Hey everyone! First off, I need to thank you guys for all the support this story is getting. From the reviews based on the last chapter, I saw that a lot of you guys had a great reaction to the scenes with Gregor and Luxa. I wasn't planning to have any Gluxa in this chapter at all, but because of the reviews, I added some in. Hope you guys like it. Keep reviewing, and again thanks for the support. You guys are awesome!

-Skychip

Disclaimer: I do not own any of The Underland Chronicles, only the characters I make up and the plot itself.

Regalia High

Chapter 13: Regrets?

Her eyes were as gorgeous as ever, and it was funny how the dull lights of the stage gave them a sort of glow. Luxa's eyes looked they were a soft violet color, and like everything else, they looked great on her. Purple eyes didn't seem weird or out of place on her. They only added to her beauty.

At that moment, Gregor forgot where he was. Pulling her in again, he slowly brought his head down and kissed her.

-O-

Gregor couldn't believe what he had just done.

He had decided to go off script and do something that wasn't planned. Was there a punishment for that? Gregor wasn't sure, but if Mrs. Cormaci didn't make him pay for it, Luxa certainly would.

His decision to go off script was solely for the purpose of kissing Luxa. Gregor wasn't even sure she liked him back. Sure, there were a few things he could say that counted in his favor, but those could all be coincidences as well. Those could just be things that showed her being nervous about the play.

Even now, while he kissed her, Gregor could feel Luxa's pulse beating at a mile a minute. She was probably furious right now, thinking of all these intricate, creative ways to hurt him. It was definitely a mistake to do this. A huge mistake.

When Gregor had realized how he felt about Luxa some time before, he had decided that it was okay to lie to himself. To let himself think that Luxa liked him back. It was better than thinking he was just like any other person in her life. But with this, he was directly involving her, and that wasn't supposed to happen. Because now, she would break off all communication with him, and he wouldn't even have her as a friend.

So much had happened in their many talks throughout the past couple of weeks. Gregor had gotten to know Luxa really well, and he never felt shy about speaking of his own life with her. If all of that were gone, it would leave a huge gap in his life.

But for this kiss… this one kiss… it might be all worth it.

Gregor's fear melted slightly as he realized that the seconds were passing and Luxa wasn't pulling away. He was waiting for the instant where she pulled her lips away from his, ending this moment.

But she didn't. Instead, her soft lips moved perfectly with his, almost effortlessly. Gregor didn't have to think about anything. He had heard about what kissing was like. That sometimes it got complicated and you didn't know what to do and sometimes your noses bumped and it became awkward.

Gregor didn't feel awkward though. He felt like he could stay there forever. Every movement their lips made against each other was completely natural. Luxa removed her hands from his and slowly brought them up. She gently wrapped her arms around his neck while he moved his hands to her waist.

The entire time, a soft buzz seemed to radiate through Gregor. It wasn't too different from what he felt when he played dodgeball in the games. The sensation was pumping adrenaline through his body at an alarming rate, and Gregor tried his best to make it go away. During his games, it was a good thing, since it helped him out. But he also never remembered anything. And, mistake or not, he wanted to make sure he remembered this moment forever.

The loud cheering and clapping from the audience brought Gregor back to reality. The play was over, and in truth, Gregor had forgotten where he was. It was amazing how weeks of worrying had been erased by the kiss.

Gregor opened his eyes as he pulled away from Luxa. He saw Luxa breath desperately for air, and he realized he was doing the same. He wasn't exactly sure how long they had kissed, but apparently, they hadn't breathed in a while.

As he took a step back, Gregor saw the curtains closing, leaving them in total darkness. The lights were back on in an instant, but he turned his face away from Luxa. The joy he had felt just seconds before had disappeared, and he was afraid to meet her gaze.

Although he hoped she felt something sincere towards him and returned his feelings, Gregor realized it was useless. The whole point of doing the play was to get a good grade. Luxa was really counting on the best grade possible, and her reaction to what he did was probably just to avoid hurting their performance. Now that it was over and that the curtains hid them from the audience, she would definitely strangle him with her bare hands.

But the violence never came. Instead, Luxa's hands grabbed Gregor's again and she pulled him close. It wasn't enough for them to embrace, but it was enough to force Gregor to look at her. Luxa's smile was warm, and he saw a glint in her eye that might have been a small set of tears. As he smiled back, Mrs. Cormaci ran over to them, turning them towards the curtain. The rest of the actors were making their way to the stage as well.

"Hold hands, everyone! It's time for the bow!"

Gregor held on to one of Luxa's hands but let the other go. She turned and held someone else's hand with her free one, and Gregor did the same. All of the actors formed a long line across the stage and waited while the curtain opened up.

Slowly, the chain of actors bowed while the audience cheered again. Gregor had a grin from ear to ear. He didn't expect to feel this happy after the play, but he actually had fun. Then again, the major reason why he was so happy was because Luxa didn't look angry about the kiss.

If Luxa wasn't angry, though, Angelina definitely was.

The look on her face was composed of a mixture of emotions. There was confusion, and Gregor guessed it was due to the kiss. Angelina wasn't sure if the kiss was part of the play or if it was something that had happened spontaneously. Because of the possibility of the second option, there was also sadness. Gregor felt bad because he knew Angelina had a small crush on him, and he couldn't return the feelings. She was a great friend, but he had never felt more than friendship towards her.

The last emotion that Gregor could detect in her eyes was anger. What was she mad at? Or who? If she had been hurt by what she had just seen, then it would be best if she were mad at Gregor. He hoped it wasn't anger towards Luxa. That would only cause problems in the future. If he and Luxa had a future…

Larry seemed genuinely happy. He was clapping with enthusiasm, and it was louder than anyone else's. He didn't know the kiss wasn't supposed to happen, and so to him, the play had gone like it was meant to have gone.

Gregor hadn't told Larry of his growing feelings for Luxa. Again, he felt bad, this time about Larry. He was his best friend, and he had been keeping these things to himself. Come to think of it, it would have been nice to have some sort of advice on his situation with Luxa. The kind of advice only a best friend could give. Not that Larry was an expert with girls, but still, he shouldn't have excluded him.

Lizzie was the only one who knew the kiss wasn't supposed to happen. She had been there a few times when Gregor and Luxa were rehearsing, and she would even give them tips on how to stand so that the audience would see them better in certain scenes. She was the mini audience that sat through some of their rehearsing, helping them get over their nervousness of having to perform in front of so many people.

She was clapping, and she had a smile on her face, but her eyes were locked with Gregor's. Lizzie's eyes weren't mean or accusing. Instead, they had a look that made her older brother blush slightly. One of her eyebrows was raised slightly, as if questioning him. Lizzie suspected that Gregor liked Luxa, and what she had just seen only confirmed it. Now, Gregor had no way of denying it.

While his eyes were still on the audience, Gregor got a good look at Luxa's friends and cousins as well. Henry had a forced smile on his face and was clapping, but he didn't seem mad. Perhaps he didn't know that the kiss wasn't planned either. The older girl was also clapping and smiling, but unlike Henry, her smile wasn't forced. She was looking at Luxa, but her eyes drifted over to meet Gregor's for a moment, and he couldn't help but smile back.

Aurora looked like she was about to cry from happiness. Gregor couldn't hear her over all the clapping and cheering, but he was pretty sure she was laughing with joy. The look in her eyes was like Lizzie's, and Gregor guessed that Luxa had talked to her about the play. Maybe she was another person who knew the kiss wasn't planned.

The last person Gregor saw was Ares, and he almost let out a sigh of relief when he met his eyes. It seemed like forever that Ares had been giving him these strange looks. They had begun on the first week of school, and they had continued for weeks. Now, the look wasn't there, and his face only registered confusion and curiosity. Curiosity for what, Gregor didn't know, but it was better than those weird looks he had been getting.

The curtains slowly came down to close again, and then the line of actors became a huge gathering of people. Small groups formed everywhere in which actors began hugging and congratulating each other. Luxa's hand slipped from Gregor's as she was pulled away by a group of girls, and Gregor found himself being dragged around by people who wanted a hug or a picture.

After about fifteen minutes of this, Mrs. Cormaci announced that the costumes had to be returned to the back room. Everyone made their way over to it, and Gregor walked among the crowd of people. He looked around for a bit, but he couldn't catch sight of Luxa anywhere.

Gregor returned his costume and decided to wait outside in the dressing room, hoping to see Luxa when she came out. As he made his way out, though, he found that she was already there waiting for him. His face instantly put on a smile that matched hers as he walked towards the corner of the room where she was standing.

Luxa didn't wait for him to make it. She walked a couple of steps forward and greeted him in a hug. For a moment they stood there, arms wrapped around each other while everyone else walked around them. After a while, the people walking around left, and he was left only with Luxa. He got lost for a moment in the scent of her hair, and he closed his eyes, hoping this moment would last.

She pulled away faster than he would have hoped, but she was still smiling. Gregor wanted to say something, but he wasn't sure what. By the look on Luxa's face, he figured that sometimes, it was better to stay silent and enjoy the person you were with.

So that's exactly what he did.

Their moment was finally interrupted by a high pitched squeak by the door. Gregor and Luxa turned to see Aurora running towards them with a huge grin. Ares followed close behind her, but he wasn't running. His long strides were enough to keep him at Aurora's speed. He stopped a few feet before he got to them, but Aurora kept going.

Gregor wasn't sure if non-actors were allowed back there, but the people who were in charge of keeping regular students out had probably taken one look at Ares and decided not to say anything.

Gregor let go of Luxa to let Aurora hug her. He took a step back to avoid being in the way when he was almost knocked down. Aurora had crashed into him full speed, and he had to put a hand out to the wall for support to keep them from falling. Aurora had both arms wrapped around his neck tightly, and she was laughing.

"You guys were amazing!" she cried.

"Thanks," he replied, laughing along with her.

"That kiss was… special," she said, still smiling.

Gregor glanced over at Luxa quickly, but she had her head down, blushing slightly.

"It was," he said finally, causing Luxa to raise her head in his direction a bit with a smile.

"The entire play was great!" continued Aurora, finally letting go of Gregor to give Luxa a tight hug. She whispered in Luxa's ear and the two of them giggled.

Before Gregor realized what was happening, Aurora had pulled Luxa away by the hand to another room, laughing and talking excitedly. They were both happy, and Gregor enjoyed seeing Luxa smile, but there was a problem. With them gone, the only two people in the room were Gregor and Ares.

It was awkward for the first few minutes. Neither of them said anything. Gregor wasn't sure how long Luxa and Aurora would take, but he hoped it wouldn't be too much longer. Ares stood in the same spot where he had stopped walking when he came in, and he kept his eyes on the floor and his hands in his pockets.

"You guys really did do a great job on the play, you know."

Gregor turned to Ares in surprise. He hadn't expected Ares to say anything, but here he was, congratulating him on the play.

"Uh, thanks. Glad you could make it."

What? Glad you could make it? Had he really just said that? It's not like Gregor had invited him or anything. But he was struggling to keep a conversation with Ares. The kid was just too unpredictable. First, he gave him weird looks for ages, and now, he was talking to him like nothing happened.

"Aurora wanted to come see it," said Ares, explaining his reasons for showing up.

So that was it. The realization hit Gregor so fast, he almost hit himself on the forehead with the palm of his hand.

Of course! The looks had begun that day Ares had seen him talk to Aurora! How could he have forgotten that?

Everyone knew Ares liked Aurora. It was no secret. He wasn't that good at hiding it. If he was good at hiding it, he would have chosen his words more carefully. But instead, he had literally admitted that his reason for attending the performance was because Aurora was going.

Gregor had just done a play in front of a lot of people, and more importantly than that, he had just kissed Luxa. He decided that today was the day he wasn't scared of anything. It was a good day to confront Ares about the stares. Looking over at him, Gregor took a deep breath and spoke.

"You know, I don't like Aurora." That got Ares to look up at him. "I mean, I like her, but not in that way."

Ares nodded slowly. "I realize that now."

"Now?" asked Gregor.

"Well, yeah," he said, moving his arm back and forth between the stage and Gregor. "I think the unexpected ending proved that."

"Wait, how do you know about that?"

Ares gave him a sheepish look. "Aurora told me."

Gregor felt his face turn red. How many others were finding out?

"If I hadn't kissed Luxa, would you still think that I liked Aurora?"

"She likes you, and it was obvious that you like her back."

Gregor sighed. "I like her because she's the only one that was nice to me when the rest of you weren't. She was nice to me even before Luxa was."

Ares looked down at the ground again and rubbed the back of his neck. "About that," he began. "I'm sorry. We should not have been mean to you before. I've known Aurora and Luxa for a long time. If they like you, then you must be a good person. There is no reason why I should question their judgment. Henry is just different. Sometimes, what he says can affect us all."

Gregor took this in for moment. Although the conversation about Aurora was a bit uncomfortable, he preferred that over talking about Henry.

"Did you hate me when you thought I liked Aurora?"

Ares looked at him with a expression of shock. "What do you mean?"

"Well, those looks you gave me. I wasn't sure if you hated me or if you were just angry."

"I did not hate you," said Ares, still sounding shocked. "I didn't mean for you to notice."

Gregor let out a nervous laugh. "They were pretty noticeable."

"Oh. I didn't mean to make you feel weird. I was just wondering about you."

"Wondering what about me?" asked Gregor curiously.

"I was wondering what about you made you so likable to Aurora."

"Huh?" Now Gregor was confused.

Ares sighed loudly. "She smiles when she sees you. She laughs when you speak."

Gregor understood. "I think she was just being polite. And maybe she does like me. But only as a friend. She had been trying to get me to fix things with Luxa when me and her had the argument." He paused for a moment. "One day, she'll realize how much you like her."

Ares looked at him with even more shock than he had just moments before. "How do you know about that?"

Gregor opened his mouth slightly in amazement. "Seriously? The entire school knows that you like Aurora."

"Do you think she knows?" asked Ares after a moment.

"I'm pretty sure she does. It's kind of obvious."

Ares stared down at the ground. "I didn't mean to make it so noticeable. I thought I was doing a good job concealing it."

Gregor laughed. "Yea, well in case you haven't noticed, you're not very good at hiding things."

"I guess not," said Ares, smiling.

It was surprising how friendly the conversation had turned. Just like Luxa and Aurora, Ares was very easy to talk to when he wasn't with Henry. Gregor was about to say something else when the girls came bursting back into the room, laughing.

Aurora walked over to congratulate him again. She gave him a quick hug and then turned to leave, taking Ares with her and leaving him alone with Luxa.

Almost instantly, Gregor and Luxa were back in each other's arms. Luxa's eyes were still filled with happiness, and he could do nothing but smile at her.

Luxa brought her arms up to wrap them around his neck again and spoke in a whisper.

"Where were we?" she asked.

Gregor laughed quietly, causing her to laugh as well.

"I don't know. We were just standing here for like, forever."

"We were not speaking?" she asked, trying to suppress a smile.

He laughed again at her attempt to sound clueless. "Nope. Not at all."

"Well then. Perhaps you should say something."

"What should I say?" he asked, playing along.

"Oh, I do not know. Say the first thing that comes to mind."

Gregor looked around the room, acting like he was thinking of something to say. Luxa laughed again, using one of her hands to hit him lightly on the back of the head. He laughed while he thought of something silly to say. Gregor was about to speak when something on the far end of the wall caught his eye. It was a poster that had been hung up by the door, advertising an upcoming school event.

"Have you thought of anything yet?" asked Luxa with a smile, leaning her head on his chest.

"Actually, I have."

"And?"

Gregor leaned his head down to whisper in her ear.

"Will you go to the homecoming dance with me?"

I'm sure I got your hearts racing when you read that title! You probably assumed the worse. Well, Gregor couldn't have chosen a better time to ask her, I mean, he nailed it! With the circumstances like that, I don't think Luxa really has a choice! Well, what I bank to see is how Angelina acts next time she shows. Won't that be interesting!

Question: what will Luxa answer? Okay, so this is too easy, so I'll give you a second. How will Angelina act next time we see her?

Until next time,

-Tytonic