Bruce watched her from across the room, feeling his anxiety grow higher. This wasn't supposed to happen. He wasn't supposed to feel…this. Not for her. He was only here to learn from Zatara, not fall for Zatara's beautiful daughter, Zatanna.

It was hard to ignore her soft eyes and smiles that made him feel weak in the knees, but what was he supposed to do? He thought he had closed down his emotions, made sure that he couldn't be affected by sentiment or something as simple as her touch on his shoulder. He had trained for this. So, how had she broken his impenetrable shell?

She caught his eye, her goofy smile making his insides feel warm on this cold night. She hurried over to him, tripping over her shoes, red high heels. Bruce caught her just in time though, breaking her fall.

He took a deep breath as he felt her in his arms. His analytical mind tried to distract him from the warmth of that feeling, so he took in her appearance. That was a mistake. Her red plaid skirt and black top hugged her figure nicely. Her hair was completely down once again, as her black curls sat delicately on her shoulders.

On top of her head, was a Santa hat that Bruce assumed she thought completed her Christmas outfit. He hated how cute he found her right now. Not only did she look positively beautiful, but her outfit choice was also so her. Feminine and with a sort of brightness that he could no longer deny was dangerously appealing to him.

"Watch your step", Bruce said gruffly.

Zatanna blushed, "It's these high heels."

Bruce raised his eyebrow, "Aren't you going to be a stage magician?"

Zatanna rolled her eyes, "I know, I know. I'll get the hang of it."

Zatanna then smiled at him, "You actually came. Dad didn't think you would. Said he couldn't get you away from trying to break that lock."

Bruce just shrugged, not wanting to divulge the reason he broke away from his training, "How did you even see me from over there?"

Zatanna deadpanned, "Bruce, you are literally the only person here who is wearing all black. You stick out like a sore thumb."

Bruce looked down at his clothes and inwardly berated himself. Stupid Christmas. Why did they all have to wear bright colors?

She laughed, "I'm glad you came. This is the best part of the season. This park has the best Christmas lights you could find anywhere. You're going to love it."

She grabbed his hand, leading him deeper into the park. Bruce felt her gloved hand, still cold despite being covered by those red gloves.

"Are you cold?"

Zatanna blushed, "Well, yeah. I'm always cold."

Bruce raised his eyebrow, "Then why didn't you wear a coat?"

Zatanna shrugged as they kept walking, "I like this outfit. A coat kind of ruins it."

Bruce rolled his eyes. He was a fan of how she looked too, but he could see her shivering. He took his heavy black coat off his shoulders and placed it on the black-haired magician. Zatanna looked back at him and blushed.

"Thanks", she said, her cheeks a deep red.

Bruce watched his frifriend with interest. He couldn't turn off his analytical mind, which was going crazy at the moment. These feelings were distracting. Way too distracting.

They came upon some Christmas lights, which caused Bruce to pay attention to said lights. They were arranged in a way that seemed to be creating a picture of reindeer on a sleigh.

She smiled at him, "See?"

Bruce frowned, "Reindeer on a sleigh. Fascinating."

She laughed, as the two began to make their way through the lights.

They saw lights of all assorted types. Bruce found it a bit repetitive, but Zatanna seemed to be having a good time, so he kept his comments to himself.

"Mistletoe!", she exclaimed.

Bruce looked up, seeing a Mistletoe light display. He looked at Zatanna, who smiled, reaching up and kissing his cheek softly. Bruce felt a surge of electricity from her kiss. He looked back at her, seeing her blushing smile.

Bruce felt conflicted. It was all concluding now. He couldn't simply dance around Zatanna any longer. Her feelings were out in the open and were barely contained. She had to know. She seemed to be able to read him like a book. It was time to decide. Would he deny himself a relationship with this girl he was in love with or give into his heart's desire? Would doing so be betraying his vow to parents?

Looking back at her, Bruce saw her soft eyes and blushing grin. He closed his eyes, grabbing her arm and pulling her towards him. Acting on implulse, Bruce grabbed her face and began to kiss her.

The first they he felt when their lips met a chill go right through him. The second was how cold her lips were, but also how soft they were. He heard her make a little sound and he broke the kiss.

After separating, he looked at her with concern, afraid he had made a mistake. She was blushing like never before, but she didn't seem upset with him.

"Zee, I-"

Suddenly, Zatanna threw her arms around him and pulled Bruce into another liplock. Bruce responded after a moment, wrapping one arm around her waist and running his other free hand through her hair, feeling her curly locks.

After moment, they broke kiss and Zatanna buried her face in his chest. Bruce didn't really have any context for this type of situation, so he simply wrapped his arms around her. He couldn't think of any other action that felt appropriate.

He heard her giggle as she moved her head slightly. "Merry Christmas, Bruce."

Bruce grunted, shaking his head. "Yeah."

Bruce supposed he had made his decision, hadn't he? He chose her. He chose to try this out. To give into his feelings. He had a feeling this wouldn't end well, but with the way she clung to him, the black-haired man found that he could put off thinking about that for a while.