Never has my head been inside a motorcycle helmet before. It's crowded, my vision is limited, and the shield is dirty. But... It also smells like Link. And that makes up for all the cons.

My arms snake around his torso. Every time the bike hits a bump my arms tighten around his body. This is scary. No, it should be scary. But in Link's presence I can only feel safe. This is exactly what Mipha was describing this morning.

We stop at a red light. What an odd feeling to come to a halt and stand in the middle of the street like this. My arms relax. I hug Link lightly and put my head on his back while we're waiting for the lights to change.

A car rolls up next to us, playing loud hip hop music. Link doesn't seem bothered by the sound but I throw my head in their direction and suck in an involuntary, loud gasp. In the car sit Malice and Ganon. They are arguing about something until Malice rolls her eyes and turns away from him to look out of the window, directly at me. I freeze and squeeze Link's body. Oh no. No no no. Malice caught us together on a Saturday night, on a motorcycle, off campus. This is the end. This is it. I can't breathe. I need to take this helmet off, now!

Link takes an acute left turn, hauling me back into reality. We have already left the intersection, I didn't even notice the light turning green, or Malice and Ganon driving off. I must have totally blanked out for a moment there. Did Malice take a photo? Is it already uploaded? Is Father already coming after us?

Link parks his motorcycle and I practically jump off and try to remove the helmet but I can't seem to open the retention system. Link comes to aid me. I can't see his eyes through the black screen of his helmet and freak out, until he slides it open and looks at me. He's calm as always. Once Link has taken off my helmet I inhale deeply and exhale too quickly.

"Did she take a picture?" I breathe.

"Malice?"

Yes Malice! Who else could I be referring to?

"Yes," I say slowly. No need to yell at him...

"No, she didn't see that it was us," he says. "The shield is black, she didn't see your face and couldn't have recognized us."

"Wh...what?"

"Everything is okay."

My breaths slow down as he rubs my arm and smiles softly. Everything is... okay. I try to find orientation. We're in a tiny parking lot in the back of an old brick building. It's dark and creepy. Where are we?

"Is this where you're going to murder me?" I half-joke.

Link takes his helmet off, throws his drawstring bag over his shoulders, and walks to the rusty door of the building.

"Link?" I follow, feeling slightly uneasy.

He opens the door and steps aside to let me pass through first.

"Wait, this is where our date is?" I am almost as scared as I am confused. And to not much comfort, I receive a nod.

"I'm not going in there before you tell me where we are and what we're doing here," I say and rub the goosebumps on my arms.

"Do you trust me?"

His question startles me. Do I trust him..? I want to. But I don't think I've done a very good job at showing that. This is certainly not a situation where trust should be prioritized. However, Link has never done me any wrong or deliberately hurt me in any way. Quite the contrary; he has saved me on multiple occasions.

"I do," I answer quietly and step inside the dark building.

We walk up a flight of stairs and on the second floor I come to realize that this is an abandoned apartment complex. If it weren't so dark and creepy, I could possibly appreciate its historical characteristics. On the third floor we hear muffled voices from the inside of one of the apartments.

"Who is that? Who's here?" I whisper to Link and hold on to his arm, staying close to him while we walk up to one of the doors.

Instead of answering me, he opens the door and walks in. I follow him into the lit apartment, unsure what to expect. The floor is of dark wood, the brick walls have lost half its paint, and a chain of large windows spreads across the walls in the living room area, each one opened to fill the loft with fresh air. The apartment has no furniture, but a couple of people stand in the large living room area, one of which I could not fail to notice is the huge man with the crazy beard and cosmic smile. Daruk; wearing what I assume is a karate gi with a black belt.

"Link! Zelda!" Daruk greets us like a loving uncle and walks right over to us.

He has never seen us together and I have never interacted with Daruk with anyone but Impa by my side, yet it feels so natural to be here with Link.

Everyone in here is wearing gym clothes, practicing the same movements. I'm beginning to understand what is going on.

"Welcome to Daruk's Protection!" Daruk laughs and slaps Link's back in a friendly yet powerful way, nearly knocking Link off his feet.

"Daruk, this is your self defense class?" I ask him.

"Sure is! Glad you could join!"

I look past him, at each individual in the background. They're all at least in their thirties and don't seem to recognize either of us. But what if one does? Is it really safe for us to be here? What an ironic question for a self defense class.

"You can use apartment 4B," Daruk says to Link, handing him a key.

Link nods and leads me out, back to the stairwell. I hold my tongue until we enter the apartment on the floor above. It's empty and dark until Link flips the switch, revealing a loft that looks pretty much identical to the one below, only that this one is not yet occupied by anyone.

"So," I say, stepping inside first. My voice is echoing slightly. "This is our date? You and I, hanging out in a rancid flat?"

"Sorry, did you want a romantic dinner?" he closes the door behind us.

"Not necessarily."

"I will teach you some basic self defense moves today," he says, searching his bag for something.

"I don't have the right clothes to--"

He hands me a t-shirt and shorts along with a smug smile.

"You want me to wear your clothes?" I ask.

"There's a bathroom that you can change in," he gestures at one of the doors in the hallway.

"Right," I sigh and get moving. This is ridiculous.

I step into the bathroom and change into Link's clothes. Wearing his hoodie above my dress was one thing, but wearing his t-shirt and shorts on my bare skin is a totally different feeling. I feel exposed even though I'm covered.

I take a look in the mirror and shriek. I don't know which is worse; that I look like a gang member in these oversized clothes or like a lobster with my cheeks and nose being redder than these brick walls. I poke my cheek. Ouch! A white spot remains for 3 full seconds. I should have used more sunscreen at the beach.

When I step out of the bathroom, Link is on the floor, stretching. He looks up to me and smiles at the strange image of me in his clothes. I can whine about my looks, or embrace the funny moment.

"Rad as a rapper and red as a pepper," I rhyme and throw my arms over cross like I imagine a rapper would.

"Oh, self-burn!" he laughs.

"I see what you did there."

All is forgiven. Having to ride on Link's bike, being dragged into the home of a classic serial killer, wearing his gym clothes... It's all forgiven when he smiles at me and laughs. Even if it's just a short chuckle, it flips my stomach upside down like a tornado of serotonin.

I take a seat next to him on the cold floor. He wants to teach me self defense... I'm already exhausted from the vitamin D overdose and surf lesson today, now I have to do more sport? This can only go well, my subconscious mocks.

"Is this what your dates usually look like?" I ask, hoping he will tell me that he doesn't usually go on dates, or at least none like this.

"If you don't like it you can plan our second date," he says without much thought to it, mesmerizing me with his choice of words. A second date? We haven't even started the first, what makes him think he'll want a second?

I follow his instructions and stretch my body the way he says is right. When he stretches his torso he doesn't look like he is in agony, suggesting that no more pain is radiating from his ribs. That makes me really happy.

Link stands up and I follow him on my feet. The first technique he shows me is called a backward trip and can be used when being attacked from behind. This is not what I imagined our first date to be like, but I've got to admit that there's tension between us, a type of tension I don't mind at all, especially when he puts his hands around me, pretending to attack me.

"Now use your left foot to pull my legs away," he instructs.

"I don't want to hurt you," I murmur.

"Oh, phew," he lets go of my body and I turn around to face him. "What a relief. We wouldn't want you to break my skull, lil Z."

I swat his arm and scowl at him but it doesn't stop his mocking grin.

"I'm just saying, what if you fall onto your ribs?" I argue.

Link tilts his head and smiles, then, without a warning, he starts the attack anew. Hesitantly, I swipe my foot across his stance. He falls to the wooden floor and I land on top of him.

"My ribs!" he whales, but when I try to jump off, he pulls me in again and keeps me on top. He chuckles.

"Not funny! Are you okay?" I ask worried.

"Yeah, I'm messing with you. But when you do that to the attacker, you can't fall down with him."

"How was I supposed to know that?"

Link doesn't answer, he just tries not to smile and fails miserably. He looks at my lips and back up at my eyes. Another chuckle escapes him.

"What?" Did I do something?

"Nothing," he shrugs.

"Come on, why are you laughing?"

"This is... this is kind of how we met," he says, moving his hands to my hips. "Minus the volleyball net."

"Or the dozen students pointing and laughing," I add.

"Nobody was laughing."

I roll my eyes at him.

"Actually, we met in English," I correct him.

"I know, but we didn't talk then. Or... touched."

"You actually noticed me in English?"

"Well yeah, I chose to sit next to you."

"Yes but I thought... I don't know, I'm just surprised you took notice of me."

"I am very attentive," he brags. "We met again in bio. You checked me out."

"I most certainly did not!" I gasp.

"Did too."

"You are mistaken," I shake my head.

"And then you checked me out again in P.E."

"When you get home, don't forget to give the confidence back that you borrowed from Revali," I tease.

"Will do. But that's where we really met. That's where we talked for the first time. That's where we touched for the first time."

Link lifts his head, allowing the tip of my nose to poke his face.

"Our first touch: Your nose brushed my jaw," he explains.

"Attentive with an excellent memory," I feed his ego. "But wait. The first time we talked was not in the equipment room."

"Yes, it was."

"No, it wasn't," I debate and elaborate; "I yelled at you for helping me with the net and you gave me a one word answer."

"Looks like we both have to work on our communication skills," he jokes.

There is truth behind his joke. And while I do believe that I am working on my temper, I haven't really thought about his efforts. He does talk more than he did when we met, but I never considered myself to be the cause. Is it possible that he talks more because of me? Because of the way I treated him?

Link tucks my hair behind my ear and looks at my lips again. He doesn't kiss me though.

"What are you thinking about?" He asks me.

Well I can't tell him that I was thinking about why he didn't kiss me.

"Why are we doing this?" I ask him back.

"Because we sort of like each other?" he answers unsure.

"No, why are we doing this? The whole self defense class date thing."

"Oh," Link sits up. I move off him and sit in front of him, pulling my legs up to my chest. "I want you to be able to defend yourself," he says.

"Okay, but didn't my father hire you so that I wouldn't have to defend myself?"

It was meant as a joke, but Link doesn't seem to take it that way. His eyes carry no joy, they aim away from me, dipped in shame. His voice is bitter.

"When that baseball player from Lorule..." he sighs. "After I punched him, he said to me that I won't always be there. That I can't always protect you. And he's right."

The image of that evil smile is still burnt into my mind. Even if I could learn all these defense techniques, I think my body would freeze all the same if I ever had to face that guy again. Despite all that, the one I fear the most is Ganon. Something about him wakes my flight responses.

"Regardless of your dad's orders or my commitment to you, I want you to be safe. Always. Even when I'm not there."

Link's serious tone frightens me. He seems more worried than me, making me think that there are still things I don't know about Ganon, those baseball players, and Lorule.

"Okay," I say quietly and get up. I stretch my hand out for him to take and pull him up. "Show me that technique again," I bid him. His brows relax slightly and I can see relief washing over his features.

"But I warn you, I might break your skull," I attempt a joke. He smiles but hides it. I wonder why he is so determined to hide his little proof of happiness. Especially when he's alone with me.

After an hour of training that hasn't gotten us very far, we finally take a break. While Link takes a seat by the open window, I spread out on the floor like a seastar. In the beginning the floor felt cold but now I wish it was even cooler. I press my sweaty cheek against the wood and shut my eyes.

"Romantic dinner," I giggle, thinking about his words earlier. I can't imagine dressing up and sitting down in a snobby restaurant with Link. I've had enough of that all my life; fancy dinners, cotillion training, debuts, lavish hotels, and extortionate clothes. This is better. My aching body will make me regret it all tomorrow, but for now I'll just lie here and enjoy this peculiar first date.

Link walks over to me and helps me up. Once I'm standing, he doesn't let go of my hands.

"So," Link says, sounding a bit breathless too.

I exhale a "So" and smile.

"Where are you taking me for our second date?"

"You really want a second date?" I blush.

"Sure. I'm curious about your idea of a perfect date. We'll see if it beats this."

His thumb brushes over the back of my hand as I gaze at his eyes. He leans in when my eyes fall to his lips. Less than an inch lies between us when the door to the apartment swings open and I hastily jerk away from Link. Daruk dodges beneath the low door frame and steps inside with a growing grin.

"How's the private lesson going?"

"Daruk!" I greet him happily. "Curious to see what I've learned?"

I grab Link's shoulders and sweep him off the floor with my foot before Daruk can answer. Link plunges to the floor and I manage to remain standing. Link gets up while Daruk and I share a laugh.

"That's pretty awesome!" Daruk applauds in the midst of his laughter.

"Thanks, I had a good teacher," I smile at Link.

"I'm happy to see your defense has been enhanced!" Daruk compliments us. "I'm about to close up though, are you almost finished?"

Link looks at me and I nod.

"Yeah, I'll just get changed and then we're good to go," I say, trying to ignore the fact that I'm still wearing Link's clothes in front of Daruk.

"Take your time! I'll be downstairs," Daruk says and leaves the apartment.

After I've changed back into my clothes and leave the bathroom, the apartment is empty.

"Link?" I check all the rooms but he's not here anymore. When I hear Daruk's voice echoing from the stairwell, I know that he is talking to Link, so I turn off the lights and close the door quietly as I leave the apartment.

"Ha, I'm starving!" Daruk says in a deep chuckle. "If you'd like, I'll make you guys some sushi at Vah Rudania. You must be hungry too, little guy!"

More laughter echoes up the stairs when I walk downstairs. It's dark and I can't tell if they're in the apartment with the door open or in the stairwell.

"Hey, by the way... Congrats on becoming Zelda's appointed guard. That's a really big deal, protecting the president's daughter."

What the... My feet come to a halt. How does he know about it and why would that be a good thing?

Daruk's chortle becomes quieter. "No pressure," he tells Link. "Seriously though, Zelda is a strong personality. So strong, she can't quite see the range for the peaks. Remember that and you'll be fine."

Did he just... No... Daruk...

I want to storm out and take an Uber home to flee from this whole situation, but my feet move like two buckets of mercury. The floor creaks the moment I step into their field of vision and both turn their heads toward me. Do I look worried? I try not to. I try to pretend that I didn't just hear Daruk call me a strong personality. I understand why he would say that and don't fully disagree with him, but I'm trying so hard to be normal, and telling my date that I'm an overachiever just puts more pressure on me.

"Zelda," Daruk scratches the back of his head and chuckles nervously.

Looking at him makes me angry, but I can't let my temper slip.

"Ready. Let's go, Link," I say with a neutral expression.

"Are you hungry? I could--"

"No thanks," I interrupt Daruk and walk downstairs.

Link follows without a word.