Chenzhou was so ill he could barely get out of bed, but Akari still wasn’t willing to cross him by blatantly ignoring the unspoken command.
And he hadn’t for years.
Sothing had changed though. Chenzhou had heard about his attempted visits since that disastrous council eting and now he was standing in Chenzhou’s rooms, asking Chenzhou about Yuze.
Like he was hoping Chenzhou would change his mind and give permission. Would make Yuze talk to him.
That was never going to happen and the longer Chenzhou stayed silent the more Akari seed to tense.
“This is childish behavior,” the healer finally snapped. “We are adults, we are capable of speaking to one another regardless of our shared history.”
“If he wanted to talk to you, he would. I told him I wouldn’t get involved and I ant it.”
Akari tensed, fists clenching at his sides. “I simply wish to talk to him.”
“I’m not getting involved.” Chenzhou growled. “Yuze is an adult, if he wants to speak to you he will. I’d suggest waiting until he approaches you.”
“He never will!” Akari snapped and Anna whirled on him, outraged.
Chenzhou grabbed her hand and squeezed it gently, keeping her at his side. “You left. You don’t get to be angry that he doesn’t want you back.”
“That is not-” Akari stopped and took a deep breath. He forced himself to relax. Dropping his shoulders and unclenching his fists and taking another deep breath. “I just wanted to see if he was okay.”
“Why?” Anna snapped, scowling.
Akari glanced at her. Back when Akari and Yuze had been married, they’d all eaten together on occasion. When Akari hadn’t been busy at the hospital, Yuze hadn’t been on a mission, and Chenzhou hadn’t been bogged down in bureaucracy.
When he thought back, he realized they’d only ever managed a few over the years they were married, which was odd considering Chenzhou and Yuze saw each other daily.
Akari gave a tight smile. “I see there’s no point in continuing this discussion.”
“It would seem so.” Chenzhou relaxed into his pillows and tried to find so relief in the cool silk and feathers. His head was pounding and none of Huang or Akari’s tonics had helped. He was sweating, hot and stuffy and aching. He didn’t want to talk to Akari at all, let alone about what he’d done to Chenzhou’s best friend.
Akari gave a short bow and headed for the door.
Chenzhou watched him go. Relieved, but still worried. Why was Akari suddenly coming around again after staying away for so long?
Regret?
Did he want Yuze back again?
Changed his mind after all these years.
Why?
A guard opened the door for Akari, but he stopped in the doorway.
***
The hallway was on fire.
Flas were climbing the walls and crawling across the floor.
Akari froze in the doorway of Chenzhou's room. His guards were posted inside because of the visiting healers, but Healer Huang had only left minutes ago.
He'd seen wildfires before. The hungry, self-feeding force that consud everything in its path until there was nothing left. They hadn't been common in the Red Desert where he'd been born. That land of sand and sun where nothing grew without extre effort. There was nothing to burn there, but when he'd cross the Hearthland with his family as a child they'd seen fires that spanned the entire horizon. So much smoke that it was night for days.
His parents had originally intended to settle there, but the sumr they'd arrive had set records for the number of fires and they'd quickly dragged their children east until they'd cross the Still Water and arrived in Aontacht. Akari, then a teenager just at the beginning of his training as a healer, had continued on with his teacher to the Calia where he'd remained since.
He'd et Yuze two years after he arrived and married him the sa year after a whirlwind romance of only a few months. Rong Yuze hadn't been Akari's first love, but he'd been the first one that made Akari consider giving up healing. He'd been seriously considering leaving his teacher to join Yuze as a spy, before Yuze had convinced him they could handle the long separations when he was gone on mission. And Akari's mad schedule as he moved up among the healers in the Calia's hospital.
It had taken Akari three years to realize that they'd stayed in the honeymoon period of their relationship for so long because they barely saw one another. Yuze had been perfectly happy with it all, but Akari had co out of a surgery, one of the long ones that started one day and ended another and arrived ho exhausted physically and emotionally and needing comfort and he'd arrived ho to a note that Yuze had left on a last-minute mission.
Never mind that Yuze had moved up enough that he spent more ti commanding spies than spying himself.
He'd been gone when Akari needed him, and it had just suddenly occurred to him that Yuze had been gone so many tis when Akari needed him.
And Akari had probably been gone when Yuze needed him.
Yuze would never say that though. Yuze had never complained, always been pleased with whatever scraps he could get. So hold over from the terrible childhood he'd confided in Akari.
He wasn't sure why it had only occurred to him that day, when they'd already spent three years together, but he couldn't escape it after that.
He hadn't handled it well. He knew that, but he'd loved Yuze so much and it was so, so tempting to stay and just deal with it until it poisoned them both and their love twisted into sothing horrible.
He'd walked away instead. In the coldest, sharpest way he could manage to save them both.
It didn't an he'd suddenly stopped loving Yuze. It would have been much easier if it did, and it had been easier to stay away when the Calia remained the sa. Unchanging.
Until Chenzhou had married out of the blue and his new wife had shown up. A princess from the distant capital.
A princess with magic.
~ tbc
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