Despite the darkness of the corner and the cloak she wore to hide her face, she slid into her seat shining like sunshine on a pure summer day. He was transported back in time...back when they were both younger and so much more naive.
He had wanted to marry her. He wanted to build a life with her and live out the rest of their days in chaos and passion and all the excitement and wonder that could be found in each other's arms. He knew she couldn't be caged...and he would never want that for her. Instead, he just wanted to be by her side as they faced the future. He'd bought a ring. It wasn't much...little more than a promise for a future that would never be realized. But it was hers. He was hers. If only she'd have him. If only she'd just choose him.
Without thinking, he slid his hand over to hers and intertwined their fingers. It was something that they'd done a million times and the motion was as unconscious now as it had been so many years ago. Had it not been for the faraway look in his eyes and the fluidity of the movement, it may have seemed forward.
Her words seemed to bring him back to the present. Marigold had always looked breathtaking on her..and it reminded him of the field where they had first trained...the field where they had first kissed. The fact that she wore it now filled him with a warmth he hadn't felt since that day so long ago...the day when words had gone unspoken, questions unasked, promises unmade. But now...now they had a second chance at the life they should have had...a second chance to flourish in the love they shared.
Magnus let his gaze drift down to their hands and, as the fog of the past cleared from his mind, was surprised to find their fingers laced together. He didn't move to undo it, didn't react in any way that would draw attention to the contact that he'd tried to banish from his mind on the most desperate of nights alone. Instead, he seemed to soak up the perfection of this moment before it could be washed away by the day's woes. That was one thing he'd learned over the years: never to take a single second with her for granted.
As he looked back up, his expression was hopeful in the most gentle of ways, bolstered by love and unwavering understanding. [color=#7CD98A]"It still makes your eyes shine brighter than the sun."[/color] He didn't add the other words that echoed through his head. He'd always loved her in nothing but his embrace, too. It was too soon to give voice to those thoughts...too much this quickly.
She'd been through so much...and she'd faced it alone. His own heartache had made him leave, determined to make his name...to make himself...worthy of her. He left so that he could somehow become the kind of man she'd want more than her duty to people who didn't give a shit about her.
Things were so different now. He was different. His name and his fortune meant something. More than that, though, he was here. His heart had always been here, at this booth and in those memories...but now he was here, with her. And he was determined not to make her face the horrors all around by herself.
[color=#7CD98A]"I brought you a gift."[/color] He tilted his head to a parcel shaped like a book that had been wrapped carefully in fabric and brown leather. It wasn't anything rare or clever...except that once upon a time she had thrown it at him in playful frustration. It was a good memory...two friends laughing at the hopelessness of learning something that was just beyond their grasp. It was one of his favorites. He hoped she would understand: they had been more than just lovers...they'd shared an unconditional friendship as well.
He had wanted to marry her. He wanted to build a life with her and live out the rest of their days in chaos and passion and all the excitement and wonder that could be found in each other's arms. He knew she couldn't be caged...and he would never want that for her. Instead, he just wanted to be by her side as they faced the future. He'd bought a ring. It wasn't much...little more than a promise for a future that would never be realized. But it was hers. He was hers. If only she'd have him. If only she'd just choose him.
Without thinking, he slid his hand over to hers and intertwined their fingers. It was something that they'd done a million times and the motion was as unconscious now as it had been so many years ago. Had it not been for the faraway look in his eyes and the fluidity of the movement, it may have seemed forward.
Her words seemed to bring him back to the present. Marigold had always looked breathtaking on her..and it reminded him of the field where they had first trained...the field where they had first kissed. The fact that she wore it now filled him with a warmth he hadn't felt since that day so long ago...the day when words had gone unspoken, questions unasked, promises unmade. But now...now they had a second chance at the life they should have had...a second chance to flourish in the love they shared.
Magnus let his gaze drift down to their hands and, as the fog of the past cleared from his mind, was surprised to find their fingers laced together. He didn't move to undo it, didn't react in any way that would draw attention to the contact that he'd tried to banish from his mind on the most desperate of nights alone. Instead, he seemed to soak up the perfection of this moment before it could be washed away by the day's woes. That was one thing he'd learned over the years: never to take a single second with her for granted.
As he looked back up, his expression was hopeful in the most gentle of ways, bolstered by love and unwavering understanding. [color=#7CD98A]"It still makes your eyes shine brighter than the sun."[/color] He didn't add the other words that echoed through his head. He'd always loved her in nothing but his embrace, too. It was too soon to give voice to those thoughts...too much this quickly.
She'd been through so much...and she'd faced it alone. His own heartache had made him leave, determined to make his name...to make himself...worthy of her. He left so that he could somehow become the kind of man she'd want more than her duty to people who didn't give a shit about her.
Things were so different now. He was different. His name and his fortune meant something. More than that, though, he was here. His heart had always been here, at this booth and in those memories...but now he was here, with her. And he was determined not to make her face the horrors all around by herself.
[color=#7CD98A]"I brought you a gift."[/color] He tilted his head to a parcel shaped like a book that had been wrapped carefully in fabric and brown leather. It wasn't anything rare or clever...except that once upon a time she had thrown it at him in playful frustration. It was a good memory...two friends laughing at the hopelessness of learning something that was just beyond their grasp. It was one of his favorites. He hoped she would understand: they had been more than just lovers...they'd shared an unconditional friendship as well.
01-27-2023, 04:17 AM
