"Jean. Long time, no see."

The room goes quiet. Except not literally but in Jean's mind it did.

He wants to break away to look at you to catch your reaction but for some reason, he can't.

Thalia was Jean's first and only girlfriend. They lasted two years together before she moved away. He lost his virginity to her.

And she was standing right behind you.

You turn your head around. "Tha-" Then you realize it really is her. In the flesh. That's when you turn to look at him.

"Well, don't act like you don't know me." She laughs.

"Thalia." He hops off the stool and embraces the girl in a hug. She smelt like warm vanilla with a hint of cinnamon. She was the kind of girl who always made sure to smell good.

"It's so good to see you." She beams, her shiny teeth beaming. Jean catches her look at you as you remain seated. He's not really sure what to call the look in her eyes when she does.

"Oh, Thalia, this is Andromeda. Andromeda, this is Thalia. We went to high school together." He introduces you two.

Introducing her by saying they met in school rather than by saying this was his ex girlfriend just seemed like the better, less awkward way to put it.

He watches as your eyes jolt open when he mentions he knew the girl in high school. He casually leans in closer to you as he pretends to grab a napkin. "Don't worry, she moved away before you started doing your birthday parades so she has no idea how the princess looks like." He whispers.

You sigh with relief. You sit up straight and extend your hand out to her. "It's nice to meet you." You smile.

She smiles back and takes your hand. "Andromeda. Like the galaxy? That's beautiful." Thalia says as she looks down at her palm.

"Exactly like the galaxy." You reply.

This was his worst nightmare. If he had to think of one, it was definitely this.

Jean only ever cared for two women romantically his entire life. The two just shook hands.

To be honest, when Jean first saw Thalia, he had caught a glimpse of her from behind and somehow caught himself thinking it was you.

She had the same hair type as you and the same build so from the back, the similarities were uncanny and anyone could've mistaken her for you or vise versa.

He had approached her thinking it was you and when she turned, he felt a wave of disappointment.

Her eyes were sharper than yours, almost like a cat. Her cheeks were full and she had deep dimples. Her eyes were a dark green color and she had gorgeous tan skin.

She was beautiful girl nonetheless but it wasn't who he was expecting. He obviously started up a conversation to make it seem like he didn't just run up to her for no reason. Everything was history from there on out.

They lasted about two years together before they parted ways. She told him her family was moving away and she even asked him to come with her.

He had turned it down back then. He wasn't ready to leave Eldia yet and long distance wasn't an option either.

He ended it after two eventful, teenage years with her. She left and he never saw her again. She wrote to him for a while after the spilt but he sent only a single letter back saying he didn't want to talk anymore and she never sent another letter again.

Now here she was 3 years later. She looked different like she changed her hair and started wearing more makeup. Even the way she dressed was different now. He honestly preferred her the other way.

He studies the way she looks now as she talks to you. He wasn't sure if it was because he didn't have feelings for her anymore but he just didn't find her attractive like he used to.

Then it hits him that he only ever found her attractive in the first place because she reminded him of a more sultrier version of you.

"So," She rocks on her feet. "What are you two up to?"

Jean expected you to answer but you don't. You've always been the type to lead the conversation so he just assumed.

But you just sat there and watched him carefully as you sipped more wine.

"What does it look like? We're here for the wine tasting." Jean says pointing to your glass that he envied for being that close to your lips.

"I know that, silly." Thalia laughs. "I meant, did you two meet here?"

"We've actually known eachother for a really long time." You speak up.

She said something. He thinks to himself with relief. Wait, fuck. She said something.

Thalia leans up against the bar. "Really? No wonder you're drinking." She laughs. "I know how much of a handful he can be."

Jean almost forgot how annoying she could be. First time seeing each other in years and she's already badmouthing him.

But he couldn't really blame her. He technically broke her heart and told her to stop sending letters to him. Even if years have passed, she's bound to still be a little salty over it.

He knew she was only going to get more annoying. His least favorite thing about her was she was overly passive aggressive.

"Really? I actually find him quite easy to be around." You say simply.

God, he wanted to kiss you.

Thalia takes a moment to recover but quickly bounces back. "Well, you did get the grown up version of him. I, unfortunately, got the kid version of him."

"Kid? I was 16 going on 17 years old." Jean corrects her.

You turn in your seat fully now and Jean had never seen your posture so perfect. You didn't look intimidated at all. He wondered if you felt like that on the inside too.

"Actually, I've known him since we were actual kids. Babies even." You laugh. "I literally saw him in diapers."

Jean glares in your direction. "That last part wasn't necessary."

Thalia takes a seat beside you, her face amused. "Wait, really? What did you say your name was again? I'm surprised I've never heard of you since you've known Jean for so long."

He should've seen this coming. Thalia was definitely the jealous type. Seems like that hasn't changed at all either.

"Andromeda." You say unfazed. "Like the galaxy, remember?"

She looked unprepared. Thalia talked snarky to a lot of people and not many people matched that energy.

His head was spinning. He asks Konan for a glass of water and starts a probably feeble attempt at getting sober before it gets even darker outside.

"Right." She replies. She turns to Jean, hand on her hip. "Why haven't I heard about her? You two seem really close?"

He didn't know what to say. It's true he never told Thalia about you. How could he? Back then, when he was dating her, you weren't Andromeda,
you were the Princess of Eldia.

He knew he would sound like a complete idiot bragging about how he knew you. He couldn't say you were the first girl he ever had a crush on. He can't say that you've fascinated him for as long as he can remember.

Besides, he wanted to forget all about that life. So, he never brought you or your brothers up to her.

"We grew apart but we're closer than ever now." You smile. "Who are you to Jean?"

She looks offended that you don't already recognize her by her name. "We grew apart too. It was fun while it lasted though, right?" She winks at Jean.

Oh, she has a death wish. Jean actually felt scared for her.

He looks slowly in your direction, partially terrified to see your facial expression.

But you're just smiling calmly. No sign of worry, anger or jealously.

Thalia on the other hand..

"So that's why Marley sounded so familiar to me." Jean realizes out loud. "You moved here."

"Glad to see I'm still on your mind." She grins.

Okay, maybe tone it down for your own safety.

But again, you're just smiling unbothered.

"Do you mind if I borrow Jean for a moment? It's just been so long since I've last seen him." She asks you.

You open your mouth to speak but Jean speaks for you. "Oh, I think I should stay here with-"

"You're free to go." You interrupt him back.

He's scared to look at you but he does anyway. You were smiling but your eyes were doing the exact opposite. "I'll be right here when you get back, I promise. Go."

"But.." He says, his tipsy brain slowly picking up the clues. He couldn't tell if you actually wanted him to go or not.

You cross an X over your heart. "I'll wait for you here."

"Awesome." She smiles as she wraps her arm around Jean's. "Let's go for a walk."

Before he can even say anything, Thalia is pulling him out the door. He turns back to look at you, hesitant to leave you alone but you're already turned back around and talking to Konan.

When the two of them step outside, Jean pauses at the door. Thalia gasps. "It's snowing!"

She runs out with her hand in the air, palm upward. "There's tiny snowflakes."

He walks out behind her, his feet crunching under the snow. "My shoes are going to get wet."

She hops out onto the street. "So what? You're wearing boots right?"

He sighs and meets her where she stands. "Okay, well, what about your shoes?"

She giggles. "Can we stop talking about shoes?"
She puts her hands in her coat pocket and jumps up and down to warm up her body. "Let's go for a walk."

"Seriously?" Jean groans.

"Seriously! Come on." She waves him over. He sluggishly follows her, not because he's drunk but because he really doesn't want to.

You don't ever have to do something you don't want to. Remember that.

He freezes for a moment. "So.." Thalia playfully hits Jean on his arm. "Why didn't you tell me you were going to be in Marley?!"

Jean laughs. "It wasn't planned at all. It kinda just happened. We're only passing through."

Thalia turns to look at him. "We? I'm guessing you and that girl."

"Andromeda." Jean clarifies. He could hear his voice sound irritated as he corrects her and he was embarrassed at how quickly it bothered him that she referred to you as "that girl."

"Andromeda. Right. She's really pretty. Is she your girlfriend?" She asks, her dark clover eyes piercing into his like she's trying to find the answer in them.

Jean looks down at his shoes as he walks. "No, she's not. She's a friend of mine who doesn't travel much so I'm helping her as a guide." He lies. He couldn't tell her who you really were.

Thalia hums. "Ah. Where are you two off to then?"

"City of Stars." Jean says as he stares up at the sky now. The sky was the most beautiful shade of indigo and the stars twinkled brightly against the dark background. He knew you would love this view.

Thalia looks up too. "City of stars, huh? That's a long journey. Especially from Elida."

Her eyes return onto him. "So, how's life? You look different."

"Me?" He laughs, hands in his pockets to protect them from the cold. "I almost didn't recognize you at first."

"But in a good way, right?" She asks beside him.

He looks down to her. He then realizes he automatically looked higher than he should. He was used to looking at your height but Thalia was maybe 2 inches shorter than you were.

"You're taking too long to answer." She glares in his direction.

"Sorry." He rubs at the back of his neck. "I'm starting to feel the wine kick in."

She grabs onto a nearby light post and swings around it. "I knew it. I can recognize your drunk face anywhere."

He scrunches his nose. "My drunk face?"

Her back leans up against the post. "Yeah, I can always tell when you're drunk because your eyes get low and you'll have this pink glow."

His fingers come up to his cheeks. "Pink glow?"

She smiles. "It's adorable, don't worry."

The two continue walking, the sound of shoes walking on thin ice that coated the slick roads. Thalia grabs onto his bicep. "I don't want to slip." She explains.

"So," She carries on with the conversation. "Tell me. What is Jean Kirstein up to these days?" She smiles with her eyes. "Besides getting drunk at wine conventions."

Now that his annoyance of her sudden presence had passed, he was seeing her normally again. He was starting to remember how he managed to last two years with her. She was always someone who could get anyone to open up to them somehow. She just had the quality about her.

Maybe that's another reason she reminded him of you.

"Well, I work at the castle now." He allows his cold exterior to warm up slowly.

Her eyes light up. "Seriously? That's amazing! Royal guard right? You've talked about that forever."

Jean stares at her for a moment before looking away. "Yeah. Top of my regiment too." He figured it wouldn't hurt to brag just a little bit. 

Thalia elbows him. "Look at you. I'm glad you didn't turn into a lazy slob like most of our graduating class did."

He laughs a little. "I actually just got a promotion too."

She looks up at him as she still holds onto his arm. Her eyes shined with admiration and she nods her head in approval. "I'm impressed."

He didn't know why he felt a glimmer of happiness there for a second. Why did he even care if Thalia was impressed by him?

For some reason, he couldn't find a reason to hate her or even treat her remotely bad. He broke her heart. Not the other way around.

"What about you? What are you up to these days?" He turns the attention back to her.

Thalia sticks her tongue out in attempt to catch a snowflake and one the size of a dime falls right into her trap. "Not much has changed, if I'm honest."

She tilts her head to the direction of the road to indicate she wants to keep walking. Her eyes watch her feet carefully as she walks. "My dad still owns that swordsmith company and now that he's getting older, he keep harassing me about getting married and having a kid so someone can take over for him."

That's right. He had almost forgotten. Thalia's father was a brilliant swordsmen and had his own company that blew up a while back.

Her father had approached your parents and offered to be the official vendor of all the Royal Guard's swords but King Hendrix politely declined, stating they already had their designated swordsmith that they had kept in the family for generations and were faithful to that company.

So, word got around and the King and Queen of Marley contracted her father to be their designated swordsmith and gave them an offer they couldn't refuse.

Then, Thalia and her family moved away and he never saw her again. Until now, that is.

He honestly felt bad for her. He remembers back when they were dating, her father was already pressuring Jean to marry Thalia when they were barely 16.

He couldn't imagine how much more impatient he had gotten since then. Especially when Thalia was now at the ripe age of 21.

Another thing that reminded him of you.

"Ah, he's still with that?" He asks, hands still locked away in his pockets. He told himself he kept them there to keep them warm but he almost felt like it was also to stop his fuzzy feeling hands from lingering.

She kicks a white coated rock. "He'll never stop until it happens. You know how persistent he can be."

He doesn't know what to say so he just chooses to not say anything at all. To his surprise, she doesn't say anything either.

He looks back as they get further from Canary's. The more he strayed away from the brick building, the more uneasy he felt.

"There's actually something I've been meaning to ask you." She pauses. Her usual bubbly, confident aura was now timid and small.

She leans her back against one of the walls of a building close by. "I can't help but to think this is fate."

Jean stands in front of her. "Fate?"

Thalia looks up at him. "I was planning on making a trip to Elida to see you."

"Me?" Jean asks. "Why?"

She bites on her lip and turns away from him for a moment as she tries to properly form the words of what she wants to say.

The longer she took, the more anxious he got.

Her eyes close. "I know I've asked you before and you've said no but things are different now. We were kids then but now we're older."

He steps back. "Spit it out."

She takes a deep breath. "Do you ever think about what it would be like if you followed me here?"

"No." He answers honestly.

Her face hardens. "Ouch. No sugarcoating that, huh?"

"I don't want to talk about the past. I made a choice back then to stay in Eldia and there's nothing I can do to change that. Why look back and cry about it?" He asks.

"What if you had the choice again?" She asks almost instantly.

He just stares at her. Was she asking what he thinks she is?

She looks down at her wet shoes. "Look, I get it. I know it's humiliating I'm asking you again but... I've just been thinking about it a lot lately. You know, with my dad on my back and all."

"I..." She messes with her fingernail. "I'm getting older and I need to start settling down. I've tried to get out there and meet other people but I haven't had any luck. No one meets my standards and I don't want to force romantic feelings either."

She looked more embarrassed by the second. "Why force them when I have those feelings for someone already? Do you get what I'm saying?"

He did. He knew exactly where this was going and he wanted to run as fast as he could but he was glued to the frosty ground beneath his feet. It felt like he was sinking further and further into the snow the more she got close to her point.

"I know we haven't talked in forever. But I was thinking maybe if I took a trip to Eldia and stayed there for a while and you and I caught up in the meantime, maybe things could be different." She explains further.

She steps closer to him and again, he's too frozen to move. "But you're here. It has to be a sign, right?"

"What are you trying to ask me?" He speeds up the process, his anxiety reaching its breaking point.

"Stay here with me, Jean." She finally gets the courage to say it. "My dad is in really good terms with the Royal Family here and he'll be more than happy to put in a good word for you. You could work for them and get paid twice as much as you do now."

She pulls his hands out of his pockets to hold on to them. "You've always dreamt of a place like this. The badass job, the big house and the family. I can give you all of that. All you have to do is just... stay."

She was right. Everything she was saying about his dream was true. It was the lifestyle he wanted for as long as he could remember and it was all being handed to him right now guaranteed.

He had even said it when he was walking around with you earlier. This was a place he wouldn't mind living in at all.

He was getting offered everything he's ever wanted. So why was he second guessing it? Why wasn't he practically jumping at the opportunity?

Was it because he felt it was too good to be true? Was this maybe a sign that he was very, very drunk and experiencing some kind of hallucination?

He pulls his hands away. "But why me? Out of everyone?" He asks.

She shrugs weakly, her confidence simmering down. "You were my first love. I guess that kind
of love doesn't just go away."

"I was?"

Her bashful demeanor switches and she becomes serious. Her thick eyebrows pinch together. "Wasn't I yours?"

He thinks for a moment.

My first love...

When he thought of the words first love, the first thing that came to mind was a girl.

And it wasn't the one standing before him.

"Actually no, you weren't."

Pain reflects in her green irises but she disguises it well. "Who was then?"

It was...

"It was that girl, wasn't it?" Thalia calls him back to Earth. He meets her sad eyes. "Andromeda. She was your first love."

Love?

For some reason, it felt like he lost every and any ability to speak. His tongue felt like it grew in size and now took up too much space in his mouth. Or maybe like it just stopped working completely.

"I can tell by the way you look at her." She steps backwards and leans up against the wall again. "The entire time I was talking to you in there, you just kept staring at her."

Was it love? What defined love anyway? He never saw his parents together so he didn't have an example at home and the closest thing to married couple he had was the King and Queen but they only acted loving to eachother in private.

He felt like he was having sleep paralysis but wide awake. He couldn't move, he couldn't talk but his brain was racing and screaming at him to say something, say anything at all.

She studies him with a smile. "She's beautiful. I don't blame you."

Her head tilts up to the sky. "I wish I could hate her but what's there to hate? She seems like an angel."

[play My Tears Are Becoming A Sea by M83]

She looks at him one more time. "Are you in love with her even now?"

Am I?

His brain was screaming at him to speak but it's like his body refused to. It was like it was too scared to. All because it already knew how to answer that question.

"Yeah." His mouth finally breaks away from the restriction. "I am."

Thalia smiles sadly, her eyes look like reflective pools as they shine with tears. ""Well? What are you waiting for, Kirstein? Go get the girl."

Her words felt like a slap to the face. They woke him up and filled his body with adrenaline that it had been lacking.

"Thanks, Thai." He turns his heel before he looks back at her one last time. "It was good to see you again."

He takes off running without even thinking it further. He runs and runs as fast as he can but his footsteps were painfully slow as they heavily sunk into the snow. It was almost like running through water.

His chest rises and falls as he works extra hard to push his body to its fullest. His breath that puffed out formed into clouds in the winter air and it smelled of red wine.

Not only was it hard to run in the snow but his body was also growing more sluggish by the second, the alcohol swallowing him whole.

He just hoped he had enough energy to make it to you on time.

Then he sees you. You're standing just outside Canary's, hands rubbing together to keep them warm as you admire the snow fall from the sky.

That's when his body pushes itself even further and somehow gets even faster. The sound of his heavy, muffled footsteps calls your attention in his direction.

You smile when you see him. "There you are. I was starting to think you left me here or something."

He gets even closer. "Soooo, did you kiss the girl?" You tease him.

"Not yet." He answers right before both of his freezing hands come up to your face and his lips crash right into yours.

You gasp at impact but he's too focused on kissing you. He immediately just melts into you. His shoulders sag and entire body relaxes. His lips flow perfectly with yours like silk waves.

Everything all made sense now. He didn't know what to say back there when Thalia had asked if he loved you. He knew you were his first love but he didn't know if that love was still there.

    "That kind of love doesn't just go away."

Those words echo in his head. It was true. That kind of love didn't just go away.

This is love.

Since the day he first saw you, rocking in his mother's arms locked in a room. From the day you first snuck out and every other time you did that ended up with him picking you up from the floor.

From the day he left the castle and even after he did. You never left his mind.

Since the day he got the job as your guard and he spent almost every waking moment by your side and got to have a peek into that beautiful, wild mind of yours. To hear that laugh of yours. To see that smile.

He got paid to be attached to your hip during the day but at night, during his free time, he did that oh so willingly.

I love...y/n.

Ever since then, it's always been you. The love never went away. It was raw and pure at the start and faded with time but remained silently. Now it was as strong as ever.

I love her. I love her. I love her.

You pull away from him, your lustful, taken aback eyes searching for his. "What was that for?"

"Because I wanted to." He responds before he kisses you again.

Now that he finally did it, now that he finally knew how it felt to kiss the lips he dreamt about for so long, he didn't want to stop.

They were just how he always imagined it, soft and sweet. The sweetness was even more present with the help of the wine that lingered in your breath.

This was even better than the dream he had. Now that it was real, it was addictive. He could kiss you forever if you'd allow it.

You walk backwards, lips still attached before you pull them away. "Jean."

He kisses you again.

Your hands come up to his face as you soften like butter against his hot skin. "Jean, wait." You take more steps back.

He can't. He didn't want to and then fact that you kept kissing him back ten times more passionately each time he does, made it even harder.

He kisses you again. "I'm going to fall." You stumble backwards but you don't stop kissing him either.

Getting too carried away and in the heat of the moment, his hands slide down your waist and his tongue copies the same moment in between your lips.

You trip over your feet and fall backwards, him still attached to you and his weight on you sending the two of you straight down onto the snow.

You both begin to burst into laughter when you hear the soft thump of your body pressing up against the cold snow.

His rolls off from on top of you and lays down on his back beside you instead. His laughter dies down but his smile never disappears.

He spreads his arms out and takes in the moment. "You don't know how long I've wanted to do that."

You both lay against the snow as it melts against both your radiating body heat and it begins to wet your clothes. You keep looking up the sky as your chest falls up and down as your breathing pattern relaxes. "It took you long enough."

He turns over to look at you, snowflakes clung to your lashes and decorated your nose and lips before they melt away.

You looked like a literal angel who fell from the sky along with the delicate snow flakes and just so happened to land beside him.

In this moment, you looked absolutely ethereal in his eyes. He begins to pick at the color scheme from your hair color, to your eyes and your skin up against the pure white snow.

He reaches out to touch your cheek, the skin cold as ice now. You turn your head to meet his gaze and cuddle into his hand with your eyes closed, savoring the moment.

I love her.

"Let's stay here forever just like you want to." He says, his voice getting more drowsy.

You smile and pinch his ear which was bright red. "You'll get frost bite."

"You can take that away for me, right?" He asks as he continues to caress your face.

You hold up your hand to the sky. "It's still snowing. We'll get covered in snow and suffocate if we stay here all night."

He didn't want to move at all. Even when the ice cold snow was stinging intensely at his skin. A burning mixture of happiness, adrenaline and too much wine was keeping his body warm in his much too thin coat.

You just looked so beautiful here laid out on the snow. So peaceful and calming to the eye. He wanted to stay in this moment for as long as he could.

He had finally kissed you. He atleast wanted the moment to live on for just a while longer.

"Jean."

"Hm?" He responds still far too deep in a trance.

You look him right in the eye. "What did Thalia tell you?"

His heart misses a step. How did you know?

"I could tell she wanted to tell you something important. Is everything alright?" You ask with genuine concern.

"I wish I could hate her but what's there to hate? She seems like an angel."

As much as you claimed to not be this pure, innocent person, the love you had for others, even people you just met, was exactly that. Pure and innocent.

He debates on actually telling you what it was. He wasn't really sure what kind of reaction he'd get.

He won't deny he's a little curious either.

There was really only one way to find out.

"She asked me to stay here with her in Marley. She said she could guarantee a job with the royal family here. They get paid more and do more exciting stuff." He starts to explain.

You nod as you listen. He continues. "She said we could start a family here and that she could give me the life I've always dreamt about."

He tries to read your face but it was hard. Mainly because his version was getting blurrier by the minute.

You turn away from him and face the sky again. "Sounds hard to turn down."

"It's tempting, sure." He admits. "But even with it all being handed to me right there... I still said no."

You scoff and shake your head. "Isn't that your dream life? Why would you turn that down?"

He shrugs. "Maybe it is. But it doesn't include her. You're right, I do want the nice house full of kids that I come home to after a crazy day at work and a beautiful wife to end the night with. I just don't want it with her."

Your fingers come up to your lips, reminiscing on the way he kissed you. "You want it...with me?"

"Yes." He answers without hesitation.

He could see it in your face you didn't believe him. Knowing you, you're probably thinking he's saying these things because he's drunk. You'll probably blame the kiss on that too.

But drunk or not, he would've went for that kiss anyway. Well, maybe the alcohol had a little bit to do with it.

"Jean. The difference between me and Thalia is that I—" You start.

He groans and rolls over to hover above you. "Enough about Thalia. I don't want to talk about her or anything else related to that."

You looked nervous that he was so close to you. "Why not?"

"Because I much rather talk about you." He coos.

You smile as you push hair away from his face and admire him. "You look happy."

He felt happy. He felt like he had waited for this moment for his entire life without even realizing it. Even if it was just a kiss, well, quite a few kisses, he felt accomplished. There was nothing that could kill his mood right now.

He watches as the light fades from your eyes when you look at something behind his head. He turns to look and sees the flower shop you were in earlier.

He turns back to you. "What?"

For some reason, you look almost scared or panicky. "Uh, Jean we should go." You quickly bat away any snow that stuck to your damp clothes.

You stand up and hold out your hand for him to take. He sits up. "What happened? Are you okay?"

You bounce your leg and shake your hand that was still held out for him. "We're in the middle of the street. Come on, let's go."

He groans and takes your hand, fully confident that he'd get up perfectly fine but even when you pull him up, he falls back and you fall to your knees beside him.

He was now officially drunk.

"Well," You sigh. "Looks like I'm going to have to carry you then." You stand up and try again, this time with more effort.

He stands up now but with his arm around you and vise versa. "I got it. I can walk."

You giggle and let go of him, hands up. "If you insist."

He stands up straight and for a moment so is his vision. Well, that's right before he starts seeing hazy doubles of everything.

"I'll just hold on you just in case." You say as you wrap your arm around his. You watch carefully at where you step to make sure to lead him in the proper direction too.

Your boots crunched in the snow and it filled the quiet, night atmosphere. He could hear laughter and music playing in the distance the closer Canary's got.

He suddenly felt warm. He got scared for a moment that maybe he peed himself or something but the warmth was all over his body and not just his pants.

He looks down at your hand clutching his arm, your fingers tightly balled up into the fabric of his coat for grip.

Now he knew what you were doing. You had already began healing any frostbite he might have gotten. That and you were trying to consistently heal him so he can stay warm.

Pure like snow.

"Thalia." You say suddenly and come to an even more sudden stop.

He walks straight into a pole and hits his forehead right in the center. He hisses as he clutches the wound. "Fuckkkkk."

"Is he alright?" She laughs.

"He had a little too much than what he could handle." You place your hand on his forehead as he slumps to sit on the ground now that his back was against a wall.

You stand back up. "But don't worry, I'm taking him back to the hotel room already. He's done for tonight."

"Do you need help?" She offers. "He's heavy."

You shake your head and pick him up off the ground. "It's just around the corner, the walk isn't too far. I could use the work out anyway but thanks for offering."

She nods in compliance. Once you got him up again, you turn away to begin walking. "Thanks for taking care of him back then."

She smiles and does a respectful head bow. "Thanks for taking care of him from here on out."

And just like that, the two spilt ways. You, lugging Jean alongside you toward the hotel and Thalia back to Canary's.

He found it almost symbolical. His past lover walking back and his present lover walking forward. He turns back to look at Thalia as she gets smaller and smaller and eventually disappears. It was like he was finally saying goodbye to that part of his life.

You both successfully make it back to the hotel without anymore falling, tripping or bumping into poles.

The hardest part was the stairs. It wasn't much since the hotel was only two stories but for someone who couldn't walk straight for the life of him right now, it was definitely a challenge. Luckily for him, you were still completely balanced and in control.

When you finally make it to the room, you push the restroom door open and lead him into it. "Come on, let's get you in the shower, okay?"

You turn around to grab a towel and he listens to your request and gets in the shower but fully clothed.

"Hey!" You stop him before he turns the faucet. "You can't shower with your clothes on, crazy!"

He sits on the floor, no longer being able to stand and he tilts his head back, his head hitting the wall. "I don't really feel like it."

"Fine, I'll help." You step into the shower and squat down to his level to help unbutton his shirt.

He looks at you, his eyes low. You looked extra concentrated on taking the buttons out and you were doing that eyebrow scrunch he loved so much. "You're so pretty, does anyone ever tell you that?"

You smile and finish unbuttoning his shirt. "Sometimes. Although, you don't tell me nearly enough."

He brings a hand to your cheek. "I'll tell you a lot more now." He does a X over his chest with a lazy finger. "I cross my heart and hope to die."

You laugh and his heart flips when he hears the beautiful sound. "Okay, I'll hold you to that."

You pull his shirt open and he looks down at his exposed chest. "Okay, shower time." He slurs as he reaches for the faucet.

Your eyes shoot open. "Wait, what? I'm not done!"

The overhead shower head begins showering the two of you with water and you gasp when the cold water hits you instantly. "Jean!"

He leans his head back and lets the water pour onto him. He closes his eyes and enjoys the feeling of the water hitting his skin. Well, the amount of skin that was uncovered atleast.

You begin to laugh hysterically. The two of you were completely soaked now.

"Shower with me." He tugs weakly at your arm.

"Well, I basically am now." You gesture to your drenched clothes.

He starts to pull his arms out the sleeves of his shirt. "We gotta take our clothes off though."

He slips the shirt off completely with no help and you just watch him. He frowns when he sees you not moving. "What's wrong?"

"I'll just shower after you're done." You say standing back up again.

"You're already here and already wet so might as well just stay." He tries to convince you. He honestly just didn't want you to leave.He pulls you back down to his level.

"I always thought you were the most beautiful girl I've ever seen." Jean says as he runs his hands down the sides of your face. "You're so fucking beautiful to me."

You break your eyes away. "Stop it."

His thumb caresses your cheek bone. "No, you need to hear it. I know you hear it all the time from everyone else but I don't say it nearly enough."

He pulls you closer to him and continues to admire your beauty. "You're so fucking beautiful. You're the prettiest girl I've ever seen."

Your hand comes up to touch your ears which he knew were probably piping hot. "Stop." You whine.

"Say it. Say you're prettiest girl in the world." He replies.

"No." You decline.

He kisses you softly, just enough for you to give into him. "Say it."

Your eyes slowly open as you come down from a state of bliss. "I'm the prettiest girl in the world."

"Again."

"I'm-" You begin but he interrupts you with another kiss. "Mm, I'm the prettiest girl in the world."

Another kiss, this one more better than the last. "Yes, yes you are."

-
to celebrate them finally kissing as well as three chapters in a mf row!! here enjoy

also pls don't forget to vote!! thx <3

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