"Run Wylan!" I yell. "Keep your head low!" he runs from the cover of a stone pillar near the middle of the small plaza, to one farther back that I'm behind. He's hunched over like a bear with his hands covering his head, looking like a moron, but somehow he still looks cute. He rounds the pillar and bashes the top of his head into my chin.

"Hey watch it merchling," I growl as I turn away from him and fire back at the dumbasses shooting at us. Dime Lions, most likely. Fucking idiots, don't know when to back off. I turn back to Wylan, reloading my revolvers.

"We need to move!" He screams at me, even though I am right in front of him.

"Ok, well how about you ask them to stop shooting for a minute? That would sure help." He scrunches his face at me, trying to mock me. His stupid face is too cute.

"I'll throw a flash bang, then we can try for the building over there." He points over my right shoulder. I look back and there's double doors wide open. A good enough escape to cover but easy for them to follow. We don't have anywhere else to go and I'm running low on ammunition.

"Fine, I got nothing else. Let's try it." He reaches into his bag and pulls out a small, black tube with a big, yellow 'FB' on the side.

"On my count," he says while scanning for a target. "One… two… three!" He launches the tube into the air and ducks back behind the pillar. I shut my eyes until I hear the BANG. I spring up and grab Wylan by the arm, running as hard as I can. I'm half dragging this idiot but we made it in quick time. I place him on his feet and we start booking it down the hall.

We round a corner and there's a crowd of people that slows us down, but will slow down our attackers as well. Wylan is right behind me but falling behind a little, so I grab his arm again and yank him through the hoard of oblivious bystanders.

"Shit, shit, shit we have no where to go!" I shout at him as we approach the end of the hall, and are faced with big, metal, most certainly locked doors. In a panic I frantically search for windows. Something to jump out of. I try making my way back through the crowd when Wylan tugs on my arm.

"Look! A supplies closet!" he squeaks, pointing to a small opening in the wall to his left. He starts pulling me towards it, (I'm still holding onto his arm but he's directing me), before it clicks that he wants to hide in it. The space is only meant for mops and cleaning supplies, so there is barely any room for one person, let alone two. We have no other options with Dime Lions hot on our asses, screaming at each other over the murmur of the crowd.

I can hear one unsettlingly close to us so I quickly and blindly shove Wylan into the closet and slam the door, praying that the rising noise of the now panicing crowd covers the sound of the impact. I glare at the door over my right shoulder like our lives depend on it. I'm sweating bullets because it's a hot summer day but also because that was way too fucking close. What a rush though.

It would be easy to wait for everything to die down but this idiot is wiggling and shifting approximately a fuck ton. "Wylan stop squirming," I whisper. He doesn't listen. "Wylan!"

"Ok, ok just let go of my wrist." he pouts while attempting to twist his arm out of my grip.

"Oh, sorry," I whisper back, and release his arm, still staring holes into the door behind me. I can't think about anything other than that door flying open and us being royally fucked. The moron in front of me is squirming again, pushing on me and the walls.

"Wylan stop, you dumb redhead, they're gonna hear you thrashing around!" I whisper shout.

"Ok, but just… like…" he says with pauses while still shoving around the extremely cramped space. I break my staring contest with the door to look at what Wylan was so concerned with.

When I look down at his face, I can see he is bright red in the dim light that the space in the door frame provides. He's looking slightly down and pushing on my chest with his right hand and the wall to his left, with his left hand. That's when I realize what he's trying to wiggle his way out of. Our crotches (well more like my crotch and his lower stomach) are pressed right together, and my left leg is in between his. His mess of red curls is nearly pushed up against my chest and my hands are on the wall on either side of him. Then I start panicking for a whole new reason.

"Oh, sorry, I… uhh…" I mumble as I try and fail to shift away from him. I bite the inside of my cheek, trying not to get too red and worked up. Just a few more seconds and I can be free of this tiny jail. I would love to burst out of this cell but I think I still hear those Lion dumbasses in the hall. Too risky. I subtly try to check Wylan over, and when he looks at my face I pretend to be thinking about how to get out or at least separate our bodies.

"Jesper, I um… I think I need to tell you something," he stutters in such a small voice I almost convince myself he never said anything at all.

"Can this wait there sunshine? This isn't the best situation to discuss the best waffle topping combos." I joke, as I turn my eyes back to the door, still trying to figure out what's going on outside.

"No it's not that you dumb! I think I should tell you now in case of… well in case I don't get another chance." He is nervously stumbling over his words. Maybe he lost his fortune? The house? Is his mother gone? Oh please don't let his mother be gone, Wylan just got her back.

I face him again, expecting the worst, "What is it?" he tries to hold eye contact but he looks down again. He's done squirming but still looks very uncomfortable.

"Well I… umm… I kind of, well… you see, ever since… uh," he is taking way too long with this and with the recent excitement, my patience is extraordinarily thin.

"Spit it out merchling!" I hiss at him in a hushed tone. He takes a big breath in and hesitates. Please don't be about his mother. He's lost her once, he can't do it again. Not so soon.

"Wylan is this about yo-" My sentence is cut off by his lips. Wylan's soft, cute lips are pressed against mine. It takes a second for my brain to process what's happening and I accidentally pull away from shock. Wylan Van Eck just kissed me. Not how I thought this conversation would go. I definitely thought I would make the first move. Obviously he sees the surprise in my eyes and immediately starts babbling out apologies.

"Shit I'm sorry Jesper I should have told you instead of doing that. I'm such an idiot. Why would I think that you felt that way about me? Moron! I'm so so sorry…" I smirk and tilt his chin up with my right hand.

I close my eyes, tilt me head slightly to the right and press into his lips hard. He stands up on his toes a bit for a better angle. I reach my left hand up so I cradle his face with both hands, he puts his right hand on my shoulder, lifting himself up a little more, and places his left hand on my side. I start tilting my head up and down, pushing farther into him and deepening the kiss. He is so perfect. My tongue fits perfectly in his mouth and our bodies press together so well.

This is insane. A minute ago we were being pinned down by the stupidest gang in Ketterdam, but now I'm making out with fucking Wylan Van Eck in a cleaner's closet. What are the fucking chances? I hold onto his beautiful face with my left hand, while my right travels down his chest and rests on his waist. He is rubbing my back and side. I yank him lightly towards me and our chests press together. The whole outside world is melting away as we kiss more and more. I pull away slightly and rest my forehead on his, both of us breathing hard.

"…Wow," I say to break the silence, which was pretty dumb but it felt right.

"I never thought I'd get this far," Wylan whispers in between breaths. "So… what happens now?" he says so innocently. It makes me laugh a little.

"Well we could go on a date? Once the Dime Lions calm down of course." He lowers himself back to flat footed and lays his forehead on my chest.

"I'd like that," he giggles quietly. I chuckle a little too and lay my chin on his soft curls. I start gently swaying side to side because I'm always so restless and because I'm so fucking happy. I'm dating a literal ray of sunshine.