Please don't say you love me || Genshin impact Collei angst

First night

Dinner is over as soon as it starts and Tighnari and Cyno lead Collei to her hut.
"My hut is across from yours. If you need anything throughout the night, you can wake me up. I won't mind." Collei meekly nods her head in response. She has no plans of staying long enough to find that information useful.

Collei walks into the spacious room, taking in her surroundings. There's a small twin bed against the right wall, as far away from the door as it can get, and a small desk by the opposite wall. She notices a simple chair tucked under the desk, and a single window above the bed lets in soft, natural light, casting a warm glow across the room.

She takes a tentative step inside, her fingers grazing the edge of the desk as she walks past. The room feels oddly comforting, a stark contrast to the uncertainty that has defined her life for so long. She sets her small bag down on the desk and moves towards the bed, sitting on its edge.

The mattress is firm but not uncomfortable, and Collei finds herself sinking into the moment, allowing a brief sigh of relief to escape her lips. She looks around, taking in the simple yet cozy space. The walls are adorned with a few botanical prints, likely Tighnari's work, showcasing the rich flora of Sumeru.

Tighnari walks in with a few blankets and pillows for Collei, setting them beside her as he kneels down to meet her eye level. "Please, let us know if you need anything." Tighnari's eyes hold a sincerity and seriousness that confuses Collei. As he turns to walk to the door, Collei speaks up, "Why are you doing this? I'm infected and I'll infect you the longer you're around me."

Tighnari turns around and makes eye contact with Collei. His eyes are a mixture of surprise and sympathy. "I do this because I care." Collei doesn't respond to him, her eyes are instead focused on the ground.
"You must be tired. Try to get some sleep. We'll have some breakfast in the morning." Tighnari says in a gentle voice as he walks out of the room, shutting the door behind him.

Left alone, Collei wraps herself in the blankets, feeling the warmth envelop her. She lies down on the bed, staring at the ceiling, thoughts swirling in her mind. The day had been overwhelming, and exhaustion soon begins to take its toll.

...

"Ah, there you are. My number one experiment." Collei hears a strangely familiar voice boom out over the endless void.

"Who's- who's there?" She shouts back.
"How could you have forgotten me? I'm heartbroken..." The voice has a sense of familiarity that strikes fear into Collei.
"Get away from me!" Collei shouts. She begins to run away, stumbling each time she stands. The voice laughs at her. "You will never get to leave. You will be stuck, waiting for me to pick you up. I'm coming and there's no stopping me."

Collei's breath comes in ragged gasps as she struggles to move faster, the void seeming to stretch endlessly before her. Her heart pounds in her chest, each beat a desperate plea for escape.

Suddenly, she trips and falls, hitting the ground hard. Pain shoots through her body, but she scrambles to her feet, refusing to give in to the terror threatening to overwhelm her.
"You can't run forever, Collei," the voice taunts. "You belong to me."

Collei shoots up from the bed, her hand over her mouth, suppressing short, ragged breaths. She knows she can't stay here. Without hesitation, she slips on her thin shoes and takes one last look at the room Tighnari gave her before steeling her resolve and leaving. She hurries past the on-duty forest rangers, doing her best to avoid eye contact.

One of the rangers grabs her shoulder. "Hey, little girl, what are you doing out so late?"

Collei rips her arm away, looking at the ranger with fear. "Don't touch me!" she shouts. The ranger backs away, surprised by her reaction. Before they can say anything else, Collei bolts into the forest, not looking back.

The dense foliage closes in around her as she runs, the sounds of the forest a cacophony in her ears. Branches and leaves whip at her face and arms, but she doesn't slow down. Her heart pounds in her chest, fear driving her forward. She doesn't know where she's going, only that she needs to get away. The memories of her nightmare still cling to her, the voice's mocking words echoing in her mind. "You can't run forever, Collei. You belong to me."

Tears blur her vision, but she blinks them away, focusing on the path ahead. She stumbles over roots and underbrush, her breaths coming in desperate gasps. The moonlight filters through the canopy above, casting eerie shadows that make the forest seem even more foreboding. Finally, her legs give out, and she collapses to the ground, exhausted and trembling. She pulls her knees to her chest, rocking back and forth as she tries to calm her racing heart. The forest around her is silent, save for the distant calls of nocturnal creatures.

Her mind floods with memories of Dottore, his voice so loud in her mind that she can't hear her own heartbeat. The rustle of nearby twigs snaps her out of her thoughts. Collei's eyes frantically search the forest around her, but she finds nothing. She tries to quietly back up into a carved-out spot in a tree stump, but it's all in vain. She hears the guttural roar of a rishboland tiger behind her. With her fight-or-flight response kicking in, she immediately turns around, searching for a stick to fend off the tiger.

The tiger lunges at Collei, slashing the skin near her left shoulder. She lets out a blood-curdling scream. Is this how she's going to die? Desperation fuels her as she continues backing up until her hand finds a stick large enough to fend off the tiger. She grabs it, ready to defend herself. The tiger lunges again, snapping its jaws at the stick in her hands. Despite the pain from her injury, Collei does her best to push the tiger away, her arms trembling with the effort.

"Through me, justice is served!"
"I'll uproot you!"

Collei hears two familiar voices scream across the forest. The tiger above her is suddenly shot, its body flung across the forest floor to rest lifeless against a nearby tree.

She looks up at the sky, feeling a wave of relief wash over her. Suddenly, two figures step into view: Tighnari and Cyno. They lean down to meet Collei's gaze.
Collei braces for a beating that never comes. Instead, Tighnari picks her up and runs toward his house in the village.

When they arrive, Tighnari gently sets Collei down on the living room floor, placing a pillow behind her head for comfort. She's now wearing a shirt with the left sleeve removed, allowing her injury to be treated.

Tighnari moves quickly, gathering his medical supplies. He kneels beside her, his expression focused and calm. "This might sting a bit, but I need to clean the wound," he says softly, giving her a reassuring glance.

Collei nods, biting her lip to brace for the pain. Tighnari carefully cleans the cut, his touch gentle but efficient. Despite the sting of the antiseptic, she focuses on his calm, reassuring presence, drawing strength from it.

Tighnari finishes cleaning the wound and starts to bandage it carefully. "You're lucky it wasn't worse," he murmurs. "But you need to rest and let this heal properly."

Collei, her eyes filled with gratitude and exhaustion, nods again. "Thank you, both of you," she whispers. "I didn't mean to cause trouble."

"You're not causing trouble," Cyno replies firmly. "We're here to help you, no matter what."

With Cyno's help, Collei stands up and faces away from the men who fought off the tiger for her. "I'm... gonna go to bed," she mumbles as she walks out of the hut.
She's not sure what to make of them yet, but one thing she does know is to never trust a doctor.
When she reaches her hut, her mind swirls with a million questions. She faceplants onto her bed, not bothering to pull the blankets over herself, and instantly falls asleep.

HOO okay! 1406 words