Air {Elements of Power 3}

Chapter 27: Roxy

"You know you don't have to do it if you don't want to." Brae looked at me earnestly.

"Brae," my voice was soft, but forceful. "Yes, I do. It's the only plan we have for stopping Cin. We need to give it a chance."

Brae sighed and picked up a book, presumably attempting to hide his doubts within its pages. I had found my way to the library that morning while walking around the castle. It wasn't nearly as grand as the Helian counterpart I was more familiar with. It had a more contemporary feel; grey walls, light and airy, with lots of windows and natural light. Not that it was needed, given that the library was one of the few rooms in the castle with an entirely glass ceiling.

Fluffy white clouds floated by overhead. It should have given the room a peaceful atmosphere, but instead I found myself looking up with increasing paranoia, keeping an eye out for Helian attackers.

I think that's why Brae had come here. He told me he had been looking for a book on defensive strategies, but I think he really just wanted to watch the skies. He was stressed, as had been immediately evident from the icy chill in the room.

"It's just," he continued after a while, sounding more demoralised than ever, "so, incredibly, risky. I don't like the thought of how much danger it puts you in."

I tried to sound blasé. "I can handle Cinaer. He's going to get what's coming to him." Now that I had my powers back, I owed him big time for the weeks of torture he had subjected me to. I was going to enjoy beating him.

"Please, Roxy. I don't feel like you're taking this seriously." He was leaning against a bookshelf, a couple of thick volumes in his hands, which he was clutching so tightly his knuckles had turned white. His whole body seemed to quiver; he was wound so tightly he almost looked as though he was hovering slightly above the floor.

"Hey! It's my life that's at stake. I think I'm taking it plenty seriously."

He pulled a face, so I got up from the chair I had been sitting on and walked across to him. "I am going to be fine. We are all going to be fine. The Realm is going to be better than fine."

He didn't look convinced. "Come on Brae. What are you so worried about? I'm just a stupid Helian-totally dispensable." I forced out a laugh.

"Roxy." His voice sounded pained. He shoved the books onto a nearby shelf and took my hands in his instead. "You are not 'just' a Helian and you are definitely not dispensable. You're-"

"Wait." I cut across him, for the second time in a few days. "Think real carefully before you say whatever you were going to say next and only say it if you really mean it."

He shook his head. "Roxy, since the moment I met you, I haven't been able to think about anything or anyone else."

"Jasmine-"

"Jasmine is my best friend. But nothing more. What happened between us-it wasn't right, for either of us. We both know that." He still held my hands lightly in his. "After we escaped from the Helian Realm, I was so angry with you. I thought you had used me-manipulated my feelings for your own game. I had no idea what had really happened. If I had, I would have come straight back for you. Nothing could have kept me away. But instead, I just became increasingly more furious, more anti-you. I think that's partly the reason why things happened with Jasmine. I care about her a lot, I really do. Just... Not in that way. She's... She's not you."

His eyes were focused on my fingers, as though he couldn't bear to look up and see my response.

He seemed to be waiting for me to speak, only I was completely lost for words.

"Cinaer was wrong," I said at last. "He said that you were only using me to escape-that you could never actually care about me, because of where I came from."

"Cinaer was manipulating you. He was just saying what he knew would hurt the most."

"When... When I saw you and her together, it was like something inside me broke. It was like everything I had been holding onto for those weeks, everything that had been giving me hope, was shattered in a single moment. A single kiss."

"Roxy," he said my name softly, lovingly. He lifted his hands from mine and cupped my face instead. But he paused there, looking at me questioningly, as though waiting for permission.

I didn't give it to him.

Instead, I leant in and kissed him first.

{Sorry this is late! I've been really unwell this weekend and went straight to sleep when I got in on Friday. I hope the ending of this chapter makes up for the delay. Please vote/comment to let me know what you think.}