With an exaggerated sigh, the dark eyed boy sat down heavily. Running a calloused hand through his hair, he let his eyes flutter closed. She was an exhausting girl. With her relentless questioning and generally up-beat attitude, it was draining to organize the library with her. But it was fun, too. She would sing old songs from Ember, and dance animatedly whenever she found a decidedly interesting book. She made him laugh. Lina Mayfleet made Doon Harrow laugh. And he quite liked it. He opened his eyes once more, and rose from his seat. Lina had already left on Fleet, almost immediately after helping him that morning. That left him time to think. But as of late, the only thing Doon could think about was her. Her auburn hair, wet with rain a few days previous. Those eyes laughing, while her mouth stayed perfectly still. Her voice, her movements. It was all distinctly Lina. He could easily see her from across a crowded room, or know is she was trying to sneak up on him. He found his stomach flipping when she was near. He even liked her smell. Doon Harrow had admitted it weeks ago. He was in love with Lina. But she would never, ever know.

Meanwhile, the very girl Doon had been thinking of was galloping across the open prairie on her way to the next town. Her hair was flying behind her, and she was deep in thought. Her mind, of course, was on the one and only Doon. Her best friend for nearly 3 years, and secretly, the only boy she'd ever consider loving. She would find herself getting lost in his dark eyes, and occasionally longing for him to hug her, just to feel his strong arms around her. These things she kept secret. Fantasies that never left the confines of her head. But that didn't mean she didn't occasionally slip up. Brush his hand accidentally, sending tingles up her arm. Once, she couldn't help it, she ran a hand through his thick black hair. He had looked up, confused, but then he'd smiled and chuckled, and gone back to work. She'd never admit it, ever, but she knew somewhere in her, she was falling hard and fast. But life in Sparks was hard enough without love. So she pretended not to feel her heart flipping in her chest, not to acknowledge her cheeks flushing. She'd act like everything was normal, and hope the delighting feelings would never leave.

Coincidentally, Lina's message run was short, and she ran into Doon as she rode back to the house. He was looking at the sky, which had become his new fascination after they had left Ember. He said there was more possibilities up there. She had to agree, the open expanse of blue really had more potential than their dirt-town seemed to. She and Fleet pulled to a dramatic stop beside him, and he looked to her, smiling briefly. She felt her stomach twitch, and grinned back.

"Hi Doon!" She said perkily, sliding off her horses back. Landing with a thud, she turned to him. He was at least 6 inches taller than she, and broader too. His dark hair fell to his ears, and looked mildly messy.

"Hello Lina! Was the ride good?" She nodded ecstatically, her auburn hair falling from its pony tail into her face. She had slimmed down since Ember, and her face was no longer plump and childish, and she'd filled out a little more, her figure becoming a slender hourglass. In fact, she had grown to be beautiful, and everyone in Sparks agreed, especially Doon.

"Good, good," He replied, looking absent mindedly at the river. It was a hot day, and the field work had left him sore, and yearning for a dip. Sensing this immediately, Lina decided it was, in fact, time for a swim.

"C'mon Doon, do you want to go for a swim?" He grinned at her before sprinting off to the river bank. By the time Lina caught up, Doon had already stripped off his shirt, and had dived into the water, keeping his shorts on. Lina, for the sake of modesty, had a stash of shorts and tank tops hidden by the river, and hastily changed into those. Then, she dove in, savoring the feel of the cool water on her back.

"Oh man, this is great!" She called to Doon, who was a few feet away, paddling around the shallows. He smiled at her before swimming over to her. His black hair was now spotted with water, like dew drops on blades of grass. Grabbing her around the waist, he pulled her around. She was screaming with laughter and delight, and he couldn't help but laugh as well. Only Lina could bring out such behavior in him so often. Finally letting her go, she immediately spun around and splashed him, giggling gleefully at his expression. Splashing her back, he picked her up, and threw her a few feet. She surfaced, looking playfully furious, and carried on splashing. Finally, the chocolate eyed boy was forced to surrender, and he drug himself onto the bank, panting and laughing. Lina crawled up beside him, sitting down with a huff. They were silent for a few moments, listening to the soft gurgling of the river, and the various sounds coming from deeper in the woods.

"Doon?" He looked to her, indicating for her to continue.

"Do you miss it sometimes? Ember, I mean." She looked as though this was a hard question for her to ask, so Doon took his time answering. Finally, he replied,

"Sometimes. When things here go wrong. But mostly, I don't. I like it here better…in the sunlight. I like the rain, and the sound of birds. I do miss running around with you, trying to solve the mystery of it all. But I'm glad we're here." Lina looked at him, taking in his fair face, and his thoughtful eyes.

"I miss it too, sometimes. But it IS better here…the sun, and the river, the animals and Fleet, running into the wind, you…" She trailed off, blushing furiously, but Doon smiled at her, amused, and was it just her, or were his cheeks flushed too? It was suddenly very warm, and Lina decided she ought to go home, or to Doctor Hester's home, she'd taken to calling it home too. So she rose, and said a hurried goodbye, leaving Doon to contemplate the mystery of the female species.

As morning broke over the town of Sparks, Lina was restless. Today would probably be the last day of Library Organization, and her last day with an excuse to spend time alone with Doon. Of course, Dr. Hester and Torren already teased her about Doon, both of them seeing right through her charade. She didn't need, nor want, anyone else being suspicious of their 'friendship'. So as she set off to see him, she decided something had to be done.

Doon's eyes opened as the first rays of light came through his window, and he growled at the dawns coming so soon. Getting up, he slowly realized that today would be the last day of going to the Library with Lina. He found it a disquieting thought. He always enjoyed it, alone time, without anyone around to poke fun at his obvious infatuation with her.

Walking into the library, the first thing Doon noticed was Lina sitting in a ray of sunlight, reading a book he'd never seen before. Hearing him come in, she looked up and smiled.

"Where'd you get that book from? I've never seen it before," He said, walking over to her and sitting down.

"Top shelf," She replied, gesturing to the book shelves behind her. Looking at them, he saw that there was an empty spot on the top shelf, and there was a ladder below it. Wondering why he'd never noticed it before, it had a bright blue binding, he admired the book in her hands. After a few moments, Lina rose, and closed the book.

"Doon, would you help me put this back?" He nodded, and held the ladder still while she climbed up. She had to lean over fairly far in order to put the book back in place, and she lost her balance. Teetering atop the ladder, she reached out and braced herself on the bookshelf. In a horrible second, both she and Doon realized that her weight was pushing the shelf, and the next moment, it fell. It was instant chaos. Lina slipped from the ladder, screaming. Doon caught her, and that force knocked him over. The first large shelf crashed into the next, and suddenly, all the shelves they so carefully arranged were toppling over. They watched, horrified, as the shelves collapsed.

Finally, the noise of falling books ceased, and the pair looked at each other. Lina was sitting on Doons chest, and hastily got off, placing herself on the floor beside him.

"Well…" He began, and then began to laugh. Grinning, Lina snorted, then broke into hoots of laughter. The two teens fell about with hysterics, Lina's face went red, and Doons deep chortles echoed through the library. Then, in a sudden burst of laugh-induced bravery, Doon took Lina's face in his hands and kissed her. A sudden silence filled the Library as he pulled back, blushing vividly.

"Sorry, um…sorry I just…it's just that…" He stuttered, but Lina hugged him fiercely, cutting him off.

"Do you have ANY idea how long I've been wanting you to do that?" She said, pulling back to look at him. He shook his head, and she giggled.

"A long time!" She stated, before standing up.

"So…it's ok if I do it again?" He asked tentatively. To answer his question, Lina leaned over and pressed her lips to his. After she'd done, he nodded.

"Is that a yes?"

"Of course!"

"So…do you wanna…you know…go out sometime?"

"Duh!" And with that, they walked out of the Library. Doon content with his newfound love, and Lina thrilled that her plan had actually worked.