Albedo x Reader
Modern AU
Angst TW

It's such a beautiful day. You're walking outside with the sakura's falling falling onto the ground and past you. You are wandering the school garden with your two best friends Amber and Albedo. Your footsteps are light as the three of you walk joyfully together, sharing jokes and telling stories. When you guys get tired you sit down on a stone bench. You watch as a butterfly lands on Amber and she looks down at the flowers thoughtfully.
"What's on your mind?" You ask calmly. She quickly looks up slightly blushing and the butterfly flies away.
"Uh... Well..." She stutters and looks anywhere but her friends.
"Okay... I guess I should just say it. Don't make fun of me! Okay Y/N, Albedo?" She says flustered. You two make a promise.
"I... really like Chongyun... like a lot." You're slightly shocked but don't let her know it.
"He's... just so sweet. And yesterday he found my bracelet and gave it to me. How did he know it was mine? Is he really observing me that much?" She played with the dark soil beneath her feet.
"I guess there's the possibility he just asked someone else... Huhhhh. I don't know what to do. He's been on my mind all week." You two are silent and she looks at you.
"What?! You two are totally bullying me inside your heads!" She blushed with her hands in fists.
"No, no! I promise I'm not!" You affirm. She looked down embarrassed as Albedo watched her silently then looked up to you.

It's the end of the school day and you catch up with Albedo in the halls.
"Hey," You say as you match your pace with him and walk side by side.
"Hi, what's up?" He asks. You hold the straps of your backpack tightly.
"Well, I don't know... I'm just worried for Amber. You know, what if she's hurt again? Does Chongyun even know she's in his class?" You ramble. Your synchronous steps comforting you.
"Well who knows? She did say he returned her lost bracelet to her. Maybe he secretly really likes her." He says looking eye to eye with you. However, your worries were still there.
"I can't bare to see her the way she was after Zhongli again." You grimace at the words that left your mouth.
"Hey," Albedo halts in his tracks and places his hand on your shoulder.
"I'm sure she's fine, okay? Please don't worry. Some things happen for a reason." He reassures and smiles lightly. After a moment of thought you smile too.
"Okay. Well, I'll see you around." You cheer and he waves goodbye, you two going your separate ways.

It's now the weekend and after texting a few friends you decide to go outside. You've always been a little bit of an adventurer. You make your way to a creek you like to visit often. While you wander in the woods you find a baby frog, but it's trapped. You pick it up gently and start looking for its family. When you came nearer to water you see someone sitting there, holding their knees. You stop mid tracks, slightly scared out of your skin from the sudden being. Although, your foot broke a stick and the figured turned. You were surprised to see it was Venti. His eyes widened and so did yours. Quickly he stood up and pink lightly covered his cheeks.
"Ah, Y/N, what a coincidence to bump into you here. What's up?" He asks.
"I found a baby frog who's lost from his family. But anyway, how are you doing, Venti? It's so funny that I bumped into you. I was just thinking about you!" You say happily. Venti was one of your childhood best friends. He was sent to a different school two years ago and you've rarely seen him since.
"Oh, you were?..." He stares down to your hand that enclosed the frog.
"Yeah! When we used to throw pebbles at old lady Jenkens house. Remember?" I can't believe we used to do that..." You trail off.
"Yeah, ehe... I think I found the frogs family." He points down to the ground. Your eyes follow and you see a cute hopping frog.
"Oh goody!" You walk over to it and set free the baby in your hands. You look up at him from the ground and lock eyes. He only looks at you for a moment before turning his gaze.
"So, how's Albedo?" He asks. They were friends as well.
"Oh, he's doing pretty good. Other than yapping about all his homework that isn't chemistry related, I think he's doing pretty great." You two laugh, the sun shines down happily, the birds tweet peacefully. After catching up with each other he walks you to your home.
"My cat died." He said with a pout.
"Huaaa!!!" You gasp and he watches you flail silently.
"I loved that cat! I'm so sorry... I'm going to get you a new one, I promise!" You say.
"No, no, it's ok. I don't need another one, I kind of had allergies anyway." He puts his hands up slightly.
"Even if you hate this cat, you can just give him back to me, but you have to accept, okay?!" You poke his chest. His eyes are slightly wide.
"Uh... o- okay..." He smiles.

You're at school again for the week and Amber catches up with you.
"Hmm, Albedo's not at school today?" She asks.
"No, guess not." You say.
"Omg, guess what. Chongyun spoke to me today! Before school!" She exclaims. You smile at her and poke her cheeks.
"You're so silly." You tease. She turns pink and holds her fists down.
"H-hey!!"
All of class was pretty boring until Amber gets a message on her phone.
"Y/N..." She mutters, looking down at the screen.
"What?" You ask curiously.
"Sucrose just texted me." Sucrose was Albedo's really close friend. You thought maybe they were secretly dating.
"Oh, really?" You ask.
"Yeah," She now looks up to you.
"She said that Albedo is in the hospital." Your mouth drops and you start thinking of worst-case scenarios.
"Really? What happened?!" You say startled.
"Aparentally it's nothing too serious, just bonked his head." She said but looked equally as worried as you.
"Whatever it is we have to see him after school, okay?" She questioned more like a statement.
"Yeah, of course!" You agree.

It's after school and you and Amber rush to the hospital on your bikes. When you enter the building you happen to see Sucrose leaving. She stops to talk to you guys.
"Thank you for coming to see him. He's okay, don't worry. I have to go now so I'll be leaving. See ya soon." She smiles softly and leaves. You two quickly get to his room and knock.
"Come in." He calls. You two come in to see him sitting in a hospital bed. You guys rush over to his side, and he smiles.
"Are you Okay?!" Amber yells mildly.
"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine." He lets out a small and soft light laugh, similar to all his other ones.
"Jeez, you had us worried to death!" She says.
"Sorry to worry you, but I'm alright. Now that you've seen me you'll hopefully feel less anxious." He smiles looking at the frazzled Amber.
"Well, what happened?" You ask in a voice much quieter then Amber's. He looks you in the eye for the first time.
"I just had a pretty chaotic fall. It's actually really embarrassing..." He trails off rubbing the back of his head.
"You see I was carrying the laundry basket down the stairs when I tripped on my own ankle. I flew down the stairs but rolled on my head. It was kind of funny. The whole thing felt slow motion." He explained. Amber began to laugh, and so did he. You couldn't help but loosen up and smile too.

*Next day.
"I'm leaving tomorrow, Y/N." Amber said as you two sat together for lunch in the garden. You looked up at her from your sandwiche.
"What? How come?" You stop chewing.
"I'm going on a little trip. I didn't find out until yesterday. My family wanted to keep it a surprise for me." She said, looking you over. Students passed by clinging to their friends, smiling towards each other, and a little ladybug climbed your leg.
"Oh, okay." You say.
"Don't worry, I'll be back in no time. Try to be happy for me as I go out traveling! If you don't make me feel bad I'll even bring you back a little something!" She comments.
"Hey I am happy for you! I'll just miss you while you're away!" You smile and take her into a headlock.
"Hahaha! I love you, Y/N." She exclaims joyfully as she wrestles you.

It's the next day after school, you didn't see Amber at all. She had already left. You texted Albedo confronting him.
: Hey! You said that you weren't at school yesterday because your mom felt bad! Then explain today! You type. He replies almost immediately.
: Haha, sorry about that! I'm assuming Amber wasn't there either? He asks.
: No. You type annoyed. You're currently on your bus ride home.
: Ah, sorry. He sends. After a minuet or two you get another notification.
: Y/N? He sent. You raise your brow looking at the message.
: Huh? You reply.
: I'm actually still at the hospital... Your eyes widened and an unexplainable panic grips you.
: You... are? You cautiosly send back.
: Yeah. Wanna come by? However when he sent that you were already pulling the bus over to be stopped. You ran out and rushed to the hospital, your backpack hitting against you each step you ran. After running up the hospital stairs you arrive at his room, then to his side.
"Albedo! What is going on?!" You try not to sound too upset, but it's obvious that you're shaken by this. He wears a guilty smile looking up at you, eyes closed.
"Y/N, please calm down... I didn't want to worry you. How 'bout you sit down. I'll explain." He says. Frustrated, you do as he wishes and sit down in the chair next to him. He still looked happy and healthy.
"Okay. Sorry." You mutter quietly.
"It's okay, I'd be annoyed too." He looks at you and you stare into his crystaly eyes, youth spilling out of them.
"Y/N, I lied about falling down the stairs." He says. What?! You hold your tongue though.
"The truth is... I'm not doing so well. I've been diagnosed with a disease. Since The second month of school." He continues. You look at him worriedly, watching for signs that it's not true.
"It's... fatal." The words left his mouth and you've been cold since that moment.

As the days go by you keep visiting him as much as possible.
"So... does Sucrose know?" You asked on a sunny day.
"No..." You widen your eyes.
"But she-" You start to say.
"Listen." He says seriously. You're taken off guard.
"I didn't want her stressing about me." He starts with that soft voice of his.
"She's going through a lot as it is. I didn't want to add to that." Albedo explains sitting upright, and his eyes are focused ahead of him, as the sun tints one side of his face a beautiful colour. You observe him silent, his once nimble fingers now clasped together, his hair resting messily on his head.
"But I thought-" He cuts you off yet again.
"I don't know what you think we are, but Y/N..." His eyes connect to yours and you felt something stir in your heart. His hospital gown rested loosely on his lean build.
"Yeah?" You utter, swallowing silently.
"I... I'm not in love with her. In fact..." He trails off as light pink covers his cheeks. You watch him speechlessly.
"I'm in love with you." Shattered. Your world was different. You look at your dying best friend who always steadied things out for you, always helped you through your science equations, who was always there for you, who had a fatal disease all along, devastated.
"Albedo..."
"I know... I'm... I'm so sorry, Y/N." Tears pricked your eyes and he continued, getting emotional himself.
"I'm so sorry that I did this to you... before death. I just couldn't leave without getting this off my chest. I love you so much. I love you more than I've loved anyone else...!" He says in a sentimental voice you're not used to him using. You nod your head quickly, tears daring to be shed as you say, "I... understand" You take his hands in yours and just hold them for the time being. How was he already so cold?

Sakura's are falling... the sun shining, the birds singing, and the moths take flight.
"Some things happen for a reason." The moon will rise again, and the water will continue to trickle along its course. It was another day, you knocked on his door and he answered, opening it to see you.
"Your new kitty as promised." You say, holding out the cat to him. He frowns as tears start to prick your eyes and Venti takes you into his arms as you cry silently with the wind.

The End

A.n Yes, the hospital au was necessary. I'm sorry. 2240 words. </3