Lisa had led you through the tavern and towards Jean. She was talking with a shorter brunette with long hair. Judging from her attire, she looked like she was part of the knights. "Y/n, this is Amber, outrider of the knights of favonious; Amber, this is Y/n. She just moved here" Jean smiled
"Very nice to meet you Y/n!" She gave you a nice smile. You could tell she was outgoing, and the welcoming aura she gave off made you flustered. "Nice to meet you, too" You said, giving her a shy polite smile. Amber chuckled, thinking you were cute.
-
Surprisingly, things were going well, at least that's what you thought. Nobody new has really came up to talk to you, but you weren't complaining. You were talking with Amber while Jean and Lisa were having their own conversation. Amber was sweet and funny, you were telling her about how you loved Mondstadt so far and even let her know to stop by your bookstore.
As you were chatting with Amber, you couldn't help but feel that someone was watching you.
You finally start taking in your surroundings, and much to your dismay, your eyes then meet a pair of familiar red ones. It was that same man you had slammed into yesterday, and he has been keeping an eye on you from the moment you entered the tavern.
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As soon as your gaze meets his, you quickly look away, feeling the heat rush to your cheeks.
'HE DIDNT EVEN BOTHER TO LOOK AWAY WHEN HE REALIZED IVE CAUGHT HIM STARING'
"Y/n, are you okay? Your face is a little red" Amber asks. "H-Huh? Oh no, I'm alright! J-Just a little hot in here is all" You nervously chuckled, quickly reassuring her that you were alright. "Oh, well why don't we get you a refreshing drink to cool you down a bit?" Amber happily suggests. But before you could oppose, she grabbed your hand and led you towards the bar.
"Good evening Master Diluc!" Amber cheerfully says while taking a seat.
So that was his name.
You followed her action and sat down as well, realizing it was too late to get away. "Evening" he stoically replies. Diluc was wiping away some cups and setting them down behind him. You took this chance to take in his appearance
He was wearing a white vest layered over a black dress shirt. The vest seemed to hug his torso, hinting at his fit figure. He had a black tie around his neck and was in his same ponytail, only, it was tied a bit higher. This man couldn't get even more handsome
He finally turns around and looks at Amber. "What can I get you?" He says.
"One dandelion wine please!" Amber smiles cheerfully at him. Diluc then goes to get her drink ready without replying. It was quite funny watching two different types of personalities clash in the interaction.
You sat there a little awkwardly, wanting to say something but too scared to even speak out. Besides, not once did he look at you the entire time you came towards the bar.
"And you?"
While you were lost in your thoughts, Diluc has already finished making the drink for Amber. You look up to find Diluc looking at you, awaiting your reply.
"Actually uhm...do you have anything other than alcohol?" You hesitantly asked. "I don't really drink..." you quietly muttered, a bit embarrassed to say the last part. You were quite shy about admitting you didn't drink alcohol. Really, you didn't drink alcohol because of how lightweight you are. The world does not need to see you when you're drunk. The last time you did, you ended up crying your eyes out to some random stranger as your so called 'friends' laughed at you.
Plus, you just don't like the taste.
Diluc thought that it was convenient for your dislike in alcohol. There were tons of people who didn't like alcohol, but he didn't know any in Mondstadt who didn't choose it as their drink of choice. One of the things the people of Mondstadt were known for was their love for alcohol. After all, other than it being the city of the wind, Mondstadt was also known for Angel's Share.
"We have nonalcoholic options, like grape juice" he nonchalantly recommends. Grape juice? Now that you think about it, you don't think you ever even had grape juice, not even once. "I'll just take that then, please" you politely ask for.
"So, Y/N, what brings you to Mondstadt?" Amber asks, trying to start another conversation with you. Unbeknownst to Diluc, he started listening keenly. "Oh y'know, just always wanted to settle down to a more calmer place." You smiled. In truth, you loved Inazuma, especially the scenery. What mostly made you want to leave was the people.
As you grew up, many of your friends grew distant towards you. You figured they might've been embarrassed to be seen around you, or they might've been bored hanging around you since you didn't like going out much. Much of your close friends leaving you caused you to overthink a lot, even over small things.
You started adapting towards your isolated social life. You actually enjoyed spending time by yourself, it was just embarrassing when you would find some old friends hanging around together, so you would quickly hide to the nearest corner to avoid being seen by them. Amber noticed you visibly tense up at the subject. Luckily, Diluc placing your drink on the counter interrupted the silence.
You take a sip of the grape juice, buying you time to try to think of something to say.
"Amber, could you come here for a moment?" Jean called for her.
"Coming! Sorry Y/n, this'll take me a bit. Will you be alright?"
"Ah - Of course!" You put on a forced smile, trying not to sound too upset at the fact that you'll be left to deal with this man.
You sit there awkwardly while Diluc begins to prepare another drink for someone else. You couldn't help but observe how he prepared it —
"Care for more?" Diluc said.
"No thank you sir, I'm actually about to head out... but thank you for the drink" you give a kind smile, placing down some mora on the counter. "Just Diluc is fine." He mentioned, not really keen on 'sir'.
"Right." You said a bit awkwardly. Diluc raised his eyebrow warily at your off behavior, but only figured it was because you were kind of timid. Giving him one embarrassing 'bye', you quickly left the tavern to save yourself from making yourself look any weirder.
