Can't Stop Loving You | Childe x Zhongli | Genshin Impact [COMPLETED]

Arc 2: Chapter 15: Determination

Zhongli was stunned. A few million questions popped up in his head and he was quite confused. He had thought that maybe Tartaglia wanted to speak about them and he was extremely disappointed.

"Who?" He blurted out, barely able to stay composed. Why was Childe getting married all of a sudden? Zhongli wanted to be with him.

"Oh, a girl back in Snezhnaya. She's coming over and she wants a Liyue wedding experience, so I was wondering if you want to help me with the planning?" Childe said simply. "Zhongli?"

Zhongli didn't respond for a while, feeling extremely shocked and heartbroken. He left little hints that he liked him whenever they met, but not only did Tartaglia not notice any of it, he even got engaged to someone he had never met for almost a year now. "Oh right, I don't mind." He managed a smile.

"Thank god. I wouldn't know what to do without you. She should be arriving tomorrow. We could meet at the docks to get her and her family. I got the locations and the outfits and the ring ready, I just need some help with the decorations, the food and the things that should be happening, you know." Childe rambled like he was happy about the marriage.

"Yes, I'll go prepare right now," Zhongli said, standing up abruptly. He really couldn't listen on anymore. He didn't even know why he agreed to even help.

"Wait—"

"I suddenly remember that I have something to do. I'll see you tomorrow." And Zhongli left without another word before he ended up saying and doing this that he should not be doing.

Tartaglia watched Zhongli leave hurriedly and was quite confused. He thought he'd be happy for him. Childe had expected a reaction that was not what the reaction he had just received. Unable to understand why Zhongli was acting strange, he decided to brush it off for the time being. Perhaps he was just overthinking things.

-

The next day, they showed up at the docks as expected. Zhongli seemed much more composed and calm, more like his usual self. Tartaglia was really starting to think that he was simply overthinking things. He couldn't say he was disappointed because he was already expecting it. While he was truly heartbroken over the fact that Zhongli had someone else, Childe was in no place to break that up. He figured it was about time Zhongli found someone he could be happy with. Perhaps Tartaglia would not truly be happy with the girl he was about to meet, but he would be happy knowing that he was serving the Tsaritsa.

Soon enough, Childe recognized a Snezhnayan ship and waved his arm back at the girl he could see waving at him. As the boat drew closer, he could finally see her in person. She was truly quite beautiful, but Childe simply didn't feel attracted to her. Either way, he had to pretend that he loved her.

The boat docked and Irina's parents could barely stop her from rushing out before the boat was properly docked.

"Tartaglia!" She squealed, throwing herself at Childe. Zhongli could barely keep his eyelids from twitching out of anger. There was no way he could deny that he was feeling extremely jealous, yet he kept his expression rather neutral and calm.

"Hey, Irina." Tartaglia said smiling, plastering a wide grin on his face. He hugged her tightly, but felt thoroughly disgusted that he was holding someone he didn't even know so tightly.

Irina was quite a pretty young lady. She had long, wavy, blonde hair that was left untied and hung just above her waist. Her eyes were a shade of light blue, compared to Tartaglia's dark blue eyes and her skin was as pale as snow. She has rosy cheeks and a pair of small, rose-red lips. She looked just like a blond snow white.

The girl eventually let go, holding onto Tartaglia's hand happily. "Mom! Dad! This is wonderful!"

Tartaglia sort of half bowed to his parents-in-law, "mother-in-law, father-in-law." He said respectfully.

Once the 'reunion' was all done, they turned their attention to Zhongli. The Ex Archon managed a small smile and politely greeted them all.

"Oh right, this is Zhongli, he'll be helping us plan... And he's also going to be my best man."

Oh? That wasn't mentioned the previous day, but Zhongli wasn't complaining. He had set his mind on trying to win Childe back if not then he'd let the wedding happen.

"Zhongli, my parents-in-law, and my soon-to-be wife, Irina."

"Pleasure to meet you all."

-

"Is this where I should hang it?" Childe asked, trying to hang a lantern up to give the entrance a little light while keeping it Liyue theme.

"Mmhm." Zhongli nodded, busy with other decorations. They had decided that they'd do the decorations together with the few workers Zhongli had called over, just so they could make sure things were going well and they could add their own personal touch.

Still, it was a little too far and Tartaglia found it a little too bothersome to get down from his ladder to readjust it. In the end, he just tried to reach out as far as he could.

Then he yelped when he felt his body tilting forwards, along with the ladder. Tartaglia braced for impact, his eyes screwed shut tightly, waiting for the painful landing that was going to happen in no time. Yet it never seemed to come. Instead, he felt himself landing on a pair of arms. Tartaglia didn't know when or how Zhongli managed to get over in time, but he was relieved for a moment. He opened his eyes to see himself being carried by Zhongli and that relief turned into embarrassment. Why was it always him that ended up like the damsel in distress?

"Are you hurt?" Zhongli asked gently.

"No, no, no, I'm fine." Tartaglia replied rather quickly, "thanks. You can put me down now."

Zhongli nodded slightly, carefully putting Childe down before walking over to the fallen ladder. He picked it up, along with the lantern that should be hung up and did it for him. "Maybe you should leave that for the workers if you're so clumsy."

Childe pouted, "it was just once."

"And if I wasn't there you might have broken a leg." Zhongli countered. He went over and took Childe's hand, pulling him to where he had been doing some artistic work. Tartaglia's eyes widened in surprise. Since when did Zhongli take his hand instead of just calling him over.

"Woah, what does that mean?" Childe asked, looking quite impressed by Zhongli's calligraphy. He was quite quickly distracted from the fact that he was still holding his hand.

"囍 means double happiness. It's a symbol of good luck, usually used in weddings. It's like a blessing for the couple getting married to be happy together." Zhongli explained, yet firmly holding onto Childe's hand. It wasn't that he didn't want Childe to be happy, it's just that he still found it hard to accept he was getting married to someone else.

"I see—" Tartaglia was then interrupted by Irina's voice calling out from a distance away. He hastily pulled his hand a way, waving to his soon-to-be wife. Childe didn't know what expression Zhongli had on his face, but it sure felt like he was reluctant to let go. Just what was going on? Tartaglia couldn't comprehend the odd behavior.

Irina came over and threw herself into his arms again. Childe embraced her tightly, carrying her up and twirling her around. "Found the perfect dress?"

"Mmhm. I bet you're going to like it." She said grinning, "I got two, by the way. One for the wedding, one for the after party. One's called a hanfu, I think."

"I guess I'll need two too." Childe smirked.

He placed Irina down eventually and pulled away, letting her look around their wedding venue. "Ooo, I didn't think so much red could look so good. It's a good color in Liyue culture, right?"

Zhongli nodded once. "Anyway, now you're back, I'll bring Tartaglia to pick out his outfit. Do have a look around the venue and make sure everything is to your liking. My assistant will arrive soon to help you with the preparation." He said rather curtly before taking Childe's hand again and pulling him out.

Tartaglia was too stunned to resist, only when he was just about to leave the hall did he call out, "I'll be back very soon, Irina!"