Work Text:
Mr. Zhongli has quite a majestic jacket. It is very satisfying watching it swing side by side as Mr. Zhongli is fighting. And Childe couldn’t help but stare each time this certain jacket flips up, like a skirt being flipped.
Childe sat in the northern bank, bored as he had nothing to do at the moment. He was lazily daydreaming, thinking about how to beat the Traveler this time. The Traveler was steadily increasing in strength, and he didn’t want to lose against them.
But his mind couldn’t help but drift off to when Childe playfully asked Zhongli for a duel. Zhongli agreed, as long as Childe pays for the expenses in case something gets damaged.
How awesome was that, he got to see Mr. Zhongli’s jacket being flipped up all the time. He went easy on him on purpose, just to see that jacket being flipped up..
If only Zhongli had embarrassment on his face when it happened, then it would be perfect. Oh.. Childe wanted to flip his skirt up again.
Mr. Zhongli was working today, so he could go over and ‘accidentally’ flip the jacket up.. Why not? Childe thought to himself.
He was widely grinning to himself, causing the workers of the northern bank to raise a brow at him. He must be thinking about bloodshed again, they thought to themselves.
Childe got up, and left the bank. He started planning the whole scenario out in his head.
-
Childe casually walked over to the Funeral Parlor, as Mr. Zhongli worked there. What he encountered there was indeed him, along with his boss Hu Tao. They seemed to be discussing something, Mr. Zhongli’s brows being furrowed. If only Childe could make that frown into an embarrassed face..
How to flip that jacket up, was the problem. He looked around for a good excuse, and looked over at the birds cheerfully chirping on the board next to the building. It wasn’t really a good excuse, but hopefully Zhongli was naive enough to actually believe him.
Childe got ready and did a little stretch for his legs. He got in position, then darted in their direction. They both looked over at Childe, and Zhongli flinched slightly as Hu Tao got ready to summon her weapon.
But Childe darted right next to them, darting to the board instead of them. The wind of Childe running past them made the jacket indeed flip up. Perfect, Childe thought to himself. He watched the jacket from the corner of his eye quickly before turning his focus to the board, shooing the birds off of it.
“What are you doing, Childe?” Zhongli asked the odd fellow. Childe turned around innocently after he was done shooing the birds off, trying to look confused to why he would ask what he was doing.
“Hm? Can’t you see? I’m shooing the birds off the Funeral Parlors board.” He replied. There was a fake smile onto his face, like he always has.
“That is very nice of you, Childe. But there is no need.” Great. Zhongli took the bait. He felt his smile curl up more as he stared at his jacket.
Hu Tao on the other hand was suspiciously looking over at Childe, then glanced over to Zhongli. “Guess we must be holding the bird's funeral then, they all died from a heart attack thanks to you. And the same counts for us.” Hu Tao said as she raised a brow with that slimy smile of hers.
“I am completely fine, Hu Tao. My heart is still beating happily.” Zhongli replied, obviously not getting the meaning behind Hu Tao’s words. She patted him on his shoulder, and let out a ‘oh Zhongli..’
“I’m sure I have the funds to pay for it. I would happily choose a coffin for you guys.” Childe said as he went to stand next to Zhongli, casually bringing his hand to Zhongli’s back. Zhongli flinched once again, but soon relaxed.
Zhongli tried to act normal, letting out a quiet cough, not being used to the touch. He thought this must be normal in Snezhnaya. “Again, there is no need. I am very healthy and won’t die anytime soon. As for Hu Tao, her health may be a bit worse, but I’m sure she too will live a happy and long life.”
Hu Tao chuckled and so did Childe, seeing Zhongli still not get the hint. It was fun teasing him. This was the only thing Childe and Hu Tao could get along with though, as she was often in the way of Zhongli’s and Childe’s private time.
“Payment in advance you know~ You never know what will happen, dear Zhongli.” Childe said as he moved his mouth closer to Zhongli’s ear, whispering it softly. Zhongli quickly covered that ear with his hand, glancing over at Childe.
Childe gave him a playful smile, and removed his hand off of his back.
“Then, I will be on my way then~. Let’s get some drinks sometime.” Childe said with the same tone as how he whispered into Zhongli’s ear. Zhongli’s face was very composed, but there was a slight blush on his ears when he removed his hand.
“Take care.” He could only stumble out to Childe. Hu Tao couldn’t help but let out a loud giggle. Mr. Zhongli looked at her, and it was clear to see he was about to explode.
Nice. Childe got to see a bit of Zhongli’s embarrassed side, but he had to push a little further next time. He wanted to see that composed face break.
“See ya.” He said to the both of them, then darted away, so Zhongli’s jacket would once again flip up. He looked behind his shoulder as he darted, putting a thumb up to Hu Tao as he also watched the jacket flip.
What a satisfying day.