Emma was very happy being in the middle of nowhere, like this open sea. She felt like she had the freedom to do anything with her powers, without having to worry about being seen by others. She could casually fly with Haoran like this. It felt amazing!Emma felt like they were standing in the empty vacuum of s.p.a.ce where borders between heaven and the earth seemed to disappear. The billions of stars in the sky made the atmosphere feel so magical, and she almost thought he was dreaming. This was too beautiful for words!
"How are your special powers?" Haoran asked after Emma released her embrace and now they both drifted while holding hands. He could feel the warm current under his feet, keeping him up in the air. "Have you used them often?"
Emma shook her head. "No. I wish I could. I want to get used to them. I like flying like this. This is amazing!"
Haoran smiled at Emma"s words. Of course. He was still amazed that he was able to float in the air like this with Emma.
"Would you like to go to the sea often so you can use your powers?" Haoran asked her again.
Emma nodded and smiled broadly. "I would love it."
"All right then. We can go out to sea every weekend. How about that?"
"I love it! Thank you." Emma kissed Haoran"s lips happily.
The young man"s face beamed. He now realized that Emma was used to taking initiatives like this. He remembered, their first kiss in Paris was also initiated by her. He liked it!
"Do you want to try your powers now? I want to see how much you can do," Haoran said.
Emma nodded with a smile. "All right."
She raised her left hand, and a moment later, Haoran saw a flash of lightning in the distance followed by the sound of thunder.
Ahh ... apparently, Emma was creating lightning.
Haoran was so impressed. Emma never ceased to amaze him.
"Do you feel tired when you use your power?" Haoran asked attentively.
"A little. It"s because I don"t use much energy. If I used a lot, I think I will definitely feel tired," Emma said. "Let me try and see how far I can go."
She raised her left hand again, and this time Haoran saw the lightning flash endlessly.
As long as Emma still raised her hand, the lightning flashes did not stop.
Haoran silently counted how many lightning bolts were created in the sky to their left.
Ten, twelve, fifteen, twenty-five, thirty, fifty ...
"Aaahh ... I"m so tired ..." All of a sudden, Emma lowered her hand, and the lightning stopped immediately. Their bodies slowly drifted down and landed softly on the s.h.i.+p"s deck. When her feet touched the wooden floor, Emma staggered and almost fell had Haoran not caught her quickly.
Emma had created 75 bolts of lightning without stopping before she became exhausted. Haoran remembered the number correctly. He understood, Emma deliberately did it to test her limits. If she did not know her capacity, then she would not be able to estimate to which extent she could use her powers.
Just as Kaos.h.i.+n was injured when he exerted too much power to turn a desert into a green valley, Emma would be hurt if she used too much power. Arreya Stardust also lost her memory for a long time because she exerted excessive power when she controlled so many Akkadians" minds and make them sleep so that she and Kaos.h.i.+n could elope.
"You created 75 lightning bolts earlier," Haoran said while he supported Emma"s body and helped her sit on the deck slowly. "Then, I think your limit is sixty. 75 makes you exhausted. More than 75 can hurt you."
Emma nodded. "Thanks. I"ll keep that in mind."
"Don"t force yourself," Haoran said again.
"I won"t force myself, but I also need to know my limits with my other powers."
"We can check them some other time. Now, you should rest. You can try your power every week when we go sailing in the future." Haoran advised her. "I am glad that for once, my father gave me something useful for my birthday. I like having this s.h.i.+p."
"Thank you, Haoran. I really like being here in the open sea with you. I can use my powers without having to worry about other people."
"I"m glad to hear that," Haoran said with a smile. He then poured wine into Emma"s gla.s.s. He knew Emma loved wine and that her exhaustion from exerting too much power must have made her thirsty. "Here, have some wi..."
His words stopped mid-sentence when he looked to his side and saw that Emma had closed her eyes. The girl apparently fainted from exhaustion.
Haoran put down the gla.s.s and touched her hand gently.
"Emma ... are you okay?" He patted her hand lightly, trying to make sure she was indeed sleeping. A few beads of sweat were seen dripping on the girl"s temple, and that worried Haoran. "Emma ... don"t sleep here. You"ll catch a cold."
The deck was open-air, and soon the cold night wind would blow pretty hard. He could not bear to let Emma lie here all night.
After he realized that Emma had indeed fainted, Haoran became truly worried. He then carefully lifted Emma"s body and carried her down to the cabin. With difficulty, his hand turned the cabin door handle while carrying the girl.
After he succeeded, Haoran pushed the door open with his foot and then moved slowly toward the bed. He put Emma on the bed and adjusted her position to make her comfortable.
When he saw Emma sleeping with only her shorts and a bikini top, Haoran decided that he couldn"t let Emma sleep that way. He immediately grabbed the shopping bag he gave Emma this afternoon and took out a blue top from inside it.
He carefully helped Emma put on the s.h.i.+rt and then adjusted her position so that she could sleep comfortably. Finally, he covered Emma"s body with a duvet and turned on the air conditioner.
Haoran then returned to the deck and finished the wine in the gla.s.s he had poured for Emma. He stood alone and watch the sky, admiring the view. He could feel the sea breeze blew gently and rubbed his face.
He finally closed his eyes and enjoyed the warm feelings that filled his chest to the brim. For a moment, he felt like time finally stopped.