𝙰 𝚕𝚒𝚎 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚊 𝚑𝚎𝚊𝚛𝚝 || 𝙻𝚈𝙽𝙴𝚈 ⭐💧

a hat of many secrets

"How about we go have some coffee? There's this cafe around the corner, they have some really good americano." I immediately nodded upon Lyney's suggestion. "You must really like coffee, do you?" Lyney's eyes locked onto mine. "I do. I love the rich, bitter taste of americano, but also the sweet notes of a latte." Lyney opened the door for me, as we went inside the small cafe. There were no people other than the workers. It was the perfect atmosphere. "What would you like, ma luciole?"
"Large iced americano, plus 2 shots."
"Isn't that too much coffee?"
"I got an extra 5 shots in a latte once, and I was fine."
"Alright– Then I'll have a white cold brew." Lyney told the cashier. We walked over to the table near the window, the rays of the softly illuminating my gentle features. I sat on the chair across Lyney's.
Upon receiving the coffee, I looked up at Lyney as I took a sip of my bittersweet drink. "Lyney, I've wanted to ask, what do you think of me?"
"What do I think of you? Well, you're quite a jubilant person-"
"I knew you would respond that way, but I want more of a realistic answer."
"Well, that's going to be a long discussion, ma luciole." Lyney bit his lip, taking a small sip of his cold brew. "I don't mind it at all. We have so many hours left before the cafe closes." I grinned cheekily. "Alright. To start things off, I'm sure you already know that each person who talks to you can find and see light in you. Your light is like no other, hence why I like to call you 'ma luciole.' Your light alone could light up a whole galaxy. I just love your energy. I feel like I can show all of my cards to you. You know that the real me isn't much of a chatterbox like the one I put upfront, but I can talk for days around you." His answer seemed like a confession to me, but that's honestly me being delusional. The moment those words fell poured out of his mouth, I could feel my heart thump. I really shouldn't be feeling this way, he's just sharing his gratitude towards me. "Lyney... how do you trust me this much? How do you feel all of these things... towards me?" I put down my cup of americano, feeling a bit of embarrassment flowing within me. "Ma luciole, you just have this magic within you that no magician could replicate, and that's very valuable. Please, don't lose that magic." He took in a deep breath, and made sure to lock his eyes onto mine. "I'm putting all of my trust into you because I want you to trust me... Traveler, I would've never kept anything a secret from you if that meant earning your whole heart. Had I known what happened at the Opera House, I would've just told you me and Lynette were Fatui right away." To know what was on Lyney's mind almost broke me into tears, but I shook the emotion off. "There will always be regrets in life, Lyney. I hope you know that you are special to me because I gave you a second chance, and it's hard for me to give those, especially to Fatui." I gently grabbed his hand, bringing it up to my lips to kiss his knuckles. "Oh, what's with the sudden gesture?"
"Respect, I want to show you that I greatly respect your decision of putting aside matters like Fatui just to be with me." He blushed from my reply, how cute. "Oh– I uh..." Lyney seemed to be at a loss for words. I chuckled from his sudden buffering. "For lack of a better word, thank you. I would've never forgiven myself if you hadn't been so kind to me. I think that's why I bought the ring for you, I think that's why I try my utmost best to treat you right because I want you to know that I'm more than grateful to have someone like you. To be truthful, I still have a hard time being vulnerable around you. You still haven't seen me broken down, and I'm scared if you would see that side of me because it would probably push you away. This facade is nothing but fragile, waiting to be shattered." Lyney took off his hat, hiding his face carefully with it, but I could tell he was crying. "You can cry, Lyney, but you look better with a smile." If this isn't even his lowest state, how am I going to handle him when he is at that bottom level? My heart's already tight just thinking about it. "I-I'm not crying." It's so obvious. He's having a hard time projecting his voice. "Don't lie to me now. I won't judge you." My eyes narrowed. "I'm sorry." He put back his hat on top of his head, revealing the small tears falling down his face slowly. "Oh my..." I leaned in, wiping his tears off with my thumb. "You fucker, you're hurting my heart if you're like this."
"I'm sorry."
"Stop apologizing, you're not doing anything wrong."
"I am in the wrong... you just haven't seen the wrongs I've done."
"That doesn't matter, it's all in the past now."
"There's some that I still do."
"It's not your fault. You're just doing it to survive. I know how that feels."
I could hear him having a hard time breathing. His hands were trembling too. I got up from my seat, sitting on the chair next to him instead, so I could wipe away his tears better. "You can cry on my shoulder." As I made that suggestion, he shook his head. "I'd be so pathetic if I did that."
"You're not pathetic, Lyney. You're just being human."
"You're... You're right. I'm so-- Thank you." A soft smile faded into his face. "You're handling life so well. You're so strong, you just gotta keep believing that." I reciprocated his grin. "See by what I mean? You're so gentle, so nice." He chuckled. "You deserve my kindness."

( A/N: THIS HAS TO BE MY FAVORITE CHAPTER SO FAR! IF LYNEY CRIES NEXT ARCHON QUEST based of speculations from the trailer ofc IM GONNA PHYSICALLY EXPLODE. LIKE IM SO EXCITED FOR THE NEXT UPDATE. I RLLYYY WANT HU TAO BUT LIKE I HAVE NO PRIMOS AFTER LOSING 50/50 ON LYNEY BANNER... BUT NEVER BACK DOWN NEVER WHAT AM I RIGHT??!? also what the hell like we alr at 200 reads 😨?! WHAT U MFS ON??!?! ILY ALL LIKE WHAT IS GOING ON 😭💗 )