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┊ ⋆ ┊ a new years promise ┊ ┊
IT was that time of year again. where people of liyue lit up xiao lanterns, flying them up in the sky. numerous events and stalls line the streets of liyue. couples and singles would watch the fireworks together under the brilliant night sky of the geo nation. to be honest, it wasn't that bad. in fact, it was wholesome.
liyue's lantern rite; the annual new years festival.
this was the event you both loved and loathed. it was a fun festival, especially with friends. the only issue was that, you didn't have much friends.
all your friends were overseas and/or unavailable. so every year, you'd had to spend the event alone. and honestly, with the amount of times you spent looking outside your apartment watching the fireworks alone, you grew to see the festival as something you dread every year. after all, things like these are better spent with company, rather than alone.
which reminds you, the lantern rite was in a few days. and you were running out of food supply. sighing, you got up and threw on a hoodie and made your way out the door.
༶•┈┈⛧┈♛
you shoved your hands in your sweatpant pockets as you strolled the bustling streets of liyue. a hood was thrown over your head, shielding your face from any passerbys. it was chilly, but not dead cold. you pulled the fabric of your hood even more, covering almost your entire face.
eventually, you reached the market where you would get your groceries from. the old lady at the stand briefly greeted you, before turning away and talk with someone else. you took out your bag (that you grabbed from the closet of your house) and began to pick out some necessities.
as you were shopping, your head was kept down so you didn't see the incoming figure walking blindly in your direction. it was only when they had crashed into you so brutally you finally realized.
the two of you stumbled back. you hissed, rubbing the sore spot. the bag of groceries laid on the floor, fruits and vegetables all over the floor. the other person shared the same pained expression, but they had snapped out of it faster than you had.
" oh my archons ! are you okay ?? " she questioned, getting up and lending you a hand. you nodded, before grabbing her hand and lifting yourself up. " im fine. " you replied, now eyeing the girl in front of you.
she had striking blonde hair, with a bit of brown in her ends. her clothing was very saturated, consisting of bright oranges, reds, and some black. she had a colorful ball earring on her right ear, and wore bandages as a top. she also had a red rope-type bow attached to the back of her clothing.
you couldn't lie, she was stunning. absolutely breathtaking. shaking out of your mini admiration session, you now averted your gaze to the groceries spilled out on the floor. the girl followed your gaze, and she let out a gasp of guilt(?).
" here, let me help you pick these up. " she offered, bending down and assisting you in cleaning up the bag of groceries.
as the two of you worked, the girl decided to introduce herself. " im yoimiya. " she spoke, eyes focused on the task at hand but still gave you a subtle glance.
" y/n. " you reciprocated the introduction. she nodded, processing your name before flashing a bright smile that could rival the shine of the sun.
" you have a beautiful name, y/n. "
༶•┈┈⛧┈♛
yoimiya briefly apologized for not looking at where she was going again once the two of you had re-organized the bag of groceries. you reassured her it was okay. she gave you an apologetic smile, before turning away and walking off.
you sighed, looking down at your shopping bag, a faint smile evident on your lips. maybe things weren't so bad after all.
you arrived home without any more problems, dropping the bag down and launching yourself at the couch. you breathed out a relaxed sigh, almost forgetting about your unpacked things and messy apartment.
reluctantly getting up, you eyed the messy apartment complex before taking off your hoodie and began to organize.
༶•┈┈⛧┈♛
days had passed since your meeting with the bright girl, and it was now the day of the lantern rite, new years.
'this year was going to be different', you thought. you had no idea why, but a gut instinct told you it was going to go well this year.
night was approaching, and you felt like it was a good idea to go outside for a bit. now, normally you wouldn't watch fireworks, and if you did, it was inside the comfort of your home. but you decided to change things up a bit. you would try to attend this year's lantern rite.
throwing on what you thought was a cute outfit, you prepared yourself to go out. you debated on whether you should wear makeup or not. after all, who was there to look good for? then you thought, you. look good for yourself. so sucking up and spitting out the negative thoughts, you quickly applied a simple yet stunning makeup look and walked out.
the streets of liyue were even more busy than usual. food stalls lined up the sidewalks. various fun events like paper theater and competitions were the star of the show. there was even a young male preforming a traditional lion dance !
you sighed to yourself. even if you were alone, lantern rite seemed so...fun. though, you really did wish to have someone else to go around and have fun with.
as you passed through the various stalls, even participating in some of the minigames, it was now late at night, people began to fill the bridge, wanting to see the fireworks.
you figured watching fireworks from somewhere higher would be more efficient. so thats what you did.
you sat down at a ledge of a cliff, waiting for the fireworks to start. and it seemed like someone else had the same idea as well.
" also watching the fireworks from up here ? " she asked, sitting herself next to you. you recognized that voice. it was yoimiya !
nodding, you turned your gaze back to the sky.
soon, the fireworks began to start. flashes of colors shot up into the sky, exploding into a magnificent shape of art. it was mesmerizing. even more pretty than watching from the windows of your home.
for a long while, it was just silent. no noise, nothing. just you and yoimiya, sitting together, watching the fireworks.
it felt like a dream. even when the two of you didnt even mutter a word, you enjoyed her company.
her hand inched closer to yours, and you reciprocated.
then, there. as a big firework, filled with various colors shot into the sky, your hand grasped yoimiya's. and you did what you felt was right.
you held it tighter. and it was that moment in time that you knew...
you wouldn't be alone for lantern rite ever again.
-ˋˏ✄┈┈┈┈ FUN FACTS
- i love chinese new years sm, even tho i have no one to spend it with 😭
- yoimiya is such a sweety, i had sm fun writing her
- its july, and its not even close to new years but i felt like i NEEDED to release this chapter
