I had waited for over two hours until I was sure that King Nereus had fallen asleep. I poked my head out into the hall, making sure that it was safe to go out. Nobody swam down the hall, so I knew it was safe to get Arthuas. My room was right across the hall from him, so it didn't take long to get to him.

I carefully swam to the other side of the hall, keeping an eye out for any passing guards or mermaids in waiting. I gently knocked on the door and waited for him to open it. After about a minute, there was no answer. As much as I hated intruding on people, I carefully opened the door and snuck into Arthua's room, gently closing the door behind me. Arthuas was lying down on the kelp bed, wrapped in a seaweed blanket with his fin poking out slightly. He looks so peaceful, I didn't want to wake him, but I couldn't keep the others waiting for us.

"Arthuas, wake up," I whispered into his ear. I gently shook him awake, and then I felt him moved slightly on the bed. "Mmm, Delphine?" he asked, rubbing his tired eyes. "Yes, it's me. It's time to go," I answered. He slowly sat up and swam over to his dresser, and touched up his hair before we carefully poked our heads out into the hall. "All clear," he whispered. Even though he had just woken from his slumber, he seemed to be alert as if he had never fallen asleep.

Whenever we reached the corner of a hallway, Arthuas and I would take turns keeping an eye out for any passing guards. So far, our luck had been good, and we were one step closer to sneaking out of the castle. "Only one more hall left, and then we're out of the castle," he whispered. I looked down the hall again, making sure that nobody was there, and without hesitation, I quickly swam down the hall, with Arthuas following behind me.

The entrance was straight ahead. Then, we felt small ripples through the water, and I knew that somebody was coming. "Hide," I whispered. Arthuas and I quickly hid behind a large seabush, and we saw a few guards swim past us. My heart started to pound rapidly in my chest, and a boost of adrenaline began running through my veins.

We hid behind that plant for a few minutes until we were sure that the coast was clear. I looked over at Arthuas, giving him a nod, and then we quickly swam to the entrance. "I can't believe we snuck out," Arthuas chuckled softly. "I didn't think we would be so successful in our plan to sneak out," I smiled.

"Psst, guys!" A voice called out, and I immediately recognized it as Veronica. "Is that one of your friends?" Arthuas asked. I nodded slightly, and we swam over the five-foot wall, and we saw my friends waiting for us. "What took you guys so long?" Violet asked. "A few of the guards stalled us," I answered. Violet nodded slightly, and we began to swim around Atlantis, taking in all of the bright lights of the underwater city.

"This is incredible," Arthuas gasped. I started smiling, knowing that Arthuas now knew what life was like outside the castle, and I glad that I was experiencing this with my friends and crush. "Where should we go?" Veronica asked. We were on one of the main reefs, where all the dance clubs and fancy restaurants were. "Let's check out this one," I suggested pointing to a nightclub made of white stone and different colored coral.

Everyone nodded in agreement, and we got into the dance club, and everyone was dancing wildly on the glowing dance floor. "Wow, this is really is fantastic," Klaus said with a small amount of fear in his voice. "Don't worry, guys! It's going to be fine!" I smiled, lightly pushing Klaus and Veronica onto the dance floor. Quigley asked Violet to dance with her, and they went onto the dance floor as well, hand in hand.

The first song was a fast one, and everyone kept trying to match their dance moves beat of the music while Arthuas and I watched all the fun. "Are you enjoying the night so far?" I asked Arthuas. "Yeah, this is fun, and I'm glad you're here with me," he answered. When the final note of the fast song ended, it immediately turned into a slow song, and I was in awe of its beat. I started slightly swaying side to side, and then I felt Arthuas gently take my hand.

https://youtu.be/Q_qnT7YV-Hc

"Delphine, would you like to dance?" Arthuas asked as I looked over to him. "Yes, of course," I answered. He led me onto the dance floor, and I felt him gently put his hands around my waist. I gently put my arms around his neck, pulling him slightly closer to me. Our eyes locked onto each other, and I felt my cheeks start to turn a bright pink once again, even though it was barely noticeable from the flickering lights of the dance floor.

"I don't want to leave Atlantis, ever," I smiled. I knew that the others would be upset if they found out, but at that moment, I didn't care. All I cared about was dancing with Arthuas. "Then, don't ever leave," Arthuas smiled.

I slowly leaned in towards him, closing the gap between us until our lips had finally collided. My heart started dancing rapidly in my chest as we cherished the kiss, making it last for the rest of the song.

Here's to the night we felt alive,

Here's to the tears you knew you'd cry,

Here's to goodbye, tomorrow's going to come too soon.