Hopelessly Devoted | Hale- TO/TW [6]

4 | Past, Present, and Future

"Then he is a lovesick fool. Aurora could never love a servant." Tristan scoffs quietly.

"And you?" Lexi whispers, casting her eyes downward. Instantly, his hands are cupping her cheeks and making her look into his eyes. After another moment, his lips smash into hers, and they move in sync.

Lexi inhales sharply, her hand going to play with his hair as his hands move to her waist, pulling her closer. When they pull apart, Tristan leans his forehead against hers. "How much more do I need to prove it to you?" He laughs slightly, a small smile on his lips. "I love you, Alexis. I cannot imagine a world without you in my life. I am in love with you."

"And I love you." Lexi giggles softly. "Who would have thought?" She sighs, breaking from the embrace and moving towards the throne before turning back to Tristan. "The Lord Tristan de Martel in love with me?"

He laughs, shaking his head before grasping her hands with a serious expression. "Let's run off."

"What?" Lexi gasps, eyes wide.

"We'll run off together." Tristan smiles. "We'll get married. Have a life away from all this madness. Away from my father and away from your brothers. We could be happy."

Lexi searches his blue hues and finds that he actually wants to do it. "What about Aurora? And my family? I cannot just leave them—"

"We could leave once Aurora is married to someone of my choosing." Tristan reasons. "As for your family, do you really think they can't take care of themselves?" She looks down, embarrassed and saddened by his words. "They are capable, Alexis. But they are selfish. I want you to be my wife, my queen. Will you?"

After a moment, she decides. She smiles with her eyes meeting his once more. "I—" Before she could continue, a fast approaching figure catches her eye. "Tristan..." She breathes, her hands tightening around his.

He looks back at see a bloody Lucien approaching with a murderous expression. "How, by all that is damned, are you free?" Tristan asks, stunned, as he pushes Lexi behind him.

As Lucien lunges forward, Lexi lets out an involuntary scream. A guard appears from nowhere and stabs Lucien in the back with a spear. Lucien chokes on his own blood, falling to his knees. Lexi lets out shaky breaths as Tristan shields her. The guard stabs Lucien one last time before he stills, blood pooling around him.

"Go." Tristan orders. "Get back to your family. Let no one know of our plans."

"What of the guard?" Lexi whispers, glancing at the man.

"He will not tell a soul, I assure you. We will meet soon. I will send word."

"I love you," she tells him, kissing him forcefully before running into the castle.

—|—|—|—

Derek stands in front of a full-length mirror, trying to get his bowtie perfect, as Lexi changes in the bathroom. "I am so sorry, Derek," she says from behind the closed door.

"For what?" He asks innocently.

"For dragging you here." Lexi sighs. "I know you are not too fond of my family—"

"I never said that."

"Every time I mention Nik, you cringe." She deadpans. He pauses his movements and looks at the closed door, even though she can't see him.

"I do not." He retorts.

"Let's pretend that you don't." She relents. "Besides that, I drag you here, to New Orleans, after everything that's happened. We promised each other we would get out and away from all this and I drag you back in." She takes a deep breath. "Not to mention Tristan—"

"You told me about Tristan." Derek reminds her. "He got his memories back too. Maybe he just wants an explanation."

"Knowing Tristan, he wants much more," Lexi replies.

"Lex, when I left Beacon Hills with you, I took you on. All of you. I didn't just take you in the present. I love all of you, past, present and future."

After a moment, Lexi responds. "I love you too." She comes out of the bathroom in a long blue dress, a slit exposing her legs. While it is sleeveless, there is a silver piece of fabric that crosses over her chest and over her shoulder to secure the dress. In addition, her entire back is exposed except for the strap. She holds a gold mask in her hand as she saunters up to him. Derek's mouth drops open the moment he sees her. "Like?" She teases.

(Lexi's dress and mask ^^^^)

"Love." He corrects her. She laughs and goes to fix his bowtie.

"I promise you I am working on an apartment away from the compound, but I don't want to be too far in case of an emergency."

"I understand. What about where Hayley and Jackson are living?" He looks out the window at the complex.

"That could work." Lexi nods, finishing with the bowtie. She takes a deep breath, readying herself. "Do you believe the prophecy?"

"You mean the one that says your last family members will die?" Derek clarifies. "'One by friend, one by foe, and one by family.'" He mocks Freya, causing Lexi to playfully slap his arm. "Not at all. They're immortal and the white oak stake was destroyed. I am positive everything will be ok."

Lexi looks into his eyes before pushing up to meet his lips. They both melt into the kiss, not realizing how much time they're wasting. "Ahem." A cough comes from the door.

They pull apart, Lexi looking dazed. "You two ready?" Hayley asks, smirking.

So... Who likes? Tristan or Derek? Hope you enjoyed!