291: You Have My Faith

You Have My Faith

I had never seen Bai Ye sleep so well like he did that night. He didn't even wake up when I shifted next to him, moving myself closer into his arms. The look on his face was so peaceful, and I was surprised by the way he smiled when I freed one of my hands to brush my fingers lightly over his cheek.1

He must be having some sweet dreams … After spending all these years haunted by nightmares, he was finally starting to put down some of the burden and letting himself rest. He was finally starting to let go.

The relief from that realization rinsed away all the sleepiness in me. I didn't want to go back to sleep anymore, so I simply kept my eyes open for the rest of the night, watching the moonlight casting dreamy shadows over his perfect features. Watching that moonlight slowly turn into twilight, then into a milky haze of dawn. By the time the golden ray of the morning broke through our window, he stirred, and his eyes fluttered open.

"You've been awake?" he asked when those beautiful eyes focused on me. "You should've said something."

I smiled. "Didn't want to wake you up." I reached up and planted a light kiss over his lips. "You look beautiful in your sleep."

He paused for only a second. Then he laughed softly. Those were the same words he had said to me last summer, after we woke up from the first night he spent with me in my room, and that laugh told me he remembered it just as well as I did. "Maybe I should blush a little at your compliment," he reminded me wryly of my shyness back in those days. Though before I got a chance to comment, he had pulled me back into a deep, lingering kiss.

Part of me wished that I knew back then the true depth of the bond between us, that I knew sooner how much he had always loved me since the very beginning. But I suppose I was thankful enough for everything to work out this way in the end, and for him to finally come to terms with our past and present. So I let myself relish this moment, pressing my chest tighter against his to feel our heartbeats pulse in rhythm together.

We melted into each other's arms. I forgot how much time had passed before he reluctantly pulled away. "I wish we could just stay in bed like this all day," he breathed. There was an alluring hoarseness to his voice. "But sadly … we still have work to do."

I whined in protest as those words dragged me back into reality. He was right. We were on the third day now with that ultimatum from my twin sister, and we couldn't just hope for the problem to resolve on its own. I had to settle the score with her before she unleashed those dark spells on the innocent commoners, and before Mount Hua got a chance to interfere.

"I'll go find her," I said, giving him one last kiss before sliding out of the blanket. "Teng Yuan probably won't make it here that quickly, so no need to worry about me getting into trouble with Mount Hua. If you want to stay here and search through more of those books—"

"I'm coming with you." He followed me to climb out of the bed as well.

That took me by surprise. "You don't need to," I said, wondering if he was trying to watch over me and make sure that I didn't attempt to use the soul spell without telling him. "I promised I won't do anything rash without you, and I'll keep my word. Don't you want more time to look for a different alternative to that spell?"

He smiled. Something glittered in his eyes, filled with a new emotion that I hadn't seen before. "The chances of finding something new so quickly is slim," he admitted. "I've already gone through all these books at least once before … and we're running out of time. I've lied to myself enough in the past to know that this is just another one of those days." He shook his head in a somewhat embarrassed chuckle. "Your decision to confront her was the right one, Qing-er. I was simply not as brave as you are. I was simply afraid of the danger, and I wanted to avoid it or delay it at all costs."

I stared at him. I hadn't had much hope in finding another solution in such a short amount of time either, and I had always known the main reason for his hesitation was the concern for my safety. But I was shocked by the fact that he would admit all of these himself. "Then … You've changed your mind now?" I asked. "Are you not afraid anymore?"

He placed his hand on top of mine. "I'm still afraid, and I can probably never stop feeling that way when it comes to your safety. But … You were right when you said we can't run from this forever. Twin Stars is a part of you, and if we want to solve all our problems with the demonic sword once and for all, this might be the best and only chance we have. I shouldn't be stopping you … I should be standing by your side instead and helping you in every way possible."

I blinked, unsure for a moment how to respond. Was he saying all of this because of the memories he just shared with me? Because they reminded him of the mistakes that he regretted in the past, so he wanted to avoid making the wrong choice by influencing my decisions again?

He must've read my mind from the look in my eyes, as he smiled again faintly. "We are not repeating history this time, Qing-er. You have what it takes to settle your scores with Twin Stars now, and you have the right to do it, because it is your own life. I might have my fears, but if I keep letting that fear stop us from trying, then we'll never get anywhere." That glitter in his eyes sparkled once more. "It's time that I believe in you to do what is right. You asked for my faith, and I give it to you now. All of it."

I kept staring at him, and suddenly, I realized things had truly started to change. Letting go of those burdens had freed him from that dread haunting him from the past, and he had finally started to look at things from a new perspective—with hope.

My eyes misted, and all I could do then was to wrap my arms tight around him, kissing him like he had finally come back to me from a journey far, far away.

pqdm.com