TUES DEC XX 10:02 A.M.
"Thanks for letting a stranger crash at your place." You said, looking over at Diluc who was driving you back to the vacation houses.
"Don't worry about it, it just means a favor will be owed." There wasn't much enthusiasm behind his words. He tapped his finger on the steering wheel along to the soft tunes that were playing in the car.
A favor? Oh, he said something about not asking for another favor the other night to Alhaitham when we all went out to Angel's Share. Those two seem to have quite an interesting friendship. You thought to yourself while tapping the back of your phone.
"Don't worry, the favor won't be returned by you."
"I'm sure you would've given me that same look you gave Alhaitham the other night if I was the one in debt."
Speaking of Alhaitham, he never responded to your text message from the early hours of the day. A part of you wished he hadn't opened the message at all while the other part of you wished he had responded. It would have been easier from the start had Diluc explained everything to him.
Though the world doesn't seem to function quite that easily.
If I'm going to tell him, I should probably do it today. Preferably over text and not face-to-face. Hah, I'm such a coward for that.
That was also another thing you were placing your hopes on, that he wasn't going to already be back at the vacation houses. When you saw him disappear without a trace after Piper version two showed up, it was clear that anyone would need space after seeing their trauma right there in front of them.
You gripped your phone while looking down at your feet, different scenarios playing in your head in case he was there.
"You know, you're reminding me of someone right now." The redhead broke your snowball of thoughts. There was a tiny smirk on his face, his eyes glistening with a tiny bit of interest.
"Hm, do I? Getting lost in your thoughts is quite a common trait."
He exhaled deeply, his grip tightening slightly around the steering wheel. "In return for not owing me a favor, you have to do something."
"You literally just said I don't owe you anything."
"I never said that. I said the favor simply wouldn't be returned by you."
It was your turn to sigh, turning your head slightly to face him. "What is it?"
The car came to a stop at the stoplight before the turn down to the vacation houses. "Do you like Alhaitham?"
If someone were to drop a piece of glass, the sound of its shattering would pierce through the thick silence that filled the car. The atmosphere felt a bit... too heavy to breathe in as if the question itself weighed a million pounds. To the few cars stopped beside them it seemed like you were looking at Diluc like he was stupid. Truth be told, it would be technically right that you were looking at him like he was stupid. But it was more or less because you were dumbstruck by his sudden question.
The light turned green, Diluc pressing on the gas pedal as you continued to look at him.
"With how long you're taking to respond to my question, I think I know the answer." He hummed in delight, a smile replacing the sly smirk on his face. "Don't worry, I won't tell anyone."
You closed your mouth as you pressed your lips into a thin line and curled your lips inwards to where they pressed against your front teeth. "Though that's why you have to do something since I would feel bad holding an owed favor against your head."
Isn't that just as bad as an owed favor?!
This is a devil in disguise, he's just as bad as Alhaitham! I see why the two are friends with one another.
"What would that something-in-exchange be exactly?"
"You're the one to explain what happened last night." He tilted his head to the side, his palm facing upwards with his finger pointing at you.
"Well I tried, but my phone died last night."
"Oh, you two have each other's numbers?" His interest in the topic picked back up in his voice. "He doesn't just give his phone number to anyone."
Beads of sweat started to roll down your face as you looked away from the redhead, focusing your attention on the dashboard. A few seconds had already passed for a decent answer to flow out your lips, so all that was left to respond with was a made-up story.
"Yeah, we exchanged phone numbers at the festival two nights ago. In case one of us got lost, you know?"
"And why would you have to worry about the other? Does this mean the two of you were alone together?"
"Stop asking questions!" You rushed the words out a bit loudly, feeling the warm tingle spread across your cheeks. Your hands balled into fists on top of your thighs, your phone resting slightly higher up on your thighs.
Diluc's small bits of laughter filled the car at your embarrassed state, your hair hanging over the sides of your face. "It's not funny."
"I'm such a horrible person." The sarcasm was clear as day in his voice. You pinched your nose at being stuck in the car with him, contemplating if it was even the right choice to let him take you back. Though this 'hell' would only last a few more minutes.
Thankfully it was just the two of you in the car. Diluc managed to get the two of you out of the house before the two peas in a pod woke up. They, mainly Childe, were up most of the night trying to keep Diluc awake. The ginger was doing it in spite of ruining the fun he was having with you, while Kaeya did it because Diluc was his brother.
Little did the two of them know he also had soundproof headphones, just like Alhaitham. The redhead also had a bookcase in front of his door knowing that Childe would attempt to barge into the room.
"So you'll explain last night to him then, yes?"
"Don't think we're on mutual terms. I feel like I've been backed into a corner."
"You can explain it to him or I can tell him you like him. Now, which one will it be?"
"You're holding a gun to my head."
"Maybe in an English idiom, yes."
Arguing with Diluc would become too exasperating as it felt like you were talking to a brick wall that keep reinforcing itself every second. "Fine. But you're my backup."
"Backup? Didn't you just say we aren't on mutual terms?"
"Archons if you weren't driving right now I would hammer a million words into your ear right now."
"Please don't, you would remind me of Alhaitham's lectures and endless overexplaining of everything."
"I want out of this car right now."
"Are you sure about that?"
"Yes, I'm sure about my answer. Why would you say..." You trailed off as you looked up at the windshield, seeing a few people hanging out on one of the porches. All the cars were present in each driveway, your heart tangling itself as your eyes were glued to Alhaitham's white car.
You turned to look at Diluc who put the car in park and motioned for you to get out. "I'm not a savior. Now go on."
"What am I supposed to say to my friends?" You shoved your phone into your back pocket, grabbing your bag from between your feet.
"Hm, maybe you should've thought of your cover story when you asked to stay at my place last night."
You groaned at the redhead who wasn't going to help you out in the situation. What a brat. As soon as you opened the car door, a familiar voice yelled out to you.
"(Y/N)! Welcome back!" You inhaled a sharp breath, your eyes finding your best friend waving her hand to you. Surrounding her on the porch were Dehya, Amber, and Cyno that were now looking at you. "Oh, and Diluc!" You closed the car door behind you, observing the porches on the other two houses to see if the rest of the group were outside.
It seems the four are hanging out at house number one today. Returning a small wave to the four, you jumped as the driver's side door slammed in an aggressive matter. You turned to see Diluc with an irritated expression as his presence was announced by Mona. His lips moved but no words came out. More than likely he was cursing Mona under his breath. He fixed the collar on his black button-up, an effortless sigh leaving his lips.
The redhead took the initiative and walked in Mona's direction. You followed behind him as the four awkwardly stared at you two. As if Mona's yelling was a cue of some sort, the front door opened while you and Diluc were only halfway there.
Nilou was the first one to walk out the door with Kaveh right on her tail. Your gaze was caught by Kaveh's as he narrowed your eyes at the two of you. Diluc raised his hand and did some sort of hand motion that made the blond relax a little. The hand sign made no sense to you but it was more than likely some sort of silent communication between the two.
Now, what about the cover story?
"(Y/N), I heard that you had quite an interesting time last night." Dehya was the first to speak, a grin smothered across her face. Diluc stayed at the bottom of the steps as you finished climbing them. You walked to your left to where the four were seated at. Mona and Amber were on the hanging porch swing while Dehya and Cyno sat in the plastic white chairs that faced the two girls on the swing. Nilou was nowhere to be found. She probably went back inside when I was too focused on Kaveh and Diluc's silent exchange.
A sheepish smile formed on your face as you nodded at the girl. "Yeah, it was something alright."
"You should've told us, we would've understood." Cyno pitched in with a subtle nod. Not helping!
"So, did you two catch up?" Amber beamed in, confusion dancing in your mind.
Huh? You turned to look at Mona with slightly widened eyes who sighed at your actions.
"She's asking about your brother dumbass. Remember, he came and crashed your little dinner last night? I'll agree though, it was a bit rude he did that." She formed a small finger-gun sign and pointed it up, tapping it to whatever beat was drumming in her head.
What kind of cover story is that Mona?! If only she could hear your thoughts.
"(Y/N) was just in so much shock that her brother came and saw her last night. Sorry that she didn't come back right away, her brother came and visited me too." Diluc pitched in, crossing his arms over his chest as he continued to feed the story with Mona.
"Yes, it was very shocking to find out my brother knew Diluc. We were just carried away with the time and before I knew it, I had fallen asleep. It was a splendid reunion." You added your false pennies to the fountain, the four nodding along to what you had to say.
On the inside, you were freaking out. Even if you wanted to introduce your brother to everyone, you would have to tell him about the unbelievable story beforehand. Otherwise the made-up night Mona thought up would go to waste as it would bring suspicion behind what truly happened last night. Though for a sibling to go along with the story, it would include some bargaining and favors that one side would try to get. Just thinking about trying to get your brother to be in on the fake story was already giving you a headache.
Though you had to give it to Mona for covering your butt. You would've given a poor piss story had it not been for her and raised suspicion to the others. That's what best friends are for, even if Mona decided to use the stars to tease you at times. Had it been Layla, she would've told everyone you probably fell into a food coma after eating and that you were rushed to the doctor. Mona's story passes by a bit better than Layla's.
"You'll have to introduce us to him sometime. You know, I still haven't even met this little brother of yours." You shot Mona a warning glare which made her snicker and raise her hands in defeat.
"If you'll excuse me, I need to get going. I have a date today." Diluc uncrossed his arms and started to go back to his car. Kaveh hurried down the steps and fell in step with the redhead as they exchanged hushed whispers with one another.
You watched the two men walk towards Diluc's car in the driveway. Alhaitham probably already talked to Kaveh about last night and now he's wanting to hear more from Diluc. It's to be expected.
I wonder if Diluc is going to mention to Kaveh how I managed to get tangled in all of it.
"How long have you been standing there, Alhaitham?" The mention of his name from Cyno made you jump slightly. You turned your attention to Alhaitham who was leaning against the outside doorframe.
"I've been here the whole time. I just decided to come out of the house, is that alright with you?" There was a hint of coldness to his sarcastic remark that felt like it could freeze over a small portion of the porch. Dehya sighed at the grey-haired male's attitude, Mona and Amber ignoring him as they exchanged small talk with one another.
"No need to be so cold about it. It was just one simple yes or no question."
Alhaitham remained silent as he was observing his two friends conversing in front of Diluc's car but stayed right where he was. It was like he already knew the answer wasn't going to be given to him. This meant the answer was going to be coming from you, but finding the right time was the tricky part. Another tricky part would be finding the courage to talk with Alhaitham alone as his body language matched the coldness in his sentence.
It would be pointless to try and spark a conversation with Alhaitham right now. He was too engrossed in observing his friends to feel the awkward atmosphere that was starting to form. Though, he was until he turned his head sharply in your direction. His gaze pierced through your eyes, another chill running up your spine at how his eyes held a pool of emotions.
One thing's for sure, he is pissed about being left out of the loop for what happened last night.
"Did you two have a good dinner before you were interrupted, at least?" Dehya asked, allowing you to break free from the harsh stare.
"He forced me to eat mushroom pizza."
Dehya's nose scrunched up at the mention of the food. "Was it bitter?"
"No, the mushrooms were freshly picked."
"They tasted a bit bitter." Alhaitham and you both answered at the same time. Alhaitham sighed, knowing that you would insult the food since he didn't give you a chance to order something else.
"Don't listen to her. (Y/N) ate a few slices without uttering an insult after protesting for a bit."
"It was do or die." You muttered while looking in Mona's direction, which was a huge mistake. She had her hand to her mouth, her shoulders shaking while looking away from you.
"That's okay Mona, we'll make you eat it next time too." You devilishly stated. Mona turned to look at you with horror as you had a forced smile printed on your face with closed eyes.
Dehya let out a burst of laughter at Mona's reaction, hitting the arm of the chair a few times.
"Mona seems to be in a bit of truffle if you ask me." Cyno's pun pierced the atmosphere, everyone turning to look at him with deadpan expressions. He raised one hand in the air with his palm facing upward while looking at the four of you. "What? Not funny?"
Dehya sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. "You're something else Cyno."
"Surely my jokes aren't too mold for you all."
"Alright, I think it's time we go with our activities for today. Nilou said it's a free day for everyone and probably tomorrow as well. But the last two days we will be prepping for the bonfire." Amber broke the starting comedy routine Cyno was starting to build up, standing up from the swing and stretching her arms. "Nilou, Collei, and I will be going out into town to let the officials know about the bonfire. As well as buying the stuff to cook and bake for the bonfire."
"(Y/N), Layla and I are going to the library in Mondstadt to read up on some things. Do you want to come?" Mona asked, getting up after Amber started to walk away.
You shook your head profusely, knowing exactly what they were going for. "I don't feel like being the outcast as the two of you discuss astrology like some nerds getting excited about a video game."
She rolled her eyes and scoffed. "Don't compare the two of us like that. Astrology definitely holds more interesting stories than video games. Well, see you then." She waved her goodbyes and went down the porch steps.
"Then maybe you want to come to play some TCG with Tighnari, Candace, Dehya, and me?" Cyno asked, your lip raising at the offer. It brought back the memories of the night at the bar and having to babysit Alhaitham afterward.
"Nuh-uh. I'll pass." You waved your hand in front of your face, Cyno shrugging his shoulders in response.
"Your loss." He got up from the chair, Dehya following behind him as the two went down the porch stairs.
All that remained now were you and Alhaitham. You could feel his gaze piercing the side of your head, your heart beating in irregular patterns at the growing anxiety in your stomach.
You could feel your arms shaking slightly, blaming it on your heart which felt like it was going to jump out of your chest at any second. Taking a deep breath in and turning to face Alhaitham, his attention was now turned to the blond returning to the porch. Diluc's car was backing out of the driveway then soon disappeared out of sight.
"Kaveh."
"What is it Haitham?" He asked as he made his way up the stairs.
"What did the two of you discuss?" He uncrossed his arms and pushed himself off the doorframe.
Kaveh's eyes flickered over to you momentarily before looking back toward Alhaitham. "It would be best not to discuss it here."
"You're coming with us." Alhaitham pointed a finger at you. It felt like a net was shot at you, trapping you right then and there. "Unless you want to go out to the library or play a card game?"
"No, I'll go with you two." You responded shortly, inhaling deeply as you followed the two men down the stairs. You stayed behind the two who didn't utter a word to one another before stopping abruptly.
Had it not been for digging your heels into the ground, you would've run into Kaveh. "What's the problem?"
"Which house are we going into?" Alhaitham asked the two of you.
"Kaveh's is vacant. Amber just went into the one I'm in." You stated, Alhaitham turning towards the middle house without missing a beat. Kaveh and you followed behind but you made sure to be last in line.
Dreadfully stepping up the porch steps and going inside house number two, you shut the door as Alhaitham made himself comfortable on the chair in the living room. For precautionary measures, you locked the deadbolt and doorknob in case one of the other three in the house wanted to intrude. This would give enough time for whatever conversation was going to stir to come to a halt and for everyone to collect themselves.
Kaveh sat on the love couch, leaving you no choice but to sit on the couch across from the television. Kaveh's house was similar to the one Alhaitham was staying in, except for the color of the furniture. Instead, the furniture set was dyed black but you couldn't focus on the surroundings around yourself as Alhaitham addressed the elephant in the room.
"Is someone going to explain what happened or am I going to be left in the dark?" Instead of his signature posture, he was leaning forward with his elbows on top of his knees, his clasped hands supporting his chin.
"Are you sure you're okay discussing them Alhaitham?" Kaveh asked while looking over in your direction. He had every right to be cautious as to him you were someone that was an outsider to all of this.
"If I didn't want (Y/N) here, I wouldn't have asked her to come with us." You didn't ask! It was more or less me, the prey, being trapped by the hunter, you!
Kaveh sighed as he leaned back, crossing one leg over another as his foot rested sideways on his knee. "Diluc only told me about Callie being arrested. Why didn't you tell me she approached you at the festival?" Concern was spread throughout his question, his eyes wavering.
"I didn't want you to have to help me out again."
Kaveh facepalmed himself at the blunt answer, holding back a groan that instead was an exasperated sigh. "Alhaitham, I don't know how many times I have to repeat myself. It was my fault Callie ever met you, I shouldn't have helped her at the Lantern Rite back then. It doesn't bother me to help you in a situation like that. That girl traumatized you too much and it was my fault."
"How were you supposed to know a young lost girl would turn out like that?"
"Were you afraid to ask for my help?"
Alhaitham remained quiet for a while, his gaze dropping to the ground. Kaveh got his answer without an audible response, another sigh filling the silent room. "I told you that it doesn't bother me–"
"Relying on others for something you're afraid to confront hurts. Doesn't it make you feel vulnerable? Embarrassed? I didn't want to experience that again, that's why I didn't ask for your help Kaveh." Kaveh's mouth remained open as the grey-haired male cut him off. Alhaitham sat up and leaned back into the chair, mimicking Kaveh's pose.
The air in the room felt like it could explode at any wrong ushered word or phrase. The silence started to wrap itself around your neck, ready to suffocate you at any point if something were to go wrong. Alhaitham turned to look at you as so did Kaveh, the two waiting on you to speak on the subject.
"I don't remember clearly what Diluc told me because I was in too much shock, but all I remember is something about someone being harmed. Again, who was it?"
"What?!" Kaveh exclaimed a bit too loudly as he sat up while keeping his gaze glued to you.
Diluc did tell him it was me but Alhaitham probably had too high of an adrenaline rush to remember clearly. You tapped your forearm with the answer caught in your throat, but you knew if you didn't say anything it would make him grow impatient and potentially angry. "The person ... wasn't harmed. She attempted to, but the knife never punctured me." You kept your gaze glued onto the coffee table, afraid to see either of their expressions.
"Thankfully Childe came and stopped her with Diluc and the cops right behind him."
"Why were you with her?" You clenched your jaw at Alhaitham's cold question. Kaveh remained silent as he knew better than to interrupt the interrogation.
"She was going to chase after you had I not stopped her."
"That was extremely careless of you to do that. You already knew what her vibes were from the festival."
"And what was I supposed to do? Just let her chase after you and cause you more trauma?! No! Besides, everything was already set into motion the moment I stepped foot outside the tavern." You couldn't help but raise your voice as you looked Alhaitham dead in the eye, ignoring the scowl he was giving you. "The reason she attacked me was that I told her I didn't want to intrude on someone's past that didn't feel comfortable telling me themselves." There was another emotion trying to bubble inside your stomach, though you ignored it as you tried to keep your cool.
Alhaitham shifted a bit in the chair, uncrossing his leg and sitting up. "What if Childe and Diluc weren't there?"
"Then I guess I would've come out with an injury. Better me than Callie going after you."
"Do you hear yourself right now?" Alhaitham was the one to raise his voice, but it didn't make you back down.
"Do you know how worried I was the whole time I was following her to the empty part of Mondstadt? The only thing that I thought about was your safety Alhaitham. I didn't have my phone on me and even if I did, there was no way I could've called for help."
An irritated sigh left his lips at your answer. "You didn't have to poke your nose into my business." The new bubble of emotion began to swirl inside your palms, your lips pressing into a thin line.
Kaveh's eyes widened at Alhaitham's frustration, realizing what was about to happen. "Alhaitham. She has a point."
"Kaveh."
"Alhaitham. Don't be like this."
"What do you want me to be like then?"
"She's arrested. She's behind bars and out of your hair." You interrupted the argument, feeling the familiar glare piercing through you.
"Stay out of this (Y/N)." Alhaitham harshly said. Your hands clenched around your forearms, trying to contain the frustration Alhaitham brought upon you.
Kaveh's fist clenched at his friend's cold tone. "Do you even hear yourself right now Haitham?!"
"I can hear perfectly fine."
"Don't be an ass to her! At least be thankful she helped get Callie caught!"
"I didn't ask for any help."
"You don't have to feel in debt to someone because they did what they thought was right." Your tone was low as your gaze hardened at Alhaitham. Come on, say something arrogant. I dare you. That's what your eyes were screaming to the grey-haired male who was returning the same look.
"It would have been better from the start if I didn't go on this trip."
"You would've been in more danger had you done that." You swallowed the ticking frustration down your throat, tapping your thumb against your forearm rapidly.
Alhaitham's jaw clenched, holding back a rude remark. Instead, he let out the usual answer rather than the short one he wanted to throw. "Why would that be?"
"She had a tracker on your car Alhaitham. That night that ex-psycho roommate of mine lashed out at the party is when Callie placed the tracker on your car." It was as if someone dropped a two-ton truck onto Alhaitham, his eyebrows parting as his face filled with shock and fear.
"She did what?" Kaveh ushered the words out in a whisper, not believing the words that came out of your mouth.
"Callie was arrested on these three charges. One, for violating her restraining order that was put into motion when you were fifteen. Two, an attempted assault against me. And number three, for acts of stalking." You raised one hand and put a finger up at each number. "She isn't going to see daylight for a while, and the attempted assault made it worse for her. Even though my safety was at stake, it was a good thing."
"Don't make light of that situation (Y/N). You could've seriously gotten injured." Kaveh pitched in but you shrugged your shoulders.
Alhaitham remained silent as he was looking at the wooden coffee table, his hands clasped together once more. There were probably a million thoughts running through his head, scenarios, what ifs, what could have been, and more that seemed to be all crashing onto him.
Your sighs seemed to be a meal to the air by how often you were doing it. "I will not apologize for my actions last night because my number one priority was to keep you safe Alhaitham." That sounds like a love confession. The thought shot through your head but you ignored it.
I think telling him about the tracker was too much but it slipped out of my mouth because he was starting to rattle my nerves. But he knows the truth about what happened, all of it.
You and Kaveh sat in deadly silence, Alhaitham leaning back in the chair once more. He put his hand over his eyes and slouched down in the seat.
"None of this would have happened if we didn't go out that night (Y/N)."
"I told you we didn't have to go out after asking." Is he trying to blame this on me? Callie was bound to pull that shit regardless!
"Alhaitham, don't blame her. You heard what she said, that crazy bitch put a tracker on your car!"
"If you had given me space after I told you to leave me alone, this situation would've been avoided. Do the words leave me alone not atone to you, (Y/N)?" He was referencing the texting conversation in the early afternoon yesterday. This caused you to bite the inside of your lip at realizing persisting him yesterday after he wanted to be left alone could have been a bit overboard.
"Then you shouldn't have responded to me."
"It was extremely hard to when you blew up my phone."
This caused you to throw your hands in the air. "You didn't have to answer!"
Alhaitham's face stiffened, his jaw still clenched. "You don't seem to understand when someone wants space. Are you foreign with that concept?"
You inhaled a deep breath and let it out slowly, trying to contain the anger that was begging to be let out to run its performance. "Fine. Then I won't text you unless you want to be texted."
The words that left his mouth were those that you never imagined hearing.
"I've already blocked your number. Get out of my sight." It felt like you were thrown off a building, the cold feeling spreading throughout your body like wildfire. Your heart dropped to the bottom of your stomach as the silence that threatened to suffocate you earlier began to wrap itself around your throat. Tears threatened to escape the corner of your eyes.
"What the fuck Alhaitham? This isn't like you!" It was useless for Kaveh to pitch in and try to stand on your side as Alhaitham had long blocked out the blond.
A wave of anger washed over you as you stood up, your eyes burning into Alhaitham's. "You're a real fucking prick, you know that? Genuinely, fuck you. I can't believe I even had feelings for you, you asshole." A tear escaped your eye, more following behind. His cold glare disappeared at seeing your tears as he stood up.
"Wait!" Though it was useless this time to even try to grab your attention like yesterday. You already were at the door with your bag thrown over your shoulder, your house key in hand. Furiously unlocking both doorknobs and throwing the door open, you marched out of the house without taking a glance back.