Of Calm Calamities

Of Calm Calamities (1)

"You know, Professor, for someone who's lived for thousands of years, your memory really is horrible," Childe teased, setting down yet another pouch as their lunch came to an end.

He should be angry, he really should. How many times had Zhongli forgotten to bring mora now? More than he could even count. And yet, somehow, Childe didn't mind it. He didn't mind paying for all of those extravagant restaurants that his friend took him to, especially not since Childe had been the one to ask Zhongli out today.

Well, he'd meant to ask him out. On a date, that is. But of course, Zhongli being Zhongli, had remained beautifully oblivious to Childe's hopes, taking the invitation as yet another friendly meeting for lunch. Between two friends. Who were just friends. And were nothing more. Because Childe had tried to steal Zhongli's gnosis. It didn't matter that in the long run, he'd played directly into Zhongli's hands - he'd still tried to steal Zhongli's gnosis, and he couldn't exactly just ignore that. So he was happy that he'd managed to keep his close friend, even if that was the most that they could ever be. And if parting with a few heavy sacks of mora meant that he could keep his friend around a little longer, he was more than happy to do so.

"I truly am sorry, Childe," Zhongli responded with his usual calm tone that did wonders to Childe's heart. It wasn't fair - who gave Zhongli permission to make Childe feel things? "I shall do my best to remember my mora next time."

"Oh?" Childe wiggled his eyebrows with a shit-eating grin spread over his face as he pointedly shoved that fluttering feeling that started blooming in the pit of his stomach far, far away. "So there'll be a next time?"

Zhongli gave him a quiet chuckle, shaking his head with a fond smile. Sweet Tsaritsa, he'd be the death of Childe soon. Was it just a thing for archons to be this attractive, or was Zhongli an exception? "Of course there will be a next time. You are my friend, are you not?" 

"'Course I am, Professor," Childe grinned in response, dismissing that painful stab at his heart. He was not about to get all sad because he was just that to Zhongli - a friend. He wasn't about to complain about it, either. After all, he was Tartaglia. He'd summoned a fucking sea monster to destroy Zhongli's home. He was more than happy to still be his friend.

The next few moments passed in a comfortable silence as the two were escorted from their seats of the luxurious restaurant, with Zhongli only pausing to tell the waiter that the food had been just as delicious as always. They left the now-familiar restaurant behind, taking to the ever-crowded streets of Liyue instead. At first, he'd been a little wary about them because of how different from Snezhnaya they were, but after spending more than a year among them, the streets felt like home to Childe. Or maybe that was because Zhongli was walking right beside him, still perfectly unaware of how Childe's heart seemed to leap in his chest when their hands accidentally brushed against each other's.

"Where-to now, Professor?" How Childe managed to speak over his racing heart, he didn't know.

"Perhaps we could admire the streets for a bit?" Zhongli offered, and Childe hurriedly agreed. Anything to spend just a little longer with the ex-archon. 

The locals paid no attention to the two men that walked side by side. Zhongli and Childe had long been friends, and everyone was more than used to seeing them together. A few stopped to wave to the funeral consultant, while some others threw Childe an odd stare - probably because of the whole summoning a sea monster thing, but then again, Childe couldn't blame them. He just ignored the stares and focused on Zhongli's voice as he passionately talked about yet another Liyue invention, this time about how the first compass had been created thousands of years ago. Childe had wondered before how Zhongli knew so much about every possible topic, from weapon mastery to different perfume scents. Now, he knew it was thanks to Zhongli's millennia of experience. It was a wonder how he wasn't bored with all of it yet.