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Clack. Kai’s white stone answered.
The small, polished stone felt so good between his thumb and forefingers. A whisper of memories danced through his brain of rich incense, gold and red rooms, flickering candles, and an old emperor who mumbled as he placed the stones on the board with slightly trembling fingers.
Click. Clack. Click. Clack.
The stones were hitting the board faster now. Kai told himself to hold back. Play conservatively. But Xiang was already stealing liberties and even taking a prisoner. He needed to climb out of this hole before it was too late.
“You’re going easy on me,” Xiang murmured. Click.
“I had thought to, because a certain vampire led me to believe he was a poor player.” Clack.
“I am a poor player. If you want a proper game, ask Chen.” Click.
“No need.” Clack. “I’m enjoying a proper game with you.”
Xiang paused, turning the black stone between his fingers as a grin played on his lips. “I’m surprised the dragon has such an old, beat-up board in his hoard.”
“Not every treasure in the hoard is encrusted with gems or covered in gold. The world would overlook some of the most precious things in the hoard, yet the dragon reveres them. Does that make them less of a treasure?”
“Not only are you an avid weiqi player but also a bit of a philosopher.” Click.
“A philosopher, no. But I love to play weiqi.” Could he not tell by the smile that was stretching muscles that hadn’t been used in a lifetime? The pain was astounding, and yet he couldn’t stop as the joy bubbled up more and more.
Xiang answered with a noncommittal hum. Play went on, and Kai squeaked out a win.
The vampire smirked at him as he helped to clear away the stones. “Maybe this was more fun than I remembered. We’ll have to do it again.”
Briefly, Kai considered launching himself across the board and tackling the man into the pillows with a hug. But that was silly. It was just a game.
With a small nod, Kai managed a soft. “That would be nice.”
Xiang’s deep laugh proved he wasn’t fooled at all.
1 Author Note – Okay, okay. I know smartphones don’t exactly work like this anymore. Back in the stone age when I grew up, phones came preloaded with Solitaire and the like. I’m asking for a little suspension of disbelief. We live in a difficult age where the Internet and cell phones are everywhere. Just roll with it. You’ll like where I’m going with this.
2 Jiejie – older sister
3 Gege – older brother, denotes familiarity and not necessarily a family relation. Can sometimes be added to a name such as Chen-ge
4 Weiqi – more commonly referred to as Go. An ancient Chinese strategy game between two players placing small white or black smooth stones on the intersecting lines of the board. The goal is to surround more territory on the board than your opponent. Chess is often viewed as the Western equivalent.
Chapter 7
Li Xiang
“No!” Xiang cried as he threw his hands up in the air. His fingers curled as he lowered them again as if trying to bring the heavens down on his head. “You can’t do that!”
“Of course I can,” Kai replied, his matter-of-fact tone holding only a hint of smugness.
“You did that on purpose. You waited until the end to place your stone there.”
“As if I read your mind, knowing that you’ve been sweating for the last ten minutes, hoping I didn’t notice that very obvious move?” As the man spoke, his grin grew wider and wider. Kai had been toying with him. This game had been ridiculously close the entire time. Xiang had taken the lead early and held on to it, but he’d seen the weakness in his plan midway through the game. It had been too late to change course. All he could do was pray that Kai didn’t notice it as well.
But of course he had.
Xiang flopped backward onto the cushions and dropped his arm across his eyes. Despite his mutters and grumbles, he was still smiling through it all. This had become their routine for the past several days. Kai would appear with his usual stern expression, complaining about how Xiang was moving things about and knocking things over. But it was all an act. At the first mention of playing a game of weiqi, Kai’s grumpy demeanor would melt away, and he most closely resembled a child invited to a trip to the market. The smile he’d hidden when they first met now emerged all the time. It was even sneaking out during their weiqi matches.
The past two evenings, Kai had barely left the treasure hoard. After helping Xiang cook a simple meal, they lounged around on the cushions while Xiang played with the phone Kai had gotten him. The man’s chest was still the best place for his head. Not because he felt the need to be close. It was that the position provided Kai the best view of his screen.
