News With The Neverseen

Episode 20

Gethen's POV

"So what did you plan?" I asked Umber, trying to keep up with her fast strides.

"Nothing," Umber replied. "I just needed to get you away from Gisela. I don't like you two hanging out."

"Why is that?"

Umber thought for a minute. "I don't like the way she looks at you."

I stared at her, suddenly unable to form complete sentences. Did Umber just hint that she liked me?

"What?" Umber caught me staring.

"You're really hot," I gaped.

What. Did. I. Just. Say.

But, Umber just smiled. "Thanks! So are you." She winked, which permanently broke my brain.

"U-uh, thanks." I was sure my face was on fire.

"Stay away from Gisela, Gethen." Umer looked dead serious.

"Uh... um," My thoughts felt sluggish. Umber's deep brown eyes alone made me go off the deep end. All Umber had to do was flash me a sweet smile, and I completely lost my train of thought. "Are we dating?" I asked. I had a feeling that that was not what I was originally going to say, but I didn't care. All that mattered was being with Umber.

"Stay away from Gisela," Umber leaned in close. I could practically feel her breath. "Then yes."

+++

"Hello, and welcome to News with the Neverseen. I am your host, Gethen Ondsinn." I said.

"And I'm Alvar Vacker." Alvar butted in as usual. "We've got some epic news for you, so don't change the channel." Alvar's smile faded. "Please."

I donned my most stunning smile to take the attention away from Alvar. "Today, we're raising money to fund our amazing newscast! If we raise enough money, we will bring back our daily game nights!"

The cheer track went off behind the cameras, and l clapped along with it.

"We're sure you're all stoked by this amazing announcement," Alvar commented. "But let's not let it take away from the news! Here's a guest, Ruy Ignis, for more information about a recurring phenomenon: illusions that protect our cities fading. Ruy, tell us more."

"Thanks for having me, guys!"

"No problem." Alvar grinned.

"This phenomenon seems to occur mostly in locations with a lack of sunshine. Since these allusions were set up by the well-renowned Luzia Vacker, this raises questions about the powers of the elves."

I gasped. "Really?"

Ruy nodded solemnly. "I'm afraid so. We've got officials working on it right now. At this time, we believe the allusions can be fixed."

Alvar wiped his brow dramatically. "Phew. When do they think they will have it completed?"

"We do not have an exact answer yet, but expect the illusions to be fixed within the next month."

I clapped my hands. "Thanks, Ruy. And that's our time, I'm afraid. See you tomorrow, viewers!"

+++

Gisela's POV

"Gethen!" I ran to catch up to him. "I haven't seen you at all today."

"Sorry, Gisela," Gethen didn't even look at me. "Well, I gotta bounce–"

"Gethen!" Umber's face was in an expression I knew well–sweet, but dangerous.

"U-U-Umber!" Gethen nearly tripped over his own two feet walking over to her. "I was just—" He stammered.

Umber took a step closer. I could see her beguiling smile from where I was. "Just say it, Gethen."

"I... I love you, Umber."

I took a step back, and Umber flashed me a haughty smile. "Nice seeing you, Gisela." She walked away with a lovestruck Gethen, and I felt a twinge of jealousy. That used to be me.

+++

Gethen's POV

"Hey, Umber?" I asked as Umber dragged me down the hall.

Umber swiveled around. "Yes, Gethen?"

I blinked a couple times to regain my focus.

"Where are you taking me?" We were heading far from the lobby at an alarming rate.

"You'll see!" Umber flashed me another super hot–I mean totally normal–smile.

I said something along the lines of okay.

Then we turned the corner, and Umber stopped. I may or not have fallen on my face as an attempt to halt quickly.

"Are you okay?" Umber said, helping me up.

I nodded, reaching up to fix my hair. If that was ruined, I'd have to execute my escape plan. Thankfully, my movie-star worthy do appeared to have stayed in place. "We're in a... janitor closet."

Umber nodded. "Observant, Gethen." She seemed to be moving closer. Not that I was complaining.

"Um..." I was running out of professional sentence starters.

"Shh." She told me. She smiled, and my whole body melted. "I love you too, Gethen."

Her face got closer to mine and... I'll leave it to your imagination.