IT WAS as if Andorra was looking at him for the first time. They both stood in front of the cabin in Icewood, and despite the fact that she was freezing, Andorra couldn't stop looking at him.

She started at his eyes. Perhaps her favorite part about his physical appearance, because no matter how hard he tried to disguise his emotions, his eyes gave him away every single time. They were bright right now, not quite white, not quite blue. He wasn't hiding from her right now, though. His dark eyebrows tilted down, concern clear in his gaze.

She then looked higher up at his hair. His dark, thick hair that was usually tamed into something clean cut and controlled. But right then, it was a mess. Clearly he had been running his hands through his hair before he had found her at the Prophet's home. And then, of course, it was longer than it had been when they first met. It was nearly falling into his eyes, that was how long it was now.

She coasted down to his sharp nose, his soft mouth, his pale skin. His strong jaw, his strong shoulders, his long limbs. Andorra ate him up greedily, noting everything she loved about him. He kept his hands to himself, not daring to reach out as Andorra stared at him. Her soulmate. The love of her life, the love of all of her lives.

She let her eyes roam to his strong hands, the ones that had been on her face nearly ten minutes prior. She caught sight of his tapered waist and his strong, long legs. And once she was done taking him in, she met his eyes again.

There was quite possibly nothing she didn't love about Nohx.

She flashed back to that very first meeting. At the pond behind her house, where he had been sitting on the rock. He had smiled at her, had told her that he had been looking for her.

I've found you. You're not very self preserving, are you?

His eyes had been white then, too. So very happy to have found her. Andorra hated that at that very moment, Nohx had been so in love with her that he had risked everything with his father just to bring her home, while she had no recollection of who he was.

"Andorra," Nohx nearly choked out. The Nohx in front of her, not the one in her memories. "We should get you inside."

He was right. She was freezing to the point of shaking like a leaf. She wanted so many things, too many things, and they all started with being in his arms.

Icewood was her home, but he was right; she wasn't fit to stand in the frozen woods while wearing very little clothes. Her summer attire wasn't cutting it. She gave him a nod, reaching out to him with her hand.

When he took it, Andorra had to stop herself from yanking him closer to give him a kiss. Instead, she let Nohx lead her into the cabin, his free hand shooting out to light the fireplace with his blue flames. Like with Nohx, Andorra took in the cabin as if she were looking at it for the first time.

Her home. She didn't care that it was in the Snow Clan. She didn't care that it being carved from ice made it not quite suited for a Summer fae. She would forever belong in the Snow Clan.

"Sunshine, you're scaring me. Say something, please." Nohx took a step back after dropping her hand. The space between them felt so large that Andorra took a step to close the gap. She knew why he did it, why he held her at a distance.

She slid her hands up to hold his face. "Noah, we're soulmates." Her voice held a note of awe. Her chest was tight, nearly exploding from the love she felt. She let out a sad little laugh, her eyes nearly burning now with tears. "The other night, when I ran from you, it wasn't anything you did. It was because I got the sudden, terrifying idea that you had a soulmate somewhere, and you would fall in love with them. It scared me so much, I ran from you, and I'm sorry. I've been thinking about what my life would be like without you in it, and it has been freaking me out."

Nohx leaned forward, his hands sliding against her waist to grip her tightly. He leaned his forehead down so it was touching hers, his eyes closing in a painful expression. "I should have told you the moment I knew. I'm so sorry for hiding it. I didn't mean to-"

"Noah. You don't need to apologize. I know why you would keep that from me. Especially if this is something you've known for a while. You've been in love with me for... for years. And I've just started loving you. Of course you'd keep it hidden."

It was true; she held no grudge against the fact that he had known. Knowing Nohx, she knew he had a very good reason to wait. He was always thinking five steps ahead, so of course he had a plan for this.

And if she had shared her insecurities, well, maybe she would have known sooner.

"I'm sorry you were thinking about that." Nohx's voice broke. "There is nothing that could tear us apart, Andy. And even if you weren't my soulmate, I think that would be true. Like Prince Desmond and his wife, I think I would have rejected mine to keep you. You have been my love since we were children. Even if you weren't my soulmate, that wouldn't have changed."

When Nohx opened his eyes, he couldn't believe how lucky he was. How lucky he was that Andorra was his soulmate, that Andorra had been in his life since she was a baby, that Nohx had the chance to love her despite his past lives destroying the bond. How could Lark have killed Maia? Nohx couldn't wrap his head around it.

"Sivelle is your mom?" Andorra's hands moved from his cheeks to his hair, letting it sift through her fingers. It was so soft, like silk.

"I found out very recently, yes. I was planning on telling you, but I hadn't seen you. And then, when I found you today, you already knew. I'm still wrapping my head around that piece of information. But it makes so much sense. We can both read the stars. I've always felt connected to her. She reached out to me far before entering Anlithamy." Nohx closed his eyes again. "I can't believe I get another chance at having a parent. One who loves me."

The pain that coated his voice had Andorra's knees weak. Nohx deserved the entire world, over and over again. He deserved Sivelle's love. He deserved to have a family.

"I'm so happy for you." Andorra stood on her tiptoes, pressing a soft kiss against his lips. It was that little press of their lips that ignited the fire between them. Nohx tightened his hold, his arms wrapping around her waist, lifting her off the ground. He deepened the kiss, carrying her to their bedroom.

Andorra's stomach erupted into butterflies as she wrapped her legs around Nohx. Her fingers tangled in his hair, holding onto him tightly as his tongue explored her mouth. She let out a gasp when his cold fingers found their way under her shirt, pressing against her burning skin.

"Noah," she babbled. "I love you. A million times over, I love you."

He pressed kisses against her neck as he laid her down on the bed. He was so careful, so afraid of hurting her. He felt every touch of hers against his skin, and it made his heart pound just to realize where he was. His body hovered above Andorra, and he stared down at her, unbelieving.

She was blinking up at him with her wide, brown eyes. Her blonde hair fanned over the pillows, and Nohx wanted to run his fingers through her strands, over and over again. He counted the freckles on her nose, watched her cheeks flush as she stared back.

She was there, in his bed. She was there, actually there, not a dream. Not a fantasy. Not something he was watching in the truth pond. And she was his, really his, for the rest of their lives. All of their lives, he would get to experience this over and over again.

Suddenly, he was a preteen again, wondering when his life would get better. Deciding it would never get better. Deciding that he would be so much happier if he wasn't alive. Suddenly, he was a preteen standing in his bedroom, the knife heavy in his hand.

Better off dead, better off dead, better off dead. It had rung in his mind on repeat for years. He had never, not once, imagined that his life would end up like this. He knew that Andorra's future had always included a crown. He knew that Andorra would be wed to a prince, would be ruler of Anlithamy, would never look twice at him.

And yet. And yet.

Andorra was blinking up at him. She smiled softly, her eyes shining with love because she was looking at him. She had chosen him, before she had known they were soulmates.

Not once had Nohx ever been chosen. Not by his parents, not by his people in the Snow Clan, certainly not by Coronomous.

But Andorra was choosing him. She had made it so obvious that she considered Icewood her home. His Icewood. His grandparent's cabin. She was discarding her comfort for him, and Nohx couldn't seem to swallow.

He ran his hand down her face, so slowly. Her soft skin warmed his fingers, and Nohx marveled at how perfect she was. How perfect she had always been, even when they were kids. The way she would sneak to see Nohx in the middle of the night. The way she would sit on his bed, her knees under her chin, her gap tooth smile taking up her entire face.

"Let's play, I'm bored," she would say. She didn't care that it was the middle of the night. She didn't care that Nohx's bedroom was always kept twenty degrees colder than her own bedroom. She didn't even care that Noxh was grumpy when woken up.

"Go play with Oberon," kid Nohx would grumble back to her, pulling his pillow over his face.

"I want to play with you, not Obe," she would say back.

She would take his pillow. She would hold out her hand. And Nohx would take it, every single time. He didn't care that she would make him play with her dolls. He didn't care that she would want to play hide and seek, but only if he was it, every time. He didn't care that she would get them both in trouble when a maid stumbled upon them, resulting in Nohx getting a much more severe punishment than she ever did.

"I can't believe that you're here, and it's not a dream," Nohx said aloud to the silence in the room. His voice was scratchy, hoarse. "I can't believe you're my soulmate."

"I can't believe you let me hate you for so long." Andorra's tone was playful as her hands coasted against his shoulders. "We could have been kissing for so much longer."

Nohx couldn't believe it, either. He had pushed and pushed and pushed her away. No matter how painful, no matter how much he hated himself for it. "It was out of love." His voice broke. He could remember their first kiss, back in the human realm. How much he had wanted it to be real, how much he had wanted it to last.

But, Andorra was the Princess. And Nohx was just a lowly Clan Leader's son.

He wished he had known then. He would have never let her go.

"You don't have to apologize for that. I know why you did it." Her voice was so sweet to his ears. When he closed his eyes, he thanked Cornomous. Thanked the universe. Thanked everyone for giving him Andorra.

Thanked everyone for keeping him alive, even when he had wanted so badly to die.

He pressed a kiss against her throat, right in the middle. He felt her swallow, and then he made his way up to her jaw. She tasted so sweet against his lips, he never wanted to stop. Never wanted to let her go. He worked his way across her cheeks, across her nose, and then down to her lips.

"I love you," he whispered against her skin. "I've always loved you. And I'll love you for the rest of time."

She squirmed against him, wanting more of him. More of everything. Her arms wrapped around his neck as she kissed him harder, kissed him deeper.

She let Nohx inch her shirt up, revealing her feverish skin to the cold of the room. She loved the way he pressed against her, heavy and delicious in the cradle of her thighs. She couldn't contain her love for him as she kissed him back.

Nothing else mattered in that moment. He was hers, and she was his.

She let him take off her shirt entirely. Let him press kisses down her neck, onto her collarbone, moving south until he reached the place she wanted. She whined against him when he leaned back to look at her.

"You're perfect. So perfect."

When he said it, she believed it.

He continued his path down her body, removing her pants as she removed his shirt. She marveled at his perfect skin, at his muscular chest. She ran her hands up his abs, wanting to count them all.

He kissed her again. Over and over, his hands exploring her skin until she was a pleading, begging mess. And he could never, ever deny her requests. Not when they were children, and certainly not now.

"I love you," was all he could say in response. And he spent the rest of that night showing her just how much those words were true. 

* * *

ahhhhh

sorry this chapter is pure fluff and nothing more lmao, but these two deserve a moment of lovey dovey peace

also, couldn't REALLY go in depth about what they're doing in that bed LMAO because its wattpad and i dont wanna make this book rated r. but im sure u can make a few guesses about how nohx is in bed HAHA

anyway. i love you allllllllllll

thank you for sticking around this long <3

XOXO