𝙄'𝙡𝙡 𝘽𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙠 𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙄𝙣𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙖𝙙 • (𝙈𝙤𝙞𝙧𝙖 2) 𝙑𝙚𝙣𝙏𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝘼𝙐

𝘾𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙩𝙚𝙧 3

She changed.

Lumine had stripped herself clean of her nice and polite attitude when doing commissions. She refused to rest or even let anyone help her. She always did it herself.

She now snapped at anyone and everyone who questioned her strange behavior. It was "I'm fine! Leave me alone!" This and "I don't need your help!" That.

Over the course of a few weeks, Lumine became more nasty and rude to anyone who she wasn't helping. Her brother and Venti (along with the Knights of Favonius and the Adventurers Guild) were no exceptions.

Venti took most of the hit for the team.

He was the one who wanted to help her the most and Lumine yelled back at him twice as much.

"No, Venti! I don't need help from anyone. Especially not from someone like you!"

"Stop pestering me! You're distracting me from ignoring you."

"Who wants your help?! You're a lazy little shit anyway!"

Maybe the last one was true. But it still felt like a cart was hitting Venti at full speed. At least 100 times.

That's how much it hurt him.

It also pained him to accept the fact that he had fallen for her. He had a few months ago but seeing her in such a state made them come back even stronger. What did that make him?

Masochistic? Sick? Completely normal?

He didn't know. And it haunted him every night. He'd have nightmares that never seemed to end about voices teasing him for falling for someone who changed so drastically in a few days. One of the voices was Lumine. She kept calling him names, names that not even Venti had thought Lumine had the courage and respect to call him. When the sun came up, Venti would look like he hasn't slept a wink the night before. Completely derived of energy, he would sit on the couch or stay in his room all day and just cry.

Lumine hurt him to the point he would actually wish to be mortal so he could end his humiliation. Yes, that kind of ending.

It wasn't until a few months later, near March, that Lumine seemed to revert a little bit back to her normal self. She was still rude, but she softened.

And within those months, Venti had fallen even harder.

Aether was his wingman the entire journey. It made Venti feel grateful to have him as a friend. Aether hadn't changed a bit the entire time Lumine acted sour. It didn't make sense. Why fall for someone who's treated you like trash than someone who has been with you and suffered with you the whole time, but they took care of you when you fell?

Venti decided to settle this once and for all. He was going to confess to Lumine in front of the fountain in Mondstadt City. Aether handed him a bouquet of windwheel asters and gave him a thumbs up.

"You're going to do great, froggy prince! Go get your princess!"

"Pfff stop that, Aether. You already know you're also my prince." Venti paused and caught what he said before turning red. "Uh- no homo though. Hehe."

Aether snickered at his joke and fixed Venti's bowtie before giving him a quick hug for good luck.

And off he went.

__________________♡___________________

Lumine was standing there, arms crossed and looking around impatiently near the fountain. Venti looked at Aether, who disguised himself in the crowd of people in the plaza.

Venti took a deep breath and emerged from the building he was hiding behind.

"Oh. Venti. Are those for me?" Lumine pointed to the flowers in his hands. Venti shyly hid behind them and nodded, holding them out for her to take.