"Dwayne? Yoo-hoo~"
Dwayne woke up, feeling intense pain in his cheek. It felt like someone had just jabbed him with a sharp claw.
"Are you okay?"
"Have you recovered?"
Dwayne's hazy vision started to clear. What greeted him was a strange sight: strings hanging above his head. There were multiple colors—green, red, black, white... It would have been fine if they were decorations, but these strings connected and overlapped, floating in the air as if they were alive.
Dwayne felt even more nauseous.
"Oh, don't look at them. You'll get dizzy, not to mention you just regained consciousness."
Dwayne knew this. He desperately wanted to look away, but he couldn't. This place had nothing except colorful strings! Even the ground he was 'supposedly' sitting on was made of strings. He was obviously uncomfortable, his eyes darting around, unsure of where he was. The white fluffy cat kept talking, and his head kept buzzing.
He refused to look at the cute cat!
He refused to acknowledge that he had just saved a weird talking cat!
His heart beat loudly in his chest. His senior had mentioned encountering 'Fae traps' the day before. They are protectors of nature who build traps to entice humans into their lairs. Their world is full of strange things. This place was the perfect example. How could there be a place where nothing was present except weird moving strings?!
The fluffy white cat climbed the string twirling at Dwayne's side. When it reached the top, its body flipped upside down. One human and one cat stared at each other.
"AAAAHHHHHH!!!!!"
Dwayne's delicate heart couldn't take it anymore. He flinched and trembled, covering his face with his hands as he curled up in fear.
"Please don't hurt me. My mother is still waiting for me. I promise I won't feed you delicious cat snacks that expire the next day. You can follow me to school if you want. I'll let you run in red lights while crossing the street. I won't mind your business anymore, Mr. Cat. So please... let me go."
Due to Dwayne's nervousness, his mouth said whatever came to mind. His thoughts were filled with negative scenarios. What if he couldn't go back? What about his mother? He was still in college. He had just passed his entrance exam and received a scholarship.
"Dwayne, I will not hurt you. I like you!"
The cat stretched out its paw and slowly removed Dwayne's arms from his face.
"Before you think too much, let me tell you that I'm not a fae. I'm a god!"
As if to ensure Dwayne believed him, the white fluffy cat turned into a young man in white celestial robes. He sat in front of Dwayne and smiled.
Dwayne was stunned. He was the most beautiful man he had ever seen. His face was like ice and snow. He looked better than any popular student Dwayne had seen on his university campus. Even the famous male idols and celebrities were nothing compared to this guy.
Dwayne didn't notice that his mouth had hung wide open, his soft curl standing up on his forehead. The young man chuckled at his expression.
"My name is Yue, and I'm the god of love."
Dwayne: "..."
"And this is my home."
Dwayne resigned himself to his fate. He bowed his head and said, "Good-looking sir, you can kill me now." It was obvious he didn't believe what Yue was saying. But Yue was patient with him and continued to explain.
"This home of mine used to be beautiful and abundant with life because love was still present in the hearts of humans. But as the years passed, my paradise home began to die. The trees withered, the air became poisonous, and the animals I had raised for thousands of years started dying one by one. And I was powerless to stop it."
Dwayne looked at the beautiful young man with distress. "Why? Don't you love them?"
"I do... But the strength of my powers weakens the more humans lose the feeling of love in their hearts. It reached the point where I resorted to coming into your world, leaving my divinity behind."
Dwayne tilted his head, the soft curl on his head mirroring his action. "Divinity?"
"It's my godhood. You see, we gods do not step down into your world because we become vulnerable mortals, just like you."
Dwayne was surprised. "Then why did you come to the human world? Aren't you risking yourself?"
"I am. And to be honest with you, I don't have any powers left. I spent all of it bringing you here to my domain."
"So…Why bring me here?"
Yue took something from his chest and handed it to Dwayne. It was a red book with gold carvings on the front. A red string was tied to keep it closed.
"What's this?"
"It's the book of the 'Red String of Fate'. It lists the names of people who are fated to be partners in life. Now, Dwayne, this is the most important part. Can you put your finger on the string?"
"This red string?" Dwayne raised the string that tied the book. Under his fingertips, the red string snapped and disappeared into dust.
"This is good." The young man smiled, but Dwayne sensed something was off about him. His eyes would lose focus. Was he tired?
"It's a sign that I choose the perfect candidate."
"Dwayne, I've been watching you for a month. For a mortal, you are one of the rarest kinds and exactly what I am looking for. Your heart was pure and you don't hate. Love manifest in you that the people around you were also influenced by it."
"Ha?"
"That's why I choose you… And I will give you a gift and a mission. Do this for me, and you will be able to save my home. Don't worry, once you complete the mission, I will grant you a wish."
Yue looked Dwayne in the eye. "You have a wish, don't you?"