The grey edge of dawn had just touched the horizon when Ren finally lifted his head from Li Wei's shoulder. The rain had stopped, yet the air was heavy with the scent of thunder and wet stone.
"Why did you let me see it?" he asked softly. "Those memories—they hurt."
Li Wei's thumb brushed along Ren's jaw, tracing the drops that still clung there. "Because hiding them hurt more. You deserved to remember the truth between us."
Ren's pulse fluttered beneath the touch. Every inch of him was aware of the nearness: the warmth of Li Wei's breath, the faint tremor that ran through his own hands. The memories he had just regained pressed against the present until they felt like one continuous heartbeat.
He should have stepped back. He didn't.
Li Wei cupped the back of his neck, drawing him closer until their chests touched. The air between them cracked like the moment before lightning. Ren felt the rush of heat, the pull of something ancient and consuming, yet impossibly gentle.
"I thought love was supposed to fade," Ren whispered.
"It never did," Li Wei answered. "It only waited for you to return."
Their lips met, not with the careful sweetness of before but with the weight of lifetimes. The kiss deepened, fierce and aching, the taste of rain and salt between them. Ren's fingers clenched in Li Wei's shirt; the world narrowed to skin, breath, and the thrum of their bond.
When Li Wei finally drew back, his voice was rough. "Tell me to stop, and I will."
Ren shook his head, eyes bright with confusion and want. "Don't. Just… stay."
Li Wei pressed his forehead to Ren's, his breathing unsteady. The warmth of his power spread between them, winding through the mark on Ren's shoulder until it glowed faintly beneath the fabric. It wasn't pain now—it was recognition, a reminder that their souls still knew each other even when their minds did not.
Outside, the wind stirred again, sweeping the last clouds from the sky. The first light of morning spilled over them, catching the golden shimmer that bound their hands together.
For that single breath of time, the curse felt like a blessing.