“But ’at one waz roond,” I say with my mouth full of delicious cookie.
She plucks another one of the rejects off the tray and pops it in her mouth. She chews, concentrating hard, and then swallows.
“There is some magic to it. Your intensions are strong, but your execution must be stronger. Focus, Jiahui.”
“Yes, elder,” I say, but I feel like I’m already doing my best.
All I can think about is whether this is going to work, and what happens if it doesn’t. And of course, wishing Rhazan were here to help us. To hug me. To sing his calming song so my hands don’t shake while I draw the designs.
His song…
It’s worth a try.
The music comes to me easily and I begin to hum. I draw the next rune slowly and deliberately, pushing down and easing on the pressure to stop each line. There’s a little blop at the end, but it’s much cleaner than the previous five.
With every note I hum, heat fills my body and surges through my veins. It’s almost enough to make me sweat, but it keeps meright at the edge of uncomfortably focused. Orange light glows beneath my palms as I move to the next cookie and I gasp.
As soon as I stop humming, the glow disappears. I begin again, and Rhazan’s magic comes to me. I execute the next symbol with even better precision, and when the final line is down, the cookie bursts with golden sparks and the icing melds into the surface.
“There it is. Your secret strength,” Nai Nai says, and pride swells in my gut. “Perfectly done, granddaughter. Now, again.”
I hum and draw, altering the song as I get lost in the work. It’s not so sad anymore, but hopeful, wistful even. It whispers love in my ear and warms my soul. Cookie after cookie bursts with magic, and by the end of the second tray, it feels like my body has been emptied.
“I think I need a break,” I say, swaying on my feet.
Yep, definitely need a break.
There’s a burst of smoke beside me and I’m not on my feet anymore, but in Rhazan’s arms. It’s happened so many times now my immediate reaction is to cling to him, and I kinda like that.
“I’ll take you to rest,” he says.
“Hello, Rhazan,” Nai Nai says with a bright grin. “Good of you to come take care of her.”
“A lot of magic has flowed through this little vessel,” he says. “She needs taking care of.”
“I am not little,” I say, despite being second shortest of everyone in the shop.
Rhazan curls me against his chest and whispers in my ear, “My little Firecracker.”
Heat spirals down my body to my gut and I shiver.
His.
I like the sound of it. It feels right.
“I’ll bring her back in thirty minutes,” he says, then dips his head to my grandma.
“Take all the time you need,” she replies, and her tone carries a hint of suggestion that makes that warmth in my belly turn into squiggling worms.
I bury my face in his chest, hiding from the awkwardness. He walks toward the stairs, and I sigh, closing my eyes.
“So what, you just been hanging around, watching us like a creep?”
“Mhmm,” he hums. “I wasn’t going to intrude, but when you started singing my song, I couldn’t stay away. It was too beautiful.”
“Sorry, I changed it some.”
“I noticed.”
