"Well, regardless, the water on Afaria is crystal clear, and the air is cleaner than it is here," Zai added,
"I've only heard bad things about your world... so I had no idea."
It sounds lovely.
"Don't get me wrong, it's still a horrible place. If the whole planet blew up, I wouldn't shed a single tear."
Does he really mean that? Zai started smiling while thinking about it, then he said,
"What about you? What's Infaniya like?"
"There are more plants everywhere, and some of the houses are built on top of trees. There's no one begging on the street, unlike on Earth... there are no vehicles like this, the air is clear, and there are no paved roads either."
"Sounds boring," Zai commented, "If there's no one suffering around you, how would you know that you're truly happy?"
His opinion shocked me; that must be his Afarion showing,
"There is a hierarchy system; being born powerful gives your family status. The powerful families mainly mingle with each other to maintain order, so the lower class rarely rises up the ranks. My family was one of those low ranks, and even though my mom became strong, she was suppressed politically, out of fear."
"Why?" he asked while pulling my hand up to his mouth and kissing my fingertips, but keeping his eyes set on the road ahead of us,
"She... chose to use Glass... Like the King of Afaria, I guess that scared some people."
Zai grinned once again, and then he looked at me for the first time,
"Wow, that's actually interesting. It's hard to dislike your mom now. Even though she's still a b****."
I thought this revelation would do the opposite because it's clear that he hates the Glass King...
"You don't find it creepy or weird?" I asked.
Her powers were one of the reasons I had trouble making friends growing up.
"Not at all. Your mom sounds like a brave person," he replied while taking an exit off the highway. So I decided to rephrase my statement,
"Don't you... hate the Glass King?"
Zai's expression dulled, then he sighed and said,
"He doesn't matter to me at all, so how could I hate him?"
His adoptive father, the king, who killed his real father right in front of his eyes. Stole his freedom, turned his mother into a plaything, and kept him locked away.
That's just what I know from the little bits he's told me; he's probably done much crueler things as well, and yet Zai says he doesn't hate him.
I sat thinking of what he could mean, and before I realized it, we arrived home.
Zai parked the car in the garage, which was on the side of the house.
"Let's go for a walk before going inside," he suggested.
Were these seven days alone with me not enough?
"Okay," I replied.
Zai exited the car first, then opened my door for me.
"Thanks," I said.
"You're welcome," he replied sweetly, as he took my hand, the one marked by him, and led me to the backyard.
We marched through a wooded path.
After a while, he suddenly stopped and said,
"Here is good."
Then he flopped onto the ground, and because he was still holding my hand, I tumbled straight into his lap.
Our eyes met, and once again, I was flung into a world of naughty thoughts.
"Snowe..." he muttered.
"Yes?!" I shouted.
Why am I so loud?!
"Can I see you dance now?" I gasped and pulled myself away from him.
I'm so ashamed! I had assumed he brought me out here for a different reason! But right now, he's looking at me with the pure innocence that I had gotten used to from him.
"Sure... choose a song, and I'll show you what I got," I replied after calming myself down.
Zai pulled out his phone and stared at the scene intensely before choosing a Pop song I had never heard... of course, because I've been out of touch with society for a century now. Once the song ended, I asked him to play it once more. After hearing it a second time, I said,
"I'm ready."
When I got up, I released the energy inside of me, allowing my power to show, then Zai restarted the song again, and I did my best to follow through with the choreography created in my head. I'm out of practice, but I'm happy I didn't stumble or lose pace. He never took his eyes off me for the entire three minutes.
Once the song had ended, he stayed quiet.
"What do you think?" I asked, and he blushed, looking away.
"I think... I'm happy I married you."
His comment made my heart skip a beat, but I don't know if that meant I did well or not.
"I want to see more," he added while choosing a new song.
I listened, visualized what I wanted, and did my best to execute it.
"Your power seems to be triggered whenever you dance or sing," Zai noted after the 5th song ended. I sat down, slightly out of breath.
"Well... water responds to the feelings and sound of the user, I think it reacts because my power is an extension of that."
Zai nodded at my explanation.
"We should go inside now... enough procrastination," he said while rising to his feet
"I believe you could have gotten famous. It's not too late," he said encouragingly.
His words thrilled me, yet scared me at the same time.
He extended his hand toward me, and I took my cue to hold it and walk at his side.
"Thank you... I appreciate that," I replied.
"I'm going to help you," He added. My mouth dropped in shock,
"You mean it?" He nodded and said,
"Money is power, and I honestly have plenty of it. There's nothing I'd rather spend it on."
"How?" I asked the question I was afraid to ask before.
"It's best if you don't know," was his only reply, and then we entered the house.
Why can't I know? I am his wife now, so I should press him for an explanation later.
The house was in disarray. I guess this is what happens when RJ is here for 2 weeks alone. There were empty water bottles and packaging all over the floor, as well as discarded shirts, coats, and shoes. RJ was seated at the bar counter, drinking without a care in the world.
"Hello, brother," Zai greeted while merrily heading to the seat next to him and tugging me along with him.
"Hi," RJ replied apathetically.
"Hey." I greeted him as well... RJ didn't respond, but I guess it makes sense, he shouldn't need to say Hi more than once.
When we didn't immediately walk away, RJ glared.
"What is it?" Raijian asked curtly.
"We just got back, didn't you miss us?" Zai teased, grinning.
"... Yeah... I missed you," RJ admitted this with a slight reluctance.
Oh yeah, Zai said RJ can not lie, so he has no choice but to admit he missed us.
"Both of us?" Zai added teasingly.
Rai glared at his brother, then pouted and said,
"Yeah... welcome back." That's a relief, I was worried the reunion would be more dramatic than that.
"I'll start cleaning up," I offered, thinking I should give them time alone, but when I got up, Zai squeezed my hand and pulled me towards him to kiss me.
As soon as our lips made contact, he placed his free hand behind my head and gripped a handful of my hair. Our lips parted for a moment, and I whispered,
"Zai?" only to be kissed again and again. Once I felt him let go of my hair, I covered my mouth and said the only thing I could articulate at that moment,
"Zai?!" He smiled,
"What is it? Why do you keep saying my name?" I didn't respond and instead rushed away to get the cleaning supplies. I can't believe him, RJ might not be throwing a fit right now, but if he truly had feelings for me... Zai should be more considerate. I don't know why he doesn't see that.
"You really love rubbing it in..." RJ mumbled under his breath,
"If you have a problem, speak up about it. If you're not direct, I won't understand," Zai replied coldly.
I don't know what they're talking about exactly, but the mood just got heavy... Are they fighting for real this time?
Is this what Zai wanted?
They finished the rest of their conversation in hushed tones as I tidied up, and by the end of the convo, they were both smiling again...
Thank goodness.
I had just finished cleaning the living room and prepared to move on to the kitchen when Zai picked me up and cradled me in his arms.
"Wait, I'm not done," I argued. Zai kissed me
"Finish tomorrow," he demanded, and all the fight left my body.
"Okay..." I hugged his neck as he took me up to his room.
It was my first time in there, but I didn't have time to observe my surroundings until the next morning when I woke up.
The door was painted black, but the carpet was pure White like the walls. The walls were plastered with so many posters that it was hard to see the paint behind. There was a tall black bookshelf with one shelf dedicated to collectibles, and the other shelves were packed with both thick books and comics. He also had an impressive computer setup with 3 large monitors on an L-shaped black desk. His desk chair was tall, leather, and black; it looked soft. I feel like I'm learning more about him, but just looking around,
"You're up early," Zai noted, rising up himself. I looked away from him shyly, but then he hugged me and forced me to lie back down, cuddled up against him.
"Do you want to go back to sleep?" I asked. He smiled mischievously,
"No."
I did my best to keep my voice down during what happened next because I think RJ's room is in the room beside this one, but Zai didn't seem to care at all. He seemed to find amusement in making me lose my composure and leaving hickeys all over my body.
I wonder how long kiss marks stay visible... but I hope they fade before anyone sees me.