by J. M. Briggs
“We know,” Aiden and Nicki answered together, grinning widely at each other.
“Speaking of general requirements,” Nicki remarked with a smile. “How did everyone do?”
“I did alright,” Aiden replied. “Not as well as I was expecting when I started college, but then I wasn’t expecting to have to worry about learning magic and being ripped about by magic hounds.”
“Mostly As,” Bran informed them with a shrug. “I honestly don’t think that I deserved the A in Morgana’s class.”
“Yeah I get that,” Nicki admitted. “I got an A in Merlin’s Epic class that I’m not sure my final essay actually earned.”
“Well, they are highly aware of the issues we’re facing,” Alex pointed out with a shaky smile. “And I’m sure that if we deserved to fail a class they’d still let us.”
“I’m not nearly as sure about that as you,” Aiden countered with a shake of his head. “But at least I’m still in good standing for pursuing electrical engineering.”
Shaking her head at her friends’ behavior, Alex unwrapped the bundle in her hand and smiled; it was a small woven tapestry with a unicorn, a copy of one of those old Middle Ages tapestries. Alex had to wonder where Nicki got it but certainly, wouldn’t argue if she hung it up out here.
Another knock on the door made them all turn towards it almost as one. Aiden was still closest so he quickly pushed a box out of the way with his foot and opened the door. Arthur was standing in the doorway with a slightly nervous smile and his hands in the pockets of his jacket. His blond hair was a little longer than when Alex has last seen him at the end of June.
“Hey,” Arthur greeted a bit awkwardly as he eyes swept over the room. He nodded to Bran and stepped inside the dorm room, closing the door behind him. “How are you guys?”
A chorus of good and fine was heard in the room as Arthur moved around the boxes to get into the living room. He stepped up next to Alex with a smile and his hand hanging at his side gently brushed her own.
“Do you have anything left that needs to come in?” Arthur asked quickly as he glanced around the messy living room.
“Nope,” Alex informed him with a shake of her head. “Aiden just got the last of it.
“Sorry I missed helping you get your stuff in,” Arthur apologized with a small sweet smile. “Coach wouldn’t let us out of weight training.”
“I understand,” Alex assured him quickly. “We didn’t wait for you so that’s half our fault.”
“Still, I’m sorry,” Arthur apologized. “Last year we weren’t even… and I still helped your dad get your things in.”
That was true enough; Alex had first met Arthur, the tall blond hair, and blue-eyed football player last year when he’d been moving his then-girlfriend Jenny Sanchez’s things inside. Of course, things had been very different at the start of last year.
“Well if you really feel that bad,” Aiden cut in from near the doorway. “You can give me a hand helping get Bran’s things in.”
Arthur turned towards them sharply, a faint blush on his cheeks as he was reminded that they weren’t alone.
“Course, uh, I’ll be right there.”
“Thanks,” Bran agreed. “Meet you downstairs by the front door.”
Arthur nodded quickly and Alex wasn’t sure if she was nervous or relieved when Bran and Aiden headed out the front door. Behind her, Alex heard Nicki move down the hallway and the door to her room close.
“How was the drive down?”
“It was good,” Alex told him with a smile. “Good weather and pretty pleasant.” Alex toyed with a strand of her long blonde hair that had come loose from her ponytail. “I did think about turning around when the city came into view.”
“I understand,” Arthur laughed and his shoulders relaxed slightly. “When I finally got to go home after the solstice there was a part of me that didn’t want to come back,” he admitted. “Then I remembered that you agreed to go on a date with me,” he added with a nervous little smile.
“I did didn’t I?” Alex teased, feeling a bit braver after seeing that Arthur was nervous too.
“Think you can get away tonight for dinner? I know that once classes start we’ll have magic lessons again together, but I’d like to spend some time just the two of us.”
“Tonight sounds nice,” Alex agreed with a widening smile. “How about Central Diner?”
“Okay, meet you downstairs at the front door at say… 6:30?”
“Great, that sounds good.”
She was probably blushing bright red and grinning like an idiot now, but Arthur was smiling too. He leaned forward without a word and Alex felt warm slightly chapped lips press against her own. Her skin tingled with warmth and her heart jumped in her chest. The kiss ended quickly and Arthur stepped back with a silly smile on his own face.
“I’ll see you tonight, better not keep Aiden and Bran waiting,” he said in a rush, nearly tripping over a box as he moved towards the door.
“Yeah, but if you guys need any help just call,” Alex reminded him.
He nodded and reached the doorway, pushing another box out of the way with his foot. Arthur gave her another wide grin and a small wave before vanishing out the door. It closed with a heavy thud and a small click behind him, echoing slightly in the room. Still smiling, Alex turned and stepped into the hallway only to find a grinning Nicki lingering in the doorway of her bedroom.
“What?” Alex asked, disliking the far too pleased look on Nicki’s face.
“Oh nothing,” her roommate replied in a sing-song voice. “Just you rescued the innocent children from a terrible fate as slaves to the Sídhe, protected the destined hero from dying due to the betrayal of his cursed reincarnated lover and friend and the finally secured the hero’s love for yourself, freeing him from the chains of his cursed love triangle.” Nicki grinned at Alex and added, “If this was a thousand years ago, they’d be writing songs about you.”
Nicki ducked into her room and shut the door before Alex could find something to throw at her. A moment later Alex realized that she had a date tonight and had a lot of unpacking to do.
2
Date at the Diner
Alex was officially pathetic, that was all there was to it. It didn’t matter that she could control magical energy and release lightning bolts from her hands, it was irrelevant that she had saved a bunch of children from slavery to the Sídhe, and completely immaterial that she’d protected Arthur from being killed by the Sídhe after he fled into the woods after discovering that Lance and Jenny were cheating.
No, Alex decided with a sigh, she was very pathetic. She’d changed clothes six times before finally deciding on a dark pair of jeans with low heeled black boots and she still hadn’t settled on a top. Her dorm room was even messier than it had been when she’d started which was remarkable given she’d been unpacking boxes and bags of clothes all day.
“Alex it’s almost time for your date,” Nicki’s voice called from the hallway. “Come on! Arthur’s known you for a year, he’s not going to judge. The guy has seen you bleeding with broken bones, from protecting him I might add.”
Nicki wasn’t the most inspiring speaker, but she did have a way of cutting to the heart of the matter. Mind made up, Alex grabbed a charcoal Ravenslake t-shirt and pulled it on, deciding for casual. She grabbed a small pair of silver hoop earrings and brushed out her hair, listening to Nicki whistle impatiently outside.
“Okay,” Alex said as she reached for the door latch. Pulling it open, she gave Nicki a nervous smile. “How do I look?”
“Good,” Nicki answered with an approving nod. “A bit fancier than normal, but not ridiculous. Trying, but not trying too hard. You don’t want him to suddenly feel like he’s dating someone else after all.”
Alex relaxed at the words and reached over to grab her bag from atop the chest of drawers. Pulling it over her head, Alex adjusted the strap over her chest and reached inside to check that her dagger was in place. “My mom almost found
this over the summer,” Alex informed Nicki as she adjusted the sheath in the side pocket. “I made the mistake of asking her to grab my brush.”
Nicki chuckled at the remark, but reached out and gripped Alex’s arm and gently pulled her from her bedroom. “Get downstairs and have fun, I’m going to run out to the grocery store and get us a few basics.”
“Okay,” Alex replied weakly as Nicki ducked into her room, coming out with her keys and wallet. Alex took a couple of steps towards their front door, but her stomach tensed up and Alex thought she just might get sick.
“You’ll be fine,” Nicki promised as she joined Alex by the door. “You’re friends, you saved his life and it is just a first date, nothing to worry about.”
Nodding silently, Alex toyed with her hands and moved slowly as Nicki pushed her out of their suite, closed the door behind them and walked her down to the elevator.
“Alex, seriously,” Nicki chided. “You can handle this; no need to be nervous.”
“It’s just I’ve had a crush on Arthur pretty much from the moment I met him,” Alex confessed softly. “And after everything last year… I guess I just sort of settled into keeping secrets and forcing myself not to bring my crush into things.” The elevator opened in front of them and both of them stepped inside with Nicki pressing the button for the ground floor.
“And now it’s okay, to be honest about your feelings for him,” Nicki finished kindly. She reached down and squeezed Alex’s hand fondly. “You’re beautiful, smart and brave Alex, you can handle a date. You and Arthur are going to have a good time tonight, settle into being boyfriend and girlfriend and help the rest of us kick the Sídhe back where they came from.” Nicki released Alex’s hand and crossed her arms over her chest as the elevator dinged and opened. “And if he ever crosses a line just let me know and I’ll find a discreet way to kill him so Morgana and Merlin never know it was us.”
Nicki winked at Alex and stepped out of the elevator, heading for the front door with Alex a few steps behind her. She stopped in her tracks when Nicki pushed open the door and she caught sight of Arthur waiting outside. He’d dressed up a little too: he was in jeans, but his usual t-shirt had been replaced with a dark blue button down shirt. Smiling, Alex walked forward and grinned at Arthur as he straightened up and smiled at her. Nicki chuckled and waved to them both with a quick shout to have fun.
“You look nice,” Arthur told Alex, holding out his hand to her.
“You too,” Alex replied, slipping her hand into his. She was probably grinning like an idiot even as her stomach flipped over.
“Shall we?”
“Of course.”
They talked about their dorm rooms on the way across campus. Arthur was in a single in Upham Hall which was pretty nice according to him with newer furniture. Alex briefly wondered if come next semester he, Aiden and Bran would be comfortable enough with each other to consider moving in together. But his tone began more distant and sad when he revealed that Lance was in the same dorm as him; apparently, Upham was pretty popular with football players who weren’t in fraternities. Arthur muttered something about a pool table and big screen television in the basement.
Central Avenue was very busy and Alex was glad they’d just decided to walk. The streets were packed with parked cars and the side streets weren’t much better. Noise was spilling out of numerous restaurants and she could see several families out with their young college kids. She felt a small pang of homesickness, but before she could dwell on it the smell of burgers and fries washed over her. Alex looked up from the sidewalk and tensed as they arrived at the doorway of Central Diner.
Central Diner was the sort of place that had come full circle over the course of several decades. It started off in the fifties and hadn’t changed much over the years meaning that the décor that had been boring and stale in the eighties had now become delightfully retro. Checkered black and white floors contrasted with the bright red of the booths and the red stools that were set up against the white main counter. A large menu with the specials hung over the counter near the cash registers and the dessert display. The only reason that a person would know they hadn’t stepped back in the fifties were the big screen televisions placed around the main dining area and the modern pop hits playing.
“I’ve only been here twice with the football team,” Arthur told Alex with a hint of nervousness as they waited for the waitress to show them to a booth.
“Me too,” Alex admitted. “But it’s hard to go wrong with basic diner food. Their burgers are good and they have these garlic and parmesan fries that are awesome.”
“I had those last time I was here,” Arthur replied with a widening smile as some of the tension drained out of his shoulders. “We’ll have to get a plate of those.”
“Those orders are huge for only two people,” Alex protested as the waitress waved for them to follow her.
“I just came from weight training,” Arthur reminded Alex with a grin. “I promise to do my part.”
“Well… if you insist, they do go very well with burgers.”
They slid into a booth near the back, Alex taking the side that let her have her back against the outer wall and keep an eye on the door. She’d never been this defensive and aware of what was happening around her before, but after last year it seemed like she always had to know what was going on around her. Arthur didn’t say anything about her choice of side and slid into his side of the booth, accepting the menus with an easy smile. On the nearby television an action movie was playing; it looked familiar, but Alex couldn’t think of the name and they couldn’t actually hear the dialogue.
“So…,” Alex faltered as she tried to figure out what to say. “Anything interesting happen since our last video chat?”
“Not really, things were pretty calm. Jenny avoided me, but that was the worst part of the summer so I suppose I can’t complain. I did my best to stay busy, but I did practice my magic in the dining room whenever my mother was out.” At Alex’s odd look he shrugged and added, “The table is really easy to move and the china is kept in a side room so there’s not too much fragile stuff.”
Alex hadn’t given much thought to Arthur’s day to day life in the summer. Their waitress brought them their sodas and Alex took a quick sip, noticing Arthur’s eyes move up to the television screen. Alex was just doing her best to stay calm and not be nervous. Dating in high school suddenly didn’t seem like much in comparison to having her first real grown-up or at least college date. Her parents weren’t waiting at home with a curfew and she was left wondering just when the adult rules of dating kicked in. Was college flexible or did the ‘rules’ start then? Why didn’t they cover this stuff at orientation?
Arthur had already kissed her a couple of time and they’d talked over the summer so was this a first date or a second date counting Beltane Eve when they’d been out? Of course, that night had ended with Arthur finding out that Jenny, his girlfriend since sophomore year of high school was cheating on him with his football teammate and friend Lance and then finding out that he was the current incarnation of a magical soul created to protect Earth. Okay, she was probably not going to count that night as a date given she’d gotten broken bones out of fighting the Sídhe to keep him safe. Yeah, this was probably the first date. She didn’t remember her first date with Thomas being this nerve-wracking.
“Nervous?” Arthur asked, his voice cutting into her thoughts and making Alex realize how long she’d been sitting there silently.
“A bit,” she admitted with a shaky smile. “I dated some in high school, but I was too busy with classes and… everything last year to date.” Alex knew she was blushing bright red, but refused to lower her eyes and settled for a little shrug. “I feel out of practice.”
“I understand,” Arthur told her with a warm smile. “I haven’t dated anyone other than Jenny for years; I barely remember any dates I went on previous to her.” He ran a hand through his blond hair and Alex relaxed, at least he was nervous too.
“How about we ask each other some questions,” Alex suggested holding back a nervous giggle. “Things we don’t know.”
“Okay,” Arthur leaned back in the booth and tilted his head as he studied Alex. “We’ve known each other for a year now so there’s a lot of things I do know, but… what’s your favorite color?”
“Blue, yours?”
“Blue also, but I like dark green too.”
“Favorite food?” Alex asked, unable to think of something more interesting.
“I’d have to go with steak for that one. How about you?”
“I love cheeseburgers, they’re my favorite.”
