Who We Are; Zelink, Modern (The Legend Of Zelda)

Innocence (7)

School was just as usual. There was some minor name calling, a few 'accidental' shoves in the hallway, a few more names, and then school was out. As Zelda did her homework in the library she was interrupted by a girl she didn't recognize.

"I heard that Link is your boyfriend!" she said excitedly.

Zelda looked up at her and raised an eyebrow. "Do I know you?"

"No, but everyone has been talking about you two! A couple who were brought together and stay together by protecting each other," the girls voice sounded whimsical.

"Uhm... I don't know what you're talking about," she said as she tried to turn back to her homework and ignore the annoying girl.

"He walks you to and from school every day!" she continued. "And he saved you in the library, and you saved him in front of the school and-"

"How do you know about the library?"

"Everyone has been talking about how Link shot Derryl's backpack!"

Zelda bit her lip. Crap, that's exactly what I wanted to avoid. "Oh well... That's actually not true," Zelda said.

"What??"

"Derryl probably just wanted a good excuse as to why there was a hole in his backpack," she said.

The other girl frowned. "So you aren't dating Link?"

Zelda opened her mouth to respond but was interrupted by an arm thrown around her shoulder.

"We are dating. You should hurry along so my girlfriend can finish her homework so we can go out."

The girl turned red and a longing smile appeared on her face. "Of course," she said as she walked away, giggling to herself as she kept looking over her shoulder.

"That girl has half a brain; believing you with that lame line." Zelda said as she rolled her eyes.

"Maybe we're just convincing?"

"Get off of me," Zelda said, unable to keep her cheeks from getting hot.

Link chuckled as he sat down in the chair across from her. "I'm glad they think we're a couple," he commented.

Zelda raised an eyebrow. "Why?" she asked.

"It's a good explanation for why I escort you home. And why I'm so protective of you," he explained.

She shrugged. "If you say so." So protective... It seemed to be a reoccurring thing in her mind. Did she like him being protective? Didn't she always maintain she didn't like being protected all the time?

Link leaned forwards on the table. "Why are you so red?"

"What?" she said as she raised a hand to her face. It was warm. "I don't know," she said as she frowned. "Maybe I'm getting sick?"

He started to laugh. "You're so innocent Zel."

"What do you mean?" she asked in confusion.

Link rested his head against his hand and just looked at her for a while; an amused smile slowly appeared on his face.

Zelda held his gaze for only a few seconds before she had to look away. She focused on her textbook and tried to ignore him.

After another few minutes he reached out a hand and tucked a blonde lock behind her ear, and as he drew back his fingers brushed against her cheek and then trailed her jaw line.

Zelda looked up from the book and stared at him like a cat that had been caught stealing something. If she had cat ears they would have been folded back, and her face deepened still further towards the color red.

"See, you aren't getting sick," he said as he smirked slightly. "You're just embarrassed."

She looked away from him and took a sharp intake of breath. "Well that's good. If I get sick I won't be able to... come to school..." she rambled softly.

Link didn't reply, and so Zelda returned to her textbook. She tried her best to focus but her face was still burning and her ears were ringing slightly from the tone of his voice. Where had that behavior suddenly sprang from? Had it always been like that with him and she just hadn't noticed because she was 'so innocent?'

After just a few minutes she couldn't help her eyes flicking back up to look at him.

He was looking at her already; he probably hadn't even looked away.

She looked back down and tried to read one last time, but she just couldn't. Zelda slammed the book shut and put it into her backpack. "Let's go home," she said.

"Aww, that sounded cute," he teased.

She frowned. "Why?"

Link shrugged. "It just sounded like a wife."

Zelda shook her head. "You have such a weird mind," she commented as she slung her backpack over her shoulder and wrapped her scarf around her face. It helped disguise her blush.

They went out of the school and started to walk home together. "Am I really so innocent?" she asked quietly.

"Does it bother you?"

She shrugged. "I know more about atmospheric pressure than I do about... about real dating."

"Real?" he asked. "You mean all those fantasy romance novels you have in your room?"

Zelda blushed red. Dang, he's observant. "...yeah..."

Link smiled.

She turned her head away slightly as they walked. "I guess they don't help that much..." she said. Then she chuckled awkwardly at herself. "Gosh..." Maybe I am getting sick? So embarrassing Zel, way to be blonde...

"It's better than not knowing anything at all," Link replied. "Although they probably give you unrealistic expectations that can't be fulfilled."

Zelda shrugged. "Not that I'd get the chance to be proven wrong anyways," she said. "My parents probably wouldn't give me the opportunity to fall in love. I'll probably get sucked into an arranged marriage with some politician just to keep the line going. Then I'll name my daughter Zelda and the whole thing will continue," she let out a sigh as she kicked a rock and it skittered across the frozen pavement.

"What's with that Zelda thing?"

She shrugged again. "It's been a tradition since...gods... like over a millennium ago."

Link frowned. "A millennium? That's a long time for naming daughters Zelda."

"Tradition is tradition."

Link shook his head softly as he put his hands in his pockets. "Tradition over all..." he said quietly.

"What was that?" she asked as she looked over at him.

"Nothing."