High Impact || Genshin Impact H.S AU

Chapter 2.14

Hey guys, thanks for making it" Kazuha said cheerfully. Venti and Xiao who both had ridden together to Kazuha's place again.

“No problem, I can’t wait to film the newscast,” Venti said. The group decided to do a newscast to show analysis for their book project.

“Yes, just head to the backyard and you’ll find Aether getting the camera set up" Kazuha instructed, pointing to a hallway with a door at the end. “I’ll be with you guys momentarily, I got to get some of the props" Kazuha added, closing the door and dashing off in a hurry upstairs.

Venti nodded, then faced towards the hallway. He looked over to Xiao who was ahead of him, seeming distant.

Ever since the kiss between they shared, the two have been somewhat silent which Venti wasn’t sure how to process. He had never been in a situation where he actually wanted to be with someone, usually just flirting for the fun of it. So seeing Xiao, be quiet and stone-faced, made his heart sink.
Venti followed Xiao, strolling behind his tail. He took notice of his back, seeing his muscles pride through the sleeveless white shirt he was wearing, despite it being winter.

He felt his stomach heat up, a sense of arousal from seeing the attractive back.

“Over here!” Aether cried out, making Venti snap out of it and focus on the fact he was outside without even realizing it.

Aether was fiddling with the camera, seeming confused by something.

“Is something wrong?” Venti asked.

“ugh maybe, it’s doing the red flashing thing to tell us it’s on or not," Aether said, his eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

“because it’s not charged dude," Xiao said, pointing to the extensions used to make the camera charge outside and far from an outlet, in which the camera charger wasn’t plugged into.

Venti was caught off guard, hearing Xiao's attractive deep voice once again after a few weeks without talking to him. Even texts were little, only being less than five-word responses.

“oh" Aether simply said, dumbfounded. Venti slapped his forehead, annoyed at Aether's dumbness. Aether quickly grabbed the charger and plugged it into the extensions, then he let the camera begin charging.

“Is everything alright?” Kazuha said, joining the group with a box full of random props.

“Not entirely, Aether seemed to have not charged the camera,” Venti said, rolling his eyes. Kazuha let out a sigh, and out down the box.

Xiao begins to start shaking as a chilly wind passes through the group. Venti who was technically wearing a jacket, still got cold and begin to shiver a bit. Aether looked down, seeming guilty for making the group wait.

Kazuha walked forward, passing the group members. He begins to stare at the sun that was beginning to set. Venti and Xiao then faced Kazuha’s direction, confused about what he was doing.

“You know, despite this house being messy more than half of the time, I do love it because of this view,” Kazuha said. Venti looked out and saw a winter landscape surrounding a cold lake with a sun dipping below the surface as the sky grows many shades of dark blue and purple. The trees littered around the lake all covered in a faint layer of frost, shining gracefully while the lake show rippled reflections of the dimming day sky.

“It gives me a sense of calm, especially since it reminds me of home in Inazuma in Narukami Island. A beautiful sight and place that will always bring me joy and comfort” Kazuha said, then Venti could hear a sense of sadness and homesickness as he quietly whispers out, “that I won’t be able to visit, not for a long time”.

To this, Venti’s heart fell into a crutch, his homesickness for the winds in Windrise and the rolling grass. He knew what it felt like to leave a home, a life as if for the school, remembering the great change in his life a few years ago. Venti took notice of Xiao, seeing cracks in his stone exterior, likely feeling homesick as well.

“Nonetheless, I came here because I wanted new opportunities for my life, which means new challenges and hardships” Kazuha continued, and then turned around, a soft smile spreading on his face. “and I can tell you that amongst my challenges and hardships, we shouldn’t feel defeated or down because one of us forgot to charge the camera” Kazuha concluded, his face sparking a soft positivity that made

Venti smiled in agreement. His nerves seemed to have calmed down and Xiao seemed to be less hard exterior-y and a bit more soften. Aether gave a grim smile, seeming confident once again.

“guys, the camera’s working again! Let’s get to work!” Aether announced, pointing to the camera which was blinking red light. Venti jumped in joy, grateful to be able to get out of the cold sooner with a working camera.

“Lovely job,” Kazuha said, then hurried to his position in the small setup prepared before Venti and Xiao arriving.

The group all began and finished their recording for the book project, only needing to edit and submit the video for later.

Later on, Venti found himself once again in Xiao’s car, getting a ride back home. He looked outside and saw the stars, gleaming in the cold night sky. He smiled, finding the light brings warmth and positivity to himself, alongside remembering the words of Kazuha.

“I went through worse, if not more emotionally draining things than little communication from Xiao for over a few weeks, I can handle it and I can fix it,” Venti thought, determined to be able to date Xiao and feel his luscious lips once more.

“The stars are pretty,” Venti said, aiming to break the ice a bit. Xiao only nodded in response. Venti knew he needed to get into the offensive. “kind of reminds me of that night we kissed” Venti said, getting straight to the point.

Xiao gasped slightly; Venti could see that he was about to swerve the steering wheel a bit in shock but thankfully he didn’t. Venti let out a breath of relief that Xiao was a good driver, he had friends who wouldn’t hesitate to swerve in shock.

“Y-yes,” Xiao said, a small blush creeping from his neck. Venti smirked, knowing that he is breaking through Xiao’s stone exterior.

“I hope you liked it,” Venti asked, battering his eyelashes in a flirtatious way. Xiao gulped, his face going red as if.

“I-I did, um,” Xiao said, then quickly stuttered out, “your lips felt nice”. Venti wanted to laugh at the compliment, finding it a bit odd but he held it in to avoid seeming rude to Xiao.

“thank you, your lips felt nice too” Venti replied, suddenly fearing there would be an awkward tension rising in the car, which was the second to last thing he wanted to avoid. Venti saw that they were about to arrive at his own house, in which he knew their conversation would end and Venti will lose the momentum, so he once again got to the point.

“Will you go on a date with me?” Venti quickly said. Xiao almost swerved again, possibly hitting a tree as Venti saw the flexed veins and his elbows moving slightly suddenly.

“Yes,” Xiao said, seeming flustered but his eyes focused on the road like a good driver. Venti found it hot at the moment, Xiao being so diligent and focused despite the curveball topics and questions, but he snapped out of it, needing to stay focused himself.

“o-oh neat! Meet me at the park, Saturday at 12” Venti said, having figured out Xiao’s schedule at one point through clues and light stalking. Xiao had arrived at Venti’s house, pulling alongside, and parking the car. He then faces Venti and looked at him directly in the eyes.

“yes, I can do that,” Xiao said, his cheeks burning and seeming so flustered that Venti found it so adorable. In a quick spur of the moment, Venti leaned in and gave a quick peck on Xiao’s cheek. Venti gave a wink and exited the car.

“Nice, I’ll see you there, cutie” he added, giving a cute nickname to solidify their relationship. Xiao nodded, placing a hand on the cheek that Venti kissed.

Venti didn’t want to leave him, but he knew his parents would be mad if he missed his curfew, so he left, waving goodbye before heading inside, beaming and excited for his date.