Chapter 11
Caitlyn lay in bed, her thoughts messed up and blurry. She had her pillow clutched to her chest, and felt like a giddy teenage girl (which she was, but she always had felt above such feelings). She sighed, a bit annoyed. But the strange happiness inside of her made a grin spread over her face, and that grin didn't go away. Faintly she could remember what had happened after that, but it was blurred, and her mind had been unclear ever since.
"I'll come to visit you at a random time.". His smile looked crooked, and he couldn't fight the small blush on his face. "Let's talk this over, if you want to."
"Yeah, that should be fine... I'll see you, then?" I said, the same awkward smile on my face.
So much would change after this. I wasn't sure in which way, though.
It was the next morning now, and she had parted with him with a fuzzy feeling throughout her whole body. Somehow she couldn't comprehend that something like that would happen. She hadn't ever expected something like that. But she didn't really mind, honestly.
The sun shone in her eyes, and she stretched out and yawned. It really felt better to wake up late, she decided. She felt completely awake for the first time in weeks. She jumped out of bed, brushed her hair quickly, and put on a pair of black loose pants and a white blouse. She tied back her blond hair with a white ribbon.
"I wonder when he'll come by..." she mused, a small smile on her face. She tied the ribbon, put a bow in it. Today was Saturday, and that ment that there was no training to do, no work to do do. Nor were there quests to do. She absolutely loved the weekend. She hooked her stick to her belt, on the place where it usually was. Then she headed out to her balcony, leaning on the thick wood. The wind blew through her hair and made it tickle her neck ever so slightly, but she didn't bother to brush it away.
She looked up when she saw someone on a board near her. She blinked.
"Oh! Hi!" she yelled at Nathan. She was surprised to see him in a pair of jeans and a black T-shirt! Grinning, he hopped off of his board and onto her balcony. Caitlyn grinned as well, and walked over to him. He took her hands and pulled her into a hug. She blushed furiously, what only made him look more amused.
"Good morning, Caitlyn.." he said into her hair, smiling slightly. "You look nice today.." he mumbled, a bit quieter. Caitlyn smiled, looking up at him. His fingers tickled the base of her neck, playing with the hair there. She blushed a bit more and that didn't go unnoticed; he smiled and wrapped an arm around her waist, picking her up and plopping her onto the couch there. He smiled even when she protested, and then he sat next to her, staying quiet. Caitlyn blinked when she saw that he closed his eyes and sighed.
"Say..." he started, cutting himself off. He looked at her quickly, then away again.
"About yesterday..." Caitlyn started when he stayed quiet. "I've been thinking about this for a while... What.. Did that mean, exactly?" she said quietly. He stayed quiet for a bit again. "Mm... I think it means a lot. I don't kiss people every day..." he said. Caitlyn looked at him incredulously; he sounded like he was joking. But he actually was blushing, his fringe hiding his right eye from view. She smiled and reached out to brush it out of his face. He looked up at her, suddenly looking less like the mighty Elementor she had seen him as. He smiled. "Let's not rush ahead on things; just see how it goes." he said, concluding the discussion for now. "Mm.." Caitlyn mused. "Is that okay?" he said, leaning forward a bit, looking into her dark blue eyes. She looked back, feeling a bit shy seeing that expression. Then she felt a silly smile appear on her face. "Yeah, I guess..." she said sheepishly. He smiled, obviously relieved. She had a feeling that he hadn't been in a lot of relationships, but she didn't dare say it. She did smile though, incredulously. All of this felt like a wonder to her, she could explain the strange fluttering feeling that filled her chest right now. Then she noticed she had been spacing out, and blinked. Then she looked next to her to see Nathan leaned back on the couch, his eyes almost closed. A spring breeze whirled into the room, and they both breathed in deeply at the same time.
She observed his face for a bit; observed his expressions. He looked completely relaxed for now, but she had seen him when he was thoughtful, or worried as well. Then she crept back on the couch and leaned against his shoulder carefully. He moved instinctively, moving his arm to fit around her shoulders. His hair tickled her face just a bit, and she smiled. He looked down at her with an amused expression. Then he closed his eyes and enjoyed the moment as long as he could.
Chapter 12
Caitlyn felt a bit anxious as she sneaked through the gate to the large mansion that was Nathan's, carefully avoiding the busy magicians that had crowded around. He had talked to new people who joined the Guild of Elementors, and people were hanging around in the hope to get a glimpse of the mysterious Elementor. She, however, being able to read his expressions a bit better, saw how tired he had looked after that last conference. His eyes weren't as sharp as they usually were, and she swore she almost saw him trip after he was done, and heading home.
She had been on errand for Sam, since he needed a new hat, and she was headed for town, when she saw the crowd of people in front of the Church of Saint Morning. She heard his voice after a few minutes, barely audible through the crowd, but certainly there. And then she thought about how busy he had been lately.
'We barely get time to spend together...' she thought, feeling a bit of guilt after that thought. He was a busy person, and she had known that from the start. But it had been at least two months since they had properly talked to each other, without the rush and the stress of not being seen by the crowd.
"Nathan?" she asked hesitatingly, closing the wooden gate behind her. She moved to the terrace, a bit nervous when the grass under her feet was crushed with a slight sound.
"Who's there?" she heard a tired voice say after about a minute. He sounded as if he had just been sleeping, and she heard some shuffling before the Elementor peeked out from behind the door, his eyes darker than they normally would be. His face lit up when he saw her though, and his expression set a flurry of butterflies loose in her chest. Smiling, she reached out to him, setting her bag down on the floor and stepping towards him. He caught her with a slight 'oomph', folding his arms around her and pulling her against his chest, burying his face in her hair. He smiled, closing his eyes.
"Hi." he then simply said, looking at her blushing face with an amused look on his own.
"I saw you in Saint Morning today" she said with a smile, reaching around his neck, pulling him down slightly. He sighed, barely audible though.
"It was... Tiring. Not that it wasn't needed." he admitted sheepishly. Caitlyn frowned.
"And you look very tired..." she said quietly. He didn't even think about protesting, and nodded. "I am.. I'm sorry that I haven't been able to spend much time with you.." he said, a worried look on his features as his eyes turned to a soft brown, looking her in the eyes.
"It's okay..." she said softly, a bit disoriented by his presence, as she usually was.
"Is there anything you have to do today?" she then asked. He pondered, tapping his index finger to his chin thoughtfully.
"Nothing that can't be postponed." he said with a small smile. "Okay... First of all, you should relax." she said with a grin. He rolled his eyes playfully. "Fine. How do I relax?" he asked her, smirking. She touched his cheek, blushing when he leaned into the gesture openly, closing his eyes just a bit. "I-I've got an idea." she stuttered, looking away shyly.
A few minutes later he lowered himself on a chair he conjured out from somewhere, with a gesture of his hand, and sat down on it, smiling slightly.
"Ok. I want you to take your sweater off." she said, smiling slightly. He smirked (though she couldn't see it), and listened to her. She ran her fingers over his shoulders experimentally, though happy that she couldn't see his face right how, or him seeing hers.
'Well, it was my idea to give him a shoulder-massage...' she thought, mentally face-palming for getting herself in such an awkward situation. She blushed when he leaned into her hands, just like a few minutes before when she touched his face, and called up some basic magic to relax him just a bit. Her fingers tingled with the magic, but even more when she ran them over his shoulders, reaching her powers down into his strained muscles, making them relax. Though she was busy, she couldn't help but admire his frame, smiling slightly thinking of how lucky they both had been to meet each other at that moment.
"Caitlyn..." he said a few minutes later, rather sleepily. She blinked, having been in somewhat of a trance for that whole time. "... Hm?" she asked, not trusting herself with saying anything more. He sighed, though he was smiling though he did so.
"I can feel you staring. Just so you know." he said with a smirk, and a small blush.
Her mouth opened in a perfect 'o', and she smiled awkwardly.
"Well.. don't blame me.." she said quietly, not quite expecting him to hear it. A small smile curled her lips. Though, of course, he did, and he turned around slightly, looking at her face. Then he stood up from the chair, pulling her closer by cupping her cheek. She wasn't sure of what to say, because of his close proximity. Her mind seemed to be empty, yet again, and she smiled, an honest smile, because she felt very happy at that moment. He smiled as well, touching their smiles together, setting the butterflies that had almost stilled inside her body afly again.
She reached up almost instinctively, folding her arms around him again, brushing her hands over the soft fabric that was his black T-shirt, before slightly tugging on the fabric. Her eyes had closed a long time ago, and she focused on the strange sensations that flooded her once again (she hadn't been close to him in quite a while, and that made them strange sensations) because that was all she could do. He reached his hands up to her face, caressing her face with a soft yet firm grip, moving gently, as if he was handling a fragile being, moving to carefully deepen their embrace.
"..Nathan..." she mumbled when they moved apart for just a moment, their faces maybe just an inch apart. He stared into her eyes, his irises a brilliant blue that almost was too bright for her to take. Holding her breath, she forgot what she was about to say.
"... I love you." he whispered, smiling, no hesitation in his voice. She looked at him.
Then a huge grin appeared on her face. "Me too." she said quietly, pulling him close once again.