In A Particular Way (I)

I finally know

What to grow,

What to plow,

It was a never-ending flow.

***

THE YEAR 1904, a century away from the present time.

She turned the corner and was successfully exited the hall with no traces left. Althea found herself at the backside of the hall, where she had been accidentally kissed by the Crown Prince, on whom she was the destined Queen herself, and saw someone.

She was stunned at her place and raised her eyebrows. Althea brushed the front part of her smooth hair and picked up a ribbon on the belt of her robes. She rotated it around her pinned hair as she sighed and saw that person.

Althea was surprised to see Wang Qing Long, hiding his back on the front of his robes, and there was something that was bothering on his face. Althea finished tying her loose hair and quickly went out of the Crescent Hall. She closed the door quickly and Wang Qing Long motioned for her to approach rapidly.

Althea went to his front and sighed while saying, "Are you... down here? Waiting for me like earlier...?"

Althea doesn't want to assume everything, but as far as she could remember, Wang Qing Long knew where she was. She looked up with hope to him and a blissful aura on her face. Qing Long tilted his head to one side as he turned to the back doors and whispered, while his hand was turned on its back, saying, "We need to go. The Crown Prince will be tracking you in an hour."

Althea heard it and agreed to what he said. Qing Long quickly jumped on the wall and Althea widened her eyes. She was surprised to see him jumping there smoothly like he was imitating a ninja warrior or an assassin, and he held his hand out to Althea. He was now sitting comfortably on that wall, facing the trees outside and squinting his eyes.

Althea didn't know what to do but just obliged and put her right palm to Qing Long's. She felt the warmth and ecstatic sensation the time she touched his hand while squeezing it. Althea jumped too with all his might, Qing Long putting another hand around his waist. He guided Althea on the wall, sitting down first before he jumped on the other side.

Althea saw the soil, the color of dandelion, and there were those petals that were flowing out of the sturdy trees. Althea was mesmerized for a split second, no people were around, only the nature that awaited them. Qing Long looked around and stared up with his soft shadow white eyes once again to Althea, lengthening his arms, ready to catch if she fell down in an incorrect way.

Althea looked down, feeling a little safer and comfortable around Qing Long after a while, and went down with herself. But as she should, how clumsy she was, she tripped slightly and bumped into Qing Long, hard.

Qing Long lost his balance just by anticipating that and Althea fell down to his top. Althea cried out as Qing Long felt his back lying down on the sand full of withered petals, and Althea smashed her body into him. Althea widened her eyes as she felt her face closer to him than earlier. She swallowed as she parted her lips slightly because of the astounding momentum.

Qing Long looked up at her with flabbergasted eyes. He breathed as their faces were inches closer, the close that if he moved, it would touch her lips. He froze, and he didn't know what to do.

Althea quickly recovered as she heard Qing Long's breathing close to her nose. She stood up and separated her body from him for a little while. She stood, maintaining her balance, while Qing Long just clicked his tongue on his mouth. He stood up hurriedly as Althea was fixing her hair, tucking it behind her ears, while she looked around.

It was just a narrow street, with the trees being well built on their roots, the petals of the Peony, the Qing Dynasty's national flower. It was blooming at the moonlight of the Lunar New Year, the start of the Year of the Wooden Dragon, and it was so admiring to see. She swallowed as she saw the blossoming petals and exhaled in awe.

"It's so beautiful to see," she had witnessed tree peonies in full bloom, but inside the Qing Empire's castle, it hit different to her. The petals range from different colors, from Fuschia to blush, from deep burgundy to the shade of mahogany.

"They say if you see a Peony flower blossomed, it means prosperity and good luck," Althea explained with how much she learned from the seminars she had. Being a writer herself was hard, but she knew it was worth the wait. And why does she had been brought back to the time, she doesn't know. She sighed as she turned to Qing Long with a smile on her face, but Qing Long's emotions were not shown.

"It's not just by seeing it. You need to do it too for you to be granted the wealth and good luck," Qing Long explained while looking down and Althea was crossing her arms on her chest in a not-so-rude way.

"I am not a man with luck, as you said, right? So that's why seeing peonies doesn't mean I would be granted with a life of prosperity and peace," Qing Long continued as he sighed and walked past ahead of Althea. Right. He was right, as Althea thought.

"I'm sorry if I said that to you... I never knew... you have a reason for saying my grandmother's name," Althea spoke up a little louder as she turned while Qing Long halted.

"I apologize for the words that I had said earlier... I never knew... this would be the time I need to know the reason why I can do that," Althea clasped both of her hands in front of her chest.