Chapter 13 Under the Moon
The sky was painted over by a dark periwinkle. The first star of the night was already visible, and the moon cast its silver light over the land in a similar vein to how a nightlight casts light over a room. It shined down on Roy as he scanned the area for Celia.
"Celia!" He called out. She did not come to him, nor did he see her. "Darn it." He removed his sunglasses so that he would be able to get a better view of the area. He started to move around the church, a breeze caressing his cheeks. "Celia!"
Finally, he found her. She was standing right behind the building. Her back was facing Roy, so he could not see what she was feeling. The wind was gently blowing her dress and her hair. The light of the moon gave her an ethereal presence, as the silver light seemed to make the warm colors of her hair glitter. It reminded Roy of lava.
"Celia," Roy said. He started to approach her, but Celia stepped away from him.
"Get away from me," she said softly. Roy felt a pang, but let on regardless.
"Celia, I'm sorry about what happened at the restaurant. I wasn't thinking."
Celia turned around. Even with anger glinting in her eyes, she still looked beautiful. The fiery passion that was portrayed by the colors of her hair made Roy feel...weak.
"You're right. You weren't. And we almost died because of it."
Roy nodded, biting his lip as he did so. It probably wouldn't be the best idea to completely forget about this event. Roy didn't want to do any stupid crap in the future.
"Celia, I'm really sorry."
Celia scoffed.
"Well," she said with sarcasm. "That's just great." She turned and started to walk away again.
"Celia, wait! Please!" Roy said with a sense of urgency.
To Roy's relief, Celia stopped walking. A silence lingered between them as Roy stared at her back. The silence was very strong, too strong. It felt like a monster that could squeeze Roy's throat into pulp. It was a pair of handcuffs made to throw Roy's voice into prison. It was a barrier, a twenty foot wall that separated him from Celia Patch. Thankfully, he somehow managed to speak up.
"I'm not saying what I did was the best course of action," Roy began as a breeze ruffled the trees. "And I'm not saying that what I did doesn't call for severe consequences. Believe me, I have been spending the last week dealing with the consequences." Roy sighed. "But...I just wanted things to be perfect for you. You deserve so much better than what I gave you on the date."
Celia turned toward Roy, curiosity making itself known as he continued.
"I have...never seen a girl like you. Even without the fact that you're half human, you're still extraordinary. I mean, you went through what? Bullying? Being lied to about your dad? I couldn't handle half of that stuff."
Celia's expression looked notably softer than it had before. However, she still looked as if she was ready to strangle someone. Roy started to scratch his back, unsure of whether or not that this was a good sign from her.
"And…" He sighed and looked down at the ground. "Maybe I'm not the right guy for you. If I'm not able to give you everything that you deserve….I mean, I wanted to give you a good date, and I couldn't even do that!"
Roy both shook his head and lifted his head. He saw that Celia was slowly starting to approach him. He felt a sour flavor fill his stomach. She would probably yell at him. Or maybe she would cry in front of him, like she did when she was in front of Bowser for the first time. Roy didn't want to end this day with his ego in pieces, so he willed his tongue to say more stuff.
"I just thought that you would like a fancy dinner, but it ended badly. I knew that you couldn't eat poison mushrooms, at least after Sage reminded me. I just wanted to give you more. You deserve much more. Maybe you even deserve more than a dim witted guy like me. After all…"
"Roy?"
Roy looked at Celia, who was standing in close proximity to him. He could practically hear the breath entering and exiting her nose. He could see every feature of her face. He could see her fiery eyebrows, very thin and very pretty. He could see the dimples on her face, her slightly long nose highlighted by the shine of the full moon. He could see her pupils. The latter was like pools of black water. He could see his own nervous reflection within those pools. His stomach dropped as he prepared himself for her to start yelling.
"Yeah?" he asked, taking all of his self control to keep his voice from sounding like a squeak. Celia put her hand on his face.
"Stop talking."
Before Roy knew what was going on, she kissed him. Roy felt murmurs run through his mind and tremors shake up his heart. The kiss didn't last very long, probably half a minute at most. However, Roy felt as if it lasted for eternity. The taste of her lips against his was so sweet. The closeness between the two was intoxicating. It was, for lack of a better word, perfect. When she finally did pull away, Roy couldn't help but feel his heart drop in disappointment. Celia smiled nervously and brushed her hair over her right ear.
"I...I'm sorry. That probably wasn't the best idea."
Roy smiled. He approached and gently placed his hands on her forearms.
"On the contrary….I think it was the perfect idea."
With that, he leaned in and kissed her again.