[Kaeya has been awake the entire time. He could always tell when the rains were going to be just rain and when it was going to turn into something much fiercer. It was something he unconsciously learned and he hated it. He wished he could just sleep through the damn things, but it was never going to happen.
So, he stayed huddled under the blankets, an unfinished cup of tea beside him on the tatami mat, and his device that suddenly lit up. He hadn't been at all surprised who texted him, but he was surprised as to why.]
[He's unsurprised when Kaeya messages him back, but he is a little (concerned?) curious about how quickly he replies. Though he does make some consideration to going back to sleep, another flash of lightning streaks across the sky and the noise that follows it has him groaning in irritation as he pushes himself up and out of bed.]
No chance of that with this noise.
[The text goes back over as he pulls on a robe and goes to the kitchen with the full intention of making himself a drink. Maybe he'll sit out the worst of it with a book and go back to sleep when the sky has stopped being so damned loud.]
[He was already mildly irritated but most of all, he was anxious and nervous. He dealt with these feeling before during the storms in Mondstadt, he could do it here. Although he wished a surge would go through and the weather would just suddenly clear up. Wishful thinking.
He jumped as that thunder rolled again, body beginning to shake lightly as his heart rate continued to stay up. He hated this.]
[He considers leaving it there. He almost does. But... something still bothers him. Though he continues making the tea he can't let the thought go, and a couple of minutes later he picks the magi-comm device up again.]
I'd like if you'd come over anyway.
[And he taps his thumbs idly to either side of the small keyboard, drawing his lower lip in between his teeth before he adds-]
[He was so tempted to call Diluc out for being scared or something equally dumb as a joke but he also had the foresight to realize it could easily turned back on him given he had a very real fear of thunderstorms due to their fight four years ago. He sighed. He didn’t really enjoy the thought of leaving his little cocoon either but Diluc…
There was something about him lately that had him just following through with whatever was going on. Similar to how he got clingy around Venti and had, once upon a time, acted far more intimately around Aether despite his usual MO keep everyone at arm’s length.]
Fine. Since you asked so nicely.
Give me a few minutes.
[Because the mental preparation for wandering around an empty hallway with a storm going on in a place that wasn’t quite as cozy as his home in Mondstadt was a lot. But he managed, not bothering to change out of his sleeping clothes but putting on a pair of sandals. He made sure his Vision was at his waist and his eyepatch was on before finally heading over. He was gripping his sleeves without even realizing it.]
[They'd done so well to go a while now without arguing and this would have been a very stupid thing to argue about... but he doesn't exactly expect Kaeya to just agree either. He's not sure what's going on with him these days when it comes to the other man, but he just... likes being around him. More than he has done in a long time.
He does wait a few minutes, and then opens the door out into the hallway to look down towards Kaeya's place. And-- ah, there he is.]
Hey.
[The redhead hadn't bothered too much to make himself look presentable - his hair is down and falling around his shoulders in thick, blue-streaked curls, he's barefoot and in loose long pants and an open robe. Kaeya has seen him looking worse, but he's rarely seen Kaeya looking so much like he wants to disappear.
It doesn't take a genius to see that he doesn't look at all like himself. Diluc frowns very slightly and looks him up and down, and then he holds a hand out to him.]
[He was inside a hallway so there was no real fear of the storm itself but that didn’t stop the irrational part of his brain yelling at him to go back home and get into the blankets until morning. He almost didn’t even realize he made it to Diluc’s apartment down the hall until he saw the hand out.
Kaeya looked up and found Diluc frowning at him. This suddenly felt like a bad idea but he was rooted in place. The past month and a half with Diluc had just been so tumultuous and weird and exciting but Kaeya felt very out of sorts nonetheless. And yet, he finally let go of one sleeve and placed his hand in Diluc’s.
He wasn’t going to bite the hand this time.
His grip suddenly tightened when he flinched rather harder, the lightning and thunder crashing nearly simultaneously and his heart was in his throat, shoulders up to his ears for that moment. Why was it suddenly louder out here than when he was inside?]
[He looks over his shoulder through the half-open door when that lightning flashes again, and then up to the noise of the thunder, but he feels Kaeya's flinch and tightened grip on his hand without even needing to look at him. His attention goes back to Kaeya immediately and for a moment he just looks at him with a faintly puzzled expression on his face.
Neither of them had been much fond of storms when they were children, but he had always thought they had both grown out of it. His mind goes to the reaction Kaeya had had to his phoenix, and then to the last time he had used it against him, and... it isn't difficult to put the pieces together.
He squeezes his hand around the one in his and then, uttering a very quiet 'come here', he pulls Kaeya in and wraps one arm around his shoulders. The other hand, still clasped around his, is pinned lightly between their heartbeats.]
[Kaeya was a bit too surprised by the sudden pull to resist, not quite understanding what Diluc was trying to do until he was suddenly enveloped in his warmth. His hand was still within Diluc's, but the other arm was around his shoulders. He completely frozen when he realized what was happening, eye wide and staring into the faintly lit apartment.
He shuddered lightly and finally let himself relax, if only a little. His head lowered until his chin rested on a strong shoulder, his free arm hesitantly reaching up to grip at the robe from behind, just between Diluc's shoulder blades. It was another breath through his nose and his muscles lost their tension completely, shoulders lowering as his head tilted lightly to rest against his brother's.]
[All at once the realisation hits that it must have been years of this. This terror every time there was a storm. Just another thing he would have to make up for--
Archons, just how much damage had he done?
Diluc shuts his eyes for a moment and rubs his thumb softly against the back of Kaeya's shoulder just as he had when the other man had been asleep beside him in the hospital. He tips his head softly against the touch against it, keeping the hold warm but nothing that couldn't be easily wriggled out of.]
I've got you. [He says quietly.] You're all right now.
[It hadn't been easy over the years. So much happened over the span of a few short days that time, but it had truly left their mark on Kaeya. It didn't help that it truly had been a stormy night when his father left him to be found by Diluc's family. Probably the only part of that story that wasn't false, given it could easily be corroborated by Diluc himself if Varka had thought to ask.
But another crackle and crash and Kaeya felt himself clinging tighter, his heart racing once more. He hated this. Hated feeling so vulnerable and scared over something he had originally grown out of.]
Perhaps we should go inside.
[It wouldn't exactly make it any better with how loud it is, but being inside a home felt marginally safer than in a hallway. He reluctantly pulled away.]
[He does still remember the night that Kaeya was found. When Crepus had brought in the soaking, ice-cold little boy with blue hair and dark skin and Diluc had hung around his legs asking a hundred questions. The boy's name was Kaeya Alberich, he'd been told, and he'd be staying with them for a while.
Everything after that was history.
Kaeya clings to him in answer to that noisy crash of thunder and he tightens his arm around him, feeling his racing heart against the back of his hand.]
... Mmn. [He murmurs, feeling suddenly chilly with the distance between them and stepping back to let Kaeya walk in to the apartment ahead of him.]
I was making tea, but I can do something else. Or something stronger.
[Without the warmth, Kaeya was back to hugging his arms to his chest as he stepped further inside. He made a considering noise at the options given to him. But he shook his head at the thought of drinking. There was a reason he didn't during storms, he was already anxious and irrational now and being drunk was just going to exacerbate it.]
Do you... have anything sweeter? Not juice.
[It could be fruit tea for all he cared but... something sweet was always kind of nice and it reminded him a bit of their childhood. When Adelinde would make the two of them hot chocolate or even warming up some milk and honey. Being warm and cozy and helped Kaeya acclimate to his new home back then. Why not now?]
Mm... [He gives some consideration to the request as he stands in the kitchen space looking at the closed cupboards. Despite their not being open he can visualise what's inside and he knows he's not all that prepared for the request.]
Right. [After a little thought he grabs a saucepan and starts to gently heat some milk, and while it's warming he walks quickly to the bedroom and grabs a thick, soft blanket that he drops off beside Kaeya on his way back to the stove.]
You can stay here until it's over if you like. I--.. I wouldn't mind.
[Kaeya toed off the sandals at the door, just in time to hear the saucepan on the stove. What was Diluc heating up? He missed the milk going in and Diluc was pretty fast with the blanket. He took a hold of it and opted to sit at the couch. The apartments were small, so it wasn't like it was far from the kitchen.]
Well, you did invite me over. Why... did you want me over, anyway?
[He felt a little awkward on the couch like this, but as the thunder rolled again he was in the blanket and resting his chin on his knees before he really knew it. He really was pathetic, wasn't he? Some kind of Knight he was. He leaned back a little against the arm, his head resting on the back of the couch he idly watched Diluc stir whatever was on the stove.]
[It sounds so simple when he puts it like that, but with the weight of the last years of anger between them still hanging it means a lot for Diluc to say so easily that he just... wanted to have Kaeya around.
He stirs the milk lightly to make sure it doesn't burn and brushes his hair back over his shoulders. A few rogue curls bounce forwards again within moments.
When he glances over and sees Kaeya so swiftly bundled up under the blanket, that small frown flickers over his brow again before he quickly shifts his attention back to the milk.]
[It was a soft murmur of a protest. He was certain it was only the two of them in this apartment so it would have been unthinkable to ask anyone to wonder out in this storm. Again, why couldn’t there just be a convenient time surge right now?
He watched Diluc absently work on whatever he was heating up. His eye caught Diluc’s for that moment and he looked away. He didn’t like feeling as though he were being studied. He knew Diluc didn’t mean it, Kaeya was acting in a manner reserved for when he was home alone. No one had ever seen this. He sighed through his nose and then caught sight of a hair tie on the table at the end of the couch.
He looked back over as Diluc tried valiantly to keep his hair from sliding forward but that hair of his was always wild and there was a reason the redhead was rarely seen with it not in some kind of tail. After another bit of thunder rolled on through, Kaeya forced himself to calm as he scooted over to the table and grabbed the hair tie, getting up from the couch and leaving the blanket so he could go into the kitchen and gently gather the red and blue locks.]
Hold still, you’re going to burn your hair at this rate.
[It wasn’t going to be anything fancy, not without a brush, but Kaeya gathered it all and pulled it through the hair tie. He also took a glance at the milk heating in the saucepan and couldn’t help the small smile pulling up one corner of his lips.]
Milk with honey? I didn’t think you remembered that.
A lot of people don't live three doors down the hall.
[And a lot of people aren't people he would think to send a message to after waking up in the middle of the night. Until recently, even Kaeya wasn't someone he would thik to send a message to in the middle of the night. Things have certainly changed.
He hears the other man moving around but doesn't look over at him again. While he's keeping half an eye on Kaeya's condition, he doesn't want to make it seem as if he's... watching him. Bit too late for that, probably, but he can still avoid making it worse. So it's a surprise when he feels hands in his hair and he visibly flinches, only the fact he knows who it is keeping him from pulling away entirely.]
It isn't that long. [Diluc mutters, but he tips his head back slightly to make it easier then gives it a little shake once his hair is tied. He glances over his shoulder and smiles faintly.]
I don't know why you'd think I'd forgotten. Adelinde would make it for us.
[And Elzer, too, if he was around in the evening.]
[Kaeya fought a light chuckle when Diluc jumped, he hadn’t intended to startle him and thought he had been noisy enough. Guess not! There was a murmured apology as he backed up once the hair tie was secured. He let himself lean against the adjacent counter, it was warmer in here. He crossed his arms against, though.]
No, she made hot cocoa most of the time because someone requested it over hot milk all the time.
[Which certainly didn’t help the two kids already being wide awake for whatever reasons. But Adelinde indulged them at times but she’d go with honeyed milk when she could so the two rambunctious boys could get some sleep.]
Not that I can blame you. She made very good hot cocoa and I can never do it justice myself.
[So he'd had a preference! And Kaeya had never tried too hard to argue against that preference, for reasons which become clear with what he says next. The hot chocolate that Adelinde made was indeed very good, and Diluc had never quite been able to replicate it either.
But she was still his head housekeeper, and every so often when he was feeling particularly nostalgic for the past, he would ask her to make it for him.
She would never refuse.]
The honey is in the cupboard there, would you mind?
[Kaeya had his own sweet tooth so it wasn’t like he had any room to argue, but it was fun to joke about. Something that not many knew about Diluc.
He reached into the cupboard that his brother indicated, rummaging only for a moment before pulling out the glass jar and setting down on the counter next to the stove.]
…thank you. You didn’t need to go that far for me, you know. I would have been fine with some fruit tea or something.
[There were a lot of things that Kaeya would know about Diluc that few knew, and some that no one else knew. They had been so close, after all. Closer to each other than to anyone else in some ways.
He smiles and shakes his head to dismiss what the other man says, and picks up a couple of mugs to portion the milk out into. With that done he adds some honey to each and stirs them, the spoon ringing lightly against the side of each cup.]
It wasn't any trouble. Besides, [And he picks up the mugs, offering one to Kaeya while he takes a sip from the other.] It's been a long time since we did this.
It’s been a long time since we did a lot of things.
[He took the mug, only to set it down really fast when the lightning flashed. He knew he was going to jump and while the milk spilled a little, it was better than the alternative that would have happened once the thunder hit as well. He closed his eyes, willing himself to calm his heart.]
Sorry.
[He looked for a towel to clean up the mess he made.]
[The storm is moving over them and since there's a delay between the flash and the noise, Diluc remains unfazed. He still looks a little concerned though, when Kaeya reacts like that again.
He hands him a towel, sensing that he needs to be able to clear up his own mess rather than have it done for him, and while he deals with that Diluc makes a point of pulling the tie out of his hair again and shaking it entirely loose.]
Let's sit down. [Diluc suggests, nodding towards the couch and Kaeya's abandoned blanket.] After you.
[It was easier now that he had company, but it wasn't going to go away any time soon. He was grateful that Diluc didn't say anything about the mess, letting him clean it up and rinse the towel clean. He laid it over the edge of the sink to dry and took his mug from the counter. He held it in both hands as he nodded and went back to the couch.
He had the blanket draped over his lap and handed some of it to Diluc as well, taking a sip with a raised brow. Aren't you cold, Diluc?]
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Yes.
[Kaeya has been awake the entire time. He could always tell when the rains were going to be just rain and when it was going to turn into something much fiercer. It was something he unconsciously learned and he hated it. He wished he could just sleep through the damn things, but it was never going to happen.
So, he stayed huddled under the blankets, an unfinished cup of tea beside him on the tatami mat, and his device that suddenly lit up. He hadn't been at all surprised who texted him, but he was surprised as to why.]
Go back to sleep.
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No chance of that with this noise.
[The text goes back over as he pulls on a robe and goes to the kitchen with the full intention of making himself a drink. Maybe he'll sit out the worst of it with a book and go back to sleep when the sky has stopped being so damned loud.]
I'm making tea, do you want to join me?
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[He was already mildly irritated but most of all, he was anxious and nervous. He dealt with these feeling before during the storms in Mondstadt, he could do it here. Although he wished a surge would go through and the weather would just suddenly clear up. Wishful thinking.
He jumped as that thunder rolled again, body beginning to shake lightly as his heart rate continued to stay up. He hated this.]
Thanks for the offer.
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I'd like if you'd come over anyway.
[And he taps his thumbs idly to either side of the small keyboard, drawing his lower lip in between his teeth before he adds-]
Please?
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There was something about him lately that had him just following through with whatever was going on. Similar to how he got clingy around Venti and had, once upon a time, acted far more intimately around Aether despite his usual MO keep everyone at arm’s length.]
Fine. Since you asked so nicely.
Give me a few minutes.
[Because the mental preparation for wandering around an empty hallway with a storm going on in a place that wasn’t quite as cozy as his home in Mondstadt was a lot. But he managed, not bothering to change out of his sleeping clothes but putting on a pair of sandals. He made sure his Vision was at his waist and his eyepatch was on before finally heading over. He was gripping his sleeves without even realizing it.]
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He does wait a few minutes, and then opens the door out into the hallway to look down towards Kaeya's place. And-- ah, there he is.]
Hey.
[The redhead hadn't bothered too much to make himself look presentable - his hair is down and falling around his shoulders in thick, blue-streaked curls, he's barefoot and in loose long pants and an open robe. Kaeya has seen him looking worse, but he's rarely seen Kaeya looking so much like he wants to disappear.
It doesn't take a genius to see that he doesn't look at all like himself. Diluc frowns very slightly and looks him up and down, and then he holds a hand out to him.]
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Kaeya looked up and found Diluc frowning at him. This suddenly felt like a bad idea but he was rooted in place. The past month and a half with Diluc had just been so tumultuous and weird and exciting but Kaeya felt very out of sorts nonetheless. And yet, he finally let go of one sleeve and placed his hand in Diluc’s.
He wasn’t going to bite the hand this time.
His grip suddenly tightened when he flinched rather harder, the lightning and thunder crashing nearly simultaneously and his heart was in his throat, shoulders up to his ears for that moment. Why was it suddenly louder out here than when he was inside?]
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Neither of them had been much fond of storms when they were children, but he had always thought they had both grown out of it. His mind goes to the reaction Kaeya had had to his phoenix, and then to the last time he had used it against him, and... it isn't difficult to put the pieces together.
He squeezes his hand around the one in his and then, uttering a very quiet 'come here', he pulls Kaeya in and wraps one arm around his shoulders. The other hand, still clasped around his, is pinned lightly between their heartbeats.]
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He shuddered lightly and finally let himself relax, if only a little. His head lowered until his chin rested on a strong shoulder, his free arm hesitantly reaching up to grip at the robe from behind, just between Diluc's shoulder blades. It was another breath through his nose and his muscles lost their tension completely, shoulders lowering as his head tilted lightly to rest against his brother's.]
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Archons, just how much damage had he done?
Diluc shuts his eyes for a moment and rubs his thumb softly against the back of Kaeya's shoulder just as he had when the other man had been asleep beside him in the hospital. He tips his head softly against the touch against it, keeping the hold warm but nothing that couldn't be easily wriggled out of.]
I've got you. [He says quietly.] You're all right now.
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But another crackle and crash and Kaeya felt himself clinging tighter, his heart racing once more. He hated this. Hated feeling so vulnerable and scared over something he had originally grown out of.]
Perhaps we should go inside.
[It wouldn't exactly make it any better with how loud it is, but being inside a home felt marginally safer than in a hallway. He reluctantly pulled away.]
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Everything after that was history.
Kaeya clings to him in answer to that noisy crash of thunder and he tightens his arm around him, feeling his racing heart against the back of his hand.]
... Mmn. [He murmurs, feeling suddenly chilly with the distance between them and stepping back to let Kaeya walk in to the apartment ahead of him.]
I was making tea, but I can do something else. Or something stronger.
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Do you... have anything sweeter? Not juice.
[It could be fruit tea for all he cared but... something sweet was always kind of nice and it reminded him a bit of their childhood. When Adelinde would make the two of them hot chocolate or even warming up some milk and honey. Being warm and cozy and helped Kaeya acclimate to his new home back then. Why not now?]
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Right. [After a little thought he grabs a saucepan and starts to gently heat some milk, and while it's warming he walks quickly to the bedroom and grabs a thick, soft blanket that he drops off beside Kaeya on his way back to the stove.]
You can stay here until it's over if you like. I--.. I wouldn't mind.
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Well, you did invite me over. Why... did you want me over, anyway?
[He felt a little awkward on the couch like this, but as the thunder rolled again he was in the blanket and resting his chin on his knees before he really knew it. He really was pathetic, wasn't he? Some kind of Knight he was. He leaned back a little against the arm, his head resting on the back of the couch he idly watched Diluc stir whatever was on the stove.]
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[It sounds so simple when he puts it like that, but with the weight of the last years of anger between them still hanging it means a lot for Diluc to say so easily that he just... wanted to have Kaeya around.
He stirs the milk lightly to make sure it doesn't burn and brushes his hair back over his shoulders. A few rogue curls bounce forwards again within moments.
When he glances over and sees Kaeya so swiftly bundled up under the blanket, that small frown flickers over his brow again before he quickly shifts his attention back to the milk.]
And you look like you need the company.
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[It was a soft murmur of a protest. He was certain it was only the two of them in this apartment so it would have been unthinkable to ask anyone to wonder out in this storm. Again, why couldn’t there just be a convenient time surge right now?
He watched Diluc absently work on whatever he was heating up. His eye caught Diluc’s for that moment and he looked away. He didn’t like feeling as though he were being studied. He knew Diluc didn’t mean it, Kaeya was acting in a manner reserved for when he was home alone. No one had ever seen this. He sighed through his nose and then caught sight of a hair tie on the table at the end of the couch.
He looked back over as Diluc tried valiantly to keep his hair from sliding forward but that hair of his was always wild and there was a reason the redhead was rarely seen with it not in some kind of tail. After another bit of thunder rolled on through, Kaeya forced himself to calm as he scooted over to the table and grabbed the hair tie, getting up from the couch and leaving the blanket so he could go into the kitchen and gently gather the red and blue locks.]
Hold still, you’re going to burn your hair at this rate.
[It wasn’t going to be anything fancy, not without a brush, but Kaeya gathered it all and pulled it through the hair tie. He also took a glance at the milk heating in the saucepan and couldn’t help the small smile pulling up one corner of his lips.]
Milk with honey? I didn’t think you remembered that.
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[And a lot of people aren't people he would think to send a message to after waking up in the middle of the night. Until recently, even Kaeya wasn't someone he would thik to send a message to in the middle of the night. Things have certainly changed.
He hears the other man moving around but doesn't look over at him again. While he's keeping half an eye on Kaeya's condition, he doesn't want to make it seem as if he's... watching him. Bit too late for that, probably, but he can still avoid making it worse. So it's a surprise when he feels hands in his hair and he visibly flinches, only the fact he knows who it is keeping him from pulling away entirely.]
It isn't that long. [Diluc mutters, but he tips his head back slightly to make it easier then gives it a little shake once his hair is tied. He glances over his shoulder and smiles faintly.]
I don't know why you'd think I'd forgotten. Adelinde would make it for us.
[And Elzer, too, if he was around in the evening.]
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No, she made hot cocoa most of the time because someone requested it over hot milk all the time.
[Which certainly didn’t help the two kids already being wide awake for whatever reasons. But Adelinde indulged them at times but she’d go with honeyed milk when she could so the two rambunctious boys could get some sleep.]
Not that I can blame you. She made very good hot cocoa and I can never do it justice myself.
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Ah. Guilty as charged.
[So he'd had a preference! And Kaeya had never tried too hard to argue against that preference, for reasons which become clear with what he says next. The hot chocolate that Adelinde made was indeed very good, and Diluc had never quite been able to replicate it either.
But she was still his head housekeeper, and every so often when he was feeling particularly nostalgic for the past, he would ask her to make it for him.
She would never refuse.]
The honey is in the cupboard there, would you mind?
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He reached into the cupboard that his brother indicated, rummaging only for a moment before pulling out the glass jar and setting down on the counter next to the stove.]
…thank you. You didn’t need to go that far for me, you know. I would have been fine with some fruit tea or something.
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He smiles and shakes his head to dismiss what the other man says, and picks up a couple of mugs to portion the milk out into. With that done he adds some honey to each and stirs them, the spoon ringing lightly against the side of each cup.]
It wasn't any trouble. Besides, [And he picks up the mugs, offering one to Kaeya while he takes a sip from the other.] It's been a long time since we did this.
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[He took the mug, only to set it down really fast when the lightning flashed. He knew he was going to jump and while the milk spilled a little, it was better than the alternative that would have happened once the thunder hit as well. He closed his eyes, willing himself to calm his heart.]
Sorry.
[He looked for a towel to clean up the mess he made.]
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[The storm is moving over them and since there's a delay between the flash and the noise, Diluc remains unfazed. He still looks a little concerned though, when Kaeya reacts like that again.
He hands him a towel, sensing that he needs to be able to clear up his own mess rather than have it done for him, and while he deals with that Diluc makes a point of pulling the tie out of his hair again and shaking it entirely loose.]
Let's sit down. [Diluc suggests, nodding towards the couch and Kaeya's abandoned blanket.] After you.
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He had the blanket draped over his lap and handed some of it to Diluc as well, taking a sip with a raised brow. Aren't you cold, Diluc?]
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