The morning light slipped gently into the cottage.
It wasn't loud or sharp. It was soft, like a quiet knock on the door, brushing over the floorboards and sliding across the bed. Kai blinked awake, his eyes slowly adjusting. He didn't jump or panic this time. Instead, he lay still, realizing he was warm. Safe. His head was resting on something strong and steady.
Lucien.
Kai could hear his slow breathing. He could feel the way Lucien's chest rose and fell beside him. Their bodies were still close under the blankets, hands tangled like they had been all night.
A strange peace wrapped around them. Not perfect. Not forever. But for that one moment, it was enough.
Lucien stirred, his voice rough with sleep. "You awake?"
Kai gave a small nod. "Yeah."
They didn't say much at first. There was no need. The quiet between them wasn't awkward now—it was comfortable. It felt like breathing after holding it in for too long.
Lucien stretched a little, groaning as he sat up. "That was... a strange night."
Kai sat up too, pulling the blanket around his shoulders. "Yeah. I dreamed... but it felt real."
"It was real," Lucien said, running a hand through his messy hair. "Our bond pulled us into it. It's part of the connection forming between us."
Kai frowned slightly. "But why did it feel like a warning?"
Lucien glanced toward the cold fireplace. "Because it was. That voice—whoever or whatever it was—was trying to show us something."
Kai hugged the blanket tighter. "It said love wouldn't be enough."
Lucien looked down. His voice turned quiet. "Because sometimes it isn't. Not when something's trying to destroy us."
That silence returned again, but this time it felt heavier.
Lucien stood and walked to the old shelf, pulling down a worn book they'd found in the library the day before. The cover was dark green and cracked at the corners.
"I was reading this last night after you fell asleep," he said, flipping through pages. "It talks about bonds like ours. Alpha and Omega connections... especially when mixed with magic."
Kai watched closely as Lucien found a marked page. The words were in an ancient language, but someone had scribbled translations in the margins.
"This," Lucien pointed, "says that a bond formed under pressure or pain becomes even more powerful. But it also makes it easier for curses or dark forces to latch onto."
Kai shifted closer. "So the bond could help us… or destroy us?"
Lucien nodded. "Exactly."
He turned the page again. "There's more. It says that when two people with deep magical potential bond, their power starts to change. It reacts. It grows. Sometimes too fast."
Kai looked down at his hands. "Like what happened yesterday. When I felt... the heat in my chest."
Lucien gave a small smile. "Yes. That's your magic waking up."
Kai met his eyes. "Then I want to learn. I don't want to be afraid of it."
Lucien raised an eyebrow. "You sure?"
Kai's voice was steady. "I trust you."
Lucien's expression softened. He didn't say anything, but something shifted in his eyes. A quiet emotion passed through—something warm.
He closed the book and nodded. "Alright. Let's begin."
Later, outside the cottage...
The forest clearing was quiet. The air was cool, and sunlight filtered through the tall trees. There were birds somewhere nearby, and a slow wind brushing the grass.
Lucien stood beside Kai, guiding him with a calm voice.
"Start by breathing. Slowly. Don't force it."
Kai inhaled, then exhaled, feeling the tension slowly melt from his shoulders.
"Now focus," Lucien said. "Not on me. Not on your fear. Just... feel."
Kai closed his eyes.
He let the world fall away.
He thought about the feeling deep in his chest—the warmth that pulsed whenever Lucien was near. The strange way his skin tingled when they touched. That flicker of gold he saw behind his eyelids when he dreamed.
And then it happened.
A flicker of light escaped his fingertips. A soft spark, like a firefly. Then another. And another. It danced in the air before fading into the wind.
Kai opened his eyes, startled.
"I did that?"
Lucien smiled. "You did."
Kai stared at his hands. "It didn't even feel like I tried."
"That's the point," Lucien said. "Magic tied to emotion comes naturally. You're not broken, Kai. You're awakening."
Kai didn't know what to say. His heart felt full—confused, excited, afraid, and proud all at once.
Lucien stepped a little closer, voice lower. "You're doing better than you think."
Kai looked up at him. "So... what happens now?"
Lucien hesitated for a moment. Then he said softly, "Now we train. Together. And we protect what's growing between us."
Evening falls...
Back inside the cottage, the fire crackled again. Kai sat on the rug, staring into the flames. Lucien returned from the other room, holding the book again.
Kai looked up. "You keep reading that."
Lucien sat down beside him. "Because it's the only thing that might explain what's happening to us."
He flipped through pages until he found one covered in notes. "Listen to this," he said, pointing to a passage. "It says: When two cursed souls are bonded by fate, their magic may heal what time could not... if the bond is true."
Kai blinked. "Do you think that's us?"
Lucien didn't answer right away. His voice was quiet. "I've been cursed for a long time, Kai. Most people don't know it. They only see the Alpha in me. The power. The control. But I wasn't always like this."
Kai waited patiently.
Lucien looked into the fire. "I was born with too much magic. More than one person should carry. My body couldn't handle it. So an old sorcerer locked it inside me. Said it would grow into something useful. Instead, it grew into a curse."
Kai listened carefully, his heart tight.
"Every time I used my power, I hurt someone," Lucien went on. "So I stopped using it. I stopped... feeling. I built walls around everything. Until you."
Kai didn't know what to say. But he reached out and took Lucien's hand.
Lucien looked at their joined fingers, then at Kai.
"You don't know what you've done to me," he said, voice low. "You've changed everything."
Kai smiled a little. "Maybe we're both meant to change."
Lucien leaned in, just slightly. Their faces were close now. The firelight flickered between them, soft and golden.
Kai felt the bond stir again. That familiar pull in his chest. It wasn't just magic. It was need. Longing. Hope.
Lucien touched Kai's cheek with the back of his hand, gentle and slow. "I want to protect you, Kai. From all of it. Even from myself."
Kai's voice was a whisper. "Then don't push me away."
And then—for a breathless moment—they stayed like that. Not kissing. Not rushing. Just close. Just present.
Two souls, touching through the quiet.