New Romantics

Chapter 14

"I don't really understand this hype about Howl. He's, what, good-looking and talented? He's also a bum."

It was as if Leo insulted me directly. No—not if. "He's not a bum!"

"He's got serious avoidance issues."

Throwing the blanket off of my legs, I twisted around to look at him properly. In the dim living room lights, Leo looked like he could be an iteration of the infamous blond-haired, blue-eyed Howl. Leo's hair was shorter and more windswept and curled at the top. "He doesn't want to go to war. You need to be imaginative to get out of that."

"I guess. I like Calficer. I'd like to see more Calcifer."

"If you watch, you'll get more of him." Giddiness from the inevitable reveal of Calcifer and Howl twisted inside of me. How anyone could come up with such a beautiful twist was beside me. I ate it up every single time.

From her stop on the floor, Dani twisted around to glare at us. "Do you mind?"

"What?" Leo sat up straighter.

"We're trying to watch the movie."

The scene changed to Sophie's journey into the past. Waving them off, I said, "Then watch! This is the best part!"

Dani and Leo traded a few words I didn't bother listening for, too engrossed in the scene of a young Howl gazing into the night sky. My legs bounced with anticipation. Every time I looked over at Leo, his expression was the same reserved interest. I couldn't tell what he was thinking. I hoped he enjoyed the movie. Even if he didn't like Howl at the start.

Dani, Sasha, and I cheered and swooned at Howl's sacrifice for Sophie, and Sophie's sacrifice for Howl. Again, the whimsical, beautiful score surged as the bright colors and shapes filled the screen with the last scene of an endless sky full of possibilities.

"I wish I had a Howl," Sasha sighed.

I glanced at Leo's hand still on the cushion, and said, "So romantic, right?"

Deep blue met my stare, and I swore I saw shooting stars in the rich technicolor of his irises. "Sure."

I pressed my hand to my heart. "Just sure?"

"I guess we'll never know," he responded coolly. Without a second thought, I grabbed his hand and squeezed,

"We'll have to know, remember?"

The bet. The barter. The challenge.

Dani and Sasha's gazes weighed heavy on the side of my face. I'd be interrogated later. Leo looked down at our clasped fingers. Something akin to worry crossed his beautiful face, and then a subtle sneer, and I held my breath, expecting the moment to end in a metaphorical car crash. He pulled his hand away—firmly, respectfully—as to not embarrass me.

"Thanks for dinner," Leo said to me, despite the fact that my only contribution to dinner was the type of food.

"Thanks for checking up on me," I said earnestly. "Can I walk you out?"

"Are you sure you can walk?"

"It was a riptide. I didn't break my legs."

He smirked. Without another word, we rose to from our seats and walked to the door. I was keenly aware of the absolute silence in the living room, and as I opened the door, and Leo lingered in the threshold—a conversation suspended between us—a little voice in the back of my head told me to step outside. That this next moment, next word, was only for Leo and I. I would tell Dani and Sasha about it later.

Or not.

The door shut with a soft click behind me. Leo's tall frame lingered over mine. "I'm glad you're okay, Shah. I don't know what I would've done if—"

"If?"

"Something bad happened."

I grinned. "You'd have to open the store by yourself?"

Leo shuddered at the thought. "I'm definitely not qualified to do that." He leaned against the threshold, one arm braced against the top of the door frame, the other arm trapping me against the door, and looked at me with a shaded intensity that set my whole body on alert. "It's strange, Aria. I fell onto your balcony but you're the one who's caught me off guard."

My eyes widened. "How so?"

"It's hard to put into words."

"Do you use this line on all the girls you talk to?"

"Only the ones I like."

A thrill raced down my spine. I wanted to ask him to tell me all the things he liked about me, but the way he leaned in as he spoke made it hard to form anything coherent. "Well," I said breathlessly.

He cupped my cheek with delicate fingers. "You'll have to forgive me," he said softly. "I'm not very good at this."

"At what?"

"Explaining how I feel."

"Me, too."

"But I can show you, Aria." He moved closer. His skin burned against mine.

And before I could say another word, ask him to elaborate, Leo closed the gap between us and pressed his mouth against mine. 

♡ ♡ ♡

Howl's Moving Castle is a movie I could watch over and over again without ever getting bored. I love listening to the musical score when I write. There's something about the whimsy that makes me so, so, so happy. What's your favorite thing to listen to when you read or write?