Windwheel

Ch5: Bud

Xiao flips through the pages of a cookbook, trying to find an easy recipe that he and Aether could bake. After a moment, he lands on a recipe for some cinnamon cookies.

"How about these cinnamon cookies?" Xiao says, pointing at the page.

"Cinnamon cookies? Like snickerdoodles?"

"I don't know, it just says cinnamon cookies. Maybe it's a snickerdoodle. How would you define a snickerdoodle?"

"I don't know. I'll look it up later."

The two of them work together to get out the ingredients for the cookies. They follow the initial instructions with no issue, and once they're done, they put the cookie dough in the fridge to chill.

"See? Not too difficult. Now we just need to chill the dough for two hours." Aether says, washing his hands.

"Two hours is a long time. Do you want to watch a movie or something?"

"Sure, I'd love to."

"Alright, just don't fall asleep again. Oh, you got something on your face." Xiao brushes some flour off of Aether's cheek.

"I was saving that for later."

"No, you weren't. I'll clean up here; go get comfy on the couch and pick a good movie," Xiao says, smiling.

"Alright, I'll see you there."

Xiao tidies the kitchen a little, wiping spilled flour off the countertop. He washes his hands in the sink before heading into the living room. There, Aether sits on the couch with a blanket.

"Xiao, I only found one blanket. If you want it, you can have it."

"No, you're the guest. Please, take it."

"I couldn't. I would feel bad."

"Then why don't we share?"

"You want to? Okay, sure."

Xiao sits right next to Aether to share the blanket with him. Their legs press together awkwardly at first, but Aether leans on him, easing the awkwardness. Xiao's face flushes as he leans back against him.

"So... um... what movie do you want to watch?" Xiao mutters.

"Anything is good. I just like being here with you."

"Oh. Okay then."

The two end up watching Titanic. About halfway through the movie, Xiao found his fingers intertwined with Aether's, relishing the warmth and comfort of his touch. He was hardly even watching the movie, too busy enjoying the florist's company.

The movie was way too long, so by the time it was done, the cookies had been chilling for a long time. While they waited for the cookies to soften up a little bit, they cleaned up the kitchen, putting away ingredients that they no longer needed.

"Just saying, I think that they could have both fit on that door," Xiao says, placing the bag of flour into the cabinet.

"What? No. Rose loved Jack. There's no way she would have killed him on purpose."

"That's what you think. I think she needed to get rid of him because she's rich and he's broke."

"It was true love, Xiao!" Aether says dramatically.

"'True love' my ass. They just met," Xiao says, rolling his eyes. He grabs the jars of sugar and cinnamon.

"We just met too. Is what we have not true love?"

Xiao drops the glass jars, his breath catching in his throat. The sound of shattering glass echoes through the room as the jars explode into a million tiny pieces, scattering the contents all over the floor. The fine powdery cinnamon mixes with the coarse grains of sugar. The two ingredients mix on the floor like soil and sand.

Xiao stands there motionless, his eyes fixed on the mess before him. He can feel his heart racing, his mind struggling to process what just happened.

"What?" His voice comes out quietly.

Aether looks at the spilled cinnamon and sugar, then at Xiao. "I was only kidding, but I'm sorry if I crossed a line."

Aether reaches out and takes hold of the dustpan, slowly and carefully sweeping the mixture of cinnamon and sugar into it. Xiao picks up the broken glass, unable to bear looking at Aether. Something about his words, though teasing, made his heart stop. Why?

Together, they work in silence, the only sounds being the soft rustle of the dustpan and the gentle scrape of the broom against the floor. Xiao throws the broken glass away, helping Aether with the last of the cinnamon and sugar. It's quiet for a moment, before Xiao speaks softly, "I'm sorry for reacting as I did. I just wasn't expecting that."

"No, it's fine. I shouldn't have taken it so far."

Zhongli walks into the room, trying to assess the situation. "Is everything alright? I heard the sound of shattered glass."

"Yes, we're okay," Xiao says. "But I dropped the bottles of cinnamon and sugar."

"That's alright, we can always buy more. As long as you two are okay, that's what matters." Zhongli looks at the bowl of cookie dough sitting on the counter, smiling a bit. "Oh? Are you two trying your hand at baking?"

"Yes, sir. We wanted to make some cinnamon cookies. Once they're done, you can try some," Aether says, smiling. Xiao nods. He's still in a bit of shock. Why did Aether's words catch him so off guard? He was only kidding, right? It's not even that big of a deal.

The two of them roll the cookie dough into their shapes pan and put them in the oven to bake. The recipe called for them to be rolled in cinnamon sugar to enhance the flavor.

As they work, Xiao can't help but think about the awkward moment from earlier. His heart is pounding in his chest, and his face is hot with a deep blush. The feeling of butterflies in his stomach is making him queasy. He struggles to concentrate on the task at hand. For a moment, Xiao even thought that he'd be sick. And then the night ended.

Xiao hands the florist a plant he had grown: a lumidouce bell. Along with that, he hands him a container of some of the cookies they had made.

"I'm sorry for overreacting earlier. Please, take this as a parting gift. I grew it from some seeds you gave me. I know it's not a windwheel, but I treasure every plant you give me."

"Thank you. Maybe next time, you can show me all of the plants you've kept?"

"Yeah. Who knows."

Xiao waves goodbye to Aether as he heads home. Alone, in his bedroom, Xiao lets out a sigh. He really blew it today his overreaction to such a small, harmless joke. Even as a joke, though, it made his heart flutter. He lays on his bed and gently touches his cheek.

"Everything okay?" Zhongli is standing in Xiao's doorframe.

Xiao sits up quickly, startled by the sight of his dad. He nods. "Yeah. Everything is all good. Just... my mind's a mess."

"What's got you so troubled?"

"I don't know. Aether... he joked about us being in love. And it really caught me off guard for some reason. I mean, it's not like I'm in... love... with him..."

Xiao trials off. He pauses for a moment. The way his face heated up whenever Aether would tease him, the way his heart fluttered when Aether got close to him... it wasn't a coincidence. It was love. He had caught feelings for the florist.