The first Valentine’s Day since Jabari and Kamilah had officially become a couple had unfortunately fallen on a Monday, so Jabari suggested that they take the entire weekend before off. They’d still have to go to class on the day of, but February 11th through the 13th were all theirs to do whatever they wanted. He offered to make all of the arrangements himself and Kamilah had agreed to being surprised, something for which he was grateful; he’d been trying really hard not to act too much like her guard or keeper since becoming her boyfriend, but he was still an acts of service person, and the urge to plan a mini-vacation down to the second was so strong. 

First, he had to come up with a location, and New Orleans felt like a fun magic-centric capitol of the country with all sorts of sensory treats -- it wase also somewhere where, if they left Thursday night, he could get them there by Friday morning. The ScareBnb he’d rented them was nice and central to the town; he’d gotten a nicely furnished cozy feeling place with an extra bathroom and bedroom, mostly out of habit of not sharing a room but also just in case she needed her space. And then there were the meal plans. Kamilah was a great cook so he scheduled out some meals for her to handle, but New Orleans was also famous for its restaurants, so he had to make a few reservations, including to one of the more fancy places he could find. It was hard to find a reservation so suddenly but when he told them he was with an ex-pharaoh, suddenly the list cleared right up. They even got a table by the kitchen and an appointment with the chef to go over his menu with them, which foodie Kamilah would surely love.

There were also concerts for them to go to, and ghost tours led by some very friendly ghosts, and monster bars with ghouls who played jazz all night and made a mean cocktail. Friday night would be more casual, a tour followed by dinner at “home” in the BnB, but Saturday would be a big one. That was the day he’d gotten them into Broodsten’s. He’d excitedly made a voice memo letting Kamilah know what the schedule for the trip was, trying not to sound too excited about the “secret restaurant” that she should get “really dressed up for” on Day Two, but probably failing. It was nice though, to get to be so excited about being with Kamilah. And yes, he was a little bit terrified of the idea of taking her somewhere everyone was unverified, but he could stay vigilent. The normal amount of vigilent. 

The fear that he wouldn’t be able to turn off his paranoia during the trip was quickly ameliorated by the simple notion of being there with Kamilah. From the moment they drove off with her sleeping in the passenger seat to him carrying her in his arms over the threshold of the ScareBnb as a way to christen the trip to cooking together that first night and getting to lay together as a couple without worrying about their third roommate, it was perfect. And when Saturday came and Kamilah appeared in front of him all dressed and ready to go to the restaurant, he swore his eyes started to water. He really was with the most beautiful person on the planet, and he told her so, and the smile he got from her only made her shine brighter. They were so gushy and coupley that by the time they got to the restaurant, even though it had been the part of the trip he was most looking forward to, Jabari almost wished they could go right back to the house so they could be just the two of them.

Still, the restaurant was spectacular. As soon as they had theiir champange, Jabari poured them both a glass and handed Kamilah hers. “To all the love in the world,” he cheersed, clinking his glass against hers and taking a sip.

Just then, Kamilah started choking, and all of Jabari’s defenses went up. He stood up harshly and was at her side in an instant. A waiter screeched to a halt next to them and Jabari pushed the waiter to the side, not sure if they were crowding them because they wanted to help or harm. Kamilah was choking and that was the only thing that mattered. It couldn’t have been the champagne or he’d be choking too, so it had to be something physical. He got up behind her and with a little bit of the Heimlich, got whatever it was out of her throat while the waiter he’d pushed got back up from the ground. 

It was a piece of cork -- he saw it on the table and he felt embarrassed at how he’d reacted, but at least she was safe now. “Sorry,” he mumbled to the waiter as they walked away, and he tried to figure out what to say to Kamilah as he sat down across from her, but before he could, she asked if he was proposing and he blinked in confusion, the words knocked out from him as he realized why she must’ve thought that. 

"No, no, it was a piece of cork, not a ring” Jabari explained. “You’d think this fancy restaurant would have a better bottle of champagne. But no, no, if I was proposing to you, I wouldn’t make the moment a choking hazard.” 

He couldn’t tell if Kamilah looked disappointed or relieved that he wasn’t proposing right here and now, and it just now dawned on him that maybe she had thought this whole trip that a proposal was incoming. She bit her lip for a second and then asked how he would propose to her, and Jabari drank a sip of his champagne to pause, so he wouldn’t seem like he had an answer ready, even though of course he did. Once they got together, he knew that they would be forever, so a proposal would come in time. Just because he didn’t have it planned for two months after they were official didn’t mean he didn’t have it planed at all. 

"Well...I think I'd keep it simple, honestly. Fill the place with your favorite flowers, play one of our favorite songs, and gather all your favorite desserts for afterwards. I love this, going out with you, but for our proposal, I'd want it to be just us somewhere private, like our home." Now that made her smile for sure, and that made him curious, so he just had to ask, "So... but if I had proposed tonight... what would you have said?"

"Don’t say that,” Jabari insisted, his eyes aching with tears as he sat by Kamilah’s bedside, holding her hand. It was where he’d been since she’d fallen ill, and though he’d always known that next to her was where he was meant to be, being here for her through this... it wasn’t fair. His whole life had revolved around protecting Kamilah and making sure that nobody could hurt her and now she was dying, and the villain who was taking her far too soon was one that he couldn’t defeat, not with all his years of training or all the rage in his body, of which there was a lot. It was so like the both of them to be handling the news the way they were -- him with his quiet yet seething rage at the futility of it all, her with her optimism and hope that this wasn’t the end for them, not really. It hurt his heart to know she’d accepted her fate, and that she was thinking of the unspoken them even as she did.

“They... they’re going to figure something out. I swear it.” He squeezed her hand as though he knew exactly how to save her even though he had no idea. She didn't need to know he didn't believe those words himself, that he was already planning the quickest way to kill himself once she was gone so they might be buried together and enter the afterlife hand in hand. He didn’t fear death, not really. The idea of a big black nothing on the other side of life wasn’t as scary as the idea of a world without Kamilah, and even if there was nothing, he didn't want Kamilah to have to go there alone. Still, he carried on, hoping to convince them both as he added, “The healers or the magicians or the gods themselves will rise and know what to do, and you’ll have all the time in this lifetime to do anything you ever wanted to do.” But even as he said it, it sounded like a lie, and the tears that’d been gathering escaped him with a sob that he quickly stifled, not wanting Kamilah to know just how much his heart was breaking. 

He raised her hand to his chest, holding it tight there for a minute before raising it to his lips and kissing her trembling fingers. Jabari usually kept himself from acting on how much he loved her, how much he wanted her, to the point that actually letting himself kiss her fingers was practically a love confession, but if she was dying anyway, if she had already come to terms with it, if she was hoping they had a next life where they might see each other again and get to be together again... well, then maybe it was the time for a love confession. He knew she had to know already whether he said it or not, but didn't she deserve to hear it, at least once? Didn't she deserve to leave this planet knowing exactly how loved she was?

"But if... if this is really it, then you need to know that I will look for you too. I'll look for you in any universe, in any afterlife, in everything I see and in every place I go. I'll always be looking for you. You're the only thing I ever want to see again, my princess." His heart pumped so loudly he was sure they could both hear it in the quiet room but he'd said what he said and he couldn't take it back. "I've loved you forever, I'll love you forever, and --" He cut himself off for fear of crying again, opting to kiss her hand again instead. And when that hand pulled him in to kiss her expectant lips, he gave her the kiss that he'd held back from giving her a million times. They’d never done this before but it felt as natural as breathing to lie down next to her and pull her in close. Their chests were pressed against each other as the kiss deepened, and his usual urge to protect her was mixed with so many other, new urges that suddenly it felt like he was allowed to act on. With every kiss, with every touch, it was a new hole in the dam he’d built to hold back his feelings -- if they were dying anyway, perhaps drowning in love was the way to go. 

Pernah merasa gak dihargai? Ketika kita udah berusaha ngeluangin waktu, bahkan lebih dari seminggu sebelumnya tapi yang punya janji malah telat mengabari untuk membatalkan pertemuan. Atau bahkan gak ada kabar samsek pas hari H. Dan karena menunggunya, kamu harus melewatkan sebuah acara di mana ada penulis favoritmu. Acaranya meet and greet gratis, di mana kamu punya kesempatan buat ketemu dan denger langsung pemikiran sang author untuk pertama kalinya.

Konten Kabari, Jangan Lari ditampilkan pertama kali di dakwatuna.com.

Pernah merasa gak dihargai? Ketika kita udah berusaha ngeluangin waktu, bahkan lebih dari seminggu sebelumnya tapi yang punya janji malah telat mengabari untuk membatalkan pertemuan. Atau bahkan gak ada kabar samsek pas hari H. Dan karena menunggunya, kamu harus melewatkan sebuah acara di mana ada penulis favoritmu. Acaranya meet and greet gratis, di mana kamu punya kesempatan buat ketemu dan denger langsung pemikiran sang author untuk pertama kalinya.

Konten Kabari, Jangan Lari ditampilkan pertama kali di dakwatuna.com.

Pernah merasa gak dihargai? Ketika kita udah berusaha ngeluangin waktu, bahkan lebih dari seminggu sebelumnya tapi yang punya janji malah telat mengabari untuk membatalkan pertemuan. Atau bahkan gak ada kabar samsek pas hari H. Dan karena menunggunya, kamu harus melewatkan sebuah acara di mana ada penulis favoritmu. Acaranya meet and greet gratis, di mana kamu punya kesempatan buat ketemu dan denger langsung pemikiran sang author untuk pertama kalinya.

Konten Kabari, Jangan Lari ditampilkan pertama kali di dakwatuna.com.