Xiao x Aether Oneshots

I Will

We walk hand in hand down the sidewalk of Liyue, smiling at people we pass and talking to people we know. Xiao glared at a few people along the way, but I just giggled and steered him away from them and we continued on towards the small cafe near the docks.

We walk inside and go up to the counter, Xiao scanning the people around us while I look at the menu.

"Hey Xiao, do you want to share something?" I ask.

He shrugs and looks at the menu as well before pointing something out. We order it and go sit by the window to wait for our food. I glance up as a group of people walk in while laughing and messing around. I recognize a few of them from my high school and wave when I catch their eye.

"You know them?" Xiao asked.

"Some of them. I went to school with the blonde boy and the green haired girl. I don't recognize the others." I replied.

"Oh." Xiao nods while looking the group up and down before turning to his phone that was sitting on the table in front of us. "Do you mind if I step out for a minute?"

"No, go ahead. I won't go anywhere." I smile and watch as he steps out of the cafe and stands in front of the window where I'm sitting.

I just watched his hair, entranced by the way it moved in the breeze and framed his face in just the right way. Then I feel a tap on my shoulder. I turn around and am met with a pair of bright blue eyes.

"Hey Aether, how's it going?"

"Albedo! It's been a while. I'm doing great, how about you? Are you still with Sucrose?" I greet, giving him a brief hug before standing against the table.

"Sadly no, we broke up a few years ago when she left the country. It was all mutual and we're still great friends, but we're just not together." He explains calmly as the girl with green hair approaches us.

"Albedo, Kaeya wants to talk to you." She says while glancing back at their group.

"Of course he does. He's just jealous. Tell him I'll be there in a minute. I'm catching up with an old friend. Do you remember Aether?" Albedo says.

She nods before giving me a shy wave and going back to the group.

"Kaeya?" I ask curiously.

"Yeah, after Sucrose left, he kind of shuffled his way in. He was new in the area and we were roommates at the university so we hung out quite a bit. One thing led to another and we started going out."

"Really? I didn't know you liked guys."

"Well, I like both. But what about you?"

"Yep." I say proudly. "Xiao and I have been together for almost four years."

"Wow, so then, what happened to that other guy?"

"Other guy?"

"Yeah, your ex."

I freeze when Albedo mentions him before shrugging off the thought. "Oh, we broke it off soon after high school."

"Really? I had high hopes for you two. I swore that there was no better couple than the two of you." He says.

"Yeah..." I trail off slightly and look at the door when the bell above it signaled that someone was coming in.

Immediately, I turned away and looked out towards Xiao, partially forgetting that Albedo was still standing in front of me, watching my every move.

"Aether you alright?" He asks.

"I- yeah... well..." I look longingly at Xiao.

"How about this, we exchange numbers and you can text me later." He holds out his phone and I take it with shaky hands, freaking out a little more when I noticed that he was looking in my direction.