"Being a senior is daunting."
"You said it."
The two girls were lying on their backs in their common room, staring up at their stucco ceiling. Sitting between them was one giant mug, the special mug, in which a strange concoction of rum, Guinness and green tea was. Although absolutely disgusting, and difficult to swallow, it was the only thing Sarah and Winnie wanted to drink. They had come across their recipe the night Sarah turned twenty-one after they were well and trashed. Jareth had tried it, and was so appalled by its flavor he vanished immediately, returning again only upon a promise from Sarah that he would never have to be near it again.
Now, they were sharing it between themselves, wincing with every sip. It was a Saturday night, and they had just finished their first week of classes.
"I have the fear that this year will feel the shortest." Winnie said, while Sarah sat up to down an uncomfortable gulp.
"Probably…" She said around the painful sip. "But that's a good thing, right?"
"Right…"
"What's wrong?" Sarah sat up, and a rush of intoxication swam through her head.
"What are we going to do?" Winnie said softly.
"What do you mean?"
She sighed and took the mug from Sarah. "We have our whole lives in front of us. But I have no idea what I'm going to do with it."
"Isn't that the point? Not knowing?"
"Everyone knows though," Winnie insisted. "Everyone has a plan and is following it."
Sarah couldn't help rolling her eyes a little. She knew that Winnie had a point, but they were only twenty-one. How could they ever be asked to make any kind of choice? She scratched her neck and tried to come up with the words to make her roommate feel better.
Winnie saved her from the need to answer by clumsily getting up off the floor and making her way to her room. Sarah watched her leave and chewed her lip. Winnie was terrified, and Sarah was too, but it was the kind of fear that she knew would have to be lived out before she could do anything about it. She abandoned her mug on the ground and retreated to her door.
Before turned the knob, she considered for a moment which direction she wanted to turn it today. Left and she could enter her room, curl up in her crappy bed, and sleep off the anxiety. But when turned to the right she could sleep in a bed much larger, much warmer, and full of someone else's smell. A little dizzy, and more than a little aroused, Sarah turned the knob to the right and stumbled into the Goblin King's bedroom.
A fire crackled softly on the far end of the room, and the windows were open, letting in a soft warm wind. Sarah kicked off her slippers and started peeling her clothes off. By the time she made it to the bed, a mass of pillows, blankets, and glitter, she was comfortably naked. She slipped under the covers and began searching for Jareth. It didn't take very long to find him. She showered his face with kisses, and he snorted.
"You've been drinking that garbage."
She laughed. "Not too much, just enough for a buzz."
He wrapped his arms around her, and she settled into his embrace. "Don't you have an essay to finish?" He teased.
She kissed him, pressing her lips with some urgency to his.
"I suppose you can finish it later."
The best part about sleeping in Jareth's bed was the effect it had on her time. Since time moved slowly in the underground Sarah could spend up to three days there before she needed to go home. She was certain if she asked Jareth could make that time longer, but by the time three days had passed she was usually eager to return to her classes and see Winnie again. But that was becoming less of a need in her heart.
The underground sun was rising, and Sarah had not slept a wink that night. Jareth had fallen asleep not long after their rendezvous, but she had remained hyper aware and very awake into the long night. She had held him as he slept, letting him rest his head against her breast and hold her close to his burning body. He was always warm.
"Good morning, precious." He grumbled when the sun warmed his face awake.
"Hello, are you hungry?" She asked.
"I think you are." He scrunched down in the bed to lay his ear against her stomach, which was growling angrily. He snapped his fingers, and a tray appeared on the bed, full of her favorite breakfast items.
"Lucky charms?" She laughed. It wasn't the first time he magiked her favorite sugary cereal to her, but it always made her laugh.
"I'll never understand why you like this, but here you go." He handed her the bowl.
"Thanks." She munched eagerly.
He combed a lock of her hair behind her ear and smiled. He never ate much but reached to sip on some black coffee while she ate.
She was stirring the few remaining marshmallows in the blueish milk when she noticed him frowning at her.
"What's up?" She asked and placed the bowl on the tray.
"Why did you come last night?"
"I come all the time." She giggled at the inuendo.
But his expression remained stoic. "Yes, but last night was different. You seemed… fretful."
Sarah stretched her arms, enjoying the way his eyes watched her movement. He was right though, she was, for lack of a better word, fretful.
"I guess Winnie made me feel jumpy. She's been so anxious about our senior year and making the right choices. It's exhausting."
He pursed his lips in thought. "This is supposed to be the best year of college, isn't it?" He asked.
"Ha, well, I guess. I get to take all the classes I want, and do what I want, but I have to start deciding where I am going to go from here." She laid back against the pillows and drew the blankets up to her chin.
"I was doing some research actually." He snapped his fingers again, and a pile of papers and books and handwritten notes appeared on the bed. "I have found three acceptable graduate programs in writing that I think will work for you."
"What?" She peered over the mess he made, and saw the statistics, and charts, and rate of acceptance and histories of successful graduates.
"You must keep writing." He said. "I know you were considering law school after this, and although you would make an excellent attorney, I think your storytelling is far more important."
She stared at him, and he continued to talk.
"You can't go to a poor program, I won't have it, but these are some of the best I have found. I sent some of the goblins with Hoggle to tour the campuses and figure out the best locations for living. So far I like the one in the city Chicago the best."
"Jareth, stop." He stilled with surprise and stopped combing through the papers to look at her. "What are you doing?"
"What do you mean?"
"What about asking me to marry you when I graduate? What about making me your queen?"
He looked away for a moment, and she could see him weighing options in his head.
"Sarah," He said, and took her hands in his. "You have never been more lovely to me than when you are doing what you love. I love to see you write and present your work. I love watching you enjoy your studies and pursue your goals. I do not want anything to keep you from that."
"But what about the kingdom? How long is there to spend on my dreams when this whole world is here?" Her voice rose with emotion as she spoke, and she had to take back one of her hands to wipe a stray tear.
His expression changed. And suddenly he was smiling, his sharp teeth glinting in the sunlight.
"Sarah, what does that mean?" He drew her close to him.
She rolled her eyes and turned her face so he would not try to kiss her.
"Come on Jareth," She grumbled. "Did you really think I was going to say no?"
"From the way this has gone, since our first date, you made it a point that there was that possibility." He said. His tone was teasing but she knew he was serious.
She nuzzled into his neck. "I needed options in my life, and I still do. But it was never a question that I loved you and wanted you with me."
He sighed and kissed the top of her head. "Precious, you play hard to get."
"I am literally naked in your bed." She nipped his neck.
He laughed. "And not for the last time."
She disentangled herself from his embrace and kissed him.
"Okay, your highness," She spoke with intent. "Which program is the best?"