#and Chaol’s whole “I love you I’m sorry bit already hurt enough

[acourtofquestions]

Please for the love of Wyrd tell me Celaena actually gets to say “I love you” to Sam at least once.

[louiseleblancdiggory]

hello! I saw that someone was asking you rowaelin as ts songs and I wonder if you could do cruel summer?

So. Many. References!! I hope you like this, because I can certainly picture this scene perfectly. I have a few TS rowaelin prompts, so I might do a whole masterlist just for it separated by albums..... Anyways, enjoy!!

Cruel Summer

--

Aelin was already used to the smell of beer and loud music by now.

When she and Lysandra had just finished freshman year of college, both decided to ditch the dorms and look for an apartment off campus. Everything was either extremely expensive, too far away from campus or both. They were about to give up and just spend another year in the university’s dorms when they found an apartment.

Well, it was more like a shoe box, but it worked just fine. There were two small bedrooms, one bathroom and a living room with a kitchen. Aelin and Lys had almost no money for furniture, so a lot of the space in the apartment was filled with bean bag chairs and thick rugs instead of actual chairs and tables. The painting was fading, the constant need to call a handyman was exhausting but Aelin found it somewhat… comfy.

The rent wasn’t expensive at all and Aelin discovered why the day she moved. The apartment was right above a dive bar, and the thing was kept open 24/7 from Friday to Sunday, opening every day of the week and closing around three in the morning. The music was so loud all the time that sometimes the floor shook. Whenever they opened their windows, the suffocating smell of alcohol would impregnate the apartment.

That was fucking torture during the first days.

Two years later, Aelin found the loud sound and constant smell of beer reassuring, steadying. She and Lys had lived so much shit in that apartment that it stopped being an ugly shoe box and became a home. An ugly home, but a home nonetheless.

Around two months after moving upstairs, Rolfe, the bar owner, offered them jobs at the Sea Dragon. They lived right above it, he said, and so he could alleviate them from a part of their rent and pay a normal salary at the same time. Always in the need of money, both Lys and Aelin accepted.

The dive bar wasn’t shabby, at least not for the neighborhood it was in. It was a hole-in-the-wall, red stools near the bar and a few dark wooden tables around the room. With some pool tables, an old jukebox and an almost never working vending machine, the place looked like it had been left in the 50s. The uniforms were all black, but the shirts were tight button downs and the skirts were pleated.

Aelin fucking loved that place.

She worked there the double amount of hours than Lys did, and she enjoyed herself immensely. She loved choosing the next song and flirting with some customers. She adored teasing old patrons when they were losing at a pool game, and she discovered that she was great making drinks.

The Sea Dragon was Aelin’s little heaven. She worked there the whole weekend, never missing a day. Sometimes during the summer she would work there every day.

And that’s when she met him.

The first time Aelin had seen Rowan Whitethorn during the summer before junior year, she almost dropped the drinks she was holding.

He was standing by the vending machine, the faint blue glow making his silver hair shine. He had a frown on his face, but not even that managed to make him look any less attractive. Dark green eyes, a straight nose and hard features, Aelin wanted him from the second her eyes fell upon his figure.

She gave the drinks to Lysandra, murmuring what table they were supposed to go before walking up to him.

“Any problems?” She said as a way of greeting. The man was staring at the vending machine as if it had personally offended him.

“Aye. It ate two dollars of mine and I didn’t get those disgusting candies you Americans like.” He said, not turning away from the vending machine. Aelin bit her lip, both at his very hot and strong Scottish accent and to hold her laughter in because of the expression on his face.

“You’ll have to be more specific, sir. I can name twenty disgusting American candies from the top of my mind in ten seconds.” She was smiling, her voice tone soft. At that, he turned his head to her, eyes widening slightly. Aelin’s smile grew at that. “Unfortunately this vending machine has a mind of its own. Maybe if you ask gently or smack it violently, it will spew your candy.”

He laughed, scratching the back of his head. “You work here? Sorry, I didn’t mean to be rude. I’m Rowan.”

“Nah, don’t worry.” She gestured with her hand. “This vending machine is a bitch. You can try punching if you’d like.”

“Your asking me to vandalize your work place?”

She shrugged, turning her head to the bar and shouting. “Rolfe! Can he punch your useless vending machine?”

Rolfe turned to her, staring at both of them and the vending machine before shrugging too. “It’s not like that thing can break. It’s probably older than you by now, blondie.”

Aelin turned back to Rowan. He was looking at her with awe and slight fear. “Go ahead and punch it.”

“I won’t punch your vending machine.”

“Rolfe’s vending machine.”

“Semantics.”

Aelin merely shrugged, walking back to the bar. “Your loss, Rowan.”

“I didn’t catch your name!” He shouted at her, but didn’t move in her direction. She smiled, his accent sounding like music to her ears.

“Because I didn’t tell you!” She shouted back.

After that, for the rest of the summer, Rowan had been to the bar every weekend. Sometimes he would bring in some friends, sometimes he would just sit there and talk to Aelin whenever she had some free time. He was there to do his last two years of college in Boston, his small group of friends joining him. Rowan liked to talk about Scotland and hear about the States whenever Aelin had free time to talk to him, and after a few weeks she would bribe Lysandra into taking more shifts so she could spend more time with Rowan.

When Friday arrived, Aelin would wait excitedly for his and his friend’s arrival. They were a lively group, all five of them, joking and drinking all the time. Aelin would constantly pass by their tables just to hear their lovely accent laced with alcohol and laughter.

It was obvious that Rowan was interested in her, just as it was obvious that Aelin was interested in him, too. Rowan was an extremely nice and hot guy, and Aelin found herself always at ease and laughing around him. There was no pressure, no expectations. Aelin had left clear since the beginning that she wasn’t interested in a relationship. Ever.

 She didn’t mention that it was because of her last one, and Rowan had said that it was the same for him. He had broken up with his five years girlfriend the year before moving, and Aelin got goosebumps just from thinking about dating someone again.

The whole relationship was about… fun.

They slept together during the whole summer, becoming friends while doing it. When classes started again, they remained friends who eventually fucked, both agreeing that the other one could end it the moment they felt like it. Both agreeing that there were no romantic ties, no deep and hidden feelings. It was cool, a new sort of heaven with no rules.

Until there was. Until there were ties and feelings and that perfect heaven seemed very breakable.

Until Aelin became a part of Rowan’s routine, and until Aelin found herself too at ease around him. It had been a natural shift, one that Lysandra had said it was bound to happen. Both were on pre-med together, both spent most of their free time together too. They were great friends, slept together and were single. According to her best friend, it was only a matter of time until their friendship became something more.

It had taken a whole year. Things were normal-ish until spring came. With spring break around, Rowan and Aelin spent every hour of the week together, usually at her apartment of at the bar. Rowan had gone so many times to the Sea Dragon, that Rolfe said he was considering buying him as a piece of decoration or as some sort of bar scarecrow to avoid fights. With his black clothes and serious face, Rowan looked like one bad boy from one of the cheap romance books Aelin always read, Rolfe told him while Aelin’s cheeks heated. Rowan had laughed at that, turning to Aelin with humorous smile, and she simply flipped him off.

It had been Aelin’s best week in a very, very long time. But the aftermath just made her freak out.

After Chaol, Aelin had absolutely no interest in getting into another relationship. Her six months with him had been enough to make her hate the prospect of sharing her life romantically with someone again. She didn’t need to find a new guy to open up just to have him throw all her insecurities and fears on her face again. No, Aelin was perfectly fine single.

She kept telling herself that, but every time Rowan was around the hesitation and fear would disappear from her mind. Every time he laughed with her, Aelin would feel her heart beating faster. She could barely contain her own smile when Rowan looked at her. She wanted to touch him all the time, wanted to be around him all the time.

Rowan didn’t seem nearly as hesitant of his romantic feelings towards Aelin, but that probably was due to the fact that he didn’t have a shitty ex haunting his thoughts all the time. Actually, Lyria was a lovely woman who had come to visit during winter and said more than once that Aelin should make a definitive move on Rowan. The girl had given Aelin her number and every now and then the two would talk. 

If Rowan had spent five years with someone nice and lovely as Lyria, an actual relationship with Aelin wouldn’t last two weeks. And Aelin would get hurt again. He had obviously hinted many times that he wanted a relationship, but Aelin had just played dumb every time.

She analyzed all her fears, all her emotions and how Rowan made her feel.

She was fucking terrified of all of it.

So she ditched.

By the end of spring, Aelin simply stopped talking to him after saying that she didn’t want a serious relationship at all. Classes were over, and whenever Rowan and his friends came to the bar the next weeks, Aelin would go upstairs and Lys would cover for her. Sometimes, Aelin would look out of her window during the night, hoping to see Rowan under it. It was a way of her seeing his face again but avoiding him seeing her.

It was absolutely miserable.

This time last year was when she had met Rowan, and if she stopped to think, she had been a completely different person. Lately, Aelin didn’t flirt with the customers anymore, instead she would be constantly thinking about flirting with Rowan. She couldn’t look at that stupid vending machine’s blue glow without remembering when she first met Ro. Everything in the Sea Dragon reminded her of him, and she hated it. She hated how he had invaded her space, her little heaven, her life, and messed everything up. She hated the hours he spent in her apartment because now he was also a concept of her home.

She hated how much she wanted him.

“Summer is a cruel bitch.” Aelin complained.

“You love summer.”

“I loved summer. Now it just feels like a knife going down straight to the bone.”

“Just go fucking talk to him, you stubborn prick.” Lysandra said and Aelin simply groaned.

“I could be bleeding out right now and he would be the last one to know.”

“You’re so dramatic, gods. You should be trying but you’re just screwing it up.” Lys frowned.

It was the first Friday in two years that Aelin wasn’t working on the Sea Dragon. Instead, she and Lys decided to have a game night and play some old game board they found in the Sea Dragon’s storage.

“I don’t want to get hurt.” Aelin mumbled, rolling the dice. Lysandra rolled her eyes at her best friend.

“You look hurt right now.”

“I’m happy right now.” Aelin lied, taking the dice and giving to Lysandra.

When Lys put them down, Aelin simply scowled. She didn’t want to have this conversation again. It was summertime again and she was supposed to be having fun, not moping around for a guy that wasn’t even her boyfriend.

“Baby.” Lys said, taking Aelin’s hands. “Chaol was a fucking asshole, we know, but Rowan is different. The two of you were friends for a year, acted like a couple for the most part of it, and he never acted like Chaol. What would change if you gave him a chance?”

“What if he hurts me, Lys? I dated Chaol for six months and didn’t even like him the way I like Rowan. And yet he broke my fucking heart.” Aelin sighed, rubbing her eyes with her palms. “Can you imagine how much worse it will be if Rowan does it?”

“But—“

“No.” Aelin said, getting up. She grabbed her phone, going to the apartment’s door. “I’m not interested. I’ll get over it. It’s just some stupid crush because I spent way too much time with him. I’ll be better off recovering from not having a relationship than I will from recovering from a broken heart. Again.”

“Ace…” Lys said, her face sad.

“I’m gonna go drink something. You coming?” Aelin asked, ignoring her friend’s pity. Lys simply shook her head, and Aelin left, slamming the door behind her.

She went down, entering the bar and pouring herself a drink. None of the baristas stopped her, all knowing her face all too well.

“Tough night, blondie?” Rolfe asked from where he was sitting at the other side of the balcony.

“Tough summer.” Aelin grumbled, taking the whole bottle of whatever she had just poured to herself. She took a swig and Rolfe didn’t even blink at that. After two years, Aelin knew what boundaries she could and couldn’t overstep.

“Your boyfriend was here earlier. Looked like shit, if you’re wondering.”

“I wasn’t. And he’s not my boyfriend.” Aelin drank again, her head already feeling lighter. “Never was.”

“Well he looked like it. For a whole year.” Rolfe looked at her, a small smile playing on his lips. “Is this because of Chaol?”

“Since when do you keep tabs on my love life, Rolfe?” She was too sober to have this conversation again. She took down three gulps, almost coughing at the alcohol burning down her throat.

“You’re my best waitress and you’re always here.” Rolfe laughed. “I probably know more about you than anyone else, blondie.”

Aelin rolled her eyes, but a smile played on her lips. Although Rolfe was an asshole most of the times, Aelin had grown to like him a lot. He was like an uncle sometimes— nosy but always there.

“Should I call him?” Aelin asked, drinking once more before she stared at Rolfe. She had been entertaining the idea for a while now, even though she wouldn’t ever admit that to Lysandra.

“I would.” He shrugged, pointing at the half empty bottle on her hand. She looked down. Whiskey apparently. “But I’d drink about two more of those before.”

For the first time in a while, Aelin actually chuckled. “Yeah, I think I’ll let drunk Aelin decide this.”

Rolfe grinned at her. “I’ll call you a cab when you come crying to me later about your silver headed fling.”

“A cab?” She raised an eyebrow.

“If you’re gonna declare your feelings while drunk, do it in style, sweetheart.” Rolfe winked at her. “Make a whole goddamn scene.”

Aelin stared at the vending machine when Rolfe left. She could feel the alcohol loosening her whole body, allowing her to think in a broader way than she would have allowed herself while sober.

She had fallen in love with Rowan, that much was obvious. It had been slow and almost imperceptible, but it had happened. Maybe a part of her had loved him since the first time she heard his heavy accent and saw his handsome face. Maybe she had started falling when he passionately talked about Scotland, or when he gave her his whole attention when she was the one talking about her childhood. Maybe it had been during their classes when Aelin saw how smart he was, and how much he also appreciated her own intelligence.

Maybe it had been a little bit in every single situation, every moment filling her heart a bit more.

She wanted him so bad, but she was also so scared of having her heart broken again.

She kept thinking for the next few hours, listing the pros and cons of trying something with Rowan.

“Better live regretting something you did than live your whole life regretting what you didn’t, right? Better to take years to recover than to spend the rest of your life wondering what it could have been.” Aelin said to herself, her words slurred. She was on her second bottle and the alcohol was certainly impacting her.

“Are you ok?” Ansel, the other barista, was looking at her strange.

“I’m drunk and talking to myself. Go to work, Briarcliff.” Aelin chided.

“You’re insane, Galathynius.” Ansel grinned, turning to another customer.

At that moment, Aelin made her decision. Her sober self would probably think it was insanity, so she needed to do that now. She needed to take action before she chickened out again.

“Rolfe! The cab!” Aelin shouted, hearing Rolfe’s rich laughter across the bar.

Five minutes later, Aelin was in the back of a cab, drunk out of her mind and with tears streaking down her cheeks. She didn’t really know why she was crying like a baby. Maybe a still lucid part of her was terrified to do what she was planning. Maybe some part of her was crying out of fear of rejection. Maybe the tears were due to her burning throat after so much whiskey.

Who the fuck cared?

“You can stop here please.” She pointed to a pretty house.

She had been there before during the last summer, almost every night when she wasn’t at the Sea Dragon. She would recognize that garden gate even if she was stripped away from her senses.

“Your boss already paid.” The driver said, smiling at her. “Good luck.”

Aelin nodded, a pit opening inside her stomach. “Thanks.”

Gods, what the fuck was she doing?

Without further thought, she snuck in through the garden gate, walking to the backyard. She stopped in front of a window on the second floor. The whole house was dark, and Aelin was feeling the hesitation in her despite the adrenaline and the alcohol.

She cupped her hands around her mouth, closing her eyes. “Rowan.”

She stared at the window for a few seconds, waiting for a light before cupping her mouth and screaming again. “Rowan Whitethorn!”

At that, a single light flickered in his bedroom. Aelin’s heart was beating so fast she though she was going to puke it out. Suddenly, this whole thing seemed like a very bad idea. But it was too late, so she just raised her chin and gathered whatever courage had been created by the whiskey.

Rowan pushed back his curtains, opening the window and scanning the backyard until his eyes fell on her. Immediately, his brows furrowed and eyes widened. “Ace? Is everything fine?”

“Yeah, I’m fine.” She said, but then shook her head. “Actually that’s not true.”

Rowan seemed so confused that Aelin almost gave up. “What the fuck happened? You disappear for more than a month and then show up at my backyard at three in the morning?”

“I lied before, ok?” She shouted. “And I don’t want to come up with a stupid excuse for it because I don’t want to keep secrets just to keep you. I have nothing against relationships. My ex broke my fucking heart and now I am terrified of them. And then you come around and fuck everything up.”

“That’s your secret? That’s what you lied about? Your ex? You came all the way here to tell me about your ex while drunk?” He crossed his arms, looking both pissed and hurt.

“You dumb fuck.” She replied, running her hands through her hair. This could have gone so much more smoothly. “I lied about what I said the last time we talked, about wanting a relationship. The secret is that I didn’t ditch you because I don’t want a relationship or because of my ex. The secret is that I am so fucking in love with you for months now that I am terrified of dating you because you can break my heart in a million pieces.”

“What did you say?” He said quietly, and if her attention wasn’t solely on him, she would have missed.

“Oh well, shit. We’re already here, aren’t we? For whatever it’s worth, Rowan Whitethorn,” Aelin screamed, opening her arms. “I love you! Ain’t that the worst thing you ever heard?”

Rowan stared her in silence for a few seconds before retreating into the bedroom. He didn’t say a word, and Aelin’s heart sank. She felt her throat constricting, her stomach turning and turning.

She was about to go back home and hide under the covers with a pot of ice cream when one of the lights from the first floor turned on. Aelin stared expectantly at the glass doors that separated the house’s interior and the backyard. The door opened, and Aelin sighed when she saw Rowan coming to her, his steps purposeful.

“I—“ She started, wanting to explain everything better.

Rowan cupped her face with his hands, his fingers tangling in her hair. “I love you too.”  He said before bringing his face down and kissing Aelin.

Her arms circled his waist, and she pressed her body against his. It had been too long since she kissed him, and Aelin sighed as Rowan’s warm mouth moved on hers. She tilted her face up, standing on her tiptoes. She opened her mouth, hands tightening around him as he deepened the kiss.

They stayed like that for minutes until both drew back, breathing deeply. Aelin opened her eyes to see Rowan grinning like the devil at her, and she smiled back at him.

Tags:

@in-love-with-caramel-macchiato @jlinez @courtofjurdan @aelinfeyreeleven945tbln @ladywitchling @lexflame @sleeping-and-books @annejulianneh111 @perseusannabeth @linshryver @mu-si-ca-l @camilamartinezdunne @dank-queen7 @minaidss @starborn-faerie-queen @booksofthemoon @loveofbooksandwine @jesstargaryenqueen @abookishfreak @faerie-queen-fireheart @maastrash @morganofthewildfire @queen-of-glass

[taebinzdimples]

The Heart of Seoul

Pair: Jungkook x Reader

Summary: You’re studying abroad to expand your horizons in film study. Your last stop is in South Korea. Six months before you arrive back in America, you meet Jungkook. Your story begins there.

What to expect: Fluff, Angst, Heart Break, Mentions of Cheating

A/N: Hello guys! I’m back with another story. It was a small idea that I had that I ran with! The ending is similar to my last story but if you didn’t read that one then you’ll love this one! I cried while typing it out. Thank god I made the ending the way I did!

——

Being a foreign exchange student was hard. Your brother Chaol was funding your education abroad because he wanted you to come back and work for his company when it was over. Your brother was a big name in America and apparently around the world.

Wherever you went, people knew your name. It always pained you to know that people wanted to use you, avoid you, or simply think you were some entitled brat. It hurt but you were used to being alone.

You had been abroad for two years, coming home at least once a month to check in and then leaving again. You were majoring in Film Studies and had a minor in photography. You were grateful your brother was funding your education. It sucked though, that in six months, you would be back home, and reality would set in.

You sat in the park playing with your new camera that Chaol had sent for an early graduation present. It arrived last week but you hadn’t had a chance to play with it yet. You were so busy lately, it never occurred to you to take it out and play with it.

At least not until Mr. Lee was handing out the last assignment for the semester. It was to make a short movie and everyone got a different topic. Yours was called

The Heart of Seoul

What that meant, you didn’t know. Was it the people who lived in the city? The animals that roamed the streets? The cute boy sitting in the booth with six other guys?

Your eyes instantly shot up.

Holy shit.

You knew that boy. He was in your final class of the day. Jeon Jungkook, you remembered. He sat a couple rows up ahead of you. Now he was sipping his drink flashing a cute wave at you.

You blushed and turned away. That was so embarrassing and you couldn’t believe he caught you filming him. It wasn’t intentional. He just happened to be in the line of sight of your camera.

Suddenly a shadow came over you and you slowly looked up to meet beautiful brown eyes.

“Nice Camera.” He said as you stared at him. He was so beautiful. The way his lips were perfectly pursed, the way his nose was slightly too big but it fit wonderfully on his face, and his eyes. God those eyes would be the death of you.

“Are you okay? It’s (y/n) right?” He asked. It suddenly occurred to you that you had been staring a little too long. You cleared your throat and looked away while nodding.

“I’m Jungkook. I’ve noticed you in class.” He said before sitting down next to you. Your head snapped back to look at him. “You have?”

You internally groaned as you said that. It sounded like every cliché romance movie out there. Girl is invisible, cute boy notices girl, cute boy and girl fall in love. It was annoying.

He nodded and smiled a cute white toothed smile at you. “Yeah. You sit in the back a lot. Very mysterious.” He winked as you chuckled. “I figured you were just shy, or that your Korean wasn’t good.” He said as you chuckled.

You were versed in seven other languages and you were thankful. Being on your own and only one language would have put a big halt in your studying.

“I know a lot of languages. Korean is no exception.” You said confidentially and that made the brown eyed boy laugh. “Can I see that?” He asked pointing to your camera. You didn’t hesitate to hand it to him. He took it and messed with a couple other settings on it before turning it on himself and pressing record.

You couldn’t help the small giggle that escaped your body. “Hello Camera! My name is Jungkook and I am the first bit of footage that (Mr./Miss) (y/n) has on here!” He said waving. You shook your head before he turned the camera back on you. “Let’s see that beautiful face.” He said as you sighed shaking your head.

—-

It’s been three years since that day you met Jungkook. You managed to talk to your brother about extending your studying time. At first you lied and told him you were genuinely interested in learning more, but as time went on, Chaol had figured it out. He didn’t mind but Chaol helped you find a job that was in coordination with his company and you stayed.

You were sitting at the beach on your date as you looked at Jungkook while he was out by the water filming himself on your camera. It made your heart thump in response. You slowly took a drink of your champagne and watched your boyfriend in all of his glory.

He came back over to you and sat down. “This is such a perfect day.” He said as he looked at you.

“Oh yeah? Why is that?” You teased playfully as he chuckled. “Because you make it perfect.” You clicked your tongue playfully rolling your eyes.

“Gukkie, you are shameless.” You teased as he laughed showing his beautiful bunny smile.

Later, you returned to your apartment and Jungkook followed you inside. You two had moved in together after a year and you felt head over heels that this was your man. At least, you didn’t know what the next day would bring.

You woke up the next morning to a text from your friend Yeonjun. He was one of the main reasons you had come to Korea and he was supportive of your happiness, just not completely of Jungkook. You looked at the text and what you saw broke your heart. It was a photo of Jungkook with..

Another woman.

It didn’t seem like she was a friend. They were holding hands. The text read:

Are you going to let him get away with this?

You didn’t know what to think. You knew you should ask him but you didn’t want to fight. You never did. You were so against confrontation that the thought terrified you. Sure you had small arguments, but you knew this was going to be more than that.

You slowly got out of bed and went to the bathroom. Another text from Yeonjun was from another angle of the girl and Jungkook. You couldn’t see her face but she was clearly into Jungkook more than she should’ve been. It was like a slap to the face.

Cheating.

You couldn’t live with the thought that he could’ve been cheating on you this whole time. You didn’t response to Yeonjun because you suddenly heard a knock on the door.

“(y/n)? Are you in there?”

Jungkook.

“Yes! I’m just about finished.” You said keeping your voice as calm and stable as possible. A few moments later you stepped out and Jungkook was sitting on the bed. “Are you okay?” He asked you raising an eyebrow. You stared at him. It was hard to even think he could be cheating on you.

He was shirtless, his perfectly sculpted abs taunting you, his exposed legs inviting you in. His damn face was drawing it all together. You nodded as you walked out of the room without a single word, your phone in hand.

He watched you and you could feel those brown eyes burning into the back of your head.

“Are you sure you’re okay? No good morning kiss?” He asked poking out his bottom lip. It was enough to see that cute little freckle pop out that you loved so much. It was one of your favorite things about him. You didn’t turn to face him. The tears were already falling before you could respond.

Jungkook was in front of you and he saw it. The tears, the hurt on your face. “(Y/n) what’s wrong? What happened?” He asked frantically. He hated seeing you upset. It almost hurt him more to see you upset than anything.

“Is it true?” You managed to spit out. He stopped for a moment wondering what you were talking about. “What are you talking about?” He asked standing straight up.

Your phone was practically burning a hole through your hand as you shook from your nerves. Slowly you brought your phone up to expose the picture of Jungkook and the mystery girl.

“Are you..cheating on me..?”

The next words to leave his mouth, were not what were expecting to hear. Anything other than that would have been fine.

“You were never meant to find out this way.”

It was then your heart shattered into a million pieces. You couldn’t take the hurt that was consuming your entire soul. You walked to the bedroom and shut the door. Jungkook tried to stop you but you didn’t want to hear it. You needed to get away from him.

You got dressed and put your hair in a messy bun. Your skinny jeans were a little dirty, and your shirt was wrinkled. But you didn’t care, you had to get out. You packed a bag and opened the door. On the other side, Jungkook was sitting down but stood up as you looked at him. “Where are you going?” He asked you but you couldn’t bear to hear his voice anymore.

You pushed past him but he grabbed you. “(Y/n), wait, don’t leave me.” He begged but it was too late. The choice had been made. And you weren’t the one he picked. You pulled your arm away form him. “You made your choice Jungkook. You can manage yourself.” You said saying his full name. It was the first time in 3 years he had heard his full name leave your mouth. It was always between J, Kookie, or Gukkie. Never Jungkook.

—-

You found yourself outside of Taehyung’s apartment. You didn’t know where else to go. Over the three years, you and Tae had grown close as friends. He helped you get to know Jungkook better and he was the one who pushed Jungkook to make the move to ask you out. He had become your brother in a way, and you were thankful. You just needed to get away from Jungkook to clear your head.

The door opened to show a very tired and messy haired boy. “(Y/n)?” Tae asked tiredly. “Is everything okay?”

It was all it took to make you breakdown, and you were in Tae’s arms. He brought you inside and sat you down. You cried. You cried a lot. When you managed to finally stop, you explained everything to Tae. He was in shock to say the least, but he was there for you when you needed him.

“I’m so sorry (y/n). You can stay here for as long as you need.” He told you as he got up going to the kitchen to make your favorite comfort tea. Normally that worked, today, tea would never be enough again. The dark hole that was burning into your chest was almost overwhelming. “I think..I think I need to go back to America.” You told Tae as he stopped turning to you.

“No. You can’t leave. Surely there’s an explanation (y/n). Let Jungkook have time to explain himself.” He tried to reason with you. It wasn’t enough. You couldn’t be in the same country as the man that just broke your heart. The man you gave everything to. Your mind, body, and soul all belonged to Jungkook and you couldn’t live with that after this.

You didn’t remember the flash drive that you were going to play for Jungkook last night was still sitting on the kitchen island. It had a small note taped to it that had said “play me.” You didn’t know Jungkook was watching something that held a very personal meaning to you.

The flash drive that had the “Heart of Seoul” video attached onto it. The video that showed Jungkook as your heart in Seoul.

—

It was about 10:00pm when there was knock at Tae’s door. Tae had gone out with some friends for the evening. He had offered to take you along, but you didn’t want to ruin the mood or his fun. You thought that was the pizza you had ordered when you heard the knock at the door. So, when you opened the door, the shock of Jungkook hit you like a slap to the face.

He was crying. The tears falling down his face like a small waterfall, and it broke your heart. It was ironic how even though yours was broken, you still wanted to fix him first. “(Y/n)..” He choked out and it made you weak.

“Gukkie..” You whimpered softly. He stepped in shutting the door behind him. He knew he would find you here, but he wanted to give you time to clear your head before he came to you. The smell of his cologne, his laundry detergent, and him, were all too much for you.

You broke down.

He pulled you to him and you cried as he held you. “I’m right here baby..I’m not leaving you.” He said softly as he kissed the top of your head. You wanted to push him away, to hate him, to loathe him. You couldn’t. Instead, the comfort of his strong arms around you began to warm you inside. His soothing voice spoke wonderful tunes to your ears, and the smell of Jungkook was teasing your senses.

He led you to the couch as he sat you down. “I need to explain the photos. It’s not what you think. It never was. But you weren’t supposed to know anything.” He said as you looked at him wiping your tears.

“That sure sounds like it is what I think it is” You choked out. He looked at you as his heart broke too. “No. It’s so much more than that (y/n). I wanted it to be a surprise, but it got out before I could make it one.” He said as you raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean?”

He took your hand and kissed the back of it as your skin was set on fire. It was annoying the effect this man could have on you sometimes. It was so easy to forgive and forget. Only this time, you couldn’t forgive, and you wouldn’t forget.

“That woman in the picture is a good friend of mine. Her name is Liana. We were friends back in grade school and her family moved here when she was fifteen. I hadn’t seen her in years. I found out that she had open a shop recently and I went to her for advice.” He explained to you as you listened. It still didn’t make sense to you. A friend he hasn’t seen or even spoken about suddenly showing up and getting close? It made your stomach turn.

He continued.

“She owns a jewelry shop. She does all sorts of custom jewelry or you can go in and buy one right off the shelf. I contacted her because I knew she would be the best to help me when it came to this.” He was putting his hand in his pocket and pulled out a small box. As he opened it, your heart stopped at the sight of what was inside.

It was an engagement ring.

“She was helping me pick out a ring for you. I was going to wait to propose until we went to America next month and I met your brother and father.” He said choking out a small chuckle. “But you got ahead of me and thought I was doing something I would never do to you.” He said softly as he cupped your face.

You felt so utterly stupid. How could you think that the man you love more than anything in the entire world could cheat on you? How could you think that he would ever hurt you like that? You wanted to yell, kick, even scream at yourself for being so stupid.

You looked at him as you smiled softly. It was a genuine smile but the thought of him cheating still hurt and it was your fault that it had even crossed your mind.

“I’m so sorry Gukkie.” You said as you cupped his cheek wiping his cheeks. “I saw the photos and I saw the closeness. It just never occurred to me that you would do this.” You told him as he smiled softly. He understood how it looked, and it did hurt him to know that’s what your mind had jumped to. It didn’t matter to him anymore though, because he loved you more than anything in his entire life.

“What do you say (y/n)? Will you marry me?” He asked getting down on one knee to ask you properly. You felt the world around you stop and the only thing that mattered was Jeon Jungkook. The man who was half your heart, half your body, and half your soul.

You leaned forward as you looked at his beautiful brown eyes and smiled softly.

Not only was Jungkook your mind, body, and soul, he was also your Heart of Seoul. So for that very reason, it was enough for you to say,

“Yes Jeon Jungkook, I will marry you.”

[keishajay]

I meant for this whole review to go in one post, but damn, I had a lot of complaints, way more than I thought once I started writing them down.  Some are nitpicky; most are related to characters and writing choices.  For the fans of this series, I did enjoy this series for what it is, but I’ll never defend it as great literature.  It’s Sharknado levels of fun, and I live for stupid shit like that.  For the haters, enjoy.  Oh, and spoilers ahead.

Now, on to the cons, and hoo boy, are there a lot of them.  First, I was shocked to see this was labeled book 7 and not 6.  I had no interest in reading Tower of Dawn, as it was marketed as a side story novella.  Kingdom of Ash expects you to have read it and spends little to no time explaining who all these new characters are.  It’s not confusing, just annoying for those of us not invested in Chaol’s story enough to read the novella.  If you like Chaol, more power to you.  I just didn’t care enough about what was a sure outcome to waste my time reading a novella about him and only him.  Nesryn goes with him as well, but she was barely a character in the fifth (fourth? I don’t know anymore) book, more a cool background piece than a real person.  That’s not nearly enough for me to pick up an entire book.

Maas brings in four new “personalities” from Tower of Dawn that really just take up space and fawn over Aelin, just like everyone else.  Hasar is just a crabbier version of Aelin; Sartaq loves Nesryn and that’s it; Yrene is Chaol’s wife who’s a healer and that’s it; and Borte likes arguing with her fiance.  They might be more interesting in ToD, but here, they just read like cardboard cutouts.  They’re unnecessary and boring.

And speaking of unnecessary, there are WAY too many POV characters in these books.  What started with a handful of mostly essential characters has now become a library’s worth of them.  Even Lysandra’s ward, Evangeline, gets a couple POV bits to herself. Why?  They added nothing to the story aside from remind us that she was there and still alive.  More POVs should only ever be added to further the story or themes.  I kid you not, Elide and Lorchan are together for 90% of the last two books, and for some reason, they both have POV chapters.  Elide was already established and should’ve been the only one necessary, but you know, Lorchan’s hot so we should hear him angst too.  And that is all he does, by the way, angsts over Elide.  Hell, by the end, I was a little surprised Abraxos didn’t have his own POV chapter.

Maas also adds nonsensical things in to ramp up the drama.  The worst offender is the character Darrow.  He and TWO other old men boss Aedion around throughout this entire book, because... reasons, I guess.  They don’t recognize Aelin as queen, fine.  But they’re three old dudes against Aedion, who literally commands their entire army and the fire-bringer all the people in their whole country rally to.  If anyone can give me a logical reason why Aedion didn’t just ignore every order they attempted to give him, I’m all ears.  Instead, he tiptoes around them constantly and outright steals his own army from under their noses to do what he wants anyway.  Why?  They all know damn well Aelin is the rightful queen and they wouldn’t even have an army without her and Aedion.  She could crush them under her thumb, and they all know that too.  Hell, Aedion’s treason would even be forgiven in moments when she took her throne back from... no one.  Darrow isn’t even trying to be king of Terrasen.  He just doesn’t like the idea of this bratty teenager being his queen, and who can blame him?  Yeah, I know she wants her country to be different, but she can’t change anything from the sidelines when the old rules are the only things keeping those men in power over her.  There is no good reason for Aedion to obey any of their orders.  They can do nothing to stop him, and they all know it.  They are literally only there so Aedion has someone besides Lysandra to be pissed off at.

Speaking of Aedion being pissed off at Lysandra.  For the haters out there, yes, he has every right to be mad at her.  She may not have been the one to come up with this insanity, sure, but she knew Aelin suspected it might be necessary.  Telling the one person who foams at the mouth anytime someone gets within spitting distance of his cousin that maybe something terrible could happen to her, making this plan necessary, should be at the top of your to-do list.  She knew damn well what she was doing and how he would react the entire time Aelin was teaching her to play pretend.  He should be angry with her for not telling him what was going through Aelin’s head, not for following the orders of their queen.  Yes, him throwing he naked out in the snow was a major dick move, and I’m glad that she didn’t let him forget it.  What I don’t condone is his reaction to seeing Aelin again.  He just hugs her like nothing ever happened.  He’s an asshole to Lysandra for months, but he just forgives Aelin for everything as soon as he sees her.  I’m sorry but no.  I would’ve forgiven the entire conflict between him and Lysandra being tedious if he had just punched her in the face before he hugged her.  God knows she deserves it for all the shit she’s pulled over the course of six books.

So, I hate Aelin Galathynius.  Like straight up hate her.  She went from being a brat in the first few books to being the worst case of Mary Sueitis I have ever seen outside of self-insert fanfiction.  First, she’s a secret princess, a “twist” anyone with a brain could see coming.  She’s also somehow the best at everything she does, even though she shows no evidence of any of it.  How does the country’s best assassin get caught?  On top of that, how does anyone even know who the country’s best assassin is?  Shouldn’t hiding your identity be rule number one in the assassin handbook?  This shit-licker could’ve been any happy-ass teenager with a knife pretending to be this famous assassin when they caught her.  How would they know?  Answer, they shouldn’t have any idea (that would’ve also made for a much more interesting story).  So, not only is she the best at everything she tries for reasons, she’s also the only one in the whole damn world with fire magic, the only thing that can hurt the demons for a majority of the series.  And she doesn’t just have regular old everyday fire magic.  No, she has fire to rival fifteen suns going supernova at the same time.  She’s also the prettiest and smartest and nicest and snarkiest and funniest girl in the world.  She outsmarts someone thousands of years old who could’ve snapped her neck or dropped her in to a literal Hell with a flick of her wrist.  But no, Princess Mary Sue wants her new boytoy free, so the villainess has to get tricked into letting him go.  Now, let’s not forget she’s also the Chosen One who deus ex machinas her way out of sacrificing herself because no one can do anything without her there to save the day.  Seriously, no one ever wins anything unless she’s there.  It happens more than once in this book.  Her boytoy and company show up to rescue her from aforementioned villainess just as she’s breaking herself out, and they can’t get her chains off until she somehow shows them how to unlock them.  She then proceeds to get them out of the country through her magic of summoning deus ex machinas whenever she needs one, and they arrive just in time to rescue Chaol and Nesryn from certain doom.  She stops a cascading river with fire because science, and when all hope is lost back home, she shows up on a magical white deer with the Rohir- oops, I mean her army.  She also somehow holds off two of the most powerful creatures in the world with her assassin skills and barely any magic, because... villains have to lose, I guess.  You know what Aelin loses by the end of the book?  Her humanity, which she suddenly cares about ten pages before it’s gone.  Aedion lost his father and at least half an army at his command.  Manon lost the only people she really cared about in the whole world, and she could do nothing but watch them sacrifice themselves.  And Aelin lost her humanity when she’s already been living as a fae since book 3.  Oh God, how will she ever survive such a loss?  She is actually the worst.

These books, this one in particular, are clearly written with a younger audience in mind (much younger than me at least, and I’m 30), and I strongly believe the target audience is girls.  There is so much description of how beautiful the men in this series are that it almost borders on obscene.  I do appreciate having a clear picture of what characters look like, but I do not need to know about all the rippling muscles and long fingers that all the men in this series seem to have.  Even bookworm Dorian is described as being oh-so-sexy even though he doesn’t appear to have ever handled a weapon in his life.  There is a lot of pandering to the female audience, especially with the sex scenes.  In a YA novel, these are pretty inappropriate.  She started with sex scenes being a fade-to-black kind of event, and now, almost every single one is described in disgusting detail.  I like romance as much as the next girl, but if I wanted soft-core porn, I’d read romance novels.  To top that shift off, she still insists on using “rutting” as a substitute for “fucking,” and I think that’s what bothers me the most about the whole change here.  They are completely interchangeable in every context, to the point where I just read “rutting” as “fucking” every single time.  This isn’t Brandon Sanderson’s silly but story-appropriate swearing.  It’s just lazy writing.  And detailed descriptions of sex are okay, but swearing?  Someone call Takamata.  We need to start the Inquisition. (History of the World reference for anyone confused.)

This story ends exactly as you should expect it to, with a happily ever after.  None of the main characters die, and those with names go out as sacrifices, which is honestly consistent with the rest of the deaths in this series.  The deaths we do get are mostly to make the main characters feel bad for no real reason.  Aedion even flat-out states that Gavriel could’ve stayed inside the walls, and there is no argument, author or characters, as to why he had to go outside.  At least the Thirteen’s sacrifice makes more sense.  It was still pretty dumb to have them go out at all, but I don’t know if I could come up with a better way to destroy those witch towers.  What they did was noble and understandable in context, though there were probably any number of ways it could’ve been avoided.  I’ve seen Desolation of Smaug.  Just drop a dragon/whale/elephant-Lysandra on top of the tower before they even get it fixed up to move again.

One last complaint that I have regarding the ending is largely the villains.  There are three of them, and all three kind of go out like bitches.  Erawan, the dickhead pulling the strings since book 1, gets tricked and healed to death.  There are a lot of millennia-old creatures getting tricked into doing stupid things in these books.  Manon’s grandmother (who never gets a name by the way) gets blown up by Asterin.  Honestly, hers was probably the most satisfying end of the three because Asterin got the vengeance she deserved for her hunter and child.  Maeve somehow became the biggest threat halfway through the series, and she meets her end in the most extravagant fashion, impaled by Fenrys and then decapitated by Aelin and burned to ash.  What irritates me most about Maeve is she could’ve been great.  If anyone has read the manga, Magi, you know what I’m talking about.  Maeve is discount Gyokuen with half the threat and less than a quarter the sense.  Where Gyokuen is highly capable, both as a fighter and a politician, Maeve is kind of a pushover who gets tricked by our “heroes” numerous times.  She’s shown preparing for all sorts of unlikely eventualities, but she somehow can’t handle the plucky teenagers.  Give me a break.  From the moment you meet her, you know Gyokuen is going to be one of those bad guys that will require some clever thinking to defeat.  I felt like Maeve could just be snuck up on and murdered by anyone who knew her schedule.  Her last ditch effort against Aelin was clever, but other than that, she barely puts up a fight despite all the fear and hype she gets from almost every character in the book.

Now, like I said above, I did enjoy these books.  I don’t feel like my time was wasted or that I was manipulated by them at all.  I had fun with them the same way that I have fun with SyFy channel original movies.  The characters and story had so much more potential than what this amounted to, but I don’t hate this series at all.  Yes, the subplot with the gods was idiotic and unnecessary, but the valg were interesting as an enemy type.  Yes, the romance shoved down my throat could be awful at times, but some of the relationships were genuinely sweet.  Chaol and Dorian are the best bros, and I love Lysandra taking it upon herself to protect this little girl when she could’ve looked the other way.  Manon’s relationship with Asterin was great as well.  Do I wish it was better?  Absolutely.  Should it be boycotted by everyone?  Of course not.  Despite their problems, these books are fun, fluffy, popcorn movie fun, and sometimes, that’s just fine.

[darling-cas]

All Is Well: Lysaedion

TOG/ACOTAR Christmas Fic Co-written with @stag-of-the-north

Summary: It was just a boring office Christmas party. Nothing was supposed to come of it… Lysandra isn’t one to let people in. She’s had her heart caged up for hers with no one able to rip down her walls. Until Aedion walked into her life. MODERN AU

Note: This doll was the first person I collaborated with for this whole series. She was so excited and knew what she wanted from the moment I asked her to join me! Every time I wrote with her, I had the biggest smile on my face. Plus we wrote Lysaedion, how can you go wrong with Lysaedion honestly. She’s such a breath of fresh air and it was amazing to work with her. So thank you once more, darling. I’d write with you again without a second thought.

All Is Well Masterlist

——————–

The party was beautiful. Breathtaking even. Stepping through the door you almost completely forgot you were standing in a bland, grey and beige colored firm. But that wasn’t much of a surprise considering the time both Lysandra and Aelin had taken to plan this party. Even still, when Lysandra had walked into the elegantly lit room, her breath hitched.

Never mind that she knew what the room would look like, she was still caught by utter surprise.

Garland and fairy lights hung in strands from the walls, giving the room a dim, intimate, golden glow. Soft, jazzy, Christmas music filled the air. Candles decorated the few tables that were set off to the side, allowing room for a small dance floor. Lysandra had chuckled when Aelin had insisted upon dancing. Who danced these days? Especially at office parties. But it seemed that Aelin was a stickler for tradition. And whatever Aelin wanted, Aelin got.

With a deep sigh, Lysandra smoothed the velvet of her dress and shrugged off her coat. She had felt slightly overdressed, standing in front of the mirror in her bedroom just moments ago. Then her eyes caught sight of Aelin, who was laughing beside Rowan and Dorian. If anything, now she felt slightly underdressed.

Aelin, never one to miss an opportunity to dress up, had selected a spaghetti strapped crimson dress with a plunging neckline. The bodice was skin tight while the skirt fanned out at her waist, falling just above her knees. Lysandra herself wore a pale green dress had long sleeves and was tight, clinging to her every curve. But the fabric was so damn thin, she couldn’t help but shiver slightly as she walked from the taxi to the office building.

Lysandra’s eyes swept over the room, taking in everyone standing around, chatting. The glow of the Christmas tree in the corner mixed with the light flurries outside caused warmth to flow through her as her eyes caught a head of blonde hair. Her heart started to beat faster, and despite herself, a smile tugging on the corners of her lips.

Aedion Ashryver stood at the far end of the room, a cup of something dark in his hand. And gods above, he looked far better than anyone should look in a simple dark oxford and tan pants, golden locks left loose around his shoulders and tousled, as if he’d been running his hand through his hair all night.

Heat warmed her freezing cheeks. Damn him and his genetics. Damn him for making her feel this way. She didn’t want him to make her feel this way.

Lysandra steeled herself, drawing in a breath. Tossing her coat in the pile on an empty table, she walked across the empty dance floor. Aelin’s face lit up with a brilliant smile, her arm leaving Rowan’s waist as she strode towards Lysandra.

“Lys!” Aelin called, her wine coming dangerously close to spilling as she marched in her six-inch heels. “You’re late.”

Lysandra sighed, an airy laugh leaving her lips as she pulled Aelin into a tight hug. “I’m sorry.”

Aelin pulled back and set her free hand on Lysandra’s shoulder, her brows furrowing. Even tipsy, Aelin could read her like an open book.

“What’s wrong,” Aelin whispered, “Did something—”

Lysandra shook her head, her loose hair sliding over her bare shoulder. “I’m okay, Aelin, I promise.”

Aelin looked suspicious, but didn’t press the matter. No, she only steered Lysandra back towards the little group that had gathered in the corner.

Manon and Dorian stood together, both of them talking to Rowan. Manon, of course, had gone for a much more subdued look than Aelin or Lysandra. But even with her short, wrapped, skin-tight black dress, she looked as if she stepped out of a fashion magazine.

Lysandra gave them a striking smile as she stepped up beside them.

“Where on earth did you get that dress?”  Manon looked her up and down. “It’s making me reconsider Princeling here.”

Lysandra laughed as  Dorian rolled his eyes, something that happened often when Lysandra, Aelin and Manon were all in the same room.

Aelin snickered. She wrapped an arm around Lysandra’s shoulders, waggling her perfectly groomed eyebrows at Manon.

“You can consider it all you want, witch, but she’s mine.” Aelin sipped at her wine, giving Rowan an exaggerated wink.

Rowan shook his head, a chuckle leaving his lips just as Lysandra elbowed Aelin. Probably a bit too hard.

“I don’t know why he loves you so much.” She teased, though she wasn’t completely joking.

Anyone and everyone knew Aelin and Rowan were a modern day love story. Not many people found that kind of love. Not these days anyway. The love between Aelin and Rowan… it was an everlasting flame. Burning big and bright for all to see, but not to touch. Aelin was made for Rowan, and Rowan was made for Aelin. Love didn’t seem that simple. Hell, love wasn’t that simple. But somehow, with Aelin and Rowan, it just… was.

And though she’d never tell them, Lysandra felt like she would forever be just a little bit jealous.

Aelin pulled away from Lysandra and swaggered back to Rowan, wrapping her arm around him and squeezing his side.

“Because I am an insanely beautiful lawyer who kicks ass both in and out of the courtroom. And because I put up with his bullshit just as much as he puts up with mine.” Aelin smirked.

“So humble,” Rowan murmured, which earned him a pinch on the side.

Lysandra chuckled again, glancing away for the briefest moment. Yet, her eyes still managed to find their way to the back of the room. To Aedion.

Seeing him standing there in the dim lighting, a breathtaking smile on his lips, it caused her stomach to lunge. It caused knots to form as she longed to be close to him. Even from across the room, she could see the gold of his eyes shining in the candlelight. It caused electricity to race through her veins.

This was all from just one, brief and fleeting glance. And it both exhilarated and frightened her beyond belief.

Lysandra wasn’t one to let these feelings in. She spent a long time building up her walls, learning to keep those feelings at bay. She’d been hurt in the past, and she wasn’t going to let that happen again.

Then, in walks Aedion, and all her plans basically go to shit. Those walls practically begging to come down.

And the most terrifying thing of it all was that she liked the idea of letting him in.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a squeal that could have only come from Aelin.

“Oh, I love this song!” Aelin set her wine glass down on the table they had all gathered around and turned to Rowan, hands outstretched. “We have to dance.”

For the first time since she’d known the man, Rowan flushed. His cheeks were a shade of red so dark it nearly matched Aelin’s dress.

“I, Aelin, uh—” He stammered, but then Aelin was grabbing his hand and dragging him to the center of the room.

Lysandra couldn’t contain her laughter even if she wanted to. The sight of a six-foot tall muscled man awkwardly dancing to cheesy Christmas music was enough to make anyone snicker.

“Come on, witchling,” Dorian purred, extending a broad hand.

Manon rolled her golden eyes, but Lysandra caught the slight smile that pulled at Manon’s crimson lips as Dorian tugged her out onto the dance floor.

Slowly, and in a manner that reminded Lysandra of all those awkward middle school dances she had attended, couples began drifting away from the sides of the room and to the center. There was Elide and Lorcan, the latter looking a little out of place dancing along to the music. And Chaol and Yrene, who were both laughing as they danced.

The slightest bit of despair settled in on Lysandra. She’d be the first to admit she was a strong woman, she could take care of herself. But as she stood there, watching as couples filled the dance floor, swaying to jazzy Christmas music, the loneliness started to sink in. It was Christmas after all, and who liked to be alone on Christmas?

Subconsciously, Lysandra found her eyes drifting back to the table Aedion was standing at a moment ago. And despite herself, her heart sank when she realized he wasn’t there anymore.

“Looking for someone?”

Lysandra almost jumped out of her skin. Heart pounding, she spun around, hair flying over her shoulder.

Aedion was standing there, hands shoved in the pockets of his pants. His hair was tousled, lips graced with a lopsided smile as his eyes shined.

The sight did little to calm her already racing heart.

“Aedion,” she breathed, “I- I wasn’t looking for-” a pause as she sighed, brushing back her hair “-you scared me.”

Her heart thumped a little harder when Aedion’s smile widened at her stumbling. She never stumbled. Not in words and certainly not in actions. What was he doing to her?

“Well, I certainly didn’t mean to.” Aedion looked her over, from head to toe, and smiled. He wasn’t looking at her the way most men did, like she was a piece of meat and they were starving. No, Aedion’s eyes held something else. There was a tenderness to them. A softness.

“Are you enjoying the party?” She asked, for a lack of nothing else to say.

Aedion turned away, his eyes flicking about the room. He exhaled deeply, and shrugged. “It looks wonderful, Lys-” Her stomach did an impromptu flip. “- But I’ve never been one for these kinds of things.”

She nodded, turning back to the little crowd of people dancing. Her stomach flipped, for what had to have been the eighth time that night, as she thought of going home to an empty apartment. She had sent Evangeline to stay with Miss Phillipa, a dear friend of Aelin’s, for the night.

She stared at her friends, all of them laughing and glowing and- And she stopped herself because those thoughts were petty and useless.

Lysandra sighed and looked back to Aedion, who, it seemed, had been staring at her.

“Do you want to step outside on the balcony? Get some fresh air?”

Lysandra gaped a bit at Aedion. She may be from the north, but even that had little effect on how she could handle a cold and bitter snowy night.

“I can go grab our jackets, Lys, I won’t let you freeze.” That stupid, knee-weakening smile returned to Aedion’s face.

“Well, then, yes.”

He winked at her, then walked towards the heap of coats. He quickly returned, helping her into her jacket before holding open the balcony doors.

The bitter air brushed over Lysandra’s flushed skin the moment she stepped outside. A crisp layer of snow coated the wooden balcony as flurries fell from the black, starless sky. The Christmas music became nothing but a low buzz, the city lights lighting up the space around them.

Either of them spoke as they walked to the edge of the balcony. Aedion placed his elbows on the ledge, leaning forward. Lysandra watched as his shoulders shifted under his shirt before shaking her head, looking away.

She shouldn’t be looking at him like that.

With a light sigh, Lysandra glanced out over the city before them. Christmas and street lights lit up the skyline. Snow had lightly coated the roads, roofs, every surface. The endless black sky above them made everything look so peaceful, so untouched.

“You look beautiful tonight, by the way.”

Lysandra’s attention snapped towards Aedion. The city lights cast half his face in shadow. His turquoise eyes sparkled as they meet hers. The smile on his face was small, tender, genuine, as his hair tossed in the wind.

Lysandra returned the smile, speaking softly. “Thank you. You look pretty dapper too.”

“Who says ‘dapper’ these days?” Aedion raised an eyebrow, his voice holding a teasing tone.

“I do,” Lysandra laughed. “I’m bringing it back.”

Aedion shook his head, smile forever on his lips as his hair flew around his face. “Sorry to tell you, but I don’t think it’ll never catch on.”

“Just you watch,” Lysandra gave him her own smirk. “I can be very persuasive.”

“I’m sure you can be.”

Lysandra held Aedion’s gaze for a moment longer, then it suddenly hit her want she was doing. What she was saying.

She looked away, back out towards the city. She couldn’t do this. She couldn’t believe she was doing this. She hadn’t flirted this openly, this easily, with anyone in such a long time. It scared her.

A hushed silence fell over them for another moment. The wind and the buzz of Christmas music the only sounds to fill the space around them as snow continued to lightly fall.

“Lysandra. Can I ask you something? It’s kind of personal.”

Her head turned towards Aedion, heart jumping in her chest. She took in his serious expression. His brows were slightly pinched, smile gone. And for the life of her, Lysandra couldn’t think of what he wanted to ask her. But she was so nervous she couldn’t seem to find her voice. So she just gave a slow nod.

Aedion leaned in closer, his voice a hushed tone as he spoke. “What do you want for Christmas this year?”

Lysandra blinked. Once, then twice. It took her a moment to fully work out what he was asking her. But when she did, she couldn’t stop the laugh from flying past her lips. It was a laugh that caused her whole face to light up, a laugh that came from deep within. A laugh that she hadn’t laughed in a long time.

“That’s your idea of a personal question?”

The smile came back to Aedion’s face, his eyes never leaving hers. “What someone wants for Christmas says a lot about a person.”

Lysandra laughed once more, shaking her head as she pulled her coat closer.

“I don’t really know,” she asked honestly once the laughter had died down. “I haven’t put much thought into what I want this year.”

“Come on,” Aedion teased, taking the slightest step closer to her. “Everyone knows what they want for Christmas.”

Lysandra glanced up at him with a raised eyebrow. She tried not to think too much about how much closer he was to her. How she could feel his body heat. “And what is it that you want?”

Aedion paused. He glanced out at the city light, seemingly thinking long and hard about the question

“A bicycle,” he answered finally, turning back to Lysandra. “That’s what I want this year.”

She gave him a long look that said, It snows literally nine months out of the year here.

But, despite that, another chuckle flew past her lips. “You couldn’t honestly be asking for that for Christmas.”

“I totally am,” his eyes shined with laughter.

“Then I’ll be sure to get you a bicycle for Christmas.”

“I’m holding you to that,” he said before pausing, his eyes locking with hers. “Thought I’d love anything you got me for Christmas, Lysandra.”

She flushed, because this was flirting again. She was flirting again, and it was because she wanted to. Not because she needed to, or because it was expected of her, but because she liked someone, and because she was pretty sure they liked her back.

“Oh, I don’t know,” she glanced back out at the city, “I could get you a unicycle.”

Aedion met her eyes, and said with as much seriousness as if he were on a witness stand, “I’d ride it with pride.”

And he would. He’d make a damned fool of himself, just to see her smile, to see her laugh. Lysandra didn’t need any words to know he would. She could see it all on his face, in his eyes.

Everything between them seemed to freeze. The snow continued to fall, a cold breeze blowing past, but neither cared. Their eyes were locked, they were in their own little bubble. And Lysandra couldn’t stop her breath from hitching in her throat as Aedion gazed at her with such an open, caring and loving look.

She couldn’t remember the last time anyone looked at her like that.

“Lysandra,” Aedion’s voice was a soft whisper.

“Yeah?” she breathed. Her eyes never left his.

“Would you like to dance with me?”

There were a million reasons for her to say no. A million reasons why she should keep those walls up, stay hidden behind them. She needed to guard her heart, like she had been doing for years. But as she glanced between Aedion’s breathtaking eyes to his outstretched hand, that rush of fear wasn’t as intense as it normally was.

So despite herself, despite everything she had once told herself, she smiled. With a rush of excitement, she placed her hand in his. And the moment their fingers touched, she felt warm.

“I’d love to,” she whispered.

Giving her hand a light squeeze, Aedion smiled down at her. His eyes tender, lovingly, and never leaving hers as they walked back inside and out of the snow.

And as the Christmas music carried on, as the couples around them danced and laughed, as Aedion pulled her close, Lysandra felt safe.

[darling-cas]

We Are Young: Deleted Chapter

Throne of Glass High School AU

Note: Here it is, the deleted chapter. This got cut from the actual story because it just didn’t fit with the flow, but I still wanted to share it with you guys. Technically, this chapter would have been chapter 12 - not the Rowaelin date chapter. So all this takes place between chapter 11 and chapter 12. Also, big shout out to @miladyaelin for giving this a quick edit for me! There will most likely still be some mistakes, as this didn’t go through the editing process these chapters normally go though. And some stuff may be repeated as I did add it to the main story, this is a different way. But I still hope you enjoy!

Main Chapter | Masterlist

--------------------

Elide was happy to say she’d been feeling a bit better in the past few weeks.

Not 100% better, but better nevertheless.

She still held so many questions. She still went to bed feeling lost and went through her day feeling confused. But her talk with Aedion a few weeks ago really did help. And the couple of talks they’ve had since then weren't that bad either.

She realized that sexuality isn’t something easy. It’s complex. There were so many things she didn’t know and had to continue to learn. But she was slowly starting to figure out who she was. She was starting to come to her own. Yes, there was still a long road ahead of her, things she still had to open herself up to, but she’d get there in time.

“I feel like I need to be wearing my skates,” Aelin said, gripping the railing as they walked up the front steps of the school. “There’s so much ice I’m scared I may actually fall and break my leg.”

“I’m sure your Uncles would love that,” Elide couldn't help but laugh, especially as Aelin huffed, a cloud of cold air floating from her nose.

They were into mid-December, just over a week away from Christmas break. And if the weather today was any indication, they were in for one hell of a cold winter. Snow already covered the ground around them, with thin sheets of ice hiding underneath nature’s white blanket. The air around them was brutally cold and bitter. Flurries of fat snowflakes slowly fell from the gray sky.

It truly was a beautiful frigid winter wonderland.

“If I were to break my leg, I may as well break my neck too,” she said. “Because Uncle Weylan and Uncle Orlon would actually kill me.”

“Especially if you were to hurt yourself now, when you’re just over a month away from Nationals.”

“Don’t remind me.” A half-hearted groan made its way out of Aelin’s lips. “Uncle Weylan is bad enough.”

Elide laughed as the two girls walked through the main doors of the school. The warmth of the building hit them immediately, and Elide couldn’t help but sigh at the heat.

The main foyer of the school was nice and cozy with big holiday decorations. There were garlands hanging in the doorways, wreaths hanging on every door. Fake, light up snowflakes were hung from the ceilings.

Just the thought made Elide more excited for Christmas. Even though it would also mean no school, which meant being home more with her Uncle. But thankfully she had amazing friends who let her crash at their places. Plus she always spent Christmas with Aelin and her family, so she was never truly alone.

“You seem happier lately.”

Elide’s attention drifted to Aelin. The blonde was watching her with a careful eye, the smallest smile on her lips.

Elide couldn't help but let her own smile form. While she had been trying to figure out herself these past few weeks, she also realized how important having her friends around was. And how much she missed spending time with them.

“I am happier,” she admitted.

Aelin nodded, her eyes shining. “I’m glad.”

“The same could be said about you.” They turned down a crowded hallway as Elide spoke. “You seem happier these days too.”

The smile that was already on Aelin’s face grew. “I am happier.”

“Does a certain white-haired hockey player have anything to do with that?”

The grin on Aelin’s lips was contagious as she glanced over at Elide. The gold in her eyes seemed to glow at just the mention of Rowan.

“Definitely.” Aelin wrapped an arm around Elide’s shoulder. “But just know, I’m always here for you, if you ever need anything.”

Elide did know this. She knew this all along. But that didn’t stop the gratitude from shining on her face as she glanced up at Aelin.

“I know.”

Aelin gave Elide’s shoulder a tight squeeze before dropping her arm. The two fell into a comfortable silence as they continued down the hall. And Elide couldn't help but think that maybe, just maybe, her life was slowly started to untangle itself.

Then she slammed into a hard chest, just as she and Aelin turned the corner.

“Sorry. Didn’t see you.” This was half-heartedly said, as a strong set of arms gripped Elide by her arms, steadying her.

But the touch and voice just caused her body to lock up.

Slowly, her gaze moved upward. And sure enough, she was met with a pair of onyx eyes.

This was the first time she’d been this close to Lorcan since the party. Of course, she saw him all over school. But that was from a distance. She didn’t exactly go out of her way to walk into Lorcan. Partly because she didn’t want to find out what she’d feel if she got close to him again.

But standing there then, Lorcan in front of her, Elide was somewhat surprised to notice that she felt ... Nothing.

She didn’t feel any different than she had a moment before. Her heart didn’t jump. Her stomach didn’t twist and turn. She felt normal. As if any other person within the whole school had just banged into her.

Lorcan held Elide’s gaze for a moment longer, before raising a questioning eyebrow at her. If he noticed her or remembered the fact they’d made out a few months before, he didn’t comment on it.

“Can we help you, Salvaterre?”

Aelin’s hard voice brought Elide back to reality. She took a careful step backward, Lorcan’s hands dropping back to his side.

Lorcan’s face turned cold as he rolled his eyes.

“If it’s not my least favourite person in the whole school.”

Aelin huffed, crossing her arms across her chest as Lorcan’s dark eyes snapped to her.

“Oh, bite me.”

“I’ll leave that to Rowan, Galathynius,” Lorcan said, looking Aelin up and down. “Though I’ll never understand what he sees in you. All I see is a spoiled little bitch.”

Aelin took a slow, dangerous step forward. Her brows pinched together as she gazed up at Lorcan, face murderous.

But before she actually got a chance to say anything, a voice called out from behind Elide.

“Lorcan. Are you coming or not?”

Elide looked over her shoulder, only to find a beautiful curly-haired, brown-skinned junior standing just a few feet away from them. She had a hand on her hip, eyebrow raised as she looked between the three of them. Elide recognized her as Essar, the girl who was with Lorcan at the party.

Lorcan held Aelin’s gaze for a moment longer before slowly nodding his head. He sidestepped Aelin and walked right passed Elide, without so much as another word.

“God. I hate that boy so much.” Aelin sighed, her arms falling back to her side once Lorcan was gone. She turned to Elide, a look of concern on her face. “Are you okay?”

Elide didn’t answer right away. She couldn't help but keep her gaze on Lorcan and Essar.

She watched as Lorcan approached Essar, her eyes softening as he got closer. He said something, causing her to roll her eyes. Lorcan then wrapped an arm around her shoulder, guiding her away.

And Elide still felt no different. She felt the same watching them as she did watching Lysandra and Aedion.

Turning back to Aelin, Elide felt her lips pull up in the corner.

“Yeah,” she nodded. “I’m okay.”

“Good. Because I’d kill him if he ever hurt you in any way.” Aelin returned the smile before straightening her bag on her shoulders. “Come on.”

Together, the two continued on down the hallway as the warning bell for first class rang.

Elide couldn't help but think over Aelin’s words. And she couldn't help but realize that maybe Lorcan didn’t hurt her. Maybe he simply helped her, in a way. He gave he a little push to help her discover who she truly was.

With a heavy sigh, Elide continued to walk next to Aelin. But a flicker of silver hair in the corner of her eye caught her attention.

Turning her head, Elide found Manon leaning against the locker, talking to Asterin. She must have felt Elide’s eyes on her, because she looked up, causing their eyes to lock.

And this time, as Manon gave her the tiniest smile, her heart did jump and her stomach did twist.

This time, she felt… something.

--------------------

“It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas…”

“For the love of God, stop singing.”

Dorian came to a stop next to Chaol, the biggest grin on his face as he leaned up against the lockers.

“Why? Does my singing bug you?”

“Tremendously.”

“Everywhere you go-”

Chaol slammed his locker door shut, turning to Dorian with a glare. “Do you want to spend Christmas in the hospital?”

The threat was empty, Dorian knew it. This fact alone was one of the reasons why he couldn't help but laugh. Though he did stop singing.

“You’re not the biggest fan of hockey - even though you play it - and you basically hate Christmas.” Dorian pushed himself off the locker, a smirk pulling at the corners of his lips. “Are you even human?”

Chaol rolled his eyes before making his way down the hallway. Dorian followed him as they headed towards their third class of the day: biology.

“I like hockey, that's why I play it,” Chaol said. “And I don’t hate Christmas. Christmas just means spending time with your family. And it’s my family I’m not the biggest fan of.”

“Hmm, very true.” Dorian couldn't help but agree. Lord knows he didn’t want to spend any more time with his family - especially his father - then he had to. “And that’s why I’m glad we spend half of Christmas with Aelin and her family.”

Chaol nodded his head, face completely natural. But even so, Dorian couldn't help but watch him for a moment. It had been months since he and Aelin made amends and got back on friendly terms, but old habits were hard to kill sometimes. Dorian was used to Chaol making a face or a comment whenever he brought up Aelin’s name.

“Stop looking at me like that,” Chaol sent Dorian a look. But Dorian could see the corner of his lips start to twitch in a smile. “I’m not going to turn into the Hulk because you said Aelin’s name.”

“You never know, old habits die hard.”

This earned him a punch in the arm, causing Dorian to chuckle.

“But seriously,” Dorian said after a moment. “I know it’s been months, but you two are completely fine now? No hard feelings at all? Everyone's built their bridge and walked over it?”

This time, it was Chaol who chuckled.

“Yes. We’re fine. We’re friends. Are you scared we’re going to go back to hating on each other suddenly or something?”

“Well, it was tiring being the referee between you two all the time.”

“Besides, she truly seems happy now with Rowan. He’s good for her.” Chaol commented, his voice genuine. “And I’m happy now too.”

“With whom?” Dorian nudged Chaol with his shoulder, a smile pulling on his lips.

He pretty much knew the answer already. He just loved pushing Chaol’s buttons all the time.

Chaol rolled his eyes. But his lips still pulled up in the corners and Dorian swore he saw the faintest pink appear on his cheeks.

“Hey, I’m happy for you man.” Dorian clapped him on the back. “I think Nesryn is really good for you.”

“If you knew who it was, why even ask?” Chaol glanced over a Dorian, who gave a lazy shrug.

“Because you’re my brother. I'm supposed to tease and bug you.”

“How about I start teasing and bugging you and your love life?” A delish smile formed on Chaol’s lips. “Or lack thereof.”

The smile slipped from Dorian’s face. His brows started to pinch together as he met Chaol’s gaze.

“I have a love life.”

“You have a sex life,” Chaol said. “There is a difference.”

“I'm just waiting for the right girl to come along,” Dorian waved him off as they got closer to their classroom. “Aelin and Nesryn are already taken.”

“You’re funny.”

“I’m hilarious.” Dorian shot Chaol a blinding smile. “But seriously. I’m fine with my life at the moment. I don’t need a girl-”

Dorian was so caught up in his and Chaol's conversation, he didn’t even realize someone was walking out of the Biology classroom until he turned to walk through the door, walking into a student instead.

Papers and books went crashing to the floor, along with the girl Dorian banged into.

“Oh god,” Dorian dropped to his knees, helping the girl pick up her dropped things. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t see-”

Dorian trailed off as he handed the girl her bio book, looking up. He felt like the breath had been knocked out of his lungs. He took in her chestnut hair, hair that was woven back into a braid. Beautiful brown eyes, flecked with green, glanced up at him for a brief moment before going back to picking up papers. Her golden skin seemed to glow in the bad school lighting.

Shit.

“It’s fine.” The girl scrambled to her feet once all her papers were picked up.

Dorian continued to help by following her lead. He still had her textbook in his hands. Once he was on his feet, he slowly handed it out to her.

“I’m sorry,” were the only words his mind seemed to form as she took her book back.

Then he truly felt like he was going to pass out when she sent him the tiniest smile.

“It’s fine,” she said so softly, Dorian wasn’t even sure he heard her right.

Another beat passed up with Dorian simply staring at her. The faintest pick started to form on her cheeks. And before Dorian could do anything, she quickly mumbled a goodbye, getting out of the situation as fast as she could.

Yup. He was definitely in some shit.

Chaol let out a chuckled, clapping Dorian on the back.

“You were saying?” He said, smirk on his lips as he walked pass Dorian into the classroom, heading towards his seat.

Dorian wanted to glare at him. He wanted to be mad. But he couldn't. In that moment, it seemed impossible.

He couldn't help but feel like his life just took a turn for the better.

--------------------

The day came and went for Aelin in almost a blur. But in a blissfully good way.

She couldn't remember going to any of her classes, but she was so content and happy that she didn’t care. It was almost like she was in a happy daze all day. Actually, it was like she was in a happy daze for weeks now.

And Elide was most definitely right. It was because of a current white-haired hockey player.

Aelin couldn't stop the smile for forming on her lips as the bell rang, signaling the end of last period. She quickly gathered up her things before making her way out of the classroom and into the already crowded hallway.

Honestly, Aelin couldn’t remember the last time she felt this relaxed and content.

Everything with Rowan, it was easy. Good. Ever since they shared that kiss by the pond a few weeks back, things had been going wonderfully. They were both in nice and better places. The talks and dates and teasing was good. The kissing was definitely good. Aelin and Rowan were good.

Good, but still taking things a bit slow. Well, slow by teenager’s standards these days. They’d gone on plenty of dates before - most of which ended with a heated make-out session in the back of Rowan’s car. But aside from the constant making out and touching, that was it. Which Aelin understood. This was Rowan’s first relationship since Lyria. Aelin wasn’t going to push anything.

Weaving in and out of students, Aelin made her way down the hallway, which was abuzz with people chatting excitedly about Christmas and being off of school for two weeks. Aelin herself was pretty excited. She loved Christmas. And even though this Christmas break she was literally spending every day at the rink, training for Nationals, it was going to be nice to have a break from school. Plus, she’d get to spend more time with Rowan.

Just thinking about this brought a bigger smile to her face.

Aelin rounded the corner, and a head of white hair immediately caught her attention. And damn, Rowan looked good in his jeans and shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. Just the sight caused her heart to flutter in her chest.

“Hey goodlooking,” Aelin said as she approached his locker.

Turning around, a smile lite up Rowan’s face when his gaze met hers.

“Hey,” he said, bending down to place a quick kiss on Aelin’s lips. Just the feeling on his lips brushing against hers left her wanting more. But before she had a chance to react, it was over just as fast as it started with Rowan pulling away. “How was your day?”

Aelin gave a lazy shrug of her shoulder, leaning up against the lockers. “Pretty uneventful.”

“That doesn’t sound like a typical day for you.”

“Hmmm,” the smile on Aelin’s face was bright, her eyes sparkling as she watched Rowan place some books in his locker. “Maybe I should go find Manon or Lorcan. It’s been awhile since I’ve punched one of them in the face.”

Rowan gave a slight roll of his eyes as he closed his locker door. Those pine green eyes turned to meet hers and Aelin felt her heart jump. The way those eyes all but glowed, the slightest twitch of his lips, the look of pure happiness on his face, there wasn’t anything Aelin loved to see more. A truly happy Rowan.

“I love that.”

Aelin tilted her head to the side slightly. “What?”

“Seeing that smile on your face.” Rowan took the smallest step closer to her, a lazy smile on his lips. “Seeing you happy.”

“Good.” She breathed, her grin growing. “Because I love seeing you happy too.”

Rowan took another step towards her and suddenly, everything and everyone around them disappeared. It was just her and Rowan, in their own little world. Those eyes held her in place, captivating her. She thought for sure she was going to feel his lips brushing against hers any minute now, and her heart started to pound in her chest.

“Do you have practice every day this week?”

Or maybe not.

Just the mention of practice broke whatever spell took over a moment ago. Aelin could feel the smile slowly start to fall off her lips as the hallway came back into focus. Her mood started to drop little by little.

Practice was… rough lately. With Nationals coming up in just over a month, and with Aelin still having yet to land her triple-triple, she normally left practice in a sour mood. Uncle Weylan said she needed all the practice she could get. So over Christmas break, they were having practice for hours on end every day. And if she didn’t land her triple-triple by New Years, they were taking it out of her program.

To say the thought frustrated her a little bit would be an understatement.

“Every day up until Sunday,” Aelin sighed. “Uncle Orlon convinced Uncle Weylan to take Sunday off because they need to do their Christmas shopping.”

The sparkle in Rowan’s eyes turned mischievous. “So you’re free Sunday?”

“Possibly.” Aelin couldn't stop the smirk from pulling on her lips. “Why?”

“Because,” as if it was possible, Rowan took a step closer to her. “I have a surprise for you.

“I love surprises. Especially ones for me.”

“I know you do.”

Aelin could feel Rowan’s breath brush against her cheeks as he spoke.

“Then it’s a date.” She smiled.

They’d gone on dates before, and they were always hanging out in between school and practices. But there was something about the way Rowan’s eyes lit up, something about the way his lips formed a lazy grin, that had her stomach twisting and turning. In the best way possible.

“It’s a date.” He agreed, letting out a breath before his lips brushed against hers.

It was meant to be a soft, gentle kiss. One appropriate for the hallways of the school. But Aelin couldn't contain herself. Just breathing in his scent, tasting his lips on hers, caused all thoughts to leave her head.

She grabbed the front of his shirt as if it was her lifeline, pulling him closer. She couldn’t help herself as she moaned into his mouth, the kiss deepening.

She could spend the whole day kissing Rowan, and not have one single problem with it.

Rowan placed his hands on her hips, fingers digging into her sides. It was like he was restraining himself. Like he had to stop himself from pushing her up against the lockers and taking her right then and there.

They were taking things slow. That didn’t both of them particularly liked the idea most times.

“Fireheart,” Rowan breathed as they pulled apart, resting his forehead against hers. The roughness in his voice caused her stomach to knot.

“Buzzard,” was her response. A smug smile graced her lips as Rowan let out a deep chuckle.

Placing a kiss on her forehead, Rowan took a step back.

“Come on,” he said, reaching his hands towards her. “Let’s go.”

Aelin nodded, her smile turning soft as she placed her small hand in Rowan’s big one.

And as they walked together down the hallway, Aelin realized, for the first time in years, she truly felt at peace.

Because of a current white haired hockey player smiling down at her.