Jesse's POV

I stood there, watching him ride off into the distance, the fading sound of his horse's hoofs hitting rock and dirt was enough to make my breath shutter. And all at once, a feeling of regret washed over me along with the setting sun. Had I made a mistake, letting him go to his friends? Had I sent him to his death? I- I was just trying to let him know that I understood why he needed to leave, and that I was okay with it...well, I suppose "okay" wouldn't exactly be the right word. Gabriel losing his memory, Petra getting Withersickness, Ellegaard's death, and now Lukas leaving when we need him most...? When I need him most? *sigh* It's over with. I might as well check on Petra and the others. Lukas' friends aren't the only ones who need saving.

2 days...

5 days...

A week...

2 weeks...

A month...

He- He never came back...

2 days in, just before we had defeated the Witherstorm, I had prepared myself for the worst case scenario: Lukas dying at the hands of the Witherstorm. But then, when I went inside the Witherstorm, I realized that he could still be alive, simply trapped in the belly of the beast like everyone else. Once the body of the monster was laying dead on the grass, I searched everywhere for him. We all did. But to our dismay, we couldn't find him, and the rest of the Ocelots hadn't even seen him. It was unfathomable to say the least...

And then Rueben...I had to go 3 different funerals in just 2 weeks.
And the pain, and the regret, the guilt...it was so great, it was so long lasting...that it destroyed me. Since that day, I was in such a deep and endless cycle of misery till the day I died, that my friends didn't even know who I was anymore. That I didn't even know who I was anymore. I only ever did one of two things: mourning at home or mourning at their graves. This time I was at Lukas' grave. I let my head hang low, my veil covering tear stained face. I could feel the wind press against my back as my long black dress flowed in its direction.  That's how I spent most of my days...

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

I shot up out of my blanket, my eyes widened and tears began to form and slowly trickle down my face. In my shocked daze, I hadn't realized that I was staring at Disney's Tangled main menu on the TV. I must've fell asleep on the couch. I fell backwards against the back of the couch, closing my eyes and trying to catch my breath. Why would I have such a miserable nightmare? Why so...real? Nevermind. What time is it? I looked outside my window to find the sky dark, the stars shining awfully bright tonight. I glanced at my phone on the carpet, right next to my feet. I grabbed it and pressed the home screen button, the screen lit up to tell me that it was currently 9:22 pm. Not too late...

I walked out in dark, my hands in my sleeves, and my arms crossed over my jacket. It's surprisingly very cold tonight. I was staring at my feet until that point, debating wether I should turn back now. Last chance. I looked up, noticing the orange warm light of the street light standing out against the darkness, only to lock eyes with a certain blonde. My heart stopped, my eyes widening once more. He was standing next to a bench underneath the warm light in his signature leather jacket, staring right back at me. It's currently 9:45 pm. Perhaps I should've done this another time. I nervously walked up to him, feeling the truly warm rays of the light as I stepped underneath it.

"Hey Jesse. Why'd you wanna meet up? It's a little late. Not that I'm complaining, just curious." He asked in such innocent tone, one that sounded perfect coming from him.

"Um...I had a dream, a nightmare really. Sorry, I know that's not a reason to meet up this late, but it's more than that."
I explained, nervously looking down and crossing my arms even more. "Hey, there's no need to apologize. I'm here to listen." He assured me. I let out a loud sigh, practically collapsing onto the bench, and placing my hand onto my forehead. Lukas sat down next to me. "What's wrong?" I stayed silent for a moment before giving my reply.

"Do you remember when you left to go find the rest of the Ocelots during the Witherstorm fiasco?" I asked him calmly but with clear exhaustion in my voice. He nodded his head, though not without a combination of regret and annoyance written on his face.

"That was what my nightmare was about. Except this time...you never came back. And then Rueben died...a-and I--" I stopped for a moment to gather myself again, wiping a couple tears away with my sleeve. "I had to go 3 funeral in a mere 2 weeks. One for you, one for Ellegaard, and one for R-Rueben. And it destroyed me...I died, not remembering what happiness felt like." I said, trying to keep my voice steady and wiping even more tears away. I was deliberately avoiding eye contact with him for whatever reason. But I suddenly felt him gently holding onto both of my wrists and slowly pulling them down to show my face. We stared into each other's eyes, his into my green ones, and mine into his perfect blue ones. But in his eyes I found hurt, though I didn't know why. It's not his fault. I looked back down at my lap...

"Jesse, look at me." He said, now holding my cheek in one hand and holding my hand in the other. "That's never gonna happen. I won't let it...you are too strong to give into a life of misery and sadness. And no matter what Notch has to throw at us, I will always come back...to you." His words left me breathless. At that point, I didn't know how to process anything. I hadn't realized until now, but our faces were inches from each other. Once I did realize it, a strong blush crept to my cheeks. I leaned forward just a little bit, just enough. I sweetly pressed my lips against his as the blush grew stronger. To my surprise, I felt him gently kiss me back. We stayed like that for a few moments, kissing under a street lamp at 10 o'clock at night, but I could care less about the setting or circumstances. When we pulled away, I started stuttering like I never had before in my life.

"UH I- I don't know what- well I m-mean, I wa-- huh ?" I felt something light tap my shoulder. I looked over my shoulder not to find a person, but instead to find a water droplet soaked into my navy blue jacket. Then another, then another. Of course it decides to rain..."I- I should go home." I declared, still frazzled after what had happened. I quickly stood up and turned around to leave, pulling my hood over my head. "Thank you, though. For meeting me here." I began to walk away. But I felt a something grab onto my hand just before I was able to get out from underneath the street lamp's rays. Lukas swiftly turned me back around and pulled me closer to him, and before I had time to even process anything, I found him kissing me. His eyes were closed and a light blush highlighting his cheeks. I kissed him back, everything just suddenly fading away. We pulled away, looking up and still in his embrace, feeling the rain quickly starting to pour down. He pulled me down the street by my hand in a light run.

"Where are we going?"

"To my house, it's a lot closer." He explained. H- H- H-His-His house?! After all that?!

Just a few short minutes later, I found myself snuggled up on the couch next to him, wrapped in a warm blanket and watching a movie. I rested my head on his shoulder as I intertwined my fingers through his. "Hey Lukas?" I asked sleepily. "Hmm?"

"I love you"

Awwwwwwww! It's so cute! I love it!! Anyway, I hope you like it too! Tell me what you think!