Work Text:
The moon was high in the sky, rays of moonlight painting Teyvat in a silver sheen. In Sumeru, the moon's rays slanted through the windows of a house nestled within the branches of the Divine Tree, illuminating two figures seated on separate divans as well as the empty bottle of wine on the table between them.
The shared house had fallen quiet moments ago, when their argument had come to an end. Now, they were sitting in silence, each of them lost in their own thoughts.
Alhaitham stares at Kaveh through half-lidded eyes, absently admiring the way the moonlight made his blond hair glow. The architect was curled up into the corner of the divan, and when Alhaitham lifts his eyes up from the exposed skin of Kaveh's chest, he is startled to see the soft, unguarded look in Kaveh's vermillion eyes.
Alhaitham swallows and empties his half-filled wine glass.
Kaveh stands and makes his way over to Alhaitham's divan, prying the wine glass out of the Scribe's hand to set it down on the table. The air between them crackles, fraught with tension as Kaveh slides onto Alhaitham's lap.
So they were doing this again, then.
Kaveh cups Alhaitham's face in his palms as Alhaitham's hands automatically wrap around Kaveh's slim waist, a thumb sliding underneath the fabric to skim over alcohol-warmed skin. Alhaitham revels in the tiny hitch of breath it elicits before lips meet his. He hums into the kiss, tilting his head as he licks into Kaveh's mouth like a man starved. Kaveh makes a soft sound in his throat when Alhaitham's tongue meets his.
They make out for what feels like hours. Alhaitham's hands have fully dipped underneath Kaveh's shirt now, tracing ribs and brushing over his chest. Kaveh's left hand remains cupping Alhaitham's cheek, his right having slipped down to hold the side of his neck.
It's gentle, it's saccharine. It's everything Alhaitham craves.
It's also wrong, because Alhaitham knows this song and dance well.
Soon, Kaveh will pull away for another breath and end up falling asleep on Alhaitham's chest. Alhaitham will allow himself a few moments of selfishness before carrying Kaveh to his room to let the architect sleep off the alcohol. He will clean up the living room, wash the wine glasses, and take care of the wine bottle before placing the bottle of aspirin, a pitcher of water, and a mug on the bar counter. Only after checking on Kaveh once more will he retire to his room and allow his feelings to be let out. He journals, more often than not, filling a notebook with paragraphs in the language only he and Kaveh speak, the one from their joint thesis. He will brush his fingers over his lips, still swollen the way lips get after kissing for three hours straight, and his heart will throb painfully in his chest.
Whenever Kaveh gets drunk, he does and says things he does not mean. Such as making out with Alhaitham for hours while the moon travels dutifully across the sky. Alhaitham's chest will ache because he is in love with Kaveh and Kaveh is not in love with him.
Alhaitham will pretend that the fleeting warmth of Kaveh's lips on his is enough for him.
Alhaitham will pretend that these nights of shared warmth are nonexistent. To Kaveh, they are, because he never remembers them.
But for now, Alhaitham lets himself drown in the taste of Kaveh's mouth and tries to ignore the way his fragile heart shatters more with each passing incident.
Kaveh stumbles into the kitchen next morning with his hair dishevelled and clothes askew.
Cute, Alhaitham thinks. He tells Kaveh to clean himself up instead.
"Shut up," Kaveh mutters, taking an aspirin and washing it down with water. "What happened last night?"
Alhaitham looks away. You kissed me. We made out for three hours. I took care of you after you fell asleep on me because I do care about you and I'm in love with you.
"You got drunk and passed out," is what he settles on. "As usual."
Kaveh scowls at him, but still takes the cup of coffee Alhaitham pushes over to him, mumbling out a thank you.
"What was that, Kaveh? "Alhaitham smirks.
"I'm not repeating myself," Kaveh says, taking a sip of the coffee.
"Ah, but earnest thanks should be given thrice," Alhaitham says, tilting his head in the way he knows will infuriate Kaveh.
"You-!" Kaveh's eyes narrow. "You're insufferable, you know that?'
"So I've heard, "Alhaitham shrugs, before exiting the kitchen before his senior could formulate a reply, smirking to himself when he hears the sounds of Kaveh's incensed frustration as he closes the door behind him.
Alone in the privacy of his room, Alhaitham's mouth drops into a frown and he runs his fingers through his hair with a sigh. He always harbors a small hope that Kaveh will wake up one day and remember, but he never does. Alhaitham resigns himself to pining for him in secret for a few more years. After all, he had been waiting for Kaveh for more than a decade now. He would wait a millenia if he needed to.
When Alhaitham gets back from his work at the Akademiya, Kaveh is clearly not happy with him.
"I told you to pick up your books last week, Haitham! And they've been there for almost three weeks now! Is it so hard to do?" The architect shouts, following Alhaitham into the kitchen.
The other male ignores him, spooning some biryani onto a plate.
"Don't ignore me! Are you even listening to me right now?" Kaveh glares at the Scribe's back, huffing when Alhaitham merely continues to eat, acting as if Kaveh was nonexistent.
"Ugh, seriously? Whatever."
Alhaitham hears Kaveh stalk away before the front door bangs open and slams shut. He sighs, the sound loud in the sudden silence Kaveh's departure brings. He makes a mental note to go to the tavern later to pick Kaveh up before opening up the book he was halfway through to read while he slowly finished the meal Kaveh had cooked for them.
At around half past eleven, Alhaitham tucks the book into his belt pouch before pulling his cape and boots on.
Grabbing both his and Kaveh's keys - because the architect had forgotten his again -, he exited their house and made his way over to Lambad's tavern.
Upon entering, he immediately spots his roommate seated at the counter, clearly intoxicated. There's a guy next to him and he's flirting with Kaveh, one hand resting on the blond's thigh while he orders another drink for Kaveh. Kaveh is visibly reciprocating, giggling while batting his eyelashes at the other man, thanking him for the drink by squeezing the hand holding his leg.
Alhaitham feels white-hot jealousy bubbling up in the pit of his stomach, so he turns and walks out of the tavern before he does something stupid like yank Kaveh out of his seat and kiss him in front of the stranger. He takes a deep breath of Sumeru's cold night air to calm himself down.
It's fine, he tells himself. It's okay. Kaveh was never his to begin with.
(The next morning, Kaveh walks through the door, neck mottled with red and purple bruises. It takes all of Alhaitham's willpower to not immediately hunt the other man down, because how dare he mar Kaveh's beauty like that?)
Alhaitham looks up at the clock and sighs, shutting his book. It is late, the moon having risen several hours ago, and Kaveh is still not back. He leaves the house for Lambad's tavern and finds Kaveh slumped over the counter, the stem of a wine glass clutched between his fingers. Alhaitham is a little more than pleased to see that Kaveh has no company tonight, so he slides onto the stool next to his roommate and plucks the glass out of his fingers, taking a sip and grimacing. Kaveh's tastes have always been too sweet for his liking.
"H-hey, that's mine," Kaveh slurs out, turning to him and blinking dazedly.
"Not when I'm the one paying for your drinks," Alhaitham answers, finishing the liquid in the glass and sliding a pouch of mora across the counter to Lambad, who takes it with a nod and a quick "thank you, Sir Scribe."
"We're going back, Kaveh," Alhaitham says and drags the drunk architect out of the tavern despite his protests.
Kaveh has mostly quietened down by the time Alhaitham unlocks the door to their abode, following the taller in docilely.
Alhaitham helps his roommate take off his shoes and unclasps his cape, turning to hang both of theirs up. when he turns around, Kaveh is right in front of him.
"Kav - " he starts, but is quickly cut off by Kaveh's lips meeting his. Alhaitham makes a sound of surprise before relaxing, running his tongue across the seam of the elder's lips. Kaveh's hand slips down to Alhaitham's hips to drag him impossibly closer, but Alhaitham breaks away from the kiss when he feels Kaveh's hand dip under the waistband of his pants.
"You're drunk, Kaveh," Alhaitham says, grasping Kaveh's wandering hands. "We shouldn't do this. " No matter how much I crave it.
"But I want to," Kaveh whines, struggling to free his hands from Alhaitham's strong grip. "I want you, Haitham."
Alhaitham freezes at that. "You... what?"
"I want you," Kaveh insists, looking up to meet Alhaitham's disbelieving gaze. "Let me have you, Haitham."
Alhaitham searches Kaveh's gaze for an explanation. He swears under his breath before pulling Kaveh to his bedroom and pushing the shorter onto his bed, crawling on top of him and kissing him with the desperation of a man who has been in love for the past twelve years. He pulls away after a moment to look at Kaveh splayed out on his bed, swallowing at the sight. Teal-orange meets ruby red as Alhaitham tries to find any hesitation in Kaveh's eyes.
"Are you sure you want this?" Alhaitham still asks, even though his hands are already reaching for the hem of Kaveh's shirt. "Once we cross this line, there's no going back, Kaveh."
"For the last time, yes, Alhaitham. Just get on with it," Kaveh answers exasperatedly, gasping when the Scribe pulls off his shirt, leaning down to kiss him while calloused hands eagerly roamed over his torso, tracing over the twin crescent scars on his chest.
"You're perfect, Kaveh," Alhaitham murmurs softly. Kaveh does not respond, leaning in to kiss him again. He breaks away with a gasp when Alhaitham's hands slide lower, tracing circles into his waist while he slips a single, teasing finger underneath the waistband of Kaveh's pants. Alhaitham's mouth moves across his jaw and down his neck, sucking a mark into Kaveh's skin before biting down the same time he pulls off the rest of Kaveh's clothes, making the other man cry out.
And once Alhaitham lays his eyes on Kaveh's bare body, all laid out for him on his own bed, he knows he will never be able to forget this night. He just hopes Kaveh won't, either.
Alhaitham wakes up intertwined with Kaveh.
They're both bare from last night's activities, legs tangled under the sheet Alhaitham had pulled over them. Kaveh's head was lying on Alhaitham's bicep, each man's arms wrapped around the other like they never wanted to let go. Alhaitham admires the necklace of love bites adorning Kaveh's neck for a while. Kaveh looked younger while sleeping, face relaxed in a peaceful expression, no longer burdened with the stress of his debt and the expectations piled on his shoulders during the day. Alhaitham indulged himself and lay in Kaveh's embrace a little while longer before he detangled himself and got out of bed, searching for a pair of boxers and sweats to throw on hastily before he went to get started on breakfast.
Kaveh comes out of the room a while later to a simple plate of eggs and bacon on the table alongside a steaming cup of coffee. He mumbles his thanks to Alhaitham and eats quietly, avoiding the scribe's gaze. He is about to leave the kitchen and escape back to his room when he is stopped by Alhaitham.
"What?" he asks weakly, looking away.
"Do you remember what happened last night?" Alhaitham asks him, eyes scanning the architect's face. Kaveh avoids his gaze, looking down instead. He hesitates before answering.
"No." He tries to take a step forward, but Alhaitham blocks his path again, gaze boring into Kaveh's face more intensely.
"Are you sure you don't remember?" he asks again.
"Yes, now move," Kaveh snaps, shoving Alhaitham to the side and going into his room, shutting the door with a decisive click behind him.
Alhaitham stares after him, a sinking feeling in his chest.
It happens again, merely three days later. Kaveh comes home from the tavern and he opens the door to Alhaitham's bedroom and climbs on top of his lap, pulling the book out of his hands and kissing him, rucking up his shirt to trace the Scribe's sculpted abs. Soon after that, Kaveh's clothes are off and he's whining into the kiss as Alhaitham's fingers eagerly delve into him.
Alhaitham vaguely thinks that having Kaveh must be the same as living in Celestia before all the thoughts fly out of his head when Kaveh clenches around him.
Later, when they are both tired and panting and on the verge of falling asleep, Alhaitham pulls Kaveh closer to him and wonders if he could stay in this moment forever.
When Alhaitham opens his eyes this time, Kaveh is already awake, absently tracing over the scratches his nails had left on the younger's back. He doesn't meet Alhaitham's eyes.
"Hey," Alhaitham murmurs softly.
Kaveh mumbles out a good morning in return before returning to uncharacteristic silence.
"So you remember, this time," Alhaitham says, deciding to get straight to the point.
Kaveh tenses and pulls himself out of Alhaitham's arms, sitting up with his back to the other male, knees pulled up to his chest. "I guess I do."
Alhaitham frowns at Kaveh's tone, sitting up as well. "What's wrong, Kaveh?"
"I don't want to talk about it, Haitham," Kaveh answers. His voice is shaky.
"We need to, if this keeps happening, Kaveh," Alhaitham responds.
Kaveh laughs hollowly. "What's there to talk about anyway? I never seem to be able to control my drunken impulses when I'm around you. I understand if you want me to move out now."
Alhaitham blinks. "You remember the other night?"
"How could I forget? That was the best night I've ever had, Haitham. I think you made me ascend to Celestia. I remember all the other nights too, you know. But you never said anything about it, so I thought..." Kaveh trails off.
Alhaitham's throat dries. "What do you mean?" he asks carefully, inching towards Kaveh.
Kaveh laughs humorlessly again. "You never said anything after any of the nights where you spent at least one and a half hours kissing me. I thought that you hated me for taking advantage of you when you were just trying to take care of me when I was drunk, because you never said anything."
"Do you think I would've let you keep kissing me if I hated it?" Alhaitham asks slowly. He gently tugs on Kaveh's shoulder to turn him around
"I don't know what you're feeling, Haitham," Kaveh whispers. His eyes are shut. "That's the scary part."
Alhaitham shifts into a kneeling position, cupping Kaveh's face, his lips downturned in a slight frown. His heart breaks a little when a singular teardrop escapes Kaveh's closed eyelids.
"Hey, don't cry, angel," Alhaitham murmurs. "I don't hate you. I've never hated you."
Kaveh's eyes fly open at that and he tries to duck his head. Alhaitham's hands prevent him from doing so. "Even after the thesis?" he mumbles, opting to resolutely stare at Alhaitham's chest instead.
Alhaitham lets a rare, fond smile curl his lips upward. "Even after the thesis. My love for you was stronger than the anger and pain I felt then. Truth be told, Kaveh, I fell in love with you when I was fourteen and I've never stopped since then."
Kaveh remains silent for a moment. Alhaitham keeps the gentle hold on his face, gazing fondly at his love.
"You can't be," Kaveh says eventually. His voice is breaking and he's trembling slightly. "You can't be in love with someone like me. I'm a burden. I'm too loud, I leech off you like a parasite and I never pay you back. I killed my father and drove my mother into moving to a whole other country. You shouldn't love me, Alhaitham."
Alhaitham pulls the architect fully into his embrace despite Kaveh's resistance. "You're not a burden to me. I enjoy your presence. I willingly pay for your drinks, and the only reason I collect rent from you is because I know you'd feel guilty if I let you stay for free. You did not kill your father, I told you after the Interdarshan Competition. You did not drive your mother into moving to Fontaine, it was her personal decision to do so. You are talented, brave, extraordinary, beautiful, creative, and brilliant, and I am so lucky to have you in my life."
Kaveh is crying now, face tucked into the juncture where Alhaitham's neck and shoulder meet. Alhaitham kisses his temple and strokes his back tenderly. Eventually, Kaveh lifts his head and kisses Alhaitham messily. He's still crying and Alhaitham can taste the salt of his tears on his lips, but it does not matter when Kaveh was kissing him like Alhaitham meant something to him too.
"I'm sorry," Kaveh whispers when they break apart to breathe. "I'm sorry, Haitham. For everything, for all the hurt I caused you throughout all these years."
"Why are you apologizing, angel?" Alhaitham asks, tilting his head. "No matter how much you hurt me, my love for you will stay the same. Unwavering and steadfast. Everlasting, like the Palace of Alcazarzaray."
More tears slide down Kaveh's cheeks and he laughs wetly, letting out a sigh when Alhaitham leans in to kiss his tears away.
"You Haravatats and your flowery language," he mutters fondly. "And for the record, I love you too, ya 'amar."