The next morning Melia woke up before the others. She opened her eyes and the first thing she seen was Shulk. He was laying on his back with his arms and legs sprawled out, all the covers kicked off him as well.
Melia quietly giggled and reached her hand out to play with his hair, when suddenly she winced it back from the strong heat coming from Shulk's forehead.
"Shulk?" She quickly sat up and nudged him to try and wake him up.
Shulk forced his heavy eyelids open, "Melia?" He asked weakly.
"Are you feeling all right, Shulk?" Melia asked.
"A little warm, but I think I'll be fine." Shulk lied.
"What's all the racket?" Reyn asked. He sat up and looked a bit agitated that he was woken up early.
"I think Shulk is falling ill." Melia explained.
"It's fine, guys. It's nothing to worry ab-" Shulk suddenly broke into a coughing fit.
"Doesn't sound like it." Reyn said. He went to wake Sharla up and explained to her that Shulk wasn't feeling well.
Sharla sat up and looked him over, "Coughing with pain in your chest, your Lymph Nodes are swollen, and you have a high fever. You look pretty sick to me, Shulk."
"I'll tough it out. We still need to go to Valak Mountain." Shulk protested.
"Shulk, your health is more important right now. We can't have you going in your current condition, you'll only make it worse." Melia insisted.
Shulk looked over at Melia. Even though she kept a firm expression, he could see the pleading look in her eyes.
Shulk let out a sigh, "Okay, we'll hold out until I feel better."
Melia gave a small, relieved smile and rested her hand on his lap, "Thank you, Shulk."
"Reyn and I were heading back to Colony 6, you can come with us and I'll treat you there." Sharla said.
Shulk was still being stubborn and tried to help take down the campsite, but Melia wouldn't let him. After a small fight between the two, with Melia ending up winning, Shulk finally gave up and sat down while the rest packed up. When they finished, Melia helped Shulk to his feet and they began their trek back to Colony 6.
"Don't lag behind, fur ba- … oh, right." Reyn frowned, he looked back ahead so the others wouldn't see it.
"Aww, someone miss their little buddy?" Sharla asked.
"Who, fur ball? That's crazy talk, I just got woken up early so it slipped my mind." Reyn defended.
"You can't lie to me, Reyn." Sharla shot back.
"Okay, fine. Only a little, so what?" Reyn growled.
"That's so cute! Who knew you could be such a softy?" Sharla said.
"Oh, hush it." Reyn said and gave her a light shove.
Melia stayed in the back of the group with Shulk to keep an eye on him.
"Sorry, Melia, for arguing with you back there and now making you wait because of me. I know how badly you wanted to go back to Alcamoth." Shulk apologized.
"Is that why you were so adamant on going?" Melia asked.
Shulk nodded.
"I know you put others before yourself, Shulk, but you shouldn't be so easy to throw yourself in harm's way. You can't help anyone if you can't help yourself, first." Melia said.
She gave him a small smile, "But it's still sweet of you to do that. I'll be okay, let us take care of you this time."
About halfway to the colony, Shulk's breathing became labored and he started to sway.
"Do you need us to stop, Shulk?" Melia asked.
"No, I just feel really hot all of a sudden." Shulk said. He took his jacket off and threw it over his shoulder.
"Here, this might help." Melia raised her staff and summoned an ice and wind elemental. "Stay close to me, the breeze from this should cool you down." She said.
Shulk came closer and suddenly swayed into her. Out of reflex, Melia put her arms around him and pulled him closer to break his fall. It was surprisingly easy, he felt so light in his weak state.
"You poor thing." Melia mused.
"It's okay, I can still walk." He assured her.
Melia helped him stand back up and put her arm over him for support, while the cold wind from the elementals helped cool him down. As they got closer, Shulk could feel Melia shivering and hear her teeth chattering.
"You can release the elementals if you're feeling cold." Shulk offered.
"It's not that cold. If they help you, then I can manage." Melia insisted.
"It's not going to do us any good if you get sick too. Here, at least put this on then." Shulk took his jacket off his shoulder and handed it to Melia.
When they arrived at the colony, Sharla let everyone stay at her house and they sent Shulk straight to bed, letting him stay in the guest room. Sharla quickly ran out to get some medicine and came back. She gave Shulk a dose and they let him sleep for the rest of the day.
The next morning, Melia came into Shulk's room to check on him. She still wore his jacket from yesterday.
"Feeling any better, Shulk?" Melia asked.
"Only somewhat. I just wish I had something to do, it gets boring sitting in bed all day." Shulk said.
"Want me to bring you anything?" Melia offered.
"Actually, I had a few books in my bag downstairs. Could you bring me them?" Shulk asked.
Melia nodded and went to get his books. She ran into Sharla as she was coming back.
"Oh, Melia! I have to go out for a bit, can you give Shulk his next dose for me?" Sharla asked, she was holding a pill bottle in one hand and cough syrup in the other.
Melia took them and went into Shulk's room.
"I brought your books and I have this for you too." Melia said. She put the books on the nightstand and held up the medicine.
Shulk took the pill but hesitated with the cough syrup.
"What's wrong?" Melia asked.
"Oh, nothing. I just hate the taste of cough syrup." Shulk answered.
"Well you need to take it if you want to feel better." Melia simply said.
"I know." Shulk said, he still hesitated and shuddered from thinking about it.
"Don't be such a baby." Melia said. She poured the syrup into the cup and held it in front of him.
"I'll be fine without it." Shulk said stubbornly.
Melia leaned down to his level and gently cupped her hand under his chin. She lifted his head slightly up and gave him a pleading look, "For me?"
Shulk started to blush and gazed into her eyes.
How am I supposed to say no to that?
"Okay, I'll take it."
Shulk took a deep breath and slammed it, looking totally disgusted as he handed back the cup.
Melia laughed a little at the face he was making, "Hold on, I'll be right back."
She came back with a drink to help wash the taste down. Shulk took a sip and stopped her before she left the room again.
"Hey, Melia." He said.
"Yes?" Melia asked.
"You really like that jacket, don't you?" Shulk asked.
Melia didn't answer. For some reason she started to feel shy and slightly hid her face in his jacket.
Shulk smiled, "It looks cute on you. You can hold on to it for a while if you want."
"Thank you." Melia managed to squeak out. She lifted the hood to hide her face before leaving the room.
For the next two days, Shulk stayed in bed and Melia would come check on him, still wearing his jacket when she did. She went out to run some errands and seen groups of people putting on their finishing touches for the festival.
"Sure looks like fun…" Melia frowned.
After she finished her errands, she went back to Sharla's house to see how Shulk was doing. She looked a bit surprised to see him out of bed. He was in the living room, sitting on the couch and looking over the flyer Juju gave him earlier.
"Hey, Melia!" Shulk said as she walked in.
"You're up? I take it you're feeling better, then?" Melia asked.
"Yeah, feeling much better now thanks to you and Sharla." Shulk said.
"It was no problem at all. I'm glad to see that you're better." Melia smiled.
Shulk smiled back but suddenly looked nervous, even feeling some red reach his cheeks, "You know, that festival is starting pretty soon. Since we're still here… would you want to go with me?"
Melia felt her heart skip a beat and looked flustered, "I'd love to."
Shulk smiled, "Alright. I should go get ready." He said and went back to his room.
Melia stayed in the living room for another minute, still a little stunned that he would just ask her that out of the blue. She shook her head and snapped out of it, realizing that she should start getting ready too. She took a quick shower and changed her clothes, then looked at herself in the mirror.
Is what I'm wearing okay, not too formal or too casual? Shulk isn't exactly picky when it comes to appearances, so will it even matter? Either way, it would help if I knew what the occasion was. Apart from traveling together around the Bionis and Mechonis, we only seldom spent time together to hang out, and it was usually in a group with the others. Reyn and Sharla will be there, but Shulk only mentioned the two of us.
"Just Shulk and I…" Melia started to smile as she stared off into space. She ran her hand through her hair and took another look in the mirror.
Shulk mentioned before that he liked my hair when it was down, so should I?
She suddenly groaned and sat at the edge of her bed, "Why am I even so obsessed with how I look? Shulk and I have been around each other for a while now, so it's not like this is anything new. Besides, I don't think I have time for that. He's probably waiting on me as it is."
Shulk was waiting for her downstairs. He was sitting on the couch, twiddling his fingers to keep from biting his nails out of nervous habit. He wore a pair of jeans with a white shirt and a black bomber jacket, since he let Melia have his usual red one.
Melia came downstairs a few minutes later. She was wearing a white top and a red skirt, along with white heels and a gold band around her right wrist.
Shulk started to blush and came over to get a better look at her.
"You look so beautiful." He said.
"Thank you. You look good too." Melia smiled.
"Come on, let's get going." He said and took her hand, making Melia turn as red as her skirt.
It was around late afternoon; the colony being lit up from the festival's lights. There was plenty of entertainment throughout the sections of the colony, food stands, and even a few rides and game counters to win prizes. It seemed as if every resident came, maybe even people from outside the colony too. Men, women, and children across all races were seen around.
Shulk and Melia held hands and walked through the park. Some kids were playing and ran past the two, while other on goers looked and grinned.
"They did an amazing job putting this all together." Melia said as she looked around.
"I know, right? I can hardly recognize this place!" Shulk said.
"You seem pretty ecstatic." Melia commented.
"How could I not be? There're so many people here and they all look like they're having fun! Did you have any events like this back in Alcamoth?" Shulk asked.
"They do seem happy. We had plenty of events back home, but they were a bit different." Melia answered.
"Oh, right, you're probably used to more formal get togethers. Something like this." Shulk let go of Melia's hand and held out his arm, "My lady." He jokingly said.
Melia gave a small laugh and played along, holding onto his arm.
"Is this how you do it?" Shulk asked.
"Yes, you just need to fix your arm." Melia said and adjusted his arm.
"Oh, sorry. It's not exactly what I'm familiar with." Shulk said nervously.
"It's a work in progress." Melia joked. She smiled and nuzzled closer to Shulk as they walked through the park.
As they came by the fountain, several rows of seats and food stands came into sight, with a stage in front and a band currently playing. They got food and found some seats close to the entertainment.
"Is that who I think it is?" A voice called out a few minutes later. Before they could even turn around, Reyn came up behind Shulk and locked an arm around his neck.
"Shulk! You didn't die! Sure took your sweet time getting out of bed, though." Reyn said.
"It would've taken longer if I didn't have Melia and Sharla to help. Speaking of which, I never got to thank her yet." Shulk said.
"I'm right here, you know!" Sharla yelled as she ran over, trying to catch up with Reyn.
Sharla wore a long dusty-purple dress with heels, while Reyn was wearing gray dress pants with a black polo shirt.
"Geez, Reyn, you could have waited a second." Sharla complained.
"You haven't had a problem keeping up with me before, why can't you now?" Reyn asked.
"You ever tried running in heels? It's not exactly easy." Sharla shot back.
"Classic Reyn, I guess." Shulk chuckled.
"I'd pay to see him try that." Melia added.
"Okay, okay. I'm sorry, Sharla." Reyn said and hugged her.
"I'll forgive you this time. You're not exactly the brightest when it comes to these things." Sharla joked.
"Hey, no need to be feisty. I said I was sorry." Reyn said.
Sharla giggled and pecked his cheek, "You may be a dummy, but you're my dummy."
Reyn had the same idea as Shulk and asked Sharla to go with him. It certainly seemed to be going well between the two.
"So what are you guys planning on doing?" Shulk casually asked them.
"Oh, we just got off guard duty not too long ago. So we thought we'd check out the festival and ran into you guys." Reyn explained.
"We were going to check out a few of the rides they had around here too. Sorry if we're interrupting your guys' date, we just wanted to say hi." Sharla apologized.
Melia looked down and started to act all shy.
Wait, a date? No, that couldn't be it. Shulk's way too timid to-
"No, you're okay. Go on, get outta here and have some fun." Shulk told them.
Melia looked up at Shulk, feeling a bit surprised. He usually tried to brush it off whenever Sharla mentioned anything about them being more than friends. But this time he didn't deny it being a date, so was it really…
"Have her back by a decent time, Shulk." Sharla joked.
"Yes ma'am. I'll be on my best behavior." Shulk sarcastically said back.
Sharla gave Melia a quick wink and a sly smile before her and Reyn left them alone. Shulk turned back to Melia and seen the look on her face. He grinned, knowing what she was thinking.
"Something wrong?" Shulk asked.
"N-no, I'm fine." Melia tried to cover it up.
Shulk smiled and moved closer to her. The song ended shortly after and a few people dropped some change into the guitar case at the edge of the stage before they left.
"Hey, I heard that the winner of the Miss Sweetness contest they had a while ago was going to reveal something by the lake. Want to go see what it's about?" Shulk suggested.
Melia nodded and they walked towards the lake. As they were heading there, they heard a kid causing a fuss at one of the game stands.
"Oh, come on! This game is totally rigged!" The High Entia boy yelled.
"Sorry, kid." The stand owner said, not really seeming phased by the kid's complaining.
The boy leaned his head back and covered his face in his hands, clearly seeming frustrated even if no one could see his face.
"That poor kid. I actually feel kinda bad for him." Shulk commented.
"So do I. We have some time before that event started, right? We should see if we can help him." Melia said.
"Yeah, we've got time. Let's go." Shulk said.
The two walked over and the kid looked up at Shulk, "Mister, could you help me?"
"Well I just got here, what's the problem?" Shulk asked.
The High Entia boy looked around nervously and wagged his finger, like he was telling Shulk to move down to his level.
"I wanted to win a prize for this girl I really like." He whispered in Shulk's ear.
Shulk grinned, "Okay, I'll see what I can do."
Shulk stood upright and looked at the stand owner, "Let me try, what do I need to do?"
"It's just ring toss. You get five rings and two tries, if you land three out of five on either try then you win. 5G to play." The owner explained.
"Alright, let's do it." Shulk said and put the money on the counter.
The man handed Shulk the rings and let him play, but he didn't have much luck with the two tries he had.
"See? This game is rigged! It's almost impossible to win it!" The boy yelled.
"There's always a way to win at these things. Let me try again." Shulk said and put more money on the counter.
Shulk concentrated and mapped out the area, throwing the rings in select spots. He only missed once, landing the three needed to win and not even needing the second try.
"And that's a winner!" The owner said.
Shulk looked over at the kid, "Which one did she want?"
"That one, the pink Bunniv!" He pointed to it.
The stand owner handed Shulk the prize and he gave it to the kid.
"Thanks, mister! You're the best!" He hugged Shulk around his leg and ran off.
"That was really sweet of you, Shulk." Melia smiled.
"I was glad to help. May as well keep the streak going, see anything you like, Melia?" Shulk asked.
Melia looked over the prizes. She found a stuffed DoberCorgi hanging on the ceiling of the stand, where all the grand prizes were. The grand prize ones stood almost as tall as her.
"I like the DoberCorgi." Melia said and pointed to it.
"That one? Okay." Shulk reached into his pocket.
"You have to win both games for the bigger prizes up there." The owner pointed out.
"No problem. Here." Shulk said and handed him the money.
Shulk didn't have much trouble with the first game, but the second one is when he started to feel a little pressure. He was on his second try, two more rings left and needed one more to win.
He concentrated and threw a ring, it clanked against the bottles as it bounced, but ended up missing.
"Damnit! Last one…" Shulk muttered.
Shulk picked up the last ring and looked forward, thinking hard about where to throw it.
Melia reached for his hand, "It's okay, Shulk. I'll be happy with whatever you get me."
"You said you wanted that one, that's what you're gonna get." He said a bit stubbornly. He took a deep breath, picked a spot, and threw his last ring. It bounced off a bottle and Shulk leaned over the counter, watching it anxiously.
"Come on… come on…" Shulk said under his breath.
The ring bounced two more times and landed on a bottle on the back-right side.
"That's what I'm talking about!" Shulk yelled and threw his arms up.
"Another winner! Pick whichever one you like." The owner said.
Shulk pointed up at the DoberCorgi hanging above them.
"Here, Melia." Shulk said, he blushed and handed her the DoberCorgi.
"Thank you, Shulk!" Melia cried as she took it. She pulled Shulk in for a hug.
"I'm glad you like it." He said and wrapped his arms around her.
Melia carried the stuffed animal and they stopped at another booth for some snacks and candy before they walked to the lake. There was already a crowd there and the unveiling was going to be starting very soon. Shulk and Melia stood near the rails by the edge of the lake.
"What's even the point of all this?" A young boy was heard whining through the crowd.
"There's going to be a bunch of fireflies here!" Another voice was heard, sounding like it belonged to a little girl.
Shulk and Melia looked around, trying to find where the voices were coming from.
"Shulk, look." Melia said.
Shulk looked over and followed her gaze. It was a little High Entia boy and a Homs girl. High Entia age much slower than Homs, but they looked to be near the same age. What really stood out was the girl holding a pink Bunniv stuffed animal.
"So what?" The boy asked, not getting it.
"When's the last time you seen any fireflies? They're super rare, and we'll get to see a bunch of them here!" The girl explained.
Shulk and Melia smiled at each other.
"I guess that's the girl he was telling me about." Shulk said.
"Seems like it. It's beautiful to see love expanding into other races. They look so cute together too." Melia added.
They laughed as they watched the two kids bicker and playfully argue back and forth. Melia reached her hand into the box of candy and suddenly jumped, realizing she grabbed Shulk's hand as he went for some too. But to her surprise, he didn't move his hand away like he did back in the lab. Shulk locked his fingers between hers and their eyes met.
"Shulk…" Melia mused as she gazed into his eyes.
Love expanding into other races, huh?
Shulk started to relax and moved closer to her. His eyes lowered and he leaned in, but just before they were about to kiss…
"Well isn't this a surprise!" Someone called to them.
They both felt their hearts pound in their chests as they jumped, being snapped out of their moment.
Dunban pushed his way through the crowd and met up with them, "Shulk, Melia, what are you two doing here?"
"Dunban? I didn't think you would make it either. We're here because I ended up getting sick and needed to be brought back." Shulk explained.
Just then, a girl ran through the crowd and wrapped her arms around Shulk. It happened so fast that he could barely tell what was going on, with the only thing he could see being a trail of blond hair.
"Shulk, I missed you! I overheard you got sick, are you okay?" Fiora asked.
"Fiora?" Shulk asked, now realizing it was her voice. "Yeah, I'm fine now." He added.
"You get one too, Melia. Come here!" Fiora said, she ran over and gave her a hug.
"You look adorable, Melia, and that stuffed animal is really cute too! Where'd you get it?" Fiora asked.
Melia held the DoberCorgi close to her heart and smiled, "Shulk won it for me." She said shyly.
Fiora turned back to Shulk but was cut off by the announcer before she could talk.
"Quiet, friends! Miss Sweetness winner, Ma'Crish, want to say few words before event!" The Nopon announcer said.
Dunban put a hand on Shulk's shoulder, "We're going back to our seats, we can catch up later." He said.
Fiora waved goodbye to them then her and Dunban walked away. Melia couldn't help but feel down from her and Shulk's moment being abruptly cut off. Shulk could feel it too but tried not to let it get to him.
Ma'Crish walked onto the stage, "Thank you everyone for coming. For those of you who haven't heard, I've prepared some Algora sap to attract fireflies to the lake. Being nominated was a special moment for me, so I wanted to do something special for all of you as well."
Ma'Crish lifted her hand and signaled a group of Nopon to lower the sap into the water. Swarms of fireflies started to descend from the sky and towards the lake, their light giving off a soothing, emerald-tinted glow over the water.
"They're so beautiful." Melia said, the glow giving her a sense of tranquility as she stared in awe.
Shulk turned red and felt butterflies in his stomach, "You're even more beautiful, Melia." He said shyly.
Melia looked at him and her eyes grew wide, the light from the fireflies reflected off her eyes and made them look as if they were sparkling.
"Shulk…" Melia mused.
Shulk turned a brighter red and nervously scratched at the back of his neck. Melia nuzzled closer to him and rested her head on his shoulder. Shulk blushed but let her, he put his arm around her and they cuddled close as they watched the fireflies dance around the lake.
The fireflies eventually dispersed and it was getting late. Shulk carried Melia's stuffed animal for her and they walked back to Sharla's house.
"I had a lot of fun." Shulk said. They stopped by the door to Melia's room.
"I did too." Melia said.
Shulk handed her back the DoberCorgi. She took it and looked back up at Shulk, she had this anticipating look in her eyes, like she was waiting for something else…
Shulk seriously thought about going through with it, but for some reason he was hesitating, "So… I'll see you tomorrow then."
"Right… tomorrow." Melia said and looked down slightly.
They said goodnight to each other and went to their rooms. Shulk shut his door and leaned against it, letting out a sigh.
What happened at the lake couldn't be helped, but why did I hesitate the second time? Should I have even done it?
He changed and fell into his bed, letting out a frustrated groan as he buried his face into the pillow. He laid on his back and looked up at the ceiling, feeling like he couldn't fall asleep just yet.
"I won't let the next chance slip by." He promised himself. It took him a while, but he eventually drifted to sleep.
Melia set her stuffed animal on the bed and went to change. She laid down on her bed and snuggled next to her DoberCorgi but was having trouble sleeping. The moments between her and Shulk played over again in her head and kept her awake. Ultimately, the kiss that almost happened earlier stood out.
"Shulk, why is it that whenever we start to get close, we end up being pulled apart?" Melia said quietly to herself. She started to feel a little depressed and held her stuffed animal closer to her chest to try and comfort her. She suddenly kicked the covers off herself and sat up, feeling restless from her thoughts constantly traveling. She looked over at the nightstand and seen Shulk's jacket neatly folded there where she left it. She just stared at it for a few moments, then placed it on her lap. She thought back to being in Makna Forest and Shulk letting her have it, then remembered her talk with Sharla when they went swimming.
Melia smiled then, feeling some reassurance, "There's no use overthinking these things. One missed opportunity doesn't mean that's the end." She said to herself.
She put Shulk's jacket on and laid back down, it felt cold enough in her room to sleep with it on.
"Another chance will present itself eventually, and I'll make sure it doesn't go to waste." She smiled and cuddled her DoberCorgi as she drifted to a sound sleep.