“The air—it feels so free, Fainn!” Elma said as she clumsily walked ahead of me.

She jogged to the boundary of our world and held out her hand as she walked along the edge. Elma had pleaded with me to walk along the edge of the land.

That edge—we hadn’t really talked about it before. It was mysterious. The sky was always that lit starry sky as far as the eye could see. What lay beneath that starry sky was its reflection. That ocean was as calm as glass—it was only disturbed when it met our land. We could dip our feet in, and we could scoop up water, but our chests—our hearts—couldn’t get past the boundary.

It added to the magic of our Hero Hub. And, in a weird way, kind of reminded us how separate we were from the rest of reality.

Seeing Elma embrace that beauty was magical in its own right.

“Why are you looking at me like that, Fainn?” she said, bending over as she smiled slyly. “You’re wearing a goofy look.”

“Yeah, beautiful things always get that look out of me.”

She looked at me and just stared for a few seconds before she started chuckling. “Yes, this ocean is beautiful... You should do something to fix that face, though. In my world, that would have attracted too many probing hands.”

“Oh.”

That got me serious. Maybe it even sobered me up. She giggled, though—looked like she just wanted to get that look off my face. Unfortunately for her, karma acted swiftly, and she almost fell over.

“Fainn?”

“I’ve got you.”

I caught her by the shoulders, extremely careful to not press on her stomach. Holding her now, I really realized how light she was.

“Fainn?”

“Huh? Yeah?”

“Could you help me stand up straight?”

I shook myself out of my daze and helped her stand. Immediately after I did, she cocked her head, smiled, and fell toward my chest.

“I changed my mind. You must help me walk.”

I hid my giggle. “No problem.”

We walked together all the way back to the dorms. She stumbled a few times, but whenever she did, she would just bump into my side more. The toughest part was getting her up the stairs."

“One foot in front of the other, Elma.”

“I grew another pair of feet, Fainn!” She laughed out loud. “You might need to carry me!”

We managed to get to the top after many laughs.

“So here we are,” I said as we stood before her room’s door.

“That we are.”

She turned on her heels, opened her door, and walked in. I just kind of stood awkwardly in front of it—she was really swift with that move. She then poked her head out and squinted at me.

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“Fainn, are you not coming in?”

My eyes went wide. “I can?”

She shook her head, sighed, and then pulled it back in.

“Oh,” I said, kicking myself a little. “I shouldn’t have been so hesitant.”

Then her hand flew out, grabbed me by the collar, and pulled me in.

***

Water was running in the bathroom, and Elma was humming a tune. I was standing outside the door, utterly at a loss. She had told me to stay in case she ‘slipped and fell and couldn’t get up.’ I thought it made sense, but I didn’t know what was going to happen next. It was like there was a giant pile-up in my head—the girl had me that flustered.

Finally, the door flew open, and Elma stepped out, wrapped in a white towel while drying her hair with another towel.

“Oh. You’re still here,” she said.

“Uhh. You told me to stay.”

She grinned from ear to ear. “I know. I was just teasing.” She walked past me and looked over her shoulder.

“A god can take a little teasing, can’t he?”

Goddammit. The way the night’s silvery light landed on her skin made her seem one hundred times more enchanting than normal. She must have known the effect she had on me—why would she smile so coyly if she didn’t.

“You have that goofy look on your face again... What’s got your eye?”

“The woman in the towel, obviously.”

Her eyes went wide for a second as she dropped the towel she was drying her head with. She cleared her throat and sat on her bed. I just stared at her.

“Come on, then,” she said, patches of her cheeks turning red. She patted the spot next to her, and I sat there.

“Elma... What are we doing?”

“I...” She tried to stifle a laugh. “I don’t know...” Her eyes shifted toward me as she pulled her wet hair behind an ear... Again, I could see the puncture scars—did she know I could see those black splotches? She stretched a little, showing more of her neck as she did. We locked eyes for a moment; she chuckled and then looked at her knees. A moment later, she rubbed her shoulder.

“Are you cold?”

Her eyebrows arced for a split second. “Yeah. Pretty cold here...”

I shook my head wildly—I was reaching my limits. “Elma!”

“Y-Yes?!”

“Ask me what I think about you.”

Elma blinked many times, but then she wore a goofy smile as she twiddled her thumbs. “What do... What do you think of me?”

I got up and kneeled before her so that she would be looking down at me. “I think you’re beautiful, and I am in awe of you—without a doubt. I am so taken away with how proudly ‘you’ you are. Seeing you do your best—it makes me proud and… it makes me think that everything we’re doing is worth it… I don’t think I actually care all that much about Heroes saving the worlds. I think what I care more about is someone like you. I love seeing someone that deserves the chance, getting that chance. I want to keep seeing you, Elma.”

Elma’s cheeks went redder as her smile got goofier.

“What do you want, Elma?”

“I... I want to stake my claim and claim some part of you. “ Her voice grew more frantic. “And I want you to claim me too?”

“Claim?”

“I mean...” She pulled back. “I want your heart. And...” Her hands started shaking. “I would like for you to want me too... You and Madam Goddess gave me a life. I want to reclaim the things that were taken from me... And I want you to be part of the things I take.” She smiled pitifully as if she thought she would be rebuked. “I want to claim my place near the god who watches over me.”

“Wow.” I stood up, and her gaze followed my rise.

“I know it may be impertinent of me to demand this of a god. A woman like me who already died once—”

“Okay, I understand.” I put my hands on her shoulders, surprising her, and gently nudged her to lie down.

She went down and reoriented herself on her bed. She made an audible gulp sound and tried to look away as I got over top of her. Our eyes were locked in a comfortable stare as the sound of her heartbeat reached me.

6tKDw9s.png [https://i.imgur.com/6tKDw9s.png]

“One thing, though.” Elma’s eyes met mine. “I’m not a god; I’m just a guy.”

I fell onto my side and lay next to her. I was all smiles as I stared at the ceiling.

“Is that it?” she dryly asked.

I looked at her. “Maybe.”

“After all that? Why? You were on top of me. I thought you were going to—you were on top of me, Fainn. Why?”

I stuck my tongue out. “Because I like teasing you.”

She went red enough that I could see it in spite of the shadows she was hiding beneath. She started stammering, and at that moment, I got on top of her again and kissed her.

“Mmm!”

I pulled apart, but she followed and kept her lips locked with mine until she could no longer keep her head up. Finally, she fell, and we locked eyes.

“Was that enough?” I asked.

She showed me the most endearing smile thus far. “That was nice.” She squeezed her eyes closed, and tears slipped out. “That was the nicest feeling I’ve ever had on my lips.”