Chapter 3: Sometimes Fairy Tales Come True
All her life, Kya had dreamed of seeing color.
When she was a little girl, she often daydreamed that her soulmate would come riding in on a white horse, ready to save her from the clutches of evil. Their eyes would connect and their worlds would turn to color before their lips would meet in a sweet kiss. It was the kind of perfect fairy tale story that all little girls loved and wish would come true.
“A soulmate is someone who has locks that fit our keys, and keys to fit our locks”, her mother Katara, once described. “It’s the epitome of love and partnership, Kya. Your soulmate will make you feel entirely whole, healed, and intact. You will feel safe with this person, always”.
“How will you know when you meet your soulmate, mama?” She remembered asking, enraptured by everything her mother was telling her.
“Oh my precious, girl. You will know when you meet your soulmate, because you will see wonderful, beautiful colors! It will be like nothing else, I promise you. When you see them for the first time, the world will no longer be black, white or gray. And you will be so very, very happy”.
Her mother often told her bedtime stories involving soulmates and a world where colors swirled together in perfect patterns and filled with beauty. Kya loved the stories her mother told, longed to see the world in it’s coloration, impatient for the day when she would get to meet her other half. She couldn’t wait to fall in love.
But things weren’t always what they seemed.
Unfortunately, life was not all roses and butterflies that her mother painted it as. When Kya was seven years old, her father started to spend more time with her younger brother, leaving her and her older brother out – shattering the illusion that her parents had wanted them all the same and breaking their little family apart. As it turned out, her father never notice that her and Bumi weren’t spending as much time with him. Rather, they were two people who just were causing mischievousness until Bumi decided to join the army and she went to college. It was an act of desperation of two lonely souls to find themselves, both of whom had gotten tired of waiting for someone who just was too busy. She had wanted a family, and she couldn’t stand feeling so lonely, so after college she went to the see the world. It didn’t matter that she couldn’t see color – she’d wanted to see another places and meet new friends and made the choice that she while she did want to wait for her solmate she didn’t have to around Republic City for a while. After her father died and they weren’t exactly on speaking terms, she decided to go back to Republic City to be closer to her mother and brothers, after all, time wasn’t something that Kya wanted to waste with her loved ones as she saw and knew the damage that it had done on her family.
No relationship was perfect, and as Kya grew older, she could see that when people got with someone who wasn’t their soulmate they were content with theirs lifes, but weren’t exactly happy. It wasn’t what she had imagined love would be like as a little girl, and somehow, she just couldn’t let go of that dream. And thus, Kya swore to herself, that she wouldn’t make the mistake of been with someone who wasn’t her soulmate. No matter how lonely she got, she wouldn’t ever settle down with someone who couldn’t give her a world filled with color and risk bringing a another person into a relationship based on lies and false hope. Her heart hardened, and Kya moved on, no longer dreaming about meeting her soulmate and instead, focused on a future where she could make herself as happy as she could be until her soulmate could find her. She never voiced it out loud, but she still held out hope everyday that she would see color.
I’m leaving it up to fate. If I’m meant to meet my soulmate in this lifetime, then it’ll happen when I least expect it.
I just have to have faith that everything will work out.
Son of a spirit, why is everything hurting?
Kya groaned as she slowly woke up to the sound of machines beeping steadily by her ear. Her eyes scanned her surroundings, taking in the unfamiliar bed that she was lying on and the strange white walls with unknown paintings. Her first instinct was to panic but tried to keep calm, knowing that overreacting wouldn’t get her anywhere. She was definitely not in her own bed. And this was most definitely not her apartment. In fact, the only thing that was actually familiar to her was that there was no color whatsoever. She still saw everything in black, white or gray.
Oh right, there was a fire at my apartment.
Wow, I’m lucky to be alive.
“Well, look who decided to join the land of the living.”
She glanced over and found Bumi smiling at her, looking visibly relieved that she was wide awake. Her older brother looked the same as ever, dressed in a pair of jeans, a plaid shirt and his army jacket. He stood up from where he sat in the corner and moved over to stand next to her bed. He leaned over to look at her.
“You sure gave us quite a scare, Kya. Do you remember what happened?”
Kya shot him a look and rolled her eyes, unable to verbally respond because of the oxygen mask that was currently covering her face. The annoyed look must’ve conveyed her message though, because Bumi just chuckled.
“I guess you do. At least your memory still seems to be intact after hitting your head. You sure you know who you are?”
As tired as she was, she still managed to lift her hand and flip her brother off. Bumi let out another laugh.
There was a knock and they both turned towards the doorway to see a woman wearing a white lab coat walk through. The woman smiled when she saw that Kya was awake. “Ah, excellent! I’m so glad to see you’re awake Miss Kya. I’m Dr. Kumiko … I’m just here to do a check up on you.” The minute the doctor removed the oxygen mask from her face, Kya began coughing nonstop. “Don’t worry, Kya. This is a completely normal reaction,” Kumiko assured her as she placed a stethoscope against Kya’s chest to listen to her lungs. “You’ll be coughing for a few days because of smoke inhalation, but when we looked at your x-rays earlier, all signs showed that it’ll clear up in no time. You have to take it easy for a few days because of your concussion and your ankle.”
Kya groaned, coughing. “When can I go back to work?”
“I would suggest staying off your feet for at least two weeks to let the sprain heal up. Absolutely no dancing, but light walks should be okay,” Kumiko leaned back and wrapped her stethoscope around her neck. The doctor smiled. “I’m going to discharge you today. Come back for a check up in two weeks and we’ll proceed from there.”
“Thanks Doc,” Bumi replied as the woman left the room. He looked over at his sister, who was currently pouting as she leaned back into her pillows. “Relax,” he gave her an amused glance. “So you get two weeks off. Think of it as a vacation!”
“I know the new dance studio and the clinic are your life, but you’re just going to have to get someone to cover for you. They’ll be alright without you for a couple of weeks,” Bumi paused, but then grinned. “Besides, you might want to take advantage of the time off.”
Kya coughed and then looked at her brother suspiciously. “Why?”
Bui just stared at her, a shit-eating grin on his face, his arms folded across his chest.
“What?” Kya glared. “What, Bumi? What is it you know, that I don’t?”
“I know who your soulmate is.”
Kya froze. A white-hot feeling filled her as her shock at hearing those words spread throughout her body. Her heart began pounding and her breath caught. Whatever she thought that Bumi was going to say, this was definitely not it. “What?” she was breathless. She stared at her brother, hardly daring to blink, afraid that somehow she had misheard things. She gathered herself. “Explain!” she demanded.
“The firefighter who pulled you out of the fire… the one who saved you,” Bumi smiled. “She’s your soulmate. She said she saw color when she rescued you.”
“Are you sure?” She sucked in a breath. “Did you talk to her? She’s really my soulmate?”
He nodded. “She slept outside your hospital room all night after you were brought in because no one knew who you were and she didn’t want you to wake up alone. She named every color correctly when I asked her to prove it. And Kya, the only reason she left the hospital was because her job needed her. There’s some kind of explosion at a high school downtown. She really didn’t want to leave the hospital until I promised to tell you that she was going to come back. I think she’s for real, I really do.”
She let out a breath, her heart pounding. “Wow,” she whispered, leaning further into her pillows. “My soulmate…” Suddenly, Kya sat up straight, near instant panic filling her. “Bumi! The doctor said I was being discharged today! What if she comes back when I’m already gone?! Did she leave a way for me to contact her?”
“Ah, well… no,” her brother paused. “She kinda had to rush outta here. But it can’t be too hard to find her, right? All we have to do is call the fire department and look for her. Her name is Lin Beifong.”
“Lin Beifong,” Kya murmured softly to herself, nodding. “Okay.” And then she grinned, excitement taking over her features.
Don’t you worry, Lin Beifong.
I won’t give up until I find you.
Two days passed before she was able to track down the information that Lin Beifong worked at Firehouse Station No. 38, located about thirty minutes from where Kya was currently staying with Bumi and his family. While it had been a stressful two days, Kya thrived in the predicament that she unexpectedly found herself in.
Bumi had been right about taking the needed time off from work – she was completely full of energy, determined to track down the woman that had saved her life and to also deal with everything else in between. She spent countless hours on the phone with her insurance company, determining the damage the fire had done to her apartment. As it turned out, the fire had started because of some faulty wiring that her landlord hadn’t bothered getting fixed when he should have and as a result, almost her entire building was burned down. And so, she had to start looking for a new place to live… had to buy new clothes… shop for new furniture… The list of things that she had to do kept piling up and through it all, there was only one thing on Kya’s mind.
“Are you sure this dress looks good?” Kya stared at herself in the full-length mirror in front of her. The outfit she was wearing hugged her curves perfectly but she couldn’t help wondering if her dress complimented her. It was at times like these that she hated seeing the world in black and white.
“You look lovely, Kya,” Her sister-law’s reflection appeared next to her in the mirror, smiling at her. Gao reached out and smoothed out a non-existent wrinkle, and gave her shoulder a reassuring squeeze. “Your hair is this beautiful shade of silver and the deep blue color of your dress helps it to stand out. You’ll knock your soulmate off her feet, I promise you.”
“I only have one chance to make a good first impression,” Kya took a deep breath to try and calm the anxiety she was feeling. “Considering what I looked like when I left the hospital, I need to erase whatever image she has of me in her mind. I can’t believe she saw me covered in dirt and grime. Imagine what that must’ve looked like in color.”
Bumi snorted from where he sat on the couch. “The woman’s your soulmate. You never have to care about what you look like ever again, and she’ll still think you’re beautiful.” Kya glared at him from where she stood and Bumi threw his hands up in the air in a ‘I give up’ gesture. “Must be a girl thing,” he muttered to himself.
Kya turned back to her reflection. “Guess I’m as ready as I’ll ever be.”
The thirty-minute drive that it took to get from Bumi’s place to Firehouse Station No. 38 went by too fast for Kya’s liking. Parking her vehicle in the visitor’s parking lot, she took several deep breaths to try and calm herself down. She’d never been so nervous in her entire life! Reaching for the basket that held banana chocolate chip muffins (her best recipe) that she’d spent most of the morning baking, she exited her car and steeled her resolve. She was Kya, and she’d spent her whole life dreaming of seeing color and meeting her soulmate. And she’d found her. Now, it was her turn to find her. Gripping the basket tightly, she pulled open the doors to the firehouse. Her sandals clicked against the stone floor, echoing loudly with every step she took.
She turned to see a man dressed in his fireman’s uniform, walking towards her. Pushing her disappointment aside, she smiled at the man. “Um, yes. I’m looking for Lin Beifong, is she here?”
The man’s eyes widened. “Holy shit. You’re her, aren’t you? Oh man, this is amazing! You have no idea how much Lin’s been kicking herself for not leaving her number or some way for you to get in touch with her.” He paused, looking at her more closely. “You are Kya, right?”
She bit the corner of her lip and nodded. “Yeah, I am.”
“Wow, she sure is a lucky lady.” The man grinned and held out his hand. She shook it. “I’m Kun. Come on, Lin’s in her room. I’ll take you to her.”
She followed Kun up a short flight of stairs and then down a hallway. The second her eyes landed on her, Kya stumbled slightly, her hand reaching out to rest against the doorway to steady herself. Color immediately filled her vision, overwhelming her with so many emotions that she hadn’t been prepared to handle. Tears sprung to her eyes, and she swallowed the lump that had formed in her throat. Her heart was pounding so loudly in her chest and she couldn’t help but let out a soft giggle, so much joy racing through her as she stared at the woman in front of her.
Lin was sitting at the edge of her bed, her head in her hands, slumped over in a dejected manner. She straightened the moment she heard her laugh though, and her head snapped up. She could tell she was frozen in shock, and she enjoyed her slack-jawed expression at the sight of her as their gazes connected. Blue eyes met green ones, and she took a step forward, unable to stop the smile that spread across her lips.
This was what she’d been waiting for her whole life. It was a dream come true.
And it was incredibly life changing, her world shifting in an instant.
I can’t imagine my life without her anymore.
Kya took a deep breath, and grinned. “Hi.”
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