Aerrow's POV:

The storm hawks and I were in the hangar, fixing up our sky rides, except for Piper (probably working on her crystals as is her habit after a mission). The talons had actually gotten a little nasty during the last battle; that dumb asshole-I mean, Dark Ace, even had a few new moves. My muscles were tensed and sore, but I was used to it. Sure, it was painful, and kept getting more and more painful, but I ignored it. I'd just wiped my face clean from grease when I just happened to look over at Piper's heliscooter. I sighed. Piper…She was always in my head. I could never stop thinking about her. When I was younger, I thought that the strange feelings I got when she was around would go away. Instead, as I grew from boy to man, well, young man, those same feelings actually intensified. Now, whenever I look at Piper, even for a moment, I'm in danger of staring at her for hours. My heart starts pumping and I just want to pull her to me and kiss her. But I can't. I just…can't.

I look over at the others. I never told anyone about my feelings for Piper, not even Radarr. But, these days, the guys began to notice that something was up with me.

'Well,' I thought. 'I can't hide it forever.'

"Hey guys," I said.

They all looked up. Even Stork stopped reading his Merbian Darkness Poetry book.

"What is it?" asked Junko.

"I…have a little confession to make."

"Is it about Piper?" Finn asked.

For a moment, I just stared at him. How did he…? Never mind.

"Well, yes." I said.

"Let me guess, you have a crush on her." he replied.

I nodded, almost blushing.

"It's that obvious?" I asked.

Junko nodded in reply.

"Let's just say that it's a miracle Piper hasn't noticed." Stork said. "Heck, even I noticed."

I rubbed the back of my head. They're right. It IS a miracle that Piper hasn't noticed, and that's saying something.

"I just…don't know how to tell her." I said.

They all nodded sadly.

"I know. It's a sad thing." said Kaya, who just came in.

She was holding a big container of skyberry ice cream, clearly having a snack.

"To not know how to confess to the love of your life, I mean." she confirmed.

As she did on several occasions, Kaya took the words right out of my mouth. I sighed deeply, suddenly feeling very worn and tired. Maybe the fight had finally decided to take its toll on me. Or maybe it was just because it was about 10:00 PM.

"I'm going to bed." I said.

The others nodded knowingly and Kaya sat down next to Radarr.

"By the way, would you mind if Radarr slept with me tonight?" she asked.

"Go ahead." I said, before heading to my room.

I'd almost reached my room when Piper came out of her lab. I put on bright smile. Just seeing her was always enough to lighten my mood.

"Hey Piper!"

"Hi Aerrow!" Piper said in reply. "Um, listen, could I talk to you for a sec'?"

"Sure,"

She looked down at her feet nervously, almost guiltily.

"It's really difficult to say, and probably a bit embarrassing too…" she said, playing with a lock of her hair.

I'd never seen Piper this nervous before. What was she going to say? She must've noticed her own fidgeting, because she tucked the renegade strand of hair behind her ear. She stepped closer, though I hardly noticed.

"Go on, you can tell me anything." I said, trying to sooth her.

She took a deep breath, and finally looked up at me.

"It's about…us." she said.

"'Us'?" I asked, trying to hide my shock. "As in…y-you and…m-me?"

Great, now I sound like a stuttering idiot! I almost expected her to giggle, but instead, she blushed.

"Yes…" she said simply, stepping closer.

Only then did I notice how close we were. Her face was only an inch away from mine (give or take a few centimeters). I felt my heart racing and my breath getting shallower.

"Piper…" I whispered. "What are you doing?"

"Shh, stop talking…" she whispered back.

She then cupped my face in her hands…and the most unbelievable thing happened: she kissed me. It took me 30 seconds to realize what was happening. My face felt like it was on fire from blushing, my heart sky-rocketed and I vaguely heard the sounds of somebody gasping in astonishment (the guys were probably been spying on us). Piper must've sensed my shock because she pulled away, living me dazed and confused.

"I'm sorry." she said, looking down. "But I had to, just once."

And then, before I could even react, she was gone. I stumbled to my room and almost fell onto my bed. I heard a small screech. Looking up, I saw Radarr standing in the doorway.

"Radarr, what just happened?" I asked him.

Piper's POV:

That night, I lay in bed, tossing and turning restlessly. I couldn't sleep. I couldn't stop thinking of the kiss I'd given Aerrow. I thought that kissing him would somehow tell him my feelings for him, but I was wrong. Instead, I'd just confused myself, and worse, I'd left Aerrow in a state of bewilderment and shock. I sat up, pulling my knees to my chest. I've as good as destroyed our smooth, easy friendship. Now, things would never be the same; our interactions would become embarrassing and awkward, and he might start drifting away, which I couldn't bear. And it would be all because of me letting my desire for him take control. I stood up and tip toed out of my room, all the way to his bedroom.

As the door slid open (thank god it was silent), I was greeted by an adorable sight; Aerrow was sleeping peacefully, his face as handsome as that in a dream, his perfect chest rising and falling slowly with the deep rhythm of his breathing, his hair unkempt and messy. I smiled and, taking care with each step, softly tip toed to the side of his bed. Thank goodness Radarr was sleeping with Kaya tonight, or he would've woken Aerrow before I even stepped into the room. I had visited Aerrow when he was sleeping before, on nights when I couldn't sleep and wanted to seek comfort from him.

This would be my last night with him, I had decided. No more sneaking into his room and staying until past midnight. No more. So I had to make tonight count, at least to me. I traced his features with my fingers, taking in every last detail of his face: his thick eyebrows, his nose, his prominent chin, his closed eyelids, his somewhat parted lips. I sighed, and perched onto the edge of his bed. He didn't react, just muttered something, then he was still once again.

"Aerrow…" I whispered, but only enough to me to hear myself. "It's me, Piper. I don't know if you can hear me, but I hope that you'll somehow understand what I'm saying. I have a feeling that you haven't forgotten…the kiss. But, I want you to forget it. I'm sorry I didn't when I shouldn't have."

I had to look away, because looking at him made me want to cry.

"It was stupid of me to think that you would like me back just because I kissed you. So please, if there's any way for me to redeem myself in your eyes, I'll do anything."

"You could let me kiss you."

I was so shocked by the sound of his voice that I almost screamed. I turned to look at him, only to be grabbed by the arm and being pulled down. I fell onto him, and was shocked to feel his lips press against mine. And then it hit me: Aerrow was kissing me! Almost dizzy from the sudden rush of elation and pleasure, I gave into his kiss. I felt his tongue press against my teeth and let him in, shuddering with pleasure as he explored my mouth. Finally, we separated.

"I thought you were asleep." I mumbled, still a little breath taken by the kiss.

"You expect me to fall asleep after what happened today?" he asked.

I laughed softly.

"No, not really." I said.

Aerrow then smiled his beautiful, breathtaking smile and let me sneak under the covers with him. I felt his hands undoing my bra and slipping the straps from my shoulders, and I welcomed it. Later on, we set off the fireworks.

Aerrow's POV:

It must've been a dream. All that happened yesterday: the kiss, Piper visiting me while I pretended to be asleep, everything. It had all been too good to be true. Then I felt someone stir next to me. I opened my eyes to find Piper, still sound asleep in my arms.

'Piper's…here…? Oh my god! I just slept with my navigator!'

She sighed in her sleep and cuddled closer to my chest. The sound soothed me, and my mouth relaxed into a smile. Memories of the night before replayed in my mind. And to think that yesterday, I was still trying to deny my feelings for her, only to have her so close now. I kissed her closed eyelids. Before, I used to think that Piper would never be interested in a guy like me. But now, to think that we're together right here and right now, to think that she was more than willing to lose her virginity with me...wow. I let my hands run over her body, once again exploring every inch of her skin, before I circled my arms around her waist.

Just then, I heard Finn yelling:

"Kaya! Radarr! You devils get back here with my hair gel!"

The sounds made Piper stir and her eyes opened.

"Hey sleeping beauty." I said.

"Hey yourself." she replied, still sounding tired.

I kissed her cheek.

"Go back to sleep." I whispered.

She smiled.

"Only if you will." she said.

"I promise." I said. "I love you Piper."

"And I love you Aerrow." she said, before drifting back off to sleep.

I smiled. Then, I heard someone knocking at the door:

"Hello? Aerrow, you in there bud? Hello?"

Typical Finn, always trying to interrupt the perfect moment.

'Good thing I locked the door last night.' I thought before falling asleep.