‘You sure you’re okay with leaving it here?’ I asked, looking away from Rex Aquarum to glance at Asbel.

He had driven the ship out of the hangar for me. It sat dormant on the surface of the water, barely even rocking from the gentle forces of the small waves.

‘Course I am,’ he said, taking a bite out of the apple in his hand. Why he had carried one this far I did not know. ‘But it better be worth it. When I see you next you better be a taken man.’

‘I hope so too, man,’ I sighed.

There was no way. I had been psyching myself up for days now, and I still didn’t fully believe I could do it. It didn’t matter whether or not she found me attractive, that didn’t mean she liked me back.

I had already arranged for the two of us to go to the café at around twelve. It was quarter to. From there, we’d get food and bring it to the ship. We could do stuff in the games room while we ate our food. At some point, I had to get her up to the lookout spot. That was the perfect place to do it.

‘And don’t take it anywhere,’ Asbel said sternly after swallowing. ‘Koning van de wateren is a big enough target as it is, and if someone sees you on it…we don’t know what’ll happen. I don’t want another Righello happening.’

I remembered the fight. Gods, I had to be prepared to encounter him at all times. If he ever caught me by surprise again, it might spell the end of my life.

‘He won’t move an inch,’ I replied after a moment.

‘And don’t teach Cecilia how to drive him, either,’ he added. ‘I don’t care how cute you think the idea might be, I don’t want her knowing how to drive him. Sorry, but she’s not that trustworthy yet.’

‘Don’t apologise, you don’t even see Ethan as that trustworthy,’ I replied calmly, but his words did kinda sting a little.

‘Anyway, don’t you have like ten minutes to meet her?’

‘Yes,’ I said quickly. ‘Want me to take you home?’

‘The workshop, if you wouldn’t mind.’

The two of us walked into the shadow of Rex Aquarum, allowing me to shadow-travel first Asbel to the workshop and second myself to The Tower.

I stared at the front doors for a moment, taking a deep breath. Today was the day that I had been yearning for for months. It was time.

I walked inside.

To my surprise, Cecilia was already sitting in the lobby. She appeared to be in a state of at least mild stress, which immediately made me worry.

She looked at me upon hearing the noise of the doors opening, and the stress enveloping her entire body seemed to disintegrate. Her eyes looked sparkly rather than filled with nerves.

Cecilia wore casual attire, as did I, but it still managed to make my heart throb. A white T-Shirt supporting some band I’d never heard of, ripped blue jeans, and some black trainers were all that was needed for my tiny unstable heart.

Her hair, too, seemed extra marvellous that day. I found myself staring at it, only stopping when I considered how weird that was.

‘How long have you been here?’ I teased.

‘Oh, only about five minutes,’ she said sheepishly, tucking a strand of her hair behind her ear. I was about to go insane.

‘Eager, then?’ I smirked. ‘We should get going if you’re really that desperate.’

She smiled. ‘I am getting kinda hungry.’

She strode over to me and the two of us left the building, grins coating both of our faces.

‘Do you know what you’re gonna get?’ I asked, frantically trying to come up with things to talk about.

‘It’s lunchtime so probably like a croissant or something. Maybe a cupcake as well. I’ll pay cuz that’s a bit much to be getting from a café,’ she replied thoughtfully.

‘Don’t be stupid,’ I retorted jokingly. ‘I’m paying. And that’s nowhere near as much as some stuff I’ve gotten before.’

She gently pushed me, her smile growing. ‘Okay, Mr Gentleman, whatever you say.’

As it turns out, the two of us ended up getting a bit more than that. I got Cecilia her original order plus two doughnuts and a tea, whilst I got a bagel, a doughnut, and a tea.

‘How did you manage to convince Asbel to let us have the ship today?’ Cecilia asked sweetly before taking a bite of her croissant as we stepped outside.

I was carrying her stuff for her, so it was a bit more difficult for me to get the food to my mouth, but I was managing. I was only able to answer after I had swallowed the bite that had been in my own mouth.

‘Don’t worry about it,’ I teased.

I thought for a moment about the look on Asbel’s face when I had asked. Despite the fact that he had been a bit hesitant, he seemed surprisingly on board with my plan, and extremely supportive of such. Everyone really thought I had a chance.

‘A wizard never reveals his secrets,’ she added.

‘Exactly.’

Silence crashed onto the two of us for a second that felt like thirty.

‘You’re not flying me over there, are you?’ she asked suspiciously, raising an eyebrow at me. It was extremely strange how an eyebrow raise could get my heart beating so fast.

‘Not unless it’s on your bucket list to fly,’ I taunted. ‘I was planning on shadow-travelling.’

‘That definitely works for me, I’m really bad with heights.’

Without even pausing for a second, Cecilia grasped my right hand with her left.

Panic immediately set in. To shadow-travel, I had to have a clear image of the desired destination in my head. It would be almost impossible to create a clear picture of the ship in my head whilst we were holding hands.

She giggled. ‘You’ve gone a bit red.’

‘It’s hot, Cecilia.’

Then, without even realising it, I had brought the two of us to the deck of Rex Aquarum. I thanked the Gods that I hadn’t taken us to the palm of Cecilia’s left hand.

‘Can we even eat while we do something in the games room?’ she asked, taking another bite of her croissant.

‘Easy, we can do something like pool.’

She scoffed. ‘You’re just saying that because you’re good at pool.’

‘Of course I’m not,’ I said, dragging my words sarcastically. ‘It’s a fun game and we can eat when it’s not our turn.’

‘Yeah, sure,’ she replied, with the verbal tone of an eye roll.

The two of us made our way down the stairs to the games room, continuing the banter the entire way down.

‘Can I ask you a question?’ Cecilia asked as I set up the pool balls.

‘Go ahead.’

‘What’s it actually like to fly?’

I considered the question for a moment. Once again, it was hard for my mind to do anything with remote clarity because of how happy I was.

The question reminded me that Cecilia didn’t care about my wings. Not only was she making jokes about them, but she was asking questions. They intrigued her rather than disgusted her.

‘I don’t even know how to put it into words,’ I began almost dreamily. ‘It’s probably exactly how you imagine but even better. Even been on a trampoline or som- Wait. Don’t they have flying broomsticks up at Apercaput?’

‘Yeah; do you not have them here?’

‘I mean, there’s probably a few shops that sell them, but there are preferred modes of transport. I’ve never even seen one actually be used.’

‘That’s weird. Do you guys actually use cars and stuff?’

‘Gods, can you make me feel more uncivilised?’ I scoffed. ‘I’ll make broomsticks mandatory in the next policy.’

‘I keep forgetting you’re Prime Minister,’ Cecilia practically yelped. ‘How does that position even work? Don’t get me wrong, you’re great, but I can’t see you winning a vote.’

I chuckled softly. ‘No, it’s not like that. It’s a hereditary position, like the Royal Family. I got the position when my Grandad died, and Harvey’s next in line at the moment. Unless I have kids or he dies first, he’s gonna be Prime Minister next.’

‘Is that why you came to Apercaput to get him?’ Cecilia asked as she sat down on one of the beanbags. It looked like we weren’t going to be playing pool.

‘Not in the slightest,’ I replied, sitting down on the pool table, facing her. ‘I came because I wanted to see him. As far as I’m aware, he’s the only relative I’ve got left.’

She didn’t say anything for a moment. When she finally did, it nearly shattered my heart.

‘I’m sorry that Amy did that to you.’

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The mood of this ‘date’ was not what it should have been.

‘Don’t worry about that,’ I said quietly. ‘Let me destroy you in pool.’

She scoffed. ‘I’d like to see you try.’

I’d be lying if I said that I wasn’t good at pool. I would also be lying if I said that I didn’t cheat in her favour.

I wasn’t sure whether it was because of my enhanced vision, or the fact that Rob had also really liked pool, but I was exceptionally good. A combination of both was probably the most likely reason.

Whenever I played it, the memories of playing it with Rob always came to mind. I had never beaten him. Yes, I had been a very young child, but it had still been a goal of mine to win a game against him. I’d have to get back to him at some point about it. We had to play again, and I had to win.

Over the course of the game, there were many times when she fouled, which should have meant that I had two shots. But I was a gentleman, and I only took one, or, generously, I ignored the foul entirely.

There was a time when she nearly potted the black early, which would have been an automatic win for me. Thankfully, a strange change in the air gently eased the ball away from the pocket. I didn’t tell her where this change of air came from.

In the end, she won the game, because I accidentally potted the white at the same time that I potted the black.

‘‘Destroy me’, huh?’ she taunted, grinning at me.

‘Are we just ignoring those times you cheated?’ I joked, setting my cue down on the table.

‘Me? Cheat? Never,’ she replied in a jokingly affronted tone. ‘It’s your fault you only took one shot.’

‘I was raised to be a gentleman,’ I said, puffing my chest out. ‘I help the less fortunate.’

‘‘Less fortunate’?’ Cecilia smirked. ‘Let’s do a best of three. I’ll win both of the next two to prove I’m better.’

I won the next game flawlessly. She had potted three balls.

‘What was that about you being better?’ I teased.

‘We’re tied, and don’t you forget it,’ she bragged. ‘Come on, one more.’

I don’t think I need to say that she won the third game. Again, I let her get away with multiple things that she shouldn’t have gotten away with, and I made multiple purposely wrong moves so that the situation turned in her favour.

It was all worth it to see the happiness on her face. I would destroy my reputation in a heartbeat if it could make her that happy.

She pumped a fist in the air. ‘Who’s better now, huh? Two-one!’

I clapped slowly. ‘Well done, well done.’

She shot forward, putting her face mere inches away from mine. From that close, her eyes seemed to sparkle more than ever. They glistened marvellously at me, and I could almost see my own reflection.

Cecilia smelled unique. Not in a bad way, either. Not even Shakespeare would have been able to describe her scent. It was good, but indescribable.

‘I’m gonna tell everyone I beat you, you know?’ she teased, grinning. ‘Your reputation? Ruined.’

‘Oh yeah? Everyone will still be too scared to challenge me,’ I bragged, grinning back. ‘All you’ll do is make yourself scarier.’

She pulled back, crossing her arms. ‘I don’t care. Everyone’s gonna know how bad you are.’

I rolled my eyes. ‘I think we should call it quits on pool for now.’

‘I would call it quits if I were you, too,’ she joked. Then after a moment’s pause, continued, ‘What do we do now, though?’

It was time.

‘I have an idea,’ I mumbled, reaching my hand out for her to take.

She raised an eyebrow, which, once again, made my heart pound against my chest. Then, wordlessly, she took my hand.

It was hard to think of a time when it was harder not to vomit. The mixture of nausea and happiness had turned my stomach into a mosh pit.

The time had come. All I had to do was take her to the lookout spot and then ask the question. That was it.

I led her back up to the deck and then brought her over to the ladder on the lookout spot.

‘We can go up here.’

‘How am I supposed to get up there?’ she asked, sounding worried. At least she wasn’t saying no.

‘Climb the ladder. Or I can fly you up,’ I suggested. ‘If you climb the ladder, I’ll fly behind you to catch you if you fall.’

Something in her eyes changed. She had an idea. I do not know whether this idea was good for me or not, but she had an idea that excited her.

‘I’ll take the ladder,’ she said quickly.

‘One second, then.’

I poured every ounce of strength I had into my legs. Then I leapt into the air, snapping my wings out as I did so. I hovered above Cecilia for a moment, staring down at her.

‘Ready when you are,’ I called down, grinning.

She nervously took the first rung and pulled herself up. Then, slowly but surely, she began to make her way up.

When we were about halfway there, she glanced back over her shoulder at me. The entire time, I had been gliding up behind her, my arms nervously outstretched, ready to catch her if she fell.

‘You sure you’re gonna catch me?’ she said, in a tone that made it perfectly clear what she was about to do.

‘Absolutely certain,’ I replied, tensing my arms slightly.

Then, as I had expected, Cecilia let go of the ladder and fell backwards, straight into my arms.

I had carried her in the past, but there was a rather major difference this time. She was conscious.

I glanced down at her, and she looked up at me. Neither of us said a word. We just stared into each other’s eyes for a few seconds, before I broke the silence.

‘Well, up we go.’

I didn’t put her back on the ladder. Instead, I gave a great flap of my wings, causing the two of us to shoot up through the air.

She gave a slight yelp as I did this, and I saw her close her eyes.

‘This is how it feels to fly, Cecilia,’ I tormented. ‘This is how great it is.’

‘This is great?’ she shrieked.

‘Hell yeah it is!’

I gently began to lower her towards the little platform at the top of the pole that I had originally believed to be a mast.

The platform could easily fit even more than two people, and it had a small wall about waist height so that we couldn’t just fall off. From up here, everything looked beautiful.

‘I’m gonna put you down, ready?’

‘Ready as I’ll ever be,’ she murmured.

I eased her onto the platform and joined her on it shortly after.

‘How was that, huh?’ I asked as Cecilia tried to flatten her hair. ‘Don’t worry, your hair still looks great.’

She immediately stopped fussing with it.

I felt sick to my stomach. Killing people? No problem. Asking a girl out? That may have been a bit too much for me to take.

There was no going back now. If I didn’t do something huge then it would look like I brought her all the way up here for nothing. I had to do it.

She turned around and stared north.

The sky was practically cloudless. The sun beamed down upon the two of us, making Cecilia’s hair shine even more than it usually did. Only a gentle breeze wafted through the two of us, barely even enough to make my hair move.

I turned to stare in the same direction as her. It really was the perfect time to do it. Even the way the water below us shone seemed to be a sign from Olympus that I should do it.

‘Gods, it’s pretty up here,’ I breathed. It was the only thing I could think of to say.

‘I know someone prettier,’ she said absent-mindedly.

That really shut me down.

I could just about see the north side of the Valley from where we were. Even that looked beautiful. The grass shone brilliantly under the sun.

‘Today’s been really fun, Albert,’ Cecilia said quietly. ‘But how come you wanted to see me? Why didn’t you spend today with Ethan or something?’

There was literally nothing else I could have said. Whether or not she purposely set up the opportunity for me, she had set up a situation where there was absolutely nothing else I could say except the truth.

I took a deep breath. Now.

‘Well, uh, it’s actually kinda funny you should ask, Cecilia.’

‘Yeah?’

‘I know we haven’t even known each other three months yet, and I’m really sorry if this is too soon, but if I keep it to myself any longer it’ll kill me.’

There was a brief pause as I composed myself. I felt faint.

‘I really like you, Cecilia.’

Another brief pause.

‘I know it’s really soon, and you don’t have to feel the same way, but I just can’t go another day without telling you. You-’

She pressed a finger against my lips, effectively causing me to stop talking.

‘Can I hug you?’ she asked, so quiet that I was almost certain that I misheard.

I nodded slowly.

Within half a second, the two of us had our arms wrapped tightly around each other. She pressed her face into the side of my neck, making my entire body feel warm.

‘I really like you too, Albert.’

I was fourteen years old, and in all those years I don’t think I had ever been that happy. Hearing those six words come from her mouth made my entire body go numb. In a good way.

I didn’t want to let go. I wanted that hug right there to last for the rest of my life. That would have made me happy. That was all I needed.

‘It’s not too soon,’ she murmured. ‘Two minutes were all I needed and you gave me two months.’

I felt like crying with happiness.’I thought you’d need at least two years.’

She tightened her grip on the hug slightly. I did the same. ‘I’ve been waiting for this for too long.’

‘I’m sorry I made you wait, Cecilia,’ I whispered jokingly. ‘But it was hard to gather the strength.’

She pulled out of the hug but left her hands on my shoulders. I didn’t quite know where to put my hands, so I just held the sides of her own shoulders.

‘So, uh,’ I tried awkwardly. ‘There’s only like one step left, right?’

Cecilia smiled, her cheeks rosy. She looked extra beautiful now.

‘I think there is.’

The two of us stared into each other's eyes as I tried to come up with the least-awkward way to say the question.

‘So, uh, yeah,’ I managed. ‘Uh, yeah. Do you, just a thought, do you wanna…be my girlfriend?’

Her smile grew. ‘Of course I do, Your Highness.’

That was it. Now it was official.

I may have done it in the most awkward, stomach-churning way possible, but I had done it. I was now a taken man.

‘Can I hug you again?’ she asked hopefully.

‘Our first hug as a couple,’ I teased, grinning as I spread my arms.

She pounced on me, causing me to stumble a step back, but I didn’t care. I would do anything for one of those hugs.

There was something about the way the two of us desperately clutched one another. Something about the feeling of her arms pressed against my back as mine pressed against hers. Something about it all, even the minute details, made me never want to let her go.

‘Can we just stay here?’ I murmured. ‘I like this. Just the two of us. Hugging.’

‘I’ll stay here as long as you want,’ she murmured back. ‘I definitely don’t plan on leaving any time soon.’

I didn’t know how much I truly needed her until I had her. I, for the first time in a while, could say with complete confidence that I was happy.

***

Telling Jeremy had been the strangest. He hadn’t gotten mad or even slightly annoyed as I had predicted. He had simply patted my shoulder, congratulated the two of us, wished us a happy relationship, and asked me to keep his sister safe.

So, two hours later, when the two of us found ourselves sitting side-by-side on the roof of The Tower, the situation was not awkward in the slightest.

Jeremy took a drag of his cigarette, staring up at the night sky. ‘She’s really happy, you know.’

‘Who? Cecilia?’ I asked quietly, taken aback.

‘Yeah,’ he said, taking another drag. The smoke flew from his mouth as he exhaled and disappeared in the night. ‘She’s been needing this.’

‘Well, I’m really happy too,’ I joked. ‘Thanks for not getting angry or anything.’

‘No need for me to,’ he said. ‘So long as you don’t treat her like shit.’

‘I can assure you that I won’t.’

He nodded, taking another drag. Then, he held out the cigarette to me. ‘Want a drag?’

I shook my head. ‘No thanks. I try to stay away from stuff like that.’

Jeremy nodded silently again before putting the cigarette back in his mouth. ‘Understandable. My friends got me into it, I never thought I’d smoke. How come you don’t? If you don’t mind sharing, of course.’

I was slightly warmed by the fact that he had added the ‘if you don’t mind sharing’. He wasn’t gonna force me.

‘My life expectancy is a mystery as it is,’ I explained, looking at my feet dangling over the edge of the roof. ‘I don’t want to shorten it any more than it might already have been.’

I saw the corner of his mouth lift slightly. ‘I respect that. You’re a good kid, Albert.’

‘Thanks, I guess,’ I murmured awkwardly. ‘You’re not too bad yourself.’

He scoffed. ‘I’m the worst person you know, buddy. But, hey, thanks.’

The two of us sat in silence for a moment, both of us staring at the dark sky.

‘What a day for you, huh?’ Jeremy said finally. ‘You start your first relationship and then get offered a cigarette by her brother.’

‘I don’t think being offered a cigarette is really a staple of my day,’ I reasoned. ‘Especially given the other major event.’

Jeremy turned his head to look at me. Then he grinned.

‘Gods, there’s nobody better to fight my brother with,’ he said, sounding almost disbelieving. ‘The two of us are gonna rock his shit when we rock up to fight him together.’

‘You bet,’ I grinned back. ‘I think alone the two of us could beat him.’

Without saying a word, Jeremy stood up. He took another drag of the cigarette, taking care to look away from me as he blew out the smoke.

He offered his hand down to me, and I grasped it firmly. I was dragged to my feet rather quickly.

‘I look forward to seeing you again, Albert,’ he said warmly.

‘Same to you,’ I said quietly, letting go of his hand. ‘And good luck with that test.’

He scoffed. ‘I’m gonna ace it, you watch.’

A crack echoed through the air as Jeremy disappeared in a grey swirl.

He was a really great guy, honestly. There was nobody better to have as a possible future brother-in-law.

I heard the trapdoor open from my right. Upon turning to see who it was that had come to the roof, I saw my one and only girlfriend.

‘Where’d Jeremy go?’ she asked as she walked over to me.

‘Only the Gods know,’ I said, smiling at her. ‘He just Dis-Apparated.’

‘He didn’t get mad at you, did he?’

‘No, don’t worry,’ I assured her. ‘He seems to quite like me.’

Cecilia wrapped her arms around me without saying a word. I returned the favour.

‘I’m glad, Albert. I’m really glad.’

‘You and me both,’ I whispered. ‘Now, come on, it’s getting cold up here.’

But neither of us let go. And I hoped that neither of us ever would.