couples therapy: a chilumi fanfiction

chapter seven: in which Ajax is a big, fat, cheater

"Are you sure you're ok with going? I mean, you literally met the guy a month ago." Mona questioned Lumine for the tenth time that morning.

"Yes, Mona. It'll be fine. He's a decent guy." Lumine placed her laptop in her backpack before standing up.

"I still think he's a bit of an arse-"

"I'm not going to disagree with that. But still," Lumine paused, unsure how to vocalise her feelings for Ajax. He was interesting, fun, even a bit comforting. "I'll be fine."

"Alright darling, if you say so. Want to hear your horoscope for the day before you go?"

She checked the time - she still had 10 minutes before she had to leave. "Sure." Mona brought out her phone, and pulled up the app she used to 'read the stars'.

"Alright... ' Today, take a risk. The stars are in your favour for romance- ooh YES darling - but be aware; you might be thrown into an unexpected situation before you are ready.'" Mona smirked. "Well, it looks like you're in for an interesting weekend."

Lumine didn't know what to say to that, so she grabbed her suitcase and backpack, gave her roommate a hug, and headed out to the train station. Snezhnaya was much colder than Liyue at this time of year, so she wore a warm coat with some small boots.

By the time she had reached the station, there was still 30 minutes until boarding. Ajax was already there, waiting for her. "Hey girlie," he smiled, leaning over her slightly as she walked up to him. "Ready to go?"

She nodded. "Ready to see your family?"

He grinned like a small child. "Yep! It's been a while, I missed them a lot."

Silence overtook the two of them until it was time to board. "I can't believe you bought first class tickets, Ajax. No one needs plush seats with fine dining on a train."

"You're right, no one needs those things. But they sure are nice." They quickly reached their compartment, where two seats sat facing each other.

As the train left the station, Lumine brought out her laptop. "I just have an essay I want to edit," she said as Ajax looked at her curiously. Ajax nodded, and reached down to his own bag.

After around a solid five minutes of editing, she heard the ever-so familiar music of a certain video game. She shut her laptop and looked over at Ajax, who had just finished setting up his Switch. "Is that Mario Kart?"

"You play?"

"Do I play? I'm amazing at it." Growing up, she played it on the Wii with Aether. Once she moved into residence, she quickly became the queen of Mario Kart in her building. She had never lost a single match. Ever.

"Yeah, right. You do know I played competitively in high school, Lumi?"

She raised an eyebrow. "What kind of school offers competitive Mario Kart as an extracurricular?"

"You would be surprised. Anyways, you down for a round?" Lumine nodded, picking up one of the controllers. When it came to character selection, it had to be Rosalina for her. Ajax, on the other hand, chose Bowser. Fitting, Lumine thought.

As the race began, there was a noticeable shift in the atmosphere. Lumine and Ajax were both extremely competitive people. They both desperately wanted to win. Which meant that at that moment, the other was the enemy.

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"You FUCKER you had to be cheating!" Lumine threw her remote down in anger. One point. One fucking point between herself and ultimate victory.