└── 𝐖𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐧𝐮𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫!

𝟐𝟖

Soon after the heartfelt conversation, Scaramouche and Y/n reunite with the rest of their friend group, Kokomi and Lumine immediately eyeing Y/n and raising their brows at her tranquil expression since they'd expected the worst.

Reaching forwards, they pull the girl in their direction and snatch her away from Scaramouche. Instinctively, he glares at the two for doing a thing but then quickly returns to his usual expression upon realising that it was sort of uncalled for. Unknown to him, Aether was also keeping his eye on him.

Childe is the second of the group to approach, pulling y/n towards him and snatching her away from the other girls before they've even got the opportunity to talk to her. The sight makes Scaramouche's stomach churn in a way that he can't wrap his head around. He doesn't understand what the feeling is.

Kaeya and Heizou are both conversing, seemingly very deep into their topic because they're very animated while talking. That means the only other person left is Aether.

The group begins walking to some of the food stalls, Scaramouche walks behind the h/c girl, not wanting to speak up but also hoping that she'll feel his presence and talk to him instead of those other...losers.

"You've been staring for quite some time" Aether's suave voice is heard beside Scaramouche, his eyes narrow at the blonde. He hadn't even noticed him there...was that how deep into his thoughts he was?

"At them? Yeah, they're a bunch of fools...especially that ginger." he speaks, a bit of snark in his voice while he looks back.

"No, at her."

Scaramouche's eyes move back to Y/n, taking in the sound of her calming voice, the confidence in her walk and the slight bounce of excitement she has in her steps while walking. It's all so...alluring. He feels like he's being pulled in by a magnet, although unwillingly because he desperately attempts to look away and scoff. "Who?"

Aether chuckles, his eyes landing on the same girl, the corner of his mouth pulling into a smile. "You're looking right at her!...Y/n."

"I wasn't, I was looking at them individually."

"That would be a good lie for, someone who's an idiot." Aether chuckles, his eyes sharp and staring into Scaramouche's, although he knows that his friend is like him...sharp, if not even sharper. He's a weapon, always ready to slice and retaliate at the smallest things he deems a threat.

"Do you like her?" He prods again, testing the waters to see if the indigo haired male will tell the truth or lie like a fool.

"No." He responds instantly. But that's only because Scaramouche's first reaction is always to defend and protect himself. It's instinct, he has to defend himself if nobody else will, that's what protecting yourself means. There isn't a thought that runs through his mind before he reacts instinctively. Perhaps that's what makes him so unapproachable.

"Are you sure? It seems like you do...it's not a bad thing y'know...to tell someone how you feel." Aether's words only make him tense up, his body feeling a little more rigid while he walks. When they finally stop walking and stand still, it's at a corn dog stall, and as Childe orders for everyone, Y/n comes skipping over, a Cheeto covered corn dog in her hands.

"Wanna try this with me?" The twinkling eagerness in Y/n's eyes and the way her long lashes flutter against her skin makes Scaramouche pause. Have her eyes always always been that vibrant of shade e/c? Have they always been so soft and welcoming?

He has to physically pull himself out of a trance by blinking his eyes really hard. Taking the corndog from her delicately, he takes a bite. His eyes narrow at the flavour in his mouth as he watches his companion do the same after. Her reaction is different, the shining emotion in her eyes only intensifies. The sight of it makes the bitter feeling in his mouth dull bit by bit until his mind is consumed with images of her only.

Mentally, he engraves this moment into his mind, it seems special. The look in her eyes while she speaks to him makes him feel weak, a type of weak he'd never shown to anybody before...a vulnerability that he's spent years trying to hide.

"It's really good!" The sound of Y/n's optimistic voice fills his ears, he smiles without realising although it's a small smile.

"I hated it!" He says as one of the carnival rides begin to play loud music that only adds the lively atmosphere of the bustling place. This night truly did feel ethereal...it felt freeing to finally be able to let loose.

As soon as she walks away to talk to Childe again, Scaramouche turns to aether, his face lit up and his expression shows a bit of giddiness.

"I think I do like her."

The thought of love had always been childish to Scaramouche, it seemed like a superficial concept. It was something cliche that teens would make up, a shallow idea to romanticise their boring lives and look at the world to perceive it better than it actually is.

Scaramouche always liked to convince himself that he was tough, that he'd barricaded his heart and closed the iron walls shut around it to prevent anybody from hurting him. His mind was constantly consumed by a dark cloud of cold because of this. The warped idea of love often causes him to misjudge situations, but there was one thing changing that now. It was a bright beam of light that cut through the dark clouds and shone right into his core. That light was in the form of the girl in front of him giggling away at her friends as they make another cheesy joke.

His heart clenches, the clothes he's wearing suddenly feel uncomfortable against his skin as he grows flustered. Oh to be the one to make her laugh like that...

"Yeah I know, you're not good at hiding it." A panicked look flashes across Scaramouche's face as he hears his friends words. Aether laughs heartily, slapping Scaramouche's shoulder while the indigo eyed male makes a face and pulls away.

"But that's a good thing, you should show how you feel if you like someone!" he reassures quickly, worrying that Scaramouche may take it the wrong way.

"Whatever..." the grumpier teen says, looking away and back at the only person in the group who was standing out to him: Y/n.

As they all begin to exit the carnival and give their goodbyes, he wishes he could've told her to come in his car, but before he knows it she's hopped in with Childe and they've started to drive away. He stands there for a moment, watching as she slips from his grasp, and at that moment he realises that he's got no real control over the situation.

He'd actively pushed away the thought of forming a genuine relationship with Y/n, it was only recently that these new thoughts started to develop...or perhaps they'd always been there but just lingered in the back of his mind. Regardless of that, if he wanted her, he'd have to actively show it. He'd have to lower his defence just slightly to show a better side of himself, a side that wasn't a brat trying to shield himself and ward everyone off.