Chapter Text
“Shit. Shit. Shit—“
Venti’s shoes clicked on the concrete sidewalk. He rubbed his hands together, blowing on them every so often to keep them from going numb in the biting winter chill.
It was a freezing January morning much to his dismay. It was unfortunate that he was late– he would’ve gotten a coffee at Qingxin’s to elevate his body temperature. But alas, it was five past the start of his shift and he was speed walking down the busy street like there was no tomorrow. Zhongli would have his head if he was more than fifteen minutes late again.
Taking a sharp right, the bookstore was finally in sight. His steps sped up and he felt his heart rate quicken. He was much too unathletic to keep doing this to himself.
As he trod up the stairs to Cecelia’s, the strong scent of coffee hit him in the face. Oh, how he enjoyed the smell of coffee beans and fresh parchment. His stomach gurgled and he berated himself for his lateness. He walked through the automatic doors and beamed to his right, without stopping much, to greet his friend.
“Good morning, Aether!” Venti waved, a smile curled on his face. He could hear a faint sigh leave his friend's mouth and he pouted when he saw a headshake of disapproval out of the corner of his eyes.
“You’re late again,” Aether tutted. Venti started to walk faster, wanting to avoid more of the blonde’s disappointment. “You’re gonna get fired if you keep doing this!” Aether called out before he was out of earshot. Venti giggled to himself.
Really, he was very lucky to be close to the bookseller.
Zhongli was, to say the least, extremely stubborn. Much to Venti’s utter hatred, Zhongli could remember things like the back of his hand. So far, Venti had been late seventeen times in the past two months–not including today. Zhongli even bought him a calendar, pasted it on the front of the breakroom fridge with a marker and Venti’s face printed on the cover, and made Venti write a note for every single day he was late.
To be completely honest, Venti wasn’t much of a great employee, at least on that front. He was quite good at organizing, finding places to put things, helping with customers, all that kinda service worker shit. Time, on the other hand, was his worst enemy.
Screw the sun for rising so early every morning.
Sometimes Venti would blame it on his alarm, other times he blamed it on traffic. However, only Venti knew the true reason he was ever late.
Music.
There was a certain man at the park every morning. He was a good-looking and soft-spoken man who played the flute like no other. His hands were precise, his breathing always even. He was a work of art, much like the airy songs he serenaded for the world.
Teal hair.
Amber eyes.
Glowy skin.
Oh, Venti could just melt by merely thinking about him.
Venti liked to think the whistling poems were just for him. Well, that was the selfish part of himself really. He liked to sit behind a tree, humming along with the pretty tunes, hidden from sight of the stranger. He knew it was creepy. He knew it was odd. But well, who could blame him?
Although, Venti only ever looked. He’d learned time and time again that relationships were not as great as everyone liked to make them out to be. That was why, at a remarkable twenty-two years old, Venti was still single and will stay single for the foreseeable future.
But who said he couldn’t have a little fun?
Bursting open the door to the break room, he skidded to a stop in front of the computer and punched in his code. Okay, ten minutes late–no biggy. He was still under the fifteen-minute-or-write-up rule from Zhongli, so that was a win in and of itself.
Gripping the straps of his tote bag, he slid it off his shoulder and walked over to the lockers to place it into his and Lumine’s shared cubby. He took out his apron, a headband, and a bag of pretzels before he tucked them all into the lap pocket on the front.
Turning on his heel, he made his way over to the door but came to a screeching halt upon realizing he was, very much, not alone.
“Hello, Venti,” Zhongli hummed. He sat on one of the chairs at the table, arms crossed over his chest, spine leaned against the back of the seat. His golden eyes were stone cold, unwavering, and Venti swore he could spot a vein protruding from his forehead. “Care to explain why you are late…again?”
Venti’s posture straightened and he smiled awkwardly. His hands played with the ends of his two twin braids as he shifted from one foot to another. “I ah,” he started. “My phone updated and my alarm didn’t ring.”
“You said that last week.”
“Well, I am still having that same problem!” He defended. “Phones are too expensive to fix, you know that! With inflation and the prices rising or whatever people say….I don’t know but that is why I am late, Mr. Zhongli.”
Zhongli hummed, eyes raking up and down Venti’s nervous form. He could so obviously see through Venti’s lie, he wasn’t dumb. However, it was as if the gods decided to look down and grace Venti that day because Zhongli nodded and stood from his chair.
“Alright,” he finalized. “Just write your note for today and get out of here. We got some new shipment in this morning and you and Lumine are going to be working off that between customers.”
“Sounds good!” Venti called out before the door shut and left him alone. He sauntered over to the calendar and wrote a quick Sorry! Phone things, blah:( on the day’s date, before he stepped out of the room to get to work.
“That one guy swung by earlier,” Lumine said as she peeled off the plastic wrap of a children’s book. She turned to the tablet to her right and punched in the SKU number before she faced Venti again. Her hair was pulled into a high ponytail at the back of her head and her bangs brushed soft against her forehead. She sighed, shoulders dropping, as she looked into Venti’s eyes with concern. “Seriously, you have got to tell Zhongli about him. He’s starting to become like a little pest with how often he’s stopping to visit. I’m scared for your safety, Ven!”
Okay, a little run down.
A few weeks ago, a man had checked out a few books from Venti. He was tall, muscular, quite good-looking, but something about him just seemed off. Flash forward a few days, he went by again, that time buying some sexually explicit books. Venti wasn’t one to judge, as he was much of a smut reader himself, but the way the man had looked at him, talked to him, had goosebumps racing up and down his arms, and not the good kind.
His voice was similar to that of a serpent’s. It was as if one word could strike a cord of fear into Venti’s heart and leave him paralyzed, much like the venomous bite of a cobra.
Venti wasn’t a reptile person.
Anyway, the man kept coming, even after he had shut him down time and time again. He was quite persistent, and while Venti enjoyed having a hot man drool and slobber over his every move, even this was becoming excessive.
Swallowing the lump in his throat, Venti shrugged and sliced open one of the large boxes with his box cutter. “It’s fine Lumine,” he responded. “He’s not doing anything to harm me and that’s all that matters. Plus, he’s good for the business with how often he’s buying books!” Venti didn’t say how utterly afraid he was of him–he didn’t want Lumine to worry even more.
“Yeah, but that doesn’t mean he hasn’t thought about doing anything!” Lumine’s voice raised in the buzzing silence of the store and a few customers looked their way with angered stares. Lumine didn’t let up, however, and pushed forward. “Remember that one night when he stayed for hours outside the store just to walk away when he realized you were with Diluc? Who knows what he would’ve done if you were alone!”
Venti opened the flaps of the box and pulled out a sealed stack of books. “I don’t know, maybe he was just…waiting for a ride?”
“Bullshit.”
Sighing, he swiftly typed in the SKU number of the stack into the tablet and set them aside. “Lumine, I’ll be fine. You really don’t have to worry about it! You know I can defend myself, I’m not frail.”
The blonde’s gaze softened at the last remark and she sighed with defeat. “I’m not saying you are, Ven. I’m just…worried.” She tugged against the front cover of a book, fiddling with the plastic covering. “I don’t want you getting hurt.”
Oh, Venti’s heart couldn’t handle such a devastated look on his friend’s face.
That was the thing about Lumine. She was a protector until the day she would be six feet under. She and her brother both were as headstrong as one could be, but it was what made them so undeniably brave.
Venti was glad he made friends with them.
“How about this,” he reasoned. Lumine perked up and stared at him with unblinking eyes. “I will tell Zhongli if he does anything super alarming. Right now he’s just asking me on innocent dates and buying books. Zhongli wouldn’t be able to do anything about that.” He nibbled on his bottom lip, hands shaking. “It’s the most I can do. He’s scary, but he’s a paying customer.”
Okay, Lumine was most definitely still unhappy about the situation, given the way her eyes twitched and her face heated. Well, there wasn’t much Venti could do, just like he said. The occasional flirting was kind of unprofessional, sure, but he wasn’t undermining Venti just because he was saying no. And that one night, he could’ve stayed for whatever reason, Venti didn’t know, but automatically assuming this guy was going to endanger him was a bit of a stretch.
At least that’s what Venti liked to tell himself.
He was fucking terrified of this dude.
“Zhongli will listen if he makes you uncomfortable…” Lumine muttered. She hunched over and scanned a few books before coming to a decision. “Fine, if that’s what you want. But please, don’t hesitate for a second if something does happen, okay? I’ll even get you a taser if I need to!”
Venti giggled and tore off the wrapping from another set of books. “I will, I will. Thanks, Lu.”
Venti wasn’t a religious person, but he swore mealtime breaks were a blessing sent from the heavens above. His knees and feet ached from walking around with heavy books for the past few hours, and it didn’t help that he was hungry, beyond thirsty, and his head was beginning to pulsate from lack of nutrition.
After clocking out for his meal, he walked across the store and towards Qingxin, the small café next to the entrance. He was good friends with all the workers as there hadn’t been a new hire for quite some time, and they all knew him enough to have his entire order memorized.
Venti typed a few notes into his phone and stepped to the register.
“Hey,” he said without looking up. “I’ll just get my usual, please.”
“Usual?”
Venti’s eyes widened and he flipped his head up towards the voice.
Oh fuck, it was…
It was the guy.
The one that played the flute every morning…
Okay, maybe Venti was going to start considering going to church because why was the day going so smoothly? How was it that he kept getting blessed over and over and it’d been only five hours since he had woken up that morning?
Dear Lord in heaven above!
Anyway…
Okay, so this dude was way hotter up close than he was from behind a tree. His hair was a raven black with teal streaks interwoven with his bangs and side pieces. The left half of his hair was tucked behind his ear, and Venti could see multiple piercings adorning it.
Pulling himself out of his shock, Venti shook his head. “Oh, you’re new!’’
The man’s face was placid, his amber eyes uninterested. He had a hand on top of the computer screen, holding it in place, while the other hovered in wait for Venti to tell him his order.
“I am.” His voice was so fucking hot ohmygodogmygodohmygod. “What can I get for you?”
“Ah, right,” Venti said and he pulled himself together. “I’ll get an apple crisp macchiato, please. Oh, and a croissant! I’m a bit hungry~”
The man looked unamused and Venti bit his tongue. He punched some buttons before he looked up once again.
“What size?”
“Venti,” Venti said as he pulled out his wallet.
“And your name?”
…
“Venti…”
The man paused, eyes flickering with annoyance.
“I said name, not size.”
“That is my name.”
The man cleared his throat, taken aback. Venti felt as if he was on the verge of death with how awkward the whole situation was becoming.
“Your name…is Venti?”
“Yes.”
Venti died.
He stared for a few seconds, amber eyes studying, before he typed in Venti’s name and told him his total. Venti looked around the café for a second, seeing if there was anyone in line, and decided it was time to get to know the mysterious flute player and now barista.
He followed the man to the other side of the counter, watching as he made Venti’s drink. He was precise, just as he was with his music, and Venti wondered if this was really his first time making such a complicated drink.
Sitting on a stool, he propped his head up on his hands. The man was around Venti’s height, perhaps a few centimeters taller, but his muscle made up for the lack of height. His shoulders were broad, his arms thick, and Venti swore he could see his thighs pulse from under his black slacks.
Venti was now a drooling mess.
Oh god.
“Is today your first day?” Venti asked. The man poured some milk into a shaker alongside some other syrups and things Venti didn’t know and placed it into the mixer.
“It is.”
Okay, this guy was very…untalkative. Maybe Venti was boring him, maybe he was shy, Venti didn’t know, but what he did know was that fate itself decided to bring him here, and well…
Who was he to defy fate?
“What’s your name? You already know mine, so I might as well know yours!~”
The man looked at him from the corner of his eye, back faced to Venti, before he ultimately gave up and sighed.
“Xiao,” he said.
“Xiao?”
Xiao rolled his eyes and shook his head.
“No, Xiao,” he reiterated.
“Xiao?”
“No, but whatever,” he grunted. Xiao took the mixer out once it was done and poured the drink into a cup. “Here’s your drink, I’ll be back with your croissant.” He handed Venti the drink from over the counter and turned to the case holding the different baked goods. Venti watched intensely as he grabbed some tongs, took the croissant out of the case, and placed it into the microwave.
Wow, Venti could kill so much time just staring at him. Looking couldn’t hurt, right?
“I can feel your eyes,” Xiao said. He turned around and leaned against the counter, crossing his arms over his chest. His gaze was fixed on Venti’s, unrelenting and cool, pulling the breath from Venti’s lungs with every passing second.
“Sorry,” Venti murmured as he turned away. Okay, he was just embarrassing himself at that point. Xiao was clearly uninterested and Venti wasn’t one to chase.
Absolutely not.
The microwave beeped and Xiao gave Venti his food on a floral ceramic plate. Venti stared at it, embarrassment still churning in his gut, before he slid off the stool, took the plate and his drink, and smiled.
“Thank you, Xiao,” he said. He hoped he pronounced his name right that time. “I’ll drop this off after my shift!”
He scurried off before Xiao could so much as respond.
“Bye Zhongli!” Venti called out as he was leaving Zhongli’s office. Zhongli waved back, and smiled warm and gentle before he turned to his computer. He waved goodbye to his coworkers, nodded at Lumine who still looked as worried as a mother, and made his way back to Qingxin’s.
Xiao was still at the register, wiping the screen off with a rag, when he saw Venti from the corner of his eye. His eyebrow twitched upon seeing him, and Venti hunched a bit at the lack of enthusiasm in seeing him again.
“Here you go!” Venti exclaimed as he placed the plate on the counter.
Xiao looked unamused, his head tilted in annoyance, and he took the ceramic harshly. “Thanks,” he tutted, sarcastically.
Venti smiled, and turned on his feet to exit the building, but was stopped by a tall, large body standing in his way.
His blood ran cold.
“Hello, Venti,” that serpent voice said. A hand reached up to ruffle the top of Venti’s head, fingers messing up the curled strands. “You weren’t in earlier, so I thought I’d stop by again.”
Venti’s gaze swept from the man to Xiao and then back. Xiao continued wiping the screen of the computer and didn’t give Venti so much of a glance.
“Ah, yes, well I was a bit late today,” he muttered, hoping his voice didn’t betray the brave front he put up. The man’s dark eyes scanned his face. God, Venti was getting so cold. Why was the air so biting all of a sudden? Why did the man have to show up like this? Why?
“I see,” he started. “I was wondering if you were free this evening to go see a movie with me. Does that sound alright with you?”
Venti’s eyebrow twitched and he bit his bottom lip fervently. His hands shook at his sides, his body shivering, before he squinted his eyes and donned the tightest smile he could pull.
“I’m sorry, as I’ve said before, I actually have a boyfriend!”
The man paused. His hand fell from the top of Venti’s head and he stepped back.
“Well, you’ve never shown me a photo of him before, or told me his name,” he reminded Venti as he crossed his arms over his chest. His gaze darkened and Venti gulped. “How am I to know that you’re not lying?”
Fuck, Venti didn’t think that far ahead. The first time he used the excuse, he hoped that maybe the dude would take the hint and scram. Yet, he was still very much there and was becoming a thorn in Venti’s side.
“I have proof,” Venti hesitated. His gaze wavered from the man’s and he felt his head begin to spin.
Xiao looked up from the screen.
“And what’s that?”
“He works here, in fact,” Venti admitted. His eyes worked their way around the store, searching and searching before he saw not a single applicable person he could use for his evasion.
Shit.
“Where is this boyfriend of yours then, hm?”
To the right, there was no one.
To the left, no one.
So, Venti used his very last resort.
Reaching over the counter, he took Xiao's hand into his, pulled him uncomfortably close, and grinned.
“He’s right here,” he lied. “Xiao’s my boyfriend.”
…
“Huh?”