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“Fine by me. At least this way I can spend longer checking you out.”

Clary immediately dropped into the water, submerging herself entirely. She gasped as her head popped back up, and she scowled at me. “You’re such a pig, you know that, right?”

“Hey, you chose to date the pig. Also, I got you in the water, didn’t I?”

She poked her tongue out at me before floating on her back to look up at the sky. I swam over so I could be close to her, and she smiled as my head appeared over hers.

“There’s a cloud behind you, and it’s making you look like you’ve got a crown,” she said.

“So, you’re saying I look like a king?”

“More like my wicked prince,” she replied.

“Your wicked prince. I like that.”

“You would,” she replied. She slowly lowered her legs and righted herself so she was facing me as she treaded water. “You lied, you know. The water’s really not nice once you get in.”

I laughed. “Yeah, I know. But if I told you the truth, you never would have come in.”

“True,” she agreed.

I pulled her toward me and wrapped her arms around my neck as I held her close. “I also wouldn’t be able to warm you up.”

Her skin had small goose bumps all over it, but she didn’t seem to be thinking about how cold she was as her face came close to mine. “I’m really going to miss being in lockdown with you,” she said.

I reached up and cupped her face with one hand. She was this perfect, beautiful girl who I’d somehow convinced to care about me. Having her in my life felt like trying to keep hold of sand. The pieces could float away with just one small gust of wind. I was scared she’d realize she was too good for me.

People said that distance made the heart grow fonder, but what if distance had the opposite effect for us? What if Clary woke up one morning and realized I wasn’t the guy for her?

I was with her now though, so I was going to treasure our time together for all it was worth. “I’m going to miss you too.”

I leaned down and captured her lips in mine. Her skin was cold, and she tasted a little like the water we were swimming in. Her kiss couldn’t have been more perfect though. It made me forget I was cold. That today was our last day together. Hell, it even made me forget there was a world beyond this lake. In these moments, Clary was the only thing that existed to me, and I wanted it to last forever. She had been taking pieces of my heart for years, but as she kissed me now, I realized there were no more pieces to give. They were all already hers.

The kiss was over far too soon through. Our kisses always were.

“Okay, it’s absolutely freezing,” Clary said.

“Let’s get you warmed up for real then.” I swept her legs from under her as I pulled her into my arms.

She squealed with surprise. “Aiden, I can walk!” she said as I started toward the shore.

“But that would mean letting you out of my arms.”

“Aiden, come on.”

“Okay, okay.” I put her down.

She laughed and placed a kiss on my cheek before racing to the edge of the water. I watched her, trying to capture the moment in my mind like I had when we were studying. I was going to miss Clary a lot in the days ahead, but every time I did, I would remember this moment. The moment she truly stole my heart.

25

Clary

Ilay in bed trying but failing to fall asleep. Tonight was my last night at the Moore house, but I wasn’t ready to leave.

Today at the lake had been amazing. The water might have been freezing, and I’m pretty sure half the bugs in the forest had decided to take a bite out of me, but it was the perfect afternoon. When I thought back over the last couple of weeks of dating Aiden, I realized I could say the same about most of the time I spent with him.

The things about him that had once irritated me were the things I’d come to love the most. I rarely knew what to expect from him, which made every day a little more exciting. And he always knew how to make me smile. It sometimes felt like he’d made it his mission in life to make me laugh. He had made this whole pandemic more bearable, and I wasn’t sure how I was going to get through each day without him.