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Aether gulped; parched, downing almost the entirety of his plastic water bottle in a matter of seconds.
Immediate regret was set in the way his body rejected the fluid. Aether felt queasy. He squeezed his eyes shut and crouched over slightly, hoping that it would even slightly help relieve the nausea. His creased brow was sticky with sweat, and it was probably late in the morning by how worn his eyes felt.
The trainee had almost collapsed from exhaustion. Dancing for hours on end was tiring; and now he knew that the hard way. The blond felt tiredness soaking all the way to his bones. Standing up felt impossible, for now.
“Are you okay, Aether?” He registered a honeyed voice asking in concern from above. Aether peered up at the source of the question, and his features immediately relaxed at the sight of his friend.
A smile bloomed on his face.
“You shouldn’t overwork yourself so much, you’ll ruin your health.” The blond felt a pair of arms wrap around his waist, and Venti's warmth pressed into his aching back. As if his peer had healing abilities, Aether felt instantly better.
“Ah.. Sorry… but I can’t. I have to get this choreography down perfectly before our evaluation next week..” He wished he had the smooth ability to re-create difficult choreos like Kazuha or the naturally stunning singing voice that Venti had. He was good, yes, but he wasn’t good like the other trainees. He had a long way to go still, and there wasn’t even a small amount of room for error.
What Aether lacked in natural talent, he made up for in sheer effort. So he had to do this — he had to practice his lines until his voice became hoarse with overuse, or to dance until his legs felt they would fall off. They were all necessary evils.
“Aether…” His fellow trainee began, a little dejected, before suddenly staring at the blond with a look of intensity. Venti’s eyes were the shade of the sky right before sunset, he noticed; a beautiful, exquisite teal.
“I think I can help you relax,” Venti continued, his intense stare now morphing to something a little darker, and his gem-like eyes resembled a darkening sky.
Uh oh,
“Wh.. W-what do you mean?” Aether felt himself turn pink at the insinuation.
“Do you trust me Aether? Lay down.” Venti grinned at him, and Aether wasn’t sure if he really did trust his friend or his dubious tone of voice. But whether it was one of his biggest character flaws or best qualities, Aether definitely had trouble saying ‘no’. It had helped him make some of his best friends in life, but sometimes it also landed the trainee into situations.. like these.
Acquiescing with a muttered “I can’t believe I’m doing this,” Aether found himself staring at the dance practice room’s ceiling.
“No, no, the other way.” Aether blanched, eyes widening to plates as his world was suddenly flipped over with astonishing force. No way… He never realized that Venti’s short, thin body was capable of such spontaneous power. No wonder he was such a good dancer.
Fingertips sliding inside of his shirt, the blond could only swallow in anticipation. Bracing himself for the worst, the blond was almost surprised when he only felt a pair of hands gently grip his shoulders, massaging them in careful, yet firm strokes. Venti's working hands penetrated deep tissue, and Aether released a deep sigh as he felt the muscle unravel under his magic touch.
Whoa… That did feel good. Feeling his soreness and worries temporarily melt away, Aether relaxed into Venti’s grip and he could have sworn for a split second that they were floating on a cloud. The tension in his shoulders had significantly loosened, enough for the trainee to feel like a puddle of flesh and hair.
“Ah-ahh, Ve…nti,” he gasped out, the words coming out a lot more choked out than intended.
“Careful, Aether.” Venti warned. The blond couldn’t see his expression, but the words came out unusually sharp for Venti, who was known to always be a light-hearted type of person.
“S-sorry,” Aether swallowed. There was a lump in his throat. He was sincerely worried that he had offended his friend. “It just… feels really good.”
There was a sudden tugging force on his shoulder, and Aether’s surprised attention found Venti’s hand gripping him. They were face to face now.
“Venti…?” Aether questioned. And again was that serious look in his friend’s teal eyes; their faces were now mere inches apart. He could smell Venti’s breath from this distance.
“...Are you trying to test me?” Confused, Aether shook his head. “Not at all.”
“Then… I want to make you feel good. More. I want to continue making you feel good.”
Before Aether got the chance to respond or even process what his friend said, he felt a solid, warm weight on his lower back. A pair of arms appeared at the sides of his head, and he realized that he was…
Trapped
"I warned you Aether… to be careful with your words."