Chapter Text
It had been a while since Stephen had last had Chinese takeout as a treat for himself. Mr. Zhang kept offering him free food as gratitude for Stephen’s help despite the man’s protests. He didn’t help people expecting a reward, after all. They were both stubborn but finally, they compromised. Stephen could buy his food with a gross food profit margin of only 5%. Stephen had read that some restaurants could have a profit margin of 72%. No wonder during his neurosurgeon days, most of his money was spent on fancy restaurants. He shuddered at the thought of how he used to spend his money.
What Mr. Zhang did for him was incredible and he was eternally grateful for the fantastic food. He usually only bought from Zhang’s once a month so he wouldn’t give the man too much financial burden.
Today was that special day. His mouth watered at the Sticky Rice Mushroom Shumai, Szechuan Eggplant with Tofu, Pineapple and Cashew Stir Fry, Vegan Dan Dan Noodle, and Spring Rolls. He only planned to buy the first three but Mr. Zhang gave him the last two as a bonus. The sweet and tangy smell of pineapple filled the air. Even the Cloak seemed excited as it flew around fetching utensils for him and twirled whenever she could.
He was about to eat his noodles when he heard the crackling sound of a portal followed by familiar footsteps behind him. He often wondered how his friend usually turned up when he was eating. Must be some sort of superpower. Still looking at his food, Stephen smiled and regarded the man, “Wong, just in time. I bought Chinese. Do you want some?”
Wong went to grab a bowl and chopsticks then sat opposite him, “I wouldn’t mind a Spring Roll or two.”
While they ate, he could feel Wong’s eyes on him. His friend’s back was straight and his movement was rigid. Whenever he looked up, Wong would pretend to look down at his food. After the fifth time, Stephen began to wonder what his friend had on his mind. However, his curiosity could wait until after lunch.
“Do you still have any side effects after performing magic?” Wong initiated, much to Stephen’s surprise.
He looked up from his food, “Nothing worse than usual. Just some nosebleeds here and there, migraines, cramps, nausea, and the rest.” Hearing this, the Cloak started to massage his shoulders, “thanks for the attention, buddy, but not right now. I need to eat.” The Cloak retreated and covered her collars using both corners as if feeling abashed and flew away. Stephen suspected she went off to scare some poor ghosts in the Sanctum; how he discovered that is a story for another day.
“I’ve told you to take things slowly and not to strain yourself.”
“We don’t have enough sorcerers. We do what we can. It’s not like we could schedule the monsters to attack only on weekdays and during office hours, though that does sound pretty nice.” He grinned crookedly.
“Yeah, not in our line of work. I don’t think even as a neurosurgeon you could afford such a luxury either. Do you have any urges to eat a monster?”
Stephen’s spoon froze mid-bite, the trembling in his fingers causing the noodles to fall off. He set the spoon down as he questioned, “excuse me? Don’t you mean the other way around? Usually, monsters want to eat us. Perhaps we’re very tasty… Kentucky Unfried Sorcerers,” he sniggered at Wong’s unamused face, “Just two days ago, a monster tried to take a chunk of my left leg. Luckily it only managed to graze me and wasn’t poisonous.”
Wong looked down at his leg, “do you want me to look at it?”
“It’s fine. I’m still a doctor so I can sanitize my own wound.”
“Your loss. No urges to eat a monster or absorb its powers?”
“First of all, yikes. Secondly, no. I don’t plan to eat any monsters, ” Stephen raised a brow pointedly in emphasis. “I know people say everything tastes like chicken, but I draw the line there. Thanks, but I’d rather only eat things in this mortal plane if you don’t mind. Also, you know I prefer to eat vegetables if I can so eww, no. As for taking its powers, also a big no. I might subdue them and send them back to their dimensions if possible but taking their powers is a tad overkill. It’s like breaking a lion’s leg and then releasing it into the wilderness. Plain cruelty.”
Wong leaned back further in his chair—a sign Stephen had learned meant Wong was relaxed. He eyed the man, curious as to why his friend was asking all these weird questions. Hopefully, he’d get answers later on. In the meanwhile, it was nice to be able to eat with a friend. Those came few and far between nowadays, unfortunately. “I just bought two pints of Hunka Hulka Burning Fudge. Do you want some?”
Wong raised his gaze and locked eyes with him, “How long have you known me? Do you need to ask?”
Before Stephen could get up, the Cloak flew back in. She opened the fridge and fetched the aforementioned ice cream, two bowls, and three spoons for them. There was no doubt that the Cloak was more intelligent than most of his pre-med students. Some day he’d like to experiment to find out how many languages she could read. As soon as he spooned ice cream into his mouth, Wong asked, “Have you met Christine lately?”
“No, I haven’t. We’re both busy.”
“When is the last time you’ve seen her?”
He pondered the question, “Ehmm, I’m not sure. Perhaps two months ago? Why? Do you need to ask for any medical advice? I’m still a doctor even if you don’t seem to believe it.”
“How could I forget? You remind me whenever you can, even just now.”
Stephen grinned. “Because it’s true. Why do you need to see her?”
“I don’t need to see her. I’m just making conversation. Are you guys not getting back together?”
Stephen choked on his ice cream. The Cloak wrapped her corners around Stephen’s stomach, prepping to perform the Heimlich Maneuver if necessary. He brushed her off, “That’s all right. I’m fine now.” The Cloak flew back but was still hovering next to him. She was definitely smarter than most of his students. He stared pointedly at Wong, “definitely not. She has moved on.”
“But you still have feelings for her.” He said matter-of-factly.
Stephen couldn’t take it anymore, “why are you asking these weird questions?”
Wong glanced away, “nothing. So… if she were about to die, what would you do?”
“Why are you asking these questions?” Stephen repeated, slightly worried.
“You’re our best candidate for the Sorcerer Supreme. I ask these questions to ensure that you won’t do anything rash.”
“When will you drop this? I was only helping Peter.”
“Never. Answering my questions will put my mind at ease.”
Stephen exhaled loudly. “Fine. I’ll try to prevent her death if I can. If she is sick, I’ll get her the best medical help. If someone plans to kill her, then of course I’ll stop the person.” He stared at his friend. “Does her survival affect our duties in any way?”
Wong thinned his mouth. “Sort of. Not really. Depends.”
Stephen tensed in anticipation, “What kind of answer is that? Is she in any danger? Do you know anything that I don’t know? Tell me now! We can go to save her.” His heart rate started to rise at the thought of her in danger.
“Nothing!” Wong quickly clarified, “it’s just a hypothetical question. If she were dead, would you bring her back?”
Stephen felt his face grow warm and his hands shook stronger. He clenched his jaw. “Okay, that’s it. I’m not going to answer any more questions until you tell me what’s going on.”
“Even better, I’m going to show you. Have you heard of a TV show called ‘ What If ?’”
“No, I haven’t. What has it got to do with anything?”
“Everything. Let me show you.”