November 17th, 2019

"So, you finally kissed?" Asked May, her eyes wide. June nodded and grinned at her mother.

"You better believe it. He's a really good kisser, too. Great set of lips on that one." June chuckled at her own words, finding her face a bit flushed as she recalled the several kisses that her and Stephen shared earlier that day. They shared their first set of kisses this morning, and they had split ways after finding themselves embarrassed and anxious about the situation. They also had individual work to do now, seeing as how Stephen was forbidden from teaching June, meaning that most of her days were now going to be spent self-teaching herself magic from the thousands of books in the Sanctum.

Day had become afternoon, and June decided it was better to head home for the evening in order to work on her meditation and astral projection in a comfortable and familiar place. She ended up getting too caught up with telling her mother about the kiss to do any actual sorcery work, however. They were both sitting on May's bed, where she was reading before June interrupted her with the good news.

"Well, I'm so happy for you honey!" May exclaimed as she gently squeezed her daughter in a hug. "Stephen seems like such a nice man. And he's quite the handsome devil, if I say so myself. Good choice." She passed her daughter a wink, and they both laughed.

"Thanks, Mom. I'm just… nervous about what to do next." June explained. "Like, where do we go from here? I really don't want to mess this up. What kind of date should we go on?"

"I can't tell you that. Go ask him yourself. Shoot him a text and see what he wants to do." May said. June nodded and rested he hands on her knees.

"Fair enough. Thanks for the advice." June said.

May picked up her book and began to read again, having where she left off marked with a bookmark. "It's what I'm here for, sweetie." She said, her voice a bit distracted as she began to read about a handsome pirate captain and his beautiful prisoner. June rolled her eyes at her mother's book habit, and got off of the bed, leaving the room to head to hers, which was just down the hall, next to April's room.

The sister in question was out spending the night at a friend's house, and June was grateful for it. April would have taken the opportunity to tease June about being a "slut," in April's own words, and June really didn't want to deal with that tonight.

She entered her messy room, grateful to be in the familiar surroundings once more. The room was messy, with band and movie posters adorning almost every inch of wall space. The carpet was the same off-brand brown that the rest of the house had, with the occasional stain from where June had dropped nail polish or spilt cream soda on the floor. Her guitar sat in the corner of the room, and the sight of it brought up several memories of playing it, all of which were good times. June smiled and flopped onto her bed.

She reached into her pocket and pulled out her phone. With a few taps of the screen, she was looking at her and Stephen's last text conversation with each other. It took place earlier in November, right after the council found out about June's position as Stephen's apprentice. That seemed like ages ago, even if it was earlier this month.

Everything's happened so fast… June mentally commented as she began to type a new message. Hey, she started. What's good? She hit the send button and rolled onto her belly, hugging her pillow as she stared at the screen. Please reply soon… she thought as she began to wait. Three bubbles appeared on the screen, indicating that Stephen was typing. She let out a sigh as his message popped up on her screen.

Hey there. Just hanging out at my place. Thinking about you. What's up? June blushed at the words – they were a bit forward, but she liked that. Stephen wouldn't be pulling any punches with her, and the fact that he was thinking about her filled her with a warm sensation. A grin crept onto her face as she began to type back.

Oh, you know. Just chillin'. Was wondering if you maybe wanted to do something tomorrow night?

Sounds great. The reply came after a minute. Are you thinking something like dinner, or are we going to run under the moonlight while we do witches' rituals? June was grateful he took out the "naked" part that usually went along with the legend of witches under moonlight.

Well, is it really a date if we don't turn someone into a frog? But I was more thinking along the lines of dinner. You know me, always down for a meal.

Dinner it is. Our first date, then? How does Quesero sound? At 7? The Mexican restaurant was more on the casual end, for sure, but damn if it didn't have the best guacamole on the lower east side.

Sounds great. Love me some tacos, June replied. Can't wait to see you again.

Same here. Can't wait to kiss that sweet little mouth of yours again. June shivered and buried her face in her pillow and let out a small scream, flailing her feet against the bed. She was blushing wildly, her face red as a tomato. It took her a minute to regain her composure and return to her phone.

Aren't we a smoothie? Can't wait either. Expect tongue. She texted him back quickly, eager to continue the flirting.

…

Aren't we a smoothie? Can't wait either. Expect tongue. Stephen's eyes grew wide at the message, and he couldn't contain his grin. His cheeks were red, and he leaned his head back against his couch. The low hum of the TV was all but forgotten as Stephen absorbed himself into texting his new romantic partner.

Romantic partner… He internally scoffed at the phrase. He wanted to say "girlfriend," but he wasn't sure June was ready for exclusivity quite yet. He regretted not talking about their relationship in detail while they were together, but every time he wanted to talk to her, it just turned into more fervent kisses. Guess we can talk about that on our date tomorrow. He paused at the word "date," and it echoed through her mind. Date. Like a real date. Stephen could have jumped over the moon. The thought of a real date with June made him wild and excited, and he desperately wished it was tomorrow already.

Oh, hot. Hope you're ready for the best kissing of your life. Stephen wasn't one to boast – oh, who was he kidding, he loved to brag about his skills. Kissing wasn't just an action, it was an art form. One that he had mastered over the course of many hours with many women. He was proud of his talent, and when it came to women, kissing wasn't his only talent to brag about.

But behind all his bravado, there was an amount of fear within him. What if I mess this up? His demons plagued him at every turn, whispering dreadful nothings into his ear: you're just using her, she just wants you for your body, you'll mess this up and be alone forever, you'll ruin this like how you did with Christine. Stephen did his best to tone them out, but their voices were loud and overpowering. He struggled to hold on to hope that he was doing something right – why else would June feel the same way, if I was messing this up already?

His phone vibrated in his hand, grabbing his attention. You're an animal. I love it. Stephen grinned at her cheekiness. He looked up, out of his living room window, and noticed that the sun had completely vanished, leaving the dark of night in its place, even though it was only about 6:30 in the evening. He loved winter, and all it represented, but he hated that it became dark so early.

His stomach growled, pulling him out of his thoughts. Time to make dinner, I guess. He looked down at his phone and remembered that he still needed to text June back. Cooking and texting was not a good combination, however, so their conversation was going to have to be shelved for another time.

Hey, got to make me some dinner. Mind if I text you later? His fingers ached – he had been texting for far too long. The cold weather also wasn't helping with his arthritis. Maybe I should go grab my gloves, he thought.

That's cool. I've got to hop off and get a shower anyway. Talk to you later! Stephen blinked at the message and smiled. June in the shower…. Now there's a thought. He let his dark mind run rampant for a second before shaking his head. Don't get all worked up. Still have to ear first. Standing up, he stretched his back with a groan, eliciting a pop from the stiff bone. He idly scratched at his hip as he made his way into the small kitchen, contemplating what meal he should start working on.

…

The hot water of the shower poured over June's head, making her internally sigh. It was wonderful, soothing, and relaxing. The heat against her skin made her feel at ease, and made her feel warm emotionally as well as physically. She liked the water at a temperature that most people would label as "the fires of hell," but June didn't mind. The way she saw it, the hotter, the better.

She hoped that a shower would give her enough time and space to calm her mind. Today's event had left it buzzing, and left her excited but also unsettled. Her heart still felt like it was racing, and she couldn't quiet figure out if today had been a dream or not.

We finally kissed. It felt unreal to her. It was something she had wanted since she first started to get to know Stephen – he was handsome, funny, smart, heroic… who wouldn't fall for a man like him? But a question arose: What does he see in me?

June only saw flaws when she looked at herself in the mirror. She saw her thin lips, her strong chin, her defined brow. But Stephen somehow… sees past all that. The thought made her feel simultaneously wonderful and a little confused. What did I do to deserve him?

Stephen was completely out of her league, he was a hero. He had literally saved the world from destruction via becoming one with the dark dimension. She owed him her life, a few times over. Well, this is the least I can do to repay his heroics… At the thought of Stephen's heroics, a thought ran through her head: Stephen swopping down to save her, and as he flew away with her in his arms, they kissed passionately. Just like out of a romantic comic book, June thought.

There really was something romantic about the concept of Stephen being a hero. Maybe it was because of how selfless he was? Maybe it was the fit body and the superpowers? At that thought, June paused as the image of Stephen shirtless ran through her head. She grinned and let the thought go where it desired. Stephen walked towards her, wrapped his powerful arms around her, and then leaned in and kissed her ferociously, his tongue dancing with hers…

She closed her eyes and lost herself in the fantasy for a moment. The muscles in his arm and chest as he held her close, his scent and taste – she could envision it all perfectly in her mind. Her breathing shifted and leaned back against the wall of the shower, letting the hot water run down her body.

She paused for a moment. Am I doing this? Her internal deliberation lasted only a moment, but she quickly decided. Absolutely. She gently dipped her hand between her legs, intent on giving herself a wonderful night.