Chapter Text
Childe groaned and cracked his knuckles, adjusting his suit’s tie to be a little looser. The redhead never found suits too appealing, but with his line of work, they were necessary. He looked out the window of the limousine he was riding in, sighing and resting his cheek in his palm. On his way to yet another work function, where he could get wasted and call it work. This was one of the only perks to his job.
He didn’t do anything particularly interesting- no, he just worked at some medium-ish sized company as the CFO. He had recently been offered a new job, though, at some bigger company. His starting salary was to be slightly lower than his current one, but with his qualifications, he knew he’d work his way up in no time. Besides, at least it wasn’t an entry-level job. He’d heard phenomenal things about his potential new workplace, including the fact that his boss was incredibly lax.
Most of this was information he’d acquired through the grapevine, and from an acquaintance who also worked there. Said acquaintance was mostly only known through work parties, so truth be told, Childe actually never remembered his name. Just his long, bright red hair. He often wondered how his friend was able to keep a job with such vibrantly colored hair, but never bothered asking. He chalked it up to friends on the inside.
The limousine slowed to a stop gradually, pulling up to the building in which the party would be held. Of course, due to it being affiliated with a company, Childe was required to call it a “function” instead. But really, it was a party.
Stretching his arms and cracking his knuckles, he stepped out of the vehicle and adjusted his tie once more. Brushing the nonexistent dirt from his pants, he flicked his wrists a few times before taking a breath and walking towards the building, invigorated with confidence.
Pushing the doors open, Childe grinned and greeted several people. His boss, Catherine (but people just usually called her Signora, as a sign of respect) was there, along with several others of his coworkers- among them were Phil- sorry, Scaramouche (nobody knew why, but that’s what he wanted to be called), Lumine, Zhongli, and Ningguang. Childe quite liked his coworkers, and found them good for conversation. Well, except for Signora. She was intimidating, and nobody particularly understood how to approach her, so nobody did.
Brushing his messy carrot-colored hair from his eyes, he blinked a few times and looked around, scouting for the bar. There was no obligation to show up to these parties, but Childe was a bit of a cheapskate, and the alcohol served here was top tier. Of course he was gonna show up. To drink, and nothing else. Sometimes he and Lumine would steal alcohol and crash at his place. Lumine was an enabler, much to Signora’s chagrin, and that was exactly why Childe liked her.
“Here we go, lovely…” The man would mutter, a grin spreading across his features as he approached the bar, sitting himself down on one of the barstools. He tapped the counter a few times, grinning at the bartender.
“My name is Sucrose, I’ll be the bartender for tonight… What can I get you started with?” The girl behind the counter seemed timid, but her fingers moved quickly, tapping rhythmically. She tilted her head slightly, cocking one of her eyebrows and flashing a quick, shy smile.
“Whatever you suggest, but make it strong. The company covered the tab, after all, so it’s not my issue what it costs…” Saying this, Childe chuckled lowly, but not maliciously. He was just glad to be free of the tedious cost that came with enjoying himself. He made eye contact with Sucrose, who just shook her head and clicked her tongue quietly before preparing his drink.
Mixing ice cubes, vodka maybe- it was clear- and some other things Childe couldn’t name, she slid a tall glass across the counter. It was a beautiful swirling drink of light green, with crushed ice cubes, and salt and a slice of lime on the rim. Tentatively, the girl placed a little teal umbrella in the drink. Once more, Sucrose flashed a small, slightly wry smile, flinching the moment Childe grabbed his drink and chugged it. With no hesitation whatsoever, he slammed his drink down on the counter again, grinning dazedly.
“Another, if you please, barista. That was delicious.” Without missing a beat, Childe posed his request, looking around. Signora was thankfully nowhere to be seen- she did rather hate Childe’s drinking habits while at parties- but there was some new gentleman approaching the bar. Sucrose kept herself busy preparing Childe’s drink, peering over her wired glasses to eye the new company.
The company in question, of course, was a mysterious looking, tall, dark, and slender man. Well, he wasn’t that dark, per se, but the lighting was low and cast more shadows than were perhaps necessary. His blue… blue? Yes, his hair was blue. And said hair was longer than Childe would expect, as it crawled over his shoulder and draped all the way down his chest, much as a feather boa would. And while Childe couldn’t tell if it was the lighting, or if he really did have dyed lighter streaks completely randomly placed, he assumed the latter.
Speaking of feather boas, for whatever reason, this man wore one. Or something similar. His clothing was intricate and exotic, not like anything Childe was used to. There was a chest window in his shirt, over which a chain necklace hung, and the carrot-haired man found himself dazed by the number of details this outfit held. It almost seemed otherworldly, but he chalked it up to the man being a fashionista.
The most curious thing, though, Childe noticed, was an eyepatch. Yes, the man wore an eyepatch over his right eye, which his bangs all but covered. The longer he looked, the more engrossed Childe found himself.
“Sir Kaeya! Pleasure to see you, sir, what can I get for you, master?” Sucrose babbled suddenly, perking up when the man- whose name appeared to be Kaeya- sat right next to Childe and winked. Then he turned to Sucrose and waved her off, smiling kindly at her. She let out a sigh of relief and slid Childe his second drink before tittering off to deal with others who had begun to arrive.
Childe was dumbfounded. This was a gorgeous hunk of a man. He’d be damned if he’d waste an opportunity to get to know him.
“Ah- ahem…” Childe cleared his throat, flashing Kaeya a mischievous grin while taking a large swig of his drink. He coughed slightly, blinking a few times as he regained what composure he’d gathered earlier on.
“Can I help you?” Kaeya’s tone seemed somewhat cold, but somehow playful at the same time. His voice was smooth and low, and Childe nearly melted at the sound of it. Taking a sip of his drink, the redhead composed himself as best he could, tilting his head slightly and grinning cheekily.
“The name’s Childe, and I’d like to get to know you better.” He stated, very upfront. This seemed to amuse Kaeya, as he grinned and laughed, a melodious laugh that tickled Childe deep down in his stomach.
“I’m Kaeya. Kaeya Alberich. I don’t suppose you work for Catherine?”
“I do, sir. You’re very pretty.” Childe blurted out suddenly, clasping a hand over his mouth almost instantly. His vision was slightly swirly from the heavy alcohol content he’d had tonight, and evidently it was fucking with his judgement as well.
“So I’ve been told. You’re amusing, y’know.” Kaeya peered closer at Childe, spinning to face him fully. He reached out and, with his hand, he gently caressed the redhead’s cheek. This caused his face to burn up, and he looked away hastily.
“Yeah, my coworkers say I’m a riot. ‘Cept they won’t be my coworkers for much longer, I guess.”
“Oh? Why’s that?” Kaeya inquired, raising his visible eyebrow and smirking slightly. Childe had a strange feeling about this man. Not a bad one, just… that perhaps he knew more than he let on.
“I’m ‘na get a new job soon. A cooler job. Heard the boss was cool as fuck… I’d love to meet him. My friend works there, says he’s hot…”
“Mm… is that so…?” The more Kaeya listened, the more he couldn’t help but titter lightly under his breath.
Childe chugged the rest of his drink, hiccuping slightly. He was a bit of a lightweight, and enjoyed taking the most intense alcohol the bar had to offer, meaning he usually ended up drunk quite fast.
“... What say I take you somewhere to sober up? A place such as this hardly fits someone as cute as you.” Kaeya would offer, giving Childe a warm smile. He wanted nothing more than to kiss the adorable ginger, but he knew better than to take advantage of his incapacitated state. His offer was genuine, and he could only hope that after sobering up more, Childe would still find Kaeya attractive enough to… have fun with.
“Yeah… that sounds *hic* good to me!” Childe replied perkily, grinning and trying to stand. Sucrose had noticed this, and raised an eyebrow, but Kaeya only waved her off.
“I’ll be taking him home, don’t worry, sugar.”
“My name is Sucrose…”
“Yeah, hence the nickname. Sucrose is basically sugar, right?”
“... You’ve got me there, sir Kaeya. Have a good night. Shall I tell Catherine you’ve left with Childe…?”
“Nah, don’t bother. She doesn’t care. And it might not be safe.” He added the last part with hesitance, taking into account his prior experiences with the woman. He shuddered to think of it, and instead, turned to Childe- where was he?
On the floor.
Childe was collapsed in a fit of giggles, grinning up at Kaeya, who crouched and picked up the redhead with ease. Coolly, he made his way through the building and out the door, sighing as the refreshing evening air hit his face.
“Let’s take you to my place, alright?”
“O- *hic* okay!”
A moment of silence, then,
"I trust you, Kaeya!"