"I like the way your sparkling earrings lay
Against your skin so brown"
"And I want to sleep with you in the desert tonight
With a billion stars all around"
"I get this feeling I may know you
As a lover and a friend"
"And I got a peaceful easy feeling
And I know you won't let me down"
-Selected lyrics from Peaceful Easy Feelings by Eagles
Her fingers glided along her expansive collection of earrings of all shapes and sizes. Eventually, her index finger settled around one particular turquoise pair, one of the few that were not gifted by her glamorous mother.
Jareth watched softly as she took the turquoise earrings and clasped them on.
They laid against her skin and dark hair with the sweetest sparkle, as if they knew how special she was and wanted to add to her beauty.
It touched him to see her choose the earrings, for he had gifted them to her when they first started their romantic relationship.
He sat next to her.
"You are beautiful, Sarah."
There was only a hint of blush from her cheeks as she averted her gaze.
"Thank you."
Sarah normally did not refrain from making eye contact, which made her rather bashful actions that much more endearing tonight.
Arm-in-arm, they made their way to the restaurant where they enjoyed some of the best Mexican cuisine in the area.
Sarah delightfully ordered her favorite foods, excited to share with him, so that he may also share her joy.
She listened to him recount his childhood stories with care, wanting to understand more of who he was.
Though they had been friends for quite some time after reuniting, there was still much that she didn't know about him.
Usually reserved in keeping his emotions and stories to himself, Jareth conversed with ease.
With the life experience she now had, Sarah learned how to encourage people to share information about themselves in the best way.
She didn't do it out of some sort of sick desire to use information against others by weaponizing her charisma, but because she truly wanted to know people.
Sharing such personal stories would normally make him anxious and keep up his guard with a frown openly displayed.
With her, all he could feel was peace.
Still, there was a twinge of worry in the back of his mind that she would leave him, and he would never see her again.
It wouldn't be the first time.
Many years ago when Jareth was too young to fully understand the consequences of his choices, he grew incredibly fond of a married noblewoman.
She enticed him with secret seduction and tender promises of running away with him, far from her unfaithful husband and high society.
All the while, she used him to elevate her own ego, make her husband red with envy, and to take advantage of Jareth's personal wealth through his naivety.
When his parents learned of it, they sent Jareth away to be the Goblin King, far away from the odious woman.
They believed it was the best, for the kind of person who would take advantage of an inexperienced prince of the High Court would never abandon the sparkling faerie society.
They hoped that Jareth would see the woman for her true colors and have a sense of purpose in caring for those less fortunate than himself.
While they weren't entirely wrong, they failed to provide Jareth with the support he needed, especially when she laughed at his face after he asked her to run away with him, just as she had suggested many times before.
He hardened his heart after that, having a toxic belief that all women would scorn men.
Fortunately, he matured due to the nature of his work.
He learned to care for his denizens and witnessed the amount of adoration families had for each other.
Still, the bitterness and conviction to never be so infatuated with a woman ever again left a harrowing mark on his soul.
He would not let another woman destroy him again.
Then, he met Sarah.
He played the villain a little too well, letting his darker and more desperate side show as he pleaded with her to stay.
He meant for the offer to simply be a part of her trial, and while it was, he couldn't deny that he was sincere in his proposition to be her slave.
After they reunited years after her victory, Jareth found that he was experiencing something new.
For the first time in years, he was letting the walls of his heart fall again.
For the first time ever, he was actually falling in love.
He thought he had fallen in love with the horrible woman he had the liaison with. Now he understood that it was a simple infatuation and fear of being alone.
Besides, what he had felt was nothing in comparison to how he felt for Sarah.
What he felt was far more than mutual attraction and a resigned attempt to not feel the aching loneliness.
It was friendship, the kind of companionship that extended deep into the soul of a person.
In her, he found a kindred spirit.
Right now, he was sitting across from her, laughing and falling even more in love while she attempted to not spill the mountain-high guacamole on her nacho. After she took a bite, a bit of green lingered on the corner of her mouth.
"I'd like to see you try, Mister," she chastised, trying to look serious but failing. "Go on, eat that taco."
He raised his eyebrows.
"You have an advantage over me. The taco is larger than the nacho."
Sarah's eyes narrowed, trying to think of an excuse.
"You have bigger hands."
He snorted. "That is a ridiculous argument."
"How about this? If you can eat that taco without spilling and without magic, I'll hold goblin court for you."
"You already do that."
"I'll do it three times in a row."
"Make it ten."
"Five."
"Seven."
"Done."
She stuck her hand across the table in a position to shake his.
Jareth took it but instead of shaking it, he kissed the back of it.
He relished the softness of her skin, the smell of perfume she dabbed on her wrists, and her lovely smile.
He regretfully let it go, taking a bite out of said taco-
-and a chunk of meat fell onto his shirt.
Now it was Sarah's turn to laugh.
"You said without magic, I am unused to that," he grumbled, trying to defend himself.
Sarah immediately came to his side of the booth with a napkin.
"Excuses. Scoot over," she commanded.
"Bossy," he teased, letting her clean him up.
He could have cleaned up with magic quite easily. Doing so would have hardly used any of his magical powers too. He just liked being taken care of sometimes and liked the excuse of being close to her.
He marveled at the elegance of her soft, midnight-colored hair settling on the curve of her neck and the way her nose scrunched as she was cleaning.
"There," she finished, looking proud. "All clean. Silly you, thinking you could win that bet."
He hadn't realized how intensely he was staring at her until she tilted her head sideways, bemused.
She propped an elbow on the table, gazing at him. Reaching into her purse, she pulled out a small, reddish coin.
Sarah held the little coin between two fingers. "Penny for your thoughts, Goblin King?"
His heart leapt.
Being next to her just felt so right, especially with how much she cared to know what he was thinking.
He hoped above all hope that one day, she would accept his hand in marriage and rule beside him. He could not picture anyone but Sarah by his side as his wife and queen.
He was so afraid that she wouldn't want that.
Afraid that she wouldn't want him.
Swallowing thickly, he leaned over to kiss her lips.
It wasn't a quick kiss or even a playful one. It was slow, thoughtful, and hopeful, without any passion lost.
His arm came to hold around her waist, holding her as close to him as was appropriate in such a public place.
Sarah returned the kiss with the same deliberate slowness to truly savor it, also holding around him. Her lips were so soft, and she tasted so sweet.
She was better than any dream he could ever conjure.
When they pulled apart, Sarah brushed his hair out of his face, immediately taking note of his eyes.
"Hey, you okay? What's on your mind?"
"Hmm? Oh..."
He hadn't realized how lowered his guard was. He was unused to not worrying about showing his feelings around her.
He pushed down the urge to harden his expression, as was habit. He turned slightly.
"I'm all right. Just had some thoughts that I'm not quite ready to share just yet."
Before he could worry further, Sarah used her free hand to turn him to face her again.
Her bright green eyes glowed with compassion.
"Jareth, it's okay. I promise. You don't have to say anything. Just as long as you're okay."
She gently kissed his cheek, her lips leaving more marks than the lipstick.
"Now," she settled next to him. "Let's finish our dinner and head out."
She picked up a nacho, scooping guacamole on it.
"I'll feed you since you apparently can't eat without spilling like a child."
"You are insufferable," he complained but still took a bite.
The act felt so intimate, especially as he hadn't allowed anyone to feed him since he learned how to do it himself as a child.
After the dinner, they made their way to Joshua Tree National Park.
It was a spectacular sight, with the trees and rock formations casting a silhouette against the stars that dotted the otherwise lonely sky.
Jareth made a fire while Sarah set out the blankets and pillows, gazing lovingly at each other once in a while.
In the vast universe, there were so many worlds, many hidden among the seemingly billions of stars. In the grand scheme of things, they were so small and insignificant.
Yes, even himself as the Goblin King.
And yet, out of all the worlds that they could have been born in, out of all the stardust that formed the bodies that housed them, they existed in two worlds that allowed them to be together in this very moment.
The stars truly were in his favor.
Sarah tucked herself under the blankets. "Jareth, come sleep under the stars with me."
He happily joined her, holding each other.
"Sarah?" he whispered in her hair, admiring the glow of the fire on her face and the stars behind her.
"Yeah?"
She looked up at him.
"Earlier, you asked me what was on my mind."
He kissed her again. "You. You are on my mind. Always on my mind."
"Oh, Jareth," she kissed him back, laying her head on his chest. "You're on my mind too. I'm so happy to be with you. Tonight has been wonderful."
He smiled. "Yes. Yes it has been."
He shifted slightly, settling where he could look directly in her eyes.
"And I will do all I can to continue making our days and nights together wonderful. I do so because I love you."
Sarah sucked in a breath, eyes wide with the realization that her deepest wish was reality.
"I love you too, Jareth. More than I can say."
With the stars all around them, the couple fell asleep, surrounded by a cocoon of love.
First of all, I want to thank RMBiehl for being my beta for this fic. Thank you, my dear friend!
I'd also like to thank LFFWAR for the Valentine's Day challenge that has pushed me to write this fic.
Inspiration for this fic is from the song "Peaceful Easy Feeling" by Eagles. I grew up listening to Eagles and their songs hold a lot of fond childhood core memories for me, especially this one. Re-listening to the song now, it makes me think of the musings of someone in the beginnings of a new relationship, with all the hope and fears.
I imagine that in the beginning stages of their relationship, Jareth's anxious because Sarah already rejected him once. And yet, he has also come to accept that no matter what happens, he's relaxed and has a peaceful feeling that all will be well. If you read the lyrics to the song, you'll definitely find which lyrics inspired which scenes.
Sarah's turquoise earrings are inspired by the opening lyrics, and Jack Tempchin say he "saw a girl with turquoise earrings against her dark skin" and "I guess I was trying to distill the beauty of every girl I saw into words on paper and then into a song." Which I thought was sweet and of course, wanted to show Jareth's inner thoughts of how one Sarah's beauty stood out to him.
From the country-rock style this song is and, ya know, Eagles, it makes me think of California which is where the inspiration for their date eating Mexican food and later stargazing at the Joshua Tree National park comes from.
Thank you so much for reading!