A Human’s Guide to Surviving Magical Mishaps by Kit Bryan
Rule 91- Distance makes the heart grow fonder, but too much distance might make the heart forget why it was fond in the first place.

I have literally no idea what I should say. It's not like I can pretend to be happy or cheerful, that won't help either of us. I would be lying and Ashton would either think I'm a liar or that I don't care. Crying and throwing a tantrum is out too, he HAS to go, I know he has to go and there is no point arguing about it. I decide to go with calm acceptance. Not happy, not sulking. Just calm and quiet, maybe a little sad. Now I just have to hold it together long enough to get through saying goodbye and him leaving. After that Lucy and I can go binge eat icecream and curse the universe for letting us fall for unattainable men.

"So... I guess this is it then." I say, with what is obviously the world's best opener ever, but I don't stop there. Apparently it's time for me to ramble again.

"You must be excited to go home though. You've been away for a while and it wasn't exactly a planned trip. I bet you're looking forward to sleeping in your own bed, and I don't know, seeing your mum? Familiar food and friends. All that stuff..." I trail off. Ashton isn't saying anything, just standing and listening, waiting for me to talk myself out. I fall silent.

"Are you finished?" Ashton asks. I shrug.

"I guess so." I answer, a little embarrassed.

"In that case..." Ashton reaches out and takes my hand, bowing over it and hovering. I have a sense of dejavu. This is a lot like our first meeting when he was asking if I would be his guide. I guess I've completed my task, huh. "Thank you Katerina Fall. You have done more for me than almost anyone. You have assisted me to capture my father's killers and not only that you have housed, fed and clothed me throughout it all. You have provided me with not only support but friendship and made what I expected to be a painful task so much less difficult than I expected. I came here miserable, lonely and more than a little afraid and you saw that, accepted it and helped me process. I will never be able to thank you enough for all you have done and if there is ever anything I can do for you I can promise that I will do everything in my power to assist you." Ashton leans down and kisses the back of my hand gently again, then in one smooth motion, he stands up and tugs me forward until I stumble into him, my hands landing on his chest, his arm around my waist. Now we really are in the exact position we met in. And damn him he is still just as stunning. Whoever it was that said looks lose their draw after three days was a liar and a fraud, because the more time I spent with Ashton the more attractive he seemed. Apparently that rule only applies when you find out the person is an asshole.

Ashton presses a soft kiss to my cheek, hugs me tight for a moment, then releases me. I take a step back and take a deep breath to steady myself.

"I'll miss you." I say simply. Ashton nods and sighs sadly.

"I will miss you also." he returns. Fin approaches and moves to stand by Ashton, carrying their bags. Lucy joins me, a horrifyingly fake smile plastered on her face. What the hell did he say to her? Fin's poker face is frozen in place and Lucy looks like she's halfway between tears and murder. Up until now I've never seen her look at him with anything other than awe and affection but this... This expression is cold. I get the feeling that their farewell did not go smoothly. "It is time for us to leave." Fin says, his tone is as blank as his expression. Ashton nods reluctantly and takes his bag from Fin. The two of them walk towards the water and in a blink they're just... Gone. I stare at the space where they disappeared. I expected something more flashy. Bright lights or some visible sign of magic. But no, they just walked away and now they're gone. I reach up and touch the spot on my cheek that Ashton kissed. I kind of wish I had turned my head and kissed him goodbye properly. Hell, part of me wishes I had thrown myself at him and begged him not to leave. But I know that's unreasonable and I didn't want to make a fool of myself. So instead here I am, standing in a park at night with my best friend, both of us miserable and both of us pretending that we're fine.

Lucy bursts into noisy tears. Okay, maybe not so fine after all. I rush to her and pull her into a hug. She sobs into my shoulder for several minutes, inconsolable.

"I'm so sorry Luce, I know you liked him. But he could still come back to visit." I suggest, although the words sound empty even to me. She lets out a derisive snort through her tears.

"I don't want him to come back. I was completely wrong about him. He wasn't who I thought he was. I... I regret ever wasting my feelings on him. You know what, I'm done. I'll cry now for what I thought I had, then that's it. No more." She straightens up and rubs the tears away from her sore, red eyes. The fake cheer from earlier is nowhere to be seen, now she just looks empty and broken. I don't know what Fin said to her, but I might hate him a little bit right now. I hate seeing my friend like this.

"I'm sorry, I never should have dragged you into all this." I apologise, but Lucy waves me away.

"Don't be stupid. I wanted to be involved, and you did warn me to be careful. It's my own fault. Besides, I notice you aren't looking all that cheerful yourself." She points out. I sigh and nod dully. I link my arm though hers and lead her back in the direction of the car. It's not particularly safe for two young women to hang out alone in the park at night, we shouldn't stand around and chat here. We make it back to the car and Lucy is still waiting expectantly for an answer. "I do like him, but there's no way it could ever work out. I know that and so does he. I was stupid and let myself get carried away, but i'll get over it. It's not like it was forever. It was a few weeks and a couple kisses. That's all." I tell her, trying to sound reasonable, but I'm pretty sure my words are coming out bitter instead.

"I KNEW IT! I KNEW you had kissed him." Lucy bursts out, then immediately looks regretful.

"Sorry, I just... Well I thought that something was up. I don't understand how you're being so reasonable about it all though. I'd be pissed. If a guy kissed me knowing that he wasn't actually able to commit to me... Well let's just say that thinking back on it I'm glad that Fin never tried to make a move. I might have killed him for leaving if he had. Wait, he did kiss you right? Or did you kiss him?" She demands. I blush red.

"He kissed me... The first time at least." I answer. Lucy's eyebrows shoot up.

"The first time, you mean there was more than one? How did you not tell me this?" She sulks and I sigh.

"I don't know, I guess I just didn't feel ready to share. And yes, we kissed twice. The second time... I'm not sure who started it... But my dad ended it. He walked in on us." I tell her. "Ouch. Not good. Did he freak out?" She asks sympathetically.

"Not really, but he pulled Ashton aside and basically told him to back off. Which he did." I say sadly. Lucy raises an eyebrow.

"I don't know, he didn't seem like he had backed off. Are you sure he isn't planning to come back? Maybe he just didn't want to start a fight with your dad. I... I bet he comes back for you." She says sincerely. I can't help but sigh as I start the car. It's a nice dream, but as much as I'd like to believe Ashton could be my happily ever after... I know better.