EN | An encounter she will never forget | ᴄʜɪʟᴜᴍɪ

31 - The beginning of a tough day

"Lumi! You remember our promise, don't you? I hope you won't forget it!"

"Who do you think I am! Of course I remember! But I refuse to keep it..."

"Lumi, you promised! Do you know what happens to people who don't keep their promises? They get eaten alive by the big bad monster!"

"The big bad monster doesn't even exist!"

"Well, that's not so sure... Anyway, I've already explained to you countless times the reasons for this promise."

"Maybe, but this is so unfair! I couldn't..."

"I refuse to be a burden."

"But..."

"Please Lumi, don't make me repeat myself... So, what was the promise?"

"...If we ever get separated, I don't have to look for you for more than a year..."

"You see, when you put your mind to it! I count on you to never forget!"

_________________________

Lumine woke up with a start, panting like never before. Her whole body ached, her heart pounding in her chest, and her throat burning with every breath she took.

Why did that damn promise have to come back to me now?

Tears flowed unabashedly down her cheeks, soaking the comforter she was clutching fervently. As she burst into tears, she felt Childe's strong arms around her shoulders in a reassuring way as he laid his head on her shoulder. He didn't speak, or at least Lumine couldn't hear him. She was too busy going over and over in her mind that promise Aether had forced her to make. How could she forget? She had no idea. But now she knew she could never get it out of her mind, and that it would haunt her more and more each day.

One of her hands clutched Childe's arm, digging her nails into his skin with all her might to express not her sadness, but the anger she felt toward her brother.

Go to hell Aether. 

❆ ❆ ❆

The next morning, Lumine woke up even more tired than when she went to bed. Ever since she remembered that promise in the middle of the night, she'd had the worst time ever going back to sleep, and when she did, she'd wake up just as fast because of her pent-up anger that just wanted to be vented.

Feeling Childe still asleep next to her, while holding her close, Lumine felt guilty towards him for the night she had made him live, waking up with a start every two seconds. She gently moved away from his embrace while making sure not to wake him up to get into a sitting position.

Seeing the sun beginning to peek through the curtain, the Traveler thanked the world that the night was finally over. But alas, Lumine wasn't out of the woods: she had to survive the day that was just beginning.

She had really hoped to be alone for this simple day, but fate had decided otherwise. When Childe had told her that they were going to be with his family on this special day, Lumine had thought that it would be okay, that she would just have to forget about it. However, now that the d-day had arrived, her confidence that she would make it through the day unscathed was slowly fading.

She was exhausted. Not so much physically, but psychologically and morally. All she wanted to do was get as far away from everyone she knew as possible, and scream until her voice stopped her from continuing.

But instead of doing that, here she was, in a loving family, where she had to keep up appearances.

She couldn't take it anymore, she wasn't going to be able to act any longer. She wanted to hit something, something that would hurt her preferably, to get her out of her thoughts that inevitably fell back to him. Knowing full well that she wasn't going to have the luxury to do it, she would at least like to be content with the solitude to feel downhearted without anyone coming to try to cheer her up with comforting but empty words.