Chapter Text
Ragnvindr was looking at him again.
This was a daily occurrence, so Kaeya tried not to read into it. But he could feel that sharp, unfathomable gaze on his back when he turned around. It was unnerving, but also maybe just a little flattering. Ragnvindr certainly didn't watch anyone else that way. Kaeya would know.
Still. He was tired of looking at Ragnvindr only to find him already looking back. At the end of a particularly long day of exam prep, he lingered in the classroom. Ragnvindr—the golden boy that he was—tended to be the last to leave, and Kaeya wanted to catch him alone.
The minute that the last of their classmates slipped out, Kaeya pounced.
"So!" He leaned on the empty table next to Ragnvindr with an insouciant slouch, and plastered on his most winning grin. "Is there a reason why you keep staring at me?"
Ragnvindr turned to him, unruffled, his eyes very dark and serious. "Alberich. I apologize if you feel that I am paying you too much mind. You have interesting techniques."
God, what Kaeya would give to break that perfect composure. "Well, if it's a practical demonstration you're after, I wouldn't say no to that." His grin settled, more sincerely, on his face. "Just tell me when and where."
Ragnvindr, infuriatingly, did not seem to pick up the double entendre. Or maybe he was just ignoring it. Or maybe he wasn't interested. It wouldn't be the first time that Kaeya had picked his choice of crush poorly. "Maybe next time. You have your practical scheduled tomorrow, don't you?"
"Yeah, I do. I'm not worried."
"You shouldn't be. Just keep your cutting board straight. Professor Julius is a stickler for those things."
"Noted." Archons, that—knowing his schedule, respecting his skills, speaking to him like a courtly gentleman—that was what made Kaeya go mad with speculation. He couldn't tell whether Ragnvindr thought that he was a good rival or something else entirely. But then again, it almost didn't matter. Kaeya was such a hopeless case, and Ragnvindr was such a fucking catch, and either way there was a wide gulf between attraction and acting on it, and Kaeya was treading water.
"Regardless," Ragnvindr was saying, "you'll do fine."
"And you, of course, are planning to get full marks."
"I plan to do my best." The tiniest crease of a smile graced his face.
"And your best just happens to be better than everyone else, huh," Kaeya said, shaking his head.
"If that bothers you, work harder."
Kaeya's jaw dropped.
That smile had widened slightly, giving Ragnvindr a fey look. Less like a gorgeously rendered painting, more like a fairytale. "You, at least, have the capacity to beat me."
"Wow," he said, genuinely stunned. "Do you say that to everyone?"
Ragnvindr let the silence stretch for a moment. Then, dryly, he said, "No."
Kaeya found himself at a loss for words. There was just something about Ragnvindr. When he spoke to you, you felt like the only one in the world.
Ragnvindr finished packing his knives up and gave him a little nod. "May the best man win."
"Of course," he said, cotton-mouthed. Belatedly, he managed a wink. "In the court of public opinion, if nowhere else."
"Oh," Ragnvindr said, "in the court of public opinion, you have an unfair advantage."
"Really? As the uncrowned prince of Mondstadt, how could you think such a thing of a peasant like myself?"
"No one wants to see that face sad," Ragnvindr replied, still with that almost-playful smile. "Beautiful things should not be tarnished."
Kaeya gawked at him as he turned around to leave. "Are...did you just call my face beautiful?"
"You know what you are, Kaeya Alberich." And with that, he swept away, knife roll casually at his side. "I'll see you tomorrow."
Damn Ragnvindr. Damn everything. Now he really had to put on a good showing.
Kaeya was so, so fucked.