3rd Person, Limited, Reader POV
Quietly, a small breath was taken by the form of a person as they made their way to a certain location. Zhongli specifically asked to meet with them for some reason, and it concerned them that they seemed to be wishing to meet them for an urgent matter. At least, that was their assumption regarding how insistent he was of finding a time to meet up sometime soon. They had time, but it didn't stop them from being concerned.
"I see that you've arrived."
Their attention snapped, surprised by the sudden voice. When their gaze met amber eyes, it made them realize who it was that was speaking to them. "Oh, yes, Zhongli. It's nice to see you, it's been a while."
"Indeed." He responded, gaze stuck on his client. "Did you find your way here alright?"
With a small smile, they nodded. "I did, yeah."
"Good. Shall we enjoy a meal together, then?"
Surprised, they looked over towards Zhongli. They knew they were asked to meet by the restaurant, but they didn't expect to be able to enjoy a meal together. It wasn't something they had expected, and they didn't have the Mora on them to eat out that night. "I don't exactly have the Mora-"
"Don't be concerned regarding it," He insisted, "I intended to pay myself anyway."
Something told them to be concerned regarding it, however, what could they do in response And even as they were about to retort the insistence, their stomach let out a quiet growl. Flushing ever so slightly in embarrassment, they put a hand over their face to hide the look on it.
But it seemed that Zhongli didn't mind the grumble of hunger from their midriff, due to the mindless continuation of his words, "Besides, a meal would sate your hunger."
Before they could even think about it, they allowed themselves to nod, if only to attempt to get rid of the fact that such a thing happened to begin with. When the male led them along, they found themselves quickly following after to go up to the ordering window with him. When asked about what they would like to order, they said their meal preference, and as quickly as it left their lips, it was what was being ordered. Zhongli ordered as well, getting a set of Chicken-Mushroom Skewers for himself.
Once they ordered, they both quickly moved to get a seat to eat whenever the food was ready. They wanted to know what he wanted to speak with about so urgently regarding as well, so it seemed to be a proper time to do so. Once they were bat sat down and comfortable, they allowed themselves to speak up. "So… Zhongli. Why did you ask for us to meet up so urgently?"
They were concerned. He was able to take care of himself, certainly, but there have been several times when they were with one another where certain, concerning situations took place. The biggest thing being regarding Mora and his tendency to not realize the fact that he was running low, or when he didn't have any at all. Was it possible that he got himself into trouble? Did they need to help him with something as soon as possible? They were always willing to help if he were to ever ask for it, but the unknown was only making them more and more nervous.
"Ah, yes," He put his hands on the table, looking over at the other with a serious look on their face as he spoke, "I had found something that I had thought you might enjoy."
"Something I might… Enjoy?" They asked, confused. What could it have been that caused him to think that?
"I had taken notice that you had difficulty keeping your hair out of your face," As he spoke, he moved his hands and exposed the box that was underneath, "And as I was exploring the markets, I had come across something that may assist with your dilemma."
With the box being pushed over towards them, they continued to look towards him with confusion, before eventually gently taking the box into their hands. When opening it, they felt their cheeks alter their coloring from their usual paleness to a shade of bright pink.
The inside of the container held a hairpin, silver and elegant in style. Engraved with flowers and vines connecting each one, it looked as if it could be a piece of art in itself. Carefully, they removed the pin from the box, taking a closer look at each fine detail that is held on its surface.
Eventually, their gaze moved back towards Zhongli, concern starting to form within their veins. "It's… Beautiful. You didn't spend too much on it, did you?"
"Need not worry about the price it was." He responded, an ever so slight smile splitting his lips, even if only for a brief moment, "Simply make sure that it works as intended."
Quietly, they nodded and proceeded to put it into their hair, making sure to keep the strands of hair that tended to get into their face within the pin itself. Gently releasing it, the pin couldn't keep hold and started to fall.
Once he noticed that, he stood up. "Allow me."
Gaze quickly moving over, the pink on their cheeks darkened as they realized that he was already before them, gently taking the pin and carefully maneuvering their hair to let it properly keep hold. Within moments, he moved away, and it stayed in place.
A small smile was on their face, gaze moving towards where they knew the pin was placed on the side of their head. "It works… Thank you, Zhongli."
"It was no problem."
They moved their gaze towards them, and for a moment, they would've thought that they had seen a larger smile than they tended to see on his face. However, before they could say anything, there was the announcement that their food was ready.
"Ah, our food's done. Let me get it for us."
With a smile of their own, they allowed themselves to nod and allow him to do exactly what he needed to do. There was still concern over the price, but the fact that he thought of them when he saw the item made them feel warm inside. Hand going to their chest, they could feel their heart beating at a pace unlike usual. Much quicker, as if something overly exciting had just happened.
Closing their eyes for a moment, they took a moment to take a deep breath. There was no need to get worked up, after all…
When their eyes opened, their food was before them, and Zhongli was setting his food onto the table.
"Is there something the matter?"
"No... Nothing at all." They smiled and waited for him to take his seat once again before allowing themselves to begin enjoying the meal.
After some time, however, the question deep within their mind escaped them amidst the meal. "Why did the pin remind you of me?"
There seemed to be a moment of overwhelming silence before his gaze moved towards her. "To be quite frank, I'm not entirely sure."
The answer made them move their gaze away, unsure of what more was to be expected as an answer.
"However," He continued, "I am very much glad it did so. To be quite honest, I had missed spending time with you."
Feeling their face change shades once again, this time to a dark red, their eyes moved back towards him. "Had… Had you?"
"I had." Zhongli responded, "You are good company to be around."
They agreed to what he had said in regards to spending time with one another. They used to do it regularly and had become good friends as a result. It seemed that things had become a bit busy due to certain recent events, so they had split apart from one another as a result. However...
"In that case…" They smiled, gently shrugging, "Perhaps we could figure out more times to hang out again?"
A small smile formed on his face. "Indeed, I would find that to be enjoyable."
The warmth from before resurfaced, and the smile on their face grew. "Then let's keep in contact, okay?"
"Of course," He nodded, "I'll be certain to make time within my schedule to spend with you."
Once the conversation had passed, the meal had been completed without either one realizing it, and they were ready to head home. "Thanks again, I appreciated today."
"It was no problem," He spoke, standing from the table at the same time as them, "Will you be able to make it home alright?"
Looking out towards the crowd, they soon realized that it was far too crowded for them. "I'm not quite sure…"
"Allow me to take you home, then."
Far too aware of rejecting the offer, they nodded, joining him within the crowd. However… Far too quickly were they nearly about to be swept away from him by it, and a squeak of surprise escaped them. Whenever they squeak, they felt a hand grab onto theirs, and their attention snapped to see who it was that had her hand.
Very quickly did they feel their face turn pink at the realization that Zhongli had taken their hand to get through the crowd without losing one another. Fingers gently gripping his, they carefully made sure to not get too far away from him for the entirety of the way home.
When they reached their destination, it felt as if he still had ahold of their hand for a few moments longer than intended, however, it wasn't something they mentioned.
"Thank you, I wasn't sure how I was going to make it home." They sheepishly said, averting their gaze.
"It was no problem." He responded, finally letting go of their hand. "I didn't want you getting lost because of the number of people."
Quietly, they nodded, looking up towards him. "Of course… I'll talk to you again soon, right?"
"Right," He responded, "We'll meet up again soon."
Nodding, they entered their home, and Zhongli could be seen leaving their front door as well. Once inside their home, they leaned back against the door and allowed themselves to have a large smile on their face.
It was great to see him again...
Hello once again!
I'm aware that once again, I'm out of my comfort zone writing this kind of content, but it was yet another commission I had received and decided to post for all to see! I hope everyone enjoys it!