Princess

ten

"Stargazing's our thing, innit?" I rolled onto my side so I could see his reaction. He had started to sober up by now.

"Guess it is."

"What's gonna happen when we join the stars? Will people watch us? Will we still be together?" I let myself fall back onto my back and stare up at the night sky.

"Don't worry, my princess." He turned his head towards me, so I looked at him. "Live in the now. Fuck the future. It'll play out how it's meant to be."

"What if we grow apart?"

"And what if we don't? Whether we're meant to be or not, you're mine now, and that's what counts." He closed his eyes.

I took this time to memorise him. I wanted to memorise not only the kingdom of ice I saw in his eyes, but the world of springtime I saw on the outside. It was a full moon tonight. The gentle moonlight hit his face, highlighting all his curves and edges. I could clearly see the outline of his sharp nose, contrasted with his rosy lips, set into a soft pout. His thick, dark lashes rested like angel wings on his high cheekbones. The moonlight made his hair glow. His golden locks spread around his head like a halo. My eyes moved down to his chest as it rose and fell with each slow breath. There was a gentle way his chest fell off at the end of his ribcage to his thin stomach. His denim jacket fell open, and his white tee-shirt rode up, showing off his lower stomach to the top of his low-cut skinny jeans. He'd kicked off his boots a while ago. Every once in awhile, a muscle in his left foot would twitch. I don't think he noticed, or if he did, he didn't care. His legs were crossed out in front of him, hands tucked behind his head. The moon shone on him in all the perfect ways. I decided tonight that he was a fallen angel.

He didn't notice my eyes on him, so I assumed he must've fallen asleep. I poked him lightly.

"Emerson. Emmy." His eyes flew open, and I lost all train of thought. The moonlight made the icy blue even brighter and clearer.

"Did you need something, princess?"

I shook my head. "No. Just wanted to know if you were asleep or not."

"Well, I was. Until you decided to wake me up," he sassed.

"Sorry. You can go back to sleep now."

He rolled onto his side and extended an arm towards me. "You look cold. Come here." I scooted a little closer to him. He wrapped his arm around my waist and pulled me into his body. "There. Now we'll both be warm."

"I wasn't cold before."

"Shh. Yes you were."

"But-"

"Just go with it, Ashy. Relax." His eyes closed again, and I let myself relax into his arms. It was weird, but not nearly as weird as him kissing me while drunk. I still hadn't decided whether I liked that or not. I was too tired to think about it right now. I let my eyes fall shut and sleep take over, wrapped in the warmth of Emerson's arms.