Tường Lửa

December smiles, laughing and loud. Geoffrey pats her fragile hand. “You’re a really special man, Jinho.”

“Ah. My wife agrees.”

“And she also thinks you’re her rock. Really something. What do you think?” she grins, winking at him through the corner of her eyes.

Surprised, Jinho hesitates then turns to Cecilia. Is she stunned? Red? He brightens like a citywide powersurge and stiffens. “I think… she is the most beautiful woman in the world, and I will love her for over 300 years!” he spouts. “Even now, everything still feels so unreal, like a dream... I think, because of her, my dreams and reality have become the same thing. So...”

It’s quiet. 

The cicadas cry outside and Jinho, suddenly aware of his stupidity, looks down. His ears burn red and his face is catching fire; the world is looking at him all at once and he quickly fumbles for the lemonade. December blinks astonished at his confession, then tries a warm, inviting smile.

"My, well... That's sweet," she says, squeezing her husband's hand. The sun shines over her face and they stand from the sofa, nodding. "You two must love each other so much... But, maybe Geoffrey and I have been taking up too much of your time. There's a home you have to get set up, isn't there? Let us know when you're ready; we're just down the street over there, past the bush of thistles."

"206," Geoffrey adds in.

"Of course! 206. We'll let the whole neighborhood know to whip up a nice 'Welcome to the street!' luncheon for you three. No allergies, are there? Peanuts? Milk?"

Walking to the door, Jinho takes Cecilia's hand, almost by instinct, and wraps their fingers together. "No, no. We are good! Thank you, but to go through this trouble--"

"Nonsense! What kind of neighbors would we be if we did nothing? You're new here, Mr. Yang, so sit back, relax, and let us show you how we do it in Ayasadana!"

It takes a ten-minute goodbye before they node their heads, wave, and disappear down the street to 206. Jinho is still speechless. Spinning around, he randomly takes her into his arms, kisses her forehead, and dashes upstairs.

As the girls keep to themselves, their voices sifting through the house, Jinho grumbles about the furniture. A burly man with thick brown hair helps him with the other end of the couch, and his broad shoulders, tight with strained muscles, bump against the hallway. His name is Geoffrey. Jinho says it to himself five times to make sure.

“So, hey, welcome to the neighborhood. I think you two will like it here," he says. "Your wife seems like a real good woman.”

Jinho shifts the weight in his hands. “Of course. Why would I marry her if she is no good?”

“I hear you. Beautiful, too. You’re blessed.”

“Are you having eyes on--?”

“What?" Geoffrey stalls. "No. Just, you know.”

“So, now you are calling her ugly?”

“No. No! What I meant was--”

Suddenly, Jinho breaks out into an impulsive laugh that shrouds his eyes. Geoffrey shakes his head with relief, overwhelmed by it all.

“Don’t do that again.”

With the last of the furniture put into place, they reunite with the women in the living room, falling gracelessly onto the couch. Jinho sinks into it like a rock at sea, and without being aware of it, holds Cecilia's hand. December gravitates towards her husband and offers them the lemonade she and Cecilia had made earlier.

"Good work, boys!" she congratulates with ease. "We were just talking about you two. Only good things, of course. You know, Geoffrey and I, we are new parents ourselves. Our little girl's in preschool right now, but I was thinking that maybe... Well, if you two want, we can give you some tips and tricks. The closest grocer, the best schools... What plans do you have for your little boy?"

"Plans?" Jinho asks. He glances at Cecilia as if she'd know.

Send me a number and I’ll write a drabble about my muse:

burning your muse’s dinner

shrinking your muse’s favorite shirt in the wash

finding a cockroach

unclogging the toilet

our muses running out of milk

fighting over whose turn to do dishes

forgetting to water the plants

finding a “surprise” from the dog/cat/pet

forgetting to do the laundry

refusing to take out the trash

our muses’ roof is leaking

our muses bickering over the air conditioning settings

switching your muse’s coffee to decaf

forgetting to pay our muses’ electric bill

our muses’ wifi going out

the a/c or heater breaking

the water heater breaking

forgetting to buy groceries

causing a fire while cooking

Cecilia blinks as she stares into the face that can only be described as fleetingly familiar. After a moment she remembers herself. What an odd introduction. “Oh, I’m at 21 weeks now,” she replies, answering the questions in the order given. Strange girl. Who else would this man be? “That’s my husband, Jinho, and I’m Cecilia. We’re the Yangs, and expecting a boy.”

The woman laughs at her husband struggling with the new cabinets she ordered, and offers help. The community is still alive and as neighborly as ever, but that’s to be expected from a woman like her. “Your name is December, isn’t it? You were only a few years older than me when I lived here. I remember your family used to run the bakery…” 

December gives her a strange look, sizing her up, before she finally seems to remember. “Cecilia?! Cecilia Cosmas?! You moved away years ago! Nobody even knows what happened to you except for what’s on the news and—! Oh, my! We didn’t expect you to move back!” She’s suddenly wrapped in a very tight hug. “You have to come to dinner with our family! You must remember Forest, don’t you? Of course you do, you were always so smart! Don’t worry about cooking tonight, you just focus on moving in and the whole village will have a potluck!” 

Cecilia can only smile awkwardly and nod in agreement. “Sure.” It’s going to be odd adjusting to this sort of neighborliness coming from the Citadel, but they’ll manage. Already, December is calling for her husband, and soon enough he’ll help Jinho move their heaviest furniture inside. 

“Oh, hush! He will come soon enough,” December insists, flicking her wrist as if patting a dog. Jinho continues with the cabinet and she leans in too close, her red smile ripe with gossip. “Men are the same wherever you may go, aren’t they? Think they’re so strong and independent, but behind those curtains? It’s us women who run the stage.”

He’s showing off now. She loves it. Normally, he can be so modest, or a goof, but he knows he’s smart, and better yet, after all these years, she knows it too and adores him for it. “Mm…That’s my husband. Already providing me with everything I could ever want or need,” she teases, forgetting now how her pants don’t fit anymore. It doesn’t really matter. 

"You’re already a fantastic husband, Jin. You’re going to be a great dad!" She won’t let him speak badly of himself like this. "I love you. We’re going to be parents and it’s this great and wonderful thing. It’s a little scary for both of us, but we can do this. We’ll help each other. I can remember the first day of school. You can work on the house. And we’ll watch our kids grow up and grow old together, but I’ll never stop being attracted to you, because it’s healthy to continue having intimate relationships well into your old age." 

He pushes his foot against the floor and they spin in his chair, slow and careful. "Okay. Then, what will you provide for me? Since we are working together, it is only fair, don't you think?" He looks up to the ceiling, pretending that something is up there that he can't yet see. He presses his hand against her back, wondering if there's any inch of her that he hasn't already remembered. He knows there isn't.

"There are many benefits to being Mrs. Yang." Her voice is stone-cold, as if she’s about to present some of her scientific findings to a curious group of grad students. "The foremost being, I am married to Mr. Yang, and I don’t have to share him with anyone." It’s hard for her to explicitly gush over him and compliment him directly, but she does adore him in her own way. "Give me the equation of a heart." 

They’re both just teasing each other. They shouldn’t feel so relaxed. They need to start looking for a home, but at the same time they’re happy just where they are. “Children give the community happiness. Purpose. They’re the reason why we do anything to make our colony great.” She smiles right back at him. “I can be a doctor to them like they wanted when I was younger. And you can find work easily anywhere we go. I love how useful your mind is…” 

He is struck, smiling, leaning back in his chair trying too hard to be disinterested. The light in his eyes says he's lying. His lopsided smile says more. "The equation of a heart? Do you want this in... parametric equations? Algebraic curve? More? Because I know several, but which do you want? How about... all?"