Velvet Café [Childe x reader]

+ 3 : Arcade +

      

After a long day of work for (y/n), she was helping Kaeya and Barbara clean the many tables and seats of the café.

"Hey cutie, me and Zhongli are going to the arcade. Wanna come with?" Childe comes up to her with the invitation.

"Yes!" She responded happily, sparing no second to think. After her previous loss against Childe in a battle of eggs, now's the chance to show she's superior in the league of games.

"Oho? If you're going out with them feel free to leave now!" Barbara tells (y/n). "Kaeya and I will finish this up real soon anyways."

"Aww for real? Thanks!" (Y/n) rushes to the girls' locker room to change out of her uniform.

     

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Once at the arcade, which was bustling with youth that loved going there every after classes, (y/n) entered with absolute glee. "I haven't been here in ages!"

"Glad to see you're happy." Zhongli tells her.

"Childe! I challenge you to a shooter game!" The girl faces Childe with pride all over her face. "I'll win for sure!"

"Hm? Sounds fun. You better not start sulking again if I beat you."

"Pfft, like hell I will."

"I'm not too good with shooters, so I'll just watch." Truthfully, Zhongli just didn't want to get in between the two. But he still wasn't great with shooters.

The group went to get tokens for the machine, and finally got to one of the shooter games where the most kills you get, you win. And it was a zombie themed one.

"Looks like there's still some people using it, let's wait till they finish." (Y/n) says. Inside, she was already picturing Childe's face of defeat.

"(Y/n). Do you like playing games?" Zhongli asks the girl.

"Like? Nope. I love games! To the point it became... I guess half the reason my parents kicked me out of the house." She chuckled awkwardly.

"You got kicked out?!" Both boys gasped.

"Where have you been staying then?!" Childe asked her with concern all over his face.

"Ehh I'm by myself in an apartment now. It's not really a big deal since I have my ps4 with me and I don't have to hear my parents screaming at me all the time."

"If you find it better, then it isn't much of a problem no?" Zhongli responds.

"Mhm!"

After that one conversation they had, the people using the shooter game finished, allowing Childe and (y/n) to use it. They both stepped up to the two connected machines and put in the tokens. There were fake guns on a stand that they needed to hold and aim it at the targets, and pull the trigger to shoot.

Once the countdown for the game began, both pulled the guns out of the stand and prepared to blow of some zombie heads.

"Oh Childe. I should tell you, I made the high score on this machine back a few years ago."

"It isn't good to lie, (y/n)!" The male chirped.

(Y/n) rolled her eyes at his response, and the game came to a start. When it came to shooters, (y/n) had quick reflexes, and near perfect shooting skills. The moment a zombie came to her line of sight, she shot it right between it's forehead. Almost every shot hit that exact same location.

Within not even a minute into the 5 minute match, she already had 90 kills. And it grew a crowd, watching her play.

Childe on the other hand was far better than your average player, at the one minute mark he was able to reach 70 kills, but against (y/n) it was still no match.

Zhongli was awestruck from the skill in game the two had, yet he had maintained a nonchalant look on his face.

By the 3 minute mark, over half the people in the arcade were watching the two. Until it came to the end and the arcade was filled with cheers.

Childe, still unaware of what (y/n)'s score was, since the results were yet to appear on screen, assumed the crowd was cheering for him and he began to thank them. It made Zhongli cringe in second hand embarrassment, (y/n) too.

"Uhm Childe-"

"Goin to sulk about it again (y/n)? Look who lost in front of such a big crowd!" He was laughing at the now irritated girl, who simply pointed at the screen.

His gaze shifted to the scores on the screen, and his laughter immediately came to a stop.

Player Childe               Player (y/n)
     470 kills                        608 kills

"You didn't do too bad though bud." (Y/n) smirks at Childe who now felt the shame course his body like a plague.

"608...?! How is that even possible?"

"I told you I'd win this one." She puts the gun back in it's stand and goes over to Childe, to pat his head. The same way he did after her loss in the egg battle. "Come on now, other people are waiting to play."

The group leaves the shooter game and walks around the arcade looking for something else to play. Though Childe seemed too traumatized after what just happened. There were still plenty of eyes on them.

They soon passed by a claw machine, and the plushies inside were pokemon themed. There was even really cute one's of (y/n)'s favorite pokemon. At the sight of it, she asked the two boys to give her a moment and she ran to the claw machine, inserting a coin.

She knew it would be better to just buy the plush at a store that sells them, because the claw machines are awfully rigged. But some things are just hard to resist.

On her first attempt, the claw was able to grasp the plushie of her interest, and pull it up. It moved a bit nearing the shoot but the claw quickly dropped it before it reached the area.

On her second and third try, the claw no longer wanted to grasp the plushie. Childe and Zhongli noticed how she was taking her time and the two went over to her.

"Here, let me try." Childe offered and (y/n) moved out of the way for him. She easily doubted his ability to grab the plushie if she couldn't. Not because of skill, simply because claw machines in this arcade are rigged.

"Which one do you want?" He asked her.

"That one." She pointed at the plushie she was trying for earlier.

"Alright." He inserted a coin and went for the plushie (y/n) wanted. The claw was able to grasp it and lift it up. It smoothly reached the shoot and dropped the plushie. Childe bent down to grab the plushie and handed it to (y/n).

"Thanks." She told him, and took the plushie. The male still looked pretty out of it after losing the shooter. But being able to grab something from the claw machine felt reedeming.

(Y/n) felt very sheepish, having recieved something from Childe. She avoided his gaze and just held the plushie in her arm.

"Are you two still interested in playing?" Zhongli asked.

"Not really." They answered in unison. Inner Zhongli was crying in the language of third wheel.

"Lets get something to eat?"

"Sure." The two answered in unison again.
    
 

+ arcade +