Bow hunting was Aqua's favorite activity on the Island. Her mother used to practice archery, and she never took up the hobby when she was younger. It was perhaps guilt or the need to feel closer to her mother what drove Aqua to practice with her bow – that Richard had made for her, but gifted it through Ellie – until her fingertips bled. Now that she had mastered it, shooting arrows at makeshift targets in trees or hunting birds was what calmed her down. So the day after her talk with Ellie, she wandered into the jungle at the break of dawn. She needed time to think and figure out what she wanted to do.
She had to choose. Ellie was right; she couldn't have both Warren and Richard. She hated it, but she had to pick one of them and break the other's heart.
If she stayed with Warren, she'd have a life full of love secured. But then there was the issue of telling him about the kiss with Richard. Aqua knew Warren well, and she knew that he would forgive her. Could she live with it? Would she be okay with waking up next to Warren every morning, knowing that she had kissed someone else? Aqua wasn't sure.
What if she chose Richard? She really would be happy; that was proven by how she had felt when she saw him again. But would Richard take her back? If she were in his position, she wouldn't. And being with Richard would mean that she'd have to see a broken-hearted Warren every day, and that Warren would have to see her and Richard together. That was exactly what had driven Richard away from her, seeing Aqua with someone else. She didn't want Warren to be miserable.
So she really was between a rock and a hard place. Both options seemed terrible, and everyone would end up hurt. Aqua tried another route. Who did she want to hurt the less? Warren's heart was so big; he didn't deserve to have it broken. And Richard… Richard would just end up losing her when she died. She'd rather hurt one of them now than end up hurting them both in the long run.
It was noon when Aqua went back to camp with a dozen dead birds hanging over her back. She would talk to Warren first before breaking Richard's heart. She left the birds with Selma – the star cook – and found Warren in their tent, relaxing on the cot.
"Well, there you are!" Warren greeted her. "Went out hunting?"
"Yes. I shot some birds."
"Sounds great!"
"Yes…" How could Aqua tell him? It would destroy him. "Warren?"
"Yes, honey?" He was still lying down on the cot, and Aqua sat down at the end of it.
"I have to tell you something," she started. At this, Warren sat up and gave Aqua a quizzical look. He never stopped smiling his sweet smile. Aqua took a deep breath and just blurted it out, "I kissed Richard." If Warren's heart broke, she couldn't tell, because he only nodded.
"I know," Warren said. Wait, what? What did he mean he knew? Aqua was speechless. Warren chuckled lightly, and she frowned. "Richard told me." Richard had what, now?! Why on earth would he tell Warren? "He came to me about a week after he returned," Warren started explaining, "and he said that he felt really bad about it. He said that he had kissed you, though. Assured me that it would never happen again and all. He was actually surprised to hear that you hadn't told me yet."
Though Warren said all this with a smile, his eyes were full of pain. Aqua was unable to look at him, and her heart sank to the ground. She had kept the truth from Warren, and he had spent a week sleeping next to a liar. Tears of shame prevented Aqua from speaking.
"It's alright, honey. I understand. I know you never stopped loving him," Warren said.
He was too good for her. Aqua was completely and utterly undeserving of Warren's love. How could so much goodness exist in one man?
Aqua burst out crying. Warren, in all his kindness, took her in his arms, whispering, "It's okay, honey," over and over, until she couldn't cry anymore. Warren then dried her tears, kissed her forehead, and smiled at her so sweetly that Aqua could barely contain another wave of tears.
"I'm sorry. I'm so– so sorry, Warren," Aqua apologized, sobbing. Warren only smiled.
"No, Aqua, there's no need for that. I'll tell you what. Do you still love Richard?" he asked her. Aqua was dumbfounded. She couldn't answer that question; she didn't know. But Warren must've seen something in her eyes, because he said, "Yeah, I thought so. I love you, Aqua. So much. And because I do, I want you to be with Richard."
"What?" Aqua asked. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. That was not what Warren was supposed to say. He was supposed to be angry, heartbroken. He was supposed to hate her.
"Yes. I release you from me. I want you to be happy, Aqua. Even if your happiness doesn't include me."
"I hope you can forgive me," Aqua begged. Her heart was shattering into a million pieces, and she was unable to believe that Warren existed. He was an angel, too glorious for the human world.
"Oh, Aqua," he said with a lighthearted laugh. "I've already have." And he kissed her one last time.
The next thing Aqua was fully aware of was moving into Charles and Ellie's tent that evening. Ellie, though comforting and kind towards Aqua, still managed to look like an angry mother. She hated for any of her people to get hurt, but particularly Warren.
"He is too kind. He is the last person on Earth who deserves this kind of pain," she said, and Aqua nodded. "You and Richard better work out; because I could not stand it if Warren's suffering was for nothing."
Aqua could only agree. She settled in to sleep; the next day she would talk to Richard and, hopefully, everything would work out.
What Aqua wasn't counting on was how nervous she would be. It took her two days to finally come out of the tent and face the world and only because Ellie and Charles forced her out. Word had spread that she had broken up with Warren, so everyone either avoided her or gave her dirty looks. But that was fine. Aqua only cared about Richard.
The afternoon sky had covered in clouds by the time Aqua stepped into Richard's tent. He was sitting at his small table, reading, sporting the rectangular glasses that made him look even more handsome. He looked up when Aqua walked in, but didn't smile.
"Can we talk?" Aqua asked. Richard gestured to the other chair, and Aqua took a seat. Not wanting to beat around the bush, Aqua simply spat it out, "I broke up with Warren. Or, rather, he broke up with me."
"So I heard," Richard simply said.
"You did?" Aqua asked, not really expecting an answer.
"Yes. Actually, Warren told me." Warren had what? What was it between the two of them? "He came to tell me yesterday that I could freely be with you, if I wanted."
"Oh…" And did he want to? Aqua didn't dare ask.
"He said that you wanted to be with me, and that's why you kissed me."
Aqua looked at Richard, her face burning. She remembered that time, many years ago, when they both had sat at this same table, when Aqua had told Richard her story. She was so different now, but was Richard? Aqua dismissed the thought; that thought had been part of what she had used to convince herself that she shouldn't be with him. Because he couldn't change.
"So, what is it that you want, Aqua?" Richard asked.
"I don't know," Aqua answered. Her breathing accelerated, and she ran her eyes over Richard's fading scars. What if the monster had killed him? She couldn't lose him. "Warren seemed to believe that… That I wanted you–"
"Warren is seldom wrong."
"–and I think I do." There was silence then, in which only a high-pitched buzzing ringed in Aqua's ears. Then Richard sighed deeply.
"Are you sure?" he asked, and his voice was full of the pain of the past.
"I think so."
"I can't do with 'I think sos.' You either do, or you don't." The anger bottled up for the past seven years was finally slipping through Richard's words.
"I'm sorry," escaped Aqua's lips.
"What are you sorry for?" Richard demanded, cocking his head.
A tense silence fell upon them. There were too many words that both of them wanted to say, but neither could force them out. Aqua knew that she deserved Richard's anger. Maybe, just maybe, if he finally expressed himself, they could move past it and be happy together.
Outside, rain started pouring. Aqua remembered that night when she cuddled up against Richard after seeing the monster outside their little tent, their hearts beating like they belonged to each other. It was raining then, too. No rainy night with Warren had ever compared to that one. If only she could hug Richard again, everything would be fine. They'd be finally happy. Together.
But Richard's frown reminded Aqua of the pain she had caused him.
"For what I did to you," she answered Richard's question at last. "I want you, Richard. I choose you. I'm sorry it took me seven years to realize."
Richard sat back on the chair and looked away. What was he thinking? What would he say?
"I spent those seven years trying to get over you," he said. "And when I do, you say that you want me? Do you think that's fair?"
The words stung. Tears pooled in Aqua's eyes and streamed down when she blinked. That was what she was actually expecting Richard to say, but she didn't think the words would hurt that much. She was a fool for thinking that Richard would take her back so easily. She was a fool for thinking that he would take her back at all.
Aqua didn't believe there was something else to say. She blinked, swallowed, and stood up. She opened her mouth several times as if to say something, but nothing came out. Richard's angry frown looked foreign on his face. With one last look at him, she walked into the rain.
Aqua kept on walking until she reached the edge of the trees. Fool! She deserved Richard's rejection, and more.
Maybe she could do what Richard did and live in the wilderness of the island on her own. Yes! Yes, she could do that. She turned around, wildly and stupidly determined to get her bow and run away, but Richard was there. How come? He was angry at her. He should be angry at her.
Nevertheless, he was standing a few steps from her, soaking wet. He followed me, Aqua wistfully thought. The rain made it slightly hard to see his expression, and even harder to hear his words.
"It isn't fair," Richard all but screamed at her.
"I know," Aqua answered.
"I shouldn't want you back."
"You really shouldn't."
"I'm angry at you."
"I deserve it."
"Then why do I love you so much?"
Aqua was frozen in place. Surely the rain had distorted Richard's words. Aqua gasped when Richard, closing the space between them, grabbed her face between his hands.
"Did you hear me?" he asked softly. "I love you, Aqua. I've always have."
Aqua's legs wanted to give up. If it wasn't because Richard's hands felt so real, she would swear that she was in a dream. That dream that she had had a few times where Richard told her that he loved her and they lived happily ever after. But this didn't feel quite like a dream. He was dreamy, and the scenario was dream-like, yes, but Aqua knew that it was very real. Before the rain could wash her away, she said out loud what she hadn't dared admitting before. She said the words to the one person who had always been destined to hear them.
"I love you."
Richard's kiss on her lips felt like paradise. If Aqua was ever destined to come to the Island, it was solely for this. Every occurrence in her life had led her to this very moment. To Richard's heart beating against hers at the same pace. To her fingers brushing Richard's dark hair. To their lips, their bodies, their souls fusing into one.
Aqua regretted wasting seven years away from Richard. But with that one passionate kiss, they made up for the time lost. The rivulets of warm rainwater running down their faces purified them of the anger and the sadness.
Because, embraced as they were, what could ever go wrong again?
A/N: Thank you for reading! I'm taking up a summer job at Disney World, so updates might come very sporadically or might not come at all. It's not over yet! There are still a few chapters left, so just be patient! Thanks for sticking with Aqua and Richard, see you soon!