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It was a rainy evening in Liyue, everyone was in their own houses by the fireplace to warm up with a nice hot drink while relaxing due to the gentle pitter-patter of the rain. You rented a room in Wangshu Inn with the vigilant yaksha upon knowing that he had no place to stay under the troubling storm. At first he refused but after a while of persuasiveness, he decided to agree as long as it was his favorite dish. The warm, silky almond tofu under a blanket of semi-sweet sauce.
Due to the low humidity, you began sensing a tingling sensation by the inside part of your elbow. Unconsciously, you started scratching that part and your skin immediately turned into a shade of red. Even if it stings, the itchiness was still there. you couldn't help but scratch it more.
"(Y/n), don't do that!" your trusted companion quickly rushed over to your inventory and pulled out your emergency cream that may lessen the rash and itchiness of the area. A soothing cold sensation was brought upon the area where there was cream which made you sigh in relief. "We're almost out of the cream, Bubu Pharmacy is in the main city and we're rather far. Plus the rain isn't clearing anytime soon.."
Looking out the window, a cold breeze suddenly entered the room which made you shiver in fear. At times like these, you wanted to cuddle underneath a pile of blankets or wear an oversized sweater. But you can't since there is a specific type of clothing that could only be used so it wouldn't trigger your eczema. You walked over to the fireplace and lit up the firewood to generate fire that could warm both you and Paimon up.
Xiao was by the window, watching every droplet of rain fall from the sky with a shimmer of wonder present in his eyes. He outstretched his arms and watched the raindrops touch his hand like morning dew. Paimon looked at him too then switched her gaze to you, "Paimon thinks Xiao is cold. We should call him and let him stay by the fireplace too?"
You stood up and grabbed a towel hanging from the chairs by the dining table and gently placed it on Xiao's shoulders. The yaksha froze for a second before looking at you with a curious gaze, he gently brushed his hand against the cotton fabric. "...thank you.. for looking out for me" he mumbled and kept his gaze in the distant scenery by the window.
"We could always warm up by the fireplace, I promise I'll give you your personal space since you don't like people invading you" Xiao looked at the fireplace where he saw Paimon lying down on the floor in front of it, dozing off due to the warmth from the fire. He looked at you and nodded, "Great!"
The two of you sat down by the fireplace with Paimon dozing off in the middle of your positions. The crackles of the fire were the only one's heard from the silence between you and Xiao, it was somehow comforting yet awkward at the same time. At the corner of your eye, you saw Xiao's eyes were closed but still sitting in his butterfly position with the blanket on his back.
You wish you could also do the same but the area where Paimon applied the cream was starting to tingle and eventually itch with a burning sensation. You tried to disregard the discomfort it was giving you but you eventually gave in and started scratching the area which enhanced the stinging sensation, but still gave temporary relief from the itchiness.
While you were scratching, Xiao fluttered his eyes open due to the sound and glanced at your direction. His gaze softened upon the look of discomfort in your face, he slowly outstretched his hand to touch your shoulder and said, "Are you okay?"
You forced a smile so the yaksha wouldn't worry, but as soon as he saw the red area on your arm through the light from the fireplace, he quickly stood up and grabbed the eczema cream from your inventory. "I saw Paimon use this on you earlier. Wait for a moment.."
As soon as he squeezed the contents of the medicine, there was a little amount of cream that pushed out from the tube but that was it. Xiao stared at the little amount of cream on his finger and began gently dabbing it on the area where the rash was. He blew a gentle breeze on it as well since he knew how it stings as well.
"I'll be back" he stood up and took off the blanket that was on his shoulders and placed it on your head. His gaze then directed towards the window where he noticed the rain hadn't cleared up, worse is that it grew stronger after hearing a thunderclap. "You stay put alright..?"
Xiao grabbed his polearm and jumped off the window. You looked at the empty space next to paimon while clutching the blanket he had left for you before standing up and putting the cloth on top of the table. A white light suddenly flashed in the room as another thunder came rolling in, making you jump in surprise. You stared at the flickering fire by the fireplace and started dozing off yourself. The warmth of the fireplace as well as the comfort of the blanket was putting you into an instant state of sleep. So you lay down on the floor next to Paimon and dozed off.
On the other hand, the yaksha quickly teleported to the waypoint that gives a quicker way towards the Bubu Pharmacy. He stayed under the shade of the tree to avoid being drenched to wait until the rain clears up a little. Realizing that it wouldn't happen in a while and that you're already itching from the rash, he ran under the tremendous storm to reach the pharmacy.
Good thing the pharmacy was open even during these kinds of weather. Xiao quickly bought the medicine and teleported to the waypoint inside the inn. Verr Goldet offered him a towel to dry himself but he refused and just went straight to the room that you rented for the both of you.
Once the yaksha entered the room, he immediately saw you sleeping next to Paimon. He grabbed the towel that was on the table and gently placed it on top of you so you wouldn't get cold even though you're already warm due to the fireplace. Xiao also added more firewood since the flame was already flickering to the point that it would be dying soon.
Xiao then sat next to your space and outstretched his palm towards the fireplace to warm up. Droplets falling down his hair were staining his clothing wet as he wondered if he could dry up through the warmth from the fireplace. The medicine he bought was right beside him as he awaits for your awakening before dabbing the cream on your rashes.
You did wake up and was surprised to see Xiao hovering above you as he was adjusting the blanket that fell off when you stirred in your sleep. A cold droplet of water came in contact on your cheeks when he moved away from you, he muttered, "...sorry.." as he did so.
"Xiao, you're drenched!" You pulled the blanket away from you and began gently drying the male besides you. He didn't say anything, he just looked down on the eczema cream on his hands and fiddled with the cap. Once you're done drying him, you place the blanket on top of the chair to let it dry. "Where have you been anyway?"
The yaksha raised the eczema cream, "You don't have any medicine yet and I know how uncomfortable it is having the rash so I-"
You didn't let him continue his words and just pulled him within a deep embrace. The male froze for a moment before melting within your warm gesture. You know how it's hard to get out of the house during this kind of weather and Xiao really ran under the ferocious rain just to buy you the medicine.
"Thank you..."
When you pulled away, you stood up to grab an extra blanket from the dressers and gently picked your companion and gently carried her wherever you went. You snuggled next to the yaksha and placed Paimon on your lap as you wrapped the blanket on the both of you while keeping warm in front of the fireplace.
