Finding Your Roots

An Air of Mystery

"Merry Christmas!", Kai announced, as he pushed a large box with a gorgeous red bow across the table he and Cinder were sharing.

For a fleeting moment, Cinder thought he was going to pull out a ring, before she looked down at her left hand and wanted to smack herself. Kai proposed to you three months ago, idiot. She said to herself. It felt impossible to grasp that a girl like her could be engaged to a billionaire New York City CEO. It made her a bit uncomfortable at times, the difference between their salaries. Cinder always worried during the holiday's that her gift wouldn't be enough, but Kai adored everything she gave him, this year being a fancy cologne and fountain pen that she gave him only moments before. She wasn't sure if she'd ever get used to this, because every time she looked at Kai it felt like she was meeting him for the first time.

      The sound of glasses rattling on a waitress' tray snapped Cinder back to the present. The pair was having dinner in a quaint upscale restaurant that was almost impossible to get a table at.. unless you're an elite like her fiancé.

"Well? Open it! I really hope you like it." Kai stated.

Cinder reached forward a bit and tugged on the red bow on top. The bow pulled through easily, and she decided that she'd have to save it for Iko, her best friend. With Iko breaking into the fashion design field, new materials are always an adventure for her. Cinder wasn't sure if Iko had worked with this flowing, silky material before however, since she wasn't nearly as interested in what she or anyone else wore on a daily basis. Since this was a fancy restaurant She had worn a dress (after some incessant nagging from Iko) although a downplayed and modest one.

She slowly lifted the lid of the velvet box and immediately saw the glittering of diamonds.

"You didn't." Cinder said, in awe.

A sparkling set of wire cutters sat higher up in the box, with a piece of ribbon sticking out one side of the compartment. She could also see the outline of the inset the tool was sitting on, indicating there was something else in the box underneath it. Cinder was an electrician, and loved her job more than anything. Really, she was a bit of a workaholic in her own special way.

"They're gorgeous Kai, really. Thank you so much." Cinder said, as sincerely as she could.

"I saw them and immediately thought of you." Kai replied, even though they both knew they didn't sell diamond encrusted wire cutters at any old store.

Cinder couldn't help but smile at his attempt at humor. He was getting better at matching her deadpan expressions and jokes. Sometimes she felt like since he grew up with within his father's business he didn't have enough fun as a child or some sad shit. But then again, neither did she.

Cinder gently lifted the wire cutters from the box and placed them on the table, so she could remove the inset more easily. For some reason, she felt a twinge of nervousness for no particular reason, since Kai knows her almost better than she knows herself and always gets the right thing for her. The inset was surprisingly heavy, like it was made of some sort of metal or stone and then covered in velvet fabric like the rest of the box. Her eyes met a plain looking cardboard box save for colorful stripes and a bold name--- 23andme. The box took some wrestling to get out completely, since it fit inside the fancy box almost perfectly.

"What is it?" Cinder asked, trying to keep a light tone indicating she was excited, and not nearly as confused as she actually was.

"It's a DNA and Ancestry testing kit. I know you wonder about your heritage, and now you can find out more about it.'' Kai explained.

"Wow.. that really means a lot, Kai. Thank you so much." Cinder said. And she meant it, even if she was unsure of what her future would hold on that front.

The pair sat for a few minutes in absolute love with the other. It's insane what a perfect pair they made. Kai knew that Cinder didn't know much about her ancestors, since she was adopted and never went on to find her real parents. From what she'd been told by her aunt, they were killed in a car accident she was also involved in. The very same crash that claimed her left leg. She knew she was of Asian descent atleast, as Kai was. That much was obvious. But even that wasn't enough for her. She envied the families that told stories of their relatives and had family traditions that were hundreds of years old. Cinder wouldn't consider herself a jealous person, but Kai had that family history she wished she had.

"Ready to get going? We can just put it on my tab." Kai said.

"Must be quite a tab, they don't even have numbers on the menu.'' Cinder shot back.

"It keeps an air of mystery to the dining experience." Kai stage whispered across the table.

"Well, we wouldn't want to ruin it for anyone. Lets go." said Cinder.

They both got up from the table and went to get their coats. It's always freezing December in the city, though they never had to walk too far outside. The valet brought the car around and Kai's usual driver was there, a big burly middle eastern man named Ze'ev. It was a relatively quiet ride back to Kai and Cinder's shared penthouse, and Cinder drifted asleep listening to Frank Sinatra's "I'll be home for Christmas" on the radio.

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A/n: I wrote most of this listening to Frank Sinatra's Christmas album bc i was in a christmasy mood ok. This is the first fic I've written that I'm actually excited about and enjoyed writing so i hope you like itttt!!!2!3!!%