Of Calm Calamities

Of Calm Calamities (8)

Breakfast was an... entertaining experience, to say the least. After the whole fiasco of Zhongli walking in on him being almost naked, Childe decided to spend several long minutes to get himself back under control. He shouldn't have been that panicked, he knew that - someone, most likely Zhongli, had treated his wound and changed his clothes for him before, so it wasn't like Zhongli was seeing anything new. Still, the fact that Zhongli had seen Childe's unconscious body in an almost naked state definitely didn't sit right with him. He'd hoped the first time would've been more romantic, but it was definitely too late for that. In his next life, Childe would have to make sure not to be a bloodthirsty idiot. Maybe then, he'd be able to stop cockblocking himself.

The new set of clothing hung just as loosely over his frame as the previous had, though that could be blamed on the fact that Childe hadn't exactly eaten properly in a while. He'd have to fix that later. He managed to slip into the shirt without tugging on his muscles too hard, which was good, considering the fact that any excessive movement that affected his wound left him dizzy and nauseous. Blood loss was a bitch, and Childe decided to at least try to not reopen any old wounds until the one on his abdomen healed. Considering his overly active nature and constant craving for a fight, it would definitely be a challenge, but he wanted to at least be able to say that he tried his best.

Childe managed to get to the kitchen solely with the support of the walls, knowing damn well that he should've just told Zhongli he'd rather stay in bed for today. He'd been awake for less than two hours, and he was already breathless and exhausted, though not in a good way. He sunk into one of the chairs at the table, sighing in relief and immediately regretting it when Zhongli's gaze shot to him full of concern. The ex-archon furrowed his brows and immediately abandoned whatever dish he was cooking, instead pressing a hand against Childe's forehead. The frown only deepened. 

"Childe, you're burning up. Please return back to your bed, I'll bring your breakfast to your room." Ha! As if bribery in the form of food would work on Childe. 

"Nonsense," Childe grinned, not quite able to meet Zhongli's eyes. "I'm doing perfectly fine here, and I don't need you to bring anything to my bed."

"It's really no trouble, Childe," Zhongli helpfully offered. Stupid ex-archon, with his overly-caring personality and beautiful eyes that made it hard to look away and hard to meet his gaze at the same time. "You have a severe fever and I am pleasantly surprised to find you still alive."

Childe visibly winced at this. "Could we not talk about the whole 'almost dying' thing?" Sure, he loved talking about his battles, but for some reason, this one felt wrong. "It kind of dampens the mood, and I'd really rather not talk about that so early in the morning."

"It's one in the afternoon."

"Same thing."

Zhongli shook his head with a sigh but dropped the subject. He turned back to the stove for a few brief seconds before handing Childe a bowl of crystal shrimp dumplings, each one wrapped perfectly with practiced ease. The sight alone made his mouth water, and Childe hurriedly grabbed the chopsticks that Zhongli held out for him. The smooth wood decorated with an intricate pattern of a dragon and a phoenix rested uncomfortably with his hand, but he couldn't care enough to complain. With a grip that was anything but proper, Childe managed to pick up the first dumpling and pop it in his mouth. Screw fancy overpriced restaurants, food that Zhongli made was now the only thing that Childe would consider to be good. 

Across from him, Zhongli sat down, propping up his chin with his hand and watching Childe with a soft smile that no one but him would ever have the pleasure of seeing. His eyes were almost closed, the red eyeliner as perfect as always to the point that Childe was sure that it couldn't be makeup. It took him a few seconds to realize that he was staring right back at Zhongli, his mouth stuffed full of food and hands clutching the chopsticks, and he choked down the rest of the dumpling before picking another one up and reaching it out to Zhongli. His chopsticks shook with the effort of holding up a dumpling for more than a few seconds as he leaned across the table to Zhongli, who raised an amused eyebrow.