"Hello Mr. and Mrs. Howell! It's been so long!" My and Dan's parents gave each other a warm embrace.

"Phil!" Mrs. Howell called, "How lovely to meet you! I've heard so much about you." She gave me a warm squeeze. Dan rolled his eyes and blushed a little, embarassed.

"And I hear you're Mayella, Phil's cousin. Lovely to meet you too."

My Parents walked over to Dan and gave him equally enthusiastic hugs, causing me to look away in agony.

Mayella snickered from next to me.

"parents will be parents." she said, "and parents are embarassing."

"You got that one right." I agreed.

"So." she raised her eyebrows at me and I knew what was coming. "What do you think of Dan?"

I blushed. I had come out to her as gay a few months ago and she hadn't really cared. Not in a bad way, it just didn't change anything. But now she had found the perfect time to use it against me.

She nudged me. "You're blushing." She said, grinning.

"Hes... He's pretty cute..." I started, blushing even harder.

"You're adorable." She said.

Pretty cute didn't even sum Dan up. He was just really freakin sexy was all. His hair and eyes were perfect, and I had noticed he had his ears pierced. damn was all that was going through my head. Ugh, I had been so awkward introducing myself... Then again, I suspected we had both had orders to have most princely behavior. At least I hadn't been the only one.

I looked over at Mayella. She had an evil glint in her eye.

"You better shut up or I'll tell Oliver you have a crush on him the next time he comes to the watchtower." She snapped her head back around.

"Dont you dare!" she hissed, just as Dan was coming back over to sit with us. I expected to be sat down with the rest of the adults, but instead my mother spoke up.

"Would you children like to go take a tour of the grounds? Mayella, you and Phil can show Dan around, right?"

"Of course!" she said brightly. I grinned to myself. More time to spend with Dan. Maybe now I could make a real, good first impression.

As we walked around the grounds, Mayella narrated the scenery with excerpts of her life, which were pretty funny to be honest. She told me about the time she and Phil had climbed up to the top of the greenery pavillion, and had gotten stuck on the roof, from where Phil had attempted to jump onto the branch of a nearby tree, which had then broken and fallen down with Phil. She said that the moral of the story was that Phil had to stop stuffing his face with cookies, after which Phil had promptly told her to shut up.

I laughed, thinking that Phil was hardly one to stuff his face with anything. He looked rather fit, and... pretty attractive, to be honest.

After about a half an hour of pleasant conversation and a bit of a tour, Mayella announced that it was time for her to go about finding her tutor, and that she would leave us, and added mysteriously to Phil to "show him the thing." Curious, I waited until Mayella was out of sight to talk to him. Phil and I hadn't really talked on our own. It had mostly been Mayella leading and us laughing, and I was a bit nervous now because I felt I would be extremely awkward. Luckily, it was Phil who broke the silence. He spoke to me in a surprisingly more friendly tone than earlier, and I realized that he had dropped the usual prince dialogue.

"Did your parents put you up to acting all 'princely' around me?" He asked curiously.

"Um. Yeah, actually." I said, glad that I could drop it.

"Can we stop?" Phil asked, smiling.

"Yeah, please. it's really tiring to keep it up." I said.

"Thank god! I was worried we were going to have to speak like that for the rest of time. I was really worried that you guys would be really uptight."

"Hey!" I protested.

"What?" Phil grinned. "I'd never met you before, and mom kept insisting."

"Actually, to be honest, me too." I smiled back.

"Wait." I thought back to what Mayella had said.

"What's the "thing" that you're supposed to show me?" I asked/

"Oh... That's where we're going right now." He grinned mysteriously. "Just wait and see..."

Phil led me towards one of the watchtowers surrounding the castle. We ran about halfway up the staircase before we came to a landing. Phil stopped me.

"Wait." He looked around cautiously, then pressed forward on one of the wooden panels lining the staircase.

It slid open, and we darted inside, closing the panel behind us.

It was pitch black.

A light flickered on.

"Like it?" Phil asked.

I grinned. It was beautiful. There was a really comfy looking couch in the corner and a lamp opposite that Phil had turned on, and a nice furry carpet on the floor. The walls were covered in drawings and posters and funny poems that I assumed Mayella and Phil had accumulated over the years. In the middle of the room there was a table with a little bowl of cookies strewn with cookie crumbs.

"Nice." I said. "I can see Mayella wasn't lying when she said you stuffed your face with cookies."

Phil blushed. "Shut up." He said, smiling a little. awwww

We sat down together on the couch.

"So." I said, trying to be smooth-ish while talking to him. "How long have you had this?"

"Oh, about three years." He said, "Mayella found it when she first came to the castle. I was amazed. I know she seems really bright and sunny, but she can be kinda depressed sometimes. But she's really funny all the time."

"Really?" I asked, surprised.

"Yeah. She can be really sarcastic and sad, but she always changes fast." Phil smiled wonderingly.

"Quite a strange one." I said. "Maybe that's why you get along." I joked.

"Hey!" Phil pushed me and I laughed. He scooted a little closer to me and I felt his hand next to my leg.

For some reason it began to tingle. Oh. Great. I know what's happening. NOW I get why I keep thinking about his face. I'm falling for him. shit. I had always known I was bisexual to some extent, but I had never tried to act out on it because I was too afraid of what people would say.

Whenever I felt feelings for a boy I would just push them away. I'd gotten pretty good at it. And now I was going to have to go through the same thing. Great.

"DAN!" I heard Phil next to me.

"Sorry what?" I asked quickly. I realized I hadn't been listening. Phil giggled.

"I said tell me something about yourself." oh. well. perfect timing.

"Uhm... I... like to draw?" I said tentatively.

"Really?" Phil asked, impressed.

"Yeah. Your turn." Phil looked thoughtful. He looked as though he had something to say but he didn't want to say it.

"Uhm..."

"Go on then." I said.

"I... I dunno. I like cats?" He said shyly.

"Oh COME ON Phil. I'm sure there's more to you than that." I winked. SHIT WHY DID I WINK. HE THINKS IM GAY.

"I uh..." Phil looked away. Well great. He probably thinks I'm into him because of the wink. well I am. Shut up.

"You look like you want to say something but you're afraid I'm going to judge you but you want to get it out of the way so that you won't have to say it later."

Phil looked up, confused.

"How the hell did you figure that one out?

BINGO.

"Dunno, just magical, I guess." I grinned.

"Go on then." I pressed again. "I promise I won't judge you."

Phil sighed.

"Okay, but I'm only telling you so quickly because I know if I make another one up you'll know I'm just avoiding it. And don't be freaked out I just want to get this out of the way because this is a good chance to just throw it out there."

I nodded.

I was really curious now.

"I'm gay."

I couldn't help but grin as the little voice in my head said You have a chance!

And then another one going shit shit shit now it's your turn.

Phil let out a deep breath I didn't know he was holding. "Okay." he muttered. "And now the judgement begins."

I laughed.

"Oh Phil, I'm not going to judge you." I smiled at him reassuringly. "Come on. Homophobia is in days past." I almost had to laugh at myself. Look who's the hypocrite now.

I hesitated.

"Actually, I understand that feeling..."

I hesitated again. Phil whirled around as if he knew what was coming.

A little smile appeared.

I decided to take the opportunity to jump into the unknown.

"I. uh. I'm bi."

Phil grinned and tackled me with a giant hug.

"Well", I said, dusting myself off when we pulled away.

"Glad we got that over with." We were both still smiling.

Phil looked at me curiously.

"Have you told anyone before?"

"Nah."

"Really? I feel honored." He joked.

"Why have you?"

"Yeah, Mayella."

"Oh, makes sense."

I sighed.

"Thanks, Phil."

"For what?"

He was right. I laughed.

"I dunno, I guess." I thought for a bit.

"I mean, we've only known each other for an hour and I'm already telling you my deepest darkest secrets."

Phil grinned a proud grin.

"Well I do tend to have that affect on people." He winked. It was my turn to blush as I realized we both knew we were potential dating material.

"Or maybe I'm just special." I said, winking back.

He nudged me a bit with his elbow, and we sat in comfortable silence for a few moments.

"Well, I guess we better be getting back to our parents." He got up, then bowed and offered me his hand. "Gentleman." He said jokingly.

I took his hand and he looked up at me. I winked and kissed it.

"Gentleman." I responded. Phil laughed, but he couldn't hide his blush for long.

And we set off, accidentally forgetting that we were holding hands, towards the other side of the castle. I'm pretty sure you could have cut the sexual tension with a knife.