Birthday Gift | Kazuha x Reader

Birthday Gift | ONESHOT

Most librarians spend their day off with their friends, but that wasn't the case for you. Exposure to heat makes your skin itch, so you usually spend your break time in the air-conditioned library. You would either read some newly released books or study for upcoming exams. Today, however, is different. As you walked in the library, you saw a familiar figure sitting at the counter, right beside yours.

Ah, what was his name again? You wondered to yourself while taking another step forward.

"Kaedehara Kazuha. Kazuha is fine," the male said as he lifted his head to meet your gaze as if he knew what you were thinking.

He spoke in a soft and calm manner, not wanting to disturb those who were in the library at that time.

You cleared your throat and gathered up some courage before revealing your voice.

"Kazuha, are you sure you belong in this seat?" You shot him a confused expression. That was supposedly a seat reserved for librarians and ordinary students are strictly prohibited.

"You're not well informed, I suppose," Kazuha said as he closed the book in his hands. "I applied to be a librarian last week and got accepted."

A new librarian? You must be too engrossed in the book you were reading yesterday until you missed the announcement the president made. You simply brushed it off and took a seat next to the male and continued reading from where you left off.

Out of curiosity, you questioned his reason to be a librarian to which he responded, "Don't you agree it's easier to access the library when you're a librarian yourself?"

Right...

Not that you have the right to make comments on it. After all, that was your reason too.

While reading, you would occasionally glance over your book to see what Kazuha was reading. It's mostly poetry, centered around haikus.

He would help out when you meet troublesome students who kept saying they wanted to borrow a book despite not having a library card.

Those were the only times the both of you communicated. Other times, you would just spend your moments in total silence. It was surprisingly comfortable to be in each other's presence to the point you would forget about your class until Kazuha pointed out the time.

One time you asked to know more about Kazuha, but he gave you an unhelpful reply in return.

"You'd like to know more about me, you say? Well, as you see, I am but a high school student that you could have just run into anywhere."

He eventually told you a little more about himself, that's how you knew Kazuha was born and raised in Japan but attended high school here because of his parents' work. You had wondered if he was mixed judging by his name, turns out you were half-right.

Occasionally, Kazuha tells you tales of his hometown and you would share yours in exchange.

This went on from hours to days, days to weeks, and eventually, it was just 3 weeks away until the seniors' midterm examinations.

"y/n," Kazuha called out to you when you arrived, to which you hummed in response. "Do you have your math notes with you?"

"Well, it's in my locker but I can get it for you if you want?"

"That'll help a lot, thanks."

Without asking for a reason, you wore your shoes and went to take all your math-related stuff from your locker. Kazuha was your senior in terms of academics. It was only natural to revise the previous year's lessons for the exam.

It did not take long until you returned to the library.

"Here you go," you handed him your notebook and he accepted it gratefully.

You no longer see poetry books on the table now that Kazuha needed to focus more on his studies. Though, that did not stop him from writing one haiku per day. Sometimes you wonder what it was that he wrote, but he looked secretive about it so you dare not ask.

"Your notes are so simple," the male blurted out unintentionally. "It consists of only black and blue pens."

You stared at him in embarrassment. When he realized what he just said, he frantically apologized and told you to pay no mind to his words as he prefers it simple.

"It's just really unexpected. Simple and clean, unlike the girls in my class. Their notes are full of colors. It may be fun to read, but sometimes you get distracted and lose focus," Kazuha giggled to ease up the tension in the air.

You gave him an awkward smile before relaxing when you noticed him shifting his focus back to your notes. Although focused, he could still sense your gaze on him. But he did not make a comment on it.

-----

Exams are finally over and Kazuha returned with a successful result. He thanked you for lending him your notes as he returned your notebook.

"Thank you, really, it helped a lot."

"You're welcome...?" You're not used to receiving thanks from others, so you weren't sure of the response. Just when you were about to start reading another book the school just ordered, Kazuha signaled you to pay attention to him.

"I heard it was your birthday, so I wrote a haiku for you."

Where did he hear it from? Your friends? That might make sense since they often talk loudly in the corridor. That's one of the many reasons you never let them tag along with you to the library.

"Unfortunately, I'm not the most talented in this area, and after trying for several evenings, I was still only able to come up with the first two lines..."

You start to piece everything he did in the library together and realize, "Is that why you were reading so many poetry books recently?" You often see him read poetry-related books, but never that many until his debut as a librarian the other day.

"I guess I'll just share what I've got so far, then," Kazuha smiled softly as he closed his eyes. He took a deep breath before starting the first line, voice calm and soothing.

"Sun and moon rejoice

Birds of dawn sing songs anew"

He paused after the second line and you thought it's beautiful despite it being incomplete. Just when you were about to shower him with compliments, Kazuha spoke again.

"Wait, don't say a word, I think the final line is coming to me..." You swallowed your words and listened. "Yes, how about..."

"Far from home, with you."

You teared up. Kazuha's eyes widened in shock, wondering if he had said something to upset you. To clear up the misunderstanding, you explained.

"Well, no one has ever gone to this extent for me on my birthday. Not my friends, not my family."

Kazuha sighed in relief and chuckled. Not only did he not question further about your personal life, he knew just the place to let you enjoy your birthday for once.

"Anyway, Happy Birthday. Let's go and get you some cake after school, shall we?"

~~~~~

Thank you so much for reading, I hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoy writing for you! I tried to keep this simple and straightforward. I didn't want to make this too long because even I would get tired of reading too many words in one-go

ehe

Anyway, I got a hang of Twitter now so I finally got an account for posting Genshin Impact stuff, it's @linisnotlin and I would really appreciate it if you would support me there!

Thanks for the support! :D