Thorne stared grimly at his reflection, unwilling to emerge from his closet so the others could get a look at the final product. For once, he was not thrilled with his appearance in the wall-to-wall mirrors that surrounded him. He turned and inspected his right side, where his fake sword hung ceremoniously from the weird leather belt thing attached to his dark blue doublet.

He looked ridiculous and he blamed Scarlet. At her encouragement, he'd shopped around and finally ordered his costume pieces from Ye Olde Renn Faire Shoppe. Beside the outlandish prices on expedited shipping, it was a website he normally would never be caught dead shopping around on. And now he was in a costume he wasn't even sure he looked good in. His friends were never going let him forget this.

Swallowing his pride—which was quite a painful thing to do—he opened the door to his bedroom and stepped out grandly, knowing that sometimes all it took was a little feigned confidence to make others respect you. But the look on Kesley's face threatened to make him run back into the closet.

"This is the best thing I've ever seen."

Thorne straightened. "I know you wish you were as handsome as me. I'm sorry I can't share the wealth."

Kesley just laughed and massaged his hands into Scarlet's shoulders. "You really did a number on him, Scar. We need to take a picture to remember this."

Kai started laughing too, but Scarlet shushed them both. "Cress is the one who did a number on him, Z. I just helped him pull this costume together last minute."

"And what a costume it is," Kesley simpered.

"Says the guy who looks like Antonio Banderas," Thorne shot back.

As much as it pained him to admit it, Kesley's bandit costume made him look much cooler than Thorne. But the star of the room was definitely Scarlet, who had admitted a secret passion for Renaissance Fairs and had been all too happy to get decked out for the event.

Her bright red corset laced up in the front and accented all the right curves and angles. She claimed that the corset coupled with her dress was supposed to be a steampunk version of Little Red Riding Hood, whatever that was. All Thorne knew for sure was that Kesley would be busy all day deflecting appreciative glances shot in her direction.

"I don't look like a real knight, Scarlet," he whined. "This whole crossover with Flynn Rider was a bad idea."

Cinder, who sat on his bed leaning on Kai, perked up. "Ooh, you're supposed to be Flynn Rider?"

He shot Scarlet a murderous glare. "See! No one can tell."

"Sweetie, you said she loves Tangled. You watched it together, right?"

"You watched a Disney movie?" asked Kai, but he wasn't really looking at Thorne. He leaned in to whisper something in Cinder's ear and they both shared a meaningful smile. Neither of them were in costume, claiming they'd had enough of false pretenses for quite some time, whatever that meant.

"It might have been playing, but I'm sure he didn't watch it," said Kesley, throwing a grin over his shoulder at Kai.

Thorne ignored them both and returned to his conversation with Scarlet. "Just because we watched a movie together doesn't mean she'll see the connection." He had explained briefly that Cress had a thing for Rapunzel, but he hadn't elaborated. It wasn't any of their business that she enjoyed dressing up. At least, beyond what Kai and Kesley had witnessed at the bar the last time he'd seen her. "Today is the Chivalry & Romance theme. I should have dressed up like a real knight instead. Armor and everything."

"Nah, with armor you'd be too clunky," said Scarlet.

"And just because you're not a real knight doesn't mean it's not romantic," Cinder piped up. "If she loves Tangled, then she doesn't care so much about someone having an important title. Flynn Rider isn't a prince."

"And Thorne is anything but," said Kesley.

"Aren't you just hysterical today," he said dryly to Kesley. To Cinder, he said, "You liked that movie too?"

"Sure, it's cute," she said.

He sighed. "I'm too old for this nonsense."

Scarlet put her hands on her hips. "You better not chicken out now. No guy is ever too old to make a grand romantic gesture for his partner."

Thorne walked back to the mirror without responding and examined himself again. The problem was that he didn't even know if Cress wanted him as a partner anymore. He had to remember that this was to make Cress happy, not him. If she liked this sort of thing, then he would humor her. After everything he'd pulled, she deserved that and so much more from him. But what if his costume was all wrong and she just laughed at him when she saw him?

He needed her to swoon. He needed her to see that he was making an effort to put her interests before his. If his costume didn't show it, his actions would. He could challenge someone else to a joust or duel. That was certainly chivalrous, and furthermore, how hard could it really be? The people who went to these types of events were just bunch of nerds. The closest they had ever come to a real fight had probably taken place in their daily Dungeons & Dragons role play.

But Scarlet liked Renaissance Fairs, and she was actually pretty normal. She could definitely give him a run for his money in a duel any day. And Cress liked Renaissance Fairs. He wouldn't exactly call her normal, but he didn't think she played Dungeons & Dragons either. Kai and Cinder, though they weren't willing to dress up, had thought going to a Renaissance Fair would be fun too.

"Okay, Sir Thorne," he whispered under his breath, mustering up all the bravado he had. He tried to hold a serious pose but couldn't keep himself from grimacing. When he composed himself, he winked at himself in the mirror instead. "Show time."

The Renaissance Fair was packed. He didn't know what he'd expected, exactly, but it wasn't this. It was like stepping into a medieval carnival—minus the amusement park rides. Contrary to his thoughts back in his closet, he didn't look out of place at all. People of all ages were in costumes everywhere, and his was definitely not the strangest.

Scarlet had even pointed out someone dressed as a plague doctor. That was a weird outfit if he'd ever seen one. How could that guy even flirt with the wenches and barmaids if his face was totally obscured by a mask that resembled something out of Star Trek?

Thorne's costume didn't present such issues. In fact, two girls dressed as wenches had already approached him with compliments on his outfit while standing in line to enter. It puffed up his ego, giving him the boost he needed to stroll around with swagger. That was how he usually walked around anyway.

He had shooed the girls away quickly, though, afraid that he would bump into Cress in the exact moment that one of them was drooling over him. He had already caused enough misunderstandings with women on his own—he didn't need any help from others.

Once inside, they weaved their way through the maze of people, everyone with strict instructions from Thorne to be on the lookout for Cress. They knew what she looked like, but he had described her anyway, stating that she would likely have a wig. He was glad to have Kesley at his side, too, since he was taller than most and could see over the crowds. Thorne herded them away from the entrance crowd until they stood in a vacant spot to the side of a stand selling ale called The New World Inn.

Thorne pulled out his map and glanced at it briefly before looking up at Cinder and Kai, holding hands, and Scarlet and Kesley, also holding hands. There was a brief twinge of longing inside his gut to also have someone at his side who would stroll through an event like this with him. Knowing Cress, she would probably ooh and aah at all the different costumes and come up with background stories for all of the characters that she didn't recognize from her movies. The thought of her beside him and amongst his coupled friends only strengthened his resolve.

"It's crowded. We need a new plan." He held up the map and pointed. "Kai, you and Cinder head over in the direction of the Queen's Creamery. You'll also pass artisan craft stands. She likes that sort of thing. Make sure that once you've done a run-through, you stay in the same spot for at least an hour before we meet up again. If we're all just passing through, it's too easy to miss each other."

Kai saluted him. "Yes, Sir."

"Remember, if you run into her, don't scare her off."

Cinder rolled her eyes. "Why don't we just take her hostage? We can claim we've come from the future and need her to accompany us back to our time machine."

"Very funny. Scarlet, Kesley—you're on patrol on the different food stands." Kesley nodded, and Thorne added, "You're welcome."

"You should come with us, Thorne," said Scarlet. "It'll be more fun than if you're out here all alone."

"No. I'm going to the tournament area. Not only do I need to show off my skills, I'm sure that Cress will eventually head over to see archery, dueling, and jousting. She won't be able to resist. Rendezvous at Anchor & Mermaid Tavern in an hour and a half." They stared back at him, not moving. "What?"

"Show off your skills?" asked Kai, exchanging a glance with Kesley. In fact, everyone seemed to be pressing their lips together to avoid smiling.

"Yes, what's so funny about that?"

"You can't just randomly start jousting. You had to sign up for that earlier," said Scarlet.

"If he's doing any kind of physical competition, I definitely want to see it," said Cinder, no longer trying to hide her smile.

"Me too," Kesley and Kai chorused.

He crossed his arms in exasperation. They gave him no credit at all. Maybe he wasn't as built as Kesley, but he went to the gym. He had muscles. He could handle a fake competition any day.

Thorne padded his leather satchel. "Just call me if you spot her before. Don't tell her I'm here, though. I want to surprise her."

"Wait one more second, Thorne," said Scarlet. "I forgot to do something in the apartment."

"What?" he asked irritably.

Scarlet whipped out her phone and snapped a picture of him before he could protest. "All done," she said, grinning wickedly. Then she pulled up the picture on her phone and showed the rest of them, who crowded around to see.

"That should get framed," said Kai.

"Definitely," said Scarlet.

Huffing, he set off toward the tournaments. They could laugh all they wanted, but he would not be deterred. And when he had the lovely Lady Cress back on his arm, he would have the last laugh.

As it turned out, one could not just sign up for jousting and dueling, as Scarlet had said. They were actual tournaments by traveling professionals who put on shows. Basically, clowns with a different purpose and less scary makeup, he decided. Archery was a different story, as anyone could sign up to shoot some arrows, but he found that without an audience it wasn't much fun.

He settled instead on hanging around close to the entrances of all three events, eyes roaming anywhere and everywhere for Cress. At one point he saw a short girl dressed like a gypsy, beads hanging over a bare lower back. She danced around freely, in a manner that he recognized, so he made to approach her. But as he got closer, he saw that the small of her back had tattoos that snaked from one hip to the other, and he drew back. When she turned around, he was glad that he hadn't said anything—it definitely wasn't her.

The biggest problem was that there weren't many people alone in the crowds. They were having a good time with their friends, laughing, drinking, and enjoying the festivities. Cress didn't have many friends, so he should probably be looking for a girl on her own or with another person—a couple, perhaps? He didn't want to think about it, but knew he might have to face that reality.

Only Thorne looked truly alone. He wondered if Cinder and Kai were actually watching for Cress or had just snuck off to make out somewhere. He wouldn't blame them; they were still in their infatuation stage of being back together again. Scarlet and Kesley, on the other hand, would probably do a better job. They were trying to become detectives, after all. In fact, he should have just sent them off on their own to scope the place out.

Thorne walked to a stand and finally decided on buying some kettle corn. He perched himself up on back the ledge of a bench where he could observe everyone again. He found he couldn't eat a lot of his kettle corn because his stupid nerves kept getting in the way. He set the bag down and reached for the phone in his satchel.

Nothing.

His stomach did an annoying jump of anticipation and dread.

"Come on, Cress," he said. "Where are you?"

"I really don't think she's here," said Scarlet. "All the main events are already taking place."

"She has to be here," said Thorne. "We can't give up now."

Cinder reached out and touched his arm, trying to comfort him. It wasn't working. "Look, she's not dancing. She's not at the jousting or dueling tournaments. She isn't looking for crafts. And she's not currently in any of the taverns. We've been everywhere multiple times. Can't you just call her?"

"No! She won't answer. And I don't want to ruin the surprise. Can you check the women's bathroom again?"

"We've checked it a hundred times, Thorne," said Scarlet gently. "She's just not here."

Thorne sighed and looked up at the sky. Why wasn't Cress here? His plan had been foolproof. He had the costume, the lookouts, the lines—everything was here.

Except Cress.

He ran his hands through his hair and sighed again. "You're right. You're right." He nodded crisply at all of them. "Let's go. I hope you guys had some fun anyway."

"Don't worry, Thorne, we had a good time," said Kai.

"Yeah, don't beat yourself up," said Kesley. "Maybe it just wasn't meant to be."

They began walking, but something about what Kesley said made Thorne angry. Meant to be. Please. It was something that Cress would have said. He rounded on Kesley. "That's a bunch of bullshit."

"I'm sorry?"

"Was it meant to be that you stopped being in a gang and decided to be a better person once you met Scarlet?"

"I—"

"No, you made that decision."

"Kai, was it meant to be that you just happened to meet Cinder? No, I was the one who thought she'd be good for you, so I invited her to my party. And then, when Cinder gave you an ultimatum about dumping Levana, was it just meant to be that you two should be together?"

Kai glanced uncomfortably at Cinder.

"No," Thorne continued. "You had to make a choice. If you had just sat around and done nothing and accepted your circumstances then you wouldn't be holding hands with her today."

"Thorne," said Scarlet, "I know you're upset, but you can't force Cress to come here so your plan will work. You don't have a say in the matter."

"No, but I do have something I need to tell her. Maybe she won't answer my calls, but I know where she lives. I'm going there and I'm not leaving until she lets me say what I need to say."

He marched ahead, leaving them behind. Kai caught up with him first. "Hang on, Thorne. You can't just stay there if she doesn't want you to be there. It'll just make things worse. What if she freaks out and thinks you're a stalker? She could put a restraining order on you."

"If I recall," he said, his voice clipped, "you went to Cinder's house doing the exact same thing. In fact, you even connived with her best friend to ambush her. This is hardly as bad as that."

"I don't know, man. She was really upset at the bar. You said so yourself."

Determination set his jaw and he continued walking. "I'm going."

Kai exhaled. "I'll go with you."

They all went with him. Thorne wasn't entirely happy about the situation, but since they'd all come together in the Rampion, it didn't make sense for him to drop everyone else off first. In the hour it took them to get away from the city's outskirts, through the downtown, and into Cress' neighborhood, his resolve began to crumble. What if Kai was right and she just slammed the door in his face again?

Scarlet sat shotgun, peppering him with advice on what to say and what not to say. Though she was trying to be helpful, she was actually making him more nervous.

"If there's a guy there, run away," Kai said from the back.

"Especially if it's her cousin," Cinder added, poking Kai in the ribs. "They're very protective."

Thorne turned right onto her street and gripped the steering wheel tighter. "If any guy is there, I'm leaving."

"Be sweet," Scarlet suggested.

"Listen to her," said Cinder.

Cress was not the same as Scarlet, though, and not the same as Cinder. What if she reacted in a way that even they couldn't predict? They didn't know her—only he did.

Her driveway came into view and Thorne's mouth turned to chalk. She was going to slam the door in his face like last time. And why shouldn't she?

Reluctantly, he drove into her driveway and put the car in park. Kai whooped and pounded him on the back. Scarlet reached out and squeezed his hand. He pretended like he wasn't completely terrified and smiled confidently. He opened the door and stepped out of the Rampion, the lingering heat doing nothing to calm him down, despite it being the early hours of twilight.

"Spades," he muttered. It wasn't even raining. Not even nature was on his side for his dramatic confrontation. It always rained in Cress' romantic movies whenever there was some big turning point. Was it a sign?

He told himself to shut up. There were no signs. It was just him and his feeble attempt at an apology now.

Cress opened the door partially before he even had the chance to knock. She must have seen him coming through her stupid windows. She stood there, looking through him to his friends in the car. He had been searching for her in costume all day, but she wore a pink tanktop and a summer peasant skirt.

She looked gorgeous.

And mad.

"What are you doing here?" He tried to wet his dry mouth but nothing came out. She narrowed her eyes. "And what are you wearing?"

"I—oh." He had forgotten that he was wearing his Flynn-Rider-turned-knight outfit. "Long story." She raised an eyebrow pointedly and he realized he was staring at her. Clearing his throat, he tried to act cool and collected and unthreatening. "Can I come in?"

"No."

Strike one. "It won't take long. And Kai, Kesley, Scarlet, and Cinder are all in the car in case you want to get rid of me. I promise I'm not here to upset you."

Her brow creased. "You just being here upsets me."

Strike two. He glanced back at his friends in the Rampion, who all looked away abruptly when he caught them staring intently at the two of them. He didn't want them to hear everything he said. But if Cress wouldn't let him in and he had no other choice, then so be it.

"Okay. I'll stay here on your stoop and I'll make it quick." When she didn't say anything, he pressed on. "You weren't just another notch on my belt, Cress, I hope you know that. I didn't know how to handle the fact that I wanted to keep seeing you—no, that I was developing feelings for you. Everyone before you, all those other girls, I had a pattern with them. A routine. It was easy and convenient for me. I actually thought I was being respectful to them by making it clear it would never go anywhere."

Cress frowned then, but he kept going. "It started out the same with you, but you got under my skin—in the best of ways! I tried to ignore the growing need I had to be around you. But when you said you loved me, it messed me up. I thought, how can this girl possibly think she loves me after we've only been together a few months?

"I've never really believed in love or that it if existed, I would want it. I didn't tell you a lot about my parents. I should've told you about them when you told me about Sybil and your childhood." He took a shaky breath and rubbed at his neck. "I was never good enough for them, Cress. I was always this massive disappointment. I had different goals and dreams than they did, and they made it clear just how much I messed up all their carefully made plans. Eventually, I cut myself off from them. I made a life for myself, making sure I always put myself first and above all, enjoy myself. I made sure that I would never be a disappointment again. You threatened that."

She crossed her arms and stared at him, completely complacent. "It's like you said, Thorne. This would have been important information to share when we were still together. It's hardly relevant now."

And strike three. He was out. He tried to hide his bitter disappointment behind a tight-lipped smile. "I understand. I'm sorry that I bothered you. I'll leave you alone from now on, okay? I'm sorry for everything. Really."

He let himself stare into her beautiful blue eyes one last time, and then with an apologetic bow of his head, he began his walk of shame back to the Rampion. He kept his head up but his eyes down, avoiding his friends.

"Thorne?"

He paused mid-step, nearly stumbling over himself. Turning back to her, he saw that she had opened the door a bit wider, and was looking at him curiously.

"Why are you wearing that costume? I can't imagine any scenario in which you would think it's cool to wear that."

He let go of a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding and walked the few steps back to her. "I went to the Renaissance Fair to find you. I had a revelation and had to tell you. You weren't there, though."

"Clearly."

"So I came here right away."

"To tell me a revelation."

"Yes."

She scanned him again, taking her time. His heart sped up slightly. "Are you supposed to be Flynn Rider?"

He grinned. "Sort of. I had a sword too."

"Flynn Rider doesn't have a sword."

He went to stuff his hands in his pockets but then remembered he didn't have pockets. His hands fell awkwardly at his sides. "It was sort of a crossover. Anyway…" She was still staring at his outfit and he decided to seize the opportunity. "Cress, my revelation is…I figured out what love is."

She finally looked up at his face. "Oh stars. Here we go."

"But to do that, I first had to figure out what love wasn't. And you know what it's not? It's not what that woman did to you. Or the twisted, conditional version of it that my parents showed me every day when I was growing up. You see, in some ways we're the same, because we were both deceived about what love was supposed to look like."

Cress gave him a disbelieving raise of an eyebrow, but she let him continue.

"Love is sharing the painful and ugly parts of ourselves. And the parts that, in my case in particular, seem unredeemable. Because I have a lot of ugly parts, Cress. A lot of that has to do with the way I was raised, but I can't keep blaming them forever. I've also made some really bad choices that have brought me to this point. And somewhere along the way I realized that the version of myself that I want everyone to see is even uglier than when I'm not trying to pretend I'm awesome.

"Love isn't some grand gesture. I realized that today. It's not what we see in the movies, because movies are all about the big, showy displays of affection. That doesn't mean we shouldn't ever try to make big, sweeping gestures for the ones we love, but it's not really what counts in the end. It's the small things that count.

"Love is going to the grocery store and fighting over milk. Holding someone's hair back when she pukes because you can't stand to see her in pain. Watching dumb movies together just because she wants to. Sitting up in bed all night talking, because you can't get enough of that person. Love is fighting with your best friend because he believes you shouldn't be with her. Because you know that there's no way he can be right about her, despite her past, because you can see how pure she is and no one can take that away from you.

"Love is…love is me confessing that I don't want anyone else. I don't need a different flavor every month that I know I won't see through, because I have all that I want right here with you." He wanted desperately to touch her face, her hair, her hand, anything, but he was too afraid that she would reject him, and then he'd never be able to get everything out.

"I know it won't be easy, but I want to make it work with you. I know I'm not very good at it yet but I want to work on being more open with you. I've been holding on to all this stuff from the past, but I want to move forward with you. If you'll still have me."

Cress was just staring at him at this point, but he couldn't tell if it was good or bad. She wasn't blushing, she wasn't angry, she wasn't smiling. She was just staring at him. Searching for something.

"I wouldn't blame you if you never want to see me again," he continued. "Because I've learned something else about love too."

Cress' eyes widened. "There's…more?"

"Yeah. Love is knowing that you want her to be happy, even if it means she can't be with you, because stars, Cress, I want you to be so, so happy. Maybe your expectations of love are a bit too unrealistic, in my opinion, but you deserve so much, Cress. And not just because so much of your life was stolen from you, but just because of who you are.

"I've been so blind, Cress. So caught up in myself." He hesitated. "I-I know I was initially attracted to Rapunzel, but you don't need her anymore. Because I'm in love with Cress, not her." He sank to his knees in front of her. He winced as pain shot up his legs at the impact, and he mentally cursed chick flicks for making it look easy. "Please forgive me, Cress. I did everything wrong. I made it seem like you were someone who was easy to dispose of. As if you were unworthy. When really it was me who was unworthy of your love."

He exhaled profusely, trying to keep his hands from shaking. He had said it all. Thorne waited, staring up at her with as much resolution as he could. She met his stare with sadness in her eyes, though, and his mouth dried up again. Strike four, five, six, seven, eight, nine….

"I'm too late, aren't I?" he whispered. "If you give me another chance, Cress, just one, I'll do everything I can to be what you need. I-I'll come up with better speeches, where I don't say the wrong things. I can learn how to be the perfect boyfriend. I—"

Her fingers on his lips silenced him.

"I don't want the perfect boyfriend." Cress' hand moved slowly to his cheek, barely grazing it, and he closed his eyes. Her fingers ran through his hair, and then she pulled him closer. "I just want you."

Relief and warmth flooding him, he leaned his cheek against her stomach as she played with his hair.

The car horn blared behind them, causing Thorne and Cress to leap apart. He stood up shakily and glared with all his might at his friends, who were cheering from inside the Rampion. Cress laughed uneasily, a blush spreading over her cheeks. "Can we finish this inside?"

"I'm so glad you suggested it."

He held her door open for her and they slipped inside. The second they were behind closed doors, he picked her up and spun her. He put her down, but Thorne didn't want to let her go, so he just hugged her to him closely, trying to show her just how much he'd missed her.

She pulled back, though. "Thorne, I've been thinking. Do you think it was destiny that brought us together?"

He slid his hands to her waist. "Sorry, but no. I'm pretty sure it was a broken elevator and a little too much alcohol on both our parts."

Cress wrinkled her nose. "That's not very romantic."

"No, it's not."

"I've been doing a lot of thinking while we've been apart. Particularly since we last saw each other at the bar."

"Do tell. I'm all ears."

A little too eager, he thought she might confess how much she'd pined for him while they were apart. "I think I put too much of a focus on love," she said instead. "I let it consume me. In a way, I let being with you consume me. I think you were right about me putting my hope in the wrong thing."

"Cress, I was just being a jerk."

"Still, it made me think. I was too dependent on hiding behind my fantasies. Too dependent on you. I don't want us to need each other in order to be complete. I want us to complement each other."

"We can do that," he said quickly, kissing the top of her head. "Things can be different this time around."

"I've started going to church," she blurted.

"You—what?"

"Casually," she said. "I just want to see what else is out there…to put my hope in. I've made a few friends. I don't know if it'll be right for me, but I think it's a good place to start. Maybe I'll check out other religions next."

Thorne considered her words, though they were the last he had expected. "You know," he said, taking her hand, "I can kind of see you doing that. Yeah. Why not?"

"I dropped out of therapy too."

"Oh. Is that…what you want?"

She sighed and leaned into his chest, allowing him to wrap his arms around her once more. "I don't know. It's different. I want to make decisions on my own and try to be my own person. I've been doing all the same things since I escaped from Sybil. It's time to start something new."

"Maybe we can start something new together."

She laughed. "That was pretty cheesy, even for you."

"Me? Cheesy? Never."

"Oh please, your speech sounded like it was pulled out of a film."

He grinned deviously. "Then my plan succeeded."

"You're so full of it."

"Always."

Cress smacked him playfully on the chest, but as he grabbed her hand and went in to tickle her, he stopped dead in his tracks at the sight of her face.

There she was.

His beautiful, part-shy, part-vixen of a goddess. His retort died on his lips, his voice instead turning into a hoarse whisper. "Kiss me."

He licked his lower lip and sucked in a breath. Waiting for her. Dying.

"Please."

Cress only made him wait a few more agonizing heartbeats before she pushed up on her toes and crashed into him.