TW: Selfharm and Manipulation
Calypso has been looking through her clothes to find a suitable outfit to wear. She feels excited and wants to look as good as possible for him. She knows it's not a date, but she wants to use this opportunity to impress her loved one. Maybe she can learn something new about him, what she didn't know until now. She picks a purple off-shoulder tulle dress with floral embellishments. The skirt of the dress has a shorter length in the front than in the back.
After wearing the dress, she styles her long white hair into a simple up do. She decorates it with purple and blue roses. Then she uses some decent make-up and perfume. She hears a knock on her door and uses the text-to-speech function on her phone. "I'm coming!" She wears flat purple shoes and walks over to the door and opens it. Azul is standing in front of it, his hair combed back while wearing a white and purple suit.
"Seems like the text-to-speech app is very useful. Never thought Idia's stuff worked so well," Azul says and Calypso smiles. She's tipping in her phone. "A convenient alternative to talking with you, even while I can't talk." Idia is a known introvert and dislikes talking in front of a large group of people. Azul somehow found out that Idia had created a very effective text-to-speech app for people who don't like to talk or can't do so. "It's not bad to be in a club with him, even though he can get pretty annoying," Azul admits and sighs.
"Shall we?" He extends his hand and she places her hand into his. She nods her head and the two leave together, the dormitory and school grounds. Calypso wonders if she was ever this close to Azul. She has attached herself to his arm and walks beside him. She watches him up close. It was always her dream to be this close to him and enjoy each other's company.
She wished this moment never ends. Azul feels her gaze open to him and looks down at her. "Is something wrong, Calypso?" He asks and fixes his glasses. She shakes her head and smiles gently. How much she wishes to talk to him normally without the fear of possibly manipulating him? "You look very handsome," she says with TTS, and Azul looks away while blushing and coughing a bit. "Do you think so?" He asks. His ears glow red even though it's dark, she can still the redness. "Yes, you're the most beautiful man I have ever met or seen," the TTS utters, which makes him even more nervous than before.
Then they finally arrived at the local restaurant and to Calypso's great dismay, they were not alone. Princess Isabella has already reserved a spot for them to dine. 'How unlucky am I?' Calypso wonders if the Sevens hate her so much and love to see her suffer. She puts on a fake smile that not even Jade can out beat. Azul greets Isabella and thanked her for this sudden business dinner.
"Isabella, this is Calypso. She is the one who was able to grow the diamond bonsai tree," Azul introduces him and Calypso curtsies in front of the princess. "It's a pleasure to meet you," Isabella says with full excitement. For Calypso, it's hard to hide her disappointment, but she will keep smiling until this dinner is over. It surprises her that Azul is sitting next to her rather than next to the princess. "I hope you don't mind," he says with a coy smile, and Isabella watches them carefully.
"It's alright," Calypso assures him. She feels uncomfortable while the princess stares at her. 'Do I have something on my face, or why is she staring at me?' Calypso's hands are slightly shaking and Azul can sense her nervousness. Then he looks over at Isabella and is irritated by her behavior.
"Isa... don't keep staring at her, that's very rude of you," he tells her with an annoyed undertone, and he looks very displeased. Isabella stops watching as she chuckles. "I'm sorry. I couldn't help myself and wondered if I knew her from somewhere," Isabella says. Calypso is happy she stopped looking at her so intensely.
"Calypso was in the same class as us in middle school," Azul explains as he glances at the menu card. Calypso looks surprised at him. "No wonder she seems so familiar to me," Isabella responds and giggles. "Did you also work in Azul's parents' restaurant?" The blonde girl asks the young siren. For some reason, Calypso checks her own memory and if she had ever seen the princess in the restaurant. "Yes, I worked there until I applied to Night Raven College last year. How did you know?" Calypso uses the TTS app and Isabella chuckles.
Azul blinks for a moment before looking at Calypso. "You were employed there until last year?" Azul asks her. "I thought you stopped two years ago," he didn't know she had worked there until last year. "I started working fewer hours there because of school and exams," Calypso explains. "Ah, I see," Azul says, nodding in understanding. "That makes sense. I'm glad you were able to juggle it all." Calypso smiles at him cheerfully and nods her head once. Then a waiter takes their orders.
Calypso stays quiet and listens to Azul and Isabella's conversation. Unconsciously, she scratches her arm. Her nerves are tingling as she sits here listening to those two casually conversing.'I wish I had said no and never agreed to go with him.' Calypso thinks to herself. 'But how should I have known she's still on Sage Island? I thought she left after their discussion in his office.' She feels out of place and wants to return to her dorm room.
Azul suddenly grabs her hand, causing her to snap out of her thoughts. He has startled her. Right now, she can feel the lingering pain in her scratched arm. "Excuse us for a moment," Azul excuses them and drags Calypso gently away and outside the restaurant. Then he stopped in his tracks. She looks confused at him. He turns around and looks into her eyes. 'Is he... Crying?' That surprises her a lot. It's been so long since she last saw Azul cry. He wipes his tears with his fingertips and looks away. "I need to tell you something," he says. "It's been hard for me to keep it in this long." Then he gently touches her scratched arm and his lips softly touch the bleeding scratches. She twitches as he licksher blood away. It burns slightly.
She wants to say something, but her lips are closed. His eyes look into hers and he brings his face closer until they are almost touching. He whispers, "I love you," and his tears fall onto her cheeks. She opens her mouth to say something, but he interrupts her with a kiss. Calypso can't believe what just happened. Azul was triggered the moment he saw how Calypso scratched her own arm until it bled. Seeing the woman he truly loves hurting herself, hurt him too. He tried to choose Isabella, but couldn't. She returns the kiss and places her hands on his cheeks, not knowing someone is watching them.
Several moments later, they break off the desperate kiss. He doesn't need to hear Calypso's reply, because he can tell she feels the same way about him. "I wanted to choose money over love, but my heart aches when you look so sad and hurt yourself," he admits honestly. He no longer wanted to hide his true emotions for her. The siren softly touches his cheek, and he rubs his face against her palm. He wraps his arms around her waist and pulls her closer, pressing his forehead against hers. "I don't want to choose anymore," he whispers. "I want you, only you."
In a way, she wished to say something, but her fear was still too overwhelming. Her mother told her that if she ever said a word again, he would fall under her voice's spell. He would be like all the men her mother collected. Azul would become a slave to her voice. Although Calypso's mother acted worried when she stopped talking, she actually enjoyed her power over her daughter. Not all parents care for their own children or want the best for them. After all, her mother saw her as a rival or even a threat. Calypso knew she had to stay quiet and never let her voice be heard. She kept her silence for years, living in fear of her mother's oppressive rule and of enchanting someone. She also believed her mother's bitter lies.
The young siren enjoys the closeness to the person she has fallen in love with. She always thought she never had a chance to become his. Azul then uses a healing spell to heal her scratched arm, which burns briefly.
Isabella is still waiting in the restaurant for their return. After a few more minutes, they finally make their way back inside. The food had already been served. "Finally! The food is getting cold," the princess said with a pout. The two take their seats and sit down. "If you hadn't come back, I would have eaten your portions too." Azul shakes his head and sighs.
"You're such a foodie." The girl giggles in amusement, and Calypso looks at what is being served.'It smells so delicious!' Then the three eat their meals silently. After finishing, Isabella and Azul discuss the price of the diamond bonsai tree and other businesses. Calypso listened carefully, and Azul holds her hand under the table. Calypso felt warmth in her heart and smiled. Isabella and Azul finished their conversation, and the three left the restaurant. Isabella said goodbye before returning to her own school. Azul and Calypso held hands as they walked, and Calypso couldn't help but think of how lucky she was.
Although the white-haired woman thought she needed to learn how to win him over, it wasn't necessary.She still felt ashamed that he had confessed to her after she had harmed herself. First, she thought he confessed because he pitied her, but his eyes told her, he really meant it. Azul and Calypso reached the dormitory, and Azul didn't think about letting her go so easily.
Floyd and Jade greet the two and are amazed that they hold hands. The twins grin mischievously and tease Azul about it. Calypso blushes and hides behind him. Azul rolls his eyes and takes Calypso to his room, where he locks the door behind him. Somehow this makes her nervous because she doesn't know what will happen next. Azul pulls Calypso close and kisses her softly. She melts into his embrace and her heart beats faster. He whispers sweet nothings into her ear, what causes her to blush even more.
"I love you, my angel," he whispers into her ear and kisses her cheek. Then he picks her up and carries her to his large bed. He places her on the bed and kisses her again on her soft lips. She wraps her arms around his body, pulling him closer to herself.
The two kissed and hugged one another. Calypso fell asleep in his gentle embrace, and Azul petted her head. He felt so happy at this moment. It was very difficult for him to resist this beautiful woman during the whole dinner. Azul wondered how long she hadloved him. He was content with the knowledge that she was his own, and he cherished her. The silver-haired man could not help but feel immense joy and pride that Calypso had chosen him. He knew that he had to make sure he would always be worthy of her love.