Page 37 of Crossing Between

The next morning, a doctor came in early to check my vitals and, apparently satisfied with my recovery, signed my discharge papers. The relief I felt was immense. Hospitals always made me feel trapped, even fancy private ones.

"Are you sure you're ready to leave?" Varon stood in the doorway, arms crossed over his chest, his expression stern but eyes betraying concern.

"More than ready," I was already pulling on the bright yellow t-shirt he'd brought from my apartment. "I've spent enough time lying down."

I winced slightly as I bent to tie my shoes, my body still aching in places I didn't know could ache. Using my magic so intensely had left me feeling like I'd run a marathon while being beaten with sticks.

"You're still in pain," Varon observed, his tone making it clear he thought I should stay longer.

"Nothing I can't handle," I straightened up, meeting his gaze. "Besides, I'll heal faster in a familiar environment."

"You mean my house," his expression unreadable .

I took a deep breath. "Actually, I want to go home. My home."

The temperature in the room seemed to drop several degrees as Varon's face hardened. "That's not happening."

"Varon..."

"The Essencefeaster is still out there," he cut me off, his voice low and intense. "It's targeting you specifically now. Your apartment isn't secure."

"I understand that, but-!"

"No buts," he stepped closer, his presence filling the small room. "You're coming back to my house where I can protect you."

I felt a flash of irritation. "I'm not a child, Varon. I get to have a say in this."

"Not when your safety is concerned," his tone was final, brooking no argument.

The frustration that had been building exploded. "This is exactly why I need to go home! I've been following everyone else's lead for weeks now. I need some control over my own life."

Varon's jaw tightened. "Control won't matter if you're dead."

"I can't live in fear forever," I crossed my arms to mirror his stance. "My magic is returning. I can feel it. And I have responsibilities. Ruth, my brother..."

"They can visit."

"That's not the point!" I threw up my hands in exasperation. "The point is that I need space to breathe, to process everything that's happened. I need my own things around me, my own bed."

Something shifted in Varon's expression at the mention of beds, a flicker of heat in his eyes that reminded me of our night together. But he quickly masked it.

"It's too dangerous," he insisted.

I took a deep breath, trying a different approach. "Look, I appreciate everything you've done for me. I do. But I need to go home, even if just for a little while. I'll be more focused, more centered if I can reconnect with my normal life."

Varon remained silent, his expression stoic but his eyes calculating. I could almost see him weighing options, assessing the risks.

"What if someone stays with me?" I suggested. "You, Kenji, Elias? I don't care. But at my place, not yours."

His eyes narrowed slightly. "You're not going to back down on this, are you?"

I lifted my chin. "No."

A heavy sigh escaped him. "Fine. But one of us will be with you at all times. No exceptions. And at the first sign of trouble, we're leaving immediately."

Relief washed over me. "Thank you."

"Don't thank me yet," he warned. "If anything happens to you because of this decision..."

"It won't," I hugged him, even as uncertainty gnawed at my insides. "I'll be careful."

Kenji volunteered to take the first watch and drove me home. The ride was mostly silent, both of us lost in our thoughts. When we pulled up to my building, a wave of nostalgia hit me. It had only been a few days, but it felt like months since I'd been home.

Inside, everything was exactly as I'd left it.

Slightly messy, colorful, and wonderfully familiar.

I sank onto my couch, suddenly overwhelmed by exhaustion and emotion.

The weight of everything. The Essencefeaster, my new powers, the relationships forming between me and these three incredible men, it all came crashing down all at once.

I put my head in my hands, breathing deeply, trying to center myself.

"Hey," Kenji's voice was uncharacteristically gentle as he sat beside me, his large hand warm on my back. "You okay?"

"No," my voice muffled. "I'm not okay. I don't know if I'll ever be okay again."

His hand moved in slow, comforting circles between my shoulder blades. "Want to talk about it?"

I lifted my head, meeting his concerned gaze. "Everything's happening so fast. A month ago, I was just a fake medium trying to make ends meet. Now I'm some rare magical being fighting a demon while juggling feelings for three different men."

A small smile tugged at Kenji's lips. "When you put it that way, it does sound a bit overwhelming."

"A bit?" I laughed weakly. "It's completely overwhelming. I feel like I'm drowning."

Kenji shifted closer, his arm now fully around my shoulders. "Then let us be your lifeline. You don't have to face this alone, Zoey."

"That's just it," I leaned into his warmth instinctively. "I've always been alone in this. My whole life, I've had to hide who I am, what I can do. Having people know the truth, having support, it's foreign territory."

"And scary," he added, understanding in his eyes.

"Terrifying. And then there's this." I gestured vaguely between us. "Whatever is happening with you and Elias and Varon. I've never felt this way about anyone before, let alone three people at once."

Kenji was quiet for a moment, his expression thoughtful. "Can I show you something?" He took my hand in his.

I nodded, curious.

He held our hands up, palm to palm. "Look closely. Do you see it?"

I squinted, seeing nothing but our joined hands. "See what?"

"Close your eyes," he instructed. "Don't look with your eyes. Look with your magic."

Though skeptical, I did as he asked, closing my eyes and reaching for the small reserve of magic that had begun to replenish. I extended my awareness outward, focusing on our connected hands.

And then I saw it. A thin, shimmering red thread that extended from Kenji's pinky finger to mine. It glowed with a soft, pulsing light.

My eyes flew open in shock. "What is that?"

Kenji smiled, his eyes warm. "In my culture, we call it the red string of fate. It connects those who are destined to be together, regardless of time, place, or circumstances."

"Like soulmates?" My voice was barely above a whisper.

"Something like that," he nodded. "The string may stretch or tangle, but it never breaks. It's an unbreakable bond of fate."

I stared at our hands, though I could no longer see the thread with my physical eyes. "And you see this between us?"

"Not just us," Kenji's voice was soft but certain. "Between all four of us. You, me, Elias, Varon. We're all connected by the same string."

The implications hit me like a tidal wave. "That's why everything feels so intense. So right, even when it shouldn't."

Kenji nodded, his thumb stroking the back of my hand. "I've seen it for years in my visions. I just didn't understand what it meant until I met you."

"Does Elias know? Does Varon?"

"Elias knows something. He feels the connection through his kraken. Varon, well, I think he suspects, but he's fighting it. He's lived too long, seen too much to trust easily in fate."

I absorbed this information, my mind racing. "So what do we do now?"

Kenji's smile was gentle. "We take it one day at a time. No pressure, no expectations. Just four people following the string wherever it leads."

His words lifted a weight I hadn't realized I'd been carrying. The confusion, the guilt over wanting all three of them. It wasn't wrong. It was fate.

"Thank you for telling me this," I squeezed his hand.

"Thank you for being brave enough to hear it," he winked. "Not everyone is ready to accept such a truth."

We sat in comfortable silence for a while, my head eventually finding its way to his shoulder. The steady rhythm of his breathing was soothing, and for the first time in days, I felt a sense of peace.

"Kenji?"

"Hmm?"

"I'm still scared about everything else, but I'm not scared about us anymore. About the four of us."

His arm tightened around me. "Good. Because together, we're stronger than any demon. And what we're building between us? That's more powerful than any magic."

I believed him.