Chapter Text
Zandik drummed his fingers against the table with anxiety. It was their first ‘official’ date. Zandik called it their first date. Zhiyuan had reassured him that it didn’t need to be fancy to count as a date, but Zandik had insisted on taking him out somewhere special.
He was early, much earlier than he normally was to special occasions, but he was worried about it, and everything had to be perfect. He was sure Zhiyuan would have laughed at his anxiety, and assured him that it was all alright. He took a deep breath, and tried to quell his worry.
Zhiyuan would be there at any moment, and Zandik could stop checking his watch every five minutes.
He had decided to buy a fancier outfit with the help of a classmate he had grown close to. She was sweet enough, and she listened to him rant about his findings. She had even helped him plan a few dates with Zhiyuan. Sohreh was at least tolerable in Zandik’s opinion. She had helped him pick out a deep blue suit that burned through most of his savings, but it was one of the few outfits Zandik felt confident in.
Five minutes passed before Zhiyuan joined him, sitting in the seat in front of him. Zandik smiled, and handed Zhiyuan a gold and blue flower bracelet he had spent the morning weaving.
Zhiyuan’s smile grew bigger, and put on the bracelet, nodding in thanks.
“You look lovely,” Zhiyuan said, before handing Zandik a wrapped box. Zandik hesitantly took it, and carefully unwrapped the blue ribbon. Zhiyuan rested his head on his hand, and waited for him to open his gift.
When Zandik finally managed to get the knot undone, he pulled the top of the box off. He paused, unsure of what it was supposed to be. Zhiyuan noticed his confusion, and folded his hands together before speaking.
“I noticed that you had your ears pierced, so I got you a pair of earrings,”
Zandik took it out of the box, to get a closer look at the pair of earrings. He wouldn’t exactly call it a pair, as they were not identical, but Zandik could see that they went with each other. One of them was a simple light blue stone embedded in a gold frame. It was similar to the ones he was currently wearing, but the other one was a bit more odd.
It had gold casing, but it was a glass tube with a swirling blue liquid inside of it. Zandik looked up at Zhiyuan inquisitively, and Zhiyuan grinned.
“It’s an antidote for almost every poison known to Teyvat. While it won’t completely cure it, it will give you enough time to let you get medical attention,”
Zandik smiled a little bit, and started to take out his current pair of earrings.
“Do you not trust me not to succumb to poison?” He gently set the earrings down onto the table before he started to put in the new ones.
“Well, Zandik, I have been in the same room as you when you’ve eaten a known poisonous plant to, and I quote, “double check the reported symptoms and side effects’”
Zandik smiled at the memory. He had a makeshift antidote prepared just in case, and it proved to be useful when the experiment went as he expected. He had experienced new symptoms due to the poison, and had since published his findings. He had wanted to replicate the experiment, but due to Zhiyuan’s insistence, he gave up the instructions to the Akydemia so they could replicate it if they wished.
He simply smiled and shrugged, before putting the box with his old earrings in his bag. The unbalanced weight was something to get used to, but it was comforting in an odd sense.
“If you ever find yourself in a situation where you need it, just unscrew the top of the tube and drink it. It supposedly works against certain venom as well but the scholar didn’t seem to sure about that,”
Zandik couldn’t deny the practicality of the gift. He almost felt embarrassed at the flower bracelet that would wither with time, but Zhiyuan seemed genuinely happy with the gift, so he tried to quell the disappointment in himself.
They continued with meaningless chatter, before their food finally arrived. They then lapsed into a comfortable silence. Zandik was proud of himself, and to him, it seemed like the date was doing well. At least on his end. He was genuinely happy for the first time in a while. He had prepared for this for a while, and it seemed to be going seamlessly.
When Zandik finished his meal, he sat down the fork and knife, and looked at Zhiyuan before deciding to speak.
“Do… Do you have any plans for the future?”
Zhiyuan seemed caught off guard by the question, and cleared his throat before answering.
“Well,” he said, folding the napkin over his lap. “I do have quite a few plans. My career is successful, more than I ever imagined it would when I was a child. I plan to keep the trend of success for as long as I can. Why do you ask?”
Zandik paused, trying to work up the courage to tell Zhiyuan what was on his mind.
“Well… I was thinking that since you are here in Sumeru so often, you could stay here. Stay with me,”
Zandik looked at Zhiyuan, trying to gauge Zhiyuan’s reaction. Zhiyuan looked at him through his half frame glasses, and the silence was loud, yet Zandik could tell Zhiyuan was trying to work through something in his mind.
After what seemed like an eternity, Zhiyuan’s face relaxed and he smiled.
“Well Zandik. That does seem like a promising offer. What’s in it for you?”
Zandik couldn’t help but roll his eyes, but he smiled regardless.
“What’s in it for me? I get to spend everyday with you. Spend time in Sumeru with you until I graduate, then we can go anywhere we want. I’ve always wanted to see Fontaine, and I know you want to see Inazuma. We can travel the world together!”
Zandik had to admit he got a little more enthusiastic than he would have wanted, but it was truly what he was feeling. The thought of traveling the world with Zhiyuan was one that made him grin every time it crossed his mind. He had never taken himself as one to get this excited over one person, yet here he was, getting excited over the simple thought of spending the rest of his life with Zhiyuan.
Zhiyuan reached over the table and grabbed his hand. Zandik’s face reddened slightly, even though he had held Zhiyuan’s hand many times previously.
“That sounds lovely. I will gladly spend my time with you in Sumeru,” he said. Zandik smiled at the genuine tone behind his words, and squeezed his partner's hand reassuringly.
“However,” he said, fixing his glasses. “I have to travel back to Liyue for a bit before I can permanently move here. I have a few things to tie up before hand,”
Zandik nodded. He expected some delays in their plans, but this was running very smoothly. Zhiyuan would finish up his work in Liyue, then travel the world with Zandik. All he had to do was graduate from the Akydemia, and then he could explore the world with the love of his life.
Perhaps he could get a grant from the Akyedemia to research the plant life in Fontaine, or even Snezhnaya.
“I would also have to say goodbye to my brother…” Zhiyuan said, trailing off, lost in thought. Zandik paused to look at him. In the roughly five years he had known Zhiyuan, he had never heard him mention a brother. Although, there was a good chance he had mentioned him, but Zandik had simply not been listening.
Zhiyuan noticed his facial expression, but waved his hand in dismissal.
“No bother,” he said flatly, and quickly changed the subject. He started to talk about his business, and Zandik did engage in the conversation, but felt like there was something he was hiding from him. He understood that Zhiyuan didn’t need to share everything, but he figured something as big as his brother would have been one of the first things he would’ve been told.
He shook his head to clear the thought, and knew Zhiyuan would tell him when he was good and ready too.
They continued with their chatter, and when Zandik paid the bill, he took Zhiyuan’s hand, pressing a small kiss onto his forehead. As they walked through the buzzing streets of Sumeru, watching the glistening lights of the harbor, Zandik was, for once, excited for the unknown.