Warnings: no beta, OOCness, English is not my first language, inconsistent tenses, i am very bad at prepositions, implied sexual content
Disclaimer: No copyright infringement intended.
A/N: this is fic 1 of 3 from the aeon wedding brain rot i had last august. i didn't want to post these because i'm having a self-confidence crisis and my anxiety is shooting through the roof, but oh well ¯\_ (ツ)_/¯ my tarot cards and horoscope said i need to face my fears
Leon lifted his feet off the ground, just in time before a boy zipping past almost stepped on his shoes. The boy's mother gave Leon an apologetic smile before running off after her kid, not giving Leon the chance to say that it was okay, there was no harm done.
He put his feet back on the ground. The stone lip of the marble fountain he was sitting on wasn't the most comfortable, but this was where Ada said she would meet him. He could feel the spray of the water dampening his clothes, so he stood up and looked around, searching for her, but she still wasn't there.
Inside the fountain was a treasure trove of coins that would make a dragon envious. He saw the boy from earlier and his mother—who was holding her kid in place—toss a coin into the fountain, and wondered what they could have wished for. He wondered if wishes made on a wishing fountain ever came true.
But there was no harm in trying, so he rooted around his pockets for a coin, and smiled in victory when he found a penny among the foreign currency. He stared at Abraham Lincoln's profile for a moment before idly thinking of a wish, and then tossed his penny into the fountain.
"What did you wish for?"
He heard her voice before he could feel her presence. She stood next to him, and Leon berated himself for not immediately noticing her.
Some federal agent he was.
But then again, she was a spy.
He turned around to face her. She wore a red sundress, its skirt fluttering in the wind. The fabric looked so soft, and he wondered how it would feel in his hands, how it would feel when he slid the thin straps of that dress off her shoulders.
"World peace," he answered, voice flat.
"How noble of you." She glanced at the fountain. "Do you have spare change?"
"What for?" He looked for a coin of nominal value in his pockets and found another penny, then gave it to her. "You gonna make a wish?"
She took the penny, closed her eyes, then tossed the coin into the fountain.
He glanced at the fountain, wondering if anything would actually come out of their wishes. "What did you wish for?"
She hooked an arm around his, then used her other hand to hold his hand. Both her hands and arms were wrapped around his arm, and Leon felt a tiny bit of satisfaction at her possessive gesture.
"World peace," she said, leading the way to wherever they were supposed to go.
"How noble of you," he repeated. "Wouldn't you be out of a job if that were the case?"
"The same could be said for you."
A gust of wind suddenly blew, and Leon spied something white from the corner of his eye blowing in the wind.
"I don't know." He glanced at her, at her expectant face waiting for a reply, and felt more aware of her limbs wrapped around his arm. He didn't mind this—walking with her under the broad daylight, giving people the impression that they were an actual couple. "Maybe I could finally retire, live in a cottage in a small town. Maybe I'd raise my own plants and chickens. Maybe I'd get a goat. Goat cheese sounds good. I can make my own butter too."
Ada led him to a flea market. Under the midday sun, the market was bustling with people and sellers hawking their wares, raising a cacophony of people chatting, shouting, and laughing.
Leon envied how carefree these people were. It was as if they weren't aware of the threats constantly trying to break the world—the same threats that Leon was trying so desperately to stop. Anything could change in the blink of an eye. One moment, they could be merrily strolling down the street, and in another, a bioorganic weapon might tear everything apart.
"Can I visit you once in a while?" She unwrapped her arms around his and settled on holding his hand instead, tightly gripping him so he wouldn't get lost in the crowd. He still didn't know where she planned on taking him, but he would follow her anywhere, even to hell. If Ada went to a place where Leon couldn't follow, then Leon would stop at nothing to find a way to get to her.
Maybe he would bring her back with him. Or maybe he would stay there with her. Anywhere was good as long as she was there.
"You can visit me anytime you want," he said. He sidestepped a man who didn't watch where he was going, and glared at another man who looked like he was about to pick Leon's pockets. "You could live with me if you want, should you decide to retire."
She glanced back at him, noting the small smile on her face. "I might just take you up on your offer."
The white thing Leon had spied earlier came circling back into his vision. It flew nearer and nearer, until he was able to discern that it was in fact a white kerchief. It descended right on top of Ada's head, and he initially laughed at the silliness of the situation until he realised that the white kerchief draped around Ada's head looked like a…
Maybe it was the summer heat making him delirious, but that cloth over Ada's head made her look like a bride wearing a wedding veil. Leon could imagine another scenario where she could be wearing a white dress, this time with a long veil trailing behind her, and he would be waiting for her at the altar.
But right now, she wore a red sundress that fluttered in the wind, along with someone's lost kerchief on her head. She frowned at the cloth, muttering about its poor owner, unaware of the visions Leon was having.
She removed the kerchief and looked around, and just like that, the spell was broken. Leon was no longer seeing Ada walking down the aisle wearing all white. He got snapped back to reality, back to this flea market in Amsterdam where Ada was holding his hand instead of a bouquet.
She let go of his hand and inspected the kerchief.
"This might be hand-embroidered," she said, tracing the embroidery with a finger. "The fabric is old, but obviously well cared for. It's clearly treasured. We should find its owner." She raised an eyebrow. "What?"
At Ada's question, Leon realised that he had been smiling fondly at her. "Nothing," he said, still smiling. "You claim to be heartless, yet you want to find this kerchief's owner."
She rolled her eyes and didn't say a word. She inspected the kerchief once more, said, "Huh," and beckoned Leon closer.
"What is it?" he asked.
He looked at what Ada was pointing to—the kerchief's tag.
"Didn't we already pass by this stall?" he said. He craned his head backwards. "There. It's that stall, isn't it?"
A few feet away from them was a stall bearing the logo on the kerchief's tag.
"I guess no one owns this, then," she said, grabbing his hand and taking him to the stall.
It boasted a selection of clothes, scarves, kerchief, and pouches, all claiming to be handmade. Quite a few people were inspecting the selection, and judging by the number of customers taking photos, Leon assumed that this must be a store popular on social media sites.
"Good afternoon. How can I help you?" the old woman manning the stall said. Her English, though lightly accented, was very good.
"We found this floating in the wind," Ada said, handing the kerchief to the old woman.
The old woman gasped before taking the kerchief back. She examined the kerchief, noting the tag sewn on it, all the while smiling gently.
"My late grandmother made this aeons ago," the old woman said. "She spun the fibres of this fabric herself, then wove it, before hand-sewing and hand-embroidering it. Even the lace trimming was handmade." She neatly folded the kerchief. "My late mother attached this tag during her youth. When it got lost in the wind earlier, I thought I would never see it again." She packed the kerchief into an elegant-looking box before placing it in a paper bag. "All of my products were handmade by me and my relatives, both living and deceased. Each one is a treasure that I want to share with the world." She held the paper bag out to Ada. "And I want to share it with you now." Her smile reached her eyes. "Don't worry, it's on the house."
Ada shook her head. "I couldn't possibly take this for free. Let me at least pay for it. How much is it?"
Leon thought that if this was the old woman's sales tactics, then she was one hell of a businesswoman.
"No," said the old woman. "This kerchief found you. It was meant to be yours, I believe. This is…Ah, what's the proper English word…Yes, serendipity. I believe this is serendipity."
Ada looked torn at whether to accept the woman's kindness or not. She looked like she was about to reject it, so the old woman shoved the paper bag into Leon's hands instead. "Here, take this for your lady."
The old woman quickly retracted her hands, and Leon was left clutching the paper bag. If this turned out to be one elaborate scam preying on foreign customers…No, that couldn't be it. This store was supposed to be popular, wasn't it? Surely it wouldn't be internet-famous if it scammed its customers.
"It's an old thing, but I hope you can find use for it," the old woman told them.
An old thing.
Something old.
And once again, visions of Ada wearing white from head to toe plagued Leon's brain.
"I'm not asking for anything back," said the old woman. "I just hope you treasure this as much as I treasure all the items that I make and sell."
"She will," said Leon. He trusted that this was not a scam, but rather, serendipity, as the old woman had put it. "We will."
Ada looked like she was about to chastise him, but ultimately decided not to say anything. No doubt Leon would be hearing some words later.
"Thank you," said Ada. She pasted on a polite smile, but it wasn't forced; rather, it looked…shy? "I won't forget this kindness."
The old woman smiled.
And because Ada didn't want to just take something for free, she bought a dress—but a white one instead of something red. It was certainly out of the ordinary so Leon looked at her questioningly, but she answered his unspoken query with only a smile.
Once the old woman bagged Ada's purchase, she thanked her once more and made Leon carry the bag. She hooked an arm around his, and he asked, "Where to, ma'am?"
He still had no idea where she was planning on taking him when they passed by a stall selling rings, and his body stopped moving. He stood there in the middle of the busy street, Ada's arm around his, while he stood staring at the rings on the table.
"Leon?" he heard Ada say.
He didn't answer her. He was entranced by the jewelleries laid out before him, and before he knew it, he was moving towards the stall, eyes glued on the rings and mind suddenly thinking about the pair of rings he had gotten ages ago.
"See something you like, sir?" the man tending the stall said. He looked at Ada and added, "For your lady, perhaps?"
He glanced at Ada. She canted her head to one side in question, and Leon answered her with a grin.
"Why not?" he told the man, then turned to Ada and said, "Come on, darling, what do you want?"
She rolled her eyes.
"Fine, I'll choose one for you."
Leon scanned the selection of rings, and his eyes landed on a seemingly silver ring with a heart-shaped red gem. It looked cheap, like something a kid would want to wear.
He picked it up and placed it on the palm of Ada's hand. "How about this one?"
Ada give him a look. He could tell that she wanted to roll her eyes but refrained from doing so, maybe out of respect for the stall owner.
He returned the heart-shaped ring on the table and picked another one, this time another silver ring with an oval-shaped red game, surrounded by two butterflies on either side. It didn't look childish, but it certainly didn't match Ada's natural air of elegance.
"Do you like this one?" he asked.
"It's nice," she answered. Leon knew her well enough to know that It's nice translated to It's nice but it's not my type, and I wouldn't want to wear it.
"All right, how about this…." He picked the first ring he saw—a silver band with a teardrop-shaped red gem. It was simple and a little bit understated, but at least it wasn't as…gaudy and cheap-looking as the first two rings he had presented to her.
"That will do," she said. There was a small smile on her lips, and Leon considered that as Ada's seal of approval.
He slowly slid the ring on her right ring finger. If he closed his eyes, he could pretend that he was in another place, wearing a fancy tux in a fancy venue as he slid a fancy ring on Ada's finger. She would be wearing a fancy white dress, and Leon could feel himself tearing up just envisioning what could have been.
"Does it fit?" he asked, throat feeling tight.
"It's a bit snug, but it's all right." She held her hand up, examining how the light played with the red gemstone.
"That's a garnet and a 925 sterling silver band," the stall owner said. "Will you be purchasing it?"
"Yes, please," he said.
He paid for the ring—amounting to ten US dollars when converted, so Leon doubted the authenticity of the garnet—and thanked the stall owner before moving on.
Ada held his hand, and through their intertwined fingers, he could feel the metal of the ring pressing against his skin. He wondered how long would that garnet of dubious authenticity stay affixed to the ring. Maybe Ada would wake up one day to find the gemstone on her new ring gone.
Something new.
He tried too hard not think about it as Ada led him around the flea market. He tried too hard not to think about the nicer and more expensive rings he had purchased long ago.
Finally, their seemingly interminable stroll ended, and Ada stopped in front of a stall with a queue as far as Leon's eyes could see. But the queue moved relatively quickly, so even if they were at the end, Leon estimated that they would be done with this stall in ten minutes tops.
"You led me here for a stroopwafel?" he said. "We could get those at the hotel."
"I've been told that these are the best stroopwafels in the Netherlands," she answered, "and I wanted to try some with you."
He pulled her closer by the waist, pressing her side snugly against him, and placed a kiss on her cheek. "All right, ma'am, let's try some," was all he could say, but inside, he was preening at the thought of Ada wanting to try some food with him. It was simple gesture, but it meant that she kept him in her thoughts, just like how he always kept her in his.
Ada hugged him sideways and kissed him on the lips. Here in a flea market in a foreign country, they could afford to be openly affectionate with each other, and no one would give them a second look.
He just wished that they were kissing at the altar instead.
The sensation around Ada's finger felt…alien, like she could never get used to it no matter what. She became hyperaware of the ring's existence, constantly thinking about how snug it felt around her finger, like it was cutting off the circulation there. The way it weighed felt like a nuisance, and she disliked how it sometimes caught on the fabric of her dress, but as she stared at the fake garnet twinkling in the soft light of the hotel lamp, she couldn't help but feel like she was always meant to wear a ring from Leon.
She felt the weight on the bed shift. She felt Leon's arms snake around her waist, felt him press a kiss on her bare shoulder.
"Good morning," he said, placing another kiss on her shoulder, before tucking his face at the crook of her neck. She could feel each breath he took, and a minute later, she felt him drifting back into sleep.
She spent the next half hour staring at that fake garnet—yes, she was certain it was fake—until she felt Leon's arms around her tighten.
"You're acting as if you've never worn a ring before," he said, voice soft and sleepy.
"I've never worn one from you before."
Ada felt Leon's body freeze for a moment. Even his breathing stopped. He eventually moved again; she felt his chest rise fall, and felt his breath tickling the back of her neck.
"I'll buy you a nice one later," he said, the sleepiness from his voice gone. "Do you want diamonds?"
"Diamonds are a scam."
"Rubies, then?"
She turned around to face him. "I'm fine with this cheap ring you got me."
"That fake garnet would easily come off." He held her hand and examined the ring before kissing her wrist. "I'll give you something better. With real gemstones."
"And what would that ring be for?" She could think of three kinds of rings Leon could give her—a promise ring, an engagement ring, or a wedding ring. She hoped that he would give her none of those, because she wasn't sure if she could accept any of them.
"Couple rings." He grinned. "We could wear couple rings." His grin didn't waver.
She flicked his nose. "We're not a couple."
He wrapped his arms around her tightly, pulling her towards him. He said petulantly, "I don't care, let's wear matching rings."
"And what would your colleagues say when they see you wearing it, huh?" She slowly pushed him away. "Let go, I need to use the bathroom."
He didn't let her go. Instead, he pulled her closer. "Not until you say yes to wearing couple rings."
"You're a grown man, Leon." She flicked his forehead. "Stop acting like a child. Now stop pouting and let me go."
His hold on her loosened. She could climb off the bed now, but something about his strangely melancholic expression made her stay in his arms.
"What's wrong?" she asked.
"Do you really not want to wear matching rings with me?"
She sighed. "We're not a couple."
"But what if we are? Would you wear one with me?"
She gave him an indulgent smile. "You were always a romantic. A corny, sappy romantic." She kissed his cheek. "Ask me again in a few months and I might say yes."
She climbed out of the bed and went to the bathroom. She removed her cheap ring and placed it on the counter before taking a shower. When she was done, she towelled herself dry and covered herself with it, then wore her ring again.
Leon took a shower next. In the meantime, Ada moved to the dresser to retrieve a pair of jeans. She loved those jeans; Leon couldn't keep his hands away from her ass whenever she wore those. She was about to grab a red halter top when she decided that one of Leon's black T-shirts would be better.
She then went to the vanity dresser to do her makeup. She heard the bathroom door open, then heard Leon say, "Ada?"
She turned around. There was a towel slung across his waist, and he was frowning at her.
He held his hand out and said, "Can I have my shirt back, please?"
"You have plenty of other T-shirts." She fixed the smudge in her eyeliner. "Let me borrow this one."
"'Borrow?" He scoffed. "That's what you say all the time. Next thing I know, my shirt permanently ends up in your closet."
"But I like your shirts." She came up to him and placed a hand on his stomach—on those toned abs—and kissed him on the cheek.
"And you say we're not a couple," he grumbled, but still let Ada cover his face in kisses.
"Get dressed." She pushed him towards the closet. "We still have a whole city to explore."
"Geez, this is why I always pack extra shirts," he muttered, shaking his head.
She returned to the vanity mirror. Here she was, sitting on a stool in front of a vanity mirror, wearing something borrowed that she would like to keep. She kept on "borrowing" his shirts, as if in doing so, she would be able to keep him too.
Something borrowed, huh?
If she wore his clothes, would that make him hers? Would that be just as telling as wearing matching rings? Would that mean that they had a right to call themselves a couple?
She put her lipstick on and sprayed some perfume. She grabbed her shoulder bag and walked to the entryway, where Leon was already dressed and waiting for her. She took a pair of heeled boots nearby and sat on a chair, ready to put them on herself.
But Leon beat her to it. He knelt in front of her and slid a boot into her foot, tying the shoelaces afterwards.
"I can do that myself, you know," she said. Her calm expression belied the thundering of her heart. Why did her heart race again? Leon was just kneeling in front of her, tying her boots. What was the big deal? "I'm not a child."
She caught a whiff of his cologne. In this position, Leon's bangs covered his face, so Ada tucked them behind his ear. Her hand brushed against the stubble on his jaw, and he pressed a kiss to her palm before she could take her hand back.
"I know." He laced her other boot. "Let me do it anyway."
He looked up at her, and she stared at those clear blue eyes. They shone brighter than any gemstone, especially when they gleamed whenever he stared at her. She loved how dark his eyes would become whenever she hovered above him, or how luminous they would be whenever she would kiss him good night.
No gemstone would ever compare to how those bright blue eyes always looked at her like she was the most precious thing in existence.
Something blue.
"I meant it when I said I was gonna get us couple rings," Leon said. "And before you say we're not a couple—Okay, we're not. But that doesn't mean we can't wear matching rings."
"Why are you so fixated on the idea of matching rings?"
"If I ask you to marry me, would you say yes?"
She couldn't say anything. She didn't even know what to say. She just sat there and watched those blue eyes that she loved so much lose their lustre.
"See?" He gave her a bitter smile. "I know you wouldn't. A promise ring would be a moot point, then, because there would be no promise, let alone a wedding. But would it be too much if I gave you a ring that didn't mean anything, and if I wore one similar to it?'
This was the only kind of ring she could accept from Leon—a gift, one that didn't mean anything. It would be nothing more than an expensive, shiny mineral adorning her finger, and it wouldn't mean anything.
It wouldn't mean anything, except the futility of their complicated situationship. She could pretend all she wanted that he was hers and she was his, but that was all it would be—a game of pretend and a lifetime of playing house.
"I suppose there's no harm in that," she said. There was harm in it. It would just remind her that in this universe, they weren't meant to be together.
"If you say so." Leon took something out of his pocket—a black velvet box. He opened it and held it out to her, showing her two identical rings inside.
"When did you get those?" Her voice wasn't shaky, but her eyes were getting misty.
"Since a forever ago." He removed the cheap ring on her right ring finger and set it aside, replacing it with a silver band inlaid with tiny blue crystals. "You wear the one with sapphires, I'll wear the one with rubies."
"Why switch our colours?"
"Why not?" He shrugged. "I want to be always reminded of you, and I want you always think of me."
"You want to monopolise me now?" she teased.
"If that's what you wanna call it."
She took the other ring from the box and put it on Leon's right ring finger. Then he held her hand and kissed the ring he had placed there, and then the back of her hand, her palm, and the inside of her wrist.
This ring didn't feel alien. It didn't feel like it was cutting off the circulation in her finger. It felt like it was always meant to be there, like it was the ring from Leon that she was meant to wear.
She stood up from the chair. She held her hand out to him and he took it, rising from the floor. She kissed him and said against his lips, "Thank you."
He kissed her back. "Thank you for wearing it for me."
"I'm wearing it for me too." It wasn't the ring that she wanted to wear, but it was the only one she could right now. "Maybe someday I could wear another one from you."
"Yeah." He kissed her forehead. "Maybe someday."
Maybe someday, instead of wearing jeans and this borrowed shirt from Leon, Ada could wear a white dress and a veil. She could meet him at the altar, and he could give her another ring, this one meaning the promise of forever.
"You know what I wished for in that fountain?" he asked, gathering her in an embrace.
"What?" This was her most favourite place in the world—Leon's arms. She always felt safe within them.
"To be with you."
She smiled. "And you're here with me."
"Then my wish came true." Leon took her hand and kissed her knuckles before threading their fingers together. "What did you wish for?"
"The same as you."
They shared a smile before he locked the door to their room. He led her to the hotel restaurant for their breakfast, and Leon may or may not have copped a feel of her ass; something about this pair of jeans made him handsy. She would have enjoyed the attention in the privacy of their room, but here in the hallway, the only way she could think of to stop Leon's wandering hands was to intertwine their fingers.
There was no commitment between them—just unsaid words and lingering hands loath to let go.
Soon, they would return to their jobs, and this make-believe world would vanish. But for now, his hand in hers would be enough. For now, the light glinting on their rings would be enough.
For now, this game of pretend in a foreign city would be enough.