words with his partner, after which the knight patted him on the shoulder in a friendly manner (Kaeya felt a sharp jealous prick that touched his chest) and left. Diluc sauntered over to Kaeya.
“Are you waiting for me again? You should have gone to the city for a walk with the guys instead,” he smiled and straightened his unruly hair, his breathing still heavy from the workout.
“What should I do there without you?” Kaeya replied with a chuckle. He would have winked if it had been possible, but Diluc caught his intention.
“Flatterer,” the redhead said, but despite the coldness of the word itself, he was smiling broadly and his eyes were shining—and from this look, Kaeya's heart was trembling with happiness.
They headed silently to the locker room, walking in step out of habit. At the very entrance Diluc stopped, turned to Kaeya and said with some awkwardness:
“Thank you for waiting for me.”
His smile wasn't as wide now, but it didn't make it any less warm. Timid and grateful, it made Diluc look like a true angel who descended into this world from heaven. Kaeya ached to kiss that smile. He wanted to make him his, but he just waved his hand away, as if answering: “No problem.”
Kaeya always avoided looking at Diluc's naked body. Not because it was something shameful and low, but because he was afraid of the feelings that arose inside him at such moments. Casual touches, glances at each other with loud laughter, and sleepless nights of meaningless conversations—with Diluc it turned into something special, into their common secret, which no one else was privy to. It was only their hours and minutes, these were those moments together, the charm of which Kaeya tried not to forget for anything. Diluc's every word echoed with the pounding of his heart against his ribs, his every step echoed in his head, his every smile filled his lungs with life. Kaeya was hopelessly in love.
Today, he followed his desires and was staring: first, Diluc took off his outer clothes, and then pulled off a snow-white shirt, which almost merged in color with his pale skin.
They were alone in the room—everyone had gone home a long time ago, but they stayed up to the last—each for their own reason. Now, no one could prevent Kaeya from admiring the picture before him: outwardly, Diluc seemed fragile, but that was his clothes hiding how strong he really was. There were clearly visible muscles on his back and arms, and beads of sweat still glistened on his skin. Scars and moles created a unique pattern on his body, one that few people could know about—Kaeya knew and for some reason was proud of it.
They were separated by only a few steps: he was leaning on one wall, Diluc was standing against the other—a small gap between the impossible and the achievable. It was so easy to give in to his desires just once, to break the restraints that held him back, to break the unpronounceable prohibitions. It was so easy to close the distance between them, tilt his head a little and...
Kaeya swallowed. Kaeya took a step forward.
His dark fingers stood out against Diluc's milky skin as they lightly picked up the red strands and threw them over Diluc's left shoulder. A moment later, Kaeya's lips softly touched that most cherished place—the curve between the neck and shoulder. Diluc was hot—Kaeya couldn't say for sure if it was the result of active training or wearing the Vision, but he definitely liked the heat that came from his body. Diluc was salty, and also desirable and beloved.
“Kaeya?” Diluc's voice was low, almost a whisper, which sent goosebumps down Kaeya's spine. Kaeya didn't want to stop, even if it was just seconds during which he could touch Diluc so gently, even if he pushed him away now. They could forget about it and never come back to this issue, they could pretend that everything was the same between them as before. Kaeya was ready to restrain his feelings for as long as needed, if now the two of them could stay in this position a little longer.
So he didn't respond to his name, because he was busy slowly running his lips over Diluc's skin, caressing it with light touches.
“Stop it. I'm dirty,” Diluc raised his voice again—there were hints of discontent mixed with childish moodiness. This tone brought back memories of the past. Kaeya felt like he was in a summer meadow, warmed by the sultry sun, the fragrant smell of herbs and flowers tickled his nostrils, and Diluc's loud laughter echoed nonstop in the air, driven by gusts of warm wind.
Oh. Kaeya finally understood the meaning of Diluc's words. He wasn't worried about what Kaeya was doing, he was worried that... it might be unpleasant for Kaeya to touch him when he wasn't clean. The realization sent a wave of warmth through Kaeya's body, which meant that he could... Kaeya's lips moved to Diluc's neck, getting closer and closer to the delicate skin behind his ear. Diluc sighed softly and tilted his head to one side, exposing himself to the touch.
Kaeya's arms, which had been hanging stiffly by Diluc's side, now were placed on Diluc's waist. It was narrow and neat, flowing smoothly into the hips. It seemed that if Kaeya's fingers had squeezed a little harder, he would have been able to wrap his arms around it completely. But, of course, the feeling of fragility was deceptive.
“Haha, it tickles!” Diluc twitched with a slight laugh, but didn’t break free. If he wanted to, he would have run away long ago, but in the end he let Kaeya's palms and kisses touch him. It encouraged him even more. It made Kaeya's head feel dizzy and his legs felt weak. Kaeya breathed in a barely noticeable scent of shampoo with gusto and was afraid to say a word, so as not to disturb the intimacy of the moment.
But all this was not enough. He closed the already small distance between them by pressing his chest against Diluc's back.
“Ah!” Diluc's voice escaped his lips, a short and quiet sound like the flapping of a small bird's wings. This bird loved freedom, the bars of the cage were unfamiliar to it—the boundless height of the sky and the open space of the ground were its home. Kaeya held this bird in his palms, gently squeezed it so as not to bend the soft feathers, and wanted it to stay with him solely of its own free will.
Diluc's skin was supple clay under Kaeya's lips and fingers, he molded perfection from it with every touch, brought it closer to the ideal—so that the hickey blossomed like a scarlet flower right behind Diluc's ear, so that Diluc would not be able to collect his hair in a ponytail for several days. Embarrassment and indignation would have been reflected on his face when he looked in the mirror and saw this remarkable detail. This thought made Kaeya laugh internally, but in reality he gently kissed the mark to ease the pain a little.
“Kaeya, what's wrong with you?” Diluc asked quite without malice, easily turning around in the hug, and the sparks of laughter in his eyes, like sparkling wine, were ready to perkily jump right into Kaeya's heart, accelerating its rhythm hundreds and thousands of times.
I love you, Kaeya wanted to shout, putting in one short phrase all the trembling and tenderness of his youthful feelings, but the words traitorously stuck in his throat along with a nasty lump of fear soaked in the uncertainty of the future.
I want you, Kaeya wanted to exhale from the very depths of his lungs, releasing all the passion and desire held back for years, but instead, an almost shy question swayed in the air:
“Can I kiss you?” Kaeya smiled slightly, hiding his uncertainty behind his usual mask of mischief.
“What nonsense are you talking about!” Diluc pulled back, jokingly pushing Kaeya in the chest with his fist. Keya felt how a refusal pierced his skin with a red hot iron and spread out in crooked cracks, ready to reach the bleeding heart and tear it to pieces. He was already preparing to run away, to leave behind this locker room, and Diluc, and this city—and not turn around anymore, but at that moment Diluc continued:
“Of course you can.”
Kaeya's legs refused to obey him for a moment, and his head suddenly became completely empty, all thoughts left him, leaving only the last words he heard on repeat. He swallowed, peering into the scarlet eyes opposite and trying to find answers in them, studying the curve of his nose with a slightly upturned tip and the thin line of his lips, which formed into a soft, warming smile. Diluc's cheeks turned pink, and Kaeya couldn't stop thinking about how cute it was and how terribly cute the whole Diluc was, and also that now he could finally kiss him.
Their faces reached out to each other, and at the last second, Kaeya saw Diluc's eyelashes flutter before he closed his eyes. The slight contact of their lips sent an electric shock through him and threw him into an unusual heat. Diluc became accessible from the infinitely distant, his breath tickled Kaeya's cheeks, and his lips tasted sweet, so licking and biting them was an incomparable pleasure.
Kaeya's hands rested on Diluc's lower back, hugging him again and not wanting to let go. The way Diluc clumsily tried to respond to the kiss, gave rise to the desire to kiss him again and again. Kaeya ran his fingertips over the exposed skin, and Diluc softly, almost on the verge of audibility, let out a short moan.
More, thought Keya, and one of his hands moved higher, counting the vertebrae in turn, until it found its place on the back of Diluc's head and slightly tilted it to the side.
Kaeya would not have thought of rushing things into their first kiss if Diluc himself had not opened his lips, as if inviting further action. He couldn't believe the reality of what was happening when his tongue slid inside Diluc's wet mouth and began to insatiably explore it inch by inch. Caressing Diluc in this way was incredible, it seemed to Kaeya that he would never be able to stop, much less get enough of these sensations that Diluc caused in him just by being around.
Time in the whole universe seemed to stop, stretched out like viscous molasses, wrapping them in its arms. They were able to break away from each other only when there was absolutely not enough air. Their lips parted slowly and reluctantly, and they ached with the burning need to merge back together. Kaeya's heart was pounding wildly in his chest, happiness and excitement overwhelmed him—so intoxicating that it seemed to him that now he could easily move mountains and not even be out of breath. He looked down at Diluc and caught his gaze, full of the same adoration and delight that he felt himself. This gave him even more confidence, so he couldn't resist leaving another quick kiss on his reddened lips and then hearing Diluc's ringing laugh.
I love you, Kaeya didn't dare to say it again, but he wrapped Diluc in a tight embrace instead. In response, Diluc's head settled comfortably on his shoulder, and his arms wrapped around Kaeya's waist, as if he didn't want to let him go either.
“Let's go home,” Diluc said, and Kaeya was ready to follow him anywhere.