Writer's block is kicking my arse, so have a fun story where everything is good and nothing hurts.

'ARGH! INK! GET BACK HERE!'

Zero couldn't help the mad laugh that escaped her as she tore through the hallway, Vin close on her heels.

'Left here,' Vin said, struggling to get the words out through his own laughter. 'Left, at the hall, go -'

She swung sharply around the corner, reaching back instinctively with one hand to grab his shirt, keeping him close behind.

'That painting will get us to the library, push the corner -'

Acting on blind faith, Zero did as she was told and nearly tripped over when the painting immediately gave way, swinging into a darkened passage. As soon as Vin stumbled in behind her, she shoved it back into place, breathing heavily.

'You think she knows about this one?' she asked through ragged breaths. 'I know that I didn't.'

'Let's not take that chance, huh?' Vin replied, already running off down the corridor. Zero lingered by the entrance for a moment longer, listening out for any sign of Macbeth. When she was satisfied that the two of them had a decent head-start, she sprinted to catch up with Vin.

The passage ended with another painting. Zero pushed it open just a crack to have a look outside, before hopping out into the empty library. When it swung shut, the two of them collapsed against the wall, struggling to breathe through their giggles.

'Did - did you see her face?' Vin choked, eyes bright with glee. His head hit the panelling with a thud as he dissolved into another fit of laughter.

'So ridiculous,' Zero managed, unable to find the words for much else. 'Oh my god.'

'Don't tell Trixie what you did back there,' he added. 'She'll get mad you didn't follow orders.'

'I won't tell her if you don't.'

They both looked at each other and started laughing even harder.

'I can't believe that worked -'

'Absolutely insane -'

'You're ridiculous -'

'Are you kidding, you are -'

'Don't you start -'

Neither of them managed to say anything coherent for at least the next ten minutes. When their joking had finally faded into companionable silence, Vin got to his feet and held out his hand.

'Let's go get lunch, yeah? I'm starving.'

Zero took his hand, and he pulled her to her feet. He was only a little taller than her, so he managed it easily. 'Sounds good to me.'

Neither of them moved. She realised, after a long moment, that he hadn't let go of her hand. But then again, she really didn't want him to.

Vin hesitated, looking awkward as the moment dragged out, before letting go of her hand and scratching the back of his neck. 'Pizza?' he asked feebly.

'Yeah, I could go for pizza.'

'Cool.' He swallowed, eyes darting down to her mouth for a fraction of a second. It was a fraction of a second too long. 'Great. Yeah'

Being presented with this moment, Zero realised she could either take it or leave it. She could let it go, pretend she hadn't noticed anything. They could both go on, just like that.

She was never the kind of person to leave it.

She reached out, ignoring his confused 'Uh -' and curled a hand in his shirt, before giving a firm shove. He went easily, back hitting the wall with a thud, far too used to being manhandled by her. Refusing to let herself hesitate, she leaned in to kiss him, determined and firm.

Vin made a surprised noise, clumsily reaching up to loop an arm around her waist, drawing her closer. He returned the kiss with no shortage of enthusiasm, bringing his other hand up to rest behind her neck.

She kissed him slowly, deeply, letting herself revel in the overwhelming feeling of finally! that bounced around her head like a tennis ball. Sure, it may have been her own fault that she let things go unresolved for this long, but the payout was absolutely worth it.

She let her hands drift upwards, one settling on his shoulder and the other cupping the sharp line of his jaw, changing the angle a little and yeah, this was fantastic. If the noise that Vin made was any indicator, he certainly agreed. The hand on her waist tightened for a second, as if to pull her in even further.

There was a crash somewhere to their left, and the bubble around them popped with a record scratch. Zero stumbled backwards so quickly that she nearly tripped over. It was only Vin's hand that kept her upright as she steadied herself, before whirling around to glare at Ben, who was blushing to the roots of his hair as he fumbled to collect the stack of books he had just dropped.

'Sorry, sorry,' he said hurriedly, gathering them back into his arms. 'I - I didn't see anything.'

'I'll bet you didn't -'

'I'm going, I promise.' He fairly fled around around the corner and into the next aisle of books, before poking his head back in. 'Thanks, though. Cathy owes me twenty bucks.'

'Get out, Ben!'

Behind her, Vin was laughing almost hysterically. Zero spun back to scowl at him, but couldn't really hold it when faced with the ridiculousness of the situation.

'I can't believe people were placing bets on us!' she said indignantly. 'Why hadn't I heard about that?'

'Because they're scared of you,' he said, getting the words out around his laughter. 'I had no idea either.'

She sighed, rolling her eyes. 'Well, whatever. Weren't you saying something about pizza?'

'I was,' he replied, slipping his arm back around her waist. 'Or.'

'Or?'

'Or we can go somewhere else and keep making out.'

She considered this for a moment. 'That works too.'

He grinned, dropping a kiss to her cheek. 'Come on, then. There'll still be pizza after.'

'Good, because that was gonna be a deal-breaker.'