𝗪𝗜𝗧𝗛 𝗬𝗢𝗨 - 𝗫𝗜𝗔𝗢𝗩𝗘𝗡

- STARGAZING WITH YOU ‧₊˚✧

Xiao's POV

"Perfect spot for what?"
"A perfect spot to stargaze, dummy!" The serious look has now faded and was back to his usual playful self.  I guess I should have expected that. I proceeded to watch him lay down on the stand and look up towards the sky. Hesitant, I copied what he did. Is this what the Anemo Archon spent his time doing?

It was a brief silence before Venti spoke up again,
"Isn't it beautiful?" He said, letting out a sigh. His eyes were still fixated on the sky.
"I have a question I've been meaning to ask."
"Mm, what do you have to ask?"
"You always ask me if I find things beautiful. Is there a reason for that?"
"Ehehe, your quite observant~" He chuckled before he grabbed my hand.
"Just go ahead and answer the question."

"It's to see if you find the beauty in the things I show you!"
"Hm?"
"Anything can be beautiful if you set your mindset like that. Even if it's simply a toothbrush. Achieving this mindset, you will see the world in a much brighter light."

Is this how the Anemo Archon sees the world through his majestic eyes? That thought ran through my head.

"Hmph, there's nothing beautiful about killing demons."
"The beautiful thing is you. You've suffered through so much to conquer demons for the sake of Teyvat, and that's what I admire so much about you. Thank you for this."

I was speechless; this was the first time someone has acknowledged my endless war of fighting against demons, and certainly the first time they've expressed gratitude towards it. My heart was beating fast; why am I feeling this way? I've never felt such an emotion before. What is this-

I got cut off from my thoughts when Venti spoke up again, "Hey, what do you think stars represents?"

Venti POV

"I don't pay attention to such things" Xiao replied with his cold tone, however his response was rather reluctant.
"Come on, at least try to think of something! When the stars are in your sight, is there no sparks that ignite?
"Stars represent every excruciating pain, every consequence I experience from my karmic debt. The endless amount of stars illustrates my perpetual agony. They are deceitful: youthful mortals believe the shape of stars are something farfetched from the actual truth"
"How fascinating on our view on the world. Even something simple like stars, our opinion differs."
"You think there's another meaning?
"I don't believe there's a certain representation of stars. In my view, stars are a guide. Their gleams kindle every dream, hope and optimism in all of Teyvat, and guide you to the right path when in a state of dismay. They follow you everywhere, wherever-
"Obscure, they only make their appearance at night. When the Sun rises, they vanish.
"The Sun is a star"

Xiao went quiet for a brief moment, before letting out a huff and averting his gaze onto something else.

"You don't know the agony I've been facing for millenniums." Xiao's tone sounded cold and harsh.
"But I want to understand your pain," For the first time in a while, Xiao looked at me, his expression utterly confused, "You say that the stars represent the immense pain from your karmic debt, right? So how about we rewrite the stars?"

"You.. really are something else." All I could do is laugh at that. However, does he see me as something special?

"For the countless years I've been slaughtering demons and hearing the wishes of mortal beings, I have never encountered something like you," A smile plastered on my face before he spoke up again.

"Nevermind.'

"May I ask, what is it that made you change your mind all of a sudden?"

Xiao hesitated for a moment before spilling the details of that night

"That night, when the karmic debt enveloped my entire body and mind, just when life was going to refuse to cooperate me, I heard a sound. A sound of tranquility, a warmth that seeps through every crevice in your body and out and heals any scars of painful experiences you have had to endure in the past."

"May you hum this tune out for me? I have taken quite an interest in what you been saying."

With that, Xiao recalled the events and within a moment, he repeated his memory of the tune ever so vividly.

"That- was the song I played on that night."

Xiao's POV

That striked my heart in a way I can not describe. The night that evokes the sensation of what mortals call, "happiness", the reason that all happened, was the person standing right infront of me and I was oblivious to this the whole time.

Then again, no wonder the feeling I get when I spend time with Venti feels so familiar.

"Fate brought us together I see." He responded with a small chuckle.

"Would you like to hear it again?"

"I'm sorry, but I would have to decline. Although that is my deepest desire, it is now the time I have to kill demons." I got up from the golden sand, which it's grains clinged onto me for dear life.

"Wait-" He grabbed my arm with some force, although this time was of utter waste, my body felt compelled to stand still and listen.

He slowly got up, our faces at level with each other. The sounds of the gentle whispers of the breeze, the transient waves overlapping each other and the heavy breathes of each other only added to the tranquil atmosphere. Venti then came closer, his face inches away from mine, and pressed his lips against my own. A flush of a feeling I can't describe whisked through my body as I reciprocate his movement back to him. His taste, this feeling, all of it I just wanted more of.

At last, we broke it and just stared at each others eyes in a comfortable silence, he leaned over and whispered, "I love you Xiao."

Is this what you call love?

"I love you too." I say before jumping up, vanishing from sight.

Venti's POV

My heart was still racing from all the events that occurred in a matter of moments. Back to being alone in my own thoughts. I pull out my lyre and played the same song that night.

I wish I could have shown him it, maybe another time. Another time where I can meet him again.

                                         ━━━━━━ ◦ ❖ ◦ ━━━━━━

                                      
(End of this story, hope you enjoyed! Sorry it was so long to release this chapter, my writing style has changed so it was quite difficult finishing this off without drastically changing up the story and writing style. I do wanna write another Xiaoven story, which will be a sequel to this, with better writing, plot and longer and more frequent chapters. Love to hear your thoughts on that 👀
Until next time!)