Vengeance, Betrayal | Tartaglia X Zhongli (Angst)

Chapter 12

"He's been acting... Unusual. And I've been feeling weird. I can't tell if I just feel lightheaded or what." Childs mumbled to himself, ruffling his hair from annoyance from the train of thoughts as if that'll help it go away.

He sat up and looked at the time,

3:47 a.m.

He couldn't sleep because something is bothering him, not because Zhongli acting unusual but something else. As if...

This isn't the real world.

He stood up and quietly looked inside the drawer in the side table next to their bed, there sits a Hydro Vision. His Hydro Vision.

He brushed off a few specks of dust and looked at it closely. It was still glowing bright just like how it was glowing when he first received it. He was gonna see if the delusion was still there and it looked like-

"My love?" Zhongli squinted his eyes to see clearly what Childe was doing. He could see him holding something that was glowing a light blue light in his hand and Childe himself looked at Zhongli with a scared, shocking look. "For Archon's sake." He cursed under his breath.

"Is everything alright?" He asked softly as if it was a whisper. The other hummed in response and put his vision back in the drawer and went back to sleep. As he did, Zhongli gently cuddled him and buried his face in the crook of his lover's neck. Childe cuddled back and kissed the brunette's head.

"I know something's bothering you," Zhongli whispered loud enough for Childe to hear but he didn't say anything nor make Zhongli worry more about him but he was doing the complete opposite.

"Goodnight and I love you more than how much I love Liyue, Ajax."

"Goodnight and I love myself too."

Pinch.

"Ouch! Hey!"

Giggles.

"I love you in every universe, Zhongli."

~~

The sun has finally risen. Its shine was the one that woke up the ginger head, flashing through the lids of his eyes. He slowly opened his eyes, in the same position as to how he was sleeping last night. A pillow is now next to him instead of Zhongli.

"Maybe I was in a deep sleep and didn't want to wake me up." He thought to himself, slowly got up, looked around, and saw Aether sleeping while sitting on a chair, his head resting on the side of his bed. He fell asleep while waiting for Childe to wake up.

Childe's heart started beating fast, breathing uneasily, body trembling in fear.

This isn't the house that Zhongli and Childe bought.

This was Mondstadt.

It was just a dream all along.

"No. No no no no no..." He denied it and got out of his bed, not even caring if he'll wake up Aether, and looked around. He checked every room, pinched himself, slap himself, and pull his hair. Anything to see if this is just a dream.

It's reality.

The one that is a dream is the one with Zhongli.

No wonder he acted a little unusual.

"No no no no no no no this can't be happening." He mumbles to himself while on his knees, trembling, crying. Aether, who woke up from the sudden movement of Childe, ran quickly to him. "Childe!" He called out and quickly got down on his knees as well next to Childe, giving him a tight hug. The other hugged back, crying his heart out.

"Z-Zhongli." He muttered in his shaking, sobbing voice. "Childe, you've been asleep for three days straight. We all have been worried about you." Aether said with a cracking voice as if he was about to cry as well. Xinyan and Teucer went out of their room to see the commotion in the living room of the place they had rented.

Xinyan kneeled to Teucer's height and held him tightly as if she were protecting him from death while Teucer buried his face in Xinyan's and hugged her tightly. He didn't want to see his older brother, his strong, loving, and caring brother cry while on his knees. Aether gave Xinyan a look, or should I say a sign for her to take out Teucer for a while and distract him from thinking about this. Xinyan understood and nodded. She pulled out of Teucer's hug and caressed his soft cheeks, "Kid, ya wanna go out and play with Klee?" She asked, trying to give him her softest yet brightest smile. Teucer could only nod.

Xinyan and Teucer finally got out and Childe and Aether were the only ones left. "Childe, I know the reason why you were not waking up." He said, the person in question still crying and sobbing until there were no tears left to cry.

He finally calmed down a little and wiped the remaining tears in his eyes, his breath shaking and hiccups could be heard. Aether could feel how much he was shaking.

They pulled out of the hug and looked each other in the eyes as Aether held Childe on his shoulders, "Childe, can you tell me what happened?" He asked. Childe started to tear up again just by remembering what he dreamed about but tried to calm himself.

"I-It was about Zhongli. I thought everything that had happened here are just... A dream so I-I stayed a bit then unusual things started to happen and it felt like it wasn't the real world anymore... I just want to live the rest of my life with him. My childhood was already taken, why take the future I want, too? I-Is this perhaps Celestia's punishment because of all my sins? If only I could stay in that dream forever..." He stuttered while explaining, trying to keep the tears in.

"Childe..." Aether mumbled and hugged the ginger head again. He knows Childe is having such a hard time moving on and he thought going on a vacation will help them relax. The only way is to justify Zhongli's death and the loss of the deceased body.

The both of them stood up to sit on the couch. Aether assisted Childe to walk and sit because of loss of stability and took a glass of water for Childe to drink. There was only silence but Childe's heavy and shaky breath could be heard. Even hiccups.

"I have to... no. Childe needs to regain his strength for us to start investigating and gain his knowledge back about everything in the Fatui. Mostly the Balladeer." Aether thought to himself and took a gaze at Childe.

"Childe." No reply.

"Spar with me."

"W-what?"

"Have a duel with me tomorrow like how we usually do back then."

"S-seriously, Aether? I'm in the middle of grieving right now."

"I'm serious."

"I'm serious too, dumbass!"