𝐍𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐑 𝐄𝐍𝐃𝐈𝐍𝐆 ;; 𝒶𝓊𝒷𝓇𝑒𝓎 𝓍 𝓀𝑒𝓁 𝑜𝓃𝑒 𝓈𝒽𝑜𝓉𝓈

↳ 𝕨𝕙𝕒𝕥 𝕕𝕠 𝕪𝕠𝕦 𝕝𝕚𝕜𝕖 𝕒𝕓𝕠𝕦𝕥 𝕞𝕖 ・❥・: ̗̀➛

𝒾'𝓂 𝓌𝒶𝒾𝓉𝒾𝓃𝑔...

┊ ┊ ┊ ┊

"ᴡʜᴀᴛ ᴅᴏ ʏᴏᴜ like about me?"

Kel frowned at Aubrey. "Huh?"

"What do you like about me?" she repeated.

"Why do you ask?"

She shrugged.

Kel and Aubrey were nearing their one-year mark for their relationship, which was now just one month away. He would've never guessed they would've lasted a relationship that long, but who knew?

But Aubrey never asked him that in their months of dating. It made him feel on the spot, especially since he liked—he loved—everything about her.

"I like everything about you!" he said with a smile.

Aubrey's eyes narrowed slightly. "Really?"

He was about to ask why she thought her own boyfriend wouldn't like every part of her before realizing that "everything" was apparently not a good enough answer. He felt more on the spot now.

"W-Well... Why wouldn't I like every single part of you?" Kel laughed nervously.

Aubrey hummed quietly in response and didn't push it. He could still tell she was disappointed, and he didn't like that.

. . .

ᴡʜᴇɴ ᴋᴇʟ ɢᴏᴛ home from hanging out with Aubrey, he made a list of everything he loved about Aubrey, even though she asked what he liked about her. When he was done, he read over it to figure out what he would tell her.

He loved her smile, her laugh, her bravery, her stubbornness, her intelligence, her eyes, her hair, her perseverance, her strength, her soft side, and so much more, but none of them felt right to tell her. Honestly, why couldn't "everything" be a good enough answer when it was the truth?

Hero saw him scowling at the paper and asked, "What's wrong?"

Kel was about to tell him it was nothing when he remembered this was Hero, the guy who could single-handedly make almost any girl he wanted to fall for him—though it wasn't like he used those skills on purpose in anyone except Mari. If anyone could help him, it was him.

"You know how I'm dating Aubrey, right?" he said. "She asked me what I liked about her, and I said everything, but then she got all disappointed even though she pretended like she wasn't. I'm trying to think of stuff to tell her, but nothing sounds good enough..."

"Can I see what you have?" Hero read over the list. "All of these are great, Kel."

"But they're not good enough. I don't want Aubrey getting disappointed again..."

"She won't get disappointed. She knows you well enough to know you like or love" —he smiled at the title— "everything about her. She just wants specifics to feel appreciated and know there actually is something about her that others could like or love."

"So that's why 'everything' isn't a good enough answer?"

"It is an answer, but no matter how genuine it is, it's still really vague. It's normally an answer someone gives if they can't think of anything, which could make the other person feel like there's nothing admirable about them."

Did Kel make Aubrey feel like there wasn't anything admirable about her? He had to make up for that as quickly as possible!

Hero handed him back the list. "Tell her any of these. I can tell she just wants to hear what she has that makes you want her to be your girlfriend, and all of these work. Even if you disappointed her before, I'm sure you'll make her feel loved by yourself."

Kel smiled. Of course he could make Aubrey feel loved! He was great at making people feel any sort of positive emotion! Besides, if Hero could make almost any girl fall for him, then Kel could at least make the one girl he really wanted to make happy be happy. They must have some shared genes, after all!

. . .

ᴀᴜʙʀᴇʏ ᴀɴᴅ ᴋᴇʟ'ꜱ one-year anniversary came up. Kel wanted nothing more than to spend the day with his girlfriend, so he never complained when she took him on a surprise date to Nearby City. They didn't do anything too out of the ordinary—going shopping, hanging out at the park, eating at restaurants—but it was fun nonetheless.

When the date was reaching an end, Kel's stomach started twisting in uncomfortable knots. He came prepared to have her head the words she wanted to hear hopefully since last month, but it still felt nerve-wracking to even think about saying them.

He decided to just get it over with. He told her he wanted to walk through the park with her, and she agreed. As they walked, he noticed her smiling at the ducks that wadded through the water. He used that gateway to his advantage.

"You have a pretty smile," he told her.

Her smile turned to him. Before she could say anything, he kept going, his words coming out faster and faster.

"I like that about you. A lot. Especially if it's a genuine, happy smile. It brights up your whole face, and your eyes shine brighter. Speaking of eyes, I like your natural eyes. I like your contacts and everything, but your natural eyes feel more real, you know? I also like your hair and how soft it is. It's so pink, but it's so you, and that just makes it perfect. And I like your laugh too. It always sounds so sweet and nice and I could hear you laugh all day at something and never get bored.

"I also like your stubbornness. It can get kinda annoying, but it's still really cute. Your perseverance is cool too, and I wish I had that. You're really brave and strong too, so it's really cool to see you defend yourself in a fight or something, even though I don't like seeing you get into one because I'm always a little scared you'll accidentally break a bone or something. I like how smart you are, and I like how soft you really are.

"I'm sorry I never mentioned any of this when you asked me last month, but I really do like everything about you, and I'm really, really, really happy you're my girlfriend, Aubrey."

Kel was way out of breath by the time he finished, but he tried his absolute hardest to make sure he didn't look like he was.

Aubrey's smile was replaced with a surprised look a while ago. She stayed still and stared at him for what felt like forever, making him feel more nervous. She finally smiled and said, "Was it so hard thinking of things you like about me?"

"Yes, it was."

"Does that mean I won't hear any of this anymore? That sucks. I was kind of hoping I'd hear this more often now. I wasn't even asking why."

"Well... I wouldn't mind telling you again..." Kel looked away, feeling his face heat up.

It heat up just a little more when he felt Aubrey peck his cheek. He turned to look at her face, still close to his, before relaxing into a gentle kiss.

When they pulled away, Aubrey whispered, "Happy one-year."

"Happy one-year," Kel whispered back, a soft smile taking over his face. Hopefully, there would be many more years together to come.

- - - -

𝚆𝚘𝚛𝚍 𝙲𝚘𝚞𝚗𝚝: 𝟷𝟷𝟻𝟼