Page 77 of Heir to a Curse
Xiang recalled the plane ride. Claiming it had been terrifying and fascinating. He called it magic. Uncomfortable magic, though it sounded like Zhao had put him in first class.
“Loud,” I said. “And a bit claustrophobic. Were there a lot of people on the plane?”
He shook his head. “No. I was alone in the front portion. Kept on the mask,” he waved his hands over his face, “and that thing.”
“The shield.”
“And gloves,” he added. “Plane people were polite.”
For that I was grateful. I couldn’t imagine flying for the first time after being transported into a world nearly two hundred years after what I was used to. “And the car ride?”
“I have had many since arriving. Fast horses.”
“Yeah, horsepower is a thing. Tiny horses in the engine.”
He squinted at me. I smiled and tried to explain how a modern engine worked.
* * *
My phone rang on the fifth day and I fumbled for it, expecting it to be Addy. Only it was an unfamiliar number. “Hello?”
“Mr. Frank? It’s Greenford Health Clinic, calling with your test results, do you have a few minutes?”
My heart flipped over and I stopped pacing. Would they tell me I was sick? Some kind of Typhoid Mary maybe? Lethal to those around me? “Yes. Go ahead.” I confirmed their privacy information and listened for a few minutes, slowly processing. Then it clicked. “The test was negative? I don’t have it.”
“Correct.”
“How accurate? I mean is it really safe?” I stared at Xiang who stood only a few feet away, clutching the door with one hand, his other wrapped around himself like he was trying to hold himself back.
“This test is pretty accurate. We also tested for antibodies and found none. So there is no sign that you have it, or have had it in the past,” the nurse assured me. “Of course we recommend continuing with normal social distancing guidelines. Wear a mask when out in public and wash your hands frequently.”
“Thank you,” I said, hung up, and shoved my phone in my pocket. It was probably rude to hang up, but I couldn’t go another minute. I stepped forward, Xiang clutched the door, his breath catching as I stepped over the threshold, shoving the door away from him.
I touched his face first, the skin soft as I’d remembered, but warm and real. Tracing his cheek down to his lips, I couldn’t help but stare into those amazing dark eyes. My heart racing, entire body wound up like I was ready for a fight. If anything tried to rip him from me again it would be war.
He looked up at me, carefully put an arm around me, pulling me against him, and then his lips found mine. It was better than I remembered. Less a dream and more heat, and perfection. Mine. He was mine. Finally, and forever. Mine.
I devoured his lips for a minute, savoring the taste of tea on his tongue. A fruity flavor of strawberries and green tea. First thing I could recall actually tasting in weeks.
“Mine,” I told him. “Finally. Thank you for surviving until I could stop being a fucking idiot and fix this.”
“Was not your fault.”
“It was.” How many lifetimes ago could I have asked his family to forgive him. Though I had to admit, technology had been a huge benefit, as had having leverage to offer the family something in exchange. His warmth against me was heaven, like the world was right again, no matter the chaos happening outside. "Don’t leave me again. I’m not as strong as you. I’m pretty sure I died every time you vanished.”
He reached up to grab my hair, pressing his forehead to mine. “I have always waited for you. Knew you would return. Memories gave me hope.” He kissed the tip of my nose, hands firm in my hair. “I love you. You are mine.”
“You’re mine,” I said, demanding his lips again and finding them welcoming. “Mine. Finally, mine.” The curse broken, Xiang in my arms, I couldn’t imagine how a simple man like me had come to deserve such amazing things, but I’d hold on to all of it as long as I could.