Chapter Text
It was a bright day at the winery, the sun was burning, sizzling whoever stood under it for a long time. In fact was too hot which made everyone loathe the summer heat, despite that many memories were being made during these times.
You sit under the shade of a large tree that overlooks the winery, swinging on the flimsily made swing that hung on a sturdy branch.
Beads of sweat run down your forehead and back making your top slightly damp, but with the aid of the faint breeze that blew at odd intervals while you swung provided enough air to cool you down temporarily.
As you swing to and fro the thought of the past suddenly pops in your head like an uninvited guest except this one was a pleasant memory of the earlier days. The first time you’ve been to the winery and the first time you’ve met a young boy who had long and bright hair with an equally bright smile. To you what stood out the most that day was his striking hair color - it left quite an impression on you.
‘Speaking of…’
From afar a patch of vibrant red hair appeared in your peripheral vision slowly making its way towards you.
“There you are.” The light voice of the young redhead greets you with a smile on his face, both hands holding two wooden cups.
“What’s that?”
“Chilled grape juice.” He says with a huff looking proud of himself, “I told the maids to put in extra ice considering the awful hot weather.”
You took the extra cup that was extended in front of you and chugged the icy cold beverage right away, the refreshing taste of grapes and the sweetness of it lingered in your tongue. Sighing in relief from the cool drink you stretched down to place the cup against the trunk of the tree.
Diluc stands by your side and savors his drink as you both quietly stare at the people working at the vineyard seeing various workers tending to the grapes. From the distance Kaeya was assisting them while snacking on the fruit he picked and placing some on the basket as well as his father, Crepus, who was happily chatting away with one of the employees.
Once he finished his drink he places his cup on the ground beside yours. When Diluc obstructs your line of vision you couldn’t help but notice the amount of sweat glistening on his skin under the sunlight which bothered you quite a bit.
“Diluc don’t you think you should tie your hair?”
“Is there something wrong?”
Was he being serious right now? He left his hair splayed out under the heat and was most likely already drenched under that dress shirt of his especially when his pyro vision makes him naturally warm.
“Isn’t it uncomfortable? I’m getting all hot just by looking at you.” You scrunched your face to show displeasure.
“Oh—“ Diluc’s expression turns into a teasing look as he muses with a flirtatious tone, clearly trying to get a rise out of you.
You raise an eyebrow in question then sigh the split second after, rolling your eyes when you realize his implication, “Gods, you know I didn’t mean it that way.”
The redhead laughs with mirth when he hears your comment and reaches for his pocket to pull out a hair tie. You snatch the tie from his hand and instruct him to sit on the grass in front of you. When he settles by your legs you do your best to gather his mess of a hair, the wet strands on your fingers making you slightly cringe. Bringing it up to a high ponytail you twist the hair tie around until it’s secure.
Once you finished you sneakily wiped your sweat-laden hand on his shoulder hoping he won’t notice.
“Did you just wipe your hand on my shirt?”
You made a face behind him and inwardly cursed at his sharpness.
‘Damn why did he have to notice.’
“And what if I did?”
He leans his head back, resting it on your lap and looks at you in the face blankly without saying anything. All of a sudden he pushes back his bangs exposing his forehead and-
“Wha- Diluc!”
Wipes his sweat all over your forearms.
“You!”
Diluc quickly detaches himself from you and runs away laughing. From afar you could see his smug expression clearly taunting you to go after him.
You sigh at his figure in the distance and pulled a handkerchief from your pocket - although a bit warm from the heat - and wiped the smeared sweat away. Visibly shivering at the feeling you thought how it would be great to take a dip in a lake or take a bath in cold water.
“Come here you tomato-head!” You yell and beckoned him to come over.
“You won’t try to pull something?!” He yells back.
“No! Just come here!”
Diluc jogs towards you, his ponytail swishing back and forth until he’s standing right in front of you again. You stood from the swing and walked close to him.
“You should air yourself out a bit like Kaeya over there.”
Pointing your chin towards the other man in the distance who was picking out grapes with the workers. His tucked shirt was unbuttoned from top to bottom exposing his entire chest and sleeves were rolled to his elbows. He looked like he was having a lot of fun, chatting with the workers and eating some of the grapes he’s picked, it was certainly a refreshing sight.
Turning back your head to Diluc you reach out for his collar and undid a button.
“How bold of you to undress me in public.” The redhead coyly comments with a smirk.
“Wipe that cocky smirk off your face Diluc.” You chide him, “How far should I unbutton your shirt.”
He takes a moment to think about it before slightly shrugging, “Up to you.”
You decide to imitate Kaeya’s style and fixed the sleeves of his shirt as well, flapping the cloth around to let some air in. His exposed chest had beads of sweat running down making you wipe him off using your handkerchief.
As you gently pat across his chest you didn’t catch the soft smile on his face and the redness on his cheeks which he’d clearly blame the heat for.
Taking a step back you pat him off one last time and scan him over with a satisfied look, “You look much better now. Do you plan on going back to help your dad?”
“No, since you’re around I prefer to stay by your side.” The smile on his face stays without him knowing, his tender look catching you off guard.
“Are you sure?”
“Father won’t mind, don’t worry.”
“Well then-” You smack his chest lightly, “be a gentleman and push the swing for me.” You say with a pompous tone as you walk back to the swing.
From behind you heard a quiet chuckle followed by him going along with your act.
“Yes your highness.”
You crack a smile at his perfect response. Taking a seat on the swing he follows and takes his place behind you and gives a light push, slowly increasing the amount of force bit by bit. The warmth of his hands seeping through your clothes every time he pushed you forward.
“You know ‘Butler Diluc’ seems to have a nice ring to it.” You say without looking back at him.
When the swing reaches Diluc again, rather than pushing he steadies you out of nowhere, one hand on the rope and the other on your shoulder firmly pressing you in place. Confused, you tilt your head upwards to look at him and meet his eyes intently looking right back at you from above.
He reaches out to take your hand in his and raises it to his lips planting a kiss on the back.
“I think it would be a delight to serve you.”
You froze at his intimate manner and was starstruck at how beautiful he looked at the moment. He was unlike the previous Dilucs you were used to, this one felt a bit more grown up now. His hair draped over one shoulder the light breeze making it sway, the flirty yet innocent look on his face, and the way he stares at you with passionate eyes.
“Oh… really?”
“Mhm.” Diluc hums as a reply.
In awe of his beauty you couldn’t help but be entranced. Your body suddenly had a mind of its own and reaches out for his face cupping your hands on his cheeks. Diluc notices the sudden shift of mood in the air, he can feel his heart thumping against his chest and the heat rising to his cheeks as you slowly pull him down.
His grip on the rope tightens when he gets closer, eyes fluttering shut when your lips meet his, focusing in the feeling of the feather light kiss you gave him. When you pull away he hovers for a little while before leaning back down again to plant a chaste kiss.
Like a silent confession he presses his lips firmly on yours and lingered long enough for you to feel the warmth and plushness stay on your lips when he pulls away, licking at his lips. He wanted to say something, to tell you how he felt, but he decides against it. Diluc was afraid that it would put a strain in your friendship.
“You taste like grapes.”
“As if you don’t taste like grapes too.”
He suddenly clears his throat with an embarrassed expression making you lightly laugh at his bashfulness and squeeze his cheeks playfully then giving it a pat afterwards before letting go.
“I just gave you my first kiss.”
“Really?”
He sounded disbelieving. Though you were both still young teenagers he thought that you’d have certain experiences. After all you travelled around Teyvat often, and there was an aura of maturity that surrounded you. Many people in Mondstadt admired you as well, therefore hearing so came to him as a slight surprise.
“Well I wouldn’t just kiss people on the street won’t I?” You joke.
His eyes widen, “Wha- Of course not!”
You laugh at his immediate reply and bumped your head against his chest while staring at the winery. This time he drapes his arms over your shoulders pulling you towards him for a hug from behind, enjoying the light breeze in the air tickling your skin and the peaceful quietness between you both.
“We’ll have to learn from each other then yes?”
“That’s right.“ He tilts your chin upwards so you could see the mischievous look on his face.
“What is it now?“ You sigh exasperatedly, “By the gods Diluc you make it seem so out of context.” You shake your head at him as he laughs, his chest vibrating with laughter as you lean back.
You found yourself smiling along, his cheery disposition contagious. As you relish in the moment your mind wanders thinking about the next time you get to see each other again.
‘I look forward to our next summer together.’