Chapter 1: Fortune Cookie
Preface
“Quick! You have to give him the antidote before it’s too late!” the women cried out in panic.
“How am I supposed to do that?” Heath asked, just as nervous as she was.
“You need to drink it first and turn it into vapor. Then pass it to him through his mouth.”
Heath stared at her, completely thrown off.
Like… kissing him? he thought, his face instantly heating up.
“Why can’t you do it?” he asked her.
“I can’t,” she replied quickly. “I’m a newlywed woman.”
Behind them, the shadows kept clawing at the protective barrier Jack had cast, slowly cracking it apart piece by piece.
Jack lay on the hotel bed, barely breathing as the curse marks spread across most of his body like dark veins.
“Hurry! Save him!”
Heath hesitated for a moment. His heart pounded so hard it hurt.
Then, taking a shaky breath, he drank the antidote. The liquid dissolved into vapor inside him as he slowly stepped closer to Jack.
How did we even end up like this? he thought.
Chapter one...
In the bleak little town of Grunch Hollow, there was a boarding house where tenants dragged themselves back home after long shifts at work. One of them was Heath Johnson.
He paused for a moment in front of the gate when a dark figure across the street caught his attention. It looked like a young man, constantly glancing down at the bracelet around his wrist.
At first, Heath found him suspicious.
But then he brushed it off.
He was way too tired to care.
Once inside, he started climbing the stairs toward his room when the owner of the building approached him.
“Today’s rent day, Heath,” Mrs. Patterson said.
“Oh—uh, sorry, ma’am. I won’t get paid until the weekend. But I promise I’ll pay you as soon as I can.”
“Relax, sweetheart, I’m just kidding,” Mrs. Patterson said with a chuckle while searching for something near his door. “Look, I saved you this leftover takeout box from our order. Thought it could be your dinner.”
She handed him a red Chinese takeout box with a small packet resting on top.
“Thanks, Mrs. Patterson,” he said with a smile.
Man, this lady just saved my night.
He stepped into his room, set up his little folding table beside the worn-out couch, and happily dug into his dinner.
When he finished eating, he noticed the tiny packet.
A fortune cookie.
He cracked it open and read the message inside:
Today, you will meet the love of your life.
Heath laughed under his breath.
“Yeah, right. What’s next? Am I winning the lottery too?”
Behind him, a small floating green creature suddenly appeared.
“How was your day, Heath?”
“Meru!” Heath hissed, quickly trying to shield it with his arm. “Someone could see you!”
“It’s just... we’ve been worried about you,” said another floating creature—this one blue—as it hovered beside him.
Heath stood up with a sigh.
“Guys, we already talked about this. I can’t hide you if you don’t help me out here.”
“Sorry...” all three creatures mumbled together as the yellow one floated over to join them.
A long time ago, the three tiny floating creatures had appeared under Heath’s bed: the green one, Meru; the blue one, Gilly; and the yellow one, Polly.
They called themselves the Flirelings, and according to them, they brought good luck and fortune wherever they went.
“Besides,” Heath continued, “your stay deadline is getting pretty close. It’s time you started looking for another home.”
“But we’ll never meet someone as kind as you,” Gilly said, eyes watering.
I can’t even blame them, Heath thought. They’re terrifyingly adorable.
He walked over to the Flirelings and jokingly said,
“You can stay longer if you help me pay rent.”
The three creatures only gave him awkward little smiles.
Suddenly. A cyan halo of light slammed into the floor right beside the Flirelings.
They barely dodged it in time.
Heath spun around to see what had attacked them.
Standing there was a man dressed in black with a red bandana around his neck, holding a bow aimed straight at him.
“We’ve been found,” Meru whispered.
The three Flirelings immediately hid behind Heath, clinging to him for protection.
“Move.”
That was the only thing the stranger said.
