Princess

twelve

The next time I saw the blue-eyed boy was when I found him in the school car park next to his beat-up red station wagon.

"Princess! Pretty boy!" I adjusted my glasses and saw him waving from behind his car. His hair was blowing in the wind. God, he really looked like a princess himself right now. I jogged up to the car. "Faster!"

"Emerson! I don't exercise!" I was panting for breath after running halfway across the school car park. I rolled my eyes and kept running to not keep him waiting.

"Jeez, a snail could run faster than that."

I smacked his arm. "Please try to remember that a line does exist between arseholeness and honesty."

"Sorry. Will do next time."

"You say that every time." He shrugged and hummed in response. "Anyway, I wanted to tell you that you were looking very, uh, princessy, today." I gestured to his flowing locks, which were still blowing in the wind with the golden afternoon sun shining through them.

"Excuse you, but I think you," He poked my chest, "are the actual princess here."

"Come on! I'm far more masculine than you right now." To prove myself, I puffed out my chest. Apparently, that was really funny and it sent him into hysterics. I crossed my arms and waited for him to calm himself. "That wasn't funny, Em."

He tried to catch his breath, doubled-over laughing. "That." Breath. "Was." Another breath. "Fucking hilarious!" He finally caught his breath.

"I hate you." I dropped my bag into his car through the open window. "And you're taking me home."

His lips turned up into a smirk and he clapped his hands together. "Ooh! I'm so lucky!"

I face-palmed. "Emerson! Not like that, you idiot!"

"Will you stop calling me that, princess?" He whined. Oh my god, what was I going to do with this boy?

"I dunno. Your choice." My head snapped up to him. He had this barely noticeable smirk on his face. "You were thinking out loud again."

"I realise that." I opened the door and got into the car.

"Is thinking out loud a common habit?"

"I dunno. You just did it, so maybe."

He shrugged, got in the car, and sped off. I had no clue where we were going, but I just let the breeze blow through my hair and watched it blow through his. I heard him laugh. His laugh was like a manly giggle, short and choppy and overwhelmingly happy. I didn't expect that laugh from him, and snapped my head toward him. I was gonna say something, tease him about his laugh, but then I saw the smile on his face. He was glowing, and not only from the golden light of the setting sun, but he seemed to be giving off his own light of pure carefree happiness. Seeing him happy made a smile tug at my lips. He continued to drive, every so often laughing at nothing in particular. His icy eyes lit up every time he laughed, the coldness they held dissipating, letting a warmth flow into them. I closed my eyes. I didn't know where we were going, but I didn't care. And it felt so good.