Xiao x Aether School AU

Meeting

Xiao's POV:

I'm getting ready for my new school, I have packed everything and my sister Hu Tao is bugging me like we will die if we don't leave 20 minuets early, "I GET IT HU TAO SHUT THE FUCK UP!" Jeez could she be more annoying. We start to walk to school together and see many fights when we get in, I didn't know how violent this place was.

-------------------------------------time skip into class------------------------------------------------------


I arrive on time to my class as even though I left early I had gotten lost many times, the teacher directs me to sit next to a blonde haired boy at the back. I notice that he looks like he's been beat up but I don't say anything because it seems that there are many fights that go on here. The boy puts his head down on the table and it looks like he's crying slightly. I gently tap him on the shoulder and he flinches looking up and smiling at me, he's definitely been crying and his eyes are puffy. "You alright?" I ask and he nods.
"Yeah I'm fine. You must be the new kid, my name is Aether! What's your name?"
"My name is Xiao, what happened to your face?" I don't know why I asked that, it just came out.
"Oh I walked into a lamppost on my way here" Aether chuckled. Why was he lying, it was so obvious?


Aethers POV: 

Shit, did he notice I was lying?  I don't know what to say, luckily he just nodded. "So Xiao what's your next lesson? I can take you if you like." 
"I've got history" Xiao said, dryly.
"Same!" This was great, I could evade everyone talking to me if I walked with Xiao, I know I shouldn't bring him into  my problems but what he didn't know couldn't hurt him, right? I suddenly feel a large amount of guilt realizing that he may see this as a form of manipulation so I vowed I would only do this once. 
The bell rings and we get up to go to out next class together, I try to keep my head down as we pass a group of boys that  I don't exactly like.

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We finally arrive at out class and I'm shocked to see Keaya sitting there, next to my spot, my head pounds and an overwhelming feeling of dizziness rushes through me, my sight blurs as I stumble to my seat with my new partner. I feel myself going faint and all the pain on my body intensifies, every bruise is throbbing and I make it to my seat. Keaya smirks at me and Xiao sits on the other side of me.


Xiao's POV:


He looks sick, I don't usually feel like this but I want to protect him, I feel a strange connection to him. He looks horrible like he's gonna throw up on pass out. He lays his head on the table and I swear he's crying again. Why is he such a whimp? Does he cry about everything? The blue haired boy, I believe his name is Keaya whispers something to him and he freezes, I wonder what he said. I finally speak up, "Hey, do you wanna go to the nurse? You look pale." He wipes his eyes and shakes his head so I don't pester him further. He coughs and I notice blood on his hand but he wipes it off.

----------------------------------------after class ends at lunch----------------------------------------------------

"Hey do you want to eat lunch with me and my friends?" Aether asks. 
"Yeah sure," I don't have any friends and I don't want them but it would be nice to be away from Hu Tao.
"I'll take you, come on," He holds out his hand and I take it slowly as he pulls me to a plaza with only a few people sitting there, a weird flying fairy, an angry looking boy with a large hat and a sweet looking boy with white hair.
Aether excuses himself to the bathroom and walks off while I sit next to the white haired boy.
"Hello, my name's Kazuha, but you can call me Kazu, the flying thing is called Paimon and that's Kunikuzushi, or just Kuni for short, we shorten his name just like his mom shortened his height!"
They laugh as Kuni turns bright red and yells, "YOU'RE NO TALLER KAEDEHARA KAZUHA!" everyone laughs. 
"My name is Xiao," I say with a smile, god it was annoying to try to be nice but Zhongli told me to and I couldn't deny an archon, a boy rushes over panting "Sorry I'm late, I got into a fight with Diluc, oh hey, you must be Xiao, I'm Venti, nice to meet you!" 
"Hello Venti," I say smiling softly.
"Where's Aether?" He askes
"Bathroom," everyone replies.
"I see," Venti says then pulls out a bottle of wine and takes a sip.
Aether comes back 10 minuets later looking bruised and battered, he sits down next to Venti and leans his head against his shoulder.
"ARE YOU OKAY?!" Venti yells and gets a shhhh from everyone else, he ignores them "WHAT HAPPENED, ARE YOU HUNGRY? God dammit who am I kidding, you never eat lunch, I'm giving you some of mine, it's an order from the anemo archon that you eat it," he hands him a bag of crisps and a sandwich.
"Ok," Aether mutters and eats it, being to worn out to fight back he took the sandwich and ate it.
"Xiao?" Venti asks.
"Yes?" I reply.
"Can you hold Aether for a moment? I need to grab some bandages," My face flushes at the question and I nod slowly taking Aether in my arms comforting his pained body, I felt like I had known him forever even if I had just met him, was I falling for him already?


Aethers POV:

I'm a blubbering mess, what is wrong with me? Why did I go back to them? Why? I can't stop the tears from falling, I'm pressed up against Xiao's warm body as Venti wipes my face, they are gonna question me, Kuni and Kazu are whispering something and I hear Paimon's annoying voice ringing in my ears, my vision goes blurry again and I see Kazuha approach me and feel his warm hand on my forehead, he says something but I can't hear it, it's like his voice drones out in my ears, I keep crying harder. I feel everything floating and my vision goes black, I pass out. I hear yelling and panic in the room and find myself waking up in a car leaning against Xiao's shoulder.
"Xiao?"
"Oh Aether we couldn't get in contact with your mom or sister so my dad's taking you to my house, rest." Xiao says that in the most monotone voice ever, it makes my heart sink.
"Who did this to you?! And don't you fucking dare use that stupid light post excuse because it won't fucking work Aether!"  My eyes fill with tears and I see the regret sink into Xiao's face, "Sorry," Xiao mutters.
"It's fine" I say putting on a smile. We arrive at Xiao's house and Childe picks me up out of the car and lies me down, I open my mouth to talk but no words come out. Childe sits down next to me and says "Hey, can you tell me what happened?"
I take a shaky breath and say, "I got into a fight, it's my fault, I started it"
"Ok then, well rest for now, can I call your mom?" I shake my head.
"I won't tell her, I'll say you got hit by a car or something, ok?"
"Ok," I say trembling. 
"May I have her number please?," I nod and tell him my moms number and he takes out his phone and calls her, I hear him saying something about a car crash and no license. I see him hang up the phone. "She's gonna pick you up, your story is you were walking home and got hit by a car, Xiao saw you and called me to help you, nothing is broken, okay?"
"Yes sir, thank you," I really am grateful but I felt guilty for lying to Childe because he seemed like a nice guy. I could never let my friends see me like this again.




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Like I said the chapters will be very short, they should be longer in future but I'm really jetlagged rn and I haven't slept much so the chapters will be really short at the start, sorry!

word count: 1397 <3