#I HAD. SO MANY THOUGHTS. ABOUT VERONICA'S MAP. I WAS GONNA MAKE SOME POSTS ABOUT IT. AT LEAST HIGHLIGHTING SOME YHINGS

[moe-broey]

Hhnghb

[lone-survivor-six-tales]

Ain’t That A Shot in The Head Ch.7

Boone didn't know where he was heading, all he knew was he wanted to get as far away from the strip as he could. Seeing Six flinch away from him hurt worse than any bullet. The best thing he could do was leave and protect Six from the bad luck that followed him around. He had been traveling for a few hours and had reached 188 trading post. He remembered passing through here with Six on the way to New Vegas and was tempted to just continue walking until his stomach reminded him that he hadn't eaten anything since he left so abruptly. After buying some food from one of the traders, he took a seat at an empty bench until a young woman approached him with a smile.

"Hey there, mind if I take a seat?" She asked, gesturing to the other side of the bench. Boone didn't answer but nodded his head which the woman took as a yes and took a seat across from him.

"Thanks, by the way my name is Veronica. I couldn't help but remember you passed here not too long ago with a woman right? She was looking for someone and asked me about it."

Boone didn't understand why she was talking to him but let her ramble as he ate. He was thinking about stopping by Novac to collect the few things he left behind when he heard Veronica say something that caught his attention.

"So I thought I'd listen to the radio station just for a few laughs and that radio host mentioned a guy named Charon and I started thinking about if that was the guy your friend is looking for. I mean, not many people are wandering the wastes with a name like that."

"Did you say Charon?"

Veronica perked up when he spoke up and she was all too glad to repeat herself. "Yeah, your friend said he was a ghoul right? He didn't say too much when on the radio but his voice sounded similar to a ghoul's voice."

"Do you know where this radio broadcast is coming from?" Boone asked, leaving the rest of his food untouched as he stood up and collected his pack and rifle. Veronica followed suit while pointing in the direction of black mountain.

"Yeah it's coming from black mountain but that place is full of super mutants and nightkin. You'd probably have to send an army to get through them to get to the top."

Boone looked at the mountain in the distance and then back to Veronica. After a moment he dug into his bag and pulled out his bag of caps and passed them to Veronica.

"I need you to do me a favor. Do you know the way to get to New Vegas?"

-----------------------------------------

Six stepped out of the Atomic Wrangler with a frown. While Arcade was out with Rex and Lily trying to find out what happened to Cassidy Caravans, Six and ED-E had visited almost every casino and shop in both the strip and Freeside looking for Boone. She was starting to regret listening to Arcade and waiting a while for Boone to return for his beret and sunglasses. Six was on her way to camp McCarran to see if Boone was there when she saw a woman running up the road heading in her direction.

"Oh thank goodness I was right! It's a good thing your hair is so unique or I'd probably have the hardest time looking for you." Veronica panted, hands on her knees as she tried to catch her breath. Six looked at the woman confused until she noticed the power fist on her hand.

"Hold on, you're that woman I talked to at that trading post."

Veronica nodded with a grin. "Yeah, Veronica. I ran into your friend, you know, the one with the constant frown," before she could continue Six interrupted her.

"Boone? You saw him? Where is he?" She started looking around, wondering if he had followed Veronica back.

"He's not with me, he's heading to black mountain," she pulled out a letter from her pocket and handed it to Six. "He wanted me to find you and give you this."

Six took the letter and opened it, reading through the letter. Her heart sank as she read the contents.

Six,

You know better than anyone that I'm not the best at talking about feelings but the least I can do is explain some things to you. When I was in the NCR I did things I'm not proud of. I know my hands are stained by blood that should never have been spilled. I've known for a long time now that I have bad things coming for me, for a while I forgot about it thanks to Carla. I had a similar feeling while traveling with you.

The cazador sting and what happened this morning reminded me that the longer I stay with you, the more likely you'll continue to get hurt because of me. If you're reading this then Veronica probably told you that I'm heading for black mountain. Veronica told me she heard that Charon is being held there. It's not likely I'll be able to free him but I can at least thin out the amount of super mutants there to make your job easier.

I'm sorry, I won't be able to watch your back anymore.

-Craig

"ED-E, I need you to take Veronica and find Arcade, tell him to head to black mountain and have his doctor's bag with him, we might need it.." Six checked her bag to count how many bullets she had. Luckily she bought some more ammo when she checked the gun runners shop for Boone.

"Wait, where are you going if I'm going with your eyebot?" Veronica asked as Six checked her map for the quickest route to black mountain.

"I'm going to head there now. If the super mutants haven't killed him then I'm gonna."

-----------------------------------------

Charon rolled his eyes as he heard Tabitha walking over to the room he was locked in with Raul. As he expected, Tabitha walked in with her radio microphone, pointing the microphone at Raul who was in the middle of repairing another broken radio.

"So Raul, how does it feel that by tomorrow you will be COMPLETELY AND UTTERLY EXECUTED?!" She asked, making Charon wince when she shouted the end of her question.

"Well, it's a shame since I haven't finished repairing Dave's radio. He won't be able to listen to your show if I'm gone." Raul replied, not looking up from his work as he continued to fix the radio.

"Dave is a loyal viewer." Tabitha mumbled to herself thinking over Raul's words. "Ok, you can stay alive until Dave's radio is fixed." Tabitha announced before closing and locking the door again.

"So does this happen everyday?" Charon asked, sitting back in his chair as he watched Raul set aside the half finished radio. He knew the answer already, having been locked in the same room for long enough that Charon stopped counting.

"Yup, someone needs something repaired, I work on it, Tabitha says I can live another day and then someone else needs something repaired."

"Why haven't you tried escaping?"

"Why haven't you?"

Charon fell silent at Raul's question. He could hear Raul chuckle next to him before a bottle of alcohol was passed to him.

"I get it, it sounds easy. Pick the lock and sneak out while Tabitha is asleep. The only problem is that we'd have to climb down a mountain filled with super mutants and nightkin. I'm guessing when you were caught you ran out of bullets."

Charon shook his head, accepting the bottle and taking a sip before passing it back to Raul. "Someone got the jump on me and knocked me out. When I woke up my weapons were taken and my partner was missing."

"Ah, Alice right? The one that can shoot out a deathclaw's eye from a mile away." Raul chuckled, taking a sip before placing the bottle between them. "You sounded pretty confident that she'd find you. How can you be sure the Mojave hasn't chewed her up and spit her out?"

"It'll take more than a mountain of super mutants to stop her." Charon said with a slight smirk. There was a growl from Tabitha and Charon listened intently as a super mutant called Tabitha over the radios.

"Something's shooting us! Super mutants are being hot but we can't find who did it!"

"Well, find them and crush them!" Tabitha growled. There was a crash and Charon assumed she either hit or threw something.

"Speak of the devil and she'll appear."

-----------------------------------------

"Where are you little human?!"

"I'll crush you like a bug."

Boone cursed, slipping between rocks as he looked for a hiding spot to reload his rifle and check the wound to his arm. While sniping a few super mutants, a nightkin had snuck over to him and almost crushed him with a rebar. He was lucky to roll away fast enough to only get hit in the arm. Unfortunately if it turned out his arm was broken, he wouldn't be able to aim his rifle.

"Found you!"

Boone ducked just as a nightkin appeared and took a swing at him, crushing the boulder that he was previously hiding behind. Boone ran as fast as he could to get some distance from the super mutants. As he slid down a slope to quickly escape another nightkin, pain shot through his foot after stepping on a bear trap which clamped down on his foot. He could hear the super mutants laughing while he cut his fingers while trying to pry open the trap.

"Nowhere to run now human." A super mutant laughed, approaching Boone with a gun pointed at him. Boone glared at the mutant as he stared down the barrel of the gun. If it was finally his time to die, he was going to die facing death head on.

What Boone wasn't expecting was the super mutant's head to explode and body collapse at his feet. The remaining super mutants scrambled to find the shooter and we're quickly dispatched one by one. Boone stood still, waiting for a gunshot to end him when he heard footsteps approaching from behind.

"Boone."

Boone looked behind him to see a familiar beret as Six crouched down to open the bear trap. Once his foot was free, luckily only bruised due to the thick leather of his boots, Boone turned to face her.

"Six."

"Don't talk to me."

Boone was surprised at how cold her voice sounded as she passed Boone a stimpak before reloading her rifle.

"We're almost to the summit, watch my back and keep an eye out for the nightkin." Six said as she started climbing up the slope Boone slid down to escape. Before he could follow her, Six tossed him his beret and sunglasses which he quickly put on before following her.

Six was silent as she quickly fought through the gangs of super mutants. Whenever a super mutant got too close to her it was quickly shot down by Boone. Once they reached the summit, Six searched through each building until she came upon a powered down Mr. Handy. Thinking it could help them take out the remaining super mutants, Six quickly fixed the programming error and rebooted the robot.

"Good afternoon ma'am! Have you seen my companion Tabitha?" The Handy asked.

"Uh, would she happen to be the one talking over the radio right now?" Six asked, gesturing to the nearby radio where Tabitha could be heard shouting.

"Oh indeed that is her! She must have been so worried when I went into standby mode. Please excuse me." The Handy quickly left the building while Six and Boone followed behind. From the last building came Tabitha who clapped her hands in joy at the sight of the robot.

"Rhonda is all better!" She cried happily as Rhonda flew over to her.

"Hello again Miss Tabitha, shall we be on our way?"

Six watched the nightkin leave with the robot before entering the building. Six made quick work of the lock on the door and opened it to find Charon and Raul sitting down and looking at the entrance. Raul looked impressed while Charon had a smirk on his face.

"Charon."

Boone was surprised when he saw Six burst into tears and drop her rifle as she ran into Charon's arms.

[ninjacupcake-x]

Road Trip - Ch. 9

SURPRISE, BITCH. Bet you thought you’d see the last of me c; Sorry for the long wait, I wanted this chapter to be perfect! Plus, I thought you all could use a small pick-me-up after the new episode that aired today. *still sobbing uncontrollably* BUT ANYWAY, WITHOUT FURTHER ADO, HERE’S CHAPTER 9!

Missed last chapter?: http://ninjacupcake-x.tumblr.com/post/153793117038/road-trip-ch-8 Chapter 1: http://ninjacupcake-x.tumblr.com/post/127577542628/road-trip

Thursday Night – 2:00 AM

Star heard the soft snoring of her best friend Marco sleeping beside her on their overly romantic heart-shaped bed. She lay wide awake, observing Marco’s unconscious arm draped over her body. She had gotten quite used to waking up pretty close to Marco. It’s not like they were doing anything wrong. She studied Marco’s arm, rubbing the back of his hand with her thumb, sighing softly. Her thoughts were racing profusely. If only we could be together, but we’ve said this already, we’re nothing but friends. I’m sure you’ll meet someone great in college, and well, I guess I’ll be engaged to a prince. But even so, my heart will always belong to you. She smiles sadly, kissing her own fingers lightly before resting them on his hand. She took another deep breath before curling deeper into the covers, falling back asleep.

Friday Morning – 7:30 AM

Marco opened his eyes immediately hearing his alarm blaring in his ear. He blinked a few times before raising his torso, noticing his arm was draped around Star’s body. By this time in the week, they had found one another so close to each other, it was nothing to be embarrassed about. As long as they weren’t making one another uncomfortable, they were fine sleeping so close to each other. He finally stops the alarm, sitting up and yawning. He looked over at Star, clearly unfazed by the resonant sound of the alarm clock, and tried shaking her awake. “Star, wake up” He half whispered.

Star mumbled incoherently, digging her face further into her pillow. “mmm, I’m up, I’m up…” before snoring again.

Marco shook her again. “Star, c’mon! We’re going to the amusement park today!” As if he had said some magic word, Star immediately sprang up, wide awake in nanoseconds.

“We are?! Sweet! Why didn’t you just say so?!” She exclaimed, smiling wide.

“I wanted this to be a surprise! And I know how much you love rollercoasters, but I can only handle so much adrenaline”

“I know, I know, limit to one fast ride per hour” Star smiles, knowing her best friend’s amusement park rules. She stretches her arms up and stands up. “I’m gonna take a quick shower and then we can head out, yeah?”

Marco nodded in agreement. “Sounds good. I’m gonna grab us some breakfast.” He watched the bathroom door close behind the princess, and headed downstairs. They were nearing the end of their week, and they had gone through so many emotions, it was ridiculous. They turned each thing they got thrown into the best experience of their life, just as they had always done. Marco headed toward the complimentary breakfast section, grabbing two plates and filling them full of all types of food before finally heading back up to room 1609. Marco opened the door to their room, setting their breakfast on the table just seconds before Star emerged from the bathroom. She looks over at the table, looking at all the food he brought.

“Ooh, muffins!” She perked up, grabbing a blueberry muffin and sitting beside Marco as he was eating a yogurt.

“So, any idea on what to do about this marriage?” Marco began.

“Well you see, as I was belting out Love Sentence, I realized, what if I already had a husband?” She said, as if what she said was an obvious answer.

“Wait what?” Marco inquired, thinking about all the possibilities that could mean, earning the increased pace of his heartbeat.

“Yeah! All I need to do is get Justin Towers to marry me and all will be well in the world. Simple” Star smiled, shrugging as she took another bite of her muffin.

“Star, that’s not even close to solving your problem” He raised his eyebrow, stifling a laugh.

“I know that, I was just trying to make myself feel better.” She admitted, her head instantly hanging down low.

Marco leaned closer to her, trying to level his face with hers. “Aw, c’mon Star, did you forget where we were going today?”

“Well, but, you said it yourself, you don’t like riding a lot of rollercoasters and such, and it’s no fun riding them alone…” Star reminded him.

“No, but…” He begins. “I know that my best friend isn’t feeling her best right now, and if getting her to cheer up means I puke a little more than usual, then so be it.”

Star looked up at her best friend, smiling wholeheartedly as she pulls Marco into a tight hug. “Why are you such a great best friend?”

Marco laughs, hugging her just as tight. “I guess all this charisma just comes naturally to me” His cocky tone nuanced in his response to her rhetorical question

Star returns his laugh before pulling away to punch his arm playfully before springing up and grabbing his hand. “Alright, breakfast’s over! Let’s hit those rides!

Amusement Park – 8:30 AM

After the strenuous parking game, Star and Marco finally step foot at the amusement park, ready to have the most fun of their lives.

Star looks around at the scenery before them. Lights, music, the brightly colored attractions, children laughing, the sun out, the cool breeze. “Oh. My. God. This is what heaven looks like, right? I’m sure of it.”

Marco was looking at the map he obtained to really listen to Star’s remarks. “Hmm, if we keep going straight and make a le—“

Star looked at her best friend, his nose in a map. “Marco!” She screams, yanking the map away from him, leaving him surprised. “For once, can we not live by a piece of paper? I’ve had to do that all my life.”

“You’re right, you’re right. Okay, then. What’s our first order of business?” Marco asks as Star peers out into the park.

“Hmm, let’s start with something easy.” She says, pointing at an intricate red rollercoaster. In other words, the opposite of easy in terms of Marco.

“You call that “easy”? Are you kidding me?” Marco asks, in proper disbelief

“Oh c’mon, it can’t be that bad. Let’s go before the line gets any longer!” She assures him, grabbing Marco’s arm to get in line, the teenage boy reluctantly following behind her. They stood in line, leaning on the rails. They were both quiet, thinking of something to talk about to pass the time.

“Man, I can’t believe prom’s coming up so soon.” Marco started.

“Oh, shoot! I totally forgot! Man, that means I gotta worry about prom and a wedding?” She said, sighing in disbelief.

“Why don’t you just worry about the prom for right now? At last that’ll be a little enjoyable?” Marco reassured her. After all, she does need to get engaged before planning the wedding.

“Yeah, you’re right!” She smiles, nodding. She really didn’t want to think about a wedding right this moment. Especially to someone she had never met. “So, have you thought about who you’re going to ask yet?” She asked, turning the spotlight to him instead.

“Well, I do have a few people in mind” He smiles smugly, as not to reveal who he was actually thinking of.

“You do?! Oh, now I really gotta know who!” She exclaimed, jumping up and down.

“I kinda wanna keep it a surprise…” He said

“Well, can you at least give me a hint?” She asked, still clearly excited.

“She’s the most amazing girl Echo Creek has ever seen.” He replied, and his reply was true. She was stunning.

Upon hearing his vague answer, Star sighed dramatically. “Ugh, that could be anyone! Can I guess?”

“Well, I wo—“ Marco started, before Star cut him off by listing a bunch of their classmate’s names.

“Janna? Brittany? Sasha? Chantelle? Veronica? Ooh, no, Gina!”

Marco shot her a look, not knowing if she was being serious with her guesses or not. “Really? Those are your guesses?”

She ignores her best friend, thinking more about the girls in their class before she stopped, her eyes going wide. “Oh no, please don’t tell me you’re going to ask your ex-girlfriend…” She began, really worried for Marco if that’s who he thought he was taking to prom.

“Jackie? No! Why would I even think that?” Marco gasped. Marco and Jackie had a rather friendly breakup, per say. They still said hi to each other, but they have both found it best to stay friends. “Plus, she’s already got a date.”

Star nodded once she remembered one of the skater boys had asked her out during lunch a few weeks ago. “Right, right, right…” Star kept thinking, trying to slim down her mental list of potential prom dates for Marco.

Marco sighed, drumming his fingers along the queue line. “I don’t even know if this girl is going to say yes…”

“If it makes you feel any better, I don’t really have anyone in mind, so why don’t we do this: If we don’t score dates, why don’t we just go together? As friends?” Star shot her idea to Marco.

“I’d like that idea” He smiled, taking her hand in his and giving it a small reassuring squeeze before letting go. And just like that, they were at the front of the line, waiting for the past passengers to exit safely so that they could lock into their seats, right next to each other. They could hear the heavy machinery, bars, and seatbelts being put into place.

“YOU READY, MARCO?!” Star screamed, a wide smile perched on her lips.

“NOT REALLY” Marco answered honestly, a look of fear filling his eyes.

“You’ll be okay! Here!” At this point, she links her forearm with his. “To let you know I’m here with you!” She smiles at him reassuringly, and Marco returned the smile, more so to assure himself that he was okay.

Okay, Diaz. We got this. She’s got you. You’ve got her, you’re going to be o--, Marco stopped in mid-thought as he felt his body lunge forward in full force, looking like they were going to crash into the rollercoaster itself, only to have it turn away just in time. Marco screamed, out of fear at first, but as the ride passed and the more he heard Stars screaming and laughing, the more he began screaming out of fun, and before he knew it, he was waiting to be unbuckle to get off the ride. “MAN. THAT. WAS…” Star began.

“AWESOME!” Marco finished, grinning at his best friend.

She giggled at his enthusiasm. “You really enjoyed it?”

“Yeah! And for once, I didn’t projectile vomit all over the ride.” She laughs at his answer before noticing they still had their arms linked. Marco noticed too, smiling and slowly untangling their arms. “Heh, I guess it’s because I had you to keep me calm.” He admitted to Star. She smiled wholeheartedly and was about to answer him before their moment was interrupted by the employee ushering everyone out of the ride. Marco get out first, turning around to lend Star a helping hand out of the ride before walking out of the exit and into the park once again.

“Alright, so you wanna do something a little bit more mellow?”

“What? No way! Let’s ride every single rollercoaster they have to offer!” Marco exclaimed, looking around to see the next rollercoaster they could get on.

Dumbfounded, Star stopped Marco by getting in his way, reaching up, pinching and pulling his face. “Who are you and what have you done to my best friend?” She inquired the boy in front of her.

In one fell swoop, he manage to grab one of her arms and link his arm with hers in order to get her to stop messing with his face. “He’s still on that coaster, wondering how he got out of that thing alive.”

Star laughed, having Marco guide her to their next coaster. And that’s all they did that day. They rode so many rollercoasters, ate bizarre treats that Marco did in fact throw up, but by the time it was twilight, they had made so many memories than ever before.

Friday Evening – 7:30 PM

“Man, this has been hands-down the best day of my life.” She declared, a satisfied smile on her face.

“Correction, best week!” Marco started. “I mean, come on, we went to the coolest clubs, the best outdoor movie theater, you were a runway model for crying out loud!” He went on, listing their adventures.

Star blushed after he brought up her short-lived modeling career. That was one of the weirdest nights this past week. “Yeah, it was a pretty eventful, huh?”

“I’m really glad we didn’t let a heart-shaped bed get the best of us.”

She chuckles at their hotel room they were once so scared to step foot in “Me too.” Star agreed. They were both linking arms, but Star trailed her hand down from his forearm to his hand and held it lightly.

He looks down at their conjoined hands, feeling a rush of butterflies in his stomach and smiling slightly at the sensation. “Why don’t we ride one last thing?”

“Hmm? What could we possibly have left to ride?” Star asked, reverting back to see if we had missed a ride by mistake.

“Well, they just opened the Ferris Wheel” Marco informed her.

“They did?! It’s been closed all day!” She turns around excitedly, watching the giant brightly colored wheel. “Oh my gosh! Let’s go!” She tugs on Marco’s hand, leading them to the last ride of the day.

Marco feels his body lunging toward the Ferris Wheel by Star, laughing at how excited something can make her. “Star! Slow down! It’s not going anywhere!”

“No, but if we hurry, we get to be 3rd in line!” Star squeals, quickly landing their spot third in line. Before they knew it, they were loading into their own seat and were already going high. Star had loved Ferris Wheels on Earth ever since she rode her first one at the Echo Creek County Fair, and she was always mesmerized by the view. “It’s so amazing up here.”

“Yeah, it is, huh?” Marco replies, smiling looking at the sky before them and looking below them at the bustling amusement park.

“It’s so much better than the one’s back on Mewni. They catapulted you in and out of the ride.” Star explained.

Marco shot her a look. “Y’know, your dimension used to weird me out, but at this point, nothing on Mewni fazes me anymore.” He admitted. They both chuckle, admiring where they are in the world for a couple of minutes. Nothing could be heard but the faint sounds of the park below them. It was a perfect time for a confession, if one needed to be made. Marco took a quiet deep breath. This is it, Marco. Now or never. You really gotta tell her, His thoughts were racing. “So, um, Star…”

She looks over at Marco, her eyes twinkling. “Yeah?”

“There’s kinda something I’ve been wanting to ask you slash tell you.”

“What’s up?” Star asks, her head cocks to the side, her innocent eyes peering into Marco’s, sending his mouth dry.

He sighs, rubbing the back of his neck with his right hand. “Well, this has been one of the best weeks of my life, if not the best.”

Star furrowed her brow, thinking it was going to be something completely different. “Didn’t you say that earlier?”

“Well, yes…” He chuckled. “But I never really told you why. It’s because I got to spend all this time with my best friend.”

“Aww, Marco! I was thinking the same thing!” She gushed, laying her hand on his shoulder.

Marco continued with his speech, failing worse every second. “…See and well, despite the fact that we live together and we’re so close…” He stopped midsentence, turning away from Star. He didn’t know if he could do this. He didn’t even know how to word what he was trying to tell her, it was harder than he thought. And it shouldn’t be. She’s your best friend. You tell her everything. Why can’t you tell her this? There was his conscious again. “Gosh, I don’t even know how to put this into words, I’m such an idiot.” He mumbles, face palming. He took one last deep breath, turning back over to the blonde. “Star…”

Star knew her best friend better than anyone, but if anyone could see him now, they could tell whatever he was trying to confess was eating him alive. She instantly knew that whatever it was, it was hard to get out. She gave him a reassuring smile and nod, placing her hand on top of his, as to say take your time, you’ve got this.

He looks down at their hands, mustering every ounce of confidence he had. “It’s gonna break my heart knowing you’re going to marry someone you barely know in a few weeks.” He started out.

Star let out a small sigh. “I know, trust me, it sucks…” She looks down to her feet, swinging them in the air and they reached a bit farther to the top of the Ferris Wheel.

“But I think it’s going to hurt me even more to know that the girl of my dreams is going to be with someone who is not me.” He finally says, slowly looking back up at the princess, awaiting her response.

A surprised and dumbfounded Star looked back up at Marco, looking into his chocolate brown eyes. “I—Marco…” She didn’t know what to say at this point.

“I—I’m in love with you, Star.” He said while looking in her sparkling baby blue eyes.

There was a small silence for the both of them. Marco waiting patiently for Star to respond, and Star trying to process what was currently happening. And just as it had hit her that this was in fact, not a dream and very real, Star’s eyes welled with tears as she threw her arms around Marco tightly, finally whispering “I love you too, Marco”.

They stayed in each other arms, embracing one another, never wanting this moment end before Marco pulled away. Marco stared into her watery eyes, wiping a lone tear streaming down her cheek before finally kissing her. And it wasn’t a kiss of jealousy, of lust, of teasing. It was a real kiss. A kiss for when words could not express someone’s feelings. A kiss that was long awaited for the both of them.

They kissed one another a few more times, loving the feelings that were attached each time they did. Finally, Star pulled away, resting her forehead on his. “I love this, I love being here with you, I love you. More than words could ever show, but I still, unfortunately, have to marry that Godforsaken prince…”

Marco shushed her quietly before she could explode with frustration. “Hey, don’t worry about that right now. Let’s worry about us and make the best of it, okay?” He reminded her. Star smiled slowly, nodding. She didn’t know how, but he always knew exactly what to say. “There she is; there’s my rebel princess.” He mirrored her smile, kissing her cheek.

Friday Night – 9:15 PM

“Man, I never thought I’d be this excited to see this bed” Star says, coming out of the bathroom in her nightgown.

Marco eyes widen at her comment, teasing her. “Whoa, really?” He asked, smirking.

Star obviously didn’t get the joke as she walked toward Marco, who was already on the bed. “Yes, really! I’m super ti—“ She stopped once she got a look at Marco’s stupid smirk and realized his joke. “Oh my gosh, you’re disgusting!” She exclaimed, throwing a pillow to his face.

“Hey! It was a joke!” He laughs with her, throwing one right back.

“Hey! No fair!” She grabbed a pillow, instantly pelting Marco with the pillow as Marco got a hold of his own pillow and started defending himself from the princess. Before they knew it, they were at an all-out brawl with the pillows, laughing and giggling as they gave each other their best shot. After what seemed like forever, the two 18-year-olds were now exhausted, panting, and lying next to each other laughing.

Star regained her breath, looking over at Marco, admiring him. He felt a pair of eyes on him, instantly looking back at Star. “What? Do I have something on my face?” He asked, brushing his cheek to brush off anything he might’ve had.

Star shook her head, smiling back at him. “No” She said, giggling softly. “I just can’t believe the place we’re in.”

“Really? We’ve stayed in this room for like four days now..” He says, furrowing his eyebrows.

“I didn’t mean, like, our physical place, you dummy. I meant, like where our relationship is now.” Star explained.

“I know, trust me, I’ve been trying to find the right time to tell you, but I’m happy it happened the way it did, and I’m ecstatic that I’m here in this moment, with you.”

Star smiled before reaching over to him and kissing him slowly and passionately, savoring the taste of his lips. She truly couldn’t believe she was here, kissing Marco, and it wasn’t a dream. She finally pulled away, biting her lip lightly. “Bed time?”

“Mmm…wait” Marco replied, kissing her one more time. “Okay, now bedtime.”

Star blushes at the surprise kiss before reaching over to turn off their lamp. And for the first time, consciously, Star rested her head on Marco’s chest, hugging his torso as tightly as possible, as if someone were going to take him away from her. I guess not every prince comes in crowns and white horses. Mine came in a red hoodie. She thought, smiling before drifting off into a wondrous sleep.