I am once again thinking about modern verse james

flynn rider

𝙵𝙻𝚈𝙽𝙽 𝚆𝙰𝚂𝙽’𝚃 𝚄𝚂𝙴𝙳 𝚃𝙾 𝙵𝚁𝙸𝙴𝙽𝙳𝚂. he had teammates of course. and they were perfectly acceptable mates on and off the pitch. he gladly welcomed them with im during his nights out but even when he drank flynn always paid mind to never let too much of his mask slip from his face. teammates were fine. but every season ends and every year the line up looked slightly different. flynn never tried too hard to keep in contact with old teammates. even the chaps he left in milan. they were good people but he needed to focus on the present. but flynn liked james. despite how utterly annoying and hyperfocus he was on football, he was a good guy. and usually flynn was able to throw him a bone or two by not passing out completely while watching game footage or spending more time actually playing in place of rolling his eyes. but he reminded himself he needed to still keep the other at an arm’s length

[ text : 𝚙𝚘𝚝𝚝𝚎𝚛 ] but I’m so booooooooooored

james wonders,  sometimes,  if  he  should  put  his  foot  down  more  with  flynn.   he  knows if  anyone  else  on  the  team  acted  like  flynn  did,   james  wouldn’t  tolerate  it.   it’s  only  because  flynn  is  so  good   -  and  because  james  knows  he  probably  would  rather  quit  football  all  together  than  give  up  his  little  luxuries,  that  james  doesn’t  bother.     still,  it  irritates  him.   he  wonders  if  flynn  can  see  what  james  does  -  all  that  potential  just  leaking  away.   maybe  flynn  just  doesn’t  care.   it  didn’t  really  matter.    james  would  keep   putting  up  with  flynn  because  he  liked  him  too  much.    he’d  always  been  able  to  turn  a  blind  eye  in  the  case  of  a  friend.   in  a  way,   flynn  had  filled  the  hole  sirius  had  left  behind  when  he’d  left  school  and  joined  the  club.    right  down  to  the  behaviour  james  might  have  deemed  out  of  control  if  he  didn’t  find  it  so  endearing.  

[ text : 𝚏. 𝚛𝚒𝚍𝚎𝚛 ]   I’m  here   -   come  downstairs  

[ text : 𝚏. 𝚛𝚒𝚍𝚎𝚛 ]   if  you  leave  me  with  me  now  I’ll  buy  you  whatever  food  you  want

@dreamwaited​

modern james potter things

physics books stacked up everywhere in his apartment (half read or random sections read) but he refuses to buy a book case (that would make him a Nerd)

gets up with the sun every morning and either goes for a run or to the gym without fail except on sundays when he goes to visit his parents (until they die </3)

One Beat Up Fiction Book he carries around when he travels for work but he’s been reading it for Literal Years and still hasn’t finished it

Has an almost encyclopaedic knowledge of football strategy/tactics and history and forces flynn to watch game footage with him Often

he likes listening to podcasts or audiobooks (usually about football, but sometimes he will listen to random science/history ones too) when he’s at the gym/running or on flights but NEVER while driving because he cannot concentrate on this many things at once

speaking of driving - he doesn’t do it much but he Can. He does Like driving in open areas he just doesn’t drive much day to day also he gets horribly distracted if other people are in the car and it’s best in those cases he isn’t driving

His favourite city is Barcelona both for the Vibes but also for the Football

The most time he’s taken off his work since he was a kid is a weekend with a few days either side for his parents funerals. And then he came back and never talked about it to anyone :/

moltolavoro​,   scott mccall.  

@stagcharmed | call !! | scott

❛ i thought you were mad at me, ❜ scott’s meant to be practicing, but he’s been sitting in the grass at the far end of the lacrosse field for twenty minutes instead. and then james is there, blocking out the sun, and scott squints has to up at him and try not to think about how james kissed him and then just…ran. stupid party. ❛ are you mad at me? ❜

❝   I’m  not   -   ❞         he  says  it  plainly,  offering  no  other  explanation  for  his  actions,   though  he  knows  he  should.   he  just  did  not  want  to  admit  he  panicked,   that  he  hadn’t  known  what  to  do.    james  never  ran,    not  from  anything,  and   the  feeling  now  he’d  done  it  did  not  sit  comfortably.   it  was  why  he’d  forced  himself  to  come  find  scott,   even  if  he  had  little  plan  of  what  to  say.     ❝  no   -   I  don’t  care  ❞      and  then  huffs  in  frustration,   because  that  isn’t  what  he  meant  either.      ❝    no  -  I  mean I  do  care.    look,   sorry.   I  dunno  why  I  did  that.   it  was  ...   stupid.     ❞

foxwove​,  stalyan .  

@stagcharmed​ starter from stalyan

𝚂𝚃𝙰𝙻𝚈𝙰𝙽 𝙼𝙰𝙺𝙴𝚂 𝙽𝙾 𝙰𝚃𝚃𝙴𝙼𝙿𝚃 𝚃𝙾 𝙷𝙸𝙳𝙴 𝚃𝙷𝙴 𝙰𝙼𝚄𝚂𝙴𝙼𝙴𝙽𝚃 𝙾𝙽 𝙷𝙴𝚁 𝙵𝙰𝙲𝙴. this always happened with new players that didn’t grow up under the influence of the master. the methods of the ravens’ might seem extreme but it was what made them better than the rest. if what they had to deal with every single day was harder than anything their opponents threw at them then that meant they would be ready for anything. besides, it wasn’t even james or one his pair that was being punished for their failure. ❝ I’m not one to give out free advice so find yourself lucky I’m even bothering right now but I would get rid of them look of disgust on your face. it’s just going to make you and your pair get punished. so you better learn to hone in your ❞ she gestures at his face with one hand ❝ all of that, quickly ❞

he  knew  the  ravens  were  the  best.        he  had  been  prepared  for  that.      james  knew  he  was  one  of  the  best  too,   and  had  assumed  he’d  fit  RIGHT  IN  at  the  nest.   after  all,   he’d  grown  tired  of  playing  alongside  his  old  team.   they  weren’t  terrible,   but  he  wanted  them  to  be  better.    james  wanted  to  be  better.

    but  the  methods  of  the  ravens  were  extreme  -     he  wasn’t  sure  what  he’d  been  expecting,   but  it  wasn’t  this.   the  long  days  and  the  gruelling  drills,  sure.    but  not  the  violence,   the  mind  games,   the  overbearing  presence  of  the  master.     stalyan’s  words  do  little  to  help,   eyes  wrenching  away  from  the  scene  in  front  of  him  and  over  to  her.       ❝  this  is  sick   . . .   he  made  a  simple  mistake   ❞      james  doesn’t  know  why  he’s  bothering  with  her  though.      she  seemed  to  enjoy the  viciousness  whenever it  arose.        ❝    y’know  what   -     just.   leave  me  alone.     you   do  what  you  want,  but  I’m  not  gonna  act  like  this  doesn’t  bother  me     ❞

DREAMWAITED·,   flynn rider

IT WAS TIMES LIKE THIS FLYNN QUESTION HOW THEY WERE FRIENDS. he knew james was trying his best to comfort flynn. to remind him that the media was an ever revolving door that forgot about its own content the moment they find something new. and in the grand scheme of things a grainy picture of him through a window kissing an unidentified person wasn’t the biggest deal. it wasn’t as if they caught them going into the restaurant. or even able to identity who it was that flynn had been kissing and, according to the pressing, ‘cuddling on up to for an extended period of time’. plus there were worse moments in that same car that they press could have gotten that thankfully weren’t circling around. they weren’t pictures that needed to be addressed. and yet the fucking picture was living rent free in his mind and he hated it.

and of course james’s solution was playing god damn football. as if the sport solved all life’s problems. as if it wasn’t the very sport that kept putting his life on a tilt. and while the baron fucking with him by using football was how flynn ended up with his life in Italy being uprooted. football was also the only constant in his life. hell, even james was starting to become a constant flynn clung to. and that thought terrified him. flynn shifts awkward. ❝ this just supports the notion that there’s no point to dating when in the public eye like this. don’t need people in my shit more than they already are. yeah, I’ll just focus on the game ❞

he  senses  his  words  were  not  as  helpful  as  he’d  hoped .       people  often  thought  james  didn’t  CARE  about  his  team  mates,   beyond needing  them  to  win  -  but  that  wasn’t  true .    he  felt  attuned  to  them  in  such  a  way,   it  would  have  been  embarrassing  to  admit.    and  to  flynn,   especially .      he  liked  to  think  they  had  become  friends,    though  he  isn’t  sure  flynn  would  ever  admit  it.     but  they  had  too  much  in  common,   for  james  not  to  feel  attached  to  him.    like  everything  that  happened  to  flynn  had  a  mirror  impact  in  him.     maybe  he  hadn’t  felt  that  way  with  someone  since  he’d  been  at  school  with  sirius.    his  tongue  clicks,     an  old  habit  that  always  indicates  he’s  thinking,    that  he’s  displeased  with  something  he’s  said.     he  wants  to  say  the  right  thing,   actually  wants  to  be  able  to  help  flynn  as  more  than  just  a  captain  looking  out  for  his  team .  

  ❝   that  isn’t  what  I  meant  -     obviously,   I  understand  why  you’re  upset  mate.   it’s  fair  enough      ❞     AFTER  ALL,   he  had  gone  to  considerable  lengths  to  keep  his  own  relationships  private.    it’s  just  that  at  any  sight  of  things  going  wrong,   he  threw  himself  back  into  work.   at  least  within  the  football  world,  he  understood  how  everything  worked.     he  forgot  that,  despite  all  their  similarities,   flynn  was  not  always  the  same.     ❝     don’t  think  you  should  like,    -    give  up  on  everything .      just  saying,  these  things  blow  over .     no  one  will  care  soon,   public  eye  or  not     ❞       okay,   he  doesn’t  know  this  for  sure.     but  he’s  seen  worse  scandals  come  and  go  than  a  kiss  in  a  darkened  car.       he  pauses,   before  shoving  flynn  lightly  with  his  shoulder.    ❝   could’ve  made  it  easier  by  choosing  someone  less  -  dunno,     dramatic   ❞      he  doesn’t  know  if  it’s  too  soon  to  be  joking,   but  he’s  never  sat  comfortably  in   a  conversation  that  was  serious  for  too  long .  

EDIT .   the red jumper scene :)

Me in hell trying to explain how I wrote an AU and then me and @proditeur made an AU of that AU and then we worked with @cewyllenw to make an AU of that AU’s AU to a peasant who died of pestilence

Modern verse james being a silly little STEM nerd that’s all

logged in to say… happy birthday James Potter

Coming back to this blog purely to revive James’ friendship with Abby’s Flynn

James would never forget valentines and would always do something super elaborate and corny because he’s a super duper romantic and also a nerd. That’s my V-Days take

James is a ‘my love’ kind of guy

flynn rider .  

𝚂𝙿𝙾𝚃𝙸𝙵𝚈 𝚆𝚁𝙰𝙿𝙿𝙴𝙳 𝟸𝟶𝟸𝟷  ⚔️  @stagcharmed​​ sent   ❝ 34! ❞    

- 𝟹𝟺 weirdos make great superheroes by central park cast

𝙷𝙴 𝚆𝙸𝚂𝙷𝙴𝚂 𝙷𝙴 𝙲𝙾𝚄𝙻𝙳 𝙽𝙾𝚃 𝙲𝙰𝚁𝙴. he wishes that the façade of flynn was actually real. that the only thing he cared about was himself and having a good time ( on top of maybe winning games. that was always nice ). he tells himself he only has himself to blame for the pictures in the press and the words that catch quickly like wildfire about him. it’s days like this where he misses italy most. he knew how to make the baron happy. how to earn his praise. and he didn’t have to worry about nasty articles spreading about him just because of who he decided to kiss when he left the pitch. that’s something eugene cared about, not flynn.

𝚑𝚎 𝚏𝚕𝚒𝚙𝚜 𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚙𝚑𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚛.his hand running through shoulder length hair. ❝ another day of this, living in a made up world where I fit. shouldn’t be surprised by these articles after all this time but here we are ❞

he  doesn’t  need  to  look,  to  know  what  flynn  is  showing  him .       james  had  long  ago  set  up  alerts  for  news  on  anything  related  to  his  team.    but  he  looks  anyway,   silent  as  he  scans  the  article,   eyes  flicking  over  the  grainy  image  of  flynn.   FUNNY,   how  the  two  of  them  had  ended  up  in  the  same  boat.    probably  not  any  sort  of  consolation  that  would  help  flynn,       ❝  to  be  fair  mate,    I  think  anyone  would  be  surprised.    you  couldn’t  have  known  they  were  watching      ❞     the  shot  was  taken  through  a  car  window,    a  moment  that  was  clearly  supposed  to  be  private.   but  james  had  become  just  as  resigned  as  flynn  to  having  paparazzi  nose  around  in  their  business.    it  didn’t  make  him  any  less  irritated  about  it  though.   

          ❝    it’s  fucked  -     but  flynn  you  can’t  worry  about  them,   you  know  they’ll  sell  anything    ❞     he  feels  like  he  is  failing  miserably  to  smooth  this  over,  to  respond  to  the  distress  he  see’s  in  flynn’s  irritated  gestures.       ❝    don’t  worry  ‘bout  it    -   you’ll  play  this  weekend  and  everyone  will  forget  about  it    ❞

scott mccall

❛ i didn’t say it was weird! ❜ he might have said it was weird. scott’s not sure, but if he did say that, in his defence it was only because he’s never heard someone seriously talk about magic like that before. scott blinks at james and then smiles again, easy and open, like always. ❛ i mean i’ve seen like…old magic stuff but the way you’re talking makes me think it isn’t that, which is cool. it’s not like i’m gonna say it’s bad or anything, one of my best friends is a banshee and i’m a werewolf so it’s like…no room to judge, y’know? ❜

❝   you  kinda  did   -   ❞      at  least,   james  felt  like  he  had.   his  outright  astonishment  had  not  made  james  feel  normal.   then  again,   james  had  been  hostile  toward  him,   so  maybe  he  had  no  room  to  judge,   he  doesn’t  know,   he  wishes  he  could  talk  to  sirius  and  remus  and  peter  about  this.    ❝   you’re  friends  with  a  banshee?    ❞         he’d  never  even  seen  one  in  real  life.   as  a  kid,   he  used  to  get  in  trouble  with  his  parents  constantly  for  staring  too  openly  in  diagon  alley,   hoping  he  might  catch  a  glimpse  of  one .        ❝   werewolves  and  banshee’s,    but  no  wizards    ❞     he  muses  this  to  himself.   odd,   he  doesn’t  know how  to  weigh  it  up  in  his  mind.      ❝   if  there  were  wizards  around,  you  would  know .     it’s  not   . . .   secret      ❞       of  course,   it  is  to  muggles.   but  there  had  always  been  more  wizards  than  werewolves.     ❝  do  you  want  me  to  show  you?   some  magic,  I  mean   ❞

marlene mckinnon

It’s a terrible combination, you know - that drive to win and the desire to be right. Gryffindor vs Ravenclaw, and the worst of it was the piggish ways with which they’d clash, but who cared, so long as there was fun to be had along the way? No. Nevermind the fun, it was more about who’d end up on top by the time the final golden snitch had been caught, who’d be grinning as points and trophies were handed out, and who’d have to sit there, GRINNING AND BEARING IT, and Marlene’s determined to rub James’ face in the dirt come the end of the day. “I’m going to overlook your petty attempts at making me angry, because honestly, Potter, I’d rather just let you see the truth of the Ravenclaw supremacy once we win the cup.” aren’t we getting ahead of ourselves? Still. That peek of her tongue between her lips, but still, she’s enjoying this little rivalry they have going on for the now.

“Husband. And please. As if you aren’t terribly hopeful that Lily will say yes whenever you work up the BLOODY NERVE to pull the trigger like that.” well. Sooner rather than later seems to be the trend, not only amongst their year but the one that preceded them, after all, how many wedding invites has she received for the summer coming up? It seemed as if everyone’s in a rush, while, honestly, it felt as if Mars was hardly even sure of where to get started… perhaps it was better to throw herself into the competitive spirit than to wonder what the hell was coming up next for Mr Potter and Ms Evans. 

A rolling of her eyes is better suited for this, for him, this obnoxious boy who demanded everything within the room and yet at the same time, did all he could to maintain himself on the sidelines, as if he were embarrassed to ever be anything other than AT THE TOP. Physically, academically… it was a constant rule of strife where he were involved, self imposed, and driven by some unknown means. Perhaps by the fact that he felt as if he were to be even slightly subpar, that others might find the chink in his armour necessary to overthrow him from the tippy top of his imaginary mountain, where he might no longer seat himself as king. Didn’t he know? All mountains were simply made of sand, easy to build, and oh so easy to fall apart.

The comment makes her laugh; of course she knows, but the commentary that follows is ironically more aligned to what might work for them. “Honestly, Sirius might be the first to fall for something like that. Don’t go giving me ANY IDEAS, now, because frankly you know the real weakness of your team is their haughtiness and pride. But. Let’s say we fight clean and candid. I say the odds are even. And I think we can still beat you.” so the first target, then, is Slytherin and Lucinda and her band of scowling rogues, but that’s something that she’ll handle with as much grace as she can, likely to meet up shortly after this now with the captain of her team, just to get a few things sorted. A snort - she knocks at James’ hand herself. 

“Get used to it! Out of all of us, you’ll be a proud dad first. And I hear better adjusted parents than mine are supposed to be cheesy like that. Better to get your practice in now before you fail with the person who’s going to matter the most!” and if she knows anything, that fear will drive him to be the best at being the worst joker… and isn’t that part of the fun for her? “Think of a good bet. But otherwise~ I’VE GOT TO GET STRATEGIZING. One step at a time! No use in skipping stones here~”

- @stagcharmed

❝   that’s  all  it  takes  to  make  you  angry  ?  -   just  one  measly  comment   ❞   he’s  enjoying  himself  now.    enjoying  the  rhythm  they’ve  fallen  into,   the  way  marlene  is  now  responding  quickly,  watching  him  with  narrowed  eyes.   he  feels  some  satisfaction  in  knowing  he  was  able  to  distract  her  fully  from  her  work.          ❝   I’m  looking  forward  to  finding  out  for  sure .     ❞    this  he  says  sincerely.   he  would  be  doing  everything  he  can  to  get  the  win,   but  he’d  enjoy  their  games  too.       ❝   we’ll  know  soon  enough  who  comes  out  on  top,  mckinnon .    ❞ 

❝   not  gonna  cross  my  fingers  and  hope  she  says  no  -  am  I?  ❞      he  hastily  says  this  to  cover  up  how  the  suggestion  embarrasses  him.   true,   he’d  considered  it   -   he’d  thought  about  how  there  was  no  one  else  he’d  rather  spend  his  life  with.    but  those  had  all  been  absent,   fanciful  thoughts.    ones  he  hadn’t  discussed  with  lily,   ones  he  did  not  want  to  be  so  obvious.     just  in  case  she  did  say  no.     if  that  happened,   he  could  never  look  marlene  in  the  eye  again .       

❝   pass  that  paper  over   -   I’m  making  that  a  note .    haughtiness  and  pride   ❞    - he  mimics  writing  the  words,   drawing  them out  on  his  tongue  like  he’s  never  heard  them  before.     BUT  OF  COURSE   the  gryffindors  were  proud,    it  was  in  the  spirit  of  their  house.   if  you  went  into  everything  believing  you  could  win,   then  you  made  it  possible  you  could.     YOU  HAD  TO  BELIEVE  FIRST,    he  truly  thought  that  to  be  the  truth.      ❝  sirius  knows  better  then  that   ❞        he  speaks  up  to defend  his  friend  without  much  thought  to  if  she  was  right  or  not.   loyally,  he  preferred  to  defend  his  friend  point  blank  then  argue  the  merits  of  the  statement.      ❝   I  think  it’s  right  even,   maybe  it  will  just  be  the  two  captains  separating  the  teams?  hm ?    I  can  beat you   ❞ someone  who  didn’t  know  him  as  well  might  think  he  was  underestimating  her,   but  he took  her  talent  seriously.     he  respected  her  game,    thought  she  could  really  match  it  with  him.   but  he’d  find  a  way  to  come  out  on  top.    

❝   marriage  and  now  fatherhood?  slow  down  mckinnon,    haven’t  even  sat  my  NEWTs  yet.    ❞      his  embarrassment  from  earlier  returns,    flustered  words  his  response.   he  doesn’t  know  how  to  begin  seriously  entertaining  that  idea.   he  liked  kids,   wanted  a  family  some day   -   but  he was  only  seventeen.     he  feels  something  like a  rise  in  him,   a  need  to  defend  a  child,   a reality  of  himself  as  a  dad  that  didn’t  yet  exist.   he  forces  himself  to  squash  it,   thinking  for  that  he’d  look  like  a  right  prat,   and  instead  says    ❝   so  much  talk  about  me.    but  I’m  yet  to  hear  what  your  grand  plans  for  the  future  are?  ❞ 

🎉 im legally obligated to send this   @stagcharmed

lily’s  freezing  .   even  under  her  woollen  coat  ,  scarf  ,  gloves  ,   and  hat  she  can  feel  the  chill  seeping  into   her  bones  .  breaths  leave  her  lips  in  a  frosty  mist  .    green  eyes  glance   at  her   watch  .   five  minutes  to  midnight  .  she  only  has   to  get  through  five  more  minutes  .   exactly  how  james  had  talked  her  into  this  ,  she’s  not  entirely  sure  .  he  busies  himself  setting  up  their  own  firework  display  ,  though  she’s  not   sure   where  ,  exactly  ,  he  got  the  fireworks  from  .   it’s  probably  for  the  best  she  doesn’t  ask  . 

she  can  hear  the  start  of  dumbledore’s  speech  .  picture  him  in   her  minds  eye  .  arms  open  ,  addressing  the  gathered  students  .   those  few  who  hadn’t  been  fortunate  enough  to  go  home  for  the  festive  season  .  no  doubt  he’s  wishing  them  well  for  the  year  ahead  ,  praising  whichever  professor  had  organised  the  display  this  year  .  it’s  not  too  late  for  them  to  join  the  rest  of  the  school  down  by  the  lake  ,  instead  of  freezing  their arses  off  in  the  transfiguration  courtyard  .  but  lily  has  a  sneaky  suspicion  that  the  two  of  them  turning  up  together  late  would  be  worse  than  never  turning  up  at  all  .   the  rumour  mill  would  go  into  overdrive  .  

they’re  stood  next  to  each  other  .  a  wand  clasped  in  his  hand  ,  the  other  dangerously  close  to  her  own  .   the  snow’s   been  successfully  melted  away  from  the  firework  wicks  ,  though  she  can  tell  he’s  still  a  little  tense  .  worried  they  might  not  light  .  it  won’t  be  long  until  they  find  out  .  from  the  lake  lily  can  hear  a  chorus  of  voices  .  TEN   ,   NINE   ,   EIGHT  .   the  countdown  has  started  .  her  head  turns  ,  her  gaze  locking  with  his  .  lips  turn  up  in  a  smile  .   THREE  ,   TWO  ,   ONE  !   his  features  are  illuminated  by  flashes  of  red  and  green  .  they’re  not  touching  ,  not  speaking  ,  but  the  moment  feels  strangely  intimate  .  he  looks  beautiful  .   she  tears  her  gaze  away  from  him  ,   watching  the  mix  of  colours  .  over  the  castle  walls  she  can  see  the  tops  of  the  school  sanctioned  fireworks  ,  but  their  own  private  display  is  bright  against  the  dark  night  sky  .  fireworks  exploding  in  various  neon  colours  ,  different  shapes  and  sizes  .  it’s  memorising  .

the  clock  begins  to  chime  ,  signalling  the  start  of  the  new  year  .   gaze  is  drawn  to  him  again  out  of  the  corner  of  her  eye  .   new  friendships  .  she  misses  her   family  ,  her  friends  ,  but  she’s  glad  she  got  to  spend  christmas  with  james  .  a  fondness  for  him  has  taken  root  ,  one  she  can’t  kill  .  she  turns  her  body  to  him  ,  both  their  figures  glowing  under  the  multi  coloured  lights  .  snow  crunches  underneath  her  feet  as  she  takes  the  few  small  steps  towards  him  .  toes  stretching  as  she  reaches  up  towards  him  .  she’s  aiming  for  his  cheek  ,  lips puckering  the  slightest  amount  .  unexpectedly  he  turns  .  the  last  thing  she  sees  is shock  in  hazel  eyes  as  their  lips  make  contact  .  it  was  a  short  peck  ,  the  kind  of  kiss  someone  would  give  their  grandma  at  christmas  .  

it sends  her  stumbling  back  .  his  expression  is  unreadable  ,  her  own  features  twisting  in  shock  and  horror  .  her  heart  feels  like  it  may  beat  out  of  her  chest  .  her  chest  heaving  with  the  effort  it  takes  to  breathe  .  her  lips  tingle  from   where  the  contact  was  made  .   a  warmth  spreading  through  her  body  ,  turning  pale  skin  red  .      ❝     i  didn’t  mean  -   that   wasn’t  supposed  to   be        —         ❞         the  twelfth  chime  rings  out  .  the  fireworks  stop  .  the  world  falls  silent  around  them  .  panic  is  rising  inside  her  .  not  only  because  she  doesn’t  want  him  to  get  the  wrong  idea  ,  but  because  something’s  happening  within  her  that  she  can’t  explain  .   feet  carry  her  backwards  ,  towards  the  entrance  to  the castle  ,  away  from  him  .   she  hesitates  ,  only  for  a  moment  ,  to  look  at  him  one  last  time  .  when  she  speaks  her  words  come  out  in   a  whisper  .

                                       ❝     happy  new  year  .    ❞