"-and i could've sworn that he was my soulmate, my fated partner!" aether huffed as he prattled on about his encounter with a boy with jade-green hair and whom he claimed to be his soulmate. "don't even get me started on how prettily mesmerizing his eyes were. those golden hues-"
aether glanced over to the man seated to his right, sipping on his piping hot chrysanthemum tea from one of those small porcelain teacups with the finest craftsmanship.
the man with dark brown hair that was styled in a windswept fashion seemed as if he was more immersed in the brew in front of him than he was in aether's rambling.
"zhongli! you're not listening at all, are you?" aether whined at the man named zhongli. "can't believe i called you out expecting that you would even listen." the blonde sighed at his friend's ignorance.
zhongli blew at his tea. the fragrant whiff of subtle chrysanthemum diffusing into the air of the room they were in.
"zhongli-" before aether could continue whining, the said male spoke up, his deep voice resonating throughout the now quiet room.
there was something about zhongli's voice that would make people automatically shut up and listen to him. perhaps it was the unintentional authority laced in those stoic words or the way he spoke as if he was reading from an ancient scripture verbatim that somehow served as a remedy for his listeners.
"i hope you do not indulge yourself in such foolish fantasies. the concept of soulmates cease to exist in our world, it is time for you to get those ludicrous stories out of your head, aether."
aether frowned. it wasn't because of zhongli's disbelief regarding his encounter, rather it was because of the fact that zhongli spoke on the topic without batting an eyelid.
everyone who's acquainted with zhongli knew him for being a practical man and it was obvious that he would never entertain such trivial fantasies such as soulmates or fated pairs. to him, only statements consisting of factual evidence were worthy of taking up space in his occupied mind.
but aether knew there was a different story that zhongli hid under his stern façade. it was cliché really, that aether could see through his friend's demeanor so effortlessly yet he never decided to bring it up because whatever burden that zhongli was carrying probably weighed eons of sorrow and suffering; aether feared the idea of cracking that shell for he knew damn well he wouldn't be able to handle listening to what his friend had experienced.
"but that boy, his name is xiao." zhongli added. upon seeing the disappointment on aether's face he decided it was best that he stopped his rambling. "he's consulted me several times before and he drops by every saturday."
aether's face lit up almost instantaneously at the information provided to him.
"thanks, zhongli! you're the best." aether grinned cheekily. "dinner's on me tonight!"
oh, aether. he was too easy to please for his own sake.
the room returned to its usual ambience after aether left but the scent of nostalgic chrysanthemum still lingers and zhongli sought comfort from the tingling fragrance as he massaged his temple to ease the abrupt pain seething through his head.
the excited skipping and jolly humming that was barely audible through the thin walls were all it took for zhongli's momentary piece of peace to be crushed into smithereens. huffing out a grunt of reluctancy, zhongli braced himself for the bad feeling that was approaching him.
"zhongli~" bursting through the door with the cheekiest of grins was a young female in twin ponytails.
zhongli pursed his lips. "yes, hu tao?" a perfunctory response.
her flower-shaped pupils that held glimpses of scarlet widened in excitement at the sight of a restless zhongli which indicated a rare opportunity for her to pull a prank on him. it's not everyday zhongli allowed the vulnerability to break through his serious countenance and hu tao wasn't going to let it go, not without teasing the older male.
"what is it that made our dear zhongli put on such a tired expression? there's really no difference between you and a zombie!! i almost thought you were someone who rose from the dead after a burial!" hu tao squealed dramatically.
zhongli, ignoring the childish remarks thrown at him by his boss, began tidying up the client files on his desk before grabbing his bag to walk towards the door.
"hey! wait up! can't believe you're ignoring your boss, i'm hurt." hu tao, with a smile on her face, whined.
zhongli sighed. there was no way out since hu tao had already threw her body at the door, blocking the exit before he could even reach it.
"i'm feeling a little unwell today, hu tao. if there is nothing of significant importance, i shall be taking my leave."
a girly hehe escaped hu tao's lips before she cleared her throat and straightened her posture as if she was going to make a groundbreaking announcement.
"ahem! mr zhongli, i have entrusted you to a special case and starting from next week, you will be consulting this client on a daily basis. do you copy, mr zhongli?"
sighing helplessly at his boss, zhongli responded in a similar manner. "copy, ms hu tao."
"hehe, you may now leave." hu tao said and stepped away from the door.
before zhongli could walk out the building, he heard the same voice shouting down the hallways at the top of their lungs.
"also, you are to take a leave from work tomorrow! this is an order, do you copy, mr zhongli?"
for a brief second, zhongli's lips tugged upwards into a small smile.
"copy that."
( proofread )
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a/n: hihi okay, there's a few things i want to clarify in this fic. please read thoroughly so you won't be confused !!
i. this is an au (alternate universe) which means whatever's written in this fic has no relation to the actual in-game lore, including the relationships between the characters.
ii. all the characters are in their mid 20s so please don't start drama by saying i'm condoning to ships with minors. though mihoyo has never mentioned their exact ages, this is just to be safe.
iii. characters will be ooc (out of character) sometimes. i am not trying to stir up any misconceptions so here's a reminder that this is merely a brainrot that was written out of boredom.
iv. there will be mentions of abuse, suicide, depression and etc in later chapters so please stop reading if you're uncomfortable with any of those. i will ofc be putting a tw at the beginning of each chapter that contains such content.
last but not least, thank you for reading !!
- hachi.
