A/N: Winter break! Hallelujah! We made it!
Now that I'm not drowning in homework and extracurriculars, I actually have time to write. I may be able to publish another chapter before the end of December, which would be super exciting. Let's see if that actually happens
Y'all, I can't thank you enough for continuing to read this story! Reading the comments you leave is so exciting for me, you have no idea. Thanks for all of the love and support!
I hope you enjoy this next chapter!
I do not own the Lunar Chronicles.
~o0o~
"Okay, if you don't have any idea where you two were last, can you at least tell me what he looks like?"
Winter pondered this idea for a moment, glancing up at the cloudless sky as she imagined his face. "He's very handsome."
"That doesn't tell me anything."
"He has blonde hair and eyes like the sea. He's tall and has a strong build."
"And he's your…boyfriend?"
Winter had to ponder this question as well. "We both care for each other greatly."
Iko suppressed the urge to roll her eyes. "Okay. So this Jacin guy is the hunky kind-of-but-not-really boyfriend slash guard of yours that took you to a waterpark and then lost you."
"Yes. We actually weren't planning on coming here at all earlier."
This piqued Iko's interest, but only slightly. She was still low key convinced that this girl had escaped from the looney bin. "Really? What was your original plan then?"
"To escape from my stepmother. Jacin said she wanted to kill me."
If Iko had been drinking at that moment, she would have spat it all over Winter's flawless face. Again, she knew there were a few screws loose in that fantasy-filled brain of hers, but something about the tone of her voice and the way she absentmindedly traced her scars with her finger made her believe otherwise.
"Why would she want to kill you?"
Winter shrugged, the serious expression still haunting her features. "She says I'm a nuisance and embarrass her in front of her friends when I talk. Jacin says she's jealous of me, though I haven't the faintest idea why. She used my father's money after he passed away to invest in a bunch of companies, growing her fortune. She even started up her own successful restaurant. Now she's got power in the local government, using her money to bribe representatives and bend them to her will. Levana always said she wanted money and power and-"
"Levana?" Now Iko really wanted a smoothie for a dramatic spit-take. "As in the owner of Levana's Bistro?"
Winter nodded, a pained smile on her face. "Yes. Have you ever dined there? The breadsticks are my favorite. I can't stay in there for very long, though, because the red paint makes the walls look like they're bleeding. It scares me."
Iko stopped walking for a moment, leaning on a picnic bench to absorb all of this sudden information. Winter obediently halted as well and sat down after daintily wiping crumbs off the wood. After collecting herself, Iko sat next to her, taking a long look into her eyes. If Levana was her stepmother, she had no doubt that her childhood was absolute hell. No wonder she was crazy. Levana probably forced her through psychological torture for most of her life.
"So you were running away. How did you end up here?"
"Levana sent a few of her body guards after us. Jacin thought we out-drove them all, but recognized one of them a few cars back. We ended up parking in a gas station, going inside, and then sneaking outside the back and running to the closest place we could hide in. What better place to disappear than a chaotic water park?"
Iko nodded, surprised at how easily she accepted Winter's story. Something about her innocent appearance made her easy to believe. "So how did Jacin recognize the body guard?"
"He used to be one himself."
"OMG!" Iko's hands flew to her chest. If she were a cartoon character, her eyes would be bright red hearts. "You guys are like Romeo and Juliet! He abandoned his position under Levana to protect you!" Now Iko was really into the story, attentively staring at Winter as if she were the T.V. during an episode of Grey's Anatomy. "Okay, so what was your plan after entering the water park?"
"We were going to relax here for a bit, hire a cab, and then go somewhere far, far away."
"Far far away?"
"We didn't have time to work out the details."
"WINTER!"
Both girls whirled around. A muscular, blonde man began feverishly pushing through the crowd, heading in their direction. Iko glanced at her inquisitively.
"Is that a friend of yours or should I scream that he tried to take my bikini top off and let security take care of him?"
She beamed, golden eyes sparkling. "Friend. My guard has found me."
He roughly elbowed past a few high school boys, earning some dirty looks and passive aggressive remarks, but his eyes remained locked on Winter, as if he feared she'd disappear the moment he glanced away. She stared back just as intensely. Iko swiveled her head between the two of them, noting the heavy look they were sharing.
"And you're not dating, huh?" She muttered under her breath.
Finally Jacin reached them and pulled Winter into a crushing embrace. "Stars, you really are a handful. Are you okay?" He released her only to inspect her at arm's length, eyebrows knit with worry. She beamed in response.
"I am now. And I made a new friend!" She looped her arm around Iko, who extended her hand to him.
"I'm Iko, and I'd be glad to be the maid of honor at your soon-to-be wedding."
Jacin flushed at this, but still accepted her handshake. "Uh…what?"
"I told her about our situation," Winter stated, ignoring his question. "I know you said to lay low, but she was so kind and helpful and I think she's very trustworthy."
"Winter, you once climbed into the white van of another 'trustworthy friend' of yours. I had to sprint after the car and jump on the windshield to make him stop."
"He offered me ice cream."
He sighed, raking a hand through his hair. "How many times do we have to go through this? There is no ice cream!"
"Well, Iko didn't even offer me any ice cream. She offered to help me find you."
"Okay, but you shouldn't just blab all of your secrets to every random person you meet!"
"But she isn't a random person. She's Iko."
"Guys, I really don't want to get in the middle of your couple's squabble-" Iko interrupted, holding up her hands in a surrendering manner, "-but I'm probably never going to see either of you again, so there's no need to argue about how well I'll keep your secrets."
Jacin relaxed while at the same time Winter's face fell. "What do you mean? We're friends now."
Something about her wide, doe eyes and trembling lower lip made something inside Iko break. Stars, if this girl weren't so focused on Jacin the whole town would be groveling at her feet. She placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Tell ya what. Once you deal with all this crazy aunt business, we'll get coffee sometime, kay?"
"Jacin says I shouldn't drink caffeine."
"Jeez, is he your boyfriend or your father?"
"I'm her bodyguard!" Jacin protested, a blush rising up his neck. "And Winter, we really need to get going. Say goodbye to your friend."
"But we have nowhere to go, Jacin." The sad look in her eyes was still there, and Iko could detect a softening in his stony expression. "We don't even have a real plan."
He grabbed her hand and pulled her into her chest, allowing her to burrow her face into his shirt. "Hey, what did I tell you about worrying? Leave that to me. I'll figure something out, I promise. I'll figure something out." She whimpered softly, and he stroked her dark curls with his free hand, whispering soothing comments into her ear.
The whole sight was too much for Iko to bear. This was sappier than every single Nicholas Sparks book combined, and she couldn't just leave the tragic couple without knowing their happy ending.
Spades, Cinder was going to kill her.
"Come with us," she blurted out. The couple parted, staring at her. Winter's eyes filled with elation while Jacin's filled with distrust.
"Really?" She began to bounce on her knees, beaming widely. Jacin looked unsure.
"That would be a major intrusion. We'll be fine on our own."
Iko waved a dismissive hand. "Nah, it'll be fun. At least join us for part of the trip. We'll drive you out of the water park and you can hop off at our next stop."
Winter directed her pleading gaze in his direction, batting her eyes and biting her lower lip. After a few seconds of this, he cracked.
"…Alright."
Winter shrieked, planted a firm kiss straight on his mouth, and then abandoned the bewildered man to fling her arms around Iko, who began laughing in earnest.
"Not dating, huh?" She quirked her eyebrow at Jacin, who held his hand to his lips. Finally he regained his senses.
"W-we should go. We should go," he repeated, blinking himself back to reality. Winter giggled.
"I can't wait to meet the rest of your friends, Iko! Where are they?"
Iko shrugged. "Not sure, actually. But they shouldn't be hard to find."
"Do they also have blue hair?"
"Nope. Just regular colors. Boring, I know."
Winter giggled again, and then stopped, eyes wide. "Wow. They sure are passionate."
Iko followed her gaze to a water slide called the Tower of Love, which had two figures riding down it. They appeared to be in a heated embrace, limbs tangled together as they plummeted downward. Iko narrowed her eyes.
"Wait a second…"
It was Kai and Thorne. Iko's jaw went slack.
First Cinder, then Levana, then Cress, and now Thorne? Damn, that politician really got around.
Winter blinked at her frozen friend. "Iko? Are you okay?" She snapped her fingers in front of her face. Wordlessly, Iko pulled out her video camera and began recording.
~o0o~
Kai was 99% sure he was going to die.
Thorne's hands were wrapped around his neck and he was straddling him as he screamed curses, both of them plummeting down the water slide. While the oxygen slowly left his brain Kai realized that they were in a very compromising position. Probably not the most reasonable thing to be pondering while blacking out.
Kai gasped for air and pried Thorne's fingers off his throat, choosing to go on the offensive. He was actually kind of pissed that Thorne so easily believed he would betray Cinder and make a move on Cress.
"THERE'S NOTHING GOING ON BETWEEN ME AND CRESS YOU IDIOT!" He shouted, ramming his knuckles into Thorne's nose. Thorne cried out in pain, eyes flashing. The roaring water around them impaired his hearing, so he misinterpreted what he said.
"DON'T YOU DARE CALL CRESS AN IDIOT! YOU PULLED HER INTO THIS MESS, ASSHOLE!" he screamed while kicking his shin. Kai growled and flipped him over so he was on top of him, pinning down his arms and legs.
"I WOULD NEVER MAKE CRESS TOUCH THAT PART OF MY BODY!" Thorne glared at him, so Kai slapped his face for good measure. "YOU'RE MY BEST FRIEND!"
"CINDER IS MY BEST FRIEND, AND YOU BETRAYED HER!"
"NO I SAID THAT YOU'RE MY BEST FRIEND!"
"I DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU'RE SAYING! I'M GOING TO PUNCH YOU NOW!" Thorne proceeded to struggle out of Kai's grasp and sock him in the jaw. Kai blocked his next blow by grabbing his fist and twisting, causing Thorne to clench his teeth and then attack him with his free arm. They continued with this exchange of blows all the way down, their shouts and screams and cries attracting the attention of everyone within 50 feet of the Tower of Love.
"SCREW YOU!"
"YOU SCREWED WHO?!"
"NO I SAID-" Kai's mouth was wide open when they plunged into the pool, the chlorine stinging his throat and filling his nose. He choked on the water, kicking his way up to the surface. Thorne was a few feet away from him, spluttering and rubbing his eyes with the heels of his hands. Kai took the opportunity to start propelling himself to the edge of the pool, but Thorne quickly recovered and began splashing after him. A small crowd had formed around the attraction at this point, gasping and pointing and giggling behind video cameras. Someone took a photo with the flash on, blinding Kai for long enough for Thorne to pounce.
Meanwhile Cress, Cinder, Scarlet, and Wolf had flown down the stairs, pushing past the crowd just in time to see the pair crash beneath the surface and ensue in an underwater wrestling match. Cress shrieked, Cinder turned deathly white, Scarlet covered her mouth, and Wolf calmly marched towards the edge of the pool and dove in.
Within seconds Wolf emerged from the pool, dangling Thorne and Kai, who were gasping for air, from their arms, and began marching towards the edge. The audience that had formed stepped back as he shoved them both onto the ground and climbed out himself. Thorne and Kai doubled over, coughing and spluttering profusely. Murmurs and questions began to build around them.
Scarlet grit her teeth as the crowd began to move in. If there was one thing she couldn't stand, it was people who couldn't mind their own damn business. She spun on her heel, facing the onlookers. They were still entranced with the situation in front of them, so she cleared her throat, attracting attention.
Scarlet had mastered her scary look when she was 10 years old, targeting a thief who was trying to sneak vegetables out of their garden. This glare had had induced tears, screams of terror, and made grown men wet their pants. Kai, Thorne, and Wolf had each committed one of those actions as a result of this glare. I'll let you decide who did what.
She trained her steely gaze on the crowd, holding back her intensity by 50%. She didn't like using full force unless absolutely necessary. With as much venom as she could muster, she growled "there's nothing to see here, people. Move out. Now."
With those few brief words she struck terror in the hearts of the spectators, and within seconds the area was deserted. She smiled at her success, and Wolf blew out a low whistle. She raised her eyebrows.
"What?"
He shook his head, grinning. "It's just… Stars, I love you."
She smiled back and moved in to kiss him, but Thorne cleared his throat.
"I hate to break up the love fest, but I can't help but feel like you guys are forgetting a major issue." He was standing now, having caught his breath, and while he wasn't shouting his voice wavered on the edge of hysteria.
Cinder and Cress had been watching the whole ordeal on the sidelines in complete shock. Now Thorne trained his gaze on Cinder, refusing to meet Cress's eyes. "You've got to do something, Cinder. You can't just suppress your feelings."
She froze, then, slowly, she nodded. She approached Kai with a blank expression. Kai tensed up, but didn't leave the spot where he was standing. His eyes were pleading.
"Cinder, please you have to believe me-"
"Shh. Listen to me." She held a finger to his lips, then delicately removed it. Her expression was still unreadable. "I have one thing to say to you and one thing only." He squeezed his eyes shut, bracing for the impact of her wrench. She moved her lips toward his ear, and whispered.
"My answer is, and always will be, yes."
And then she kissed him.
It was hard to tell who was more shocked: Kai or Thorne. Kai widened his eyes before closing them and melting into her embrace. Thorne let his jaw hang open.
"He cheats on you and you kiss him?! You've nearly decapitated me for breaking a freaking dish!"
His complaints fell on deaf ears. Cinder and Kai were completely wrapped up with each other. He turned to Scarlet and Wolf. "Can you believe thi- WHAT THE HELL?!"
At some point Scarlet and Wolf had begun making out as well, her hands deep in his hair while he pulled her closer to him. Thorne blinked rapidly, swiveling his head between the two couples until he got dizzy.
"I've fallen into the freaking Twilight Zone," he muttered. He tensed when a delicate hand touched his shoulder.
"Captain?"
He wanted to be angry. Aces and spades and stars, he truly did. But when he heard her voice he knew he was seconds from breaking down completely.
There was a reason he never got into serious relationships in the past. His own parents had acted merely civil towards each other. At one point he thought they even loved each other. That happy image was shattered when he walked in on his father kissing another woman. He was only 13 years old.
He crept out of the room without the pair noticing, pale and gasping for breath. He ran straight to his mother, and the minute the word "affair" fell out of his mouth she completely misunderstood and began begging him not to tell his father about Denny. She might as well have punched him in the gut.
Neither parent was satisfied with just each other. They needed other people to fill in the gaps. Thorne decided that one-on-one relationships couldn't last for any long period of time without one or both parties getting bored or annoyed or mad enough to fall into the arms of another. So he stayed far, far away from those, for his own safety and for the well-being of the other.
And then he met Cress, and a wave of emotions he had never experienced before came crashing into him light a satellite plummeting towards earth.
At first he was terrified of starting something with her because he thought he'd be unable to stay faithful and break her heart. She wouldn't be enough for him, and he'd move on to someone else. But after months of keeping a respectful distance, his feeling didn't die. So he gave into the fire, and was completely consumed. He discovered that she wasn't just enough- she was more than enough. She was overwhelming and mesmerizing and he couldn't stay away from her.
He knew he'd never dream of leaving this wonderful, intoxicating girl.
He never stopped to think that she might leave him.
"Yes?" His voice sounded distant. Cress flinched.
"Can we go somewhere to talk, please?"
Thorne wanted to say no. He wanted to run the opposite direction. He had never been broken up with before, and certainly not by someone who he was in love with.
But he pushed back the tears and nodded, letting her guide him.
~o0o~
Cress was shocked at how calm she was. Against all the odds, her heart rate was steady as she tugged Thorne to an empty park bench.
They sat. He still wasn't looking in her eyes. She opened her mouth, and while her mind was blank, the words still came. "I need to tell you what happened that night. The whole story."
Thorne grimaced. His heart rate was anything but steady. Her making him relive the moment she betrayed him would be absolute torture, but as they walked over here he made up his mind that he'd let her say what she needed to say.
He was madly in love with her. That would never change. He couldn't resume to his womanizing ways if he tried. The least he could do is let her leave him with a somewhat clear conscience so she could pursue a happier life without him.
It hurt. It really hurt, but he'd suffer for her. But he still couldn't look in her eyes.
"Go ahead, I'm listening."
If Cress was surprised by this response, she didn't show it. "That night I woke up after Cinder accidentally kicked me. She's got a foot like iron, you know," she joked, smiling wistfully. In any other circumstance, Thorne would've laughed. Instead he just swallowed and gestured for her to continue. "So I got up and went to the bathroom to fill one of those small plastic cups with water for a quick drink. I left the lights off because I wanted to go back to sleep afterwards, but then I heard someone get out of bed."
Thorne was pinching his leg, hard. This was too much. "I don't think I want to hear this," he muttered, beginning to stand up. Cress put her hand on his leg. His eyes finally met hers. He sat down.
"You need to hear this," she whispered. She didn't remove her hand, and he didn't remove his gaze. The situation grew more intense, and they could both feel it. Cress began to speak more quickly. "I heard the person say something, but they were obviously tired so their voice was husky and all I heard was the letter C and R in a garbled mess. I started to say "Captain," but Wolf's snore cut me off. They only heard the "Ca" part of it. Then he and I got closer and started kissing and…" she trailed off.
Because they were still staring into each other's eyes, she could physically see him discover what had happened. "He thought you were saying his name. He thought you were Cinder."
"Yes."
"And you… you thought he was me."
She nodded, eyes pleading. "Yes. I should've told you when we figured out what happened, but Kai was planning a surprise for Cinder and thought this would ruin it, so we kept it a secret. I am so sorry, Captain. I love you and you alone."
The world stood still.
She loved him. He didn't deserve her in the least, but she loved him.
Thorne wanted to fall down and sob, run around screaming excitedly, punch Kai one more time for good measure, and passionately make out with his girlfriend all at once. Instead, he took her hands in his, and asked her a question.
"How long was it?"
Cress blinked, taken aback. "What?"
"The kiss. How long was it?"
Her calm demeanor had completely dissipated at this point, and now she was slightly panicked. "I mean, we were kissing for about a minute, but I swear I had no idea-"
"Cress." The single word startled her out of her rant. She peered up at him. He was smiling at her as if she was the most precious, most important human being on the face of this earth, and the reality that he loved her slammed into her so suddenly that her single moment of doubt became a distant fairy tale. "I'm not mad. If anyone should be mad, it's you. I doubted you, and that was stupid and wrong."
"But I didn't deny kissing him. What else were you supposed to think?" she reassured, squeezing his hands. He didn't respond verbally, instead just pressing a kiss on the top of her head and pressing his forehead against hers.
"I'm not mad at Kai, either. But I don't like the fact that he kissed you. It's just…" He stood up, running his hands down his legs nervously. Cress furrowed her brow as she stared up at him. He began to pace. "I mean, this is stupid, but… I was your first kiss, right?"
Cress giggled at that. "Well, I would've thought that was pretty obvious. I froze completely and had no idea what to do with my mouth."
"You're too modest. Believe me, you weren't bad at all." A hint of a smile tugged on his lip before he delved back into serious mode. "Anyway, I was your first kiss and we've been together ever since. So I was the only one who's every kissed you. But now Kai has, and what previously didn't seem important is now infinitely important. It sounds selfish, but I just don't want to be your first, Cress. I want to be your last. I want to be your only."
Any hint of laughter was gone. Cress was wide-eyed, head swiveling as he paced. "Wait… what do you mean?"
"The thought of Kai kissing you just felt so… wrong. And when I started thinking about it more, the idea of any guy kissing you felt wrong. Unnatural. It makes me nauseous just thinking about it." He was talking to space, occasionally throwing her a glance as he spoke, while she continued watching him with wide-eyes. "And I used to be a womanizer, but the idea of being with any girl other than you also feels wrong. Like, why would I want to kiss anyone else on this planet when I've already found you?" He paused his movement, sitting next to Cress again. "Do you agree?
It took her a second to recover her wits. "Yes, of course. Honestly, I didn't care about any other guys after I met you. I was certain that you were the one." Her hand instinctively covered her mouth. She'd never told him that before. It sounded too obsessive, and he was so new to relationships that she was afraid the secret would freak him out. But instead of recoiling he nodded like he understood.
"Exactly. And I've been told by many that I'm not good enough for you, but I promise that I will work every day for the rest of our lives to be the man you deserve. Because I think we're perfect for each other."
"The rest of our lives?" She could barely muster a whisper at this point. She was trembling. He took her hands in his.
"The rest of our lives. We defied the odds, Cress. There are billions of people on this planet, and miraculously, we found each other. So why should we waste time wandering around, kissing other people? And I was thinking: how do I make sure this beautiful, wonderful girl agrees with my logic? How do I make sure she doesn't want to explore the other options and be with other guys that she may think are more right than me? And then it hit me. We'll make a promise to each other. If she feels the same way, she'll submit herself to a binding oath."
He stood, still holding her hands, and then knelt in front of her. It didn't feel real. Was this actually happening?
A small crowd formed around the pair, but they were oblivious to the rest of the world. "Crescent Darnel, I want to devote my life to you and only you. Now that I've found you, I don't ever want to let you go. I don't have a ring, I'm wearing SpongeBob SquarePants swim trunks, and Cinder's probably going to kill me any minute once the bruises show up on Kai's face, but I'm not going to wait for the perfect time to ask you this question because the time will never be here soon enough and I will have wasted too much of my life not being with you. So here goes nothing." He visibly swallowed, his hands shaking as he held hers. Tears had already stained her cheeks. "Cress… will you marry me?"
She opened her mouth to reply, but a sob broke out instead. Instead she nodded vigorously, pouring all of her emotion into the single movement. He surged forward and scooped her into her arms, sweeping her off her feet and kissing her long and hard, a kiss that made the one with Kai nothing but a distant dream. The small crowd of people clapped and cheered as the couple embraced, so wrapped up with each other that they didn't even register the noise.
They parted, panting for breath. Still beaming at her, Thorne slowly lowered Cress so her feet touched the grass, but he continued to cling to her waist. He didn't ever want to let her go. She was still crying, but smiling beneath her tears. He wiped the wetness off her face with his thumbs and kissed her cheeks, tasting salt on his lips.
One little boy, holding his mother's hand as she dabbed a tissue to her eyes, cocked his head. "Mommy, isn't that the man who beat up the other guy and was dragged out of the pool by the scary hot dog guy?"
The crowd began to filter away, patting the couple on the back and giving their congratulations. Once they were all gone Cress moaned and buried her face in Thorne's neck. He chuckled, the vibration tickling her face.
"What's wrong, damsel? Regretting your answer? Because it would just be rude to back out now."
"No. I'm just sad I'll never get to marry you."
He furrowed his brow. "What are you talking about?"
"Kai was going to propose to Cinder on this trip. You stole his thunder. Cinder is literally going to kill you."
Thorne laughed loudly, slinging an arm around her. "Cress, you worry too much. Or should I call you Mrs. Thorne? That has a nice ring to it."
She smiled to herself. "Yeah, it really does."
Still drunk off of elation, Thorne hoisted her up so her legs wrapped around his waist and kissed her again. She giggled. "Tell ya what. All I want to do is announce to the entire world that we're engaged, but if you're so worried about my well-being, we can keep this information on the down low for now. I know you don't want my beautiful face smashed in before the wedding."
Cress pressed her forehead to this. "I love you, Captain. I still can't believe I'm going to be your wife." A grin threatened to split her face in two as she said that, and he kissed her nose. "But I agree with that plan. We'll tell the others after the trip."
He set her down on her feet. "After the trip," he agreed.
He took his fiancé's hand in his and began walking back towards the others.
His fiancé. He really liked the sound of that.
~ To Be Continued