Ur Dad!zhongli And Dad!childe Made Me Feel Ckkshdnekdoidkskd😭😭🥺 But That Got Me Thinking,,,

ur dad!zhongli and dad!childe made me feel ckkshdnekdoidkskd😭😭🥺 but that got me thinking,,, dad diluc would be suCh a good dad too🥺🥺

" DAYLIGHT PANCAKES "

━━ ☆ PAIRING: diluc/reader

━━ ☆ GENRE: fluff

━━ ☆ SUMMARY: in the early hours of the morning, there was only you, diluc and your child, all huddled together in your kitchen with the sweet smell of cinnamon pancakes wafting in the air.

━━ ☆ WARNINGS: small mentions of diluc’s backstory

the uncrowned king of mondstadt awoke before the break of dawn.

despite his early rise, he kept his eyes closed, a soft smile lighting up his face in a way the sun could only dream of doing. from underneath his fingertips that laid against the soft, silken feel of your skin, he could feel you breathe, light and rhythmic as if not even the world's worst could hinder your peace. you were the ground under his feet, the fire that keeps him warm, the twilight in his dark skies. at that moment, diluc was convinced that home was your hair sprawled over pillows, highlands made of towering dreams, his lips lightly brushing on your cheek and pancakes. right, pancakes. with a light chuckle, he slipped out of bed, giving you one last adoring gaze before walking out of your shared bedroom built from a million memories. 

the short walk from this room to that was routine. some days, diluc would wake up earlier than his usual to calm the adorable little monster inside. some days, diluc's head would be filled with nightmares and the trek to his child was the remedy to it. when his ruby eyes find the striking contrast of barely grown crimson hair against snow-white cloths, he is reminded that not all in this world was cruel, the definition of good being a defenseless human laid against plush pillows and blankets.

"good morning, angel," he whispers with a bright grin you typically wouldn't find on his face but came rather naturally to him. "ready to make breakfast?"

yes, some days the world was kinder to diluc. no stress from work, no weight from his duties, no horrors to plague his day. sometimes, it was just him, his child, and the quiet house that was almost made just for the two of them.

"what are we having today? we have chocolate and strawberry vanilla—"

diluc sighed as the baby laughed, having just thrown the boxes he placed right in front of them, "guess we're starting from scratch today."

"okay. sit here," carefully securing the baby to their chair, he crouched to their height, eyes softening at the bright reds that stared right at him. "and wait for daddy, okay?"

watching the baby mumble something incoherent, diluc hummed in reply, pressing a kiss on top of their head for good measure before walking to the kitchen.

"right, how does he do it again?" swiftly rolling the sleeves of his nightshirt up, diluc reached for the flour right by the corner which was apparently amusing for the young child, "is something wrong?"

the baby made an obnoxious 'humph!' that pulled a gentle laugh from diluc who leaned to boop them on their nose. this, of course, causing the baby to erupt in another fit of laughter.

"you know, my father used to make this for me. he said the recipe came from my mother before she..." diluc trailed off before carefully smoothening his expression with a smile, "anyway, this used to be my favorite but i didn't get the chance to learn how to make them. i suppose we just have to figure it out."

tossing the flour and cinnamon amongst other things, he stirred and stirred, remembering the days his father would playfully dust him with the white powder saying 'oops, my hand slipped. sorry about that, diluc.'

maybe someday, he gazed at his child who was staring at the bowl with a focus unparalleled, mesmerized by the way the strong hands that were just holding them were now whisking some strange liquid together. they recognized the bar of butter in diluc's hands and reached out, immediately whining when diluc pulled it away.

"later, sunshine. you're going to get us both into trouble."

noticing the infant's pout, diluc chuckled, trapping their tiny hands between his fingers in an attempt to provide comfort, "later, okay? i'll convince them to let you put some butter on your pancakes."

seemingly appeased, for the time being at least, the young child gurgled in delight before patting diluc's hands quite harshly for a child not even a year old. taking that as a sign to go back to work, diluc poured the batter into a pan, eyes trailing over the bubbles that started to form on top.

"what are my two babies up to?" averting his gaze, he mumbled a small 'good morning' as you approached to give him a kiss. "ooh! pancakes? there's some cream cheese in the fridge—"

"i know. go wash up. it'll be ready soon."

"fine," he rose a brow at your childish drawl, watching as you stepped around the counter to squish your baby's cheeks in greeting, "i'm gonna be back soon, okay? watch over daddy for me and don't let him burn the kitchen down."

"i'm not—" sending a cheeky wink, you left before he could argue his defense, "you're not teaming up against me, are you?"

narrowing his eyes at the baby who smiled all too innocently, diluc shook his head, going back to the task at hand, he started making the glaze that you had taken the liberty of reminding him about. you and your picky antics, he mused with a grin that told everyone of all the ardor he had for you.

"should we wait or do you want to—" diluc didn't even get to finish his sentence before the baby was already reaching for the plate, mouth watering and eyes pleading for help, "i suppose you could start early."

grabbing the nearby knife, diluc began slicing the fluffy cakes into bite-sized pieces, gently blowing on it before sliding the food near the baby's mouth.

"careful— sunshine, you really need to let me finish my sentences."

with an exasperated smile, he picked up a napkin to wipe the glaze that oh-so-messily stained the child's stretched cheeks, gummy smile showcased to the entire world.

"one more? okay," too busy cutting up another slice, diluc didn't notice the sudden furrow in the baby's brows, lips turned into a big pout as if hesitating, "here we go—"

"da... da-da?"

they say that time freezes for certain people at the most inopportune time of the day. it has never happened to diluc, at least, not before this. pausing, freezing — mouth ajar and hand so still in place as he tried to wrap his head around the meaning behind the sharp squeak that left his young child. shakily, he called out your name and you immediately rushed out, hearing the unusual tremble in his stern voice.

"diluc? honey, what's wrong?"

"they—" he took a sharp breath, eyes misting over as looked at you, "they called me their father..."

muffling your gasp beneath your hand, you immediately came over, hand interlacing with his in true bliss. placing a kiss on your knuckles with a watery smile, diluc was certain that this — you, him, and your child — this was nirvana.

turning his gaze back to the baby who was staring up at him as if he held the universe in his eyes, he softly cooed, free hand rubbing small circles on the baby's warm cheeks, "will you say it again? please?"

"h-hm.. dada!"

"that's right i'm—" you squeezed his hands lightly as diluc pulled back, hands covering his face as he tried to hide his sob. "i'm your dada."

"shhh... hey, it's alright," you whispered, lips brushing against his head as he pulled you close, hiding his head on your shoulders.

"i miss him — i miss him so, so much. he should've — should've been here. should’ve been here to teach me what to do.”

you supposed that even the strongest men could fall. this was the first time you've seen him cry for the lost, seen him so weak and fragile over his father. the last time he talked about him — felt for him — he told you that it was all in the past; nothing more than a wound that has been sewed up and healed. was that him telling you or was that him trying to convince himself? wounds heal but sometimes they leave scars and scars never go. they stare right at you, a reminder of the hurt you've been through on the best of days and a wound that inflicts phantom pain as if you're witnessing everything unfold all over again during the worst.

"i can't fill his shoes. he's too good, too good to me — to us."

"diluc, you don't need to fill anyone's shoes. your father... he just tried his best to make you happy and now — now it's your turn to try. you don't have to be perfect, you just have to try and when you fall while trying, we'll be here for you. always."

you felt him clawing at your clothes as if finding something to cling to. sighing in sympathy, you card your fingers through his hair, feeling a small amount of the tension he held in his body leave — as it did every time you did it. "besides, you're already on the right track."

pulling away slightly to get him to look at you, eyes looking like roses in the early hours of the morning, you smiled playfully though you wondered how playful it appeared to be when you're just as emotional as he was.

"you're the favorite one already," chuckling with him, you wiped the rest of his tears and replaced them with a loving kiss. as he deserved after everything he has been through. "stop stealing my spot."

"it's not my place to decide." returning your chaste kiss, he turned back to the baby who was watching the interaction curiously, "sorry for the wait, angel. should we go back to the pancakes, now?"

"oh right! pancakes!"

excitedly bouncing to the seat across diluc, you served yourself some, eyes still lingering on the two people you loved the most, "hey diluc?" a hum in reply, attention still focused on your baby. "i love you."

"i love you too..." he answered without a pause in the beat. "and thank you. for everything."

the first signs of daylight began showing as sweet laughter of delight mixed together to make one fine symphony. with your smiles no longer faltering, diluc was proud to say that the world was right by his grasp. cherry tinted and glowing spectacularly, he allowed himself to have hope once more as he wished for this orchestra to remain together until the end of time, singing about the lovely joys of being a father so that one day, he could join his father in a chorus of being a good one.

━━ ☆ NOTES: thank you for requesting! this is a little different from all the other dad!au works i did because i’m a softie for diluc. he’s such a great dad and i hope i was able to make it to your liking!

━━ ☆ SIMILAR WORKS: dad!au masterlist