Love Marks ?

“What I was talking about is that maybe we should be dating.”

Iris is blushing.

“I mean we should try to see how far we can go together.”

I can’t believe it ! It’s a proposal for…

It becomes hard for me to speak.

“I… euh… it’s a… good idea… but I don’t think we’re just going to try… I mean I feel like we’re meant to be. I don’t know, I can’t explain it but I really feel like we’re going to last forever even though we only met a few days ago.”

Iris looks at me with shining eyes and gets closer to me, I can feel her warmth.

“I think you’re right, I can’t explain it either. I feel good when I’m with you, I want to know everything about you.”

I put my arms around her and hold her in my arms, then I put my right hand on the left side of her face.

“Iris…”

“Kanael…”

We stare at each other with a languid gaze, Kanamiyah sees a bug and wants to play with it and interrupts us.

“Agah !”

I want to kiss her, ah ! There’s always something in between, I can’t believe it !

“Kanamiyah, why don’t you play with it. You stay here, okay ?”

Kanamiyah moves his head to say yes.

“Agh !”

Kanamiyah flies around and pursues insects. I finally put my lips on Iris’s beautiful lips and stay like that for a while.

After a few minutes I move my face away from hers to contemplate a beautiful in love expression.

“Kanael, you only touched my lips with yours but I can feel so many things already. It gives me all sorts of emotions.”

I stay paralyzed for a while.

Is this my first kiss ? I mean, even in my previous life I think I didn’t kiss anyone. Did I ever love someone ? How sad but I’m so happy now.

I make a big smile while Iris looks at me.

“Kanael, since Kanamiyah is well-behaving. Can we kiss again ? If… you want it too.”

“O… Okay.”

We kiss each other for a while like that.

After 5 or 10 minutes of kissing, we stop and look at each other.

“Kanael, I think we should go back home now.”

“Yes, I like you.”

“Mm ? I like you too.”

Iris takes my left hand with her right hand.

“Kanamiyah, let’s go now !”

“Agh !”

I carry Kanamiyah in my right arm.

☼

Iris and I decided to sleep together. The day after, I wake up next to Iris, I feel something on my neck, I scratch but nothing falls. I get up and go to the mirror in the bathroom and then I notice marks on my neck that look like tattoos.

“Ah ! What is this ?!”

I run towards Iris and notice the same marks.

“Iris, what are these marks ?!”

“Mm, I’m not even awake, let me sleep for a few minutes.”

“But !”

“It’s nothing dangerous so let me sleep.”

I go back and forth until Iris finally wakes up. She sits and looks at me with a happy face and moves her right hand to say hello.

"Kanael, hello."

"Hello, so you can tell me what these marks are."

"Yes, it proves that we're meant to be, that we really love or gonna love each other, these marks are called "Love Marks". I never thought I’d fall in love with someone to the extent of having Love Marks, actually it's rather rare."

"So it's a super thing !"

I take Iris in my arms and lift her up. I can't help but shout as loud as I can "I'm so happy !"

"I'm so happy too Kanael !"

We give each other a little kiss. Kanamiyah wakes up and flies towards us and sits on my head, happy he is kind of dancing.

I say to him. "It's good news for you too, right ?"

"Haha, agh."

I proclaim. "So now we're a complete family !"

Surprised, Iris says "I didn't think about it that way !"

Mihail enters the room.

"What is all this fuss right in the morning ?"

Then he looks at us and is shocked. "Huh ? What are you all three exactly doing ?"

Iris answers. "Something that has to do with love."

“What do you mean ? Did you two just make it ?”

“What ?! Do you think Kanael is this type of person ? We just slept together but we kissed before in the grassland.”

“The marks… Do you have Love Marks just after a kiss ?”

I rectify. “A long kiss though.”

“Oh, it must be destiny.”

Iris complains. “Think what you want but leave now, let us be just the two of us.”

“Okay, okay…”

Peachi looks at us with suspicious eyes.

“Did something happen between the two of you ?”

I answer to him. “What do you mean ?”

“I feel something different…”

He seems to notice the marks on my necks and those on Iris’s neck.

“Oh you two are in love ?!”

Iris happily says. “Yes we are !”

Peachi has an unexpected reaction.

“And it’s good news ?”

Iris seems angry. “Of course it is.”

Peachi whispers. “I thought we had more time together but I guess I was the only one who thought that.”

“What do you mean ?! We’re still friends, no ?”

“Who told you I want to be your friend !”

Iris seems to understand. “Peachi, don't tell me you’re…”

“Leave me alone, as if you could understand me !”

Peachi is leaving the room and seems to go hide somewhere.

I say. “I didn’t expect him to have this reaction.”

“Maybe we were wrong to think that he was just sticky because he’s afraid of losing you as a friend.”

“Peachi, can we talk together ?”

“What do you want ? There’s nothing to talk about, you’re going to spend all your time with her, you won’t talk to me anymore without even realizing it.”

“You really think I’m going to forget you ?”

“I don’t know why I’m reacting that way, I don’t understand, my heart hurts. I thought you were just someone that I find rare because you come from another place, that I was just curious about you but I’m….

Peachi starts crying heavily.

“Argh !”

I take him in my arms.

“Ha… ha, ah…”

After a few seconds.

“The sound of your heart is so beautiful.”

Peachi suddenly raises his head and looks at me with a strange smile.

“I understand now.”

He suddenly kisses me. I’m shocked and surprise, it makes me remember something :

“Boys and girls are so lovely, you can’t choose between the two of them.”

“Kanael. Was it disgusting to the point of being in the clouds ?”

“No, it’s not that, it wasn’t disgusting. Anyway I’m with Iris now but at least you understand what you feel now and that’s a good thing.”

Peachi is smiling and takes me in his arms.

"Mm, I think you're right but it still hurts, don't forget me and be happy with Iris."

Iris comes to see us. "So he's not angry anymore ?"

I smile to her. "Something like that.”

☼

“The goddess blessing is a kind of ritual where you put your forehead on the lips of a goddess’s statue as if she kisses you to tell you good luck with your love.”

“So we’re both doing it ?”

“Yes, it's our couple that is blessed.”

We both go under a goddess statue and move our forehead forward until it touches the lips of the statue.

“Now repeat after me : Thank you goddess for helping me meet someone special in my heart.”

“Thank you goddess for helping me meet someone special in my heart.”

“Thanks to your blessing our love will last forever.”

“Thanks to your blessing our love will last forever.”

“It’s over now, we can leave.”

“Before leaving, I would like to look more at the things around me.”

“Okay, if you want.”

This statue reminds me of something, as if it represents someone I met before but I don’t know where.

“Does the goddess have a name ?”

“No, I don’t think we know her name even if she had one.”

“Had ? Was she an inhabitant ?”

“That’s what we read in the story of her past but we’re not even sure she really existed but we believe she was real.”

“I see, I think it’s wonderful to believe in someone's existence without being sure.”

I suddenly have a flashback of a women saying :

“Good luck dear.”

I see Iris who seems to be sulking.

“Kanael, where were you ?”

I put my hand behind my head smiling.

“Oh, sorry. I really think we’re blessed now.”

“Oh ? What do you mean ?”

“I mean that I believe in the goddess's existence now, that’s all.”

Iris is laughing.

We are on our way home when I hear something flying as if there is a big fly or butterfly near us. I keep walking, and suddenly something hits me in my face, the pain makes me close my eyes. I hear a little cute voice.

“Ah ! I’m sorry I didn’t mean to hurt you. Are you okay Kanael ?”

When I try to open my eyes, I realize I can’t because there is a little creature stuck on my face.

“I’m so tiny that I ended up stuck with your eyelashes !”

“Iris what is this creature ?! Help me !”