Currently Crying At The Bar - Blog Posts

I DON'T THINK FRIENDS KISS EACH OTHER LIKE THIS ( everything has changed after kazuha returned from that trip ).

— genre : fic ( wc ~ 1.2k ). fluff, hurt / comfort. — cw : kissing, flirting, inazuma archon quest, mentions of beidou & thoma. "everything has changed" by taylor & ed. for @starglitterz feb collab !! <3 — characters : kazuha x gn!reader

you step out onto the streets, and the harbour greets you.

ritou, the small island which holds so many memories bitter and sweet. it is the bittersweetness of life that holds people's souls together, you recall a mellow voice speak, held together with ties that cannot be broken even by time.

you smile fondly at the memory, remembering the last time you were in his presence. life was so different then — the vision hunt decree, the war, the rigid rules and suffocating environment that caused him to flee. a life full of doubt and fear and uncertainty, bold risks and willing sacrifices. you remember when this island was ridden with conflict, the environment heavy with revenge and spite. now, as the sun peeks through the dense morning cloud, crimson leaves stark against the sky that looks bluer than ever, it seems inazuma's port is readying itself for the arrival of those dearly missed.

it's funny, realising how much you've longed for those who have been gone. one free - spirited, poetic, thoughtful wanderer in particular. you miss his carefree laugh, his reassuring hands, his silent presence ever so comforting, even while engulfed within the tense air of a wartorn nation's dead of night.

"there it is! the alcor! i see it, i see it!" a high - pitched voice screams excitedly. the child tiptoes over the edge of a railing, hands waving around ecstatically — and sure enough, as you follow the approximate direction their chubby finger points in, you spot the characteristic majestic sails billowing in the ocean breeze. maybe it's a figment of your imagination, but you swear captain beidou's figure is visible too, watching the islands of inazuma approach slowly but surely in all her confident glory. and maybe, if you really squint hard enough, you can catch a glimpse of a wandering samurai perched upon the bird's nest, eyes desperately searching the harbour in anticipation for one special person in particular.

. . .

"kaedehara kazuha." you exhale slowly, ( eagerly ) drinking in the sight of him. he's finally here, standing on the same ground as you, breeze blowing his hair around his face like an angel's halo.

"hi, dove." kazuha is suddenly unsure of where to put his hands now that you're right in front of him. you still resemble your old self — still so, so captivating, he thinks, pretty features coated in joy.

you're home, you want to say, but you know home is not a place on earth according to the avid traveller. but your doubts are interrupted by his voice once more. "your eyes look like coming home," he replies breathlessly to your thoughts.

pure euphoria washes over you when kazuha opens his arms to hug you for the first time in much too long. the moment is short - lived, though, beidou's booming captain voice ringing throughout the harbour. "hey, you lazy sailors! get back here and help thoma and i unload all this stuff of yours!"

"so ... meet me here again tonight?" he asks, pushing stray ruffled strands out of your face.

your eyes crinkle into little happy crescent moons at his familiar request, mirroring the way his eyelashes flutter in content.

"after the moon rises above the silhouette of narukami shrine. as always, kazuha."

. . .

though under the familiar glow of the moonlit sky, seated below the very same branches that have existed for as long as you can remember, something feels different. ( not off, because that implies something is wrong — simply different to before, different to how you remembered it to be ).

"you came."

"of course i did."

a comfortable silence settles, save for the sound of chirping crickets rippling through the midnight air.

perhaps it's because he carries with him the scent of faraway worlds, ones that you haven't visited but long to travel to with him by your side. or maybe it's because his hair is longer than you remember, red tuft accentuated by the scarlet of autumn leaves. or it could be because he's older and grown and so are you, leaving it at a reason as simple as that.

innocent conversations and intertwined hands and a head upon his shoulder turn to doting stares and flickering light in both of your eyes. and before you know it, you realise things feel different because oh my god, i'm in love with —

"can i kiss you?" his voice is almost curious, breath ( and cheeks ) warm. and your answer is clear in the way you lean in to capture his lips with an insatiable, inexplicable desire in a silent confession of your ( clearly mutual ) recent epiphany.

but now he's exactly where he wants to be and kazuha is holding himself back, and so are you — because this is different, this isn't how things were back then. all you know is that those ruby eyes and dimples when he smiles rouse the butterflies in your stomach, the overwhelming feelings you've been holding back all these years, an irresistible magnetism you've been missing all this time.

lips part slowly, reluctantly, and he sighs before running a hand through his hair, eyes still locked onto yours. even if your mouths have let go for air, gazes definitely don't have the strength to tear themselves away from each other just yet.

you pause before asking the question that's on the forefront of your mind, begging to be spoken out loud. "are we friends, kazuha?"

"mhm, why do you ask? we've been friends for long enough now, no?" he grins lopsidedly, one hand still glued to your hip and the other gingerly brushing against your cheek. his tone is teasing but it conceals another emotion you can't pinpoint, something hidden away behind those smooth remarks.

"because ..." words trail off, and you know it's cheesy but you feel like you're getting lost in his eyes — a swirl of complex emotions and conflicting feelings and god, you can see how the turmoil in his heart mirrors yours right now, the hesitation and fear that what if something goes wrong, i don't want to lose you twice.

"because, kaedehara kazuha, i don't think friends kiss each other like this."

he laughs softly, eyes twinkling in amusement and adoration while he thumbs your frustrated tears ( that you didn't even realise began to spill ) away from your face. his touch is gentle and so is his gaze. it understands everything you want to say without any demands — because kazuha doesn't want to force the words that are still stuck in your throat, all the things you wish you could say but can't bring yourself to.

"mmm … then i don't mind being something other than that, lovely. i'll let you choose the label, sound good?" he whispers under his breath before pressing his lips against yours once again. "i won't mind whatever you want us to be, so don't stress yourself out about it, yeah? as long as i'm allowed to know you better, then whatever we're called … whatever name we're given … it all doesn't really matter much to me." kazuha smiles a delicate smile before continuing shyly. "but ... if i were to have a choice, i just want you to know that i'd love to make you mine."

— taglist ( open ) : @xienn @chichikoi @yinyinggie @favonius-captain @dawndelion-winery