EVERMORE ─ marvel ⁷

VI. The Light Elves

Chapter Six
Olivia

I'm more than grateful when the wedding planning gets finished for the day. It's well after dinner by the time we finish, and usually I would just head up to Zy's room, but instead I find myself in my bedroom at home, sitting on my bed, with my head in my hands, feeling overwhelmingly sad. I shouldn't feel this way. I should feel happy, overjoyed, and for the most part I do. I'm getting married to Zy soon, I'm gonna live with him full time, I'm gonna be queen. All of these are things to be excited about...but then I think about moving out of the house, packing up all my belongings, no longer calling this place home, and I feel that sadness creep back in.

I don't know how long I've sat here alone in the dark, running through my conflicting emotions, but I know it's late when my light switch flips on. I know it's Zy standing in the doorway without having to look up. A second later I feel his hands rubbing my arms, his breath dancing across my hands, which still cover my face. He's kneeling in front of me, his face incredibly close to mine. When I finally pull my hands away and look at him, I find fear in his eyes.

"What's wrong?" He asks lowly.

"I'm not sure." I answer honestly.

"If you're having second thoughts, I completely understand. We can call the wedding off, wait longer to make things official..." Zy trails off, and understanding now floods through me. That's why there's fear in his eyes, he's afraid I'm getting cold feet, that I don't want to marry him anymore. For most of his life, Zy has struggled with his insecurities, mostly about being king and living up to Uncle T'Challa. After he died, those insecurities seemed to have faded away, but I guess some lingered. I never thought he would ever feel insecure about me, about us. He has no reason to be.

I place my hands on his shoulders and pull him closer, spreading my legs so now they rest on either side his hips. His hands fall down to my waist, and instinctively, he pulls me closer to him just like I did a moment earlier, so now there's no distance between our bodies. Before he can say anything else, I lean forward and kiss him full on the mouth, and while Zy is more than willing to respond with kissing me back, he's still tense. When it's clear he won't fully commit to the kiss, I pull back from him, seeing the spiral happening in his brain, the worrying.

"Never, for one second, believe I would ever have second thoughts about marrying you. I love you. Only you. Deeply, completely. Never doubt that."

Zy visibly relaxes, and instead of saying anything, he answers with another kiss, and this time he isn't tense at all, and he doesn't hold back. For several minutes he and I are clutching at each other, becoming a tangle of limbs, lips, and panted breaths. Somehow we end up on my bed, with my legs still on either side of his hips, but now I'm above him, his hands snaking under my faded red and black flannel shirt. Just as I begin tugging off Zy's stylish black jacket, he stops me, his expression clouded, like he's coming out of a high.

"Please tell me what's really bothering you," He pleads, his voice sounding deeper than usual. It makes me blush. "I want to help make it go away."

I kiss his lips gently before rolling off of him, my body now curled up against his side. Zy slips his arm under my waist and begins trailing his fingers up and down the bare skin showing underneath my shirt. The contact sends shivers down my body.

"I'm nervous about becoming queen, but not as much as I thought I would be. Your mom really made me feel better. She just said that juggling being queen and continuing to be a doctor will be a bit hard at first, mostly because people will treat me differently. She assured me I only have to be queenly when there's special occasions and important meetings."