3rd Person's Point of View
As Xiao entered the dining area, two of his stepfathers sat comfortably at their dining table.
Zhongli is a calm and polite man with sharp yellow eyes and brown hair styled in a long ponytail that falls beyond his waist. He adopted his son from a small orphanage in Liyue, which he often visited six years ago.
He piqued interest when he noticed that he was different from any other child at the orphanage.
Xiao was cold. He never smiled and despised people who tried to get close to him, but the brown-haired man knew that deep inside, he was just hurting as the pain acted like a sharp knife stabbed at the bottom of his heart, which carried a burden on the child.
Zhongli was curious to know about his past. He requested information about him from a staff member, only to discover that his family had been slaughtered by a Fatui.
He was the only survivor and first came to the orphanage with bruises, wounds, and a hospital plaster on his fractured arm from torture.
And at that moment, he knew that his decision to adopt him would change his life forever as he was able to act as a father to his son, who gave him the love and comfort that he deserved along with his husband.
Childe is a tall man with short orange hair and dull blue eyes. He was known as the chief executive officer of a famous underwear company, Tartaglia, and was married to Zhongli for over five years.
Both couples became his parents and spoiled him with joy and care, but because of his past, his heart was empty and left him with no emotions other than karmic hate.
As a child, he felt furious, lonely, and afraid. He blamed himself, suffered from depression, and wanted revenge. His parents knew about it and aimed to find a way for him to go into the light and forget his past rather than get stuck in the dark.
In fact, it took years for the boy to finally accept and trust them. Xiao could open up his side story and try to learn the path they demonstrated to him step by step towards a better version of himself.
• Present •
Noelle served the food on the table as its savory aroma filled the room enough to make a stomach grumble with hunger. Xiao walked in and sat on one of the chairs.
"Xiao, why didn't you inform us about your arrival?" Zhongli asked while he sipped his tea.
"Both of you were busy." He said and took a bite of the delicious almond tofu on the table, as its lumpiness tasted like he was in a dreamland.
His parents turned red and panickily covered their necks with red hickeys. Childe cleared his throat to change the topic of the conversation. "Xiao, how was school?"
"Fine, dad." Xiao answered and devoured another almond tofu.
"And how about Aether? Strangely, you didn't mention his name when you were being asked how your day was." What he said made the boy choke on his almond tofu because he didn't anticipate that his father would notice the sudden change of behavior.
"Son, be careful." Zhongli said as he passed the water and patted his back to quench the cough.
Childe raised an eyebrow and asked, "Did something happen between the both of you?"
Xiao tried to remain calm and not raise suspicions, but his heart said otherwise.
"N-no." He replied.
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𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐒𝐄𝐃𝐔𝐂𝐄𝐑 | xɪᴀᴏ x ᴀᴇᴛʜᴇʀ (On Revision)
Fanfiction"Aether." He called my name and it was music to my ears as it felt like a cloud nine for me. He pinned me to the nearest wall and glanced at my lips before his gaze went back to my eyes. He leaned closer to my ear and made me gasp as soon as he brus...
