Flynn took a step back from her as she examined a stand containing every color fabric you could ever imagine; deep purples, lush blues, pastel pinks, shimmering greens. Her eyes could hardly take in all the colors and hues and textures of the fabric, needing to touch each piece to make sure it was real and she wasn't imagining all the beautiful material the stand had to offer. He knew she was preoccupied, but he was uneasy.
All he wanted to do was to buy two paper lanterns. And in addition to purchasing said lanterns, he wanted to keep it a surprise from Goldie. How he would manage to do that, though, with her constantly on his arm asking what everything was seemed almost beyond him. Flynn chastised himself, knowing that nothing was beyond him. He could do anything he wanted to do with perfect form and finesse and no one would be any wiser. However, this task seemed to be on the brink of impossible.
He took one step away, prepared to go to the stand with the lanterns directly behind Rapunzel, inching away, before she called out, "Eugene!" Discouraged, he moved to her side as she showed him a lovely daffodil yellow cotton fabric. "Isn't this just a perfect color? It would make such a beautiful dress, if I added a few orange folds here..." she continued to talk about sewing, and as much as he tried to listen, he examined the foyer for some other distraction for her. Something to keep her occupied for more than two minutes so he could do what he needed to do.
With a squeal, Rapunzel hurried away from the fabrics, dragging him along by the hand as she made her way towards a stand filled with every imaginable type of costume jewelry. Her eyes glimmered at the sight of the fake stones, the earrings and the bracelets, the necklaces and the brooches. She picked up a rose shaped pin and held it up to her dress, waiting for his approval. "It's pretty," he said distractedly, his eye still on the lantern stand. She put the rose down, and picked up a headband that was decorated with gold stars of every imaginable size, and placed it on her hair.
"I think I like the flowers better," she said after a moment of admiring herself in her mirror. She removed the headband and Flynn was almost two feet away from the stand, when he heard her call him once again. "Eugene!" He turned back to her before she even realized he was gone, his smile back in place. She had her dress hiked up to her knees and was modeling a pair of boots that hugged her calves and gave her a little lift with a small heel. "I don't really like to wear shoes, but these are nice, right?"
He couldn't help but admire the curve of her legs for a moment before shaking his head. "They're nice, but not really you Goldie." She nodded in agreement and took them off, handing them back to the vendor, bantering with the woman pleasantly. Flynn ran a hand through his hair as he dashed back to the lantern vendor, threw his money on the table for two lanterns and a book of matches and dashed back with them carefully folded away inside of his vest. Rapunzel was none the wiser as she let the vendor touch her hair in awe.
"It's all really my hair!" she insisted happily, glad that someone appreciated what she went through daily to take care of it. Flynn took her by the elbow and gently pried her away from the woman, trying not to garner more attention towards them than he was already getting. No one seemed to recognize he was the man from the wanted posters, but that was okay by him. He didn't want to ruin Rapunzel's eighteenth birthday.
He felt a strange sense of happiness that he was the one celebrating one of her most important birthdays with her. Just the two of them for the entire day, if he ignored the presence of the horse and the frog, which he tended to do. He watched he continue to look around in fascination, the people of the town watching her curiously for a moment, glancing to him, and then going on about their way. She was nothing like they'd ever seen before.
She was nothing like he'd ever seen before. Rapunzel linked her arm around his and he felt a strange tug on his heart that he'd never really felt before. He knew that, after this, he wouldn't know what to do with himself. He hadn't thought about his satchel all day, hadn't thought about money or private islands, about being alone. All he could think about was how beautiful she was when she smiled.
Flynn almost grimaced, realizing that in less than 48 hours, the magic girl from the tower made him rethink everything he ever knew. He was going soft, because of the way she made him feel when she touched his skin, how her green eyes sparkled and the way her nose crinkled when she was thinking; those precious freckles dusted across her face. He signed to himself, wondering if he really wanted to spend the rest of his days alone on an island in the middle of no where.
Would he get lonely? Did Flynn Rider ever really feel lonely? He didn't know. Looking back on the days on the run, hiding for weeks at a time, truly alone, he didn't remember a sadness with it. But he knew, if he had to leave her, had to know she was out there without him, he would feel that loneliness.
He watched her dance, and realized that sometimes, your heart knows what you want better than your head. His head wanted riches and his heart wanted her. Resting his palm on his chest, he knew that the Hook Man was right; his dream stinks.
He met her smile with one of his own. Maybe it was time to find a new one.
AN: Can I have one of my very own please? I want a Flynn Rider for Christmas, Mommy.