Author's note: Hey there readers!! Lookie another WA update. For this chapter, I went ahead and drew a picture of Levi to correlate with the plot, since I was in a drawing mood. Credits to Yomi the original artist, as I can't draw for shit unless I'm referencing something. I ain't that good. I also gave up on his clothes halfway through because I sure as hell am not spending time shading all that to resemble leather. fuuuuuuck no

This story/book/compilation recently crossed over the 7k votes threshold, which is very exciting. So thank you everyone for your support! I hope everyone enjoys this new update. looots of dialogue and mildly OOC as usual. jk, like way OOC because flirty. fiiiight meeeeeee. This is my favorite of the WA series so far, other than the very first chapter. ALSO DIS LONG CHAPTER SORRY. And as usual, by the end of the chapter...I gave up.

Love you guys very much! (these gif things are fun)

Part Six

***

You knew you shouldn't have picked up the call when you saw the caller ID. Your mind screamed at you that it was a horrible idea and you'd be stuck on the phone for a long time if you did.

And yet, you picked it up anyways after the third consecutive call.

In the end, you knew your mother would not stop calling you until you answered her so it was best to get it over with instead of putting it off.

She was furious with you, to say the least.

You had been sitting out on your balcony mid-afternoon, overlooking the land of Serendair while your mother was presently lecturing you for not having called her in over a week. You did your best to keep your family and friends updated with the events happening at the Citadel, either through email, texts, or phone calls but your mother wasn't satisfied with only being contacted once a week.

Your family, for the most part, had been fairly supportive about you not returning home for summer break and spending it in another country with a prince. Of course, they were worried, but also incredibly appreciative that Levi had paid for your cost of living and your education, despite your scholarship. They felt it the least they could do is allow you to spend time in Serendair.

Bringing up the underlying reason for his actions was something that your father refused to discuss with you; he was not particularly happy that some random prince who was nine years older than you wanted to marry you purely for political gain and attempted to sway you by "buying you off." You explained that wasn't the case but he was still angry. Your mother held a similar disposition on the subject, but was much more vocal about it.

With a heavy sigh, you stood up to stretch out your legs and turned to leave your private quarters. If your mother was going to continue to talk as much as she was, you thought it'd be best to at least take a walk around the castle.

She had ceased in her lecturing about your lack of communication and now was pestering you about the charity ball that had been broadcast on many news stations throughout the world. She had seen your waltz as well as anything else the news covered on the ball. When you thought about it, you realized that ball had been over a week ago. Time seemed to fly by now that you and Petra were beginning to spend time together when you could not see Levi.

"Where did you learn to dance like that, honey?" your mother asked, while you meandered through the grand corridors.

You scoffed. "I was forced to learn that dance in like five hours," you replied bitterly. Your blisters from that night finally had healed over and you weren't keen on ever having to wear heels again.

"You're a lot more graceful than I gave you credit for," said your mother. "I thought you took after your father more than me."

"Wow, thanks mom..." You rolled your eyes, unbeknownst to her. Despite her slight dig at you, you felt yourself smile.

"So, you have barely mentioned anything about the prince to us." You could hear the hesitation in her tone as she carefully ventured her statement.

You turned down another corridor, making way to the grounds, as you always did. You didn't respond immediately because you were unsure of what to say.

"There's nothing to tell, honestly. I don't see him as much as you think because he's pretty busy most days," you replied finally. "He's...sarcastic as hell, likes to pick on me...and literallyis so full of himselfsometimes, I just want to punch him in the throat."

Your mother sort of laughed. "I have heard he is a bit tactless with his words, but I also heard a lot of good things about him as well."

Pausing in your strides, you thought back to the charity ball and how you surprisingly enjoyed being toted around by Levi. "He...he deals with a lot," you said quietly, staring out the vast window at the huge lake that surrounded the castle. The sun glistened and flickered across the blue water with small fishing boats floating aimlessly along the surface.

"What do you mean, sweetie?" your mother asked.

You bit your lip for a moment. "Levi is ...a really good guy, mom," you admitted, glancing around to see if anyone was listening; luckily, there was no one in sight. "I mean, he has his faults but I can tell that he really cares about his country and his people. I've seen him make speeches on t.v. and how he handles the politics here. He gets a lot of pushback from the king's advisors just because he isn't full blood royalty.... I don't know...he just is...really interesting to me, I guess."

Again, your mother chuckled. "So you like him, is what you're saying."

Your heart seemed to skip a beat at her blunt statement. "Th-that's not what I said at all!"

"Suuuure," your mother teased.

"Okay, literally that's not what I meant when I said - wah!" You yelped in surprise because someone had seized you roughly by the arm and wrenched you back. When you finally processed what was happening, you realized your back was against a pillar, hidden within its shadow, and you were trapped between Levi's arms.

"Jeezus, you scared the shit outta me!" you breathed, lightly slapping his shoulder. "What are you doing?"

"(F/n)? What's going on?" you heard your mother say from the phone. She sounded worried, if not a bit frantic. Levi made a head gesture for you to answer her.

With a snort, you lifted your cell phone back to your ear. "Hey mom, I'm gonna have to call you back, alright? Something just came up."

You quickly said your good-byes before she could begin to object and ended the call. You mom would not be pleased to not being in the know or being cut off mid sentence. Lifting your eyes up, you pushed Levi's arm away and half-heartedly glared at him. You were uncomfortable with how close he had been to your face.

"So I'm gonna ask you again, what are you doing?" you said, noting his surprisingly normal attire he had on. You were used to seeing him in a suit and cravat, his prince uniforms, or at least a collared, button-down and slacks. However, today, he was dressed completely like a civilian with his jeans, a white v-neck t-shirt, and a deep brown, leather jacket. You weren't sure if you liked the look on him; you were not used to such an outfit.

"I'm hiding," he replied, glancing around the pillar as a maid hurried past.

You raised an eyebrow at him. "Why?"

"I'm shirking my duties today as a prince," he said flatly. "Follow me."

With no time to protest, Levi gripped your wrist and pulled you along, jogging down the hall. You were completely confused as to what was going on. For some reason, you felt as though you were on some kind of a stealth mission with the way he kept hiding in the shadows or ducking into free rooms to avoid being seen by servants and visitors.

You reached the stairs to the Great Hall and he was descending them two at a time. You nearly tripped just trying to keep up with his pace, as he would not let go of your wrist.

"Levi!" you said just as you both made it to the courtyard outside. "What's going on?"

"We're sneaking out."

You didn't reply, despite your confusion but continued to sprint across the courtyard to a sleek, silver luxury car. Levi released the hold on your arm and clicked his keys to unlock the door and start the car remotely.

Once you had slammed the passenger side door shut, Levi gunned it down the long, tree-lined driveway towards the city of Syrill, the capital of Serendair.

You finally looked over at Levi's profile, confused beyond imagination as to what he was thinking, much less doing. It was rather strange seeing him drive a car. Because he was a prince, you had assumed he was driven around everywhere, usually with a security detail. It made sense though, since he had probably driven a car prior to becoming the Crown Prince.

You vaguely wondered how Levi's life was before he knew he had royalty in his blood.

The last time you saw Levi was the night after the charity ball. He had invited you to dinner to discuss how the reception was for your first public appearance and to inform you that the charity ball made twenty percent more in donations than it did from the previous year. He attributed that to you, though you hardly saw the logic in it.

According to Levi, you had been well received; many people were rooting for you, in a way, as you were the face of the average citizen of the world. While the news made you somewhat happy, you didn't express your other concerns on the matter. You knew at one point or another, you may have to address the public personally, something you weren't sure you could do just yet.

The week following that dinner, you only saw Levi in passing. You didn't mind; you kept yourself entertained with Sasha or visiting the stables with Petra and learning how to ride a horse properly. You did, however, stop by Levi's study to bring him some tea late one night. A maid nearly threw a fit to see you "serving," since you were a guest of Levi's, but you had insisted you wanted to surprise him. You didn't end up staying long; you knew he had a lot to do, whatever it was. In truth, you had no idea what duties he had as a prince, but you were sure it had everything to do with military, social reform, and politics.

"So," you said, returning your gaze to the road before you. "Would you mind telling me what the hell we're doing?"

Levi exhaled, annoyed. "What, do I have to spell it out for you?" he said, reaching into a side compartment near his steering wheel. "I told you. I'm sneaking out."

"Yeah, I know but you haven't said why," you replied with a huff. He produced a pack of cigarettes and a lighter from the compartment and you stared blankly at him. "Since when do you smoke?"

"Since forever." Levi rolled the window down, the air whipping through the car. "I haven't smoked much since I started living here. It's not exactly 'prince-like' but times like these ones are when I do."

"I see..." you said, still surprised. There was something very different about Levi today, from his clothes, to his speech, and everything in between.

He pulled out the white stick and stuck it in his mouth. He cupped his hand around the end, holding the lighter in place but you saw him hesitate.

"You don't mind, right?" asked Levi with the cigarette bouncing between his lips. Even if you did object, you were sure he would still light it up.

"No, go ahead." Truthfully, you found the smell nauseating but you didn't want to deprive him of the one time he could smoke.

He lit his cigarette, inhaling deeply and exhaling out the window.

It was hard to tear your eyes away from his profile. As horrible as it sounded, Levi looked "cool." Him driving with one hand and his other arm out the window, smoke billowing out from his lips and his completely normal clothes was refreshing, in a way. This was a side of Levi you never saw before.

"I just didn't give a shit about my last meeting today," he explained after a couple drags. "All this dumb ass bullshit about foreign policy and this one group of politicians that are fighting my plan for universal healthcare for our citizens. A bunch of goddamn idiots, if you ask me."

Your eyes widened. You had never heard him curse before and though it did not bother you in the slightest, you were taken aback by how different he was with you today.

Levi glanced over at you once he realized you were staring. "What? Why are you looking at me with your mouth hanging open? You a fish?"

You shook your head to clear your thoughts. "I'm gonna ignore that."

He chuckled to himself. "No comeback for me? I'm disappointed."

"Shut up." You rolled your eyes despite the smile forming at your lips.

Levi took another long drag of his cigarette, the silence only broken by the sound of the rushing wind.

"I also figured it was time to take you out on a date."

You froze in your seat at the unexpected statement. In your embarrassment, you refused to look at him while the heat was rising up the back of your neck.

"Well, a normal date, at least," he added, oblivious to your awkwardness. Or he just didn't care; you couldn't tell which. "Not some over-the-top ball or whatever with a bunch of rich assholes judging everything you do."

You chuckled briefly. "You really...don't need to go through the trouble."

The prince glanced at you before slowing the car down at the stoplight. "I know."

Despite your feelings, you snorted at how he ruined the moment.

"But I wanted to," he said nonchalantly. "I haven't been able to set aside much time for you since you've gotten here."

The swooping in your stomach caused you to scratch your neck uneasily. "You're a busy man, Levi," you replied, just as he turned onto city streets.

"Maybe so," he agreed. "But I am not so busy to the point where I can't go on a date. Even a crown prince has a personal life."

You felt yourself smile, a warm feeling blooming in your heart. You chose to ignore it though and glanced down at your phone that had just began to vibrate incessantly in your hand.

"What is it?" Levi noticed you hesitating.

The caller ID showed a familiar name. "Cristoph is calling me," you said, casting the driver an expectant glance.

"That was quick," he said with a roll of his eyes. "Don't answer it. In fact, just turn your phone off. He won't stop calling you otherwise."

Guilt rose up in your throat; you did not want to be the reason Levi was avoiding his duties nor did you want to go behind his butler's back; Cristoph has done so much for you as it is. Despite that though, you pressed the "decline call" button. Truthfully, as much as you felt remorseful, you were secretly ecstatic about being taken on a date by Levi. You didn't want anyone to ruin that, not even Cristoph.

"You should at least tell him where you are," you said, watching him throw out his cigarette. "If you won't, he'll send the army after you."

"He'll send the army after me regardless," countered Levi. "Which is why I didn't bring my phone, so they can't track it. It'll keep them at bay for a while."

You sighed again. "I'm going to at least text him and tell him you're with me."

Levi flashed a look of warning at you and your fingers balked. "Don't do that," he said firmly. "If he is calling you, he already knows that we're together."

You frowned.

"Besides," he added, "if he gets real desperate, he'll check the security cameras for the grounds and courtyard just to make sure."

Levi reached over to take your phone from your hands and placed it in the center console between you both. You still continue to grimace at him, worried that what he was doing was going to cause a big uproar within the castle or even the media, if they catch wind of this.

"Don't you think...you're being irresponsible?"

He cracked a grin that appeared to be smug. "Of course it's irresponsible," he replied, following a busy street. "Live a little, princess. Never done something thrilling before?"

"I would hardly call this thrilling," you said flatly. You decided to change the subject for you own sake. "Where are we going then?"

"The Sky Lantern Festival." Levi idly adjusted the air conditioning. "It's an annual thing and I've missed it every year. Thought it'd be nice to drag someone along with me."

Unbeknownst to him, your eyes lit up at the thought. Your mind's eye instantly thought of the Disney movie Tangled and how Flynn Rider took Rapunzel to see the sky lanterns for her birthday; you couldn't help but smile to yourself. You did not, in any conceivable way, think your date would go like Rapunzel's did, but you were sure you were just as excited to see the lanterns in the sky as much as the princess had been in the movie.

Levi glanced at you. "Someone's excited."

You blushed slightly at being caught. "S-so what?" you retorted. "It's been a while since anyone took me out on an actual date."

"Someone actually took you out on a date before?" he teased. "That's surprising."

Automatically, you made an exclamation of annoyance. "Just so you know," you said, "I have had two boyfriends before you."

"So I'm your boyfriend now?" He grinned, albeit mischievously. "Since when? I have to keep up with our anniversaries, you know."

"Th-that's not what I meant!" You grew flustered under his gaze. "I meant that I've been on dates before."

He flashed you a smirk. "Yeah? How'd those work out for you?"

You stopped short of replying because he was teasing you so viciously. "Ugh," you groaned in exasperation. "The first was when I was, like...what fifteen? Sixteen? Didn't last long. We had nothing in common and honestly, he was boring as hell. Conversation with him was beyond his mental capacity..., so I dumped him."

"Harsh."

You ignored him. "...and the second was during college a couple years ago. We broke up mutually because I wanted to study abroad in Valen and he didn't want to do long distance. Not that I would really call it mutual...since I didn't want to break up.... He said being apart and not knowing what I was doing or who I was with would be too difficult to deal with."

Levi didn't reply immediately, his dark eyes staring out in front of him. You couldn't read his emotions, but then again, you never could.

"What a child," he said with a fierce snort.

"Huh?" You raised an eyebrow, unsure if he was accusing you or speaking of your ex-boyfriend.

Levi slowed to a stop at another stoplight and turned to hold your gaze. "I said, he was a child," he repeated. "He didn't want to man up for you. He said 'not knowing' would be too hard for him, which is a cop out. In his eyes, you were a burden. You were tying him down."

You blinked, a sharp pang hit your heart. For some reason, hearing that hurt you regardless if it were truth or lies.

He returned his eyes to the road. "To be clear, I'm not saying you're a burden," he added. "I'm just saying though he may have cared about you somewhat, to a young guy in college, who wants to stick his dick in everything that resembles a vagina-"

"Oh my god," you said, caught off guard by his rather obscene word choices.

"-you were just holding him back from 'having fun.' He didn't want to commit to you because in the end, you were nothing more to him than a convenient lay," Levi finished. "Which is childish and fucked up."

It was hard not to stare at him; there was hatred in his eyes that you couldn't place. You longed to know why it had appeared but you couldn't find it in yourself to ask him of it. One part of you wanted to pry it of him, to learn more of him, but the other part of you didn't want to intrude on his life if he wasn't willing to share it.

You finally tore your eyes away from him and studied the city surroundings. You resolved to ask him about it later.

"That's alright though," said Levi beside you. "If it weren't for that dumbass dumping you, you wouldn't be sitting here right now."

A brief laugh escaped you, aware he was trying to lighten the mood. "That's very true."

***

"I've told you ten times already, you're not paying."

You rolled your eyes at the prince who had just handed money over to the man behind the concession booth. "It's literally cotton candy, Levi," you began to protest. "I'm fairly sure that I could afford to spend-"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," he interrupted while shoving a piece of the blue substance in your open mouth. "You're the worst person to go on a date with."

Your eyes widened at his claim and you swiped away the candy after you swallowed. "I am not!"

Levi allowed himself to smirk for a moment, ignoring the stares of passing festival goers. "Yes, you are," he said. "You're supposed to let me pay for everything and say thank you, not fuckin' try to show off your independence and self-sufficiency. I'm well aware you can pay for it."

"Well, excuse me for being polite, you prick," you snapped. "But...thanks..."

Levi chuckled lightly at this and offered his hand to you.

"I refuse," you replied, upturning your nose. "Because you're so rude to me."

"That's nice," he replied sarcastically before gripping your hand at your side. "But we're on a date, remember? Act like it."

"You're so fricken annoying, I swear," you sighed. Despite your protests, you let your hand be held by his. It was awkward, but you didn't want to admit that you actually enjoyed his touch. Earlier on, you were taken aback by the idea of him holding your hand but you wondered if it was just for show, as you could tell he wasn't particularly feeling much over it.

Unlike you.

It had been over two hours since you've arrived at the festival and thus far, you've mostly meandered through the lines of vendors, booths, and concession stands with great interest.

Well, you were interested. Levi seemed to have cared more about how dirty his shoes were becoming from all the dust and dirt more than he cared about what the booths were selling.

Among the booths, you found a vendor selling unique, leather journals that were hand bound. You had enough empty journals at home but these were simply too interesting for you to pass up. They were a bit pricey but you thought splurging was acceptable every once in a while. You had not expected the prince to come swooping in with his credit card to pay for it, which he did at two more booths you attempted to buy things from.

You appreciated it, but it did make you mildly uncomfortable.

However, you did manage to convince him to go on the bumper cars with you. The sight of seeing Levi ramming his small car into that of little children and young adults was both hilarious and terrifying. He took it far more serious than you would have ever expected; his completely deadpan expression never broke, save for the ferocity in his eyes. That did not include the fact that you thought he would have refused altogether. What made it amusing to you was that these carts did not go very fast. Seeing Levi with an intense glare while he chugged along to hit a nearby child made you nearly die in your seat.

For the most part, you and Levi were left alone from the general population, much to your surprise. You had thought there would have been a throng of people clamoring to take a picture of their prince out and about in the city. If anything, the citizens of Syrill either stared at him or hissed to one another, speculating on whether not the Prince of Serendair was at the Sky Lantern Festival. Levi didn't necessarily stand out but he also did little to hide his appearance either.

"I want to go on the ferris wheel," you said presently. You and Levi were hidden within the shadows in a copse of trees, away from the main gathering of people.

He lit up another cigarette, his third of the evening, and exhaled heavily. "Of course you do," he sighed. Levi gazed up at the flashing lights alongside the wheel, contrasting wildly against the blackening sky overhead.

You glanced around, idly finishing off your cotton candy. "Why hasn't Cristoph sent the national guard on you yet?" you joked.

The prince shrugged and crouched down to lean against a tree trunk. "I was wondering about that too," he replied, inhaling deeply. "I'll have to ask him what took him so long."

You smiled to yourself, patiently waiting for him to finish smoking. "When are we releasing the lanterns?"

Levi checked his watch. "In fifty minutes," he said, putting out his cigarette butt. "Let's hurry, otherwise we won't make it in time for the lanterns."

Thankfully, the line wasn't as long as you had expected it to be for the ferris wheel and you were on in less than fifteen minutes. Your first go around, you both just stared out at the scenery together. You moved in closer to him, the breeze of the night air feom the movement of the wheel sent shivers over you, to keep warm. This prompted Levi to awkwardly shrug out of his leather jacket and don it over your shoulders before letting his left arm fall just alongside of the seat behind you.

"Hey Levi," you said, the wheel having stopped to allow new riders on. "Can I ask you something?"

He side-glanced you before he looked up at the faint stars above. "Sure."

You hesitated, pulling the jacket around you a little more. "Earlier, in the car.... Do you remember what you were saying about guys?" you said.

"You mean about how your ex dumped you for leaving to Valen?" clarified Levi.

"Yeah."

"What about it?" The wheel lurched into motion again.

Again, you paused in second thought. "It just...seemed a bit personal to you..."

Levi made an amused noise. "So what's the question, princess?"

"Well...why? You seemed...kind of angry over it," you said cautiously, gazing at his side profile again. You saw Levi frown momentarily, lost in his thoughts.

He finally turned to you, regarding you with a strange expression. "You're more observant than I thought," he said with a smirk.

You did not reply but returned his look.

"I don't respect men that can't commit to a girl but use her for his own personal enjoyment," he said, gazing off into the distance. "It's one thing to be clear and agree to a sort of 'fuck buddy' relationship, but it's another thing entirely to lead a woman on and then toss her aside later when it's no longer convenient."

Again, the same hatred reappeared in his eyes and you automatically touched his arm gently.

"It's cowardice or arrogance...or both," he explained. "The king...my father did it to my mother. Just used her, got her pregnant, and left her. Because of what? Of his duty? Because of image?"

It all seemed to click in your mind once he mentioned the king; Levi was bitter and resentful in regards of his father.

"You know, I grew up thinking my father was some amazing ass man, the way my mother would talk him up to me as a child. Fuck, was she over exaggerating," Levi continued with an idle sigh. "She always made him out to be someone honorable, someone honest. 'Your father has a duty so big for his country. That's why he isn't here with us right now.' Shit like that. She'd talk about him all the time, how much she loved him and how she was so glad to have his son.

"But after she died...and as I grew up, I...started to really see it for what it was. Whoever my father was, he was an asshole. He never made the attempt to see us, and never claimed me once she was gone.... I was eight when she passed and I never heard a word from him. Whoever he was, he never loved my mother enough if he could just leave her with their only child...alone and struggling to survive. Or even reach out to me when she died."

Levi paused, because they wheel had come to a stop again. "And then he just...showed up one day. Just fuckin' showed up in my socioeconomics class, unannounced. Claimed he was my father, that I was the prince of Serendair...that he and my mother had been lovers prior to him being forced to marry that bitch I'm supposed to call a stepmother. Even offered up a paternity test to prove it," he said, a bitter undertone in his voice. "Knowing who my father was did not exactly make it any fuckin' better. He used his servant, my mother, for his own sexual desires. And when he fucked up, he couldn't do the right thing and commit to her. He was too fucking afraid of his father's wrath.... He hid it from everyone and then he tried to keep her around...how fucking degrading. Watching the man she loved be married to some other woman. Didn't matter though. I was told my mother left without a word one day in an effort to keep his image intact. Not that his ass deserves that kindness."

You had never heard Levi speak so candidly in your life. The subject matter itself was not exactly pleasant, but nonetheless, you were pleased to know he trusted you with honest information about himself and his past. More than that, just listening to him open up like this warmed your heart, in a selfish and strange way.

"I...I wish I knew what to say," you whispered, wind passing over your heads quietly. "But...I'm so sorry you had to go through all of that. I'm sure it was...hell."

Levi shrugged apathetically. "So, that's why I don't like your ex-boyfriend," he said. "That little twat needs a solid punch in the dick."

You burst out laughing. "Okay, he wasn't that bad though!"

"Sure, whatever," said Levi with a sardonic tone. "But...with all that being said, you should now feel very secure with the idea of me being faithful and committed to you if we married."

"Yeah, that's great and all, but without actual love, it means nothing," you pointed out. "So, I'm not marrying you. Still."

Levi groaned. "You are impossible," he said in exasperation. "So, what you're saying is, if I fall in love with you, and I get you to fall in love with me, you'll marry me?"

"No," you said flatly. "Hell no."

He shook his head, another smirk beginning to grace his lips. "I have until the end of summer to change your mind," he said.

The ferris wheel had been coming to a stop, finishing up your rather deep and somber talk over Levi's past. He stepped out and held a hand out for you, patrons waiting in line snapping pictures of you both on their phones. You still wondered why Cristoph hadn't come and picked you both up, or sent a security detail...or something.

"Hurry up. We still need to buy a lantern," said Levi, pulling on your wrist. You smiled to yourself, gazing at his back fondly. There was so much you had to learn about Levi still and that thought really did warm you.

Hundreds of people were gathered within the massive park of the city where the festival was held. Patrons from all over the world came to view the spectacle of the lights in the sky. Despite the mass of people, it wasn't entirely crowded within the clearing.

The din of chatter overhead was mixed with anticipation and excitement, children shrieking with laughter while mothers were snipping at them to behave around fire. The air was still tonight but still chilly enough to wear outer layers.

It was perfect for a Sky Lantern Festival.

"Did you have to make them write our names on it?" you sighed, following Levi up a hill, away from the crowds.

"The whole point of the lantern is to make a wish with it," he replied, carrying it carefully before him. Although it wasn't lit yet, it was still very fragile and he didn't want to tear it.

"Like you would do something so frivolous as making a wish on a floating paper lantern," you countered, glancing back at the crowd.

Levi shot you a dark look. "I'm willing to do whatever necessary to ensure I have a fiancé by the end of the summer."

"Fat chance, prince," you cried with a laugh. "If that's the case, you're wasting your time with me."

"Shut up and come here," he said, ignoring your statement. Levi checked his watch once more and began to unfold the lantern carefully.

Of course, he had to get the largest size, the one nearly as big as him and of course he had them write your names in gold lettering. You held it up for him and lit the fire for you before you glanced down the hill again. Lights began to pop up and flicker across the clearing, the growing noise becoming slowly more frantic in their elation.

"The city bells will strike at nine," Levi explained, forcing up the lantern so he could see your face. "Two minutes."

"This is so exciting!" you nearly squealed. You had wanted to witness something like this for years but you never in your life thought you would be standing next to the prince of Serendair releasing your lantern. "Thank you so much for taking me, Levi!"

He blinked, surprised you went out of your way to thank him. It took him half a moment to recover before changing the subject. "What are you wishing for?" the prince asked.

"I can't tell you that," you said with a wink. "Otherwise, it won't come true."

"Superstitious?" scoffed Levi and you feigned a coy look. "Fine, don't tell me then."

"But I can tell you that my wish has something to do with you," you said.

Levi eyed you. "Oh, really? Something like 'I wish Prince Levi would fall head over heels with me,' or some stupid bullshit, right?"

You stuck at your tongue. "No, you asshole," you replied, annoyed. "At least I won't be wishing to be taller!"

"Oh wow, you fight dirty." Despite his irritated expression, Levi was rather impressed she didn't hesitate to insult him. He liked that you always fought back.

Just as you were about to reply, the pleasant noise of chimes played over loudspeakers resounded throughout the park. The park exploded with cheers from the festival patrons. With a great burst of joy, your eyes lit up instantly and Levi snorted.

"Calm down, princess," he said, fighting a smirk. "You look like you're trying to hold in your piss."

Too enthralled to even give a quip back, you ignored him as you gazed over the park with the release of hundreds of floating lanterns, their fire glimmering in the darkness above you. It was such a sight to behold, so many glittering lights rising into the sky so beautifully. It almost look as if the lanterns were creating a galaxy all its own within the sky, rising to take the wishes away and fulfill them.

The chatter turned to awe and wonder, children's laughter now more amazed instead of entertained. So many were pointing above their heads, trying to track their lanterns' progress through the night.

There was something enchanting about the lanterns. They were holding so many wishes, big wishes and small wishes. Important wishes like wishing for someone's health to a child's wish of getting a puppy. Wishes for financial stability, romance, or even for the start of a new family. Everyone had something they wanted more than anything else in this moment and they all were able to make it into a wish, just for a night. No one had to know what they wished for, no matter how silly it was.

"Ready?" Levi asked finally.

You turned your childlike awe to him and grinned. "Yes!"

No longer able to hold it, Levi's lips twitched into a smile; your eyes were so bright, he was sure they were brighter than the fire in front of you. "Alright, on the count of three," he said, raising the enormous lantern above his head. "One, two...three."

You released your fingers from the paper simultaneously with Levi. The lantern began to rise effortlessly with yours and Levi's name displayed together in the darkness. You couldn't help but grin up at the sky full of flickering, floating lights. It was feeling you couldnt explain, but your heart felt full and you were lost in all the wonder of the galaxy beyond. Before long, it was lost among the other floating lights but you still continued to search for it.

You felt Levi's warm skin brush up against your hand as he clasped it. Glancing at him, you found him staring up into the darkness speckled with lights with a very peaceful expression.

With a warm heart, you gazed back up at the sky and squeezed Levi's hand. There was a pause but after a moment, he returned the gesture, an easy silence settling between you. When you had woken up this morning, you had no idea you were going to end your day standing here on a hill beside Levi with a majestic view. You were thrilled to have had such a beautiful date, even if you both weren't romantically interested in one another. His company was enjoyable.

I wish for a summer full of beautiful moments like these so Levi knows what happiness is.

I wish for more moments like these because her smile is more beautiful than this sky.