Chapter Text
It was late at night. Aether was treated and now laid peacefully on the mattress, breathing at a much more stable pace than before.
Paimon flitted around Aether, but soon announced that she was going to sleep. Xiao, however, decided to stay by Aether’s side; just in case something happened.
He slowly sat down on the mattress Aether was lying on; now that he was treated, his expression was much more peaceful. Now that only Xiao and Aether were in the room, he was hyperaware of every detail on Aether. Xiao couldn’t hep but edge a little closer to him; the moonlight basked onto Aether’s face, highlighting his jaw and cheeks, making him look serene and more beautiful than he already was. A few scars were littered across his arms and face, faded away over time. His long blonde hair flowed from underneath him and his face was relaxed. Xiao’s tensed demeanour melted, taking in the sight in front of him.
Xiao sighed and heaved himself up to go sleep on the sofa. Or at least, try to. His breath hitched when he felt a hand on his arm.
“No… Don’t go…” Aether pleadingly mumbled in his sleep. He pressed his cheek against Xiao’s wrist, his lips nearly making contact with his skin.
You don’t even know what you’re doing right now, do you? Xiao thought with a tinge of affection. Xiao contemplated about sleeping here for a while; it would be embarrassing if Paimon saw him, but…
Fine, he could sleep next to Aether. It wasn’t like he was going to notice anyway…
The next morning
Aether’s POV
He woke up, his eyelids squinting at the rays of sunlight that filtered through the curtains. Trying to sit up, a sudden pain clawed at his chest, forcing him to lay back down. Events from yesterday came spiralling back into his mind; Thoma’s vision getting stolen, challenging the Raiden Shogun to a duel… Then what? His mind was blank.
Aether shifted around on the bed, trying to get a better view around him. Where was he? He also noticed the bandages wrapped around his chest; so, he had gotten injured, most likely from the fight from the day before. He finally noticed a gentle grip on his left arm.
Who…? Is it Paimon?
Aether turned around and came face-to-face with the person none other than Xiao. His face immediately turned a deep shade of red when he realised how little the distance between them was- Xiao was basically cuddling Aether.
Too close…!
Trying to get more space, Aether accidentally nudged Xiao, waking him up.
“Hm…? Aether, you’re awake…” Xiao sounded half- asleep, his voice thick and his golden-brown eyes barely open.
“Y-yeah…” He stuttered. Aether tried to stand up, but Xiao forcefully pulled him down.
“No getting up yet. You’re still injured.” He spoke, his voice barely a whisper. Aether knew that there was no use convincing Xiao, especially when he was in a sleepy state like this. Aether sighed and laid down again, closer to Xiao than before. Every breath he took, he could smell Xiao’s scent; it was faint and slightly sweet, like the almond tofu he seemed to be obsessed with. The lull of sleep eventually pulled him under again, and Aether settled for a spot between Xiao’s arms; he was too comfortable to care for what may happen after.
“Heyyyyyy Aether~!” Came a painfully loud voice.
“Wake up, wake up! Paimon saw the time, it’s almost 11 o’c-” Paimon’s sentence was cut short when she saw the sight in front of her. Aether and Xiao, sleeping together. Aether. And. Xiao.
“Paimon, be quiet…” Aether mumbled and unconsciously buried his head deeper into Xiao’s chest.
“B-but… When did you and Xiao get together…?!!!” Paimon stuttered. This caught both men’s attention. Xiao sat up so suddenly he nearly fell.
“Who said we were?” He made his voice as defensive as he could.
“Uh… You know, Paimon’s feet are very sore from flying around yesterday, so Paimon’s gonna give them a wash!” She said hurriedly and flew off to somewhere.
“…”
“…”
She left Aether and Xiao in very awkward silence.
“…You should stay in the bed. You’re still injured.” Xiao spoke up.
“Yeah, I guess. Turns out that duelling the Raiden Shogun wasn’t as easy as I thought…” Aether scratched his neck.
Wait.
The Raiden Shogun…?!
“Aether, what in Teyvat were you thinking…?!” Xiao burst out.
“…Well, you see…. Uh… My friend Thoma got his vision stolen…” Aether mumbled sheepishly. Now that he thought of it, there were much more smarter ways he could have handled the situation.
“I thought you had just been ambushed by some sort of monster, but this?! You could have died!” Xiao was close to shouting.
“…”
“Do you know HOW worried I was when I saw you?! You nearly gave me a heart attack from the state you were in…!” Although Aether was slightly taller than the other, Xiao seemed to loom over him.
“Wait… You were that worried…?” Aether spoke, a hint of wonder in his voice.
“Why wouldn’t I be?” Xiao crossed his arms.
“…Never mind…” Aether seemed to be… Happy? Xiao was confused; what was making Aether happy?
“Hmph. If you don’t take care of yourself more, then next time, I won’t look after you.” Xiao knew this wasn’t true, but he couldn’t think of anything else to threaten him with.
“Got it!” Aether, for some reason, was grinning. Xiao just turned away, his cheeks slightly red and confused.
The next few days, Aether was making steady progress in getting better. However, he was still confined to his bed as his wound wasn’t fully healed yet. Xiao had given himself the responsibility of cooking and cleaning for Aether (Paimon had once tried to help, but after she nearly burnt through the frying pan’s bottom, Xiao had made sure that Paimon was always 10 metres away from the nearest source of fire). It was always raining now, so Aether couldn’t go out even if he wanted to; the weather was unpredictable. It was sunny one second, then rainy the next, as if it couldn’t make up its mind.
It was early in the morning. Faint rays of sunlight made its way past the tall, mountainous ranges, the sky clear and a hue of light blue. Faint chatter came from below, scents of food from stalls wafting around in the air. It was cold outside, but the temperature didn’t affect Xiao.
Xiao was keeping his distance from Aether, who was asleep inside. He didn’t know why but being around the blonde made his heat race; emotions were uncharted land for Xiao, so he had no concept whatsoever of what it meant. He didn’t like it, though. It made his stomach flip and his mind unable to concentrate on anything. Another thought kept on haunting his mind; why was Aether so happy when he heard that Xiao was worried about him…? It didn’t make sense. His thoughts were interrupted by a presence beside him.
“Hey, Xiao.” Aether smiled. He was bundled up in a thick blanket as to not catch a cold.
Oh… He’s awake.
“You shouldn’t walk around; your wounds will open up again.” Xiao frowned, not wanting Aether to injure himself any more than he should.
“Aww, are you worried about me?” Aether teased. He seemed to be in a great mood.
“Yes, I am.” Xiao deadpanned, his ears slightly red. Aether got really quiet and buried his head into his arms.
“…? Did I say anything wrong?” Xiao was confused at Aether’s reaction.
“No… I just didn’t expect you say that…” Even thought Aether’s voice was muffled, Xiao could detect a happy note in his tone. Just then, a snowflake, glistening in the sun, drifted down from the sky and onto Aether’s nose. It was soon followed by many more, some making contact with Xiao’s skin, making the yaksha shiver slightly. He wasn’t wearing a lot, dressed in his usual attire. Suddenly, he was enveloped in warmth.
“…!?” Xiao turned around and realised that Aether was holding his blanket around him.
“You looked cold, so…” Aether’s cheeks were dusted red.
Xiao responded by gently pulling the blanket closer to him until their shoulders were touching. They were silent for a while, watching the delicate snowflakes painting the landscape white and adding a fresh scent in the air.
He noticed that Aether’s cheeks and nose were pinched from the cold, the blanket hugging his face, making him look more innocent than he was.
…How cute. Xiao thought. He was so close to Aether, their faces barely millimetres apart. His daze was interrupted by a sneeze from Aether.
“Alright, inside now. I don’t want you to catch a bad cold on top of your injury.” Xiao gently pushed the blonde in the room where it was warm. Aether grinned and did a mock salute.
“You should worry less, I’m tougher than I look.” He pointed out; it was true.
That won’t make me stop worrying about you.
“I know, but still.” Xiao basically smothered Aether in his blanket, causing the other to laugh.
Paimon stuck her head out from behind the wall as discreetly as she could; getting on the yaksha’s bad side by spying on them was the last thing she wanted. After watching Aether and Xiao laughing together, Paimon snuck back to her room.
Are they sure they aren’t together…?