Work Text:
“Your general demeanour is something I find displeasurable.”
“You wound me, Ei.”
It was a back and forth that had seemingly been going on since the dinosaurs died out, though Yoimiya would never say that out loud, less Miko think she’s calling her old. Every single day, every single hour, at times every single minute, their production company would be caught up in one of Raiden Ei and Yae Miko’s famous ‘arguments’, if you could call them that. Miko would do her usual routine of teasing the at times socially unequipped woman, and Ei would respond with some form of a dismissal. Perfectly balanced.
Or, it would be, if it wasn’t so painfully obvious to literally any person not named Raiden Ei that Miko had been flirting with her for the better part of the last 6 months. Sexual tension hot enough to boil over, tight enough to snap, was in reality just Miko desperately firing shot after shot only to be deflected by Ei’s pure density. If anything, Yoimiya found Ei’s lack of ability to read the room when it came to romance impressive, because it isn’t like Miko wasn’t attractive, or that she lacked any sort of game when it came to flirting with girls. If Miko sent those heated looks her way, Yoimiya knows she’d already be on a bed with her legs propped up on a pillow, but that’s also something she’s taking with her to the grave.
And, while again, she would not say this out loud, it’s starting to become just the tiniest bit pathetic. Miko could probably have any woman she wanted, and from past stories Yoimiya knew she already had in a sense, so her fixation on Ei was a little sad, if understandable. Ei was attractive– no, Ei was downright sexy , with her tall frame, flowing purple locks and imposing demeanour, alluring on the outset. While, yes, she was… not exactly acclimated to certain social cues, it was hard not to fall for the woman on physical appearance alone, and honestly her aloof nature was charming in its own right. Yoimiya would let her have her over a table if she wanted it, but that’s neither here nor there.
Before she got too horny at 1pm on a Wednesday, she turned to her desk partner, Thoma, for conversation, which was usually enough to dry any woman up. “Hey, bro,” she whispered, nudging him just a little bit too hard with her elbow.
“What?”
“I bet you, like,” she paused, “$200 that they’re fucking by the end of the month.”
“Are we even supposed to be talking about our superiors like that?” Thoma sighed, taking a prolonged sip from his coffee. “Though, there’s no way that’s happening. They’ve been like this for months .”
“If they’re allowed to eye-fuck on company time, I’m sure we’re allowed to comment on it,” Yoimiya replied, still keeping her voice hushed. “Also, like, have some hope. January is their month, I’m sure of it.”
“You’re only in their court because you’re a lesbian.”
“I’m an optimist!” Yoimiya countered. “And a lesbian too, but apples and oranges.”
Thoma groaned. She feels a little bad, just a little, about him being the main target for her to dump her matchmaking theories on, but it’s not like she had options. Sara’s eyes made her feel things, so talking to her about even the romance of other people was a tall order, and Shinobu was aro-ace. Hu Tao was in another department, so outside of lunch break and their frequent under-the-desk texts it was a little hard to gossip. Keqing and Ganyu would just ignore her. So, Thoma it’d have to be.
“Whatever,” he moaned, “but don’t come crying to me when you’re down 200 by the end of the month.”
“Likewise,” she purred, looking over to a now seated Ei and Miko, faces neutral and annoyed respectfully. It really, really can’t be good for a woman as sexually charged as Miko to be strung along like this, albeit unintentionally. Yoimiya whipped out her phone and carefully crafted a text to Hu Tao:
yo!!!miya: how do u feel abt playing matchmaker
taotao: for me and u ?
She bit her lip.
yo!!!miya: no… for miko n ei. surely we put an end to like their dumbass bickering so they can start kissing
taotao: do u think a lot abt ur supervisors kissing ?
yo!!!miya: yeah
taotao: so valid. im down to make them kiss. ive got a pretty good plan too honestly
Yoimiya’s ears perked up at the comment. She’d be the first person to admit that Hu Tao’s ‘plans’ often end in disaster, but this whole thing was a horrible idea from the get go, so it wouldn’t hurt indulging her a little.
Plus, it meant she’d get to spend a little more time with Hu Tao, so no harm no foul.
“Good work today, girls.” Ei’s voice was commanding, yet gentle, the light rasp adding a soothing effect to her stern nature.
Ayaka wiped a layer of sweat from her brow, Ei’s words mixing with the heart thumping in her ears from today’s practice, sharp breaths filling the hall. Her group members weren’t faring much better, Yanfei sprawled out on her back, chest rising and falling, while Xinyan leaned up against the mirror wall, also catching her breath. Yunjin, true to her nature, is standing with poise and grace, the glistening sweat almost illuminating her further, such is her professionalism. Even she was taking a rather long swig from her water bottle though, a reminder to the group that their leader is in at least some capacity like the rest of them.
Their dance coordinator, the infamous Eula Lawrence, hovered above them, having been watching alongside Ei as they filmed their dance practice. Rumours had her pinned as a standoffish, almost mean woman, but Ayaka knows not to believe the tabloids. Especially not after she’d seen the usually stoic professional cling to her girlfriend, Amber, who came in the mornings to deliver her coffee and lunch, along with soft pecks and little coos. It was almost enough to completely melt the icy image Eula projected, with all of Amber’s teasing little “oola oola’s” or the half-smile that would break out on her face when her partner was near her. It was endearing, though her regular personality froze back over as soon as any type of practice was required. Working with Eula and under Ei was certainly no cakewalk.
The door to the practice room jingled, the little charms hanging on the doorknob serving as both an aesthetic design purpose as well as a way to let the group and staff know if anyone was coming in. In stepped Yae Miko, the head of costume design, who walked with a sway and spoke with a candied tongue. Ayaka found her presence charming; flirtatious, sure, but she never crossed any lines that would make anyone uncomfortable. She exuded confidence, captivating in the way she managed to lead a room, carry a conversation, her coy nature a nice yin to Ei’s more controlled, stern yang.
“And how is my favourite idol group doing?” Miko handed Ayaka a water bottle from the table, smiling as she drank.
“We just had to deal with a Lawrence special,” Xinyan groaned from her newfound place on the floor alongside Yanfei, “so how do you think?”
“Well, you all look stunning to me,” Miko laughed, sugar coated words enough to pacify even the rowdy Xinyan. “Wouldn’t you agree, Ei?”
“Looking good is an important part of being an idol, to which you are all satisfactory,” Ei nodded.
Miko raised an eyebrow. “Most women don’t like having their appearances called ‘satisfactory’ after a long day at work, darling Ei.”
“Oh.” Ei blinked. “My apologies, you all look…” She trailed off, the faintest of blushes dusting her cheeks, surprising Ayaka. It was rare for their director to show any strong emotions at all, let alone embarrassment. “Good,” Ei finally let out. “You all look quite good.”
“My, Ei, why don’t you ever address me so adorably?” Miko teased, feigning a pout.
Ei cocked her head to the side, expression unmoving. “Of course I think you’re attractive,” she said, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world, “it is simply unprofessional to bring that up in the workplace.” With a curt nod of her head to the exhausted group and a visibly flustered Miko, Ei departed the room, clearly having more pressing business matters to attend to.
Ayaka was shocked. She knew the two women had a… frosty relationship, but she was unaware of the less than subtle sexual tension, of the shared glances and flushed faces, that came after their usual exchanging of blows. Were they friends? It was hard to pin down. She knew the two had known each other for a long, long time, and that Ei, despite her words, seemed to quite enjoy having Miko around in some capacity, whatever that entailed. Miko, for her part, was disastrously whipped, a side of her that Ayaka found inwardly amusing, though she had the tact not to admit.
“Damn, you’re down bad as fuck ,” laughed Xinyan, who by all accounts did not possess any tact to speak of.
“Please,” Miko croaked, fingers massaging her temples, “don’t remind me.”
“How long?” Yunjin asked, surprising the group. It wasn’t as if she was unsociable, far from it, but gossip was rarely something she indulged in, as her professional aura exuded into her personal life. Now, she was barely hiding the amusement on her face.
“...since college,” Miko huffed, having found the chair Ei left empty to collapse onto. “She is so, so unbelievably dense.”
“Have you tried being like, I don’t know, up front with her?” Yanfei asked, eye’s still trained to the ceiling fan, arms splayed out. “Sexy thing, but she doesn’t seem to be the best at picking up social cues, or your more obtuse flirting. Has she ever even dated before?”
“Yes,” Miko pouted, voice more of a whimper than her usual sweetened tone. “Another thing I don’t need anymore reminders of.”
“Wow, and you still haven’t properly shot your shot?” XInyan was incredulous, both amused and astounded by the display before her. “I’m not sure if even a few drinks could cure this one.”
“I’ve tried everything,” Miko sighed. “Drinking only works for the night, and so do other women if you aren’t really interested in them.”
“You used to come to all the after parties,” Xinyan began, reminiscing, “and leave with a different woman each time. You haven’t been to one, in like, a month. When was the last time–”
“I’ll stop you right there,” Miko smiled, sending a shiver down the spines of everyone left in the room, save for Eula, who was absentmindedly scrolling her phone. “But if you must know, it’s been long enough to frustrate. And working alongside… her isn’t helping.”
“Why not attempt to court her at the work party this upcoming weekend?” Yunjin suggested. “You could leave with a potential partner instead of a simple lay for once!”
Ayaka was about to chide Yunjin for her words, before she saw the visible twinkle in her eye, shining brightly enough to let Miko know she meant no ill will with her words. “I wouldn’t have thought you’d be so enamoured with romance, Yunjin,” Ayaka giggled.
“Oh, come now, what type of lesbian would I be if I wasn’t partial to a bit of cheesy workplace romance?” Yunjin turned to face Miko, eyes still filled with excitement. “Plus, I happen to have some experience in cuffing the socially inexperienced.”
“Oh, you and that like, jacked bodyguard with the dead eyes finally hooked up?” Xinyan asked.
“Her name’s Shenhe, and you have no idea.”
“Gross.” Xinyan clicked her tongue, walking over to the rack by the door to put on her jacket. “Well, serious romance talk isn’t much for me, so I’m gonna head out. Good luck with your girl though, Miko.” She exited the room with a wave.
“I’ll try,” Miko called back, her mood perked back up slightly thanks to Yunjin’s sheer excitement. “Now,” she began once more, voice sweet, “what was this about your dense girlfriend.”
Were she a smarter person, Ayaka would’ve left the room long ago like Yanfei, who had slinked out amidst Xinyan’s very loud goodbye. But, curiosity was in her nature, and she was as enraptured by Yunjin’s enthusiasm as she’d ever been by anything before, the sudden personality shift in her leader proving infectious.
“Well,” Yunjin spoke, voice giddy, “it all started with a spilt cup of coffee…””
Ei knew something was off.
It wasn’t like she didn’t respect Yoimiya or Hu Tao as workers. Quite the contrary; despite their quirks, both were incredibly important to the company’s social hegemony, the peppy young woman that they were. They were diligent when they wanted to be, too, but were they head-down, barely exchanging a word as soon as Ei stepped in the door type workers? She thought otherwise.
“Spill,” she commanded, eyes darting between the two younger women. “You’re both far too quiet for my liking.”
“We thought we’d be respectful and leave you with a quiet workplace today!” Hu Tao chirped, batting her eyes. Fooling nobody.
“And I suppose the chatter dying down as my footsteps approached was nothing but happenstance as well?” Ei smirked a little, enjoying watching the two girls squirm just the tiniest bit.
“Yep! Coincidence at it’s finest, haha,” Yoimiya forced out a chuckle, sweat sliding almost cartoonishly down her face.
Ei stepped forward, cupping the orange haired girl’s chin with her finger and thumb, tilting her head up to face her. Perhaps a breach of the professionalism she so liked to breach, but there was nothing wrong in cutting loose once in a while, especially if she had high suspicion the two women were misbehaving. “Tell me the truth, Yoimiya.” Her voice is cool, but it heats up the poor girl's cheeks all the same.
“W-what are your thoughts on romance?” Yoimiya meekly stuttered, earning a laugh out of Hu Tao.
Ei released her from her grasp, considering the question. “Romance? My apologies Yoimiya, while I find you physically attractive, I don’t believe such an arrangement would work between us.”
Hu Tao nearly fell out of her chair as she laughed, cackles turning into wheezes as Yoimiya elbowed her in the ribs. “H-hey! Fuck you dude–”
“I-I didn’t mean romance with you!” Yoimiya sputtered, cutting off a groaning Hu Tao. “I meant what are your thoughts on dating, like, anybody!” She coughed into her hand, trying to fight the war against her blush and losing it. “Anybody that isn’t me, that is,” she added quickly, flicking Hu Tao in the forehead.
“What the fuck was that for!”
“You were going to make fun of me!”
“To answer your question,” Ei sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose with all her strength, “I enjoy romance just as any other does. I read the occasional romance novel. I have dated a few women in my past. Is that an adequate answer to your question?”
Hu Tao, having recovered from Yoimiya’s assault, spoke up. “What we mean to say is, how would you feel if someone close to you perhaps had romantic feelings for you? Like, right now?”
“I would find the situation preposterous,” Ei replied, outright dismissing the idea. “I found it difficult to believe even the women I had dated had an interest. I doubt anybody new would have such intentions.” Ei knew her voice sounded a little sad, but she hoped the two women wouldn’t notice.
“Don’t sound so dour,” said Hu Tao, words uniquely soft. “I happen to know a woman quite close to you that’s after your heart.”
“Please don’t tease me.”
“Oh my god, I’m so done being cryptic,” moaned Yoimiya. “It’s Miko. Yae Miko. She like, totally wants to shove her tongue down your throat. Or for like, you to do that. Either or.”
“Yoi’!” Hu Tao protested, “we can’t just–””
“We’d be here all day, all week if I didn’t.” Yoimiya placed two hands over one of Hu Tao’s, dragging a thumb over the back. “Just trust me?”
“Right,” Hu Tao looked away.
Ei coughed, causing the two women to jump. “Are you sure I need to be here right now?”
“Yes!” Yoimiya said, a bit too loudly. “Yes, please stay. We need to help you get your girl.”
“My– There’s no way Miko views me in that manner.”
Hu Tao dragged her nails along the wood desk surface, no longer flustered and more frustrated with her superior. “You have way too much self-doubt for a six-foot woman,” she accused lightly. “Or maybe that’s where all the height comes from?”
“Miko,” Ei breathed, “just likes to tease me. I’ve known her for years , she doesn’t actually want anything serious with me. She just likes to rile me up.” If her voice was sad before, it was depressed now. “I’ve seen enough women pass through her doors to know she isn’t interested in committing to someone like me.”
The trio sat in silence, the remnants of Ei’s heart-spilling trickling over, drowning out conversation. Ei knew she was oversharing. She knew she had a habit of either talking too much, or talking too little, and she’d clearly brought down the mood her two co-workers were trying to set, albeit if she was simply sharing how she felt. Despite still standing over them, Ei felt impossibly small.
“That woman,” Yoimiya hissed through gritted teeth, “is really her own worst fucking enemy.”
“Language,” Ei chided.
“Ei, are you seriously unaware with how she looks at you? With how she flirts with you? With how she stays those long nights with you, even when it’s outside the realms of her job as a costume designer?” Yoimiya looked like a volcano about to erupt, words fiery to match her hot head. “She is in love with you . All those women were substitutes for you , because you didn’t reciprocate any of her advances.”
Ei took a step back. It was too unbelievable, too preposterous, too… un-Miko for any of this to be the truth, yet a small part of her heart she didn’t even know she possessed was telling her it was. Miko was flirty without purpose, without commitment. Miko told her she was pretty, teased her lightly about her personality. Miko got under her skin like no one else, pushed every button on Ei’s tall body, and waltzed away with a smile. Miko was there for her throughout college, night after night spent together doing assignments, two weeks ahead per Ei’s request. Miko consoled her through every breakup. You’re plenty lovable , she’d whispered to her one night, you just haven’t looked hard enough to find someone who’d really cherish you .
Miko cried when she was drunk. Miko never cried after a breakup. Miko liked rice wine, dark chocolate and the spring weather. Miko hated the rain, loud men and Ei’s old sleeping habits. Miko liked physical intimacy, spending many a stress-filled night curled up in Ei’s strong embrace, an old movie flickering on the TV all there was to distract her from their closeness. Miko hated when Ei moved away for work, their first meeting seven months prior filled with icey glances and thinly laced contempt. It had washed away with time, their current faux-bickering being where their relationship had found itself.
It all clicked into place. Miko liked her .
Ei hated herself.
“If you’ll excuse me.” Ei’s voice was shaky, tears she hadn’t cried in years finding home in her throat. “I have to speak to someone.”
“Wait!” Yoimiya pleaded, hand clasped over Ei’s wrist. The older woman was far stronger than her, but her present state meant she did not resist at all. “We–”
“We can help.” Hu Tao interjected, voice much calmer than Yoimiya’s. “Running to her now in the state you’re in is only going to cause confusion, or worse. Are you planning on attending the work party this weekend?”
Ei was silent for a while, before she turned to face the music. “Of course,” she replied, voice regaining some of its trademark certainty. “It would be bad manners for someone of my position not to.”
“And Miko will also be in attendance, will she not?” Hu Tao offered, attempting to lead Ei to the answer she wanted.
“You are… suggesting I attempt to court her at the work function?”
“Court?!” Yoimiya bleated. “Bos– Ei, you’ve done like, a lifetime's worth of courting already. We’re saying you get a few drinks in you at the work function and stick your tongue down her throat.”
“T-that hardly seems proper,” said Ei, fumbling over her words. “And I do not think doing this drunk is a good idea either.”
“I said a few drinks, just a bit of liquid courage,” Yoimiya assured, confused by Ei’s sudden apprehensiveness. “So you’re less… of a mess, like you are right now.”
“If you’re certain…” Ei’s eyes were glued to her feet.
“We are!” Hu Tao chimed in, gently patting the older woman on the back. Ei would’ve found the action infantilising if she wasn’t, well, acting like a bit of an infant right now anyway. “We’re the greatest matchmaking duo since… Well, I don’t know any other matchmaking duo’s, but we’re a pretty darn good one! How do you think Yunjin mustered up the courage to ask out her aloof bodyguard?”
Yoimiya nodded eagerly. “Seriously! What’s the worst that could happen?”
Ei had a few ideas, but ultimately decided to keep them repressed. She wouldn’t want to pour water on Yoimiya’s burning optimism for the second time today.
What is the worst that could happen?
“You are the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen.”
The worst had happened.
Yoimiya was beginning to understand why Ei was so apprehensive about their promises of liquid courage, or why Ayaka’s pale skin turned white as a sheet when she told her that she had given Ei a few glasses of wine to pregame for the party. The conversation is still on replay in her mind.
“You gave her WHAT?!” Ayaka all but shrieked, head in her hands.
“A… few glasses of dandelion wine? Is there a problem with a bit of a buzz?” She replied, confused.
“Ei,” Ayaka said, a horrified look on her face, “is a bigger lightweight than Amber.”
And thus the scene before her was playing out. At the very least, Ei wasn’t a particularly sad drunk, which Yoimiya didn’t suspect anyways. She wasn’t an angry drunk either, which part of Yoimiya did suspect a little. She was actually a very social drunk; and therein lies the issue. Raiden Ei isn’t social. Raiden Ei is curt, blunt to a fault, and headstrong, and she is certainly not social by any sense of the word. Yet take all those qualities, blend them together in a pot with a dash of alcohol, and whatever filter that usually inhibited her was washed away. She often said what was on her mind, she was assured of her abilities when it came to her job and was usually the first to criticise, but when it came to these types of casual encounters she either deliberately held back or was simply unequipped to handle them. Likely a bit of both.
“Are you drunk, Ei?” Miko asked, and god the way her voice sounded made Yoimiya’s heart break. She’d been informed by Ayaka and Yunjin that they’d also been planning for tonight, on Miko’s side, likely why she was dressed in such a gorgeous two-piece dress, the pink fabric hugging her form in all the right areas. However, whatever meticulous planning the two had done had violently crashed into the extreme lack of planning Hu Tao and Yoimiya had put forth. Part of her knew this whole idea was bad, alcohol and love confessions usually never mix, but she was too caught up in the giddy excitement and Hu Tao’s easy words to realise her mistake. She felt like she was about to cry.
What’s worse is Ayaka and Yunjin won’t even call them out on it. True to their nature, they’re all soft words and gentle touches, whispers of “oh, you didn’t know” and “it’s alright, they’ll handle this'' doing nothing to soothe the pounding in Yoimiya’s chest, or the visible panic on Hu Tao’s face, who’s more than once tried to reach for a cigarette that she’s had to bat out of her hand. Honestly, all Yoimiya wants right now is for someone to just call her a fucking dumbass. Give it to her straight.
“We’re such fucking dumbasses,” Hu Tao laughed darkly.
“I think I’m in love with you,” Yoimiya replied swiftly.
Hu Tao laughed again.
Well, it was all up to Miko now.
When Miko gets her hands on the person who gave Ei those drinks, she’s going to either feed them to sharks or make them do an hour of practice with Eula, whichever sounds worse at the time.
It was one thing to get dolled up for nothing; it was another thing entirely to get dolled up and spend the time dealing with a drunk Raiden Ei.
She hadn’t seen her this plastered since the first party after Miko had moved in to work as costume designer for the production company. Ei got drunk, whispered her slurred, sweet nothings, and then ignored her for the rest of the night in sobered shame. It was agonising, to be doted on by the woman she’s had a crush on since college , only for her to give her the most brutal of cold shoulders when all was said and done. And she knew she shouldn’t be taking those words to heart. After all, she didn’t mean them.
She was just drunk.
“Drink this,” she passed Ei a glass of water, the brush of their fingertips sending electricity crackling down her spine, a sensation she has to do everything in her power to ignore. She’s not drunk; she hasn’t even had a sip. How could she have had the time when Ei was like this, slightly stumbly in her movements yet suave with her words, all in her personal space, close, close, close.
Ei accepted the glass with a nod, chugging the whole thing instantly, before turning her attention back to Miko. Violet eyes pierced her heart like a polearm, the lightning in her gaze enough to turn any woman to putty. Luckily, Miko has built up some tolerance over the years, so she hasn’t melted into the cracks of the floorboards. Yet.
“Do you remember when we first met?” Ei’s stare never broke.
Miko’s heart was not ready for nostalgic reminiscing, especially not when the other party was likely going to forget by the morning. Yet she indulged anyway.
“I… It was when I was working part-time at the pharmacy, right? You were picking up your hormones.” Miko remembers the day vividly. A shorter-haired, scrawnier Ei, who made even less eye contact than she did now, who visibly perked up when Miko called her ‘sweetheart’ when she handed over her patches. It wasn’t quite love at first sight, but it was the first spark for sure.
“And then,” Ei paused, her inebriated state meaning she needed more time to think, “we just happened to be at the same dorm. And I… I knocked over your coffee. I do apologise for that, by the way.”
Miko burst out laughing.
“What’s so funny?” Ei cocked her head to the side.
“It’s just,” Miko giggled between sentences, “Ei, darling, that was 7 years ago.”
Ei frowned. “But I still feel bad about it.”
“Well, I was really mad about it at the time, so I guess I understand the sentiment. That dress was expensive.”
“I was afraid you weren’t going to speak to me again.” Ei smiled, thumbing over the rim of her now empty water glass. “That would’ve been a shame. You were my favourite pharmacy worker.”
“What a coincidence,” Miko sighed, flopping back against the bed of the unoccupied room in Keqing’s house they’d holed themselves in. “You were my favourite customer, too. Pretty face among all the old farts.”
“You thought I was pretty?” Ei asked, hesitant. “Even then?”
Miko was going to cry. She was going to cry and it was going to ruin the one quiet moment the two had in months, in years , that didn’t involve childish bickering or a breakdown of communication.
“I’ve always thought you were pretty,” she choked. “The prettiest girl in the world.”
“Miko,” Ei whispered, breath tickling her lips. When did they get so close?” “Miko,” she said again, voice reverent, adoring. “Can I tell you a secret?”
“What?” Their noses were almost touching. The smell of alcohol was faint.
“I sobered up as soon as we entered this room.”
The confession hit her like a freight train, like a thunder-clap that still rang in her head even as the room filled with silence.
“What?”
“I was quite… inebriated when I arrived, yes, but,” Ei stumbled over her words, the nervousness that the alcohol had previously kept in spilling out, “I have had a clear mind for a while, and the clarity only increases the longer I spend alone with you.”
“Well, then– then, if you could just forget you heard all my sappy–”
“Miko.”
Her hand is calloused, yet soft to the touch, as Ei cups the side of her cheek, thumb ever so gently swiping over plush lips. It’s clearly practised; something Ei has done for women before. Miko ignores the pit of jealousy in her gut. All her jealousy has gotten her over the years is an empty bed and a drinking habit, and it caused her best friend, her life partner, to drift apart from her. Right now, all that mattered to her was purple eyes gazing at her. Ei looked at her not hungrily, but desperately , silent permission being granted as Miko nodded slowly, leaning into her touch slightly.
They meet in the middle wordlessly, lips chasing each other, an elegant push and pull before they settle in the middle, and Miko sighed into the kiss. Ei tasted thick, cloying on her tongue, strawberry lip gloss and the faintest hint of dandelion wine dance in her mouth, as she pushed an eager tongue in, turning the kiss from slow and loving to spicy and loving. Ei may have been sober, but Miko was intoxicated right now, years of pent up love and lust swirling around in her head like a tornado.
They part for air, and Ei is smiling. Real, warm, genuine. It’s a pretty look on her usually stoic frame, and it’s something Miko hasn’t seen since college. Tears form delicate river streams down her cheeks; she’s more overwhelmed than she thought she’d be, but Ei, her sun, dries her face with her thumbs, kissing the corner of her eyes. It’s bliss.
Miko wants more, much, much more.
She pulled on Ei’s dress shirt, practised fingers flicking open buttons as she has a million times before with countless other women, but none have ever made her feel this giddy. Before she can get too into the act, Ei’s fingers curled around her wrist, stopping her motions in their tracks.
“We shouldn’t.”
Alarm bells start ringing in Miko’s head. “Ei, if this is because–”
“No,” Ei assured. “We’re in Keqing’s house. I don’t think… I don’t think it’s proper to do such activities in her residence.”
Miko, after having confirmed it wasn’t anything serious, scowled, and gripped her partner's shirt harder. “Raiden Ei, if you do not either fuck me or let me fuck you I swear to–”
The door clicked open, revealing a rather flushed Keqing and Ganyu, the formerly pristinely tailored clothes Miko had seen them in earlier in the night looking quite dishevelled.
The four women looked at each other.
Ganyu put her head in her hands. Miko nodded. Keqing nodded. Ei cocked her head to the side.
The door slammed shut without a word.
“Actually Ei,” Miko said, the horniness leaving her body at lightning speed. “Would you like to come to my place and watch a movie? For old times sake.”
“That would be agreeable.”
“Only agreeable? My, and I thought tonight I’d patched that out of you,” Miko teased.
“Everything is agreeable if it involves you,” Ei replied, tone serious.
She’s going to kill her one day, Miko realised. No woman should be so headstrong, so sure of herself, but at the same time so unbelievably dense and unaware of the effect her words had on others. “Is that so,” she grumbled, face as pink as her hair. “Then if you find it so agreeable, let’s blow this joint?”
“I don’t really want to get high tonight.”
“I meant leave, sweetheart.”
“Oh. Then yes.”
“Yo. ‘Miya, 12 O'Clock.”
Yoimiya lifted her head from its place in the crook of Hu Tao’s neck, and her eyes widened. There they were; the couple she feared she’d ruined the relationship of for good, waltzing out of the house with slightly smeared lipstick and their hands firmly clasped with one another's.
“Didn’t I tell you it’d work out?” Hu Tao grinned. Yoimiya rolled her eyes.
“Didn’t you try to smoke on like, a million separate occasions, miss sure of herself?”
“And weren’t you such a good girlfriend by stopping me?”
Girlfriend. “I really do want you to quit, though,” Yoimiya lifted up a part of her girlfriend’s (!!!) lovely brown her, letting the locks slip through the gaps in her fingers.
“I’m trying.”
“Well, if you ever want something to do with your mouth,” Yoimiya dove down to claim the Liyuen girl’s lips, savouring the taste. “Then I’m right here.”
Hu Tao flushed, before her trademark mischievous grin formed once more. “When you say, ‘doing things with my mouth’, does that also entail—”
“Tao!” Yoimiya reddened. “Take me out to dinner first, jeez.”
“Ok but like, after the dinner–”
“Tao– Yes. Yes you can. Is that the answer you want?”
“I wouldn’t want anything more.” Hu Tao curled up further into the taller woman’s embrace, running a finger down Yoimiya’s exposed collarbone, earning a pleased sigh.
“Jackass.”
“You picked me, though,” Hu Tao retorted.
Yoimiya snuggled in closer. Both women ran hot, and the shared body heat was as euphoric as it was intoxicating. “Apparently so.”
“Do you think they’re fucking?”
“They left like,” Yoimiya whipped out her phone, “barely 10 minutes ago. They’re probably not even home yet.”
“Five dollars they’re having car sex.”
“Tao– Oh, that reminds me. Thoma is gonna be so pissed when he has to give me $200 tomorrow.” Yoimiya pumped her fist. That’s like, a week's worth of takeout. Or a really good strap. And with this new girlfriend of hers…
“He bet against lesbians ? You should’ve tried to run him for more.”
“Meh,” Yoimiya pressed a kiss to Hu Tao’s temple. “I’m a nice girl.”
“You know the staff has been betting on us, right?” Miko asked, amusingly reading through a flurry of texts she’s been sent from Yoimiya. “Hu Tao wants to know if we’re having car sex.”
“We got out of the car 10 minutes ago?”
“I’ll tell her ‘no’, then.” Miko took a long sip of her tea, and relaxed back into the arms of her… well, the labels weren’t important right now. Her Ei? Her Ei fit just fine.
“Betting seems like it’s against company policy,” Ei mused, resting her chin on Miko’s head, who purred lightly at the sensation.
“Talking about work with a pretty girl is a quick way to lose her,” Miko teased.
“You would leave me so soon?”
Miko sat her tea down so she could curl her face fully into Ei’s well developed chest. “You’re mean.”
“So some say,” Ei chuckled, hand playing with stray pink locks. “But I would prefer to be nice to you.”
Miko pecked her on the lips. “Shut up, you.”
“If you insist.”
It was a comfortable silence; years spent apart, and months spent loudly filling rooms with harsh words and tension-filled banter, replaced seamlessly with a boneless hug and soft breaths, gentle caresses and the low hum of the movie they weren’t watching. For a moment, Miko is 20 again, enjoying the embrace of a dense woman whose arms are as soft as they are powerful. A blink, and she’s in the present, 27 years old, sinking into that familiar embrace once more.
It’s like eternity has passed, yet nothing has changed at all. Well, they’re actually dating now, for one, and Ei has somehow gotten more muscle, but nevermind the little (large?) things.
For now, there’s no place Miko would rather be.