Zai warped us directly into our living room to avoid any witnesses.
I checked my phone and saw that a lot of people had been listening to my song. Even the comments were mostly nice; over a hundred were saying they were excited about the album release.
No one is more excited than me, though... because once it's out, I'll finally have my own income and maybe I can plan more surprises for Zai!
"You look happy..." Zai pointed out, so I rushed over to him and showed him the good news.
"Look! My song post has over 20k views!"
He ruffled my hair.
"That's wonderful," Zai replied.
"That's right!" I agreed.
Zai's expression softened, and his eyes narrowed. My heart trembled instinctively. Is he about to finish what he tried to start in the prison's hallway?
Surprisingly, he just sighed and stepped away from me to sit on the couch.
"I don't want to ruin your mood... but if I don't talk to you now, I won't feel up to it later," he grumbled while staring out the window to his left.
"You can tell me."
I put my phone away and then sat beside him, being sure not to leave even a millimeter of space between us.
"... I fought the Lightning Chosen of Infaniya a few years ago... Not many can see what I am, but he noticed right away... because he could sense that we were the same."
They fought? That makes no sense. Then why isn't Zai a wanted criminal? How come no one knows he's an Afarion?
"He was much older and had some battle experience, but I was taught how to absorb electricity. So... as the fight drew on, he grew weaker, and I grew stronger. Other factors contributed to my victory, but I knew he wouldn't let me live a peaceful life, so in the end... I had to kill him."
My eyes widened and the mood I was in changed slightly... I know he didn't have much of a choice in that situation, but it's still crazy to imagine.
"Smoke thinks I'm the Infaniyan Chosen of Lightning, who is just pretending to be dead to stay out of the war," Zai concluded.
"... That's... trouble," I mumbled.
If Smoke is convinced that Zai is the Guardian of Lightning, then he'll be really suspicious when the real one is found reincarnated in a year or so.
"Seems like you understand the issue..." Zai scratched his head and groaned loudly, "I guess I went a little too overboard in our last fight," he muttered.
The one I didn't see...
I thought for a second, then asked,
"Smoke is a hundred years older than you. How did you beat him so easily?"
He scoffed.
"Did that look easy to you? Hmm... Well, to be honest, once I mastered my own element, I asked Valin to teach me the basics of Earth, to make up for my weaknesses. Earth can purify poisons, have slight control over gravity, and negate and absorb lightning. I chose it because it seemed like the best secondary element to practice," Zai explained.
I need to focus, but right now I'm curious about what kind of teacher Valin was.
"Smoke won't say anything," I assured.
Zai frowned and replied,
"Do you believe you know him well enough to make that claim?"
I hung my head... I can't be confident that he wouldn't... just a few weeks ago, I was sure he'd never kiss me.
"I do hope you're right..." Zai whispered as he put his arm around my waist.
"It's too tense in here... put some music on," he declared.
I quickly picked up my phone and began playing an album by a singer I grew up with.
"... Wow... that's an old song," Zai commented.
Does he know it?
"Is this your favorite song?" he asked.
"Oh ... um no... should I play my favorite?" I answered.
He nodded, so I switched over to the song I liked the most.
"Hmm... if this is your favorite, we'll play it at our wedding," he declared.
My heart fluttered, and then Zai's face moved in closer to mine. First, he brushed our noses together, making me giggle.
Then he opened his mouth and kissed me deeply, massaging my tongue with his.
I made a few weird sounds before turning away bashfully.
"Do you think less of me now? Should I give you space?" He asked. He looked genuinely worried.
I'm surprised he'd ask me this, after everything we've been through.
I knew he had killed before and that we were in a war.
From what he told me, it was self-defense, and he barely had any other options.
Is he worried because the victim was an Infaniyan?
As soon as I decided to be okay with loving an Afarion, I also decided to accept whatever dark past he had.
"That's not it... it's just hard for me to switch my mindset when the conversation was so serious, moments ago," I explained. He tilted his head in confusion.
"The music is on to set the mood... Is it not working? Would it be better if I sang to you?"
His question excited me, so I nodded rapidly.
I'm not sure if that will work, but I won't pass up the chance to hear him sing!
So he laughed and restarted my favorite song, then sang along. He had already memorized the lyrics, and his voice was so moving.
My heart was pounding in my ears, faster and louder with each second that passed.
I stared at his face, mesmerized by his lips.
When the song ended, another one began auto-playing, and Zai gazed over at me.
He rested a hand on my cheek, leaning in to kiss me again, in the same way he'd done previously. I kissed him back, returning the same level of intensity, and when our mouths parted, I said,
"I could never think less of you... I'm always on your side, Zai. In everything you do, I trust you have your reasons and... I just want to be here to have your back."
He stared into my eyes, then grinned widely.
"I'm starting to feel like you're too good for me," he admitted while moving his hands under my skirt to remove my underwear.
"D-don't say that... I'm just right for you, not too good," I corrected.
Zai pressed his lips to mine. I closed my eyes, but I heard his pants unzip.
He's in a hurry!
When our conversation got so serious, I thought he might not be in the mood tonight.
He held my chin to keep me from looking away and put his other hand on the armrest behind my back.
"I feel like I deserve you less and less every day," he mumbled while staring right into my eyes. "You are too generous with me, Snowe... honestly," he added before lifting me up and lowering me down onto his lap. I had to summon the boldness within me to maintain eye contact with him because I knew it was what he wanted.
And even though I was on top of him, it still felt like he was in control during the activities that followed.
After we stopped, Zai hugged my waist, holding me in place so we stayed connected, and pressed his face into my neck.
I felt like it was finally my chance to say what had been on my mind for hours.
"I want to be even... b-better to you..." I was having trouble catching my breath, and Zai laughed.
"Me too," he replied.
Then he bit my neck, and I gasped, which only made him bite slightly harder.
A moment later, he licked the spot to ease away the pain.
"Let's move to the bedroom..." he whispered directly into my ear, his breath tickling me.
The next day, when I woke up, Zai was sleeping next to me... It's rare to catch him sleeping. I always feel blessed to see him looking so sweet and vulnerable. This is a present only I can enjoy.
"I can feel you staring at me," he said softly, then his eyes flew open, and he caught me before I could turn away.
"I'm sorry," I whimpered, and he chuckled.
"No, I think it's cute that you still get excited from looking at me," he muttered, sitting up and combing his hair back with his fingers.
I blushed at his wording.
"That's not true!" I yelled in my defense, and he pulled me closer until his bare body pressed against me.
"Silly Snowe... Did you forget? I know when you're lying." As soon as those words escaped his lips, his phone rang.
Zai groaned and rolled away to check it. Now that I think about it, I've never heard his phone ring before.
He answered and brushed his hair from his face with his free hand.
"What is it?" Is that any way to answer the phone? "I was on vacation... yeah... fine, I'll get it done tonight." Then he hung up.
"What was that about?" I inquired. He tossed his phone into his desk chair and said,
"Business."
"Oh! I never heard your phone ring before," I noted. "I was a bit shocked."
"I have important numbers on emergency bypass." Zai explained, then he began leaving tiny kisses on my shoulder, "I'll... make you breakfast," he offered, seeming to force himself to pull away, then he went to his dresser and put on some sweatpants before heading to the kitchen downstairs.
I took my time following him, and when I finally reached the kitchen, I saw him cooking so gracefully that it looked like he was dancing.
I'm not sure if he even noticed me until I sat down at the bar top.
It seemed I made it just in time. My plate was already waiting for me, a stack of pancakes topped with strawberries. He sat beside me with blueberry pancakes for himself and leaned his shoulder on mine as we ate.
"Thank you for making me breakfast," I said while pouring strawberry syrup over my food.
"Are you going to thank me every time I cook for you? It's going to get tiring since we have a long life ahead of us," he replied.
"I plan on it! I'm going to thank you every day and tell you I love you every day and tell you that you're beautiful every day!" I declared.
His cheeks reddened, up to his ears.
"You're ridiculous," he mumbled, raising his hand to hide his smile.
I could tell I made him happy, and that put me in the best mood.
"Hey..." he began, "While we're eating, could you play that demo you uploaded on SceneIt?"
After our talk yesterday, I'd almost forgotten about it.
"Sure," I replied, pulling up my social media page and playing the song from my phone.
Zai ate his breakfast, while occasionally humming along.
I took a bite of my pancakes, feeling flutters in my chest as this moment transformed into something unforgettable.