zhongli x fem! reader (angst)
Character/s : Zhongli
Fandom : Genshin Impact
Genre : angst + hanahaki disease
Warnings : gore, death
love kills.
'Oh, what a cruel world this was. A cruel and corrupted world indeed.'
Y/N had always suffered from the disease known as Hanahaki. For as long as she could remember, she had been dealing with unrequited love. And, as a result, she coughed up red roses. It was anything but pleasant, as the petals affected her air intake and the thorns scratched her throat. She had tried getting medication from Baizhu, but it was no use. They never worked.
So, here she was, kneeled in front of the toilet and spewing out red roses. Tears rolled down her throat, the pain being unbearable. She coughed and spluttered, pounding her fist against her chest in hopes that it would lessen some of the agony.
Y/N thicky swallowed, the taste of metal filling her mouth. She gagged and spat out another petal or two.
As the blood dripped down her chin, Y/N couldn't help but wonder how it had come to this.
Most would say that Zhongli was the main cause. When he had asked her to be his fiance, Y/N immediately accepted. She wanted nothing more than to spend the rest of her life with him. Unfortunely, Y/N was quick to realize that Zhongli had no intentions of loving her. This was purely a business engagement and nothing more.
"Y/N," Keqing's soft voice startled the young female god. She turned around, E/C eyes clashing with bright lavender orbs.
"Keqing," Y/N mumbled quietly.
The purple-haired girl crouched down beside Y/N, placing a hand on her back.
"Zhongli again?" She questioned. Y/N nodded.
"Keqing, will he ever like me back?" Y/N looked up, eyes brimming with hope. Keqing looked away, not wanting to break her friend's heart.
"... Y/N, his heart belongs to someone else," Keqing uttered, her chest aching slightly as she watched the light die from Y/N's eyes.
"Ah... I see." Y/N mumbled. Keqing assisted Y/N in standing up, holding the god steady.
"Y/N, I think you should break up with him." Said Keqing, only wanting the best for the H/C-haired female.
"Keqing... I can't. That'll hurt me even more." Y/N sniffed, "All that matters is he's happy. I'm fine with seeing him smile, even if it's not because of me."
Again, Keqing felt a pang in her chest. She was jealous of Zhongli. Y/N loved him with all her heart and he didn't even bat an eyelash at her.
As the two girls exited the bathroom, Keqing couldn't help but wonder what it would be like if Y/N loved her back instead. Everything would've been different. Y/N would be happy, Keqing would be happy, Zhongli would be... still sad.
Keqing had been crushing on Y/N for years now, but nobody knew of her feelings for the H/C-haired lass. And, Keqing intended to keep it that way.
Nobody needed to know. They didn't need to know how much pain this unrequited love was putting Keqing through.
"Hang on, I'll go get you some water," Keqing said as Y/N sat down on her and Zhongli's bed. Y/N nodded, thankful.
As the purple-haired female hurried off into the kitchen, Y/N heard a voice she was all too familiar with.
Zhongli wasn't supposed to be back until after midnight, so why did she hear his voice outside the room?
"And, this is my fiance and I's bedroo- Oh, your here." Judging by the tone of his voice, Zhongli was anything but pleased to see Y/N, sitting on the foot of the bed. His eyes flickered over to the bloodstains on Y/N's clothing, but didn't comment on them.
"Y/N? Your the one engaged to Zhongli? Congratulations!" Guizhong clapped her hands, happy for Y/N. The H/C-haired god, on the other hand, was devasted to see Guizhong. With her here, Y/N knew that Zhongli would give all his attention to her.
"Y/N, Hu Tao found a way to revive people from the dead. It took a while, but the experiment was finally successful." Zhongli gazed at Guizhong, a tender and loving look in his eyes. And, that was enough to break Y/N's poor, fragile heart.
"Y/N, I got you some wa- Oh, it's you." Keqing looked Zhongli up and down, unimpressed.
"What happened to her?" Zhongli questioned, referring to Y/N. Keqing just sent Zhongli a sickly sweet smile.
"Nothing that should concern you. After all, you wouldn't care." Replied Keqing, sassily. Zhongli blinked in shock, but didn't press further on the matter.
"If you say so." He mumbled. His statement made Keqing let out a small 'tsk'.
"Oh, Guizhong, let me show you the kitchen." Zhongli gently took her wrist, leading her down the stairs. Keqing continued to glare holes into his back, yearning to draw her blade and stab him.
"Bitch." She grumbled under her breath before slowly focusing her attention back on Y/N. "Here, drink up." Y/N gulped down the whole glass in five seconds, practically inhaling the water. The ice-cold liquid felt good and soothed her sore and scratched throat.
"Keqing," Her voice was hoarse and barely above a whisper. Keqing leaned in so that she could hear Y/N properly. "Can I stay at your's tonight?"
"Of course, you don't even have to ask. Do you... want to pack now?" Y/N nodded.
"Yes. Can you get me that bag over there please?" Y/N pointed at the bag that was tucked away in a corner, collecting dust. Keqing grabbed it, opened it, and begun to shake all the dust particles off. "Thank you," Y/N mumbled as Keqing handed her the bag.
She took everything she needed and stuffed them into the bag, making sure that they would all fit before zipping it up. Keqing watched, arms folded over her chest.
"Let's go," Y/N announced. She was in a hurry to get out of the house before Zhongli caught her and caused her glass heart to shatter even more.
Fortunately, luck was on her side and she and Keqing managed to sneak out of the house without alerting her fiance and Guizhong.
Keqing smiled at Y/N, giddy and full of joy. Her crush was finally staying over at her house. It was lucky that she cleaned this morning.
With Zhongli out of the picture, it would be easier for Keqing to make Y/N fall for her. Keqing was determined to steal Y/N away from Zhongli and she was willing to do anything to achieve that goal.
↶*ೃ✧˚. ❃ ↷ ˊ-
It had been 4 days since Y/N had temporarily moved out of the house she shared with Zhongli. The brunette man seemed as if he didn't care, not even glancing her way. Everywhere Y/N went, she would see her fiance with Guizhong. They were never apart, attached to the hip.
There was even a rumor going around that Y/N and Zhongli's engagement had been broken off. Y/N didn't bother to tell anybody the truth, too caught up in trying to stop her heart from aching.
During her life, Y/N had faced many challenges. She saw her family, her friends, her comrades die in battle. She had witnessed many deaths and seen horrible things. Yet, nothing could compare to the hole she felt inside her heart.
It was almost too painful to bear. It hurt to see her lover with another woman, a woman better than her. Her poor heart was dying and withering, but she did nothing to soothe the ache. Nothing could save her now from the angst she was experiencing.
Y/N let out a small sigh before lifting the jade cup she held in her hands. She took a sip from her tea, the liquid warming her mouth and making her feel slightly better. However, her mood immediately dropped when she realized that she had, due to a habit, ordered Zhongli's favorite tea.
Y/N, not wanting to drink it anymore, placed the cup down. She was about to leave the teashop when two very familiar people entered. Guizhong instantly spotted her and walked over, smiling brightly.
"Y/N! I haven't seen you in a while. How have you been?" The long-haired beauty asked. Y/N stared up at her in silence, not knowing what to say.
"... Good." She muttered.
"Wonderful! Hey, Zhongli and I were thinking of going for a walk. Would you like to join us?" Pushing her chair back, Y/N stood up.
"I'm fine, thanks for asking," Y/N replied monotonously. Guizhong tilted her head to the side.
"But, I've noticed that you and Zhongli haven't been spending a lot of time together. Wouldn't it be nice for you to bond again?" Guizhong questioned. Y/N clenched her jaw. She knew it wasn't Guizhong's fault that Zhongli wasn't paying her any attention, but it still hurt.
"Did you not hear what I said?" Y/N uttered in a rather harsh tone, which caused Guizhong to flinch and Zhongli to narrow his eyes, "I said no."
Y/N tried to walk off, but Guizhong grabbed her wrist, being persistent.
"You guys are lovers though! You should be spending ti"- Y/N cut her off.
"We're not in this relationship because we love each other! We're in this relationship because of a contract!" Y/N shouted. By now, the whole shop was looking at the commotion. Y/N huffed. "I'll be going now, enjoy the rest of your day."
The H/C-haired female left. She didn't feel guilty for yelling at Guizhong. In fact, it felt quite nice.
Feeling bile rise up in her throat, Y/N's eyes widened slightly. She hurried into a secluded area and crouched down, throwing up both blood and roses.
It took about five minutes for her to finally stop. The pavement below her was covered in red liquid and blood-stained rose petals. Such a sight could make somebody faint.
"Y-Y/N?" Guizhong was standing behind the said female, a horrified look on her face.
↶*ೃ✧˚. ❃ ↷ ˊ-
"Keqing... I don't have much time left." Y/N weakly smiled at her purple-haired friend who was kneeling beside her bed. "I want Zhongli to marry the true love of his life, not some person he was assigned to because of an agreement. But, please, just do this one favor for me. Tell him... Tell him that I love him." Keqing nodded, a spear going through her heart. However, she showed no signs of it. She showed no signs that she was in pain.
"Under... Understood." She choked out, her voice cracking and trembling.
"Please, don't cry." Uttered Y/N, "If you cry, I'll cry."
Keqing sniffed and nodded. Silently, she grabbed Y/N's hand, lifted it up to her lips, and planted a light kiss on Y/N's knuckles. Her actions caused the H/C-haired girl to smile.
"Keqing... don't forget me, please."
"I could never forget you."
Y/N let out a small, airy chuckle.
"One day, you are going to make somebody very, very happy." At Y/N's statement, Keqing froze. She bowed her head.
'Yeah, I know. But, how can I when you're the one I want?'
↶*ೃ✧˚. ❃ ↷ ˊ-
As the clock struck midnight and everybody was either asleep or speedrunning their tasks and work, Y/N was lying in a field full of white roses. They were red now, due to the fact that Y/N had bled through most of them.
She was clad in a thin white gown, the fabric stained crimson.
Closing losing her eyes, Y/N thought about her memories with Zhongli. Although he never truly loved her, she was still thankful to have him in her life.
The moon glowed brightly and it started to lightly rain. The stars twinkled and the wind blew a soft breeze, comforting Y/N.
Slowly, her body started to dissolve into nothing, leaving no traces behind.
And, that was how Y/N, the goddess betrothed to Rex Lapis/Morax, died.
↶*ೃ✧˚. ❃ ↷ ˊ-
"Y/N... is dead." The news that Keqing suddenly delivered to Zhongli shocked him. He stood up, the chair he was sitting on being pushed back.
"She's what?" He asked, panicked.
"Are you deaf?" Keqing clicked her tongue, "I said she's dead." It hurt the Qixing member to say that.
"Where is she?!" Zhongli demanded.
"The rose fields." Uttered Keqing, refusing to make eye contact with him. "She... did have a message for you though. She told me to tell you... that she loves you." In under five seconds, Zhongli was out the door. Keqing decided to follow him, choosing that it would be the best option.
Zhongli and Keqing arrived at the rose fields in no time. They spotted Ningguang, Hu Tao, and Guizhong already there. Zhongli rushed up to the three females, looking like a mess.
"Where's her body?!" Zhongli exclaimed, in tears. Hu Tao glanced over her shoulder.
"It... disappeared. We can't find her body. It was as if she had faded into thin air." The young lady with brunette hair muttered.
Zhongli fell to his knees.
"Why..." He mumbled under his breath "What... What did I do? What have I done?" He inhaled the air sharply as he stared at his shaking hands, his eyesight blurring.
He felt at fault for your death.
Guizhong also felt guilty. She had stolen Zhongli away from Y/N. She was mentally beating herself up. She had witnessed you suffer from hanahaki, why did she not say anything? She was foolish to believe Y/N when she said that she was fine.
Keqing stared at Zhongli's back, her face emotionless. She wanted to cry, but she refused to show weakness in front of Ningguang.
"Zhongli," Hu Tao lightly tapped her employee's shoulder. She held a letter in her hands. "We found this note. It's from Y/N."
Zhongli hesitantly took it. He carefully opened the envelope and grabbed the paper inside. Slowly, he unfolded the thick parchment and almost burst into tears just by looking at your neat handwriting.
"Zhongli. By the time you receive this letter, I'm probably dead. But, do not worry. As you weep, or not, my soul is next to you, patting ur head and comforting you. Zhongli, I really love you. I love you so much that I would do anything for you, even if it means letting you go. I would never block you from marrying the true love of your life. That's not what I want. Marry Guizhong. Marry her, and start a family, and build it. I'll be supporting you all the way from the sky. Bu,t please promise me this. Every night, go out and gaze at the stars. I will be there, looking down at you from above. As I am all the way up here, I will guard your children and keep them away from danger. Zhongli, please remember me. Listen to the song in that record. It's my words to you."
Baby, you don't gotta fight, I'll be here 'til the end of time
Wishin' that you were mine, pull you in, it's alright.
As as Zhongli weeped for Y/N, Ningguang, Hu Tao, and Guizhong silently left. Keqing was the only one who stayed behind.
"You know," She sat down next to Zhongli, "She suffered from Hanahaki disease. I wanted her to tell you, because you had a right to know, but she didn't want to. She was scared that she would be a burden."
"She really was selfless." Zhongli mumbled. Keqing let out a loud and raspy cough, causing Zhongli to look at her.
Blood trailed down her chin, surprising the male. She smiled, eyes full of pain and anguish.
"Yes, she really was selfless. She cared about many people, even if they didn't care about her." Keqing coughed again, "Well, I guess this is how I die too. At least I'll get to see Y/N." She let a bittersweet smile pull at the corners of her lips.
Zhongli could only watch as the purple-haired female spluttered out blood.
Y/N had died from Hanahaki, and it seemed that Keqing too would suffer the same fate.
Oh, what a cruel world this was. A cruel and corrupted world indeed.
