Page 59 of Jade Lion and the Witch Boy
“Please, Sebastian…stay with me.” As I rock him back and forth in my arms, he breathes in weak gasps. I chant those words, a prayer to the heavens, over and over. Several wizards arrive to take him on a rolling bed, talking about mortal medicaltreatments. The world moves on in slow motion as Seb leaves. My coven stays close and holds me as I watch the man I love being taken away from me on his deathbed.
CHAPTER 24- SEB
WHY DOES ITfeel like I just ran a marathon, then got hit by a truck? I don’t remember where I am or how I got here. There are potted plants everywhere, along with a metal pole. I’m in a bed, and the sheets are comfy.
Wait, these are my sheets. This is my bed, and these are my walls. I’m propped up on two pillows, and tubes are attached to my right arm, the inner elbow area. There appear to be IV lines from my veins to the bags hung up on the large pole beside me. My throat feels dry, and I can barely move my legs. My right palm is bandaged, and I recall that there’s a cut there.
The last thing I remember is reading off a scroll, chanting with Luther, and him slicing open my palm to access my blood.
Kai! I went into his subconscious! I told him I loved him! Is he okay? I need to find him, but I’m too weak to look for my phone.
A figure walks in and proceeds to water the plants. I do my best to clear my throat despite the pain in my ribs. The woman turns around, and I smile.
“Anika. Where is—”
“Oh, haunted hearts, you’re awake!” My roommate rushes up to me and holds my hand. “I’m thrilled to see you, Seb!” She beams at me while her eyes fill with tears.
“Nice to see you too, Anika,” I reply. “But where is…?”
“You must be wondering what happened.” She gets up and resumes watering the plants, but faster this time. “You’ve been asleep for three days. You lost nearly all of your blood; it’sa miracle you survived, to be honest. The Union has medical personnel on staff, well-versed in non-magical medicine. We don’t want to get those dreaded mortal hospitals involved. Then the police will ask questions, and—”
“That’s great, but where—”
“And so we got you transfused. That spell took a lot of blood from you. The Union infirmary had some good old-fashioned intravenous blood and saline to give you.” She dotes on her plants, still not listening to me. “Those wizards have so much magic, and yet they couldn’t do much because of the nature of the spell. That sounds like rubbish to me, but what do I know, I’m just a green witch.”
“Anika.”
“And so once we got you home, I placed as many healing plants as possible in the correct configuration around your room. I guess they did the trick, because here you are, already awake. Now all we need is—”
“Anika!” I yelp.
She stops and finally looks at me. “I appreciate that, but…” I cough and wince. “Where is Kai?”
Anika nods and puts down her watering can. “I’ll go get him.”
“He’s okay?” I rasp. My eyes burn, knowing that he’s here in Boysen House. Kai, the man I love, is here, and he’s well?
“He’s been a wreck.” She plays with her fingers, then strides to the door. “But I’ll give you two lover boys some space. Oh, I’m so thrilled you’re awake,” she sings as she walks down the hallway.
My smile falls at her calling us “lovers.” Okay, sure, we had sex. And yes, I needed to be his fated mate to reach his soul. But still, he was so pissed the last time I saw him. I don’t blame him, yet I want to patch things up. I want us to talk about our love, but not in his subconscious. I hope he isn’t still mad. We stopped apower-hungry witch together, that’s got to count for something, right?
I shift in the bed despite my body’s protests. I want to look good when I grovel and ask Kai for a second chance.
The door creaks open, garnering my attention. A gasp escapes my lips at the sight of Kai, standing in my room. He has bags under his eyes, and his black hair is slightly disheveled. His white shirt is wrinkly, not helped by him gripping the fabric like a timid child.
“H-h-hey,” I stutter. My throat feels coarse, but I power through. “Um, so, I’m really sorry about…not telling you about the coven’s terrible plan. I feel awful. But I never faked any of my feelings. I hope you can forgive me.” The silence is thick between us when he doesn’t reply. I’m about to continue when he starts sobbing.
Kai, the massive, all-powerful stud, is now on his knees by the bed. He grasps my hand and taps his forehead to it, a sign of remorse, I assume. “Se-Se-Sebastian,” he sobs.
My eyebrows jump, but after a moment, I cover his hand with my left. “Kai, it’s okay.”
“You almost died,” he cries, as tears stream down his precious face.
“I know, but…”
He sniffs. “I am so sorry! So sorry for everything, Sebastian.”
My brow furrows. “Huh?”
