This was the start of something

It’s been five days, hasn’t it? Faishi thought as he sat on a bench overlooking part of the harbor, idly fidgeting with one of the skewers left over from his lunch. There had been a new street food vendor that Delun had been raving about lately, and he’d finally given it a try today. It was very much the kind of thing that Bran liked, and he had actually made a mental note to tell him about it tonight, before remembering that his lover wasn’t even in the harbor, and wouldn’t be for some time. The thought was strangely unsettling for some reason.

It was odd really, just how much he had started to take for granted that Bran was there and, to him at least, how much he had started to rely on that. Even when they didn’t see each other every day, he knew where he was or at least who would know where Bran was at any given time. For some reason that knowledge that he could just turn a corner and Bran would be there, or could pop up without saying anything had come to mean something.

And what does that say about me, he couldn’t help thinking as he watched seagulls riding the breeze above the harbor. Have I become a lovesick fool that can’t even function without his lover there to hold his hand?Even several months into this relationship he still was very conscious of it. It was like a loose tooth he couldn’t leave alone or a puzzle box he just had to keep meddling with. He kept prodding at his feelings, examining them from every angle and trying to understand why he had fallen into this so easily. What did Bran mean to him? Why did he feel so close to him already? Sometimes it left him breathless, and it kept catching him off guard. It was..unnerving

Not that he wanted the relationship to end. If anything the thought of it ending terrified him. This was just...comfortable. Very comfortable, in a way that was new and disconcerting.

It wasn’t as if this was his first relationship either. Granted he hadn’t had nearly as many as say Delun (who had really?), but he wasn’t inexperienced. He wasn’t a child in the first rush of inflation, which is what he had feared at first. After all this time he knew that it wasn’t lust, and his feelings hadn’t lessened.

It had just seemed so...easy to let Bran in that he hadn’t been sure what to make of it. Somehow the adventurer becoming a part of his life had been natural. Maybe it was because he had known him for a year before anything really started between them, and was why everything had felt right when they had finally started dating. Like something that just clicked into place, and it became far too easy to rely on him.
I don’t need Bran to be here, he thought fiercely to himself because he was fine with him out of the city. His world had hardly stopped spinning. but… he realized, I do want him to be here.
It was like part of a puzzle clicking into place, one he hadn't even realized he’d been working on. He felt slightly lighter, and the air felt easier to breathe. Maybe that was part of the answer he had been reaching towards.

Not all of it he was sure of, but it was enough for now. That was enough introspection for one day. He didn’t have the time to be sitting around lost in his own mind, after all.
“Time to get back to work,” he carefully stood, and turned his mind,already switching over to sorting through what he had left to accomplish that afternoon...then froze at the sight of someone purposely making their way through the crowd. “Archons, why now?” he groaned, half hoping that it was just a coincidence that she was here, but no, it seems the gods would not be so merciful to him this time.

The woman was not walking, she was striding through the crowd, head up, shoulders back, every dusty purple hair in place, the light orange sleeves of her outfit billowing out from behind. She had the purposeful gaze of a general and the unstoppable force of an oncoming tide about her. People tended to move out of the way slightly at the sheer force of her personality even without her trying.

For a moment Faishi thought about trying to walk away and pretend he hadn’t seen her, but no, he realized with a sigh, her grim gaze was focused directly on him. With his limp he wouldn’t get far before she caught up and he would have to deal with...whatever her reason for finding him was….. somewhere slightly less comfortable. At least since it was the middle of the day he should be able to excuse himself because of work once she got too insistent. That was the one thing that his cousin Rufen might actually respect.

...Probably anyway.

“When did you start seeing someone?” were the first words out of her mouth when she reached him.

“What?” Was his completely intelligent response to that. He had been bracing for some sort of disapprovint lecture, but he realized as his heart leapt into his throat, not about this. Not this at all.

“Don’t act like you don’t know what I’m talking about,” she snapped and crossed her arms, “I’ve already looked into it.”

The sheer outrage of that cut through his shock. He straightened his own posture and glared at her, “I was just shocked you didn’t even bother to say ‘hello’ before you started ripping into me. Thank you for informing me that you’ve moved on from mere ‘busy-body’ to ‘stalker’,” his voice was icy as he tried to quiet the dread that was building in him. He hadn’t thought anyone would find out about him or Bran so fast.

Oh, he had known that his family would find out that he had a partner eventually. He wasn’t keeping it a secret precisely, and he didn’t want Bran to think he was ashamed of him. It was just something he never actually mentioned, since it had nothing to do with them.

He also knew that his family wasn’t going to see it that way. Rufen might have been their appointed watchdog, but he had realized from the start that all of them would shove whatever he had with Bran under a lens, then have opinions about it, and promptly be offended when he didn’t agree with any of them. Especially since he was fairly sure he knew what their opinions would be.

That was why he had wanted to be the one to let them know, so he could brace for it and let them be the ones that were surprised

Instead Rufen had ripped any choice he would have had from the matter out of his hands. He wasn’t even going to try to argue with her about keeping it secret, not with that frown on her face. Besides he knew her, the most he would ever get out of her was a few days' grace to ‘tell them himself’.

“I would hardly call checking up on my cousin ‘stalking’,” Rufen snapped, “it’s not as if I go digging into your life for fun.”

“Yet here you are,” Faishi said coldly, “doing just that. Prying away. What reason could you possibly have to be prying into my personal life? Are you really that bored?”

“Don’t act as if you’re that important. I wasn’t prying as you put it. I just happened to find out about your little secret when I stopped by several days ago to remind you that Uncle’s birthday celebration was in…”

“I know what my own father’s birthday is, thank you,” Faishi cut her off. Not that he remembered it off the top of his head, but he was sure it was written down. Somewhere. Not that he would ever be allowed to forget it.

Rufen crossed her arms, “that is exactly what you said last year. I ended up dragging you there at the last minute, remember?”

There wasn’t a graceful way to explain that he hadn’t exactly forgotten about his father’s birthday. Last year he’d just been in the middle of some work for a high paying client that was also a pain in the ass in the worst way, exhausted beyond measure because of it, and it had been a very bad week on top of everything else. Just the thought of having to put on a show for the family that decided to show up to the party - of being praised while everyone acted like they had contributed something to his success even after ridiculing him when he had first set out on this path - had almost made him sick. So he had just...decided not to go.
In his defense he had sent a gift.

Then Rufen had shown up and guilted him into actually going. It had gone little better than he expected, and he’s been forced to make an excuse to leave before he’d given into baser instincts and taken someone’s head off. While satisfying, the song-and-dance he would have to do to make up for his faux pas and while pretending to be sorry for it would have been even more draining than the party itself.

“But,” she continued, taking his silence for agreement, “I thought since I was near your apartment I would stop by and remind you early. While I was there looking for you, an old lady came out from the house across the street. She was still sharp enough to remember that we were related, and asked if I was here to see you again. I didn’t have a reason to lie so I simply told her yes,” Rufen crossed her arms, “and then she asked if I could pass along a word to ‘have that handsome sweetheart of his come by so I can say thank you’.” Which was news to me, since you had never mentioned you were interested in anyone…”

“....Granny,” he dropped his face into his hand, ignoring the annoyance in Rufen eyes. Mentally he snarled a curse at both of them, Granny for revealing his personal information to his cousin, and Rufen for acting like this was some sort of betrayal, then blabbing about it to the rest of the family.

Granny Wei had lived in her little house near his apartment since long before he had moved in there. She was always friendly and sociable when he passed though they hadn’t talked all that much. He hadn’t even realized she knew about Bran. But of course she had been keeping an eye on his apartment. Old folks like her were bored enough that they just did things like that. It didn’t mean she had the right to just start blabbing

A small voice in his mind reminded him that she didn’t know he’d been keeping his relationship quiet, but he ignored that. He was even irrationally annoyed at Bran for...being himself. Of course he had to help every person he came across. That was practically what an Adventurer was supposed to do.

He would just have to deal with them later.

Rufen was the one here now.

And still frowning at him.

So he took an internal deep breath, “and so?” he said he looked back up at his cousin. “I have never given you all the details of my personal life. It has absolutely nothing to do with you.” He was trying not to snap at her, but it was hard. Not when she suddenly had that look of outrage.

“You’re right,” she said coldly, “it has nothing to do with me. Forgive me for being concerned just because you’ve been keeping an entire relationship secret and I have to wonder why you…”

“I’m hardly keeping it secret,” he snapped, “I just haven’t been shouting it from the rooftops. My neighbor that I hardly talk to is aware of it. My coworkers know. You are hardly the entire world, Rufen.” Granted he had been making an effort to keep his family from finding out, but that was hardly keeping it a secret. Not when the woman who managed the small restaurant where he and Bran liked to take lunch together had been teasing them the last time they had been there together.

Rufen’s lips were pressed in that disapproving line again, “I hardly think that much of myself,” she said back, “but when even your own parents don’t know about this...random adventurer that you’ve apparently just let waltz into your life..”

His grip on his cane tightened, “he’s not a ‘random adventurer’,” he growled , “and I cannot believe that you would go tattling to my parents.” He didn’t want to start shouting in public, although it was hard. If they had been alone, he would be already. She kept doing this, treating him like a child and ripping his own privacy away from him because she was on some self-righteous crusade. As if he needed looking after, despite his successful career. Despite the fact that he didn’t even live in his parent’s house anymore.

“Why do you always jump to the strangest conclusions?” she said, voice tight, “I just asked if they had heard if you were interested in anyone, and they said no. Which is why I felt the need to look into this…Bran that no one in the family had ever heard of before.” She said the name like it was a particularly puzzling pet he had brought home one day.

It took him a long moment to say anything that would result in him taking her head off. “They haven’t heard because it’s none of the family’s business who I’m sleeping with,” he said each word sharp and clipped. Rufen went faintly red and sputtered a little, making him feel a tiny bit of satisfaction, “I’m an adult, cousin. Did you really think I only had him staying over for tea?”

“And you’re completely unashamed about this,” somehow she managed to say, “I just thought it was strange since you’ve always been so….selective..about your partners, and now you’re with a low-class adventurer that…”

“Low-class!?” he limped forward so that he was almost in her face, “don’t you dare say another word, Rufen,” he growled, “you come probing into my life without my permission, start insulting my partner,” he jabbed a finger at her face with each accusation forcing her to take a step back, “did you expect me to be grateful!?” he straightened up, “you don’t even know Bran. I know for a fact that you’ve never met him.”

He knew that was a safe statement. Rufen never had anything to do with the Adventurer's guild, and her social circle was completely different even from his own. He glared at her though, “so what right do you have to judge him at all? He’s no more ‘low-class’ than you.” He repeated the last words back at her mockingly.

She was glaring back at him now, face tense, “Maybe ‘low-class’ isn’t quite the word,” she snapped, “but you do realize he isn’t even from Liyue? He just wandered in from who-knows-where…”

“He’s from Natlan,” Faishi growled, “that isn’t a mystery.” It wasn’t Bran ever trying to hide where he was from. The architect had known the handsome adventurer flirting with him was from outside Liyue since the moment they’d met, so that was hardly an earth-shaking revelation. “If you had bothered to actually ask….”

“Natlan, is it?” Rufen crossed her arms, “then why,” she sounded suspiciously triumphant, “did I hear about him coming from Sumeru? Or Fontaine? Even the other adventurers can’t seem to agree on where he comes from, and I saw them get into arguments about it.”

“What?” he stared at her for a moment startled before he could collect himself, “and a few confused adventures are a concern because…?” He wondered for a moment if she had asked about the wrong person or if the adventurers had been talking about someone else, but no, he realized, that was impossible. There wasn’t anyone else he knew who shared Bran’s name in Liyue, and besides, his boyfriend was…unique. Tall and broad, with tan skin, black hair streaked liberally with the same dendro green as his Vision, scars across his face and hands, and the brightest turquoise eyes that Faishi had ever seen on a person - he’d thought more than once that Bran would be intimidating if he wasn’t so affable. Yet all that meant that he had a certain memorable presence. You noticed him even when you weren’t looking for him and you didn’t forget him easily.

So no, it wasn’t likely that people were mixing him up with someone else. He just wasn’t sure why them being wrong made Rufen so happy.

“Why do you think they’re confused?” she said, “or if I may put it another way…why are you sure that he’s from Natlan?”

All he could do was stare at her for a moment, “because that’s what he told me,” he said very slowly as if she were a confused child. “Why in the name of the Seven are you even asking me that?”

“And how do you know he was telling the truth with that?” she leaned forward, “you only have his word about…”

“Enough, Cousin!” he slammed the end of his cane down on the sidewalk. He didn’t even care who was watching at this point. “What the hell is your problem with Bran? You’ve never even met him, yet you’re acting like he’s some sort of criminal! What do you want from this!?”

“I just think it’s odd that someone wanders into Liyue and immediately seems to make contact with a son of the Xue family,” Rufen said icely, “and then continues to hang around him trying to get into his good graces…”

“He did a commission for me,” Faishi said in exasperation, “plenty of adventures make connections and friends that way.”

“But why would a newcomer be assigned to take on a commission from a family as prominent as the Xue?” Rufen persisted, “why not someone more well established here?” He was about to point out that the Adventurer’s guild didn’t even ask for information like that but she continued on, “but what he asked to be assigned to it? It would be a wonderful way to get close to you and gain your gratitude.”

For a long moment all he could was stare at her, “Did you hit your head at some point?” he finally demanded, “because I can’t imagine you would be coming up with convoluted conspiracy theories if you were in your right mind.”

“I’m perfectly fine,” Rufen said, “it’s you I’m concerned about! Even if you aren’t dealing with the family business right now, you have to realize people will try to forge a connection with you to get an advantage! Your career can’t be sheltering you enough that you’ve forgotten that!”

He almost laughed at the sheer absurdity of it, “you think that Bran of all people would….” If he ever had any doubt that she was underestimating what his career was like, what kind of clients and suppliers he had to deal with…this was it. Ever since he was small he’d been faced with people who saw a crippled child from a rich family, assumed he would be spoiled and slow, and attempted to take advantage of that. He had even suspected Delun of trying for something like that when he was younger, with how much he’d been warned about it. Oh, how well he knew what that kind of person was like.

And Bran was none of those things.

“Bran,” he said pointedly, “has never asked me for special favors. He’s a stranger to Liyue, as you so helpfully pointed out. I don’t think he knows or cares about the rest of my family at all. Which, again, if you weren’t being such a judgemental bitch about someone you don’t even know beyond rumor, you would know.”

Rufen was frowning, which happened whenever he bothered to remind her that he knew how to curse. As if he were still that child that needed to be taught how to behave.

“He’s still a stranger to this land,” she said tartly, “we don’t know where he comes from, or anything else about him. Do you even know how old he is? Everyone knows he’s older than you but no one can…”

“And I. Don’t. Care.” he finally snapped, “and I’m through talking in circles with you. Unlike some people I have actual work to do. Good day, cousin.” He carefully turned and stamped away as fast as I could.

There was only silence for a moment.

“Faishi,” came from behind him, “you have to realize I’ve only taken action because you’re my cousin and I care about you.”

He stopped for a moment, his grip on his cane tightening.

“Sometimes I wonder if you can even hear yourself,” he said over his shoulder, before he continued on his way.

He waited for her to try to stop him, but she didn’t.

As he mulled over her words, he realized that she might actually believe them.