You've begun to feel like home. Xiao x Aether.

Too close!

Another day has come to an end, and two boys were standing on their usual place – on the balcony of Wangshu Inn, watching the sunset and waiting for the moon to appear. The weather in Liyue during the winter was especially nice – not a single cloud was there, so every evening you could see shining constellations above your head. Aether never felt so calm and happy in his life – he enjoyed every single day with no exceptions. The blond especially liked the fact how their time with xiao started to feel like a usual occasion, in contrast to the period right after he arrived to Liyue. But the past stays in the past, and when thinking so traveler meant everything – his journey to Inazuma, the feeling of emptiness and loneliness, the constant arguments with the Yaksha. Everything seemed so bright and colorful the past few days, that Aether didn't even get the chance to think about his scar, even at night he felt more at ease – the nightmares, the pain, it all stopped. At least, that was how he felt.

Aether took his eyes of the soft pink sky and took a moment to look at Xiao – he stood there in silence, but it wasn't the tensed one, the one that burdens you, but the calm, soft silence. His eyes were looking straight ahead, however, for traveler it looked like he wasn't paying attention to the nature or the sunset – rather, the dark-haired boy was lost in his thoughts. The wind was blowing through his hair, which the Yaksha tucked behind his ears. His eyes sparkled, reflecting the soft colors of the sky.

"I wonder if he enjoys our time together as well. Sometimes, it feels like he gets lost in his thoughts more often than usual." – Aether remembered each time they went to complete the commissions together, there was something that kept bothering the blond, however, he didn't know how to ask this question directly. Most of tasks they were assigned to included talking to people, passing the messages, preparing dishes, and all of them Aether completed by himself with Xiao silently observing him from the side. However, every time they had to clear the camp of hilichurls or fight treasure hoarders, or defeat the ruin guard, Xiao left him and did all of the job by himself. That was an unusual thing to do, even for him. before his trip to Inazuma this had never happened – of course, sometimes traveler had to remind the Adeptus to trust his teammates and do everything in a team, but after that the yaksha usually did try not to do everything by himself. Now it was different -no matter how many times the blond complained about him going straight to the battle without waiting for the other, Xiao still never listened.

"Maybe he doesn't trust me like he used to, especially when he saw me during the storm..." – this annoying thought kept appearing in Aether's head every evening after completing all the commissions. But the blond knew that was not the truth – there was something else, something that keeps distracting Xiao from time to time. Moreover, Aether knew that the Yaksha wouldn't say something out loud if he didn't mean it, and he remembered that he said the night after the storm. –"Maybe it has something to do with his Karmic Debt. He never mentioned it, not even once during our time together. Should I ask him about it? but what if he doesn't want to talk about it?"

- Do we have a staring contest that I didn't know about? – Xiao asked sarcastically, only then traveler realized that he had been staring at the Yaksha this whole time. after this comment, the blond turned away sharply, hiding his read face from the other. – if you want to say something, say it.

"Here goes his usual annoyed tone..." – Aether thought.

- I was just thinking about something... It's nothing important. – the blond answered quietly, still not sure whether or not should he ask Xiao about his karmic debt. His eyes returned to the initial place – looking straight to the dark-haired boy, who raised his one eyebrow waiting for the other to continue. – I noticed that you never let me fight with you. Whenever we have a commission to defeat a monster you just run away and when I arrive at the place, you are already done with the job. – Aether tugged at the edge of his scarf with his fingers to hide the nervousness. – well, just now I was thinking whether it has something to do with your karmic debt. You know I am more resistant to it than the other people, but maybe you are still worried that it would affect me during the battle or something. – Aether raised his brows waiting for Xiao to say something in return. The other one closed his eyes for a second, probably thinking about the answer.

- It has nothing to do with my Karmic Debt, although, it is getting more difficult to control. – Aether's eyes widened.

"So, this is not because of it, but then, at the same time it does bother him more nowadays. Why haven't I noticed anything, is it the reason why he seemed so distracted lately? Ah, how oblivious I was to not think about it earlier, I should've thought about changing our usual plan for the day to avoid any battles. Especially as he still keeps fighting the domain monsters at night. But then again, why not just leave these commissions to me?"- Aether smiled sadly, looking at the wooden floor of the balcony.

- So, it is because you don't trust me with these commissions anymore. – the Yaksha suddenly opened his eyes in disbelief, as if he was shocked that this is the reason traveler came up with. – I don't blame you, after all, I do seem weaker after my trip to Inazuma... - and there the blond thought that the events from the nation of Eternity won't haunt him anymore.

- Is that what you thought? That I think that you're too weak for fighting? Tsk, stupid mortal. – Xiao wrapped his hands on his chest, now looking very angry at the other. – you've fought a dragon, defeated Osial and battled with the God of Eternity herself, and you still dare to consider yourself weak? Absurd. – although Xiao sounded so annoyed, these words flattered Aether, his cheeks started to get warmer no matter how hard the boy tried to calm himself down.

- But what is the reason then? – Xiao went silent, doubting whether he should tell Aether the truth about seeing his scar. However, the next opportunity to talk about it probably won't come. He signed healingly.

- I know about the scar on your neck. – That definitely wasn't the reasoning the blond was ready to hear. He blinked several times, trying to process how was it possible that the other had noticed it.

- What... But, how? - Aether unconsciously raised his hand to touch it, as if he was checking of its still there – unfortunately, it was. Most of the time he wore a turtleneck, so it stayed hidden, and the cape covered the rest of it on his back, so Aether was sure nobody would ever notice it.

- I saw it, – Of course, there was no comment on how the Yaksha could possibly notice it, and, even if Aether kept asking him about it, he wouldn't admit that he was watching him sleep at night. - Aether, it needs to heal. The elemental energy of electro is still present there, it is inside of you. It is dangerous to fight for you right now. – Xiao looked at the traveler with serious look on his face, hoping that the other would just simply nod in response. Of course, that didn't happen.

- But I am okay as long as the weather is nice! – Aether started making excuses, which only annoyed the dark-haired more. – and the weather in Liye is good during this time of the year! – the boy continued heatedly. – And my help is needed, I can fight perfectly! – on this note, Xiao wasted all the patience he had, he suddenly grabbed traveler by his shoulders and locked his gaze on him.

- Aether, nobody thinks that you are weak or helpless, you just need some time to heal. So, for a second, stop thinking about others, you won't be able to help them if you don't take a rest for now. – Aether went silent for a few moments, then he slowly nodded in response, acknowledging the point of the other.

- I understand now. – Xiao softened his eyes, satisfied that traveler finally agreed with him. But the second he calmed down; he noticed how close Aether's face was to his – in the heat of the small argument the Yaksha didn't even notice how he grabbed the other one and pulled him closer by both arms. He could basically see every eyelash on his eyes, count the moles on his cheeks, trace every small scar he had. Then, there were Aether's eyes – looking straight into his own with such softness, that Xiao could just get lost in them for eternity. They stayed like this for what felt like ages, not knowing what to do or what to say. Aether, on the other hand, was fighting his own feelings every second, trying not to blush too much for the other to notice. How did such serious discussion turn out like this? The blond already forgot everything that happened in the last hours, his mind went blank and there was only one thing swirling inside of his head: "too close!".

Finally, the mental torture ended with Xiao removing his hands from the other's shoulder and taking a few steps back, still without saying a single word. He turned his back on the blond and said something so quietly, that Aether could barely understand what he meant.

It's getting late, I must go. – at least that was the phrase Aether thought Xiao said, because after one second Adeptus disappeared from the balcony, leaving Aether standing there staring at the same spot and trying to process what just happened.