Archive of Our Own ^beta

It was early in the morning when Baizhu first started to stir awake. He blearily cracked an eye open and looked around. He desperately wanted to go back to sleep, but today was the one day he definitely couldn’t. It was a very special day after all. They had plans for a certain someone, but they needed to ensure that person stayed asleep. He carefully rolled onto his side and stretched an arm across the chest under him. He was so warm and cozy in the bed that he could start to feel himself drifting off again.

With great effort he shook his head and pulled himself further up on the bed. “Wake up, love.” He whispered.

Diluc huffed as he clearly did not like the idea but hummed when he felt Baizhu kiss his cheek. “Come on, it’s his birthday.” That did it. It didn’t matter how much he wanted to sleep; he would be anything to see one of his boys smile.

Diluc’s arm tightened around Baizhu, but he opened his eyes. “Good morning.” His voice rumbled, still deep from the lack of using it while he slept. As much as Baizhu loved his voice, he quickly shushed him, and covered his mouth with his hands. He wasn’t the only one who was curled up with Diluc.

Diluc was always the warmest due to his pyro vision, but he also refused to not have his hands on his boys. It didn’t matter if he fell asleep first or last, they would always end up in his arms, curled into his side, or sleeping on his chest. He treasured the time he was able to hold them and feel them relax as they fell asleep in his arms. They had been through so much, but with Diluc holding them, they knew exactly how safe and loved they were.

Thankfully, Childe hadn’t moved a muscle at the voice. Normally, the slightest sound or movement would have him snapping awake due to his years of intense training, but that all changed when he was at home. At home, he finally allowed his body to relax fully and let the exhaustion that gnawed at his bones and settled deep in his chest take over. It went against everything he had been trained to do, everything that he had to do to survive, but the trust he had in his boys was enough to overpower that as he passed out every time he was with them.

The saving grace they had was that everyone was used to someone leaving or joining the bed at odd times due to their differing schedules so movement in the bed didn’t normally wake anyone up. Baizhu slowly slid off Diluc, his tired body protesting the movement as he stretched. Diluc carefully shifted, replacing the position of his body with one of the pillows to help keep his heat trapped in the bed for as long as possible.

Baizhu crept to the windows in the bedroom and made sure the shades were securely in place, if this was going to work, they needed to make sure the sun wouldn’t wake Childe up early by sneaking through any gaps. Diluc snuck up behind him and wrapped his arms around his waist as he dropped his head onto his shoulder. They swayed gently together, enjoying the soft atmosphere as they world felt still in the early morning hours.

“How are we supposed to get Zhongli?” He asked, keeping his voice soft. Baizhu was able to hear him with how close Diluc had his face pressed into this neck. Zhongli, however, was currently pressed against Childe’s back with his arms wrapped around him and seemed dead to the world.

Baizhu wiggled out of Diluc’s grip when he got an idea. He practically laid his upper body on top of Zhongli and began playing with his bangs. Zhongli barely moved as Baizhu continued to play with his hair and gently stroked his face, but his body started to relax and his grip on Childe slowly loosened.

After another minute, beautiful amber eyes that never failed to take Baizhu’s breath away slid open. They were hazy and unfocused, but slowly became clearer as a soft glow returned to them.

“Hi there.” Baizhu whispered in this ear, kissing along his face. Zhongli hummed, his head starting to lull to the side again. “No, no, no, wake up you sleepy lizard.”

Zhongli looked at him mildly offended, a lecture that a dragon could hardly be referred to as a “sleepy lizard” on the tip of his tongue. He stopped himself though as curiosity of what Baizhu was doing piqued his interest. Baizhu started gently tugging at his arm when Zhongli cocked an eyebrow at him. He glanced over, confused at what he wanted, until his eyes landed on the man secured in his arms.

Realization dawned on him as he suddenly found himself more awake and understood what was happening. Between the three of them, they were able to gently remove Zhongli from the bed without jostling Childe too much. They surrounded him with pillows and blankets to keep him cozy, before sneaking out of the room.

“Let’s get started.” Baizhu began. “We need to-” Whatever else he had to say was abruptly cut off by Zhongli stepping into his space.

“Good morning.” He mumbled, pulling Baizhu into his arms as he kissed him.

“Not fair, I got shushed.” Diluc pouted as he watched them. Baizhu rolled his eyes at him, but Zhongli took pity on him.

“He’s bossy in the mornings, you know that.” Zhongli reminded him, not bothering to dodge the smack from Baizhu as he gripped Diluc’s hips and let himself fall into him. Diluc smirked and wrapped his arms around Zhongli’s neck and tugged him even closer.

“Don’t get distracted.” Baizhu teased when Zhongli stumbled a step from the tug. He gave them another minute before pulling on both of them. “Come on, the sun is going to rise soon, and that means that Ajax will also be waking up.”

“We’re on it.” Diluc soothed him when Zhongli finally allowed him to breathe again. “Help me cook?” He asked, holding a hand for him.

Baizhu nodded, and easily accepted the hand. Diluc teasingly pressed him against the counter, using their joined hands to keep him pinned. “Thank you.” He said entirely too innocently as he leaned close, enjoying the red exploding on Baizhu’s face and ears. He waited until Baizhu looked ready to squirm before releasing him.

Baizhu remained frozen as he flushed against the counter. Diluc really could be a menace sometimes. He shook his head to clear his thoughts and started to pull out the ingredients they needed.

Zhongli chuckled at them as he went to check on the tea he had put on to brew before going to bed last night. It was a delicious and spicy blend, but it took hours to brew. Leaving it overnight looked to have worked perfectly though, as he hummed pleasantly as he inspected it. There were still a few things he needed to do before it was ready, but he knew Childe would be excited for it.

“Li, would you mind?” Baizhu asked as he regained his composure, and gestured to the air around him. Zhongli easily understood and threw a jade shield around the kitchen. They were being careful, but pots and pans still had a terrible habit of making a lot of noise regardless of how hard one tried. The shield would offer them another layer of noise protection as they worked.

Childe shifted in the bed, stretching out as he adjusted. A groan escaped as his tired muscles were pulled taunt. He blindly moved his arm in front of him before frowning when his arm made contact with a pillow and not another body. Why was that there? He pushed his arm under it to continue his stretch before stopping abruptly. He lifted his head slightly when he never made contact with another person. It was strange, but not the first time it had happened. A curious thought lingered in the back of his mind but sleep still tugged at him. He looked around again before giving in easily.

It was another couple of hours before he felt the bed dip as if someone entered it. Childe groaned when he felt a pair of hands on him, but quickly relaxed again when he realized the hands were pulling him onto a chest. Warmth immediately flooded Childe’s system and he sighed, there was only one person this could be. The warmth and the insistence of body contact made it obvious. It was normal for Diluc to pull him closer whenever they were still in bed when he returned.

Childe groaned again when the hands gently started tracing his body. He had expected to go back to sleep like they normally do, but apparently Diluc had other ideas. A shiver was pulled out of him when Diluc’s fingers lightly traced along a sensitive spot on his back. He tensed before going completely limp as his hands continued.

“Diluc.” He whined when the hand never let up, knowing exactly where to apply pressure to keep shivers wracking through him and helping to clear the sleep from his mind.

“Good morning.” Diluc chuckled, fully knowing the effect that this was having on him. He kept it up for another few breaths before soothing his hand flat along his back to help Childe calm down again. Childe pushed his head into Diluc’s chest, something suspiciously similar to “evil” was heard from his muffled voice as he muttered against him. Eventually Childe turned his head to the side and started to blink the sleep from his eyes. He was surprised to see the sun higher than it normally was when he woke up, but they didn’t have any actual plans today. It was typical for them to let him sleep as long as he could whenever he had a day off.

“Ajax, are you awake now?” Diluc asked when Childe hadn’t moved for a few minutes. “Come on baby, I need you to wake up. You can sleep more later.”

“I’m up, ‘m up.” Childe mumbled, but lifted his head up slightly to prove it.

“Good. Happy birthday baby.” Diluc whispered in his ear, he kissed the side of his neck when Childe hummed out a thank you. Before he could say a proper thank you, a knock on the wall beside the door stole his attention.

“Good morning.” Baizhu greeted him cheerfully. “How are you feeling?” Childe huffed, not from annoyance, but out of fondness. Without Baizhu truly realizing it, he had been asking Childe that very same question shortly after he woke up for years.

It was common for Childe to come home covered in bruises and cuts, or even have broken bones. It never mattered that he insisted that he got checked out by one of the doctors that worked for the Fatui, Baizhu would always reexamine him the second he got home. Regardless of how serious his injuries were, one of the first questions Baizhu would ask once he was awake was if he was okay. It warmed Childe’s heart every time.

“I’m okay.” Childe confirmed.

“Good, because we have something for you.” He said as he disappeared from the room.

“What? We weren’t doing anything today though.” Childe asked puzzled. They had asked if he wanted to do something for his birthday, but after learning they would all be able to have time off and be together, Childe wanted nothing more than to have a lazy day with his boys. He was even skipping his training to spend as much time with them as he possibly could. It wasn’t always easy to get all of them in the same place at the same time.

“Did you think that would stop us?” Diluc scoffed. Honestly, it didn’t matter what he said, they would have done this anyways.

“I shouldn’t be surprised.” Childe laughed.

“No, you shouldn’t be.” Zhongli said as he returned with Baizhu, both of them carrying a tray filled with an assortment of food. Diluc helped pull Childe fully into a sitting position while they gently placed the strays in their laps.

“Happy birthday Baobei.” Zhongli said, tilting his head with a hand on his chin so he could give him a kiss.

“You made all of this for me?” He asked shocked.

“Of course we did.” Baizhu said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. “Come here.” He leaned across Diluc to give him a kiss. He gave Diluc another as he leaned back again.

“Not going to shush me this time, are you?” He grumbled.

“One time. I shushed you one time, and now I’m never going to be able to live it down.” Baizhu sighed.

“Oh, absolutely not.” Diluc quipped.

“What?” Childe asked curiously. “Is that why you weren’t in the bed this morning?”

“I told you I heard him.” Diluc immediately sasses Zhongli who pulled a face at him in response.

Childe couldn’t have stopped the laugh even if he had tried to. The sound was more beautiful to their ears than the finest instrument as they watched a smile so bright it could rival the sun break across his face. He hadn’t even noticed their stares as his eyes slipped closed as he laughed harder.

The sight of the former geo archon, an actual god, known for his demeanor making a face because one of his boyfriends had sassed him had proven too much for Childe to handle. The boyfriend in question being the stoic Master Diluc who was so serious all of the time but didn’t hesitate to tease his boys. Finally, Baizhu who had patience for days, huffing in exasperation at all of them, but never put in any effort to stop them. He laughed loudly, and more carefree than he ever thought he would again.

“What has gotten into you?” Diluc asked with a chuckle of his own. He made the mistake of making eye contact with Zhongli. They only managed to hold each other’s gaze for a few seconds before they both broke out into a fit of laughter as well.

“I’m dating actual psychopaths.” Baizhu moaned as he raised a hand to his head. The upward quirk of his lips betrayed him though as he watched them fondly. The four of them individually had gone through more than someone should in their lifetime, but yet they could still laugh like this. In a hilarious way Baizhu might add as their cackling fed off each other and added more fuel to the fire.

Baizhu knew for a fact that a few years ago it wouldn’t have been possible for any of them to laugh as carefree as they were now. It warmed his heart as he thought of the progress his little family had made while they had been together. They all still had bad days, and by bad he meant absolutely terrible, but this scene gave him hope. Hope that there was a light at the end of the tunnel. Hope that as long as they were together, they would continue to help each other heal from their past trauma and make these moments happen more often.

“Alright!” Baizhu called getting their attention in hopes of calming them down before they were beyond all hope. “The food is going to get cold. Let’s eat.” They shushed each other like giddy children as their cackles started to die down when they realized he was right.

“Thank you.” Childe forced out as he tried to slow his breathing.

“Of course, love.” Baizhu smiled at him.

“No, I mean it. Thank you.” Childe looked at him with enough sincerity and genuine love that Baizhu’s face started to turn pink.

“Anything for our sun.” Zhongli reminded him. Childe shied away from the eye contact at the nickname. He had never seen himself as the sun. It was too pure, too uncorrected for him to even think of comparing himself to it, but that’s not what his boys saw. They saw a smile that could light up an entire room when he was happy, an energy that infected everyone around him and started to improve their mood. It was the light in their lives, regardless of how he saw himself, and they would remind him of that as many times as he needed.

Childe didn’t know what he had done to deserve not one, not two, but three amazing people who he could call his boyfriends, but he would be forever grateful. More grateful than he would ever be able to express in his own words. Making him breakfast in bed might have seemed like a simple thing, but it meant the world to him as he noticed many of his favorite dishes that had clearly been carefully prepared. His nose burned as he did his best not to tear up. It was such a genuine display of love and affection that Childe could barely contain his own emotions. His soul felt a little lighter as he munched on the food and jumped around too many topics as they talked. They easily kept pace with him, used to how he gets when he feels loved and excited. It might have taken years, but now he was so happy. His boys looked after him and spoiled him every chance they got. He truly would never be able to thank them enough.