"You are the most uptight, self righteous guard I have ever met!" You yelled as he stared you down with a determined frown and his arms folded across his chest.

"Princess, with all due respect, your parents entrusted your safety to me. So, I will be as 'uptight' as I need to be." The lotus prince shot back. "It is only for a month while you're parents answer the Jade Emperor's request." He assured.

You glared at him and he glared right back.

"Fine." You huffed finally. "Then I'm going to stay in my room. I don't want to see you for the rest of the evening."

"That's perfectly fine with me, princess." Your guard retorted somewhat coldly.

You marched to your room with him in tow. He stayed a few steps behind but close enough to catch you if you tried to bolt. He had caught on quickly.

Even with all the power you had been born with, you stood no chance against him. Nezha had been raised to be one of heaven's fiercest warriors and while you had been taught to maintain your abilities, to avoid thunderstorms when you broke your temper, you were still a princess and expected to act as such.

Still, you had certainly pressed your luck with the famous lotus prince and you didn't intend to stop any time soon. Something about his irritation was fascinating to you. The way he was so passionate about his duty, it made your heart skip a few beats admittedly. And something about him never being more than a few steps away, it was enthralling and irritating all at once.

You slammed your door in his face before leaning on it. Through the heavy wood you could hear him exhale a breath of relief.

"Unprincipled little..."

His words bit into your heart unexpectedly. Did he really think you were unprincipled? You HAD principles! Just because they didn't fit into your parents' narrative.

"Oh that's it." You whispered. "You want unprincipled? I'll show you unprincipled." You stepped away from the door and changed Into a black hoodie and some dark jeans. Pulling out your phone you texted your best friend.

"Mei? You up?"

The response was almost immediate.

"What's up?"

You smiled and texted quickly.

"The lake in 5, we are breaking curfew tonight!"

A few seconds past before her answer blinked to life onto your phone screen.

"On it girl!" She pasted a winky face right next to the message and you felt adrenaline spill into your veins. Now was the exciting bit. Sneaking past the palace guards and getting to the fountain so you could summon a portal to the mortal realm.

You stuffed the phone into your back pocket, stuffed pillows under the sheets, and slipped out the window onto the balcony.

You climbed down onto another balcony into a guest bedroom then slipped into the dark corridor. Dodging the guard patrols you had memorized since you were little, you escaped to the gardens easily.

You navigated through the immense gardens to the center only to freeze as a smirking Nezha leaned against a bush wall next to the fountain.

"Going somewhere, princess?"

Somewhere inside you butterflies exploded and your cheeks heated.

"You're not stopping me." You stated firmly.

"Unfortunately princess, I am." Nezha stood fully.

Panickedly you glanced around. That's when an idea clicked. This wasn't the only place one could conjure a portal.

With a smug smile you turned and sprinted back into the maze of gardens your family had cultivated.

"Catch me if you can, lotus!"

Nezha's eyes widened.

"Princess! Oh no you don't!" He shouted taking off after you.

With a wave of your hand you summoned black thunder clouds to block out the moon over the gardens. This plummeted the world around you into pitch darkness. This strategy prevented him from simply flying overhead to follow you.

In a flash glowing lotus petals filled the air above the maze and sank into different parts.

"You won't get far, princess." Nezha shouted from somewhere behind you. "Those petals are an alarm system, if you touch even one I'll know exactly where to find you." Despite the seriousness of the news you could hear a playful tone in his voice.

You couldn't help a small giggle that bubbled up in your throat.

"Oh you're on." You muttered and raced further into the maze.

It was difficult to navigate in the dark
With the exception of the glowing petals that floated midair in different places in the maze. You nearly ran right into several but hadn't thus far.

You turned a corner only to freeze when you made direct eye contact with Nezha who stood across the way. His features illuminated by the pink lights of his petals.

He gave a start upon seeing you, but grinned triumphantly.

"There you are!"

You turned and bolted back into the maze. Still you could hear him not far behind as you ran into a clearing. Unfortunately you tripped over a wayward branch at your feet and nearly plummeted right into the river.

But just before you breached the water's surface you felt Nezha's arms snake around your middle and tug you back. He must have been slightly panicked because he over compensated pulling you flush against his chest.

You both froze in that instant and the clouds you had set in place about you both parted. The moon above showered you in it's beautiful glow.

Perhaps it was a trick of the light or simply because he had caught you, but something about the situation highlighted Nezha's best features and you felt you heart race wildly inside your chest.

A bright pink had dusted Nezha's cheeks and he stared at you dumbfoundedly before quickly releasing your form.

"Princess, I apologize- I hadn't meant to-"

You only smiled at him as he tried to excuse the previous gesture.

"Have a crush do we?" You taunted lightly.

Nezha stared at you a moment then straightened folding his arms.

"And what if I do?"

Your jaw fell with his declaration.

"Seriously?!" You huffed. "All this time I've liked you and you haven't even had the decency to show any attraction towards me?!"

Nezha chuckled lightly.

"Duty first, princess."

You scoffed and pressed a kiss against his cheek.

"Sure thing, lotus."

*I know this isn't perfect but I got as close as I could with the inspiration I had. I know we all love Nezha for the serious boi he is. But I wanted to show a bit of his playful side. I hope you enjoy it. This was requested by Kuno0014. *