hearts of metal

xlix. where's the rest of it?

Aelin smiled down at her locket. She'd added a new picture to it. The right had a picture of Sam, as always. On the left side was Rowan.

She had taken the picture when he wasn't looking, so only his side profile was visible. He'd been laughing at something she'd said, and his face had lit up in a grin. It was one of those rare moments where he seemed so carefree, that she wanted to protect that memory forever.

Aelin let the locket fall back to her chest. Then she glanced over at Rowan as he drove. Her finger reached out to trail the lines of ink by his neck.

He tensed under her touch and growled, "Aelin."

"What?" she asked innocently.

"I'm driving," he said. He sent her a warning glance, and she dropped her hand with a laugh.

"Fine, I won't distract you. I just hope we don't have a repeat of last time," she joked.

Rowan scowled. "Don't remind me. Any Valg we run into this time are getting killed on sight, I have no patience for them anymore."

Her lips tilted up. "I'm sure it'll be fine. I'm more worried about dad realizing I snuck out."

"Considering what we learned, I can't blame him for hovering. Speaking of," he said, when she didn't respond, "we never really talked about the whole Maeve thing."

"Nothing to talk about," she said brusquely.

He sent her a look that read bullshit, before turning back to the road.

She sighed and said, "I'd rather focus on having a nice night, please."

He nodded after a moment, content to leave the more serious conversation behind. "Which way?" he asked.

"Turn right here," she told him. The sidewalks in this part of Orynth were crowded, even at night. The downtown area thrummed with life, various bars and restaurants on the streets before them.

But tonight, Aelin had a different destination in mind. One she hoped Rowan would love as much as she did.

Rowan followed her directions, until they finally arrived. He peered out through the window and asked, "you brought us to the theatre?"

She hummed. "I would have liked to show you the Rifthold theatre, but it's a bit too far for one night. Regardless, they're playing one of my favorite symphonies today."

They climbed out of the car to examine the building before them. It was tall and wide, made of smooth tan stone. The front of the building had several large columns, complete with engravings lining them.

Beyond the columns, was an intricate arch doorway. Off to the sides were small gardens, full of brightly colored flowers and a trellis with ivy crawling up it.

Rowan strode towards the entrance, but Aelin stopped him with a hand on his shoulder. She sent him a sheepish look, before adding, "we're not going that way."

Five minutes later, Rowan was cursing her out under his breath as he finally clambered over the window sill. He was out of breath from scaling the wall, and she quipped, "might want to consider a walking cane, old man."

He glared. "I'm two years older than you. And forgive me for not being able to scale the wall in less than a minute," he said sarcastically.

They were in the rafters near the top of the theatre. A series of scaffolds beneath their feet.

Rowan stepped onto the wooden beam alongside her, and she led him towards the center of the room. They then climbed down to their spot, hidden under the shadows of the roof.