A soft, blue aura radiated from the shrooms. It was cool and misty, and Kess, the young fairy reveled in the privacy and darkness of the forest at noon. He wrapped his arms around her, a bright blonde beauty, burying his face in her hair. She felt his body press against hers.
“Paiva,” he whispered.
“Yes?”
“Tell me you love me,”
“I don’t love you!”
“Tell me you love me,”
She pulled her head back. “No, you tell me first. I’ll say I love you when you love me back.”
“If I tell you I love you, will you tell me you love me?”
She paused for a moment. “Yes, yes I would.”
He glared down into her cerulean pools. “Would you mean it?”
“You can’t have everything in this world, honey.”
“It’s a free country.”
“Is it, Kess? Is it really?”
“Yeah, sassy pants, actually it is. So tell me you love me.”
“No. I don’t want to give you that satisfaction.”
“Would you tell me if I said I wouldn’t be satisfied?”
“Why do you want me to tell you that so badly?”
He cleared his throat and proceeded with a mock falsetto. “Quit asking questions, you’re giving me heartburn. You wanna know, you take it up with Silas yourself,” he said, wrinkling his nose. Paiva’s lips slowly peeled away, revealing her smile. She giggled into a laugh at the sky. His falsetto was perfect every time. He sounded just like Avery after a painful day of Tylenol.
“Oh god, she gives me a headache every once in a while!”
“Yeah, me too…” he replied softly. “Paiva?”
“Hmmm?”
“I don’t want to tell you I love you, because I don’t want to ‘give you the satisfaction,’ but will you tell me?”
“That’s completely bogus, what kind of a deal is that?” she snorted.
“That’s what I was asking.”
“But I didn’t ask you to tell me that you loved me.”
He pulled her closer. “Are you sure?”
She began melting, under his sweet stare and perfect arms, and giggled. “I… think so.”
“So you did ask me first?”
“Stop it, I did not! You’re really starting to bug me, soon you’re not gonna get any kind of confession out of me.”
“Confession? So it’s actually a truth that you would confess that you love me?”
“I didn’t mean it like that.”
“I think you did.”
“Kess, look, I told you earlier that I had to g –“
“The common excuse,”
“No, really I do! I’ve been procrast –“
“It’s alright; I can take a shot once in a while.”
She blushed and shook her head, laying it gently on his shoulder. “Would you leave me alone if I told you I loved you?”
“Yes, that’s what I’ve been looking for.”
“Even if I don’t mean it?”
He sighed, and rolled his head back. “Yes, even if you don’t mean it. My god, Paiva, I’ve been asking for a good 10 minutes.”
“Alright, alright, don’t get your leggings in a bunch.”
“They’re not-! I told you I wear shorts-!”
Her eyes glistened, shaking her head, as she put a finger over his lips. “You win again, Kess. You win. I love you.”
And with that, she leaned into him, fully wrapped in his arms, and kissed him sweetly on the mouth. He groaned quietly under the bliss, finally getting what he wanted. He would let her do this forever. Backing up by each little step, Paiva was soon standing over him, her arms trapping him down to the low bough he sat on. Finally, she pulled back, shivering softly. That wasn’t the first time they had kissed, but it was one of the most special. Her mouth curved into a smile and she looked deeply into his eyes for one last look.
“I told you I have to go. Avery was expecting me half an hour ago. I’ll see you soon.” She walked around him where he was sitting, his head following her sway. He didn’t say a word, but silently watched her leave. She drove him crazy. She could be snappy and rude sometimes, and stubborn to get her way, and she didn’t go after him the way he did her. She could be difficult and a little weird and spontaneous in the way that if she couldn’t fall asleep, she’d call him and call him until he walked down the hall to her room with some hot cocoa and a bedtime story. If, of course, she didn’t want to be left alone. When she did however, she was silent and reflective, and never ever called. He couldn’t make her laugh, and the only thing on her mind was an elaborate rhythm or a dance in the woods, even in the middle of the night. Kess’ thoughts? High maintenance.

But he smiled, thinking about that kiss, and the way she shivered when she pulled away, keeping a smile behind her eyes. And if she ever cried, or was furious, or had dark bags under her eyes, her silvery blond hair and the glow of her face still made her beautiful. Still the way she walked, even if she was stomping mad, was a mesmerizing dance. He remembered that although she was moody and cross and seemed to take some anger out on him, and had the better job… She was also very sweet. Her usual self… Wasn’t like the mess Kess described when she couldn’t hold any kind of grace in. She was almost always thinking about the good of others before herself, reaching out to help the people no one bothered with. And yes, she lashed out at him on a bad day, but that’s because he knew she could bite his head off, (he knew her too well) and he would still stand by her. Plus the fact that she was always under stress during times like these, and knowing this, he’d tease her a bit. Kess knew she would be her true self around him. And if that meant that sometimes it was he who got the ugly side, then so be it. Because it was all worth it when he realized that he was the special guy, and would be the one to console her. Anybody else could hug Paiva and make her smile a little bit more, but Kess was the only one who could hold her and sing her to sleep and make her laugh ‘til she cried. Did she love him? He didn’t think so; not to the point where he was the One. But did he love her? He wasn’t quite sure. He wasn’t sure of anything, not permanently at least. He didn’t make up his mind whether he wanted her to be around every day for the rest of his nearly immortal life or not. He couldn’t, and for what? He didn’t know if he just liked her a lot, or really loved her. He didn’t know. And neither did she. But they didn’t have to.