As The World Falls Down

Chapter 18

Sitting on your bed, leg bouncing from the adrenaline still coursing through you, you felt so terribly alone in that moment you almost missed Sarah. You wish you had just one person to talk about this whole mess with, but your only option was the reason for your frustration in the first place, so you sat by yourself and had a good cry. Your face burned and tensed as you hung your head, sobbing openly as you felt the pit in your stomach start to consume any hope or happiness you had felt in the past few months. There was no way he had shown you that much affection and felt nothing. And if he had, why would he have led you on like that? It wasn't fair, no matter what had been going on on his part, and you couldn't believe you had been so stupid to actually fall for the guy who had been showing you his red flags since the moment you met. You had just gotten caught up, you convinced yourself, sniffing pathetically. You'd look back and laugh at it in no time, retelling it to new and better friends and lovers, all while struggling to remember his face. Then you remembered you had no idea where to go, and that you could remember every aspect of his appearance in full definition, and you started crying into your hands all over again. You fell onto your back, hands still smothering your face, and felt the bed hitch with every sob.

It was then, at your messiest and desperate moment, that the door flung open. You jumped and turned your face to the sound, your hands pushing your tears to the side of your face as you saw Jareth standing in the doorway, gripping the doorknob and panting slightly. His eyes were wilder than they already were, and he looked you up and down in bewilderment before he leaned forward and knocked his head against the door, taking in a deep breath.

"Oh, my god," he muttered, swallowing before letting out a harsh exhale.

"What do you want?" you asked, trying to sound as sharp as you had in the smoking room, even though you were certain your face was red and puffy and you had clearly been crying your eyes out.

"I thought you had left already," he said, sounding a bit relieved.

"Wanted round two before kicking me out, then?" you grumbled, still not sitting up.

"No, no, I..." he started to say but stopped, pressing his lips together.

"I can go right now, don't worry. I'm sure my whores are positively worried sick," you taunted, wiping your eyes with the heels of your palms. He rolled his eyes, looking away and then back to you in the same moment, looking deadly serious.

"Y/N."

"Can you just say whatever you want to say before I-"

"Stay."

What?

You finally sat up, furrowing your brow as you sniffed once more.

"Pardon?" you rasped, your voice cracking slightly. He sighed and dragged his gloved hand over his face before walking over to you, still keeping a few feet between you as he spoke.

"Stay. Stay here in the castle, with me, for however long you want."

"What if I want to leave now?" you asked quietly and he closed his eyes.

"I can't stop that," he said slowly, looking pained. "But what I'm saying is I don't want you to go. Not tonight, not tomorrow night, not any of the nights after that. Stay."

You both looked at each other in silence, and you felt the tears threatening to come back.

"You do care," you whispered and he stiffened, hesitating before nodding once, slow.

"I...suppose I do," he admitted, and your face rushed with dizzying heat as he finally came to sit down next to you. "I'd be lying if I said it didn't scare me. I didn't realize how I cared for you until you left and I realized that may be the last time I'd ever see you. I panicked."

You stared him down, heart pounding, and he took a breath to speak again.

"I can't say I know how to...be in a relationship sort of situation, but if that's what you want, I will do what I can to make you happy," he said softly. "Please, just, stay with me, while I learn how to care for you better. Let me keep you, Y/N."

You felt the tears come in a rush, brought on by a mix of relief, shock and joy, and you wiped them away as he looked at you in concern.

"I-I'm sorry, Y/N, I don't-"

"No, no, sorry, I'm happy, I promise," you explained awkwardly, voice thick with emotion. "I didn't want to go at all, I was just so pissed at you pretending like-like you haven't been as smitten with me as I have been with you."

He laughed slightly and leaned his head on yours, and you practically melted into the contact. His arm came from around the back and held you by your waist.

"I am smitten with you, aren't I," he murmured into your hair, kissing your head.

"I'll stay," you assured and he squeezed you, pulling you closer to him. "But I want to hear that every single day from now on. No more of that 'I have no feelings' bullshit, okay?"

"I'll try," he said softly. "I'm just...I'm sorry for how I treated you. Truly."

You both sat with that for a second. You hadn't expected an apology, but you basked in it, feeling as special as you ever had. That was almost certainly the first time he had genuinely apologized to someone in ages.

"Thank you," you responded, looking up at him and he smiled at you as shyly as he was capable of, reaching down to kiss your forehead gingerly. You turned to meet his face and met him in a nervous kiss, holding his cheek softly. If you weren't mistaken, you could feel him smile into the kiss, and when you pulled away he tapped your chin adoringly with his pointer finger curled.

"There's my girl," he grinned and you rolled your eyes. "Yep, definitely her. Sincere, but still a little brat."

"Oh, so you want to fight again?" you prodded and he put his hands up defensively, chuckling.

"Certainly not, let's not tire ourselves anymore than we have. Dinner, then?"

"You never even eat anything," you pointed out as he stood and took your hand, helping you up.

"We both know that is not always true," he purred, sliding a hand up your arm seductively and you groaned, rolling your eyes again.

"Hysterical," you deadpanned and he laughed.

"I'm just saying I always stick around for my dessert," he teased again.

"Are you going to keep this up all night?"

"Oh, absolutely."

"Good," you quipped, and he laughed, and as he started up again you found yourself giving a quiet thanks to the universe for keeping you here, even if it was under ridiculous circumstances.