Jagged Depths (April Fool's Day)

Anqien woke up to a filogram from Jinai. Meet me at the beach darling, it said. Who cares about training? I want to see you.

This didn’t seem typical of Jinai. But the use of “darling” and the forcefulness of her words blew every last drop of logic out of their head. “Anything for you,” they sighed, already dressing up for the unexpected outing.

---

Watching the scenery pass on the train to Wulien, began to Anqien notice that the landscape had radically changed. The skyline of Wulien did not emerge from the horizon, but rather a radically different landscape: one of jagged mountains cracked in a hundred different ways, red skies, and torrents of volcanic lava.

Thankfully, the Muli Bay beach was still right where it had always been, never mind that every single human had been replaced by a red husk and the promenade had now been replaced by rows and rows of tents, decorated with black-and-purple banners.

Across the sand, Anqien spied a person about the height of Jinai, watching them closely. They began towards her, until she vanished.

“Jinai?!?” they cried out.

The air warped. A person materialised beside them, grinning entirely too widely, but it was not Jinai. Pink hair in a topknot. Tattoos under her eye.

“’Jinai!’ Listen to yourself,” she drawled. “I’m not Jinai. It’s time for you to come with me.”

“What?!”

“Oh, of course, I forgot to get you up to speed,” she sighed. “I’m Liss. And I’m told you have particular…abilities.”

“A-abilities?” Anqien sputtered.

“Yes. I understand that you are ridiculously easy to fluster. To such a degree that it bends reality. The universe conspires just to create cute situations for you and your crush.”

Anqien felt like they were about to pass out. This was too much to take in. “H…how did you…”

“I have reason to believe the Being, the supreme deity if you will, has crafted your universe—or shall I say, your story—for that very purpose. And it will continue, on and on, and on, hanging the tantalising fruit of requited romance just out of your reach, but you’ll never reach it. We are alike in that, you know,” Liss went on with a smirk, “except in my case, my universe was simply made for me to win. Do you to understand?”

“No!” That was it. They had to take a stand on this absurdity. “What are you talking about? What supreme universe-crafting being?”

Liss simply stepped back and smirked. “Well, just watch.”

And right then, Jinai fell out of the sky and landed before them. “Anqien?” she gasped, scrambling to her feet. She sprinted to them, startled but also overcome with relief. “Anqien! Help!” she cried out. “I saw this girl named Liss who told me the universe was designed to make me miserable, but I’m so glad you’re here…”

She snatched up their hands, looking right next to a breakdown, and suddenly she was close enough that they could see every freckle on her face.

The sky instantly took on a sunset glow, and shophouse lights (from what shophouses?—a question they did not ask) illuminated her face at just the right angle to set her skin aglow. A mysterious dramatic wind swept her curls over her face, and when she blinked, her eyelashes sparkled like something from an advertisement.

Advertisement or no, Anqien felt their entire face go hot beneath the heartbreaking, gorgeous intensity of her stare. “I…you…glad, yes, me too, I, aaaaaaaaaaa!”

A laugh resounded from behind Jinai. “What did I tell you?” said the voice of Liss.

“She’s here!” Jinai’s voice came in a stricken gasp. “There’s only…there’s only one thing we can do to fix this! We need to defy her. Do something that will never happen in this ‘story’. Quick, kiss me!”

Anqien stared at her. “Come again?”

“I said, kiss me. She said that that would never happen, because the ‘story’ would end if we did. Come on, let’s—”

Well, if Jinai herself had said it, then there were no more excuses they needed, or wanted, to make. They closed their eyes, leaning gently forward. From the pressure of her fingers, they knew she was doing the same. They could feel her breath against their lips. And then—

Happy April fool’s day!