Chapter 6

Zitao thought that he had a pretty damn good life. He was in perfect health, he had parents that loved him, he’d gotten a job assisting a wushu instructor with his age 8-10 students, he lived in a decent apartment, he owned an adorable cat, and possibly best of all he had a loving boyfriend.

“You’re home!”

Zitao almost stumbled into the door as Kris tackle hugged him, burying his face in Zitao’s neck.

“Hi,” Zitao laughed, patting the back of Kris’ head and hugging him back tightly.

Kris stood up, smiling happily. “I missed you,” he confessed, kissing Zitao’s cheek. “How was your day?”

Zitao sighed. “It was fun, but tiring.”

Kris was instantly on alert. “Do you need anything? I made soup earlier, should I heat it up for you?”

Zitao shook his head. “Too warm, I’ll just eat it cold.” His heart melted a little as Kris nodded seriously and dashed to the kitchen. Zitao picked up his bag (he’d dropped it when Kris hugged him) and took it into his and Kris’ room. Angel was curled up on the bed, snoozing in a sun spot, but she picked up her head when Zitao walked in.

“Hi, kitty,” Zitao crooned, scratching behind her ears. She purred loudly, stretching her neck out for a chin scratch. After a moment Zitao scooped her up and carried her out into the living room. She stopped purring for a second when she saw Kris, but she quickly relaxed again. Kris had put two bowls of soup on the coffee table and was already sitting on the couch, waiting for Zitao to come in.

“What kind of soup is it?” Zitao asked.

“Squash,” Kris said proudly. “It’s also got green beans and onion. Try it, it’s really good!”

Zitao already knew it would be, but he took a small taste before diving in. “Wow, it is really good! Did you make it yourself?”

Kris’ cheeks looked a little pink—he always got flustered when Zitao praised him. “I did.”

Zitao shook his head. “You’re amazing,” he sighed. “Honestly, how did I get so lucky to find you?”

Kris was full out blushing, stirring his soup shyly. “You flatter me,” he mumbled, but he picked his head up to give Zitao an adoring smile. “I was more lucky. You’re wonderful.”

Zitao’s heart melts again and he doesn’t bother to hide his smile. He eats a little more of the soup before talking again. “So, did you just cook today, or did you actually have some fun?”

Kris looks thoughtful. “Well, cooking is fun, I like watching the ingredients come together. And the fact that I get to taste it doesn’t hurt either.” His face lit up. “I also made flavored lemonade if you want some!”

“What flavor?”

“Berry flavor! I made regular lemonade and put some strawberries and blackberries in it, it’s been soaking all day. Oh, maybe that wouldn’t go so well with the soup…we can have it later! And I also watched some TV. I still don’t see the appeal, it’s a lot of people whining over how nobody loves them meanwhile there’s a perfect person standing right behind them.”

Zitao laughed at Kris’ confused expression. “Yeah, well, that’s how dramas work. I guess it reminds people to open their eyes and look around at their own life?”

Kris shrugged. “Well, real life is better than TV anyway. So how was your day?”

Zitao loved talking about the kids—sometimes they could be trouble but they respected him enough that they were usually very well behaved. Today they’d started with the stick and so far nobody had poked anyone’s eye out or caused damage to the studio, so it was a job well done. He started petting Kris’ wings towards the end of the story and Kris flopped into his lap, sighing happily.

It had been like this for two weeks. Zitao would come home from work and find Kris waiting, anxious to see him again, with something wither cooked or cooking, and they would talk about how their days had been. They’d cuddle on the sofa, make out for a little while…they hadn’t had again, not yet, but sometimes things got a little heavy. It was a nice thing to come home to, and Zitao was starting to wonder how he’d gotten on before Kris had come into his life. It was only two weeks into summer break, but it was already the best time Zitao had since coming to South Korea.

Three weeks into summer break Zitao received a very angry message on his voicemail from none other than his best friend, Krystal.

‘Damnit Zitao, answer your phone. You’ve been ignoring us for weeks and we don’t appreciate it! if you don’t call me back before the end of the day, I swear I will come over to your apartment and pound you into a pulp.’

The message was on his cellphone, so Kris didn’t hear it, but Zitao was standing in the living room pale as the moon and there was no way Kris had missed that. Currently Kris was hovering at his side, fussing over him.

“Zitao? Baby? What’s wrong?”

Zitao swallowed. “Um…my friend, she called me…I didn’t realize I hadn’t spoken to them in so long…”

Kris exhaled in a huff and tapped Zitao’s arm reproachfully. “You had me so worried! I thought somebody died!”

“I’m going to die if I don’t call Krystal!” Zitao yelped, quickly dialing her number. The phone rang a few times and then there was a click as the call was picked up.

“Finally,” Krystal sighed. “What took you so long?”

“I was busy,” Zitao snapped. “I work, you know!”

“No, we didn’t know,” He heard Suzy say.

“Suzy?” Zitao gasped, “You’re there too?”

“And me,” Minji threw in.

“What are you three doing?” Zitao sputtered, “Hanging out waiting for me to miss the call so you can get your gang gear on and come rough me up?” He waves away Kris’ worried look, shushing him. “I’m fine, I promise, I just have a lot going on.”

“Explain it in person,” Krystal interrupted. “We’re in your hallway.”

Zitao’s heart stopped and he stared open mouthed at Kris. He hadn’t told the three of them that he was with anyone…how was he going to explain this to them?!

“GO AWAY!” Zitao screeched, and Kris jumped, losing a few feathers in the process. Zitao didn’t have time to apologize, he ran to the door and made sure the deadbolt was locked before locking the chain as well.

“We will not,” Krystal vowed, and Zitao could hear her outside the door now. “You have some explaining to do. Where the hell have you been the last few weeks? Hell, the last few months! It feels like we haven’t seen you in ages!”

“Yeah,” Minji threw in. “Practically since the hotel, you’re always busy!”

The doorknob rattled and Kris and Zitao jumped. Kris was wide eyed, looking like a deer in headlights. Zitao figured he must have looked about the same.

‘Hide,’ Zitao mouthed, ‘I’ll try to get rid of them.’

Kris side eyed the door. “Should I just meet them now?” he whispered.

“No,” Zitao hissed, “My god we don’t have a cover story or anything!”

“But they’re your friends, they mean a lot to you,” Kris countered.

There was the sound of fists pounding on the door. “Open up right now Huang Zitao or I will raise hell!”

Zitao really questioned what had possessed him to become friends with Krystal. “You have no business telling me what to do, Krystal Jung!” Zitao fired back. “I’m tired and…and I was about to shower, so get lost!”

“Never!” Krystal and Suzy yelled together. “Open the door!”

Zitao looked at Kris desperately. “Hide,” He repeated. “Just go…”

But Kris shook his head and took Zitao’s hand. “I’m not leaving you,” he said firmly. “I want to help you. Zitao, let’s do this together.” Kris didn’t say it, but it was implied—‘Let’s do this together because we’re mates and I love you more than anyone in the world.’

So Zitao took a deep breath and squeezed Kris’ hand. “Okay,” he agreed, even though he was probably facing death. “Let’s do this.”

They walked over to the door together and Zitao unlocked the deadbolt and unfastened the chain. He expected to be faced with fury the likes of which he had never known, and he wasn’t disappointed. Well, not at first—Krystal was scowling and Suzy and Minji both looked a little miffed, but as the door opened wider and Kris came into view the three of them went from mad to shocked in less than a second.

“Who are you?” Minji blurted, staring at Kris. Zitao looked over his shoulder to make sure that Kris’ wings were hidden and realized in the process that to anyone who didn’t know him, Kris looked slightly imposing. Zitao was already tall, but Kris was a bit taller, and he was broader. His hair was still dyed blonde, and pulled back the way it was it showed off all the sharp angles in his face. He was wearing a dark hoodie and with the hall light flickering in the way it did, Kris looked almost intimidating.

“I’m Kris,” Kris said with a smile, and there was the Kris that Zitao was familiar with.

Zitao turned back to his stunned friends. “Yeah, he’s um…he’s my boyfriend,” he said with a nervous smile. He knew Kris was positively beaming.

The girls’ jaws dropped.

“Your boyfriend?!” Suzy gasped. “Zitao, you have a boyfriend?! Since when?”

Zitao opened and closed his mouth, not sure of what to say exactly. “I—um, it was…”

“We met in January,” Kris reminded him gently.

“January!” Krystal yelped, “And we didn’t know until just now?”

Zitao held up his hands, trying so shush her. “Krystal please, I have neighbors!”

Krystal huffed and crossed her arms but lowered her voice. “Well, since you have deigned to impart this information on us, and it must have been so difficult for you—”

Minji elbowed her. “You know, he probably didn’t say anything because he knew you’d give the poor guy anxiety with your interrogation.”

Zitao’s heart stopped for the second time that day—Minji was right, Krystal was about to interrogate Kris, and the two of them didn’t have a cover story! An idea came to Zitao, and he didn’t like all that much, it but he was desperate. And at desperate times, desperate measures needed to be taken.

“Look, I get that you guys came all the way down here for a reason, but we were kind of in the middle of something…” Zitao said, trailing off suggestively. “So if you could leave? Please? And I’ll talk to you tomorrow or something?”

Suzy’s jaw dropped as she caught on and Krystal went back to looking furious. “Oh, okay then,” she growled. “If you can find it in your oh-so-busy schedule to come see us, we’ll see you tomorrow.”

Zitao felt himself blush at her tone, but he had kind of walked into that one. He knew Kris sensed his discomfort, but he didn’t expect Kris to say anything.

“Hey,” Kris said sharply, “There’s no need to use that tone, Zitao’s not at fault here, if anything it’s my fault, he’s been helping me out and I guess we got a little wrapped up in each other but he’s done nothing wrong.”

Zitao’s breath caught in his chest and he bit back a whimper. He had no idea how Krystal was going to react to that. Though, Kris did have a point.

Krystal gave Kris a blank look, but beside her Minji had burst into laughter. “Oh gosh, I like him! Dude, anyone who can talk back to Krystal is okay in my book.” And she looped her arm through Krystal’s and started pulling her away. “Sorry about her Zitao, you know how she gets. Anyway, we’ll see you tomorrow, I’ll text you!”

Zitao waved weakly and waited until they had made it to the elevator before snapping the door shut again. He leaned his forehead against it, breathing like he had run a mile. After a few seconds he felt a hesitant touch on his shoulder.

“Zitao are you okay?” Kris asked in a small voice. “Did I…was I out of line?”

Zitao shook his head. “No, no you weren’t.”

Kris came up behind Zitao and hugged him, long arms wrapping around his waist. “I’m sorry if I made things awkward. I just…I could tell how bad what she said made you feel. I just didn’t want her to think it was okay, that it didn’t matter to you.”

Zitao smiled and turned in Kris’ arms to face him. “It’s okay. I’m kind of used to letting people walk all over me, I really need to stand up for myself.”

Kris looked surprised. “You let people walk all over you? You do?”

Zitao was confused. “I mean, sometimes?”

Kris shook his head. “That’s not the impression I got. You’re very forceful and strong willed, it’s one of the many things that I love about you.”

Zitao sputtered. “Forceful? Strong willed?”

Kris nodded. “When you found me in the hotel—I mean you were scared, but you were also very clear headed. You knew something was off, you…oh, how do I explain this?” He closed his eyes and huffed. “When confronted with something that you thought was unnatural, you were determined to get to the bottom of it and make it make sense to you. You wanted to find the logic in the situation. All the questions you asked me, all the research you must have done on the subject of mating, you weren’t about to just take my word for it and let me push you along. You were involved in your own choices every step of the way, you made sure that you would be safe with me, you made sure that you were secure in your feelings for me. You…” he trailed off, staring at Zitao with a look of wonder on his face. “You are amazing, Zitao. Everything you feel is one hundred percent genuine, you don’t force yourself to feel anything for the benefit of others, you are so true to yourself.”

Zitao was stunned. “But I wound up in that hotel because of a bunch of bullies! Bullies that I allowed to make me feel miserable—”

“That’s different,” Kris interrupted. “Bullies play on your insecurities, they don’t fight fair. What they do, what they make you feel, it’s outside of your control. But I seem to remember you saying that your own bragging is what got you into that hotel.”

Zitao chuckled weakly. “Well yeah…” he sighed. “You don’t seem like you’d let bullies bother you.”

Kris shook his head, smiling sadly. “They got me. And they bothered me. I got…picked on a lot for being unmated.”

Zitao was shocked. “But you couldn’t help that!”

“I know,” Kris assured, “And trust me—I know I’ve said it a million times but trust me—the wait was so worth it. I could not have dreamed of a better mate, not in a million years. And I will do anything to make sure that you are happy, especially if it involves your friends.”

Zitao felt a lot better hearing that. “They did keep me sane for the past few years. Krystal comes off as snarky and sassy…well more than she actually is, but she means well.” Zitao looked down at his feet. “I really surprised her. I don’t know how I’ll explain this to her.”

“We will think of something,” Kris assured. “Let’s plan it out now.”

Not sure if he was pushing his luck, Zitao tugged on Kris’ hand. “Maybe we could just, you know, tell them the truth?”

Kris went ridged. “The…truth?” he repeated weakly. “The truth about what?”

“Everything,” Zitao said. “How we met, what you are…they can keep it a secret,” he added quickly, but the blood had drained from Kris’ face and he looked about to faint.

After a moment Kris cleared his throat and rubbed the back of his neck nervously. “Ah…well, the thing is…I would do anything for you my love but…I can’t do that. We can’t tell your friends the truth about what I am.”

Zitao tried not to look heartbroken. “I don’t like lying to my friends,” he whispered.

“I know,” Kris said quickly. “And Zitao trust me I would not ask you to do this if it wasn’t important to me it’s just…” he took a deep breath. “There’s a reason for this. Can we sit down? I need to tell you a few more things about…creatures like myself.”

“Oh god,” Zitao gasped, “You’re not about to tell me that you can get pregnant, are you?”

“What?!” Kris yelped, “What the—no! Zitao that’s anatomically impossible, where did you get that idea?”

Zitao heaved a sigh of relief and staggered over to the couch, collapsing on it. “Just making sure I have my bases covered,” he panted. “Okay, I can handle anything you have to tell me now.”

Kris sat next to him, hands folded in his lap and eyes cast down. “I should have told you before but…it’s kind of sad.” He inhaled shakily. “I told you that my kind were bred essentially as pets, which is why we’re called that. We were supposed to be playthings for the wealthy, pretty little decorations that would keep their beds warm. When we escaped that we were so determined to never go back. My whole species made it a rule that we were to stay hidden, or as hidden as we possibly could. We would have to be completely insular, the only outsiders we would accept would be our mates. We are not to let anyone know of our existence except our mates and their immediate family—by which I mean parents or guardians.” Kris finally looked up and met Zitao’s eyes. “That courtesy does not extend to friends, no matter how close they might be.”

Zitao’s heart lurched. “But they’re like my family,” he protested.

Kris looked back down. “I know,” he whispered, “And if it were up to me I’d let you, but it’s not up to me. And…if you tell them, word will get around. I don’t know it happens but someone will find out and when they do…” Kris’ voice broke. “I’ll be exiled.”

Zitao felt like he’d swallowed ice. “Exiled?” He repeated.

Kris nodded. “Even though I’m away from my clan right now, they always manage to send word to me when they move. Somehow or another they get a letter or something similar to wherever I may be, and they do that so that I can always go home. But if they learn that an outsider knows what I am…they’ll cut me off. they’ll move and trust me, I will never find them again. And in addition to that, word will get around to other clans, and even if I find more like me they’ll turn me away, and I’ll…” he choked back a sob, “I’ll never be allowed to be part of a clan again.”

Zitao was stunned. “That…how could they…?”

Kris sniffled and wiped his eyes. “It’s harsh but it’s true and Zitao…I’ve been around for so long that my parents and my siblings are all dead. I have cousins and nieces and nephews, but the truth is that the whole clan has become my family and I can’t lose them.” He finally looked up, tears clinging to his eyelashes. “I would not ask you to do this if I had a choice, and I really don’t have a choice. My clan is…they’ve always been there for me. It would mean the world to me if you could…I would never ask you for anything ever again if you would just keep this a secret for me.”

As much as Zitao didn’t want to lie to his friends, he knew he could never ask Kris to do something that would cut him off from his family. And he knew that if he pressed hard enough, Kris would eventually cave because he loved Zitao that much, but Zitao loved Kris to the same extent. If keeping Kris a part of his clan meant lying, he would do it in a heartbeat.

“I won’t ask you to cut yourself off from your clan,” Zitao vowed, taking Kris’ hand. “We’ll figure something else out, something that will work for the both of us.”

Kris looked up like he hardly dared to believe it, but he saw the truth of those words in Zitao’s eyes. Still crying, he flung his arms around Zitao’s neck and hugged him tightly. “Thank you,” he whispered. “Thank you so much, oh Zitao you have no idea how much this means to me…” he pulled back and kissed Zitao square on the mouth. “I love you,” Kris breathed against his lips. “I love you more than you’ll ever know.”

Zitao silenced Kris with another kiss, and when they pulled away they were both smiling. Zitao planted a gentle kiss on Kris’ forehead. “Trust me,” he laughed. “I think I know.”

Wow, so many new readers! It feels like I'm just posting this story all over again, it got such a big response just from the foreword, and now I'm blown away again by how many more people have found it ^^

Like I said, this story will focus on how Kris and Zitao explain their relationship to others, and I can tell you right now that Krystal especially is not happy. But don't go around thinking she's being cruel on purpose, she doesn't know anything about Kris. And keep in mind that Zitao has known Kris since January and it is now like, June or July...whatever month it is, I forget. Anyway he's known Kris for a while.

You're also going to get a lot of cute Taoris moments in this part of the story.

I hope everyone enjoys what I have planned!