Children of the Mirror

...20th Part: Krad...

As soon as I pulled on my dry clothes, I went on a search for my jacket. I couldn't find it. And then I remembered that Dark had been wearing it when I'd dumped him into the lake.

I was cold. It didn't help that the fire was out. It also didn't help that Dark had a jacket of his own that I could have thrown over him at night, rather than discarding my own. I couldn't steal his, because he was wearing it.

So I sat on the opposite side of the dead fire from him, flicking the lighter open for the small chance that I might actually get some heat from it. I didn't get much. If Dark's glare was substantial, though, I might've burst into flame. I tried to ignore the look, but it was hard.

"Stop it!" I finally yelled.

"Stop what?" Dark said defensively.

"Stop staring at me like that!" I told him, standing up to tower over him.

Dark scrambled to his feet to meet me at the same level. We were the exact same height if you smoothed down his messy hair and my bangs. "I think I have a good excuse to glare at you!" he shot back. "For one," he went on, "you're the ultimate cause for my bike getting smashed!"

"That was not my fault!" I argued.

"You threw me into a lake filled with bloodsucking leeches –!"

"I didn't know about the leeches!"

"You're a murderer!" He shouted over my protests. "You're probably trying to kill me, too, aren't you!? I know that's what you dream about!"

"Look –" I shouted. "I don't care what may be going on in those ridiculous dreams! I don't want to hate you and I most certainly don't want to kill you! Sure, sometimes you can really get on my nerves, but think about how long we've been together!" I grabbed a hold of his shoulders and commenced to shaking him roughly. "People who have been together as long as we have can't truly hate each other like that, can they!?"

I searched his eyes for a while, but found no answers. I didn't think we would ever find answers at this rate. How many more months – or years – would it take to find whatever this thing was that we seemed so bound to?

I shoved him away and stalked off, glaring blindly ahead of me.

Dark caught up to me and grabbed my arm, pulling me around to face him. In the same second, he locked his arm around my back and pulled me against him. His fingers lightly touched my face and his lips were pressed against mine.

I was still stunned when he pulled away to align his violet eyes with my golden ones. "You just might have a point," he grumbled, and kissed me again.

My mind was reeling with thoughts I couldn't understand, and simultaneously, it was completely blank. The only clear thing in my consciousness was confusion, but I found I couldn't argue when Dark's lips moved so encouragingly against mine. Hesitantly, I slipped my arm around his shoulders and began to kiss him back.

We didn't even try to stop kissing each other until we discovered the severe need to breathe, at which point we pulled away from each other, gasping for the air we had lost as if we were drowning in that damned lake again.

"What was that?"

Dark was glaring at me again, but the look was different than it had been before. "A kiss, idiot! What else?"

"But why?" I clarified.

He threw his hands up in the air. "I don't know!"

I couldn't stop myself. I didn't know why, but I started laughing. I was having hysterics! "You don't know?" I echoed. "You weren't dared to again, were you?"

"You know there's no one around to dare me!" Dark protested, then realized how stupid he sounded. He had just kissed me of his own accord – because he wanted to! He crossed his arms over his chest and averted my eyes.

What a turnaround, I thought.

Things might just get interesting from now on.

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(And this is where I get the 'Romance' part of the genre in. They're gonna get a little fluffier on you guys, so be warned! (lol) )