The dress also did me justice, it was extra lose but a little bit tightened at the waistline hence made my waist not only sexy but also visible, since the materials were transparent. It took me over half an hour just trying to fit inside of it - in almost every way that I thought would make me attractive to Lee. I didn't even know why I tried so hard or cared so much about my appearance and how Lee would find me, buy I was.
When I was ready to go back to Lee, I needed something to boost up my confidence and that's when I decided to cover up myself with a dazzling face cover-up which was made of pearls - gold and some shining pieces of stones. And of course I stole those too. I came out to the open when I was ready and I found him standing at the same spot I left him, somehow he didn't notice me for his eyes and mine locked but he still kept looking around for me.
I walked to him, slowly while holding my dress. The dance floor was full of locals swaying their bodies alongside the rythm of the drum. But it wasn't chaotic, rather romantic and soothing like anything I've never seen before.
"You!" I said and tapped his shoulder.
He quickly grabbed his attention towards me. "Who are you?" he asked.
"Dance with me..." I pulled him forward and we joined the others.
"Mingzhu!"
"Do you have another friend apart from me?"
He gasped "How -- how did you...? Wait, did you steal this dress?"
"I didn't have any money with me"
"Oh Mingzhu... We are so getting into trouble"
"Come on let's dance"
I placed my hands on his shoulders while he placed his on my waist - somehow we had to match the locals and their style of dancing. He placed his forehead onto mine and we smiled at each other, although my face was covered he could feel the smile underneath the face cover-up.
That night was the night Lee and I shared our first kiss - just when he pulled up my face cover-up I started to blush and couldn't look at his fire burning eyes anymore. He, however was more confidence than ever - more masculine and he took charge of every move and led me straight away from the dance floor to another place. To a wall which he pressed me against it, slowly as if afraid that I may get hurt - but I didn't.
There was no people passing through and the street was empty, or it might have felt like that because we were on our own world. I was scared and my heart felt like it would pump outside of my chest for how fast it was racing. I tried to keep calm and that's when he lowered his head - slowly and closed his eyes while letting his lips search for mine.
I didn't know what came over me but my eyes just shut down involuntarily. I waited for him, I longed for his lips to touch mine so I could feel every bit of sparkle that I wished I could as a woman. I felt ready at that time, ready to explore every bit of sensual touch and pleasure that came along with it. And just when our skin came into contact and I felt his tongue inside mine, my stomach growled - my heart raced and I could feel a fire burning inside my whole body.
The kiss was soft and tender, so warm and passionate that I was scared it would take my breath away. What happens if I stopped breathing? I asked myself, and the fire that was inside me what if it erupts to the outside and completely burn me to ashes. I had a lot of questions roaming inside my head but when he took his arms and cupped my face with them - I lost it all. Lee kissed me as if there was no tomorrow, he savored every moment of it gushing and pushing - moaning between it and the butterflies inside my stomach couldn't keep calm.
He stopped when he felt like I was losing it - then he looked at me.
"Are you okay?" He asked.
I didn't even know where I was at that moment, my eyes were still shut and when I opened them they were lazy - blurry and I couldn't see clearly what was in front of me.
I somehow managed a simple "I'm okay" and he smiled. Then he led us away from that place and back to the celebrations of the city.
We walked hand in hand together - and from time to time he would look at me and I would return the favor. What we were thinking giving birth to something so great than even ourselves, but it felt right at that moment. I was myself, not Yae Lin or anyone but more of myself and Lee fell in love with that stubborn part of myself. And I was still struggling in identifying my feelings for him.
I loved him and I knew that I wouldn't ever have made it without him - he was the rock that I hang on to for my survival even though he wasn't that strong. He was bad at martial arts, he gets mad at stupid things and scared of wars, but that was the man that I was attracted to. The man that felt like home - like peace and prosperity whenever I was around him and Karta did bring out something in all of us.
One week after we had settled down at a rented space just near the market of the city, it was however loud most of the time but that's how Karta was. There was no place that was truly quiet - every place of the city was crowded and loud. Our space was on the second floor of a big building consisting of five floors - to the west there was a small road which lead to the castles of the most richest people of Karta and to the east there was another building which also had five floors and completely occupied by dwellers. Most of the dwellers were also foreigners - like us and many locals lived a bit far away from all the noises of the city. They mainly came out to the city when they needed to do some shopping, however all those who lived in the city and they were locals practiced trading and they were wealthy.
We weren't wealthy however and the only thing we did for the whole past week was looking at people arguing on the market or simply strolling down the city to find the best food. Lee got the money for rent from Yokosh, he gave him a lump sum of it which made us fill our space with a huge bed and lots of decorations which I did most part of it while Lee managed some manly tasks like fixing lanterns and bringing in furnitures. We had our home in Karta, a beautiful home which we arranged it together and somehow I felt like we had everything under control.
From getting colorful expensive dresses to all sort of jewelers and constantly attending evening soiree at Yokosh's castle, Lee and I had never had that much amount of fun in our entire lives but we never talked about the kiss again, it was like it never happened. Fast forward it was a month of fun and luxury and Lee nearly forgot what we were anymore. Close friends and partners is what we were but he was so taken by the night parties at Yokosh's castle and he was completely lost.
Yokosh threw parties everyday and his parties were famous all over Karta - if you weren't ever invited at Yokosh's parties were you even relevant. The only ones who weren't invited were the poor ones, and mostly the locals who had no connections with the powerful men of Karta. Karta was blessed with five powerful rich men and in order of Yokosh, he came first for he was the richest man in Karta. Then came Xiao Zi alongside his twin brother Xiao Wu and these two came in second and third place of the richest man in Karta. The fourth place was taken by Shuyan and lastly a good noble man who was most beloved by people through his philanthropic ways of living, he was called Dun. But of all the parties, Yokosh's parties were the talk of the whole city for they were colorful and most fun with varieties of ram from all over the world. Some even said his wine came from the Great Rome.
On some days Lee would come back at home when it was already dawn - drunk and talking funny. He would start reminiscing to me how beautiful the women at the party were and how sexy they looked - I knew he would never have said that if he were sober but still it made me over jealous just hearing him speaking like that while we shared something which was very important to me, but maybe it wasn't to him.