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Seeing Pete on the front porch, practicing judo, sent Ploy back in time. Back to being in middle school and her brother training harder at judo than he had trained in anything else in his life, all to prove one snotty coach wrong. It made her wonder what life might have been like for them had their parents never died. How far would Pete have taken his judo career? How many tournaments might he have won? How obnoxious would they all have been about it?
Shaking her head, Ploy slid the front gate shut behind her and moved to join him in the shade.
“Wow. Someone is training hard,” she said, trying to keep her voice light. The last thing they needed was one of them taking something as a personal attack. Then they’d fight again, and Ploy was so done fighting with her brother.
His concentration broken, Pete immediately stopped practicing to give her a smile. He tried to hug her too, but Ploy took a step back.
“Aow,” he let out.
“You’re literally dripping,” Ploy pointed out, motioning to his neck.
“Oh.” Pete grabbed a towel from the patio table and started wiping himself down. “You’re here early. No class?”
Ploy shook her head. “In the afternoon.” With a nod, Pete took a seat at the table, so Ploy followed suit. “Are you going to start judo again?”
Pete shook his head. “Not right now, at least. There’s too much going on. Maybe after.”
The sliding glass door opened, drawing both siblings’ attentions, and Niran stepped outside. Niran glanced between them, then crossed the distance to the table and held out a bottle of honey lemon green tea with his left hand.
“Here,” he said gruffly.
There was a familiar jade ring on his ring finger and Ploy gasped softly. Niran’s eyes flicked to her even as Pete took the bottle with a smile.
“Thanks, man. I’m so thirsty,” Pete said, cracking the seal and downing a third of the bottle in one go.
“I know,” Niran said, still looking at Ploy. He pressed his lips together, his brow furrowing, and shifted his left hand behind his hip.
Oh, was he nervous? Did he think Ploy was mad? Surprised, sure, but she wasn’t mad. Last time she’d spoken to Pete, before the incident, he’d seemed just as listless and likely to gamble his life away as ever. And now he was back to practicing judo, had stopped smoking and gambling, and was proposing to the guy who bought their house with their mom’s ring.
Lips pulling up in a grin, Ploy teased, “I suppose this is one way to get the house back, huh?”
Pete hummed a question even as he set the bottle on the table. Ploy nodded toward Niran. The boys glanced at each other, then at her, uncomprehending. Honestly. Boys. Ploy held up her left hand and pointed to her empty ring finger. It took a second, but then both boys’ eyes went wide.
“That’s—That’s not—!” Pete stumbled, holding his hands up even as Niran blurted, “I was going to give the house back anyway—”
Their heads snapped to each other even as their mouths clicked audibly shut, Pete’s hands still in the air. A definite flush rose in Niran’s cheeks and then, without a word, he fled back inside. Okay. His usual deadpan stare was hiding a cutie. Ploy could see the appeal for Pete.
Only once Niran had been out of sight for several seconds did Pete turn back to his sister. She saw where she ranked.
Pete’s face was also noticeably pink when he said, “Look, I gave him mom’s ring because—He’s—I wanted—He gave me this first, so it made sense, okay?” he finished, reaching up to fiddle with the jade necklace.
Ploy nodded. “Okay.”
So Niran had proposed first and Pete had accepted. She still didn’t fully get it, since she hadn’t been around when they met or as they fell in love, but if they were happy together, Ploy would support them one thousand percent.
Pete’s brow furrowed. “Okay? Do you really understand what I’m saying?”
Another nod. “I understand.” Pete still looked dubious, and Ploy sighed, then gave her most accepting smile. “If I say I understand, I understand, okay?”
Pete pressed his lips together—not unlike Niran had done—and considered her for a long moment. Then he clicked his teeth and reached for the green tea bottle again to take another long drink. And if he kept playing with the necklace as their conversation continued, Ploy didn’t point it out.
…
…
Pete and Niran’s fridge could always be counted on to be full of drinks and snacks for the team. It was one of the things Yok appreciated about them—and the money, of course.
As soon as she arrived at the house after her normal, not demon associated, job, Yok immediately made for the fridge to get a soy milk. It was hot as hell outside. Was that Qi Rong’s doing too? Would sealing him make Thailand cooler? Probably not, but a girl could dream.
At the table, Niran was typing something on his cellphone, his usual serious “I’m working on a job” face. How he could think about other spiritual jobs while they also used their literal life energy to fight a powerful demon was beyond her. Niran glanced up when Yok walked in and they gave each other mutual nods of acknowledgement before returning to their individual tasks. Just before her eyes could make it entirely to the fridge, something caught Yok’s attention.
A ring. On Niran’s wedding finger. It looked like jade.
Huh. Yok opened the fridge, enjoyed the cool air as she looked around for which drink she wanted, maybe a snack too. Niran hadn’t worn a ring there before. When did he and Pete make things official? She’d thought they were still in denial about their feelings for each other.
Yok grabbed a boxed soy milk and then abandoned the fridge to grab a chewy konjac jelly snack instead. Snacks obtained, Yok sat across from Niran at the table. She stared at him as she thought.
Well, good for them. The heavens knew Pete and Niran had almost died enough times, put their souls on the line constantly, for this suicide mission to save the world. If they wanted to get married and enjoy that for however long they had left, more power to them.
Niran glanced up and caught Yok looking. She just took another sip of her milk.
“What?” he asked.
Yok shrugged. “Congratulations,” she said, nodding toward his finger.
Niran glanced at his hand, then narrowed his eyes at her. Did he think she was judging him for getting married in secret? He might be independently wealthy and able to afford a big ceremony, but the rest of them weren’t, and Yok actually appreciated that he and Pete hadn’t insisted on wedding gifts or money. She and the boys weren’t exactly rolling in baht, after all.
“This is—”
“I’m not upset. I’m happy for you two,” Yok interrupted, and Niran’s mouth snapped shut. “Just don’t expect a present.”
For another long moment, Yok and Niran just stared at each other. Yok finished her milk and opened the jelly snack without breaking eye contact.
Eventually, Niran let out a sigh, his shoulders loosening. “Okay.”
Yok nodded. “Okay.”
Then Niran went back to typing away on his phone and Yok let her eyes drift out the window as she ate her snack and enjoyed the air conditioning. Thailand really was way too hot this time of year. Definitely too hot for a wedding.
…
…
“Did you see?”
“Duh! Did you—”
“Uh! I saw!”
Jack, Thua, and Tao stopped pointing at each other to instead point in the direction Niran had just disappeared, then back to each other.
“P’Pete wouldn’t have—Right?” Tao asked, lowering his hand to his lap.
“No,” Thua agreed, motioning between the three of them, “Not without us, right?”
Jack frowned. “Let’s go ask him. Maybe it hasn’t happened yet.”
The trio hurried upstairs, tripping over each other in their haste. They got to the bathroom door just as it opened—as if by fate!—to reveal Pete, fresh from a shower, one towel still wrapped around his waist and another over his head to dry his hair as he walked, jade pendant hanging around his neck.
“P’Pete!” they called as one, and Pete jerked back, ripping the smaller towel from his head.
“Shit!” he cursed, putting a hand to his bare chest. “What the hell, guys?”
They pressed in close, not letting him escape. This was an important conversation and he couldn’t be allowed to leave without giving them answers!
“You didn’t have the ceremony without us, right?” Thua demanded, his taller frame and deeper voice cutting right to the heart of the matter.
Tao and Jack nodded, then Tao said, “You wouldn’t leave us out of the party, right?”
“Our relationship is deeper than that, right?”
With each question, they stepped closer, forcing Pete back into the bathroom while they blocked the door. Pete looked between them, bemused. A nervous smile hesitantly lifted his lips.
“Uh…Ceremony?” He blinked, then perked up with sudden clarity. “Oh! You mean the Qi Rong sealing? Of course not!”
The three guys shook their heads in tandem. “No!” they said, and Pete flinched, returning to his confused look.
For being older and so much cooler than them, sometimes Pete was so clueless.
“Your wedding,” Jack clarified, jerking his thumb toward the railing and, thus, downstairs.
“Huh?!” Pete balked.
“Yeah, you have to invite us to the official ceremony, you know!” Tao insisted. “You can’t leave us out!”
Thua crossed his arms. “We agreed to help you seal a demon, and that’s been awesome, but if you have a party and don’t bring us? Not cool, phi.”
Pete ran his hands over his face. “I didn’t have a wedding ceremony.”
Zack, Thua, and Tao breathed sighs of relief. “Oh good,” Tao let out. “I was worried for a minute.”
“So we are invited?” Zack asked for clarification. “When you do have one?”
Pete looked between them and they each did their best to look as worthy of being invited to a wedding as possible. Totally trustworthy. Weren’t going to crash it. One hundred percent bros.
With a sigh, Pete nodded. “Y-Yeah. When I have one.”
The trio cheered and gave each other—and Pete, though dazedly—high fives.
“Can I put pants on now?” Pete asked, looking pointedly toward his and Niran’s bedroom.
“Oh, yeah!”
“Totally!”
“Sorry, P’Pete, go ahead!”
They backed up enough for Pete to scooch by, then kept smiling after him as he crossed the scant feet to his door. Pete sent one last bewildered look their way before disappearing into the room.
Jack smacked his two friends on the head. “Way to intimidate him, guys!” He rolled his eyes and headed for the stairs again, his friends hot on his feet.
“Aow,” Tao let out, rubbing his head as he walked. He pointed at Jack with his other hand. “You were doing it just as much as we were!”
“How was that intimidating?” Thua asked. “He’s stronger than all of us combined, isn’t he?”
…
…
It was sad that, among ten people, none of them really knew how to cook. Well, that was unfair. Jia Hao knew how to cook, he just refused to cook enough for ten people. Especially every night. He’d rather pitch in for takeout, where all they had to do was throw the containers away when they were done. No dishes!
Pete’s ducklings had driven to three different restaurants—one each—to grab the feast for the night. When they got back, the kitchen counter was piled with containers and disposable plates and cutlery and napkins. Somehow, Pete ended up taking shouted out drink orders and then going to the fridge to get each one and delivering it to people throughout the downstairs, wherever the person ended up eating at. And Niran stood by the food, smacking the hands of anyone trying to take too much of one thing like an old nanny. Had he been this naggy before the hospital? Gosh.
Jia Hao took his plate down the row of takeout containers, loading up with carbs and protein. Luckily, there was still a little sanpei chicken left. But no sooner had Jia Hao reached for the chicken than Niran’s hand shot over to knock him away.
“Hey now, Niran, that’s not respectful,” Jia Hao protested.
Niran maintained his usual unimpressed expression as he said, “You have enough.”
True, Jia Hao’s plate was pretty full, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t get more. They’d bought tons of food, after all. And the more he ate, the more alcohol he could consume before it overwhelmed him!
“There’s plenty of food for everyone,” Jia Hao argued, motioning to the noodles and rice and vegetables, and even other meats, that were still in the containers. They were mostly empty, but that was because almost everyone had gotten their food already. Tong and Pete were the only ones—and Tong hadn’t even arrived yet. If he was much later, he’d miss out on dinner altogether.
Niran shook his head without sympathy. “Then eat some of that,” he said like an order.
Then Niran grabbed a plate and began putting food on it—starting with the sanpei chicken.
“What happened to leaving some for others?” Jia Hao protested. “You’re getting seconds and others haven’t even gotten firsts!”
“This is for Pete,” Niran said simply, not even looking away from his task.
Ah. Jia Hao understood now. Pete must like sanpei chicken, or else Niran wouldn’t have protected it so much. How nice that Niran cared about someone enough to remember their favorite foods. That was very different from the Niran he had encountered years ago—a bitter teenager angry at the Wu for being ‘old-fashioned’ and judgmental, who said he would only work for his own good.
Niran shifted his hold on the plate and Jia Hao caught sight of another difference between teenager Niran and now: a jade ring on his wedding finger.
“Ahhh, I get it,” Jia Hao said smugly. When Niran looked up at him with a raised eyebrow, Jia Hao motioned to the ring. “Happiness, health, old age, and all that.”
Now Niran’s face began to turn pink. “Hia.”
Shaking his head, Jia Hao grabbed a pair of chopsticks, then used them to motion to the ring again. “Pretty shitty of you not to get him one in return, tho, huh? There should be an exchange to make things right.”
Niran’s mouth, which had opened to retort, snapped shut and he looked distinctly shy, his eyes darting down then to the side. Jia Hao followed the look to see Pete leaning down to hand a soda to Thua on the couch. The jade pendant dangled from his neck.
“I see,” Jia Hao said.
“I didn’t say anything,” Niran protested, even as he continued plating food for Pete.
“Whose ring was it?” Jia Hao asked. “Before he gave it to you? His mother’s?”
Niran paused for a moment, an instant, but Jia Hao knew he was right. Exchanging family heirlooms was sometimes part of marriage ceremonies as a visual representation of blending the two families. “You are my family and I am yours” and all that.
“Right right, as long as you stay true to each other, it’s none of my business.”
“Hia,” Niran tried again, but Jia Hao waved him off and headed to find a place to sit and eat, and also a drink. All this talk of weddings had him thirsty for wine.
…
…
Night had well and truly fallen. Thua, Tao, and Jack had fallen asleep in a pile on the couch, their phones still clutched in hand. Yok left an hour ago, citing a job in the morning. Ploy was asleep in her bedroom. Jia Hao was sobering up, insisting he would see Tong home and not letting him leave beforehand. Most likely, Tong would end up taking Jia Hao home instead, but that was fine too.
They’d eaten together and drank together, but Tong had made sure to drink slowly so he didn’t fall asleep this time. Still, the room had gotten spinny pretty quick, and Tong had decided to just talk and watch Jia Hao drink instead. And now, he’d watched the rambunctious house slowly fall asleep. It was nicer than being alone at his apartment all the time. He felt…connected here. Maybe that was the alcohol talking.
Niran wandered into the kitchen with a tired sigh while Tong was rinsing out their drinking glasses.
“Alright?” Tong asked.
A nod. “It’s always loud in here.”
He said that like a complaint, but Tong saw how relaxed his face was afterward. It didn’t do that before his soul was stolen. He’d always held himself so tightly. But whatever he and Pete had experienced in the Life Spirit Realm had shifted something in Niran.
Tong had done a reading on them—Pete and Niran had been bound by fate long before they literally tied their souls together. Though they would go through lots of strife, there was a positive outlook for their life. Tong wasn’t sure what could be more ‘strife’ than literally losing a soul, so though he hadn’t done another reading, he had high hopes for the rest of this demon venture and Niran and Pete’s lives.
Niran opened the fridge with his right hand, then reached in for a drink with his left. The light from the fridge highlighted the jade ring on his finger and Tong stopped drying the glass in his hand.
“Oh.”
Niran gave him a tired but questioning look and Tong motioned to the ring with his towel.
“Can I see your ring for a moment?” Tong asked. When Niran hesitated, Tong assured him, “You don’t have to take it off.”
Appeased, Niran shut the fridge door, transferred his drink to his right hand, and held out his left. Tong put the glass and towel down. Adjusting his glasses, he lifted Niran’s hand and leaned closer to look. He was right. There was a symbol etched in the jade.
“Fate,” he read. “Doesn’t that match the word ‘fate’ on your necklace?” The one he’d given to Pete, actually.
Pulling his hand back, Niran opened his drink and took a sip without looking at Tong. “Uh,” he agreed at length.
“Another gift from your grandfather?” Tong asked.
Did he put it on because the protection from his necklace was with Pete now? The ring also had power, so it must’ve been a gift of love.
“Mm. Pete,” Niran said. Then, as if he’d said something he shouldn’t have, Niran jerkily turned and left the room.
Tong watched him go across the living room, past the sleeping delivery boys, to the stairs. Just as he reached the foot of the stairs, Pete came down. They started talking in quiet voices, but all Tong could focus on was the jade. The jade of Pete’s necklace, of Niran’s ring, both visible at this angle.
Fate.
Perhaps, yes, but a fate willingly chosen. A love freely given. Something quiet but profound. They hadn’t announced anything, but the jade spoke just loud enough.
Pete put a hand on Niran’s shoulder with a final statement. Niran nodded and headed upstairs, Pete’s hand sliding off his shoulder slowly. Only once they were out of each other’s reach did Pete let out a breath and make his way to the kitchen. Tong watched with interest as Pete came into the kitchen with a tired sigh.
“Everything okay?” Tong asked.
Pete shrugged. “I’m not used to how loud the house is yet,” he said, but he couldn’t stop smiling.
He opened the fridge with his right hand, reached in for a drink with his left, and pulled out the same drink Niran had. Tong snorted and Pete lifted a confused eyebrow, even as he opened the drink and took a sip.
“It’s nothing,” Tong assured him. Pete nodded, accepting, and turned to leave. “Wait.”
Tong reached into his pocket and pulled out his wallet. He didn’t carry a huge amount of cash on him at any given time, but he could manage this. Pulling out some bills, he folded them nice and neat, then held out his empty hand to Pete. Curious, Pete also held out his own empty hand. Taking Pete’s hand, Tong placed the money in his palm, then closed Pete’s fingers over it.
“I don’t have an envelope, and I hear Niran has plenty of money anyway,” if Fei was to be believed, and she usually was, “but please accept this as my token of well wishes for your future together.”
Pete looked down at his hand, the money peeking out around his fingers. For a long moment, he just stared, his brow furrowing, lips twitching down then up then pulling to the side, visibly thinking hard.
Had Tong offended him? Pete was usually pretty laid back, but maybe the amount had upset him. Tong tried to remember the exact bills he’d just handed over. Was it an unlucky number? No. He knew Pete had been strapped for cash for a long time—again, according to Fei—but he had Niran now, so he couldn’t be thinking it was too low a number.
Finally, Pete said, “Phi...Does everyone think…Niran and me...Do you all think we got married?”
Tong’s mouth opened, shut. “Didn’t you?” He tilted his head. “Or, engaged, at least.”
Pete copied Tong this time, his mouth opening and shutting over and over as he struggled to find the words. He looked so conflicted that Tong wanted to ease his mind, but he had no idea what was worrying the younger man.
Finally, “I—We—Is that—okay? Everyone’s…okay with that?”
Oh.
…
…
Fei had to do everything herself, it seemed. Because her little brother was determined to do everything the hardest, most roundabout way possible. And everyone else was happy to just assume it would get done, or had already been done, without doing anything about it themselves.
Maybe it was the political advisor in her, but her first thought had been the paperwork.
And maybe it was an abuse of power, but she had gone to work the morning after seeing that jade ring on her little brother’s hand and pulled the marriage records. And, as expected, there was none. Because Niran had apparently decided that having an off-the-books relationship was good enough, that he was happy with the knowledge that he and Pete were together and he didn’t need a marriage.
They’d grown up together. She knew he’d always been flippant about the idea of marriage. They both had been. They’d understood that marriage wasn’t on the table for people like them. But that had changed—the law had changed—and Fei wasn’t about to let Niran commit himself to someone for life and not get it legally recognized.
Not on her watch.
So here she was, pulling up to Niran and Pete’s house with a manila envelope filled with papers and a notary stamp. And goodness, they’d been sharing a home for weeks now. Was it in both of their names yet? Fei would have included paperwork for that in her envelope too, but her coworker had said it required going through an attorney. So she’d included a list of good real estate attorneys in the envelope instead.
Niran was sitting at the dining table, creating ritual talismans for their next fight against Qi Rong and Li Pou.
“You should get Tong and Jia Hao to help with that,” Fei said as a way of announcing herself. “Or me. I bet even your faen would be willing and able.”
Niran stilled for a moment at the term ‘faen,’ but then kept working. Fei narrowed her eyes at him. Gotcha.
“What faen?” Niran asked.
If it weren’t for their shared history, Fei might not have recognized the signs of tension on Niran’s face, in the set of his shoulders, the twitch of his hand. The hand with the wedding ring on it, especially.
“What faen, indeed.” Fei set the envelope on the table next to the talisman Niran was working on. She wanted to slap it down, but this was about negotiation, not intimidation.
“What’s that?” Niran asked, putting his work down.
Good. “The paperwork you’re going to sign to make your relationship with Pete officially recognized by the nation of Thailand.”
Niran had actually reached out to touch the envelope, but he recoiled at her words. His eyes flit from the envelope to Fei, startled and wary.
Fei sighed and took a seat beside her brother. “I know I haven’t always looked upon Pete kindly. I’ve thought he was foolish, following after you without even knowing what he was getting into. I’ve thought that you were being reckless by putting so much faith in him when he has a literal demon inside of him that he could barely control.”
The more she spoke, the tenser Niran held himself, the further his eyes drifted from her. Fei sighed again.
“But in all the years I’ve known you, I’ve never seen you act the way you do with him,” she said, doing her best to be kind. “You’re more animated, more driven, more focused…I have to admit that…he brings out the best in you.”
Now Niran was glancing at her out of the corner of his eyes with something like hope. Well, if familial acceptance was what he needed to make his relationship both public and official, Fei would give it to him gladly.
“Now,” she said, her voice turning more businesslike. She opened the envelope and pulled out the papers, then set them down next to Niran. Tapping the top sheet, she said, “I know you haven’t already filed because I checked, and I know getting you to a government office will be like bathing a feral cat, so I brought the documents for you.”
Though he looked at the papers with interest, Niran made no move to take them, let alone sign. “Jiejie,” he began with his own, unhappy sigh.
“We haven’t fought for marriage equality in this country for this long for you to shun it,” Fei reminded him. “Use it. So no one can question your commitment to each other.”
She reached into her bag and pulled out a pen, held it out toward her brother. He looked from it to the paper and back. Fei could see how much he wanted to take it, and that in and of itself was proof of how deep his feelings for Pete went. He was so much more expressive when it came to Pete.
Lips pulling down in a deep frown, Niran gripped his left hand with his right and said, “Pete doesn’t—”
As if summoned, Pete appeared next to them, taking the pen from Fei’s hand and clicking it open. Or, trying to, since it wasn’t a click pen. Honestly. After only a moment, however, he worked out that it twisted open.
Smiling proudly at both Wu, Pete said, “Where do I sign?”
Fei moved to point at the first appropriate spot, but Niran said, “Pete,” and covered the document with his hand. “It’s a marriage license.”
Pete shrugged. “Yeah, I gathered as much,” he said easily. He pretended to click the pen. “So?”
Fei didn’t even get the chance to try and move Niran’s hand.
“You want to be married to me?” Niran pushed. He lifted an incredulous eyebrow. “You freaked out when I put the ring on this finger.” And he held up his left hand as proof.
Wait. Fei narrowed her eyes, glancing between the young men. What did that mean? Were they not—?
Again, Pete shrugged. “For a minute, maybe. But apparently everyone thinks we eloped and they’re all okay with it.” His voice became quiet when he said, “Even Ploy.”
Niran’s expression softened in the face of Pete’s emotion and Fei wanted to smack him. So were they or were they not all but married?
Inhaling loudly, Pete shook his head and held up the pen. “We’re already bound together. Our souls. Our fates. You weren’t getting rid of me anyway.”
Still Niran did not move his hand. “Pete,” he said seriously, and Pete hummed. “If you sign this, it means you have feelings for me.”
“Yeah,” Pete said.
“It means we’re a couple. Romantically.”
“Uh-huh,” Pete nodded.
“You’re taking this very well,” Niran said doubtfully.
“I had a very informative talk with P’Tong,” Pete said brightly.
Fei pinched the bridge of her nose. “Did you propose to my brother without realizing it?” she asked.
Pursing his lips, Pete tilted his head. “Kind of.”
Fei didn’t know why she was surprised. This was Pete, after all. Nothing about him was normal, least of all the progression of his relationship with her little brother.
“Do you want to marry Niran?” she asked, dropping her hand to meet Pete’s eyes.
It took Pete as long to say, “Yes,” now as it had for him to agree to chase after Niran’s lost soul. Which was to say, less than a second and with utter certainty.
That was fine. However they got to this point was fine. Aggravating, but fine.
“Then sign the papers,” Fei said, pushing Niran’s hand out of the way.
Pete leaned in to do so, but stopped with the pen millimeters from touching the line. Fei was going to have an aneurysm at this rate. What now?
“Do,” Pete looked at Niran, who was watching him with a baffled expression, “Do you…want to marry me? Niran?”
As far as proposals went, it wasn’t the worst, but it was definitely lacking. What mattered was that it apparently worked for Niran, whose jaw dropped open with a small gasp, who was showing more genuine, positive emotion on his face than Fei had seen on him at a festival. After a moment, he managed to close his mouth and swallowed thickly. The fingers of his right hand traced over the jade ring absently.
A small, barely there nod. “Mm.”
The smile that broke across Pete’s face was beatific and Fei, for just a moment, knew exactly what Niran saw in this silly boy.
“Just sign already, before somebody comes to their senses,” Fei prompted.
Still smiling, Pete did just that.
Once all the papers were signed and Fei had notarized it, she collected them back into her manila folder to take to the proper authorities first thing in the morning. Before her, Pete had taken to leaning as far into Niran’s personal space as he could without climbing into the chair himself and Niran was allowing it with a bemused look on his face. Fei would probably never understand them, but at least she could remind them to use their legal rights both now and in the future.
“Congratulations on your marriage.”
…
…
fin