Page 30 of Hexual Healing
“I can't.”
The admission hung between us, too honest for the situation.
“For fuck's sake,” Gary muttered.“Just kiss already.”
We both turned to stare him down.
“What?Your tension’s literally making the air spark.Look!”
He was right.The air between us was full of tiny lightning bolts of magic seeking connection.
“That's just the curse…” I started.
“That's not the curse,” Baz said quietly.“That's us.”
Before I could respond, before I could think of all the reasons this was a terrible idea, he kissed me.
The world exploded.
Not metaphorically.The actual world exploded.Every piece of glass within a half-mile radius shattered.Every magicked butterfly spontaneously combusted into fireworks.The house lifted six inches off its foundation before settling back down with a satisfied thump.
And the curse…
The curse screamed.
It felt like someone had reached into my chest and grabbed my heart with molten metal fingers.I gasped, pulling back, and Baz caught me before I could fall.
“I'm sorry,” he said quickly.“I shouldn't have done that.”
“Do it again.”
“What?”
“The curse hated it,” I said, grinning through the pain.“It absolutely despised that kiss.Which means we're onto something.”
“Your logic is that we should do more of what hurts you?”
“My logic is that if the curse hates it, it must be good for us.”
He stared at me as if I'd lost my mind.Which was fair, and sweet.Because that meant I’d fooled him, or he believed in me enough, to think I had a mind to lose in the first place.
“That's the worst logic I've ever heard,” Gary said.“Which means it's probably perfect for this situation.Your wholelifeis backward logic.”
“Exactly!”I turned back to Baz.“The curse wants me miserable and alone.So, whatever makes me happy…”
“Causes you excruciating pain?”
“But maybe weakens it!”I was getting excited.The butterflies, mostly reformed now, were swirling around us in a dizzying spiral.“Think about it.Every time we get close, the curse fights harder.What if it's not getting stronger?What if it's getting desperate?”
Baz seemed to seriously consider this.“You want to weaponize affection?”
“I want to weaponize everything,” I corrected.“Affection, chaos, this weirdly aggressive house.”
The house preened.The walls straightened, and the paint freshened.
“That might be just insane enough to work,” Baz said, but he was smiling.
“I think we can both agree that sanity’s relative.Especially for us.Especially now.”