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It had been a long day. Baizhu had originally planned on spending his day working at Bubu Pharmacy, concocting medicines and seeing the occasional patient who dropped by the clinic. What he wasn’t planning on was having to instead travel to make not one, not two, not even three, but four house calls around Liyue, all of them outside of the harbor. Normally this might not have been much of an issue for Baizhu, but when he woke up that morning he could feel the beginnings of the aches he’d come to associate with a flare up. Nevertheless, Baizhu diligently attended to his patients, shoving down his own exhaustion and pain in the face of his passion for helping others. Of course, none of the houses were anywhere near each other, so even though he left early that morning he didn’t return to Bubu Pharmacy until after the sun had sunk past the horizon. Even Changshen had grown weary by that point, falling asleep around his neck.
As soon as Baizhu stepped foot into the pharmacy, Gui immediately noticed his poorly state. While Baizhu was usually good at hiding his condition from others, after years of working side by side with him Gui had become an expert at reading him.
“Welcome back Dr. Baizhu! How did the house calls go?” Gui greeted him, coming out from behind the counter.
“They went well. Little Hongdou is recuperating quite well, especially now that her mother has found a way to get her to take her medicine.” Baizhu replied, letting out a quiet groan as he shrugged off his travel coat. He then gently removed Changsheng from around his neck, carefully settling her down on her favorite perch in the front room without disturbing her sleep. As he turned to head into his apartment behind the pharmacy, Qiqi came out from the back room and gently hugged him. To the best of her ability at least, since due to her short stature she was only able to really hug his legs. Baizhu smiled gently at his adopted daughter and bent over to gently ruffle her bangs, his back aching in protest at the movement.
“Hello little Qiqi, how was your day dear?” Baizhu beamed.
“Dr. Bai is back… Qiqi mixed some medicine for you today, so you would feel better…” Qiqi mumbled shyly, after a moment of trying to remember her day. Baizhu’s heart melted, both at Qiqi continuing to remember at least part of his name and at Qiqi caring for him enough to make him medicine. It had been a few years since he found the little zombie wandering around the mountains while he was picking herbs, and while his intentions for taking her in weren’t entirely altruistic at the time (who wouldn’t take a chance to observe an adeptal talisman for immortality up close?), he had come to care for the girl like she was his own daughter. It warmed his heart to see all the progress she’d made with her memory over the years that she’d been in his care.
“Thank you sweetheart. What else did you do today?”
“I… um… I forgot.” Qiqi replied eventually, tiny shoulders slightly slumped in defeat. It broke Baizhu’s heart to see her so disheartened when she struggles with her memory.
“That’s alright dear, you’ll get there one day.” Baizhu encouraged, smiling sympathetically.
“Bai … can you pick Qiqi up?” Qiqi asked, tugging lightly on one of his sashes.
“I’m sorry Qiqi, my back isn’t doing well right now,” Baizhu smiled sadly, feeling bad for being unable to pick up his daughter at the moment. “Where’s your papa?”
As soon as Baizhu asked about the whereabouts of his husband, Zhongli walked out from the back room, a gentle smile on his face as he caught sight of his beloved.
“Well speak of the devil! Hello darling.” Baizhu beamed, kissing his husband on the cheek before resting his head on Zhongli’s shoulder with a weary sigh. Qiqi perked up at the sight of her bàba, toddling over to hug his legs as well.
“Welcome home,” Zhongli replied, giving his husband a soft kiss to the crown of his head and ruffling Qiqi’s bangs. “How was your day? You look and sound exhausted, love.”
“....Long,” Baizhu groaned, feeling the exhaustion of the day starting to fully sink in. Zhongli pulled his husband closer and pressed another kiss to his temple, gently rubbing his back all the while.
“Dr. Baizhu, Mr. Zhongli,” Gui interrupted as he began to pack up to head home for the day, “I apologize for interrupting, but would you like me to watch Qiqi for the night so you can focus on resting?” Qiqi perked up at that, and looked at her parents imploringly.
“Thank you so much for the offer, Gui. Qiqi, do you want to spend some time with Uncle Gui tonight?” Baizhu asked, reluctantly pulling himself from his husband’s embrace.
“Yes please….” Qiqi nodded.
“I’ll go get her overnight bag packed up, why don’t you go into our bedroom to rest for a moment, dear?” Zhongli said, lifting Qiqi into his arms. Baizhu smiled gratefully at his beloved, and gave his daughter a small kiss on the forehead.
“Have fun at Uncle Gui’s Qiqi!” Baizhu bid his daughter farewell before slowly making his way to his bedroom, his exhaustion continuing to creep in.
Once he walked into the cozy, shelf-lined room that he called home, Baizhu made his way over to the table in the corner, heavily sitting down in one of the chairs to catch his bearings. He listlessly slumped over the table, resting his pounding head on his arms as he closed his eyes for a moment.
He must have dozed off, because the next thing he knew he was being gently shaken awake by Zhongli, who had set two bowls of bamboo shoot soup on the table. Baizhu shot his husband a thankful smile, to which Zhongli responded with a gentle smile of his own. They both ate their dinners in the comfortable silence that followed, merely enjoying each other’s company after a long day of work. After they finished their meals, Zhongli stood to put the dishes away. Before he left the room, he turned back to Baizhu.
“Sweetheart, why don’t you get started on getting undressed? I’ll go ahead and start running a bath for you, if that’s something you’d like right now.” Zhongli offered.
“A bath sounds wonderful right now, thank you darling.” Baizhu said, kissing his husband on the cheek before he left the room.
Baizhu picked out a set of pajamas and set them on the bed, before he began to shed his clothes, placing them gently into the nearby basket as he went. He basked in the comforting glow of the room as he waited for his husband, breathing in the heady scent of incense and the soothing smell of medicinal herbs wafting through the air. A few moments later Zhongli returned, offering his arm to Baizhu for support as he guided him into the bathroom.
When they entered the bathroom together, the large tub that took up the middle of the room was full to the brim with gently steaming water, scented with various oils and salts designed to relax the body and mind, as well as to provide some relief for Baizhu’s aching muscles. Baizhu sank down into the tub, letting the warmth of the water envelop him, sighing in relief as the bath salts began to work their magic.
Zhongli gathered some items from around the room before settling on the stool next to the tub. He pressed a soft kiss on the corner of Baizhu’s mouth before taking a soft sponge and some soap. Zhongli wet the sponge and began to gently run it over the younger man’s body, taking care to not be overly rough with his sensitive skin. Baizhu sunk even further into the water at his beloved’s ministrations, the tension bleeding out of his body. Zhongli then took his time unbraiding Baizhu’s hair, marveling at how silky the verdant strands were, and how beautiful his husband looked with his hair floating around him in the tub like a halo.
Zhongli finally grabbed a bottle of shampoo and poured some into his palm before massaging it into Baizhu’s scalp. As Zhongli worked at gently cleansing the hair Baizhu took so much pride in, the last of any remaining tension in his muscles fled. Baizhu’s body practically melted into the water as he dozed off, his head lolling to the side gently. Zhongli, noticing his husband growing still, gently lifted Baizhu’s head to be greeted with an expression of pure, serene sleep. Zhongli smiled softly at seeing his husband relaxed at last and finished washing Baizhu’s hair, cupping a hand over his eyes as the shampoo was rinsed away, with only the sound of Baizhu’s soft, even breaths accompanying him.
Once he had thoroughly shampooed and conditioned Baizhu’s hair, Zhongli drained the water in the tub and grabbed a soft towel he had stored nearby. He gently patted his husband dry, marveling at how relaxed his husband was in that moment, He then gathered Baizhu’s limp form into his arms and cradled him against his chest, Baizhu’s arms and legs dangling loosely in his grip. Baizhu’s head lolled to rest on Zhongli’s shoulder, and Zhongli carefully carried him back into their bedroom, mindful not to jostle him into waking from his deep slumber. Zhongli gently laid Baizhu down onto their bed, taking a moment to watch his beautiful husband sleep peacefully, his chest rising and falling in slow, deep breaths, utterly lost to dreams.
Zhongli grabbed the pajamas Baizhu had set out for himself earlier and gently slid them onto him, carefully guiding his lax limbs into the nightclothes and ensuring that he was properly covered and warm. He then slowly rolled Baizhu onto his side, arranging his limbs into a comfortable sleeping position that wouldn’t put any further strain on his body. He lifted Baizhu’s head gently, cradling it as he slid a pillow beneath it. Zhongli spent a few more moments making small adjustments to the height of the pillows and the placement of Baizhu’s body, determined to make him as comfortable as possible. As he went to pull the covers up to tuck Baizhu into bed, Zhongli couldn’t help but be struck by how beautiful his husband was, even in sleep. Baizhu’s normally vibrant amber eyes were gently closed, his long eyelashes casting delicate shadows over his cheeks, and his soft lips were lightly parted as he breathed out in soft, sleepy sighs, the perfect picture of pure peace. Zhongli gently caressed Baizhu’s cheek, tracing the outlines of his sleeping features with light fingers. He couldn’t resist giving Baizhu a soft kiss on the mouth before fully tucking the blankets around him, making sure that he was snug and warm.
After watching his love sleep on for several more minutes, Zhongli eventually stripped himself of his own clothes and changed into his usual pajamas before carefully climbing into bed with the love of his life and gently gathering his still deeply sleeping husband into his arms. Baizhu stirred slightly in his slumber, nuzzling his cheek into Zhongli’s chest as if naturally seeking out the warmth and comfort of his husband even in his unconscious state before relaxing and going still once more, his body molding itself to Zhongli’s as if it was made to fit there all along. Zhongli pressed one last tender kiss to Baizhu’s forehead before drifting off to sleep himself, content with the mortal life he had built for himself alongside the man he loved.