some zhongchi prompts because I'm busy with Istaroth's Incident to write these
One I call "Love Triangle Time Travel" basically the plot is that Zhongli loved a mortal man during the archon war that guizhong found in the woods. His name was ajax. His favorite tree was the gingko tree, so zhongli decorated his abode with them to remember him. This leads to childe finding out about it and being a little jealous. Takes place after fontaine archon quest. anyways so then childe goes to the chasm for some reason (murder. the reason is so he can murder things) and ends up time traveling BACK IN TIME and is in fact, the guy zhongli fell in love with during the archon war. he comes back after shenanigans and he and zhongli confess and give everyone else a brain aneurysm about their love.
Second idea I dub: "Epic the musical but what if zhongchi." basically take epic the musical and have childe be odyessus and zhongli is trying to procrastinate remarrying and he hates it. also xiao is telemacus. third idea? Misunderstandings and Thomato. Basically Thoma and childe are pen pals, and thoma vents about his love woes to childe about ayato. Childe goes to zhongli for some advice he can pass on to thoma. Zhongli thinks childe is in love with thoma and is jealous. Thoma eventually comes to visit, and zhongli can't be anrgy at him so he takes the petty route and tries to sabotage whenever thoma asks for advice. (said advice works on ayato) this then leads to thoma and ayato getting together and then thoma tries to help childe woo zhongli, while ayato, separately tries to help zhongli woo childe. though ayato's advice constantly gets misinterpreted as zhongli trying to fucking assassinate childe. it takes both childe and zhongli a week to understand both are trying to woo the other.
fourth? cuddles. just fluffy cuddles. Zhongli gets clingy and doesn't want childe to leave for a mission so he does the only thing his sleepy dragon brain can think of. trap him with cuddles.