JACKSON

Jaebum had the money to finance a trip to one of the fanciest restaurants on the strip, but he instead chose Burger King. And not just any Burger King, but one of the dingy, poorly maintained ones where the staff came across as annoyed when you made them do their job and the utensils area was 60% ketchup stains. For someone so rich and important, Jaebum was notoriously lowbrow, and not even in the kind of tacky and fun way Vegas thrived on.

“You’re looking a little scruffy,” Jackson commented as he sat down across from Jaebum with his order and about twenty napkins to wipe down the mysteriously sticky table. “Trying to grow a beard?”

“You don’t even want to know the kind of day I had yesterday,” Jaebum said. “Try attempting to reign in a Magical who has been using his power with electricity to jam security systems and rob banks and tell me if you’d remember to shave every day in the middle of that.”

“Did you resolve the issue?”

“Somewhat. I’m still working things out with the police on how they can lock him up without him orchestrating a massive jail break and without outright telling them he has powers. It’s a headache.” Jaebum yawned. “So, what’s going on? I thought you and Youngjae were on vacation?”

“We are. But I actually wanted to drop by and talk to you about a little policy matter that came up.”

Jaebum’s eyes narrowed. “Come on, Jackson. You know that we have an entire department dedicated to proposing amendments to laws. You’re not supposed to take it directly to me. And what kind of crapsack vacation are you two having that you’re talking about policy matters instead of boning in scenic locations?”

“In response to your first comment, I’m taking this directly to you because you’re the only one who can speed that snail’s pace of a process up, Jaebum. You’re the freaking president of Nevada.” Jackson said this a bit louder than he intended, and the guy a few tables looked up curiously. Because to Normies, there was no president of Nevada, just a highly incompetent president of the whole United States. But as said president was both a Normie and possessing the temperament of a three-year-old, one couldn’t expect him to have any authority over the Magicals living in the US in their very specialized circumstances.

Thus, each of the 50 states had their own Magical ‘president’ who oversaw the statewide Magical communities, making sure laws were followed and instating new policies as needed. In Nevada, that president was Im Jaebum, who was voted into the role five years ago based on his strong leadership and ability to keep the Nevada community connected and supported.

“A little quieter, please,” Jaebum hissed. “OK, fine, I’ll chalk it up to you wanting to see my handsome face in person. No problem. Go ahead and tell me what your problem is.”

“My problem is that I’m dealing with about three or so weekly summons from a Magical in love with a Normie who keeps needing to have his Memory Wiped because of him.”

Jaebum looked disinterested. “Yeah? Why won't he just settle down with the Normie?”

“He has a performance license. He’s…you know…that Vegas troupe leader. The Magnificent Mark, or whatever his stage name is.”

Jaebum looked interested again. “Him? I like that guy. I try to go to his shows at least once a month. I especially like that guy who does the escape tricks.” He paused, looking thoughtful. “So, the troupe leader’s in love with a Normie, huh?”

Jackson nodded. “And settling down would mean the end of him being the leader of that troupe you love so much.”

“Hmmm.” Jaebum pursed his lip. “All right. Here’s the thing, Jackson. The issue with the secrecy laws and Magicals/Normies relationships isn’t new to us. I’ve personally never liked that law to begin with. But it’s not up to just me. All the states have to be in agreement before the law can change. And up until recently, they haven’t been in agreement. Just a few generations ago, Magicals just married Magicals, and it wasn’t an issue. But now that more Magicals are rebelling against that, we’ve been seeing more and more families with a Normie parents and a Magical child, and honestly, all 50 states are not liking this business of sometimes having to wipe the memory of a Normie with a freaking kid in the picture.”

“Sounds promising,” Jackson said. “What are they doing about it?”

Jaebum dropped his voice lower. “No official law or amendment has been passed yet. We’re starting slow by issuing special exceptions to some Magical/Normie couples as trial cases, to see how dispensing with the secrecy law goes. This hasn’t started in Nevada yet. I was planning on rolling out the trial program within the next few weeks, once Youngjae was back to lead the administration aspect of it. If you think Mark would be willing to be a part of the program, I could see about granting him and his Normie one of the special exceptions.”

Jackson’s eyes widened. “So…what exactly does the trial program entail?”

“Well, using Mark as the example…what’s his Normie’s name?”

“Jinyoung.”

“With the special exception, Mark can tell Jinyoung about being a Magical. If Jinyoung freaks out and rejects Mark on the basis of his being Magical, he’d have to receive a memory wipe, and that would be the end of their trial.”

“And if he doesn’t?”

“Then Mark would be free to date him, and Jinyoung would be allowed to be reasonably exposed to the Magical community—for example, he could meet Mark’s troupe members and learn about their powers. But once again, if ever Jinyoung tells another Normie about it, it’s a memory wipe for him and whoever he told. But if he interacts with us healthily and normally and keeps our secrets, then Mark and Jinyoung’s relationship can progress without any Memory Wipers stepping in.”

Jackson nodded. “And if the new law passes? All Magical/Normie couples could have this kind of relationship?”

Jaebum nodded. “Yes, that’s the hope. Most states are pulling for the trials to work out. The new generation of leadership really doesn’t like Magicals being forced to give up their talents. We’ve established such strong communities, and denying them magic feels like we’re forcing them out. No one likes that.”

Jackson nodded. “I completely agree. I’m glad something is being done about it. So…you’ll get ahold of Mark?”

Jaebum nodded. “Yes. I’ll drop by and see him as soon as I have some down time.”

“Great. Seriously, thanks so much for hearing me out on this.” Jackson paused. “While I’m at it…do you happen to know the president of California?”

“Yeah, I know her. Why?”

“That’s where Youngjae’s originally from. And I know for a fact that there’s a Normie there who’s missing his wife and son. Could we do something about that?”

0

When Jackson returned to the hotel, he found a note on the pillow from Youngjae, explaining he’d stepped out for a minute to get some food. Both of their suitcases were resting packed on the made up bed. They would be heading off to the next vacation destination when Youngjae got back. After some debate, they’d decided on Ireland, which at the moment was enjoying temperatures that were chilly—which was what Youngjae wanted—but not too chilly—which was what Jackson wanted. Youngjae had been onboard with the idea of going somewhere they could see glaciers, but Jackson put his foot down. He wanted to cool down from Vegas, not freeze his toes off.

Still, an idea sprouted in his head. Back in the early days, when he’d been in the process of wooing Youngjae, he’d often used his magic to build full scale illusions for Youngjae to enjoy. It was blatant showing off, but Youngjae hadn’t minded; they’d liked to play little games of cat and mouse with each other, hiding from each other in little details of the illusion and seeing how long it would take the other to find them out. It had been a while since they’d done that. Jackson had been so busy with work that he never really felt like he’d had the time to pour so much energy into something that was technically unnecessary.

But he was realizing now that was the wrong way of looking at it. Magic was a gift Magicals too often took for granted. It deserved to be celebrated in what way it could. It wasn’t just some leave-or-take thing; for people like Youngjae and Mark, it was an investment of so much love and sacrifice, a central part of their core identity. It was an important thing to Jackson, too, but with the way he’d only been using it to remove the memories of others, he’d in many ways started to lose sight of that.

Not anymore. He took a breath, then released the pent up magic inside him to shape a new world around him. 

He heard Youngjae fumbling with his keys outside the door about five minutes later. Jackson took another deep breath, watching as it came out in a puff of cold air in front of him. He had put a lot of power into crafting a scene for Youngjae, but he had just enough left to disguise himself within it. He warped the air around himself to cover his body from sight, effectively making himself invisible. Then at last, he called out, “Come on in!”

Youngjae opened the door and stepped into the snow. He glanced down at his sandal shod feet, blinking. “I’m not dressed for this,” he said.

“It isn’t real, and I’m not going to let you get frostbite,” Jackson said. His voice echoed through the room, so Youngjae wouldn’t be able to pinpoint where it was coming from. “I’ve designed it so your feet won’t get cold, but the rest of you will pretty quickly if you don’t grab that coat I left for you hanging on the tree over there.”

“Wow, you really haven’t done anything like this in a while. I’d almost forgotten what this feels like.” Youngjae took a few steps forward, glancing around him tentatively. “Is this modelled after somewhere, or did you make this up?”

“That’s for you to discover. Walk around and see what you can find.”

“All right, then.” Youngjae took the coat from the tree branch and threw it on before turning to examine the scene in front of him. “Where are you hiding?”

“Don’t be lazy. Look for me like you used to.”

“What’s my reward for finding you?”

“That’s a surprise. A good one, I promise.”

“Now there’s some motivation.” Youngjae tucked his hands in his pockets and began walking forward, down a path that led through a snowy forest. Jackson blew a waft of pine scent from the trees, and Youngjae inhaled deeply.

“How was your talk with Jaebum?” Youngjae asked as he continued walking.

“Really good. You know, he’s a lot more reasonable than we give him credit for.”

“When have I ever denied him credit for being reasonable?”

“Er, well, I guess that was all me. But he was willing to listen. Apparently, it’s been something he’s thought a lot about, too.”

“And…?”

“They’re getting serious about amending the law, to make exceptions for committed Normie/Magical partners. They’re going to start with trial cases and see how that goes.” Jackson paused. “And I was able to convince him to make Mark and Jinyoung one of his trial cases for Nevada.”

Youngjae beamed. “That’s wonderful! Have you told Mark yet?”

“Jaebum’s going to. For me, it was more important to get back here and be with you. We still have a vacation to carry on with, after all.”

“I’m completely down with the ‘be with me’ thing. In fact, I’d love it if you showed yourself so I could smack you a kiss or something.”

“Nope. I’ve always been desperate about you. Let me play a little hard to get just this once. You have to find me first.”

The path took Youngjae out of the woods and to the foot of a red bridge passing over an icy river. Youngjae stepped across it, then stopped in his tracks. The bridge had led him to a garden where all the flowers were made from ice.

“Incredible,” Youngjae murmured. He extended his finger, gingerly touching the frozen petals of one of the flowers. “It feels almost like a fairy tale. But seriously, where’s my prince? Can I at least get a little hint?”

“Is that him behind you?”

Youngjae turned, looking up at the ice statue at the center of the garden in the form of a strong, god-like man. He approached it slowly, reaching out his hand and extending his fingers to press his fingertips against the frozen ones of the statue.

“Cheating on me?” Jackson asked playfully from behind him.

Youngjae must have felt his breath tickling against his ear, since he whirled around and leapt at the space where Jackson was standing, invisible, and tackled him to the ground. As Jackson landed into the cushioning snow, he removed his camouflage so he could look up into Youngjae’s face.

“You found me,” he said, smiling.

“You wanted me to.” Youngjae pressed his body down on top of Jackson’s. “Of course I’d find you, if you came close. Nothing else in this illusion gives off the same kind of heat.”

“Huh. Looks like I need to discipline myself more. I can’t control myself as well, when it comes to you.”

“Don’t,” Youngjae said. “I don’t need you to control yourself around me. I want you fully here in this moment, exactly as you are.” He leaned in, pressing his forehead against Jackson’s. “Thank you,” he said softly. “For talking to Jaebum. For listening to me. Thank you.”

“There’s nothing I wouldn’t do to see that smile of yours,” Jackson said, his cheek. “Which is why I also talked to Jaebum about your parents’ case. He got ahold of the President of California, and she agreed to contact your mother and see about making them a trial case, too.”

Youngjae’s eyes widened, and his mouth fell open. He’d always been an incredibly expressive person, but Jackson had never seen him so shocked before. It took a moment to register, but when it did fully, tears filled his eyes and he threw his arms around Jackson, burying his face in his chest. He seemed to be trying to say something, but Jackson couldn’t understand him through his sobs.

Jackson Youngjae’s hair gently, letting him cry. “Your dad’s going to be so proud of you,” he said in a low voice. “So proud of you both. I bet he’s missed you so much.”

He felt Youngjae nodding his head against his chest, sniffling. It took several more minutes, but he finally lifted his head up again, eyes glistening.

“This isn’t a dream, is it?” Youngjae asked, rubbing his eyes. “Because right now, this world here feels too good to be true.”

“It isn’t a dream. And it’s definitely not too good for you.” Jackson smiled at him. “You deserve it. Every inch of it.”

“Do you know one thing that would make it even better?”

“Tell me.”

“If you could stay with me right here without having to go anywhere. We couldn’t have last night, but…” He smiled shakily. “Right now, I think I’m the happiest I’ve been in forever. I’ve never loved you more than I do right this moment. I want right now, right here. I want to stay with you in this.”

Jackson took Youngjae’s hand, guiding it up to his pendant. “Take it off,” he said.

Youngjae looked confused. “But…you’re on standby. Jaebum would kill you.”

“No he won’t. I feel like I didn’t express it to him well enough when I first requested this vacation. But this time I told him in no uncertain terms. I’m not doing standby for the rest of the week. If I’m going to take time for you, I’m going to give 100% of that time to you.” He smiled. “So take it off. I’m not going to go anywhere on you.”

Youngjae’s smile was achingly beautiful. He reached around the back of Jackson’s neck and unhooked the pendant, letting it fall onto the snow.

 MARK

The day finally came when he would have to give Jinyoung his answer. Mark woke up with a cluster of butterflies in his stomach. It wasn’t that he regretted his choice—he was sure beyond a doubt that he was doing the right thing. Instead, he was slightly anxious about what would come after telling him. He’d been alone for so long that he wasn’t even sure he knew how to date properly. Still, the thought of Jinyoung coming over even more and staying longer, watching movies on his couch, working on homework at his table, sitting on his bed, and everything that would follow sent a thrill through him. All the anxiousness was replaced by anticipation. He wished he could tell Jinyoung right away, but knew that was probably still sleeping after a late night bartending.

Mark was about to call BamBam and Yugyeom and tell them what he’d decided when his cell phone started buzzing. To his surprise, the caller ID on the screen indicated that President Jaebum from the NDMS was calling. Usually Mark only heard from him when his performer’s license needed to be renewed. He wondered if Jackson had filed a complaint against him for overusing Memory Wiping services.

Mark took the call, preparing to be chewed out. “Hello?”

“Mark? How’s it going?” Jaebum’s voice sounded as chill as ever. Mark relaxed. He would have needed to call Jaebum anyways, so his call was actually incredibly convenient.

“It’s going fine,” Mark said. “If you’re calling about my performer’s license-”

“Not this time. You’re still good to go on that.”

“Well, actually I wanted to talk to you about my license.” Mark took a breath. “You…you can void it. I’m not going to use real magic in my performances anymore.”

Jaebum was silent for a moment.  “Is this about that Normie you’ve fallen in love with?” he asked after a long moment.

Mark blinked. “How did you even know about that?”

“Jackson told me. What was his name…Jinyoung? You’re giving up magic to be with Jinyoung?”

“Yes,” Mark said. “I still love magic. But if it’s going to be a barrier to getting together with someone I’m in love with, I’m ready to say goodbye.”

Jaebum sighed. “, I should have called you sooner. You had to go ahead and make that decision Jackson absolutely wanted to spare you from making.”

“Huh? What was that about Jackson?”

“He got in touch with me a few days ago, asking if there was anything I could do for you and others like you. He wanted to find a way for you to be with Jinyoung that wouldn’t end with you giving up your magic.”

Mark’s mouth fell open. “What? Jackson…Jackson did that?”

“Yeah. I’m honestly not surprised. When I checked your records and saw how many times you’ve Summoned Jackson, it’s like he’s been dropping by every other day. No wonder he’s grown fond of you.”

“I honestly thought he hated me.”

“Well, he’s frustrated all right. But he’s directing that frustration towards the laws, not you. You’re just a well meaning guy in love who also happens to at practicing magic with subtlety while sharing a duplex.”

“Um…thanks.”

“So how would you like to be part of our trial run of making an exception to the secrecy laws for committed Magical/Normie couples?”

Mark’s jaw dropped again. “What?”

“We’re getting serious about changing the law, but before we do, we want to learn more about what works and what doesn’t. To do that, we want to get a series of sample cases involving both married and dating couples, as well as those on the cusp of forming a relationship. That sounds like you and your guy, doesn’t it? Let me tell you what we have in mind.”

As Jaebum walked him through the proposed steps and regulations, Mark’s head felt like it was spinning. For the entire time he’d been mulling over this dilemma, he’d never even considered the possibility that he’d actually be able to share who he was with Jinyoung. From the moment he’d entered the Magical community, he’d been aware of the fact that deliberately telling a Normie about magic was against the law, something he could go to jail for. Even in the privacy of his own thoughts, it hadn’t been an option.

And now, suddenly, it was. If he accepted this offer, he wouldn’t just be saying ‘yes’ to Jinyoung. He would be saying ‘yes, and this is exactly why I struggled to say yes before. This is who I am.’ And Jinyoung would know the truth.

There was a bit of anxiety attached to that, of course. Everything hinged on Jinyoung accepting him once he knew. He may have been the one to ask Mark out, but he’d done so without the full picture. Maybe once he knew, his feelings would change.

But Mark didn’t think that would be the case. He remembered when Jinyoung had shown him that video of him resurrecting the flower garden. As Mark floundered for an excuse before Jackson arrived on the scene, Jinyoung had looked him square in the eye and said, “I’m not trying to paint you into something crazy or freakish. I’m just trying to understand you.” And those words had meant to the world to Mark, even though back then he didn’t think there’d been a way for Jinyoung to truly understand him.

“So,” Jaebum said once he’d finished explaining. “Wouldn’t you rather take this opportunity than give up your magic? Speaking as a fan of your troupe, I’d hate to see your illusions drop a single bit in quality.”

“Just one thing,” Mark said, taking a breath. “Let’s say the trials don’t go well and the law doesn’t wind up changing. Will Jinyoung have to have his memory wiped, if that happens?”

“We considered that,” Jaebum said. “And we decided it would be beyond cruel to do that, not just to the Magical, but to the Normie as well. Even if the law doesn’t change, you’ll be able to keep your special exception for as long as you and Jinyoung are in a relationship. I promise you that.”

Mark exhaled in relief. “Good. And one other thing…does this special exception involve paperwork? Because Jinyoung’s coming over in a few hours, and he’s not going to leave without a definitive yes or no.”

“Hmm.” Jaebum considered. “Well…yeah, it does involve paperwork, which isn’t ready yet. But I might consider bending the rules a little bit. If you give me Boy’s number.”

“Done,” Mark said immediately. “And Jaebum?”

“Yup?”

“Tell Jackson I said thank you. Since I probably won’t be seeing him very much anymore.”

0

Jinyoung arrived a little bit later than Mark had been expecting him, looking a little worn out and tired. “Sorry for being late,” Jinyoung said. “I couldn’t sleep when I got home, so I took a sleeping pill and then overslept. I really didn’t mean to.”

“It’s fine, don’t worry about it.” Mark glanced at his watch. “Do you have enough time for this before you go to work? I really have a lot I need to tell you.”

Jinyoung gazed at him anxiously. “Yeah…I have a few hours, I guess.”

“Perfect.” Mark opened his door the rest of the way. “Come on in, then. Can I get you anything to drink?”

“I’m fine. I just want to talk.” Jinyoung settled onto the couch. Mark could tell from his posture he was nervous. Usually he sank right into the saggy cushions, but now he was sitting ramrod straight, repeatedly rubbing his palms back and forth against the fabric of his pants. “So. Have you decided?”

“I did,” Mark said. “But like you said, I have to be honest with you before I can give my answer. I have to tell you why I said no in the first place.”

“Yes?” Jinyoung braced himself. Mark wondered if he had any guesses about the reason. Whatever idea he had, Mark was about to blow it out of the water.

“The thing is…I can do magic.”

Jinyoung gave him a look. “Yes, I know. I went to your show, remember?”

“Not that kind of magic. Real magic. I’m a…we don’t call it ‘wizard’ in our community. We call it ‘Magical.’ There’s a wide array of abilities, but my specialty is illusion. I can craft fantasies and make them seem real. Remember how you thought Lenore couldn’t be a projection?” Mark tried. “Well, she’s not. She’s an illusion I made. And the crow talking wasn’t ventriloquism, either. The crow can talk on his own. He’s a Magical as well—a shapeshifting specialist. Yugyeom, the troupe member who did the pendulum act, is Magical, too. Everything I can do…it’s all real. Not a trick.”

Jinyoung was silent for a long moment, so long that Mark was terrified that it meant the worst. But after a time, Jinyoung looked up, his eyes glassy. “I was right,” he said.

Mark stared at him blankly. “W-What?” He wondered if he’d misheard him.

“I’ve been thinking hard this whole week,” Jinyoung said in a thick voice. “Because I was worried you’d say ‘no’ again and I would never know or understand why. So I tried to piece together everything I know about you and see if I could figure it out on my own. And the more I thought about you, the more I realized I had all these emotions having to do with you that didn’t have any memories attached. Like…wanting you to know that I’m not afraid of you. That I was never frightened, just curious to understand you better. But even though I had these feelings, you’d never done anything that would cause them that I could remember. Why on earth would being frightened of you ever cross my mind? But the emotions were so strong that I knew they had to be real. And maybe they were the answers to the blank spaces in my memory that I’ve been noticing more and more recently.”

He took a breath. “At first, I was guessing you were something supernatural, but I didn’t see how you being a vampire or something like that would connect to me losing parts of my memory. And then I realized the answer was obvious. Magic. If a ribbon could vanish with magic, than my memory could, too. And I couldn’t forget that look you got when I made that joke about your magic being real. A look like I’d hit the nail on the head. So I was guessing that was probably it. Right?”

Mark nodded, heart pounding. He’d always thought that emotions were erased along with memories and that it was impossible for them to remain when the moment that had spawned was taken away. But Jinyoung had held onto them. They had been strong enough to anchor within him. He’d wanted Mark to know he wasn’t afraid. And for someone who’d kept innumerable secrets from the world because he was sure it would be afraid of him, this was the most beautiful thing he could ever hope to hear.

Jinyoung took his hands urgently. “Will you give me my memories back?” he asked. “It’s not fair that there are things that happened between us that you know and I don’t. I want to have every part of our story, too.”

Mark pressed his hand over his heart, it was pounding so noisily that he wasn’t sure he could even speak for a moment. “Y-You just want the memories back?” Mark stammered. “You’re not…angry or confused about what I just told you? You…believe that my magic is real?”

“Why wouldn’t I believe it? I mean, I saw for myself the incredible things you can do. And why would you tell me, if it wasn’t true? If you wanted to make up an excuse for why you have to reject me, I’m pretty sure you’d pick something more commonplace.” He gently brushed one of Mark’s fingers. “As for being angry…I might be, if you refuse to give back my memories.”

“I can’t give them back, it doesn’t work that way,” Mark said when he finally could. “I don’t have enough power to interfere with people’s memories. That’s the job of a Memory Wiper. And they can’t put the memory back as it was because they weren’t the ones that experienced it. They can’t replicate it from your perspective. I’m sorry, Jinyoung, but those memories are gone.”

Jinyoung looked so upset to hear this that Mark couldn’t bear it. He rose to his feet, cracking his knuckles. “Close your eyes, Jinyoung,” he said.

Jinyoung immediately obeyed. It was an incredibly trusting thing to do considering the bombshell Mark had dropped on him, and Mark loved him even more for it.

Mark crafted the exact same tiger he’d made when Jinyoung had first met him, a white tiger with blazing yellow eyes. “All right,” he said. “You can open them again.”

Jinyoung did so. His eyes immediately widened, and he jerked back into the couch cushion, momentarily alarmed. But then his body slowly relaxed and he took a breath. “That’s…not a real tiger, right?”

“It depends what you mean by ‘real’. But it definitely won’t hurt you.”

Jinyoung tentatively stood and edged closer to the tiger. He glanced at Mark for confirmation, then slowly began the tiger’s fur. The tiger nuzzled into the palm of his hand, a low rumbling purr issuing from its throat.

“That’s what you saw the moment we met,” Mark said. “Me and a tiger in the backyard of the duplex. Maybe you don’t remember that particular emotion, but you were definitely scared to death that time. You screamed your head off. ‘Get away from it, get away from it, it’s going to eat you!’” Mark laughed. “And meanwhile I was just shocked someone showed up at the duplex after all this time. I had a feeling you were going to be trouble. And I was right.”

Jinyoung shook his head in amazement. “This is so weird…the way I remember it, the first time I met you was a few days after I moved in. I brought you cookies and you barely opened the door for me.”

“I was trying to avoid you,” Mark explained.

“Because I saw you with the tiger?”

“Yeah. I didn’t want something like that to happen again.”

“But it did?”

“Yes.” Mark brushed his hand over the tiger, and it disappeared. “Again and again and again. More and more often, the longer I knew you. It wasn’t always scary things like tigers. Sometimes it was things like this.” This time he formed the recent illusion of the spring day with the rabbits and the flowers and the birds.

Jinyoung glanced around him, mouth falling open. “Did you just teleport us?”

“No, we’re still in the apartment. Remember—it’s just an illusion.”

“But I can feel the grass.”

“Yeah, isn’t it wonderful? That’s my favorite part.” Mark kicked off his shoes. “You found your way into this illusion, too. Except there were rainclouds in it because that’s the kind of thing I create when I love someone who feels impossible for me to have.”

Jinyoung’s eyes softened. “Impossible? Does impossible really even exist in your world, when you can make things like this?” He gestured broadly at the scene.

“Absolutely ‘impossible’ exists. Because to most people, everything you see in front of you is an impossibility, which makes my existence impossible. And unexplainable existences are threats.  They scare people. They disgust them.”

Jinyoung sighed. “So that’s why you rejected me? Because you thought I’d be disgusted? Because you thought I wouldn’t be able to accept this?”

“That, and because you weren’t supposed to know. That’s why you have all those blank spaces in your head. Because you found out something you shouldn’t.”

“No,” Jinyoung said firmly. “No to being disgusted. No to having something I shouldn’t be allowed to know about you. Why would seeing something this beautiful make me stop loving you?”

“It’s not unreasonable,” Mark protested. “It’s not unheard of for Normies to freak out.”

“Normies?” Now Jinyoung looked troubled. “That’s the word for…muggles?”

“Basically. It’s a regional thing. Some states use ‘mundies.’ Like, you know, ‘mundanes.’ And other use ‘nonmagicals’ or ‘ungifted’ or ‘regulars.’ Depends.”

“Could you never call me that again?” Jinyoung asked indignantly. “God, I hate knowing I’ve been a muggle to you. I can’t do magic, but I’m not…I’m not mundane.”

“I know, Jinyoung. We don’t use it as an insult. A lot of us really envy normal people. And there’s no way I’d use it to look down on you. You’re pretty magical to me. In your own way.”

“Hmph.” Jinyoung exhaled. “I’m going to have to make sure this doesn’t trigger an inferiority complex with me. How can I compete with that? I can bake, I guess, but just barely.”

“I wouldn’t worry about that. You’re…I really don’t know how to say this without sounding pathetic, but I don’t have a lot of people in my life. I have the guys in my troupe, and they’re family to me. But I’ve mainly stayed away from other people. I haven’t wanted to get close to them, because I don’t know how to open myself up while still holding who I really am back. But it’s been different with you. I wanted to be closer to you, even when I thought I shouldn’t. I wanted to break down those walls for the first time ever.” He smiled faintly. “If that’s not your own form of magic, I don’t know what is.”

“Thank you for that,” Jinyoung said softly. “You don’t know how much that means.” He took Mark’s hand. “Are you going to say yes this time?”

“Do you feel like you understand what you’re signing on for?”

“I think so. Magic is real. You can do it. I’m fine with that.” Jinyoung suddenly smiled. “As long as it means you and I are going to be together now, you can bring as many tigers into the duplex as you like. If you promise they won’t bite.”

Mark at last smiled back fully, heart bursting with joy. It was going to be fine. They’d overcome the biggest hurdle, and really, what was Mark ever going to be able to pull out of his hat more dramatic than that?

“Yes, Jinyoung,” he said, beaming. “I would love to go out with you, if you’re still on board.”

“I am.” Jinyoung squeezed his hand. “And I have to tell you, you’ve got the wrong idea of me if you ever for a second thought what you just told me would be a deal breaker. I fell in love with a magician, so it’s not that huge of a leap to be in love with an authentic magician. You’re going to have to pull something a lot crazier than that to get me to change my mind.”

“A risky thing to say when you have no idea what’s up my sleeve.”

“I know exactly what’s up your sleeve, Mark Tuan. Whatever your mind can imagine. Which is pretty exciting, because I have the feeling there’s as much of me in your mind as there is of you in mine.” Jinyoung leaned in. “But I wouldn’t say no to you filling your mind with me even more.”

Mark pulled Jinyoung into him and pressed his lips against him. What he felt in the moment they connected was breathtaking. He had always thought himself to be a master of sensations, given how well he needed to understand them to craft his illusions. If he was conjuring a cat, he couldn’t truly make it believable if he didn’t truly grasp the softness of its fur, the exact sound of its purring, the feel of its happy vibrations as you its head, the tickle of its whiskers, the sharpness of its claws.

But he realized he’d known nothing about kissing properly until now. Every kiss before this now felt as vague and fuzzy as a half-hearted illusion, its details lacking and its sensations dull and uninspiring. This kiss was full and fleshed out, perfectly exciting every sense in a way so encompassing that Mark was physically incapable of thinking of anything else. He handed himself over to the moment instead, imprinting every sensation into his body. The ideal softness of his lips. The perfect heat of his mouth. The sublime press of his body. The flawless touch of his fingers against Mark’s chest, the almost unreal smoothness of his skin.

Mark pulled away when he got too dizzy to continue. “You did something,” Jinyoung whispered breathlessly.

“Uh…yes…I think we both contributed to that?” Mark responded questioningly.

“No,” Jinyoung said, shaking his head. “I mean, you slipped something magical into that kiss.”

“I’m flattered that you would think I was capable of conjuring anything in that moment, but no. I didn’t do anything out of the ordinary.”

“But there had to be! I have never felt like that before. I’m not saying I’ve kissed a lot of people in my life, but I’ve kissed enough to know that wasn’t a regular kiss. I can’t even explain it.” He tore his hands through his hair. “It felt like…you know when you eat something so good that you can almost feel your mouth start rejoicing until it spreads through your whole body and you almost need a moment to ride out the feeling before you even take another bite? It was like that, but somehow even better. And kisses don’t do that, not to that extent. They’re good, but that was something beyond good. You must have done something.”

“Not consciously,” Mark said. “It happens sometimes that my feelings can leak into my magic, and certain bits of my magic can leak out without me meaning them to. Maybe it was that. But honestly…on my end, too, that was beyond anything I’ve felt, ever.”

“But I have no magic to leak into you,” Jinyoung said.

“I wouldn’t be so sure about that.” Mark cupped his hand on the back of Jinyoung’s neck. “But maybe it’s not magic at all. Maybe this is just what happens when two people who are meant to be together kiss each other.”

Jinyoung wrinkled his nose, but couldn’t hold back his smile. “I was not expecting this kind of cheesiness from you.”

“Sorry to destroy any illusions you had of me.”

“Mmmm. No matter what kind of illusions you craft, I think the reality of you within them is always going to be my favorite part. Even if you’re a little cheesier than anticipated.” He wrapped his arms around Mark’s neck. “Still, we should look into this mystery of whether or not your kisses are actually magical. I think it deserves further exploration.”

“Shall we do some research, then?”

“A lot of it. Just to be sure.”

“Don’t you have to get ready for work?”

“True.” Jinyoung drew away, biting his lip. “Am I allowed to come over tomorrow morning?”

 “Of course you can. You’re the boyfriend now. You don’t even have to bring muffins with you anymore. Although I wouldn’t say no…”

Jinyoung laughed. “Then we’ll see.” He stood up and turned to the door, but glanced back over his shoulder before leaving. “Hey, Mark?”

 “Yeah?”

“Thanks for saying yes. I wanted you to so badly that I probably would have given you a fourth chance anyways.”

“What about a fifth?”

“Now you’re just pushing your luck.” He pulled open the door. “But thank you so much for letting me push mine.”

A/N: Thank you so much for following this story!! I hope you enjoyed!

Since so many of you are loyal readers, I wanted to give you a head's up about what's on the horizon. As I've mentioned on Twitter, I'm having struggles writing during the COVID-19 lockdown (I'll be working at home for the forseeable future), not for lack of ideas, but because I'm getting incredibly burnt out in regards to the amount of time I'm spending on the computer with little outside interaction. For the sake of my mental health, I really have to limit the time I spend in front of a screen during my off hours, which is unfortunately cutting into the time I would have normally spent writing.

I have no intention of giving it up entirely because I LOVE writing, but there's no way I can keep up with the same fast and continous rate I've written at previously. I hope to still release one-shots here and there, but I just wanted to let you all know that it might be awhile before I can write a multi-chapter fic in the current circumstances :( I hope things go back to normal soon, so let's all work hard to follow guidelines, stay safe, and keep the world protected for ourselves and others!