Work Text:
Work that day had been awful, Childe decided as he returned home to the place he shared with Zhongli in Feiyun Slope. Not only had he been sent out debt collecting early in the morning, but it had taken until late in the evening before he was able to track down his target for the day. To make matters worse, the asshole had shot him with some kind of paint that had splattered all over his clothes and hair.
It looked kind of like blood, and honestly, Childe would have preferred it if it actually was. At least he knew how to clean that off, but this stupid red paint was staining his uniform and had smeared all over his cheek. He wouldn’t be surprised if the Millelith tried to stop him, thinking he had murdered someone.
(They wouldn’t be wrong, but they wouldn’t be able to prove it regardless.)
All he really wanted at this point was to get home, see Zhongli, and take a shower before eating. For once, they hadn’t booked a reservation at a restaurant for dinner. Instead, Zhongli had insisted on making him some dish that had fallen out of popularity (and memory, apparently) approximately three thousand years ago. Supposedly it was well loved at the time and it was one Zhongli had greatly missed eating in the years since.
It wasn’t often that Zhongli decided to cook, and so Childe had done his best to try and get an assignment that wouldn’t take too long—or so he had thought.
I really should have just agreed to do the paperwork that Ekaterina was pestering me about, Childe thought to himself as he approached the gate that led to the bustling city of Liyue Harbour. Upon seeing him, as expected, the Millelith guarding it were immediately nervous.
“Stop!” One of them called when Childe got close enough. “You dare try to enter the city covered in blood like that?”
“Hey man,” the other guard whispered with a nervous glance in Childe’s direction, “what if he’s injured? We can’t just turn him away, even if he is Fatui!”
The first guard shot him a nasty look. “Are you kidding? He’s a Harbinger. There’s no way he was injured that much! That has to be the blood of his victim!”
“Sorry to disappoint,” Childe drawled, already far beyond being done with this nonsense, “but this is paint.”
“It doesn’t look like paint—”
Childe rolled his eyes. “Trust me, blood looks much different. I would know.”
The guards stood there awkwardly for a moment, exchanging glances and seemingly trying to communicate wordlessly. They really needed to work on that, in Childe’s opinion, because all they were managing to do was frustrate him.
“Honestly, what would make you believe me?” Childe groaned. “Do you want me to strip off my jacket so you can examine it more closely? Do you need to… I don’t know… taste it to be sure? You can lick it if you want, but I’ll be a little weirded out.”
The first guard recoiled in horror at the suggestion and the second looked mildly queasy, but managed to stay somewhat professional.
“N—no, sir. That won’t be necessary.”
They still hadn’t moved from their spot in the middle of the path, however, so Childe cleared his throat. He wished he had gone with the more suspicious route of just sneaking in. Sure, it could raise more questions later, but at least he would have been home long ago.
“So... could you please let me through now? I have a wonderful lover waiting for me at home and I don’t want to be even later for dinner than I already am.”
Well, ‘late’. He had hoped to be there to learn how to cook the dish as Zhongli was making it, but knowing how long the man usually took, it was likely that he was maybe only halfway done by now. That didn’t make being late any less frustrating, though.
“Oh, uh, of course.” The two Millelith guards shuffled back to their posts, and Childe gave them a small, tense, and very clearly fake smile as he walked into the city. Honestly, they weren’t completely incompetent, but if he was in charge of them, he would definitely make some changes.
It didn’t take long before Childe found himself at the front door of their apartment and he unlocked it after finding his key in his pocket. Sounds of movement and chopping came from the kitchen, and just the knowledge that Zhongli was already there and working on dinner was enough to bring a smile to Childe’s face. He took off his shoes and put on a set of slippers that Zhongli had insisted he wear indoors, before attempting to sneak past the kitchen doorway to have a shower. Naturally, though, he couldn’t escape detection from a former god.
“Childe?” Zhongli called from the kitchen. “Come here. I was wondering where you were.”
With a sigh, Childe poked his head into the kitchen. “Yeah, work ran late today. I’m sorry for not being here earlier.”
“It is of no consequence,” Zhongli said, still not taking his eyes off of the vegetables on the cutting board—a cucumber and some green onions. Off to the side, there was a bowl with a strange dough-like substance and several bamboo skewers, which confused Childe quite a bit.
“What are you making?” he asked, walking closer and peering over Zhongli’s shoulder. From the ingredients alone, he wasn’t sure what the dish could be at all.
“It is an old dish called Jia jian rou, first recorded in the Shanjia qinggong—an old recipe book written by the people who lived in the mountainous regions of Liyue, and it is quite fascinating that mortals came up with something of this nature,” Zhongli said, already excitedly launching into an explanation of the intricacies of the dish. It was only one of many things Childe loved about him.
With a gesture at the bowl, Zhongli continued. “First, the dough is washed away using a thorough washing process that takes quite a long time—a step I have already completed while awaiting your return—leaving behind only the wheat gluten. The gluten is then soaked and kneaded until it is smooth, and once it is prepared and sliced into small pieces, the gluten will then be stretched over the sticks and cooked in gently simmering water for thirty minutes before finally being fried alongside the vegetables.”
Setting down the knife, he reached over to grab some of the gluten. “It is truly an ingenious recipe, and as Ganyu and some of the other Adepti are vegetarian, we used to share such a meal when we would gather all those years ago. It is my pleasure to be sharing it with you tonight, Childe.”
“I feel honoured that you wanted to do that,” Childe replied, honestly feeling really touched. The ex-archon had only really ever talked about the old days, and this was the first time he was going out of his way to truly let Childe experience it in one of the only ways he could.
“It should not come as a surprise, since you know that I—” Zhongli turned around to look in his direction and paused, his gaze zeroing in on the red smear on his cheek.
“Childe,” he said in an extremely disappointed tone, “please tell me that you did not murder someone before walking through the city like that.”
Childe pursed his lips and looked away. “Well, yes and no. Yes, I did kill a man—but he broke a contract and made me get home late, which is why I wasn’t here an hour ago. No, this is not his blood. You know me, I wouldn’t get this dirty from a routine debt collection. I just got hit with some paint, but you’re not the first one to think that.”
Zhongli nodded in understanding. “Very well. Would you like to have a shower before I start cooking everything fully?”
Childe nodded. “Yeah, I don’t particularly want to be all messy when you’ve put in so much work for dinner. I’ll be right back, okay?”
Zhongli set the knife down on the counter before approaching him with an amused expression.
“This does not take too long, do not worry, but you misheard me.”
“I did?” Childe asked, wondering what Zhongli meant by that. He didn’t think he had misheard—
“Would you like us to have a shower?” Zhongli repeated, stressing the word that was implied but had gone unheard the last time. Childe’s eyes went wide and he nodded. There was no way he would ever say no to something like that.
Zhongli smiled and quickly washed his hands. “Very well then. Shall we?”
He followed Zhongli into the bathroom and started undressing immediately, while Zhongli was starting the water and checking the temperature. When it was sufficiently warm, he brought in a stool and motioned for Childe to get into the shower and sit down.
Expecting Zhongli to join him for some ahem action, Childe did his best to make enough room for such activities, but was only met with a soft chuckle from Zhongli and shake of his head.
“That can wait until after dinner, Childe,” Zhongli said in an amused tone. “For now, let me clean you up. Turn around so that your back is to me, alright?”
The shower door closed behind Zhongli as Childe did what he was asked, and he sighed when the warm water washed over his head and sore muscles. Taking the shower head in his hand, Zhongli started by rinsing off Childe’s back and hair, leaving teasing and fleeting touches on his sides and shoulders. When his hair was wet enough, Childe heard Zhongli put the shower head back so the water fell gently over both of them.
Yeah, the shower was definitely worth the extra money that this apartment had cost.
A bottle was opened behind him, and Childe soon felt Zhongli’s hands in his hair, working the shampoo into the ginger strands and massaging the scalp. It was relaxing and Childe couldn’t hold back the pleased sigh that escaped his mouth. Zhongli worked with precision and grace, and soon enough he was rinsing the shampoo out, being careful to not let any water fall into Childe’s eyes.
“You’re so good to me,” Childe said, earning a small laugh from the man behind him. He really wanted to turn around to see what kind of expression Zhongli was making, but he held himself back.
“And you are good to me as well,” Zhongli replied fondly. “Tilt your head back, please.”
Sure, Childe could have just used his vision to ensure no water went into his eyes, but this wasn’t the time for that. It was weirdly intimate, and soothing to feel the love and care that Zhongli put into his every action.
“How was your day?” Childe asked, closing his eyes as his hair was rinsed once again.
Zhongli hummed and opened another bottle before applying its contents to Childe’s hair once more. “It was business as usual. Director Hu wanted to hear my opinion on a new three-for-one deal, since she claims that the two-for-one is not selling.”
Childe couldn’t hold back a bark of laughter. “Three-for-one coffins? What a riot.”
He could almost hear the grimace in Zhongli’s voice when he spoke, but he never once strayed from his task of washing Childe’s hair. “I have attempted to tell her that encouraging the deaths of several people at once is in quite bad taste, but her only response was that I should offer this to you as a one-time deal.”
Childe grinned wickedly, though Zhongli couldn’t see it.
“I like her style. When you see her at work tomorrow, tell her we’ll take it.”
When Zhongli sighed, Childe could only laugh.
Zhongli rinsed his hair again, before opening a third bottle.
“Zhongli, I love you, but you do realize that I usually only use shampoo, right?”
“Yes,” Zhongli said, sounding quite focused, “but as I am the one washing you, I get to make such decisions.”
A wet, soapy cloth touched his skin and Childe almost pouted at the fact that it wasn’t Zhongli’s hands directly on him. He wondered how the scratches Zhongli had left on his back two days ago looked, and if Zhongli was remembering everything as he wiped the cloth over them.
Once Zhongli had covered his back in soap bubbles, he tapped Childe’s shoulder. “Step back under the water.”
Childe did as he was told and stood, watching as streaks of red-tinted water spiralled down into the drain along with the suds. Then, with a gentle tug on his arm, Childe let himself be turned around to face Zhongli. Before the ex-archon could continue washing down his body, Childe leaned in for a quick peck. Zhongli, as always, let him.
When Childe stepped back out of the water, making sure to not crash into the stool that was taking up more room in the shower than he had expected, Zhongli reached forward and ensured the cloth was soapy enough before starting to rub at the red smear on his cheek. Then, he worked his way down to Childe’s shoulders, arms, and then chest. When he started moving the cloth across Childe’s pecs, Zhongli shot him a teasing smile that made Childe want to tear the cloth out of his hand so he wouldn’t get distracted by his task and just kiss him stupid, but Zhongli had said to wait, so he did.
It was torturous, though, to feel Zhongli’s fingers slowly dragging lines across his skin like brands on his soul.
The cloth soon moved lower and he had to hold back the giggles that threatened to escape when Zhongli brushed over the one spot near his left hip bone that was ticklish. He knew it was there—they had explored each other’s bodies enough to know by now—and he must have done it intentionally, if the small smile on his face was any hint.
Zhongli was silent as he continued, rubbing the cloth across Childe’s abs but not daring to go any lower. He had to lean over slightly to reach properly and comfortably, but he continued at his task with single-minded dedication despite the hot water falling directly on him.
A section of his hair, wet and heavy, fell over his shoulder to his front and Childe took it in his hand and brought it up to his lips, carefully watching for Zhongli’s reaction. The tips of his ears went red, as they always did when he was flustered, and Childe felt his heart flutter.
Archons, he loved this man so much.
Once he had reached Childe’s waist, Zhongli carefully went down on his knees to wash off his thighs and calves and Childe was forced to let go of his hair. It didn’t take very long (not long enough, in Childe’s opinion—Zhongli was always beautiful looking up at him when kneeling and it always sent a rush through his body whenever he saw that) before he had to offer a hand to help Zhongli stand again.
Zhongli took a step back, gesturing for him to rinse off—and maybe he was teasing a bit too much—but instead of just letting the water wash it all away, he grabbed Zhongli’s hand and pressed it to his skin. The man flushed, but didn’t argue even when Childe was practically forcing him to feel him up as he got rid of all the bubbles. Not that he was opposed to it, and they both knew it.
Once they were all gone down the drain, Zhongli reached out for the shower door. Childe grabbed his hand and stopped him, only for Zhongli to turn to him with a confused expression.
“Come on, it’s not fair if you get to do all the pampering,” he said, and Zhongli looked down with a smile.
“Yes, I suppose so.”
Childe reached out to twist some of Zhongli’s long hair through his fingers. “Plus, you must be out of your mind if you think I would ever pass up the opportunity to worship you like you deserve.”
At that, a full blush blossomed on the ex-archon’s cheeks. “Childe! You—”
“Yes? What about me?” he asked cheekily, a grin pulling at his lips. “I’m going to worship you gently now with love and care, and then after dinner, I’ll be as gentle—or not—as you want. Does that sound acceptable?”
Zhongli’s eyes went wide but he nodded and decided against sitting down on the stool after trying and failing to maneuver in the tight space when Childe was in the way. Sighing, he just stayed standing where he was with a slightly apologetic look when he realized that Childe would have to reach up to wash his hair, since they were around the same height.
“Very well. You may do as you wish.”
Good, that’s what he liked to hear. After pressing a kiss to Zhongli’s shoulder, Childe opened the bottle of shampoo and poured probably much more than necessary onto his hand before starting to work it through Zhongli’s hair. He rubbed the long locks between his hands, and instead of asking Zhongli to turn around so he could reach better, Childe pressed Zhongli to his chest and reached around his entire body to get to his hair. It wasn’t like they had much room in there anymore, not with the stool behind him, but Childe wasn’t complaining when it gave him an excuse to be even closer to the love of his life.
He could feel more than hear Zhongli’s small laugh over the sound of the water, and he couldn’t help the smile that came to his face when Zhongli nuzzled his nose into the junction of Childe’s shoulder and neck and wrapped his arms around his torso. With his fingers, Zhongli lazily and slowly traced patterns on his skin, and Childe let him melt into his embrace.
When he had finally gotten all the shampoo in, Childe placed his hands on Zhongli’s hips and sighed as they enjoyed the embrace for a moment. Not wanting to let go, Childe glanced up at the water coming down from the shower head and used his masterful control over his hydro vision to manipulate it to gently stream through Zhongli’s hair and wash away the shampoo bubbles.
“Using your vision for something like this?” Zhongli asked teasingly, though his voice was soft and loving.
Childe gently rubbed his thumb in a circular motion on Zhongli’s hip. “If not this, then what?”
“It is fascinating, I think, that your water can be so meticulous and caring when used here, yet deadly and precise when used against your enemies.”
His thumb stopped moving. “Did you think I could only use it for violence?”
“No,” Zhongli said with a shake of his head, “but few have the skill to be so versatile—especially with an element as shapeless and fluid as hydro. I am simply impressed.”
Squeezing him into a tighter hug, Childe laughed. “Consider your compliment accepted then.”
He allowed Zhongli to go almost boneless in his grip as he gently started massaging his back, even though the angle was definitely not right for working at the deep knots. He had done this before—albeit only once or twice—but it never ceased to amaze him just how quickly Zhongli’s muscles would become tense again.
Maybe it was all that proper posture. The man could learn to slouch once in a while—it would help him blend in more, honestly.
Zhongli was rarely vocal, even in bed, but somehow these massages always made him turn into putty in Childe’s hands and he would hum and sigh in contentment all the while. On one particularly memorable occasion when Childe had been gently massaging him as part of their aftercare, Zhongli had even made this strange yet endearing rumbling noise deep in his chest—one that he refused to explain.
Childe vowed to make it happen again someday, but maybe not right now.
After a few minutes of carefully trying to relax Zhongli’s muscles, Childe reached over for the second bottle and worked that conditioner through Zhongli’s hair, making sure his fingers trailed lines down Zhongli’s back as he did so. The shiver he got in return felt like a reward of some kind, and Childe relished in being able to trigger these kinds of reactions in an actual god.
Once again using his vision to rinse, Childe smiled as he felt Zhongli press a quick kiss just below his ear.
“Childe, while I would love to stay here with you for as long as you deem necessary, I would like to get back to cooking shortly.”
With a laugh, Childe let go of his hips and took a small step back. “Alright, I guess I’ll have to save the body wash for later.”
“Yes, I do believe that would be prudent—especially since you said I get to choose what you will do to me later tonight.” Zhongli nodded, completely ignoring the lighthearted tone of his statement. “You said you would worship me, and I hope you are prepared to deliver on that promise.”
“I hope you’re not doubting me now,” Childe teased as he turned off the water, already feeling the cold chill of the air on his skin.
“Never,” Zhongli replied, reaching for a towel and wrapping himself in it.
Mere seconds later, Childe reached for his hair and helped tie it up so the wet ends wouldn’t lie against his neck. Sure, he could have simply removed the water using his vision, but if he had done that, he wouldn’t be able to do this.
Wrapping his arms around Zhongli’s waist from behind, Childe pressed feather-light kisses to the back of his neck. They hadn’t even done anything, and yet he felt light-headed and drunk on love for the man in his hold.
Zhongli would probably say it was just the steam from the shower, but Childe knew his heart well.
“Once you are ready to let me go, I shall finish preparing dinner,” Zhongli said, but made no efforts to get him to relax his grip at all. Good. He didn’t want to let go just yet.
“I love you, you know that?” Childe whispered into his neck.
Zhongli smiled. “I love you too, Childe, but the longer you stall, the more time you will have to wait until we get to what you really want.”
Childe was sure Zhongli could feel him smiling against his neck. “But I always want you, in any and every way—even just standing here like this.”
Zhongli sighed fondly. “You know what I mean, besides, you have had a long day and I am sure you are getting hungry.”
He… had a point, on both counts. With much regret, Childe let go.
“Thank you. Go put on your robe, and we can worry about washing your uniform in the morning, since I am certain that we will have some other clothes—and possibly bedsheets—to add to that.”
After seeing Childe nod in acknowledgement and getting dressed again, Zhongli returned to the kitchen, leaving him standing alone in the steamy bathroom. As he picked up his stained uniform, he ran his fingers over the dry paint that was coating his jacket.
“Maybe it was a good thing that I didn’t do paperwork today,” Childe muttered, a small smile on his face.