This was honestly one of the chapters I couldn't wait to write! We're getting close to the endgame now!

Please Remember Me Like This

Chapter 10: "Beautiful and Talking Shit"

Ian grinned at the proud "Lightheim for Prom Kings" posters about the hallways, and other than college, Prom seemed to be the only other thing on a senior's mind. Sure, he knew there were plenty of amazing, wonderful couples in their class, but was it bad to want this for himself? He still had Aeric's Spring Fling King crown on his bookcase, constantly reminding him of that amazing night if he ever woke up with the distinct feeling that the last year had never happened.

"When did you have time to campaign?" Ian asked on their way to lunch, pointing at one of the posters.

Aeric shrugged, deciding now was the best time to act coy about something like this. "You know... just after school and stuff after practice. That one time we hung them up during Study Hall. Oh, and... might have called in a favor with my mom at the printers?"

Perks of having an editor mom, Ian supposed.

"Not to mention I always try to share a picture of us to my story every day on social media and all that," Aeric continued, and Ian realized he probably only promoted them, like... once. All other times, his only form of advertising just how cute he and Aeric were was, well... acting cute with him at school.

"Gosh, I'm sorry I'm not doing more..." Ian uttered, realizing that magic really was taking a bigger priority than he realized—maybe he should find a way to make it part of their campaign! Aeric could make a button and Ian could use the multiplying spell on them so they could hand them out! Or hell, he could look into just making a button with magic himself! It was a great way to incorporate what he'd been learning in the group! "But I have some ideas!"

"Well, there's still, like, a while until Prom. No need to put pressure on yourself." Aeric gave his obligatory fist bump to Gurge before they sat with the rest of the group, digging into their lunches.

"Some good news," Sadalia started, as she usually did. "I talked to Ms. Sparkleshaw, and I got the scholarship to Knolling Hills! Full ride!"

"What!" Everyone had to congratulate her for it—full ride was such a huge deal to such a great school.

"But Sadalia, I thought Willowdale was your first choice?" Kameron asked, a little confused.

"It is..." she replied, sighing. "But a full ride means my parents won't have to break the bank to send me to school. And I toured the campus this weekend—I really did like it! I can see myself there, so I'm gonna take it."

"Well, good for you, Sadalia!" Parthenope piped up, always the optimist. "Was that all Ms. Sparkleshaw had to tell you?"

"Not exactly..." She glanced at Aeric, grinning. "She actually called us both into her office to tell us..."

Ian looked up at Aeric expectantly as he finished, "We're going to be Valedictorian and Salutatorian!"

"Wow, congratulations!" cried Althea, patting Sadalia on the shoulder. "You two definitely worked your butts off for that. More than I ever do, anyway."

"Well, you're so busy as the Alliance President!" Kameron pointed out to make her girlfriend feel better.

"Nah—Sadalia's a cheerleader and she made it happen," Althea replied. "There's no excuse."

Aeric shrugged, and Ian figured, given his boyfriend was on a team as well and made it this far... yeah, there was no excuse. "Doesn't mean you're not smart, or not going to a great college."

"Speaking of..." Gurge grinned, nudging Aeric playfully. "This boy's officially going to be playing for Willowdale! That recruiter definitely loved you!"

"Shucks, it was probably just a slow year," Aeric dismissed, waving a hand. "But I did read her notes. I'm honestly really surprised by some of what she said."

"Because she sees something special in you," Ian finally piped up, squeezing his arm. "It should be blatantly obvious."

"Well... the season's not over yet," said Aeric, trying to be cautious. "Not that they're really gonna look at my performance much now, but... you know. I wanna keep it all up because I gotta start proving myself all over again, to the best of the best."

"I bet college games are even more fun than high school ones!" He could only imagine, Aeric actually being televised during some big games! A whole home field! Ian seriously couldn't wait to see where his boyfriend went with his sports career (though, to be fair, he still barely understood the game).

"They're more fun now that we're seniors!" Sadalia pointed out, smiling. "Cheering is more fun, anyway. And we're all going to the home game Friday night, right?"

"Always!" Parthenope chuckled. "I love how home games kind of became our thing, you know?"

"Well, given about half of us are on a team of some sort, it only makes sense! And one of us is dating someone on said team," Kameron teased, shooting Ian a wink.

"Gee, Tina did make us all honorary cheerleaders... I guess that counts!" Ian replied, chuckling.

And Ian did love going to games with his friends, who were still more than happy to try and explain it all to him (and, if Parthenope ended up at Willowdale, too, would continue to do so).

By the time Friday rolled around, Ian couldn't wait. It was Aeric's first game since hearing about the acceptance, and that should only propel him to do even better than usual. Of course, all Ian knew was to cheer if he caught the ball, threw the ball, ran the ball, or tackled someone else. That's how it worked, right?

And even now, he was on that fast track to that multiplying spell—but he still had yet to figure out how to make a button. Other candidates made stickers, but buttons lasted longer! And people really liked them! Mom said she'd ask around to see if she knew anyone that had a button maker, so that could help.

Up until now, Prom just seemed like something he could put on the back burner and let Aeric do all this work around campaigning, but just seeing how busy Aeric got now, with school and with playing, and now with prepping for Willowdale, he should help! And now, well, the prospect of being Prom Kings, of having their picture in the yearbook with crowns and sashes and memories... He wanted it.

He wanted to be known as a Prom King, to leave behind a legacy here at NMHS the same way Aeric did. In ten years, a reunion would show everything Aeric had accomplished, so why couldn't Ian do the same, other than being the first known wizard to grace the halls? Dad would have done the same, or would have probably encouraged Ian to.

At the game, he sat near the front of the bleachers, his friends surrounding him and Aeric's varsity jacket slung over his shoulders, still far too big for it to fit him properly. Right now the Dragons led 21-7 just past the halftime mark, but the Knights, from what he heard from Gurge and Aeric, played an almost ruthless game. Sadalia and the other cheerleaders chanted their butts off, getting everyone into the school spirit, and Ian noticed even the Dragon mascot danced a little harder than usual.

This game meant everything to the school. No wonder Aeric seemed to be playing his butt off, and Gurge held back the Knights as best he could. Third quarter. All they had to do was keep them from scoring more than once (at least Ian knew that part of the game!). He leaned forward, elbows on his knees, his leg jiggling like Aeric's usually did while they studied together, anxious for how the next quarter and a half would play out.

During the next play, the QB threw the ball back to Aeric, who started to run toward the end zone. A perfect way for him to score for the team, securing a great lead for the Dragons. He made it past the halfway mark on the field, still running, giving it his all...

And in an instant, the world stopped. Ian watched helplessly as one of the Knights' players tackled Aeric from the side, and then, a bloodcurdling scream. Aeric let go of the ball, and his hands went to his right shin instead. The Knights player jumped up, and though Ian couldn't gauge his expression through his helmet, he seemed horrified.

"Aeric!" Ian felt himself cry out, immediately standing. His friends moved back to make room for him, everyone gasping in the crowd once they realized there had been an injury on the field. He couldn't get down there fast enough, quickly rushing past the cheerleaders and players on the bench to kneel beside Aeric, Coach beside him as he tried to get his attention.

"I swear I didn't know," the Knights player said shakily, feeling all the guilt rising through him.

"I-it's okay," Aeric eked out, trying to sit up. "You're playing a great game."

"Kelby, talk to me," said Coach, kneeling onto his front legs. "Is it broken?"

"I think so..." Aeric winced, and Ian checked out his leg, feeling his stomach sink. That was not normal for how an elf leg was supposed to look.

"Damn it, we're gonna have to send in subs," Coach grumbled. "And call you an ambulance."

Ian took Aeric's hand, squeezing tight. "Babe, where are your parents?" he asked lowly. Gods, that looked so horrible—what about the scholarship? Prom? The rest of the year? Would Aeric be okay?

"They're... out," he sighed, holding onto Ian's hand for dear life. Squeezing his hand probably distracted him from the pain, and Ian didn't mind that. "Fuck, I can't believe this."

Aeric so rarely cursed—but Ian knew this was also helping the pain. "I'm right here," he assured, trying his best not to cry, but who knew once they got to the hospital? How strong could he be during all this? "We're gonna call your mom, okay?"

"No—not yet. Please, babe?" Aeric pleaded, holding Ian's hand tighter. "She's getting an award for the magazine she edits and I can't take that from her; she worked so hard..."

"Okay..." Ian replied shakily. "Later, then, but you know we have to at some point."

"Just... I need you," Aeric pleaded, panting. Ian wiped the sweat from his teal brow and kissed his forehead. "Please, Ian, I can't be alone..."

Ian nodded, and he was there for when Aeric got loaded onto a stretcher, when the medics took off his cleat and padding, and his stomach churned at the sight of his boyfriend's leg so mangled, with the bruising, and the way it twisted off the bone... And he was there in the ambulance, making sure Aeric had someone through all this. The Dragons would still play, of course, but without one of their star players... who knew where they stood.

When Barley broke his arm last year, Ian had barely seen any of it—he just remembered that it happened while he was working on Guinevere, and Mom had taken him to the hospital while Ian walked and fed Blazey. Next thing he knew, Barley had a black cast he couldn't wait to doodle on, and he described the two most painful experiences in the world: the second worse being the bone snapping out of place, the worst being the doctors snapping the bone back into place.

And Ian was here for the whole horror of this, of holding onto Aeric helplessly, because he couldn't do complicated magic without his staff, no charm spells or anything to calm his boyfriend down. No, he had to be there for that painful experience, watching Aeric scream as the doctor, a very no nonsense cyclops with a high ponytail, set his leg bone back in, then checked him into a real hospital room after they reached the ER.

"Look, we had to call your parents," the doctor sighed. "Having company helps, but unfortunately, both you and your boyfriend are still minors. They're on their way."

Aeric sighed, laying back on the hospital bed. "I probably ruined her night."

"Hush," Ian replied, wishing he could curl up with Aeric, but with the contraption keeping his leg elevated, the huge cast on his foot... "What's gonna happen to you and your scholarship?"

Sighing again, Aeric turned to face him. They'd been in such a rush that he had no time to take his contacts or hair out, some strands coming loose from his bun. "The scholarship will probably be fine, at least for first semester," he assured. "But I probably can't play for the rest of the season, and I'll probably have to spend the whole summer practicing my ass off to keep up once it's fully healed."

Ian couldn't have that for Aeric, not when he worked so hard for this. What about Prom? Would he have to hobble onstage to deliver his Salutatorian speech at graduation?

"Hey, I'll be okay," he assured, reaching over to squeeze Ian's hand once he read his expression. "Having you here with me means this isn't the worst night ever."

"But you can't do what you love for at least six weeks." Six weeks where Aeric couldn't exercise, or swim, or play with the team... Why was he taking this so calmly? Was it the pain meds he was on and the fact that the doctor wanted to keep him overnight for observation since it was so late?

Before Aeric could answer, Fiske and Della burst into the room, still in their formal wear. Fiske had a duffel over his shoulder, probably stopping at home first to gather some stuff for Aeric being here overnight.

"Baby, we came as soon as we heard!" Della exclaimed, reaching over her tank to pepper her son's face in kisses. "Why didn't you text us?"

"I had Ian, Mom," Aeric explained, trying to calm her down. "I didn't want to ruin your night."

"Ruin my—" She smacked Aeric's arm playfully. "It would have gotten me out of the most boring night of the year! How dare you think I wouldn't drop everything for my kid breaking his leg!" Sighing, she turned to face Ian, finally acknowledging him with tears welling in her brown eyes. "But thank the gods for you, Ian. You're an absolute angel, staying here this late with him."

"Anything for Aeric." Ian nodded, but his heart pounded in such worry for his boyfriend. "But what about sports? He's gonna be okay, right?"

"Don't worry, Ian," Fiske assured, his mustache twitching up into a smile. "We've been through worse scrapes. Aeric's still got his scholarship, and he's still on the right track with his studies. This is just a little setback, is all." He fished into the duffel for a contact lens case and Aeric's familiar, round glasses, handing them to his son so he could finally rest. To Ian, it seemed more like an excuse, a lie to make them both feel better. This is why Mom should let him bring his staff to school, for things like this!

"I guess..." He'd never felt so helpless, despite being so powerful! He had to do something. "I can call my mom to pick me up."

"Oh, no, no, Ian, let Fiske drive you home so you don't worry her," Della offered, nodding up at her husband. "They're only gonna let one of us stay with him, anyway."

"Okay..." He waited until Aeric put on his glasses, before leaning over to kiss his cheek. "But I'm coming by tomorrow, too."

"Wouldn't have it any other way," Aeric replied, shooting Ian the most assuring smile he could. "Really, thanks for being here with me. I love you."

"I love you, too." Ian still felt a little strange, saying it in front of his parents, but Della ended up just offering him a hug in return.

"We'll see you soon, okay?" she said, hugging him a little too tight. But he said nothing, figuring Della just needed, well, something. "Give our best to your mom."

Silently he and Fiske got into the family sedan, and that's when the wave of tiredness finally overcame him. Ian realized that, much as he'd talk with Della, he so rarely did with Aeric's dad, always busy with lawyer stuff. And he didn't have either Della or Aeric to help lead he conversation.

"Have you dealt with something like this before?" Ian asked, trying to break the silence. Through it all, he still wore Aeric's varsity jacket, forgetting it was even on in the first place.

Fiske sighed. "He broke his arm back in middle school, but this was before he was on any real organized team," he explained. "We're just lucky that everything with school is working out. And you know how hard Aeric works. He'll be back in peak shape once this heals in no time."

"But keeping the scholarship, and then with all the senior activities coming up..." Ian had to try and keep himself together before breaking down. "I could have done something."

"Hey, don't go down the guilt route," Fiske assured, and at a stoplight, he rested an assuring hand on Ian's shoulder. "I've been there, and it's easy to spiral down quick."

Ian almost asked why, but held his tongue. He couldn't imagine how much guilt Fiske must have felt when Aeric's birth mom left, and he couldn't possibly bring that up so many years after the fact, after he'd found time to grow and love again.

Fiske continued, "Aeric broke his leg doing what he loved, for the team he's proud of. I'm sure he doesn't regret making that play for a second."

It still didn't make Ian feel much better, but he nodded, agreeing. "I suppose not..." He wouldn't dare ruin this nice moment he was having with his boyfriend's dad. "You're surprisingly calm about all this."

"Years of worrying just to realize it all happens for a reason," Fiske replied, sighing. "I used to damn near have a panic attack when Aeric got so much as a scrape as a kid. But coddling kids... won't let them experience anything they need to. Della taught me that."

Maybe Ian had something to gain from that way of thinking. When Fiske pulled up to his house, Ian even gave him a hug, and thanked him for the ride. Underneath the stoicism was a man who had gone through a realm of hurt, and they both had that underlying want to keep Aeric safe.

But unlike Fiske, he couldn't let it go, or let it be. He barely registered Mom's pestering questions as he explained what happened, his mind so focused on Aeric and how Victoriana had continuously told him he had the power to do amazing things. Well, shouldn't he put that all to good use? Wasn't that why he had the Gift in the first place?

When he finally checked his phone, he noticed a message from Parthenope, saying Aeric's broken leg ended up costing the Dragons their win. Great. Just another cherry on top of a terrible evening.

He tried to sleep, cuddled up with Aeric's jacket that smelled so much like him, knowing that if he just let things be, he couldn't have those moments curled up together for weeks. Or rather, they wouldn't be the same for a while. He couldn't lay on Aeric's back while he did push ups, couldn't count his laps or time his runs. Aeric needed to be able to run. He needed to play out senior year the way he deserved, not worrying about a cast, or crutches, or a boot!

No, he couldn't have that. Ian shot up and grabbed his Quests of Yore book and his staff, taking notes and feeling the magic tingle down his spine. The Healing Spell could work, of course, but he wanted to tailor this perfectly to Aeric, to leave no room for error.

He could do this. He could surprise Aeric with this, and they could pretend none of this happened. He'd be able to skip down the halls on Monday, and brag that Ian had helped him out! Once he had that all planned out, he finally got a few winks of sleep, still wearing Aeric's jacket with the thought that they would be back to normal the second they got back to school, and he wouldn't have to worry about rehabilitating his leg back into perfect health after being cooped up until after graduation.

Feeling refreshed, Ian made his way to the hospital early with his staff, even stopping at the market to pick up a bouquet for his boyfriend. Magic—how amazing was it? And he knew how much Aeric loved seeing it in action.

When he got to the hospital, Della snoozed away in her tank, and now doubt Aeric was still knocked out from being on crazier pain meds. Quietly he set the flowers on the little stand by the bed, and pulled out the copy of the spell he took on his phone, then assumed the stance Victoriana taught him, hovering his staff over Aeric's cast.

"Sanitaeum incantata—hear this plea.

Reverse time; bring back what has been broken.

Sanitaeum incantata—for this, I decree."

Okay, so he still had to work on writing spells, but he wished for Aeric's leg to heal, felt it so completely that his staff immediately granted it, glowing a bright yellow as it seemed to work. Not like he could really tell with such a huge cast on Aeric's leg—but he had a feeling it worked!

All he could do now was sit back and just wait for Aeric and Della to just naturally wake up, maybe even grab breakfast once he was dispatched! How long would it take once the doctor took an x-ray to determine everything was perfect? Ian thought of Carls, and wondered if she ever did this with any of her patients. She must have by now—everyone's improvement genuinely shocked him since they all started meeting up, and honestly, they all had Victoriana to thank for putting them all together, bringing each other up.

Della woke up soon after, stretching her arms over her head. Ian noticed she changed into a wetsuit, given hospitals weren't exactly the warmest places. "Ian—you're here early," she said through her yawn. "And you brought flowers? And... your staff? You think they'll let you use magic in here?"

"Just did," Ian admitted, biting his lip. "I've been doing a lot of practicing, and I thought I might do something to help Aeric out." His eyes darted briefly to his leg.

Della's jaw dropped, immediately getting it. "You didn't," she said, more out of disbelief than genuine surprise.

Ian shrugged. "I had to... I felt so helpless last night, and Aeric deserves to still play for the team, and dance at Prom, and walk perfectly across the stage for Graduation..."

"Well, that's gonna give the doctor a scare—I love it!" she chuckled, rolling over to Ian to give him a hug. "You really are the best kid for my boy. Thank you."

"Oh... thanks, Della." If Aeric had even a tenth of that reaction, today would surely be so much better than the one before. But he wasn't waking his boyfriend up just yet.

"All right. If I don't get coffee, I'm not gonna be able to function. You want something from the cafeteria? Eggs? A sandwich? It's the least I can do."

"No, I'm fine, thanks." Ian shook his head. "I'll just wait for Aeric to get up and break the news."

"If you insist." She shrugged, then piled her auburn hair up into a bun. "I might bring you something, anyway." Which meant she definitely would.

Ian just scrolled through his phone aimlessly as he waited for Aeric to wake up, the disappointment in every Dragon's story as they recounted the game, as well as even a few shocked kids when Aeric broke his leg, and how crazy it all was. Well, now that he'd saved their runningback from sitting out the rest of the semester, they'd really start to take magic seriously!

When Aeric stirred, Ian moved his chair closer to the bed and moved a hand up to brush his hair back. It happened so rarely, but he loved being around to see Aeric wake up, for those gorgeous violet eyes to blink open and take him in.

"Ian..." he uttered, his voice a little scratchy. "You're here so early."

"I have a surprise for you," Ian replied with a smile, handing Aeric his glasses.

"The flowers?" Aeric inclined his head to the stand. "They're gorgeous, babe, thanks."

"Not just that." He really couldn't contain his grin. "Can you try something for me?"

"Gimme a sec..." Reaching over for the water pitcher, he poured himself a glass and downed it to get himself up a little better, before adjusting himself in the pillows. But Aeric then stared blankly at his foot, almost confused. "My leg... why can I move it normally?"

"Surprise!" Ian giggled, reaching over to grab his staff, then leaned in to kiss his boyfriend's cheek. "I healed it with magic! Now you don't have to worry about playing, or not exercising!"

But Aeric wasn't smiling. No, he was frowning, wiggling his toes to test out the waters. Maybe he was still getting over the initial shock of it all. "Babe... not that I'm ungrateful, because this is absolutely incredible, and I can't thank you enough, but... you didn't ask me if I wanted this."

Ian never felt a smile disappear so quickly off his own face. "Why does that matter?" he asked lowly. "Shouldn't it be a given that you want your leg healed up? I just... did what was best for us."

"For us or for you?" Aeric asked, in almost an accusatory tone.

Ian leaned back at that, his own brow furrowing. "Why would this be for me?" Was he serious right now?

"I dunno, to prove yourself for a story to your magic group?" Aeric threw up his hands for a moment. "So you can brag about how good you are at magic instead of thinking about how other people might react?"

"That's..." But it had occurred to him that, well, the group would appreciate it, especially Victoriana, for coming up with his own spell that came with so many complications. "I mean, the team will be grateful that I healed you up, so you can still play!"

"So it is for you!" Aeric huffed. "My body isn't something you can just play with! What if the spell backfired? What if it made things worse? What then, Ian?"

"But it didn't!" Why wasn't Aeric getting this? Why was he mad? "Why are you acting like this?"

"I dunno, maybe it's because you didn't ask me first?" Aeric repeated. "What I want matters, too. And maybe I came to accept that I would be off my feet for the rest of the season."

"So what, you're saying you wouldn't want me to heal you if I'd asked first?"

"I didn't say that." He sighed, and Ian could tell he was trying not to raise his voice. But why was this a point of argument? Why were they arguing? Della was happy about this! "But you didn't give me a choice, and that's where it matters. Is that what your group thinks? That you should just blindly trust magic as the best way to go about things and no one should question it?"

"So what, you want me to reverse the spell and then ask just to make you feel better?" Did Aeric realize how stupid that sounded?

Aeric closed his eyes a moment, sighing heavily. "No," he decided. "I just want you to know that next time you decide to try magic on me, you ask me first. Don't use it just for an ego trip to show how powerful you are, because I know that's not why you started casting spells in the first place. Is that what that woman taught you?"

"Her name is Victoriana," Ian replied defensively. "And maybe I should start showing off how good I'm getting with magic. Maybe then someone else will appreciate it, because clearly right now my own boyfriend doesn't."

"Ian, I don't want to fight about this when it's after the fact." Aeric reached over to take his hand. "I just want you to know that doing this without my permission was wrong. I'm not ungrateful, and now I get to do what I love, but you have to remember that for next time. You're an amazing wizard who's always been able to do great things. But I don't want you to become a selfish or egotistical one, and you just showed me that might just be happening."

Ian opened his mouth to say something, but Della came in with the doctor, who blinked in surprise when she saw the staff, saw Aeric's toes wiggling normally.

"I heard about the magic, but I didn't think it was possible to completely heal a whole bone," she said, starting to examine Aeric's leg. "Well, I guess we'll take some x-rays, and if you're really good to go, we'll just... send you home, and that's that."

"I feel a lot better," Aeric admitted. "Sometimes my boyfriend can't help but show off how amazing he is."

Was that a hint of sarcasm in his voice? Ian frowned, but decided to see the whole day through, given they still had homework, and now that Aeric was healed up, he could even work out, if he wanted. After all, magic would only become a bigger part of his life, and Aeric just had to realize that, if they still wanted to be as strong as, well, the night before.

He had to get over this, right?

Hoping to finish this madness all up by the end of the year!

As always, comments and kudos are insanely appreciated.