Final Fireworks

A couple weeks had passed since the day that Mai was shot. Mark ordered her to take some time off of work so she could rest up. All this meant was that Mark worked more hours than normal, and that they weren’t able to spend much time together.

Mai was laying in her bed with both of her arms wrapped tightly around her 5-foot stuffed bear. The bandages she had on before were no longer present as she was physically healed from the incident.

Her phone buzzed lightly on the nightstand. With a slow and lazy motion, Mai reached over with her previously wounded arm and picked up the phone without even checking the caller ID.

“Hello?” Mai answered softly as she held the phone close to her ears.

“Hey Mai,” Mark replied back as he locked the convenience store and began walking out.

“Oh, it’s you Mark. How was work?” Mai asked as she held onto the bear tightly.

“It was long. If I’m being honest, I miss having you here,” Mark answered as he began his usual walk towards his home. “How are you feeling?”

Mai paused for a moment and held tightly to her bear. She didn’t want to trouble Mark with her own selfish desires, but she was starting to feel even more isolated than ever before.

“I’m okay, just hugging Beary,” Mai said softly as she buried her face into Beary, the oversized gift.

“You sound lonely,” Mark determined softly. “I’ll be there in a few minutes,” he continued as he took a detour from his normal route, heading to where Mai’s house was.

“What about your siblings?” Mai asked softly as she rolled over slightly on her bed.

“They’ll be fine. Damian can take care of Alexa for a night,” Mark assured as he continued walking towards Mai’s house. “I’ll see you in 5 minutes.”

“Okay. Thank you,” Mai said quietly as Mark hung up the call.

Mark took the phone from his ear and started texting his brother.

“Damian, do you think you can watch Alexa for the night? Mai needs a little cheering up.”

“Sure thing. She already fell asleep. School’s been keeping us busy.”

“Thanks Damian. I knew I could count on you.”

“Try not to have too much fun, Mark.”

“I’ll try not to. See you tomorrow.”

“Oh, I forgot to mention, Chloe and Alexa wanted to go to the beach tomorrow. Maybe Mai would like to come join us.”

“That’s a great idea. I’ll ask her,” Mark texted as he arrived at the front door of Mai’s house. “I’ll text you tomorrow. Stay safe.”

“Stay safe, Mark.”

Mark placed his phone into his pocket and stared at the front door. This was the first time he was going to be inside Mai’s home. He was interested in seeing Mai’s home, but he was also worried that he would be invading her privacy. With a slight hesitation, Mark took out his hand and knocked on the door.

Almost instantly, Mai opened up the door and peeked from behind it.

“Please, come in Mark,” Mai said quietly from behind the door, accidentally hiding the smile on her face.

Mark slowly entered her home and closed the door behind him. As he took off his shoes by the door, he looked around at the condition of the house. Everything was quiet, tidy, and picked up. The living area of the house looked so barren and cold compared to the one in his house. As he followed Mai deeper into her house, he realized that no one else had been living here for at least a few months.

“Are those the roses from the performance?” Mark asked, looking at the vase on her kitchen table. The majority of the rose’s petals had wilted and fallen onto the table.

“Mhm. They were so pretty,” Mai said quietly, lightly touching one of the blooming roses in the vase.

After a couple moments spent studying the rose, Mai softly reached her hand towards Mark’s and led him towards her room.

“M-Mai? Are you sure it’s alright for me to be in your room?” Mark asked as they arrived in front of her room’s door.

“Of course. Why wouldn’t it be?” she asked stoically, leading him inside of her room and closing the door behind him.

“Isn’t a girl’s room special to her?” Mark asked hesitantly.

“W-Well, if it’s supposed to be special, then I trust you enough to come in,” Mai said softly with a smile.

Mark returned the smile as he stopped and looked around her room. As he originally thought, her room was minimalistic. A plain set-up with everything tidied on her desk and floor. Even with the plethora of stuffed bears on her bed, including her new addition, they were all placed methodically on her bed.

“I hope its not too messy,” Mai said as she took a seat on her bed and patted the bed next to her, inviting him to sit next to her.

“Messy? Everything is so nice and tidy. You should see Damian’s room,” Mark joked nervously as he sat down next to her on the bed.

Mai let out a gentle laugh before wrapping her arms around him.

Mark smiled and wrapped her arms around her, treating her to a nice and soft hug. It’s been a few days since he had seen her, so he wanted to treasure every second they had together.

“How was work?” she asked kindly as she tilted her head to the side.

“Long and exhausting,” Mark joked as he let out a loud yawn, making his eyes water slightly. “I really miss having you around,” he continued sweetly, staring into her eyes happily.

Mai’s smile widened a little bit more and her face turned a soft pink with blush. Before she could give a response, Mark let out another yawn.

“You should get some rest,” Mai suggested caringly as she gently rubbed her pillows on her bed.

Mark looked at her gesturing to the pillow and immediately threw his hands up in the air dismissively.

“No, I couldn’t sleep on your bed,” Mark responded nervously.

“It’s okay. I can sleep on the floor,” Mai replied as she walked to her closet to grab an extra blanket.

Before Mark could even make a rebuttal, Mai had already made a makeshift bed on the floor for herself. She robbed her bed of all of the stuffed animals and placed them on the floor near her. Seeing her hard work in organizing the beds, along with his feelings of tiredness and exhaustion, Mark laid down on the bed slowly.

“Thank you, Mai,” he thanked as he placed his head on the pillow.

When his head landed on the pillow, the sweet scent of vanilla and lavender marched into his nose, instantly calming Mark down from his nervousness. Within a matter of moments, Mark crashed into sleep.

“He looks so happy,” Mai thought, smiling sweetly as she watched Mark fade into sleep.

After Mai plugged in her nightlight, she turned off the room’s lights and laid down on the floor, eventually falling asleep.

During the night, Mai began having a nightmare. Her body moved restlessly in her sleep, and she was talking in a soft voice. All she pictured was the encounter with the man at the store. Her anxiety and fear grew and intensified, and every moment made her more and more restless, until finally, the man fired the gun.

Mai jolted awake, rapidly checking her left shoulder to see if she had actually been shot. With soft tears in her eyes, she turned towards Mark who was still asleep, and jumped onto his chest.

“Ack-” Mark let out as he was startled awake by Mai. “M-Mai, what’s wrong?”

“I…I almost died!” Mai cried silently as her grip tightened around him. She buried her face into his chest and continued to cry.

Unsure of what to do, Mark slowly wrapped his arms around her tightly, bringing her into him even more. He still felt responsible for the incident that happened with her and the drunk man, so it made it even harder for Mark to watch Mai in this state. She was afraid, and he knows that he should’ve been there to prevent her shooting from happening.

“What if I try this?” Mark thought as he took a hand and passed it gently through Mai’s hair like she did for him.

Mark then began to hum softly, singing a song that she seemed familiar with. As his song continued, Mai joined in, humming sweetly through her fading sobs.

“H-How do you know this song?” Mark asked quietly as he continued to push his fingers through her hair.

Mai quietly explained the night when she slept in Alexa’s room and how Alexa sang the song to help herself feel calm.

Mark smiled as he continued to hold her in his arms. Once she finished crying, Mark asked her a question he forgot to ask.

“Mai, would you like to go with me to the beach tomorrow? Chloe and Alexa wanted to try and do something since Damian’s able to walk by himself now. I’d love for you to come.”

Mai looked up into Mark’s eyes and nodded her head. The two of them shared a gentle smile with each other, and eventually fell asleep together, sharing the same pillow.

The next day, Mark and Mai were still in bed together. They both stirred slightly in their sleep, waking each other up. As they both opened their eyes slowly, they saw each other only a few atoms away, making them both turn pink with blush.

“Uh, g-good morning, Mai,” Mark greeted nervously as he pulled his face back and away from Mai, causing him to fall off of the bed and onto the floor.

“Morning,” Mai greeted back stoically.

“Did you sleep well?” Mark asked as he quickly got up from the floor.

Mai nodded as she sat up in her bed and began to stretch her arms.

“How about you, Mark? Did you sleep well?” she asked as she got out of the bed.

“Yeah,” Mark started as he blushed lightly. “Your hair smells really nice,” he complimented hesitantly.

“Aw, thank you,” Mai said softly.

The two of them stared at each other with a slight awkwardness. After a few moments of this nervous silence, Mai finally decided to break the tension.

“Want to join me for breakfast?” she asked sweetly.

“Oh, sure!” Mark answered back, and the two of them headed down the stairs together.

When they got to the kitchen, Mai washed her hands to start preparing a meal for the two of them. The two of them had a small back and forth about food, and a few minutes later, breakfast was ready.

The two of them enjoyed a nice breakfast full of scrambled eggs, bacon, toast, and coffee together. As the two of them closed their eyes for a brief prayer and thanks for the food, Mai stole a small piece of Mark’s scrambled eggs. Mark caught a glimpse of it, and the two of them had a nice laugh with each other.

As breakfast finished, and the two of them cleaned up their messes, Mark surprised Mai with a hug.

“You should get ready. Then, we can head to my house,” Mark suggested.

Mai blushed with Mark’s sudden hug and agreed to get ready.

Mark waited patiently by the door with his shoes on as Mai was upstairs getting dressed. When she came down, she was wearing a white shirt, pink shorts, and pink sandals. Mai also had a towel draped over her shoulder.

“I’m ready,” Mai said stoically.

Mark smiled upon seeing Mai dressed up in casual wear. He was happy with the idea of spending more time with her, especially at a place like the beach.

The two of them walked to Mark’s house. On the way, they talked about the birds and nature. With every new conversation, they learned more about each other, smiling with every new thing they had to say to each other.

They reached Mark’s house, only to find that no one else was there.

“Alright, now it’s my turn to get ready,” Mark joked as he went upstairs to his room to get changed.

Mai laughed softly and took a seat on the couch.

After some time had passed, they left the house and headed towards the nearby beach.

*     *     *

The two of them arrived at the sandy beach. There were different families and couples enjoying their time together. Swimming in the ocean, running around on the sand, everyone seemed to enjoy themselves.

“Hey! Mark! Mai! Over here!” Chloe yelled as she saw the two of them walking nearby.

Mark and Mai turned towards the sound of Chloe yelling their names and waved towards her.

“Glad you two could come! Damian and Alexa are playing in the sand over there,” Chloe said as she gave the two of them a hug and pointed close by to where Damian and Alexa were.

“Oh, a sandcastle,” Mai said softly as she walked over to where they were stationed.

Alexa and Damian smiled as Mai tried her best to help them construct their castle.

“So…you and Mai huh?” Chloe asked teasingly with a smile on her face.

“What do you mean by that?” Mark asked defensively as he sat down under the big beach umbrella that Chloe set up.

“Nothing, silly. I’m just glad you two are getting closer. I’ve never seen either of you so happy,” Chloe said with a gentle smile on her face.

Mark couldn’t hide the childish grin coming from his face.

“You look nice with that smile,” Chloe complimented as she pulled at Mark’s cheeks playfully.

“Chloe, you always know how to make me smile,” Mark responded as he gave her a warm embrace. “You also look nice with a smile,” he complimented, quickly looking up and down at her in her bikini.

Meanwhile, Damian, Mai, and Alexa were finishing up the sandcastle. Following Alexa’s lead, the three of them ended up with a beautiful looking sandcastle that was about half of Alexa’s height. The castle also had a small moat around it from the water of the ocean. It was far enough away that the castle wouldn’t be ruined by the ocean’s tides.

“This looks amazing, doesn’t it Mai?” Damian asked as he stood behind her. “Almost as amazing as you,” he added, genuinely complimenting her and her skirtini that she was wearing.

“Mhm,” she agreed softly as she stared at their creation. “How are your legs?”

“Oh, these?” Damian said teasingly as he flexed his legs playfully in front of her. “They’re great! I can finally run. How about your shoulder?”

Mai grabbed at her shoulder softly and moved her arm around in a circular motion, showing that her shoulder was fully healed.

“Awesome! That means we can bake again one day. Right Mai?” Alexa asked as she peered from behind her masterpiece.

Mai smiled and nodded at Alexa. She was happy to have these people to call friends.

Damian then took Alexa into the ocean water, and the two of them spent time swimming in the ocean. He showed her how to swim against some of the rough waves and the two of them were looking at different shells on the beach.

Chloe spent a lot of her time under the umbrella with Mark and Mai, talking about different plans and ideas they wanted to make to try and enjoy the upcoming summer. Chloe and Mai also shared some talk about Mark and Damian while Mark took a brief nap under the shade.

A few hours later, and the sun was starting to set. The beach was almost completely cleared out, aside from a few straggling couples and families scattered throughout. Mai had fallen asleep next to Mark on the sandy beach.

“Guys, wake up!” Chloe commanded as she shook the two sleeping beauties awake. “We have a surprise!”

Mark and Mai slowly woke up to Chloe who was beckoning them with small sparklers. She grabbed both of them off of the ground and handed them each a sparkler. Damian came by and lit each of the sparklers.

The five of them then stood in a circle together with their sparklers and watched as they lit up the night. Everyone shared in the happiness and joy of the dazzling lights in front of them.

“Mai…You are so pretty,” Mark thought as he saw her fully bathed in the moonlight. The sparklers added a glow of life and energy to Mai that he was finally able to see.

As the sparklers came to an end, the sun had officially taken its leave. The cool and brisk winds brushed past the five of them, making everyone shiver. Before anyone could suggest leaving however, a loud cry sounded as a trail of light flew into the air.

BOOM!

As Chloe, Damian, and Alexa looked up into the sky to watch the firework show, Mark’s attention went to where Mai was standing, only to see that she was stumbling backwards. Mark quickly reached towards her and caught her before she could fall on the sand. Mai’s head was resting peacefully in Mark’s lap.

A second firework started its ascension into the sky.

BOOM!

“Ah!” Mai yelped quietly.

“Mai, are you okay?” Mark asked as he looked down to her scared face.

“I-It sounded like the g-gun,” she said quietly as she looked up to Mark.

A third firework made its way into the sky. Mark looked up briefly to see it take flight, then looked down at Mai. Using his two hands, he covered Mai’s ears as well as he could.

BOOM!

As Alexa cheered at the bright and colorful lights, Damian pulled Chloe into him lovingly, and the two of them shared a kiss under the fireworks.

BOOM!

Mai looked up at Mark with a kind smile on her face. The sounds of the fireworks weren’t as loud and intense as they were before. All thanks to Mark. Taking both of her hands, she reached up to Mark’s cheeks and held them softly in her hands.

The two of them held each other for a moment, blocking out the noise and commotion going on around them. As another firework went into the sky, Mai slowly pulled Mark’s face towards her, planting a kiss on Mark’s forehead.

BOOM!

The grand finale of the fireworks were starting now. Vibrant colors painted the sky with magical colors and sparkling lights. Alexa’s wise, yet childish mind was enamored by the showcase. Meanwhile, Damian and Chloe were sharing a passionate kiss together.

Mark recoiled slightly at Mai’s sweet gesture. He was shocked that Mai took a chance with something like that.

“Oh, I’m sorry. I guess I was just reading you wrong,” Mai said sadly, averting her gaze from Mark.

Mark fixed her gaze back towards him softly. Her eyes and face had already returned to the stoic front they were used to wearing.

“Sometimes, we have to just go for it,” Mark replied. “You told me that before when I was talking to Chloe,” he recalled.

“I did say that, didn’t I?” Mai asked softly.

“I’m happy to see that you went for me,” he continued softly.

Then, as the fireworks were on their final rise to the sky, Mark leaned over to Mai, and gave her a peck on her lips.

Mai looked up at Mark with surprise, but her face instantly flushed into blush and joy.

Seeing her bright pink face and smile, Mark leaned over again, and the two of them shared a longer, more passionate kiss. It was the first time they had ever kissed, and it was as loving and special as they had always hoped it would be.

“So…does that mean…what I think it means?” Mai started softly.

Mark smiled and put his forehead to hers.

“I’m so scared, but I’m excited,” Mai confessed sweetly into Mark’s ear.

“Me too. So let’s take it nice and slow, together,” Mark suggested softly as he pulled away from her to show her a calming smile.

Mai closed her eyes with a cheery smile.

“Together…”

To be continued in a future novel, “Mischance: Learning Love’s Language” (title is subject to change).