When A Ghoul Falls In Love

The cat is snoring.

It surprised me today. I didn’t expect it to do something like that to Valentin. This whole magic thing feels both awkward and strange. Eli hasn’t spoken a word. “Eli, where are we going?”

“The nearest council’s branch,” Eli replies to me. It looks like he has a lot in his mind. “Nell, we can’t get married in this world.”

“What?” I blink my eyes. “Why? You said that you got the appointment.”

He lets out a heavy sigh. “Well, I forgot that I am not a permanent citizen of this world. My identity is a little” He sighs again, looking a little lost. “The council contacted my world for my identity verification for formality. My father found out.”

His billionaire father from another world? “Did he stop it?”

“The council doesn’t have any dark priest for the wedding ceremony at this moment.” Eli stares at the road with sorrow in his eyes. “The king from my world won’t approve the council’s request for a dark priest. So, we have to go there if we want to get married. Our paper marriage has been annulled.”

I guess some drama is meant to happen in my life since I want to be with a ghoul. Why isn’t he a farmer ghoul’s son? Did he have to be a billionaire ghoul’s son? Damn! “What is this appointment for?”

“If we want to get married, I have to take you to my world.” He stops the car in front of a two-storey building in D district. He explains to me, “The council will ask you a few questions to assure that you know what you are doing. Because Valentin made a scene, they promised me that they would accelerate the process and give us the result today. If they approve, you will be able to leave with me tonight.”

What if I fail? Valentin said some stuff. I become silent and nervous. If I fail, we might never get married.

“If you don’t want to go, it’s okay. We can still stay in this world the way we are. I see you as my wife.”

Though he is saying that, I can sense that he is keen on getting married. Since we met, he keeps using the word ‘wife’ for me. I was not used to it before. Now, that word is a part of my normalcy. “Eli, does Council really care about someone’s mental ability to make decisions?”

He seems surprised by my question. “They care, but why are you worried about that?”

I glance at my wrist. The bandage is still there. If they see this, they will doubt my sanity for sure.

“This?” Eli lets out a low laugh and holds my wrist. “I was going to remove it this morning, but we got interrupted by them.”

He removes the bandage slowly. His movements are smooth and cautious. Eli says to me with a kind voice, “Your hand is already healed, but you might feel some stiffness. I wanted you to get physical therapy, but we don’t have time for it now. I know a good healer in my world. He will make your hand as good as new.”

The bandage is gone. I stare at my left wrist. There’s not a scar. He cleans away the traces of cotton. “I don’t know what Valentin said to you, but the Council won’t judge you for something like this. Humans with magic often suffer from mood swings, violent temper, or depression. It doesn’t make them any lesser than other humans. The Council want to see that you are not being forced to go with me. I already guaranteed your safety. So, don’t worry. You will get approval as long as you are willing.”

Valentin deserved that curse for scaring me like that.

***

I didn’t have many expectations, but I didn’t expect it to be so ordinary either.

The Council’s branch is a small office on the second floor. I am sitting in the waiting area. Eli is talking to the receptionist. The door next to the receptionist counter barely gets any rest. If someone is going in, then someone is coming out in the next second. Do they not get bump into each other? Again, the door opens the moment it is closed. A middle-aged woman in a grey formal suit walks out. Eli smiles at her politely and greets her. She gives him a silent nod. Eli gestures me to go to him.

“Nell, she will take your interview.” Eli whispers to me, “Don’t be nervous. I heard that she’s the nicest woman in the entire council.”

Nicest? I stare at her. She meets my eyes and gives me another nod. Without a word, she turns around and opens the door. Eli urges me to go with her.

I don’t know about nicest. But she has a perfect resting bitch face. I am surprised when I finding myself walking into a room. The room has an amiable environment. There is a large window. I could see the outlines of mountains in the distance. K City doesn’t have mountains.

She closes the door. I feel nervous. She gestures me to take a seat. I sit down on the chair. She takes the seat opposite me. We spend several moments in silence as she pours me some tea. I take a sip of the tea. The taste is mild and the scent is soothing. I relax a little.

“Are you Nell Solomon?” Her voice is as soothing as the scent of the tea.

“Yes, I am.”

“I can sense magic in you.” She says to me, “We have been informed that you have a spirit. Do you confirm this information?”

“Yes.”

“Your magic is still in an awakening state. Do you need the council to assign a mentor to you?”

“No.” I think that I can manage. I don’t feel highly magical right now. The fire wasn’t my fault. I didn’t ask Valentin to do stupid things.

“If you ever feel that you need help, you can approach the Council anytime. The Council recently started a mentoring program for people like you,” She informs me. “What is your relationship with Eli Sanguine?”

“Uh he’s my” I guess he’s not technically my husband since the paper marriage is annulled already. “I want to marry him.”

“Did he threaten you?” She lowers her voice. “Did he scare you or promise you something?”

I guess it’s a formality. “He didn’t threaten me. He did promise to love me for the rest of my life. Sometimes, he scares me when he cries shamelessly about wanting to have s.e.x with me. We haven’t done it yet. He says that he would wait for a proper kiss from me, but I have already kissed him countless times. What does he want me to do? Still, he insists that we get married. That’s fine with me. Honestly, I don’t care about marriage much. If he likes it, then we will get the label.”

Okay! Something isn’t right. Why I am being honest here?

“Do you want to go to his world?” The woman puts her one leg over the other and tilts her head. I feel like she can see through me. I break the eye contact and look down. What the f.u.c.k is wrong with her?

“I want to go to his world.” I find myself speaking the words that I don’t want to say, “I want to see where he was raised. I am curious about his family. He has many siblings. I am scared of his father. What if his father disapproves of me? There’s nothing good about me.”

There’s a long silence.

“I have never seen a human fall for a ghoul in my forty years of career.” The woman taps her finger on her knee. “You don’t seem familiar with our world. If you were familiar, you wouldn’t have drunk that tea like that. That tea is good for removing anxiety. It also has other effects like making people speak the truth. Since Mr Sanguine asked for an accelerated service, we had to use this method. You can wait outside for the result.”

I don’t argue with her. Rather, I can’t argue with her. I walk out of the room. Eli is waiting for me. He scrutinizes my face with concern in his eyes. “You are pale. Was she harsh to you?”

If that person was the nicest person in the council, who is the harshest one? “I am fine. How long did I spend in there?”

“You were only gone for a minute.” He pats my cheek. “She took my interview when I came to this world.”

Is that so? She didn’t show any hint at all. The receptionist gets a call. She glances in my direction and then, he nods. “I will inform them, Officer.”

She puts down the phone. “Miss Solomon, you received the approval to travel to other worlds except for the R ranked worlds. Wait for a few minutes. I will print your identity card and travel card.”

“Wife, you did well.” Eli gives me a hug, excited. He pecks my forehead and says, “We can get married and.”

I sigh. I guess I am officially a part of a strange world.