Hopeless

The lab was quiet, as it often was. Neither of the alchemists were very talkative, so their days were often spent engulfed in their respective work.

The sun's out, Sucrose noted, setting her quill back in the inkpot. Perfect time to run some tests on my new sweet flower seeds. She stood up as gingerly as she could, careful not to disturb the peace.

"I'm heading out now," she murmured, hoping Albedo could hear her from his desk. She snuck a glance at him as she adjusted her hat and clasped her cape over her shoulders, and fell in love all over again.

How was it possible for someone to be so pretty? His long, fluttering eyelashes, his crystal-clear blue eyes, that blonde hair falling softly over his perfect face... was it as soft as it looked? Sucrose was tempted to reach out and stroke it, run her fingers through his long locks and cup his cheeks in her hands, and--

Cut it out, she chastised, feeling heat rise in her cheeks. This is highly inappropriate.

But it felt good, loving him. Even if he only thought of her as his apprentice, even if they were nothing more than boss and assistant, everything felt right in the world when it was just the two of them.

The door swung open, and Sucrose glanced back one last time like the fool she was. What was she hoping for, anyway? That he would ask her to stay, reach out to her, give some sort of hint he wanted her around?

He didn't.

Sucrose swallowed down her discontent and walked out the door.

Hopeless. She was hopeless.

When Albedo first asked for her to accompany him up to Dragonspine, her heart promptly did a backflip in her chest. Sure, Dragonspine wasn't the most romantic location, but it was quiet and solitary. It would be just the two of them up there, who knows what could happen?

She'd never been more wrong in her life.

"So, Captain Klee, where to next?" Kaeya asked with that devilish grin, hoisting her up onto his back.

Klee scrunched up her little face in deep thought, wrapping her arms around Kaeya's neck. "I wanna go to... the cave!" she declared. "I'm gonna catch all the crystalflies!"

Albedo chuckled. "If you insist," he said with a warm smile.

Sucrose trailed behind the three hesitantly, clutching at her heavy cloak and wiping snowflakes off her round glasses. Why did Albedo want to bring her along, anyway? She wasn't very good with children, and Kaeya was already more than capable of taking care of the little walking catastrophe that was Albedo's dear little sister.

She'd never seen Albedo smile like that. He looked like he was cradling the whole world in his hands like he was staring at a star. She didn't know Klee could inspire that kind of affection, but she supposed that was to be expected.

After all, Sucrose was a lonely person by nature. She never was good at deciphering the ins and outs of conversation, not to mention sarcasm and humor. Really, all she could coherently carry on a conversation about was her own research.

It was natural that she couldn't understand the kind of bond they shared.

Even so, seeing them up there, laughing and chatting and joking with each other, made the gaping dent in Sucrose's chest dig deeper into her ribcage. She wanted to be up there, a smile on her face, talking with the one she adored most.

But she couldn't. Deep down inside, Sucrose knew she didn't belong here.

So she pinned her gaze to the snowy ground and trudged on.