couples therapy: a chilumi fanfiction

chapter 10: it's airport food, it's all expensive

The next day passed in a blur, and before they knew it, it was Monday, and Lumine and Ajax were preparing to head back to Liyue.

After waking up again in Ajax's arms (and spending an additional hour just 'platonic' cuddling), Lumine had packed up her bags and gotten breakfast with his family. God, his family was adorable (with the exception of his father). She had already broken her promise about not falling in love with them.

"You promise you'll let us know how you're doing, ok?" Anastasia said, placing her hands on Lumine's shoulder. Lumine nodded. She had Anastasia's number in her phone, as well as Tonia's. "When do you two leave?"

"8pm tonight. It's an overnight train." Ajax commented in between mouthfuls of pancake.

Anastasia's eyes glimmered with mischief. "There better not be any grandchildren coming out of the train ride," she began, leading to Lumine choking on her drink. "I want them to be here on Sneznhayan soil, ok?"

"Mama, what have I said about the 'grandchildren' comments?"

The older woman rolled her eyes. "It's my mother's intuition. I have a good feeling about you too."

Your intuition isn't as good as you think it is, Lumine thought to herself.

Breakfast finished with little fanfare, and Lumine and Ajax had returned to their rooms to continue packing. His mother had sent them away with a comment that had stuck on Ajax's mind; "You're free to come home whenever you want." Where was his home? Glancing around his room, he was reminded of how much he had grown. He had lived in this room for the majority of his childhood, but he wasn't sure if he would call it 'home'.

His apartment was where he had been living for the past few years, and it had grown to become his space. That wasn't his home either.

His eyes eventually settled on Lumine. She had tied back the strands of hair normally framing her face so that they wouldn't fall in her eyes as he packed. The sun reflected off of her blonde hair, making it shine.

"You okay?" He had been staring, he realised.

"Yeah, all good. You packed?"

She nodded. "I somehow managed to fit all my clothes and the sweater your mother made me take."

"She only gives those to people she considers family, you know."

Lumine smiled with a faint pink blush, before her face fell. "What happens when we call this off?"

He turned to her with a look of confusion on his face. "What do you mean?"

"I mean..." she cut herself off. The unspoken question hovering in the air between them: how real is this?

Ajax smirked. "Don't worry about that Lumi. We'll cross that bridge when we come to it." He had traded in his sweaters for his classic 'f-boy' look, but he still had the bedhead of a boy who lived at home.

As Lumine ran to unplug her phone and grab her charger ( "I can't believe I almost forgot! I knew there was something." ), she suddenly heard Ajax swear. He was looking at something on his phone.

"Everything good?"

"The trains are on strike until Wednesday." He looked up from his phone, a grim expression on his face.

"Fuck." She placed her head in her hands, sitting down on the edge of his bed. "I really have to get that paper in for tomorrow, it's worth a lot ."

He considered the options. The drive would take too long, even if they left now, and Ajax's car was back in Liyue. With the trains on strike, there was really only one choice left. The fear in Lumine's eyes showed that she knew that too.