Chapter Text
On sunny days like these, you often found yourself hiking up the cliffs that overlooked Dawn Winery to sketch. It wasn’t often you got to break away from your duties working under Lisa, but when you did, you liked to indulge your artistic side even if only for an afternoon. You had come prepared with a blanket and snacks, hoping to let the day slink by in an artist’s stupor. After contemplating the many angles of the winery, you chose to spread your blanket under the shade of a pine tree that overlooked the front of the manor.
When you first started coming to the winery, you had hoped to study the forms of the workers as they toiled in the rows of grapevines, but lately, you found yourself distracted by one particular form. Whenever you spotted the red waves of the winery’s owner, you instinctively flicked to a new page in your sketchbook, devoting all of your attention to him. You’d made a habit of sitting closer to the vines just to get a better view. Today, you spotted him quickly, as he was busy talking to some of the workers in front of the winery. As usual, he stood relatively still, listening to his employees and nodding occasionally. You began to lay the groundwork for your sketch, lining up the various parts of his body with loose shapes.
Although you’ve never met Diluc, you were fascinated by his presence. He was often quite stoic, although you would sometimes imagine what his smile would look like, occasionally altering your sketch to include a slight grin. It felt wrong to draw him from afar, and whenever you felt the shame rise in your stomach, you would turn a new page and begin sketching the grapevines as if you hadn’t just boiled over in shame. It wasn’t technically wrong, but still, you knew that if a stranger were secretly sketching you, you would feel embarrassed.
Much to your dismay, Diluc headed indoors before you could get very far with your sketch. You tore the page out of your notebook, tucking it into your bag. Hopefully, next time you came you could try and finish it.
You resigned yourself to sketching some mushrooms on a tree nearby. The hours ticked by slowly as the afternoon melted into the evening, and the sun hung low enough in the sky that you wished you had some paint so you could recreate the sunset. You didn’t want to leave just yet, knowing that tomorrow you would have to resume your work at the Knight’s headquarters. The thought of being cooped up in the library once again made your heart sink. Sure, you liked your job, but out here, everything was much...simpler.
With the dying light of day, you decided to let your attention fall upon one last subject. You decided to draw a simple grapevine, knowing you wouldn’t have much time for anything else. The lights around the vineyard were lit one by one as the night time settled in.
“You know, it’s dangerous to be out this late alone,” a voice said, making you snap up, glancing around in fear. You turned around to face none other than Diluc himself, his figure looming over you.
“I-I’m sorry...I was leaving soon,” You stammered, scrambling to your feet. You clutched your sketchbook tightly, hugging it against your chest as if it could stop the pounding in your chest.
“No need to apologize. It’s just...you don’t usually stay this late,” The waning sunlight prevented him from seeing your flushed face, but it certainly couldn’t prevent him from seeing the look of bewilderment you gave him.
“How…?”
“It’s my job to know what goes on around here,” he responded, casting a glance down at the winery, “Besides, it’s pretty hard to ignore someone staring at you from afar.” You saw the slightest smile on his face, and you hung your head, unable to look him in the eye.
“My apologies, I didn’t mean to interrupt your work sir-”
“Diluc,” he corrected.
“Yes. Diluc. I like to come here to draw sometimes. I hope that’s okay,” You lifted your eyes once again to look at him.
“Of course. You can come here whenever you like. One condition, however,” he crossed his arms, making him look even more intimidating than against the fall of night.
“Yes?”
“I’d like to see what you draw,” You were taken aback at the request. You drew primarily to let off steam, and rarely showed anyway what you created. However, for Diluc, you knew you would make an exception.
“Oh, okay. I can, uh, give you some of the sketches I finished today if you’d like-”
“No, no. It’s late, and you should get back to Monstadt. How about we grab lunch sometime and you can show me?” His forwardness made you instinctively cover your mouth with your hand, although you quickly tried to play it off as you tucked a piece of hair behind your ear.
“I-I would like that,” you said after an awkward pause, “I work in the library, at the Knights of Favonius headquarters. You can find me there most days,”
“I look forward to it then,” he said, reaching a hand out to you, “Now, what do you say we get you back home?”