Relationship

Law watched as his navigator blinked multiple times in curiosity, and in slight worry. The bear had moved closer to him and Neo. Bepo was inspecting Neo who was still in a catatonic state. He then looked at his captain and asked, "Captain, is she all right? She's not moving."

"She'll be fine. She's just going to need a little time to get use to me kissing her," Law replied. He pulled back to inspect her stunned expression then leaned down and pressed a kiss to her hair. He then gave every single one of his crew a pointed look. "And absolutely no teasing her until she's gotten use to this change."

"Aye aye, Captain!" the crew chirped.

"Does this mean you two are actually an official couple now?" Archer asked.

"Well, I still want to talk to her about this so I know she understands what this change in our relationship means," Law said. He stroked his hand over her hair. "And as long as she understand it and wants it, then yes, we are an official couple."

"That's great!" Archer smiled. "And it's about time!"

"That is great. Isn't it, Kailen?" Shachi turned to find that their elemental friend was missing, again. "Kailen? Where did he go? He was just here a second ago."

"I guess he's still feeling guilty about what happened years ago," Jean Bart said. He looked around the forest then turned his eyes back to his captain. "He might need a little help in confronting what happened and in finally meeting his sister. Neo will definitely want to talk to him before we leave Luminous."

Law nodded in agreement. "We'll get them together when she asks to see him."

"We should probably head back to the castle now," Penguin said, noting the setting sun's rays falling lower between the leaves. "If not, they might come looking for her. Prudence is probably having a heart attack right now."

"It's dinner time, anyway," Shachi added. His eyes locked onto Neo. Her body was still stiff like she would never move again. "What are you going to do about her, Captain? It's going to raise questions if she returns to the castle in that kind of state."

Law chuckled. He knew their first kiss was going to be a shock to her, but he didn't think it would put her in a catatonic state. He clenched her hair a couple times and tilted his head. "Hm…maybe I over did it a bit."

"What exactly did you do to her?" Bepo asked. "You did nothing but kiss her, right?"

"Yes, Bepo," Law replied with a bright grin. "All I did was kiss her."

"I get the feeling it wasn't just one simple kiss on the lips. The captain did something more," Conner said while they all started to head back to the castle. The crew mumbled their agreements with humorous chuckles.

"You're probably right," Archer said. He put his hands behind his head and walked along their blazed out trail they made on the way in. "Maybe they'll tell us one day."

"Coming, Captain?" Shachi asked. He turned around and looked back at Neo and Law.

Penguin paused to hear their captain's answer.

"Yeah." Law nodded. He inspected Neo once more before looking up at his crew. "You all go on ahead. I'm going to see if I can snap her out of this."

"All right." Shachi waved to him and continued to follow his crewmates.

Penguin lingered a few seconds longer than Shachi before finally following after him with a huge smile on his face.

"Hm." Law hummed while staring at Neo's blank expression. He chuckled again. Perhaps he did go a tad bit to far in trailing kisses up her arm and to her neck. He leaned down and pressed his forehead to hers. "Neo? Come back to me now. Squeeze my hands if you can hear me."

Law slid his hands back into hers. She immediately squeezed his hands, refusing to loosen them up. He then said, "Take a couple deep breaths for me."

Again, she obeyed him. A couple deep breaths got her to blink her eyelids. He watched patiently as her beautiful electric blue eyes came back into focus. He pulled back so she could see him better. She blinked a few more times then looked around before bring her eyes back to his. She stuttered, "Y-you…Y-y-you j-just…"

"Kissed you," Law finished for her.

"Kissed me on the…" Neo's voice trailed of as her hand lifted up to her face. She touched her fingertips to her lips. Her face flushed. She dropped her fingers from her lips and tucked her face into Law's chest, clutching a hold of his hoodie.

"Are you all right?" Law asked quietly. He wrapped his left arm back around her shoulders while placing his right hand on her lower back, giving her smooth stroke to help calm her down.

"Yes." Neo nodded against him. She pulled back and smiled at him. "I'm still a bit confused, but I-uh…"

"What's is it?" Law asked with slight alarm in his voice when Neo's eyes widened a bit.

She tucked herself back into Law. She whispered, "Elementals are near by. They're watching us. Can we go back to the castle? I don't want to be near them right now."

"Yes, we can go back." While Law pulled back from her a bit, she banished her wings from her back so he could carrying her easier. He slipped his arm under her knees and lifted her up. "It's time for dinner, anyway."

Neo wrapped her arms around him and hid her eyes in his neck.

He knew she didn't want to be seen by the elementals so he used his powers and warped them back to the castle as fast as he could. He warped her into the library. He gave her a few minutes of peace before walking her to the dinning hall. They were met by delicious smells of the fish dishes and fresh fruit. The crew was all ready there and sitting at the table. They were chatting among themselves. They all glanced up at the two entering the room.

Penguin got up and walked over to them. He leaned in close so they could talk privately. He said, "We haven't said a word about the kiss. We'll let you two reveal that when you feel like it. But there is a bit of a problem."

"What is it?" Law asked. His eyebrow narrowed slightly.

Neo looked at Penguin with concern shimmering in her eyes.

"It's nothing major. Its just…people are questioning Healer Zinnia's outburst at the ward and how she went running off into the forest," Penguin replied. "They've been questioning if Neo's all right or if she was hurt again. The castle workers have been snooping around us since we got back to the castle even though we said she was fine. And as you can see…" He paused and looked to a small group of maids peaking in one of the dinning hall doors. They jumped when they realized they've been spotted then quickly scurried off. "…they all keep hanging around."

"Just ignore them," Law said with mischief shining in his eyes. He looked down at Neo at the same time she looked up at him. "It's none of their business what happened in the woods. We don't have to tell them anything. Okay, Neo?"

Neo nodded with pink cheeks.

Law nodded back then the small group sat down at the table. He once again took the seat at the head of the table with Neo in his lap. A maid then walked over. She frowned in disapprove of their princess still sitting on his lap. Her eyes then flittered to Neo and filled with concern. The woman didn't say anything. She just filled their two plates, poured them some juice then walked away.

The pirate crew settled back down into peaceful chatter while they ate. Like their captain ordered, they didn't tease Neo. They didn't even mention the kiss. Mostly because of the elementals that kept hanging around but also to let Neo adjust and processed what happened.

Neo ate quietly. She picked at the fruits and vegetables on her plate. Occasionally, she would glance at Law. He would meet her gaze with a soft smile. Her cheeks would flush and her lips would pull into a smile at the memory of the kiss. Heart strumming, she'd quickly look back down at her food.

"Where are we going now, Captain?" Neo asked while Law carried her down the hall. A few servants were still lingering around but most had already gone home for the night.

"To the library," Law replied casually. He glanced at the girl in his arms then over at a couple maids who were standing in the hall, trying to look busy and failing. He frowned at them. They flinched when they realized he knew they were trying to snoop and figure out the reason for the healer's outburst earlier. He sighed to himself. I was hoping to talk to Neo about our kiss, but it looks like I might not be able to until everyone goes to bed. Everywhere I try to take her there are more elementals.

'We could just talk through our bond.'

Law glanced down at her. 'I suppose so, but that could also give us away. Sitting together, but not speaking would set them off. Besides, even if we did speak like this about what happened earlier they would still interrupt us. We can wait and talk later when everyone else is asleep. Unless you really want to talk about it right now. How are you feeling about it?'

'I'm still a bit confused. I can wait though. I just want to be with you right now. We don't have to talk about it until later.'

'All right. Just remember we can talk about it at any time you want. I'll dismember them with my powers if I have to.' Law smiled when he hear Neo giggled through their bond. Her bell chiming giggles still set his heart thumping. He was glad he could hear that through their bond. He'd miss it if he couldn't.

'I thought you weren't going to cause anymore problems with them.'

'Yeah, but you will always come first. Whatever you want, I will get it for you. I will make it happen. All you have to do is say so.' Law's heart thumped harder when she giggled again and wrapped her arms around his neck. She nuzzled her nose into his skin, about pushing him over the edge. His heart pounded so hard it practically cut off his breathing. He loved how she made him feel. And he loved her.

Law sat down on the couch. He grabbed the book off the end table that Neo had been reading. He handed it to her.

Neo gladly took it from him. She opened it and settled into his chest. She held the book to where they both could read it. They quietly read together while ignoring the snooping glances of the elementals until it was time to get ready for bed.

"Princess," Medina said entering the room. "Your bath is ready. Shall I escort you to your room?"

"That won't be necessary." Law placed Neo's book down. Picking her up, he carried her out of the room, down the hall, up the stairs, and then into Neo's room. He could hear the water still running from the bath.

"Don't go," Neo said when he sat her down on her feet.

"It won't be for long." Law placed his hat on her head. "Call if you need me."

Neo nodded. She watched him go before forcing herself into the bathroom. Stepping behind the changing wall, she stripped of her clothes. When the two maids had their backs turn, she slipped into the tub. The water was nice. The bubbles smelled like lavender. It relaxed her muscles that she didn't even notice were tense. Placing Law's hat on the floor close to her, she ducked under the water, wetting her hair before leaning back to enjoy the bath for a while.

Neo sighed. She shifted in the hot water she glanced over at her two ladies maids. They kept walking around the large bathroom, straightening this or that, shifting this or that. She had no clue why they were even bothering trying to and look like they were doing their duties. She knew they weren't. She still might not be as socially aware as everyone else, but she did know something changed today between her and Law. And she knew these two maids of hers were just trying to find out what had happened like everyone else outside of the crew.

Neo looked to her right. Law's hat was still sitting beside her and the tub where she had placed it. He always made sure to give her his hat before leaving the room. It turned into a continuous promise that he was going to be coming back to her as soon as the castle quieted down. And he always did. It also helped her quell her anxiety about being separated from him. She sighed again when the two maids looked over at her again before they looked away. She ran her fingers over his hat for encouragement, the fuzz smooth under her slightly wrinkled skin. The maids were staring at her once more. She could feel them, waiting for her to speak to them. Well, she had something to say to them. And it had nothing to do with what happened with the healer. She drew in a deep breath and released it as slowly as she could. She pictured Law using his strong tone to intimidate people. While she didn't really want to intimidate them she wanted them to get that impression. Then summoning her inner Law and supposed royal authority, she did her best to glare harshly at them. She either wanted to be alone or with Law. "That will be all. You may leave now."

"But, Princess, we haven't-" Lyra started.

"You've all ready straightened up everything in this bathroom a dozen times. And you've all ready turned down the covers. All you're doing is trying to get me to tell you what happened earlier. Nothing happened. Now leave!" Neo just about shouted. She was taken aback by her own, out of place, authoritative tone coming from her mouth. Lyra and Medina were also shock by the mini outburst. She could easily see their minds automatically going back to earlier that day when she turned her crystals on Selene. So she added, "Leave right now or I'll have the captain come back and kick you out with his devil fruit powers."

"As you wish, Princess," the two maids chorused, their faces pale. They bowed then scurried out of the room as quickly as they could.

'Neo, are you all right? I felt you get a bit upset.'

'I'm all right, Law.' Neo replied through her mind. She didn't feel like using her voice, even thought she knew she was alone now. 'I just got annoyed at those two maids, Lyra and Medina. They kept looking at me like I was easily going to tell them what happened. If I were going to tell any elemental it would be Topaz. I actually like her. She's different from the others.'

'I'm not surprised you feel at ease enough to talk to her. She's a lot calmer than the others. When others are calm like that you feel more relaxed, too.'

'I kind of wish she was around more. At least more than Lyra and Medina.'

'Well, you're their princess. If you want her around, then you have the right to make that decision.'

'I suppose so. It did feel a bit good telling those two to get out of here. But it still felt a bit awkward.'

Law chuckled. 'You're just not use to giving orders. You're naturally gentle. And you're use to the crew doing what you ask without contradiction. But I think you might be coming a bit more out of your shell and voicing how you feel.'

'I guess so.' Neo leaned back against the tub and looked up at the ceiling.

'Don't spend too much time in the bath now.'

'I won't. You are coming later, right?'

'You know I am. We'll be able to talk then. Are you ready for that?'

'I am.' Neo nodded to herself. A smile formed on her lips at the memory of the kiss. She raised her fingers back to her lips and touched them. Her heart raced in her chest. She took a couple relaxing breaths to relax her heart. She vaguely remembered Law telling her something about others coming when he kissed her. She figured the others surely included Healer Zinnia since the woman was still monitoring her vital signs. She wished she could remember everything that happened in the forest, but the kiss really shocked her. She only could remember the crew, Healer Zinnia and another voice talking about a couple things and Law's lips on her own. And in a little while she would finally be able to ask him about them.

Neo forced herself to stand up, the water rolled off her skin. She loved the bath, but was anxious in getting it over with and getting to be with Law again. Using her water crystals, she quickly washed the soap from her body and hair. She then unplugged the drain in the tub and climbed out of the massive bath. She wrapped a fluffy towel around her body then plucked Law's hat up. Summoning her fire and wind crystals, she dried her hair and dug through her clothes. She paused to glance over at a silk nightgown that one of the maids had left out for her. It was hanging on a little hook on the wall. And it was, of course, white in color. It had very thin straps and would come down to her knees.

She didn't like it. She had run her hand over it earlier. The fabric was too cool to the touch. She once again, silently, thanked Penguin for bring her own, familiar clothes to the castle. She pulled out Law's blue hoodie that she had come to wear often. She pressed it to her nose. It still smelled like him. Smiling, she finally got herself to get dressed. She ran her brush through her hair before sitting it back down with the rest of her clothes. She then left the bathroom with Law's hat on her head.

After clicking on the lamp beside the bed, she walked over and shut off the main lights. She eyed the door. Two guards, like always, were post outside her room. They were a water and a wind wielders tonight. She wondered how many guards this place had and why they even had people designated as guards when they all had pretty much the same ability over the elements. 'Law?'

'Yes?'

'Why does this place have guards if they all have the ability to protect themselves with their crystals?' Neo walked over to the bed. She sat down, pulled her legs up to her chest and hugged them. She rested her chin on her knees while listening intently to Law's reply.

'For order and protection. Just like human skills, not all elementals are going to have the same skills and strengths as those around them. Let's say that someone did attack this island. Children and the elderly won't be as strong as an adult in their twenties or thirties. They would need someone to help them fight or help them escape if the situation called for it. That would mean that they would need someone to help them while others fought off the enemy. Also, they would need protection in the case that a riot broke out on Luminous between the elementals. That's pretty much what happened when the darkness crystal attacked this place. Not all elementals had been taken over by it, so they most likely tried to stop the dark elementals while helping your parents escape before being turned dark themselves.'

'Oh…that makes sense.'

'And, I'm not completely sure yet since I haven't asked, but I don't believe there is a royal all the time on Luminous. I believe a royal is only born when this island needs the solar crystal. That would mean that Luminous's defenses are a lot weaker when a royal isn't here and they would need structure and a plan in case of being attacked.'

'I never thought of that before. I wonder how many royals this place has had.'

'We'll know eventually. I'm sure they've kept track of that since the first royal. Or they'll, at the very least, have an educated guess.'

Neo smiled when she felt Law's presence closer to her. She looked up to see him standing beside the bed. He smiled back at her before leaning his sword up against the nightstand and wall. She scooted over when he sat down on the bed to take off his shoes. Once off, he slid back on the bed and turned to her. They both sat with their legs crossed up under them. "Hi."

"Hi," Neo whispered back with a smile.

Law held her gaze for several, quiet, minutes before reaching back and shutting off the lamp. "Don't want them to think there's something wrong in here," he answered her unasked question.

Neo nodded. The two focused their eyes on each other again through the now moonlit room. Coolness settled in the darkened space. She wasn't sure if it was her imagination or if it did get cooler in the room. It did make Neo glad she put on his hoodie. She bit her bottom lip. Like always, Law was waiting for her to ask him what happened today. She asked, "Our relationship changed today, didn't it? It's been changing for a while now, hasn't it?"

"It did. And it has." Law nodded. "But only if you want it to change. If you were to say yes, then we would now be in a romantic relationship. You would be my girlfriend and I would be your boyfriend."

"But you're the captain. Why not just order me to say yes?" Neo asked.

"Because if I were to do that then I would have a negative control over you. And I won't control you like that, ever. I don't want to be in a romantic relationship with you where I make all the decisions just because I can control you. We have to make this decision together." Law reached out and took her hands in his. "I might have control over you, but that's only when you need me to help you regain control over yourself or when you need to move out of danger."

"What would change from how we were before?" Neo asked.

"Well, I'll be holding your hand more, hugging you more and, most importantly, I would be kissing you more," Law replied. "A lot more."

"Kissing? Like you did today in the forest?" Pulling her right hand from his, Neo pressed a finger to her lips, her mind automatically recalling his lips on hers. Her cheeks flushed at the memory as her heart slammed against her chest. Law nodded and leaned in closer to her. She looked back at him when she saw him moving. "Like you're going to do right now?"

"I want to kiss you right now, but…" Law paused in moving closer to her. He tapped the top of the crystal patch still poking out of her collar. "…I don't want that healer woman finding out that I'm sleeping in here with you. You don't want that either, right? You better calm your heartbeat before she comes running in here to check on you again."

Neo nodded. Closing her eyes, she started taking deep slow breaths. After a minute, she finally got her heartbeat to slow back down to its normal pace. She opened her eyes and looked back at Law with a guilty and disappointed look on her face.

He tapped her chest again with chuckled then said, "Don't worry, love. As soon as these things come off I'll kiss you plenty of times. I have to work on getting you over stiffening up as much as you did today. It won't be much fun if my girlfriend never kisses me back."

"Girlfriend," Neo parroted. "That's what I would be to you now?"

"Yes." Law nodded. "And I would be your boyfriend. But only if you say yes."

Law went quiet then to give her time to think about his words. He reclaimed her hand in his and waited patiently.

She studied his eyes and words before looking down at their connected hands. She then raised her eyes back up to his. "Yes. I want this. I don't completely understand how things will change, but I know you will help me with that. I want that. I want to know more about these feelings I have for you. And I can't do that if things don't change between us, right? This is a good change, right?"

"Yes to both of those questions." Law nodded. "It's a good change, but it'll also be a tough change. Our relationship will be about us as a couple. No longer two separate individuals, but a united pair."

"That kind of sounds like the crew," Neo said causing Law tilted his head. "I mean if the crew doesn't work as one then things can get really bad, right? Our crew's successes have happened because they work together to get the mission done. Just like you all did when you came to rescue me. If you all had argued then you all might not have gotten to Luminous at all. You all also listened to Kailen. If you didn't listen to him you wouldn't have found this place either."

Law smiled. She understood this a bit better than she even realized. "That's right."

"I like this," Neo then said. "It feels right."

"Yeah, it does feel right." Law gave her hands a gentle squeeze. "You ready to lay down now?"

Neo nodded. Law plucked his hat off her head. While he dropped it onto the nightstand, Neo laid down. Law then laid down close to her and pulled the covers over them. Propped up on his elbow, he trailed his fingertips through her hair while she watched him intently. She then asked, "Law, what does engaged mean?"

"Hm? I didn't think you were coherent enough to hear that conversation," Law said with a low hum. "Well, engaged actually has multiple meanings. In this case, it means having formally agreed to marry. And marry means that I would take you as my wife and I would be your husband and we would live together in marriage."

"But we all ready live together," Neo said innocently and with a smile. "Does that mean we are all ready married?"

Law couldn't help but chuckle at her innocence. He tucked her hair behind her ear then brushed his thumb over her cheek. "That is very true. We do live together, but no we are not married. If we were married things would be very different between us."

"What would be different?" Neo asked. Excitement, innocence and curiosity were shining in her eyes in anticipation of what would be different between them. The question and her innocent look make Law's face grow hot. There was actually only one difference that he could think of that would change between them. And that was what Kailen been dreading already happened.

"Well, uh…" Law swallowed hard. He was thankful the moon wasn't full tonight. If it were, she would be able to easily see his blushing in the low light. He poked his finger against the mattress. He forced himself not to think about all the sexual relation talk that had been going on lately. And he forced himself not to think about how they were laying so close together and in the same bed. "Now really isn't the time…or the place…for that particular conversation."

"Oh," Neo said with disappointment lacing her tone. It made Law's heart sink in his chest. She lowered her eyes to the bed. "Because I'm not ready to know?"

"Well, I think you could use a little more time to grow up before I tell you," Law said. He reached out and placed his finger under her chin. He tilted her chin up then pressed his forehead to hers. "But, honestly, this really isn't the appropriate place for that conversation. It's a conversation best left for when we have enough time to go over everything thoroughly and where we won't be interrupted."

Law traced his finger over her chin before trailing his touch down to one of the crystal patches sticking out of his hoodie. He felt her heart beat rise slightly at his touch. "I promise that I will explain everything one day. Most likely when we're back on the sub where we won't get interrupted. We'll have more time and privacy to talk there than here in the castle or even on Luminous."

"Okay. I understand. I can wait then." Neo smiled. Law smiled back and retracted his hand. She then held up her left hand. "So is that why you gave me this ring? Because you want to marry me? Was Healer Zinnia right?"

"Well, this ring doesn't have to mean we are engaged. I got it for you because I wanted to. It can mean whatever you want." Law took a hold of her raised hand. He ran his thumb over his ring and her finger. Smiling with red cheeks, he said, "But, yes, one day I would love to marry you if you were to say yes."

Neo opened her mouth. Before she could speak a single word, Law released her hand and pressed his finger to her lips. Firmly, he said, "No. I don't want you to answer this question right now. I want you to first understand the differences between men and women. And I want you to understand what it would mean for us to be married before you decide if you want to be married or not. Will you promise me to wait?"

Law slowly removed his finger from her lips giving her permission to speak again.

"Okay, Law. I promise to wait. But I'm not sure I understand what you mean by the differences between men and women."

"Yeah, I figured as much. We never talked about that before," Law said with a light chuckle. "But don't worry. That'll conversation will come as I have promised."

Neo nodded in agreement. She then said, "Oh, there was something else I wanted to talk to you about."

"And what's that?" Law asked.

"That other guy that was with the crew today," Neo said.

"Kailen, your brother," Law assumed.

"My brother," Neo said softly. "Why hasn't he come to see me?"

"He's been busy trying to smooth things over with the elementals. I suppose he also still feels guilty about what happened to you years ago," Law said. He brushed his hand over her arm in a comforting way when she shifted uncomfortably at the memory.

"But that's not his fault. He didn't do anything wrong," Neo insisted. "I want to see him. If not tomorrow, at least sometime before we leave here."

"Don't worry, Neo. I promise we won't leave this island before you have a chance to talk to him." Law trailed his hand over her arm then covered her hand with his.

"Also, about what he said concerning our bond," Neo started, but Law cut her off.

"You were a lot more consciously aware at the time than I thought you were," Law said astonished.

"Not really. I only heard bits and pieces. And the bond thing was one of them."

"Don't worry about that. Whatever happens, whatever the true story is, I won't let you die." Law tightened his hand over hers. She could easily feel the urgency in his voice and touch.

"It's not that…I mean, I am a bit concerned about that story, but…"

"Go on." Law encouraged her to continue to speak when she hesitated.

"I'm not sure how really, but I know that I would die without you now whether or not we are bonded," Neo said in a very soft tone. She locked eyes with Law. Turning her hand over, she laced her fingers through his. "You mean so much to me. I was so scare those couple of days you weren't beside me. I really, really didn't like it. You and the crew are the reasons I'm alive. You all are my light. You gave me a life. You are my life. I don't ever want to be separated from you again."

"I really didn't like it either. Those few days felt like a living hell without you. I don't ever want to be separated from you either. I will do everything in my power to stop that from happening again. But there's going to be a time that you need to help me do that," Law said. He was careful in saying that last part. When Neo looked at him questioningly, he continued. "You are the only one who can get the elementals to understand that you aren't staying here on Luminous. You're going to have to face them again."

"I'm going to have to fight?" Neo said with panic rising in her voice.

"No, Neo." Law leaned over and pressed his forehead to hers. He nuzzled their noses together, calming her down. "I just mean you're going to have to confront them. You're going to have to tell them that you're not staying here. That you're going to leave with us."

"But I…I can't." Neo shook her head lightly. "They're just so…"

"Shh." Law could smell her salty tears before he even saw them. He slid his arms around her and pulled her to his chest. "It'll be all right. They'll listen to you because you are their royal. You are stronger than all of them combined. I'll be right by your side. And so will the crew. Can you do this?"

Neo took a couple of deep breaths. Her tears subsided before they had the chance to fall. She then looked him dead in the eyes. He could see her determination to never be separated from him again shining in her eyes. "I'll do it as long as you and the crew are by my side. I don't want to be separated from you again and I mean it. And if confronting them is what needs to be done to make sure that happens, then I'll do it. I'll confront them. I'm not stay here. I'm staying with you. You are my bonded. You are my…"

Neo hesitated. Law smiled sweetly at her and placed a gentle kiss on her forehead. Softly, and encouragingly, he said, "It's okay. You can say it even though you still don't understand it completely."

Neo swallowed then said it. "You are my love. I love you so much."

"And you are my love. I love you so much, too." Law pulled her even closer to him. He tangled his hand into her hair and breathed in her sweet scent. His heart was pounding wildly again. He knew hers was too. He was surprised they hadn't been interrupted yet. "You better calm down before she comes busting in here. I don't want to leave my love right now."

Neo giggled. She didn't know why she did. She just did. It felt good to her. She loved being with him and didn't want that to change. So she took several deep breaths. Once her heart was calm again, she looked up at him. The two smiled before snuggling together for the night.