Yellow Acacia ~ This pretty flower signifies the value of true friendship and can indicate a secret love.

   The next morning, I awoke to the sound of snoring. This confused me, but I paid no mind to it. I slowly sat up on my bed, rubbing my sore eyelids. I stretched my wings out behind me before getting up...

...well, I tried to get up. But something was holding me down. Or should I say, someone.

I looked to my side and saw Maroon, passed out with his arm wrapped around me. My face flushed red at the memories of last night.

I kissed him. I kissed Maroon.

" Oh my lord..." I mumbled, burying my face into my hands," What have I done...?"

Maroon stirred a bit," Jasmine...?" He groggily sat up on the bed, rubbing the sleep from his eyes while his arm remained around my waist," What are you doing up?"

" Nothing...I just woke up." I reply.

" Well then," he flopped back down onto my bed, pulling me down with him," let's go back to sleep."

I laughed," Maroon..!" I whine, a smile spread across my face," What if a maid walks in here?"

And as if on cue, I hear a knock at my door," Princess Jasmine? Are you up?" I hear Carla ask as fear shoots through me.

" Y-Yes! Just woke up!" I shout back before facing Maroon and whispering," You need to get out of here."

" That is good to hear Princess. Your father would like to talk to you before you go off on your own today." She states while Maroon looked at my questionably," He is in his study."

" I'll meet you in the garden, alright? Now get out of here.." I whisper, pushing Maroon off my bed. He reluctantly jumped out of my window, not before stealing a kiss from me," A-Alright! Thank you Carla!" I shout, waiting until I heard her footsteps disappear before letting out a sigh of relief. I get up and get dressed into a blue sundress with a white over coat. I grab my hairbrush and turn towards my mirror to begin brushing. But I then notice I still wore the moonflower from last night.

I smiled at the memories, gently rubbing one of the flower's many petals. I took it out and placed it on my dresser, brushing my hair real quick before putting the flower back in.

I happily skipped out of my room, feeling as if I was on cloud nine. I smiled at every servant, maid, and butler I passed. Once I reached the doors of my father's office, my smile flatted a bit, but refused to leave my face.

I took a deep breath before knocking on his door," Come in." I heard him answer before I pushed open the door.

" Morning papa." I say, smiling at my father. He seemed a bit surprised, but remained quiet," What did you call me for?"

He shook his head and went back to his usual expressionless face," I called you here to inform you that there has been sightings of a demon lurking around the kingdom." He stated.

Fear shot through me," S-Sightings...? O-Of a demon...?" My father nodded his head," B-But how..."

" I have no clue Jasmine, but," My father stood up from his seat," I would like you to be careful when you are outside, is that understood?"

I nodded my head," Yes father..." I say before turning my back to him.

" Wait." My father states, causing me to turn back towards him," Jasmine?"

" Y-Yes father?"

" That flower," he began, pointing at the one in my hair," where did you get that? I can't recall having a flower like that in palace's garden."

My hand shot up towards the flower," O-Oh! This...? I-It was a gift from...a servant! Yeah..." I reply, covering the flower with my hand.

My father lifted his eyebrow in disbelief, but then shrugged," Alright. You may go now."

" A-Alright." I say as I exit his study, the door slamming shut behind me. I leaned against the heavy door, letting out a sigh of relief," That was...too close."

I gently touch one of the moon flower's many petals, and that is when I remember Maroon was waiting for me. I pulled myself off the door and walked to the palace's doors.

Once outside, I began my journey to the willow tree, day dreaming along the way. I didn't even notice I was at the tree till I felt a pair of strong arms grab me from behind," Ah!"

I heard a deep chuckle," Sorry princess, I thought you saw me." Maroon apologized, patting my head," I see you're still wearing the flower."

I nod, a light blush covering my cheeks," Y-Yeah, it match my outfit so-"

" I get it." Maroon said before stealing yet another kiss from me," But you don't need to make up an excuse just to wear the flower I gave you." He laughed at my embarrassed expression and ran towards the tree.

" M-Maroon!" I scolded, my face red as a tomato. I began to run after him with my wings flapping behind me, smiling and laughing along the way. It soon became a game of tag, and of course, Maroon was winning," Slow down!" I shout, trying to catch up to Maroon.

He only laughed in response, grabbing one of the willow tree's low branches and pulling himself up," You can't get me~" he teases, looking down from his spot on the branch.

" Maroon..! Come on...." I whine, only getting a chuckle in response. Before I could whine any further, I noticed the branch he was sitting on was beginning to crack," U-Umm, Maroon?"

" What? Too short to reach me?" He joked, smirking down at me.

" No! It's not that. The branch is about to-" as if on cue, the branch made a large crack noise. Before Maroon could even try to jump to another branch, the branch snapped! and Maroon came tumbling down with the branch, falling to the ground with a little 'oof'.

" Maroon!" I rushed to his side," Are you alright?"

" Yeah...I'm fine princess." Maroon replied,rubbing the back of his neck," Note to self: be more better on picking branches to sit on."

A small giggle escaped me," I bet you think this is real funny." He stated, causing me to giggle a bit more.

" Not really but," I pick some leaves out of his hair," seeing you fall out of a tree? Now that was funny."

Maroon rolled his eyes playfully," Well it ain't funny to me."

" Well I am not the one who fell out of the tree, and is now laying on the floor covered in leaves and twigs, am I?" I say, receiving another eye roll from Maroon. I lend my hand out for him to grab," Here. Let me help you-" once Maroon took my hand, he yanked me down towards him, causing me to fall onto his chest.

" Look at who's on the floor now." Maroon said, giving me a cheeky smile.

Now it was my turn to roll my eyes. Maroon chuckled at my action and captured my lips with his, kissing me tenderly. I was shocked for a moment, but soon melted into the kiss. Once we pulled away from our kiss, we just stared into each other's eyes, as if searching for something," What are we Maroon..?" I ask, feeling a pit grow within me," Are we...lovers? Friends with benefits?"

" Back on earth, they would call us a couple, or to dumb it down more, boyfriend and girlfriend." Maroon answers, giving me a quick peck on the lips," But that's only if you want to."

I smile," I-I would be honored to be your...girlfriend." I say, not use to the term 'girlfriend'.

Maroon smiles a loving smile, but before either of us could speak, both of our stomachs growl. We both looked at each other, then laughed," I'm gonna guess you are hungry?" Maroon asks as I nod my head in response.

" Yeah, I didn't eat breakfast after talking with my father." I say, rolling off Maroon's chest, sitting on the floor.

" Alright! I'll get some stuff and I'll be right back princess." He kissed the top of my head before leaving. I watched Maroon walk off till he was out of sight, then got up from my spot on the ground. I stretched my arms above my head as my wings spread full-length behind me. I walked over and sat down at the bench, looking up at the branches above me.

A light smile graced my lips; it was so peaceful out here. So quiet, you could hear the smallest critter running through the bushes. And yet, being lost within my own thoughts, I did not hear Maroon come up to me," Yoo-hoo? Princess? Are you there?" Maroon asked, waving his hand in front of my face.

I blink a couple of time," O-Oh! Sorry, I was...day dreaming." I say, sheepishly smiling at him.

" Well..I brought food." he states, lifting up a basket filled with food.

" Great! Here, let me move over." I scoot over on the bench, patting the open spot next to me. He smiles and sits down, placing the basket at our feet. He pulls out some bread and cheese and hands it to me. I gladly take it and we both begin to eat," Sooo...where did you get this?" I ask, taking another bite of my loaf of bread.

Maroon swallows his food before answering," Well, I kinda, might have, stolen it from the castle's kitchen..." He replies, avoiding my gaze.

I nearly choked on my food," You STOLE from the castle?!" I question, nearly shouting.

" It was only some bread and cheese, they'll never notice." Maroon shrugs his shoulders, taking another bite of his bread," Sheesh...you're acting like I stole the King's crown or something..."

I snatched Maroon's loaf of bread from his hands and threw it onto the ground," Hey!"

" What if they saw you Maroon? Hmm? What would you do then?"

" They didn't see me, don't make this a big deal."

" But it is a big deal Maroon! What if they saw you?"

" They didn't! And they never will."

" But they did! Or have, I should say."

Maroon gave me a confused look," What do you mean by that?"

" What I mean is, they have seen you!" I shout back, now standing up," That is what my conversation with my father was about. There had been sightings of a demon in the area."

" Well that doesn't mean it was me." He objects, crossing his arms on his chest.

" Do you see any other demon around here?" I question," Because I don't see any other then you."

" You are overreacting princess. They'll never be able to catch me." Maroon states.

Anger boiled within me; it wasn't at Maroon though. It was at the fact that he did not care if he got caught and killed.

" But what if they did Maroon!" I yell, grabbing both of Maroon's shoulders," What if they caught you? They. Would. KILL YOU! Do you not understand that?!"

An expression of pure shock came across his face. The fire that burned within me began to fade. My grip on Maroon's shoulders became loose to where I was barely holding onto him. Tears now filled my eyes," I-I wouldn't be able to live with myself if they...k-killed you. And over something as stupid as bread..." I cried, my voice trembling now.

My tears creased down my cheeks as I now sobbed in front of Maroon. His expression quickly changed into an apologetic one," Princess...I'm sorry," Maroon said with pure sincerity in his voice. He took my hands off his shoulders, bringing them to his lips where he placed a kiss on both of them," I did not mean to upset you, my love."

A blush burned deep within my cheeks, but I remained silent as tears slid down both of my cheeks. Maroon leaned forward and kissed my tears away, apologizing over and over again. He pulled me onto his lap once my tears cease to exist, holding me close to his chest. A pit of guilt grew inside me; I shouldn't be crying over this, and I shouldn't have yelled at him either. I'm being too over-dramatic.

" I-I'm sorry for yelling at you..." I say, my head laying right above Maroon's heart, the beating of his heart soothing me," I-I was overreacting..."

Maroon shook his head," No no, you were right to yell at me; I was beginning to get cocky and was less careful when sneaking around." He replies.

I sniffle a bit," I-It's just...the thought of you getting killed, s-scares me, so much..." I say," P-Please just...be more careful, okay..?"

Maroon let out a small chuckle before placing a kiss on top on my head," I swear princess." He states, making me smile a bit.

" I-I still hate that nickname..." I grumble, a few tears escaping from my eyes.

" But that won't stop me from calling you that, princess." He replies, causing a small giggle to escape me.

Maroon smiled lovingly at me before capturing my lips with his for a small, quick kiss. I smiled at Maroon as he gazed into my eyes," You look better when you're smiling, princess." he whispers in my ear as he kisses my forehead.

You look better when you're smiling

Those words made my heart skip a beat; I don't know why, but those six simple words made my heart swell with joy.

We stared into each other's eyes before a long period until someone's stomach decided to announce their hunger to the world. We both laughed and went back to eating; we had only started to eat when our conversation started, so it made sense why we were still hungry," Sorry for throwing your bread earlier..." I apologize.

" It's fine. I deserved it." Maroon replied, causing me to laugh once more.

After a while, we finished eating and began to talk about random topics till families came up," Do you have any siblings?" I ask, twirling a strand of my hair between my fingers.

" Nah, I'm an only child, but I have this one friend who is practically my sister." Maroon answered, a smile lightly gracing his lips.

" Same here, except for the fact you actually had a friend." I say, looking up towards the blue sky above us," My only friend was my mother, but she died...long ago."

" I'm...sorry to hear that." Maroon apologizes.

I shake my head," It's fine, I'm not as sensitive about the topic like I use to be." I reply, a slight frown on my face.

" Well, princess," Maroon said, gently nudging my arm," you are no longer alone, for you have me now."

I couldn't help but smile at his words; they were one of the sweetest things I have ever been told," You...You promise?" I ask, looking at Maroon with a slight smile.

He brightly smiles at me a nods his head," Of course I promise; I will never, ever, leave you side Jasmine." He states, placing a kiss on my cheek.

I giggle and say," You better keep it."

" I will never break it."

And with that, Maroon then began to play with the feathers of my wings, silently humming to himself while I gazed around the garden. There was a silence between us, but it wasn't bad, it was rather peaceful and calming.

Minutes went by till I thought popped into my head. I turned my head towards Maroon, his expression dazed. He looked as if he was off in his own world while he gently pet my wings," Maroon?" I say, snapping him back to reality," Can I...ask you something?"

Maroon sat up more," Yeah, what is it princess?"

" You don't have to answer this, but I had been wondering..." I looked down at my lap, where I was nervously fumbling with my fingers," Who...sent you to kill me."

Maroon's expression went grim," I'm sorry for asking, but I just...wanted to know..."

He shook his head," It's fine princess, I knew you'd asked sooner or later but..." He pinches the bridge of his nose stressfully," I'm not quite happy with who did."

" Well...who was it?" I ask, my curiosity getting the best of me.

" It was...my father."

" Your...father?"

Maroon nodded with a shameful look in his eyes," Why would he...want to kill me?"

He shrugged," I don't know, but the Devil has a twisted mind so-"

" Wait." I cut Maroon off," Did you just say...t-the Devil...?"

Maroon cursed underneath his breath; he obviously didn't mean to say that," U-Umm...yeah?"

This can't be happening.

I am in love with the son of the devil.

I am dating the son of the devil.

What kind of cliche am I living in?!

" Jasmine? Are you alright?" Maroon asked, gently placing his hand on my shoulder.

" Y-Yeah, I'm fine just...processing..." I reply," But, why? Why did he want to kill me? And why send you? No offence."

"None taken. But to be honest, I don't know...And it's weird," he begins," I have...never killed an angel before..."

" Really? You seemed very experienced when you tried to-" The look of regret came across Maroon's face," I mean- you were just- you didn't know-"

A smile formed on Maroon's face as he watched me ramble on; I was trying desperately to save myself from what I said. He let out a low chuckle and bent down, stealing a kiss from my lips. He smirked at me as he pulled away, watching as a red blush covered my face. He let out a low chuckle, causing my blush to burn deeper," You should see the adorable look on your face..!" Maroon teased, playing with a strand of my golden hair," It's bright red!"

I let out an embarrassed groan and covered my face with my hands," Look away..."

Maroon laughed once more before uncovering my hands, holding them within his own," No reason to be embarrassed princess. You look cute when you blush." He stated

" Maroon!" I whined, only causing him to laugh more," Hey! Don't lau-"

Clank

Clank

Clank

" Oh no..." I mumbled as the sound of clanking suit armor came closer," Maroon, you need to leave. Now!" I stated, pulling Maroon up and off the bench, pushing him past the willow tree, past the flower bushes where the castle wall stood. But Maroon came to a halt, and no matter how hard a pushed or pulled, he would not budge," This is no time for games! Come on! Before they get here!"

Fear and panic was written across Maroon's face," W-What if...they are here for you? What if they found out and will-"

" Maroon!" I shouted and the guards grew closer," I'll be fine! Meet me in my room in an hour, alright? And if I'm not there....break me out, okay?"

" O-Okay..."

" Alright! Let's go!"

Maroon finally let his wings expand, stretching them before taking off.

I took a couple of steps back and watched Maroon fly out of my sight, waving to him even though he never looked back. I continued to stare up at the sky even when Maroon was gone. It was only when a guard tapped my shoulder did I notice they were here," O-Oh! You startled me. I was off in my own world and didn't realize you were here." I say, in a bit of a formal voice may I add.

The guards bowed down to me," Princess," One guard greeted.

" Yes?"

" Sorry to intrude, princess, but there has been another demon sighting near the castle. And your father ordered us to bring you back inside."

" Oh...another demon sighting you say..."

" We are sorry, but you have to come with us."

I wave of panic crashed over me, but I remained calm," It's alright. Lead the way gentlemen." And with that, the guards escorted me back inside the palace.