maid • kaeya

xliv

• third person •

Kaeya's gaze wandered quietly as he watched Adelinde walk off to get some snacks for (Y/N)'s aunt.

But for some reason, the moment her aunt was left alone, she immediately began to pace.

Kaeya's head tilted in curiosity. But then, Lucien looked up.

Kaeya's face fell flat when he accidentally made eye contact with her this time.

And then, she began to come up the stairs.

"Uh..." Kaeya shuffled on his feet awkwardly when she simply stood in front of him.

"What's your name? My name is Lucien," she greeted, her voice warm.

"K-Kaeya." Kaeya lowered his head a little. "It's nice to meet you, uh, Miss... (L/N)..?"

A small giggle escaped her. "You can just call me Lucien. It's very nice to meet you too, Kaeya." She smiled warmly. "Are you (Y/N)'s... boyfriend?"

At that, Kaeya's face instantly reddened. His pupils darted away for a moment, his lips pursing. "It's... complicated. Don't tell her I said that."

Lucien beamed. "I see. Do you think..." Lucien glanced at the bedroom door closed before them, "she will let me talk to her..?"

Kaeya's expression softened a little. "She's not as feisty as you might think she is. She just has a lot of walls built up around her fragile heart."

Lucien nodded thoughtfully. "Thank you, Kaeya. That is very helpful."

Kaeya gave her a small smile, before Lucien knocked on the door to (Y/N)'s room.

As expected, there was no reply. They could hear the sewing machine inside.

"(Y/N)..?" Lucien called quietly. "It's... Auntie Lucien... Hehe, it might take me some time to get used to that."

"Can I talk to you? I promise your dad isn't here. It's just me."

There was a few moments of silence. Lucien and Kaeya shared a solemn glance, before, to their surprise, the door opened ever-so-slightly.

Kaeya couldn't help his smile when Lucien's lips rose into a sparkling beam. She nodded at him in thanks, and then disappeared into the room.

(Y/N) simply stood behind the door when she closed it behind her, staring at the floor.

"Hi..." Lucien waved, her voice wavering just a little. "I'm sorry. Everything happened so quickly yesterday that I didn't get a single chance to speak to you..."

Her breath shook, making sure not to get too close. "You know, I was more nervous to meet you than to see your dad again." She giggled. "It pains me to think about how I couldn't watch you grow up, but... I can see you've grown into a beautiful young woman. You know, you look exactly like your mother did the last time I saw her."

(Y/N) didn't say a word. She wiped her eyes with her sleeve, sniffling. Suddenly, she had no idea what to say. She had been so rude... avoiding her...

"Do you want to talk about... what's making you hurt inside..?" Lucien asked quietly.

(Y/N) shook her head.

Lucien smiled softly. "That's okay. Let's sit."

Gradually, (Y/N) guided her towards the bed. Lucien only sat after her, her gaze still so warm and so gentle. (Y/N) could still barely even look at her.

Auntie Lucien was very soft-spoken. Even more than her dad. (Y/N) almost couldn't believe that this was the same girl who stood up to her dad's parents, who pointed her sword at them.