[ After having spent so much time with Zhongli - both in Nippon and in Tevyat - he's become accustomed to the man's long preparation times. It would have been strange if Zhongli had gotten ready for the day in only a few minutes considering how many layers he seemed to wear at all times, even in the summer. Sometimes it made Childe sweat just looking at him.
So to Childe, it hasn't taken that long between paying for the kimono and now, and when Zhongli finally calls out to him it's then that he glances over, expecting Zhongli to somehow make even the new outfit look stuffy and refined.
But he doesn't, and the sight of Zhongli coming towards him with a smile softening his already ethereal features, hair down, the golden tips framing his face beatifically... Childe feels for a moment like he's stepped into another world. The rest of the bustle in the streets falls away, sound, sight, people, and he can only focus on what's in front of him.
Zhongli.
His throat suddenly feels dry and he swallows ineffectively. There's static in his ears and he thinks he's dying.
He looks good. He looks amazing. Suddenly he sees what every single Liyuen citizen has seen when they sing praises of Rex Lapis, their love and adoration evident in the painstaking care they carve statues and create paintings and stories about their beloved god.
He's beautiful.
Childe opens his mouth to tell him as much, tell him how good he looks, how they should ditch the festival and go somewhere else because he wants to see the way the moon makes his eyes glow like the richest deposits of cor lapis.
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So to Childe, it hasn't taken that long between paying for the kimono and now, and when Zhongli finally calls out to him it's then that he glances over, expecting Zhongli to somehow make even the new outfit look stuffy and refined.
But he doesn't, and the sight of Zhongli coming towards him with a smile softening his already ethereal features, hair down, the golden tips framing his face beatifically... Childe feels for a moment like he's stepped into another world. The rest of the bustle in the streets falls away, sound, sight, people, and he can only focus on what's in front of him.
Zhongli.
His throat suddenly feels dry and he swallows ineffectively. There's static in his ears and he thinks he's dying.
He looks good. He looks amazing. Suddenly he sees what every single Liyuen citizen has seen when they sing praises of Rex Lapis, their love and adoration evident in the painstaking care they carve statues and create paintings and stories about their beloved god.
He's beautiful.
Childe opens his mouth to tell him as much, tell him how good he looks, how they should ditch the festival and go somewhere else because he wants to see the way the moon makes his eyes glow like the richest deposits of cor lapis.
Instead all that comes out is a breathy: ]
What.