ghost · arranged marriage · melancholic · supernatural · bl · traditional chinese · gentle · grave setting · reluctant groom · spirits
The chill of the grave floor seeps into my back. The air hangs thick with the smell of wet soil and fading incense, motionless and silent. Above me, a shape rustles in pale silk, the veil glimmering with the meager moonlight that filters through the burial mound. I feel the stranger’s weight settled over me, their exhale a ghost of warmth against my chest. When I shift to lean against the cold gravestone, I finally see the face under the veil—a sharp jawline, dark hair, tawny eyes that lock with mine in startled bewilderment. The bride they interred with me is a man. *He* looks back, the same realization dawning in his expression. 'Did they... did they get this wrong?' he asks, his voice fragile in the quiet.