Maybe I Got Lonely ?
Albedo x Reader
✦ summary ✦
Albedo has been approaching you more these days and you finally think he's taking time to be a bit more sociable - even if it's flirtatious. (Part 2 to 'Lets Play House') Tags: fluff, romance, suggestive content (?), teasing, flirting Word count: 3.1k
A/N: mostly plotless, I was just focusing on their dynamic now and how they've developed their so called 'bond'.
Part 1 - 'Lets Play House'
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Albedo was a rational man – so he’d like to say. He knew when he was experiencing changes from his usual being. And he’s tested the hypothesis on numerous occasions. It all lead to a singular conclusion – that he oh so dearly wanted to get to know you a little better. The person he only related to as an acquaintance that looked after Klee with you every now and then. Sure, you two had to roleplay as ‘Mommy’ and ‘Daddy’, but it was just harmless fun to keep Klee happy. Plus, the furthest you’d go is talk about how well made the ‘tea’ is at the ‘dining table’ Klee had set up for you all.
But things were different now – at least to Albedo.
To you, well. You saw Albedo as you always have. Plain, straightforward, caring – but only towards that of his interest. You barely speak unless you have to. You noticed he makes an effort to greet you during the rare occasion you’re both in the same room (that’s not related to Klee), but that’s about it. And after the stunt he played on you last time you played ‘House’ with him, you really were planning on distancing yourself from him.
Speaking of. Word caught wind into the Favonius Cathedral – specifically, to a mischievous pink-haired deacon, also known as the Herald of Barbatos. Though, pleased to hear about the momentous occasion, he was rather irritated he didn’t get a first hand view of the situation. And when the Knights of Favonius gathered in the Church for the first time in what felt like months, he decided to seize the opportunity for what he missed out on.
“We would like to welcome our devout soldiers who protect the lands, Lord Barbatos has so dearly blessed us with. Today we celebrate a momentous occasion, reuniting all our knights for their hard work during their battles to reclaim our land” the words are fluid and gentle, but Dahlia manages to be clear with his voice.
Though you aren’t the religious type, you’re still grateful to the grand icon of the land you’re settled in, and you’re sure Albedo is too with the way his eyes are glued to Dahlia. He never mentioned that he was the religious type, in fact, you specifically remember him ranting about it once – but shut himself up when Klee came over.
Klee thought Barbatos was santa, the toothfairy and every mystical ogre and adeptus from even the religions across Liyue.
As the service finishes, the knights begin to either stay to pray in their own space or leave. You were on your way to leave till you saw two lilac eyes crinkle at you.
“Would you like to pray with me? Whatever is on your mind, I’m sure I can let Barbatos know of and we’ll be able to find a solution”
You’re taken off-guard and step back a little. Wow, this guy did have an incredibly bright aura around him when he smiled like that. It was a little scary. You smile awkwardly and shake your head,
“No, that’s okay, really. Thank you though.”
“May Lord Barbatos bless you in your travels” Dahlia chirps, he doesn’t seem to press on further which you respect. On the other hand, he does ask the same to Albedo. You look over, curious to see Albedo’s reaction to it.
“Will he really?” Albedo questions and Dahlia smiles charmingly with a singular nod of the head,
“Of course, as his Herald, I am able to grant you any favour – so as long as it’s in good will and you pray to the Lord Barbatos”
Albedo seems to ponder in his mind before nodding his head, but a small frown still arises onto Dahlia’s lips,
“I sense there may be a few worrying thoughts, clouding your mind. May I suggest you visit the confessional with me – it’s a sacred space, don’t worry”
You narrow your eyes at what you’re seeing and hearing. This was way past your interests, but seeing Albedo agree and walk into the booth really piqued your interest. There was no way, in all of Teyvat, that Albedo was partaking in this.
But he was.
Was he okay? Was he going through something terrible? Was he at a breaking-point?
You decide to wait for him outside the church. You felt out-of-place even asking, you two were barely friends. But you still cared for him enough to check in. You wouldn’t wish ill will on anyone – even a self-serving character like Albedo.
“Oh, hello. I thought you would have left by now”
“I was just… well- I wanted to see if you were heading to Angel’s Share tonight to celebrate with the rest of the knights!” you spit out, cringing internally. In the end, you weren’t able to check in on him – it felt awkward with your current ‘bond’ with each other. Instead, you did another awkward thing – ask him if he were going to the tavern.
Of course he wasn’t going – he never attends those kinds of events. And neither were you. But now you had to because you said you were.
“Oh, I wasn’t planning on going. I have some papers to finish off. I may drop in if I complete them earlier”
You nod and smile awkwardly – hoping he doesn’t notice the sweat you’re about to break into. As you walk your separate ways you begin cursing yourself. Great, now you had to go, just so you don’t look like a liar the next day. You knew well he doesn’t care, and he probably wont interrogate you to find out if you did – but your mind didn’t work like that.
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And so here you were at the tavern, a glass juice in your hand, disguised as wine so you’d fit in. At least Diluc was here – he was keeping a low profile, but he sure looked good making the drinks up front, even more when Kaeya kept coming to tease him. He acted like he was a nuisance, but you saw that he was secretly happy to talk to his brother. You twist your lips as you circle your glass around, your cheek rested on your palm,
“You know, swirling juice around wont aerate it enough to enhance its flavour”
You snap up immediately.
There was only one person who would speak so technically in such a casual place. Albedo.
“You came?”
“I finished up early, as I said” he smiles warmly at you. With this lighting, and this angle, you sure were starting to see him in a filter of sparkles. He didn’t ask the obvious from you, which you appreciated – why you were even here if you don’t drink, and why you were still here when you were obviously bored.
You’re not the socially anxious type, you would definitely leave if you wanted to – especially in the tavern when no one really cared or noticed, everyone was already far from sober anyway. Plus, it was really late.
“You know, you should make an effort to connect more with your peers” you mumble, you didn’t know what else to say, so you resorted to this. He chuckles softly,
“Aren’t I doing that right now?” he tilts his head to the side, his eyes have a playful glint to them that make you want to gasp but you hold it in.
“I suppose you are. Is that why you showed face?”
Albedo hums, and pushes back at the small strand of hair in your face. It makes you blush.
“Maybe. Maybe I got lonely”
“You don’t get lonely; you spend all your time in Dragonspine – and you enjoy it”
Albedo bites back a smile, “You’re not wrong, but occasionally, I do get lonely in Dragonspine. But, I wouldn’t be so lonely if my occasional visitor actually came to my lab and didn’t hide out in the cave nearby”
Your eyes widen at his statement. His voice was so rich and honey-like that the words didn’t register at first, but now you knew.
“I was just- well- you know. I didn’t want to bother you” Wrong. You were too intimidated to even try say hello to him.
“And the missions were all very short in duration, so it would cost time” Also wrong. He saw you in there for at least 2 days once – he checked in because he was worried, all without you knowing.
You begin to feel hot at where this is going and the way he’s all too easily smirking right in front of your face.
Like he was being the better guy for making the effort today, when you were too scared to even try visit him in Dragonspine. In short, he was making you look like a complete hypocrite.
“Did you drink?” you suddenly say and Albedo is caught off-guard by you for the first time. He thinks about it for a split second and props his chin on his knuckles,
“Maybe”
You sigh. This was both good and bad. Good, because it gave you affirmation that it was the liquor that gave him this weird glow and energy boost to come up to you. Bad because now you wondered if something really was up with him.
First, seeking help from Dahlia at the Cathedral, second, he made the decision to come here, now, he’s taken a drink or two.
You scowl at him before leaning in, wishing to get a small whiff.
You couldn’t smell a thing.
Albedo smirks, turning towards you. You stiffen when you realise how close you’ve gotten to him. Flustered, you push back and stand up.
“I’m heading out”
“I’ll walk you home” he says, trailing right behind you with a smirk on his lips. He was sure you didn’t catch onto him when you muttered about “not wanting to take care of a drunkard”, and that made things all the more amusing to him.
Before you leave, Diluc calls out to you, and like deer in headlights, you look straight to his, all of a sudden, dazed – Oh Diluc.
Archons above…there was the man of everyone’s dreams, he may not be as pretty as Albedo but he certainly was fighting for the top spot. More than that he was brave, daring, buff-
Albedo raises his brows at the sight of you, obviously dazed. He scoffs.
“You’re heading out already?” Diluc asks and you nod your head, blushing and stuttering like a small schoolgirl. It was amusing to Albedo to witness this, really. It let him know two things. 1) he needed to up his game when it came to flustering you. 2) You seemed like the type to completely malfunction if you were pushed past your limits. Interesting.
The one liner Diluc pulled on you certainly seemed to do that. Albedo doesn’t know if Diluc even knows that he has that effect.
“Be safe, it’s dark out”
Oh you were sure to imprint those words in your mind as you fell asleep.
“Be so~ safe” Kaeya repeats in a teasing whisper, waving at her. Diluc slaps Kaeya with a tea towel and he bursts into a chuckle.
“I will, goodnight” you nod your head obediently and speak softly, It was a tone you never used before, at least in front of Albedo. Albedo didn’t even know your voice could do that.
Albedo begins to snort before nudging you from behind and snapping you back into reality.
Your clear your throat and leave the tavern, not before hearing two giggles – customers of the tavern, probably, there’s always the odd couple or two that sit outside. But this voice, you were familiar with it.
That Deacon and that darn Bard.
You furrow your brows at the two, confused at the match but look away immediately. What kind of Deacon drinks a mug of beer this late at night? With a stray Bard at that? You walk faster and hope they didn’t recognise you.
Oh they definitely did.
And their topic of conversation was about you boy who ran behind you.
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If Albedo knew you’d end up coming back to the Favonius Headquarters, he wouldn’t have left to see you at the tavern. He huffs as he walks behind you, and you snap back at him.
“You know, I have a room here too. I just have some work to do, that’s all”
Albedo crosses his arms and deadpans, “If you had work, you should have stayed instead of going out”
You look to Albedo with a glare, he was getting on your nerves. He was starting to sound like the father figure you never had.
“I was celebrating my achievements, archons forbid a woman wants to-”
“sit alone in a corner and drink juice in a wine glass?” he finishes for you and you have to hold yourself back from slapping his suspiciously soft looking skin.
“Whatever, I don’t regret a thing. I had a lovely experience and that’s all that matters”
“Is that referring to your lackluster conversation with Diluc?”
You are once again silenced. The audacity and sass coming out of him tonight was lethal. He definitely must have had a drink or two (no he didn’t).
“Yes, yes it was. Now, leave. I need to sign off some papers” you hush before walking into your office. Not so surprisingly, Albedo follows behind. He watches as you settle a pile of documents on your table and take a seat.
“I can help? I’ve got authority too, right?” he offers, his voice, softer now. Albedo was always a kind boy. You attribute his desire to learn about alchemy to this. He knew what hard work looked like, and he respected it. And if he could do something to make someone’s life easier, that would be most satisfactory for him.
And so you agree. You wanted to rest early, and it was past midnight by the time you finished. Albedo watches you as you suddenly perk up from almost falling asleep. You had just finished your last paper and so had he.
But you perked up because you remembered something. Or rather, someone. Klee. You thanked Albedo for his help and began to walk out to the very opposite direction of where your room. Albedo quirks an eyebrow and follows,
“And where are you heading now?”
“You really are persistent today. I’m off to see Klee.”
“I already checked in on her before I left”
You heart warms as you hear the words and you even smile. You hope he doesn’t see that. You really admired the way Albedo cared for Klee. Though they weren’t blood-related, he was still very much her older brother.
“doesn’t matter, I wont be able to sleep till I see it with my own eyes” you mumble back, at it was true. You would probably wake up in a cold-sweat thinking about her.
To you, knowing Klee was in the very building always made your heart ache. Because though you had the luxury of your own home away from the headquarters, Klee didn’t. She was in the Favonius Headquarters all day long. It was her ‘home’, though you knew well she didn’t see it as such.
Albedo’s heart patters faster when you said that. He only nods, following you along.
When you’re both at her door, you make sure to be as slow as you can when you open it. The doors were always so creaky here so you wanted to be as soft as possible to not wake her accidentally.
But she was already awake. Wide. Awake.
You and Albedo both stiffen at the sight of your precious Klee on the floor with her stuffed dodoco. It was one of her biggest plushes. But that wasn’t what drained the colour out of you or Albedo, it was the fact that she was crying.
As you rush over to hug her, Albedo slowly closes the door behind him. He doesn’t turn on the light since the moonlight is already bright enough to light the room.
“Klee, what’s wrong? How long have you been awake, hm?”
Klee sobs into you and apologises, saying she had a nightmare and couldn’t go back to sleep. She also mentioned that she missed her mother which broke your heart even more.
After about an hour of you three playing with her plushies on the floor. Klee finally started to waver. Albedo catches her before she falls, only to feel your head fall onto his shoulder shortly after.
He can’t help but chuckle.
In a matter of moments he gently lays you and Klee on the bed. He sits beside Klee for a small while, his fingers running through her hair – he was wondering if he could somehow convince Miss Alice to visit Klee, even for a small moment.
As Albedo moves to stand, he feels a tug on his sleeve.
“Klee-”
“Don’t go…” Albedo’s heart breaks a little. He felt guilty taking another step when she said that. He smiles softly, and places a kiss on Klees forehead.
“It’s late Klee, I need sleep too, remember?”
Klee rubs on her eyes and shakes her head, “Klee’s bed is big… please, big brother?”
It was true. Klee’s room was the biggest of them all, and her bed was even bigger. He assumes it was their way of accommodating her. Albedo takes far too long to respond so a sleepy Klee gets out of the bed and attempts to push him on. Albedo chuckles softly and goes along with it. He feels Klee dip into the bed next to him, but as he turns he realises that he’s right next to you.
He freezes.
He doesn’t think he’s ever seen you this quite, or relaxed before. Not in front of him, at least. His heart starts racing as his eyes drag over your body. Soft. His train of thought is stopped when he hears Klee snore. But then, you shift too. It like people communicate through their sleep, it was fascinating.
But what was more fascinating to him was the sight of you when you had turned to face him. As you got comfortable in your new position, Albedo tried to calm himself down. The way your chest moved with each breath, the way you would occasionally let out a soft sound… he could watch you for hours.
If you were awake, you probably wouldn’t get as close to his body as you did. You were almost pressing onto him at this point. Poor Albedo didn’t have the courage to push you back, no, he didn’t want to.
As your arm reaches out to settle on his shoulders, you mutter a small “Klee”
Albedo smiles.
A golden opportunity like this, he was sure not to miss it.
Of course he was a gentleman, with adequate respect for his friends. So he settled with just pulling you in closer. He has to hold back a sigh at the feeling of your curves on his as his palms bring you in by the waist. How excruciatingly painful. He wanted more. He was finally learning the pains of restraint.
Letting out a shaky breath, he nestles his face deep in your neck, enjoying the scent he never could get close to prior.
It was a waste to fall asleep, so he pondered his top priorities for the coming weeks.
Getting Klee time with Alice, and getting to know you a little better. He wondered if he could hit two birds with one stone.
