Friends; Zelink, Modern (The Legend Of Zelda)

Pizza

It was the pizza, of course it was the pizza. Pizza, which was so good...had inadvertently interrupted Link's confession. But she had heard the beginning, and her face was red. So red in fact, that the delivery man noticed as he handed her the warm box.

"Shoot, did I interr-"

A hand reached over her shoulder and handed the man the money. "Keep the change," Link said and then shut the door.

Zelda clutched at the pizza box as if she could become one with it and disappear forever into the cheesy goodness; never having to confront her own feelings ever again. But alas... that was impossible.

"Zel, I'm sorry if I startled you with that. If I make you uncomfortable I-"

She shook her head. "No, I just-" she stopped. She still wasn't quite sure what she was saying. "I'm not used to anything like this. Even though I'm popular I've never done anything resembling a date before. Let alone with a guy like-"

As she cut herself off, Link lowered his hands to the pizza box, then raised it out of her grasp. Setting it gently on the stool beside the door he took hold of both of her hands, taking care not to hurt her. "Hey, I'm real. I'm not one of those people at school who craves attention and says and does everything to get it, and I know that you aren't either."

Zelda turned her body partially away from him, staring instead at a plant out the window. "How do you know that?"

"Because you've never been on a date before."

Her eyes snapped back to his. "What does that have to do with anything."

"A girl craving attention would give a guy anything he asked for, even if she didn't like him. I've seen you turn down guys in the hall enough to know you're not one of them."

Zelda's lip twitched slightly, but she held the smile at bay. "Stalker. You watch me in the hall?"

"You're hard to ignore," he admitted. "You're a girl who is beautiful inside and out."

"I don't..."

"You were grateful for my help that day in the hall. You smiled when I offered to walk you home. You agreed cheerfully to walk to and from school together. I was a complete stranger, a quiet kid who was never noticed in school because he didn't want to be. And yet you smiled because of me."

"Link-"

"You didn't know it but at that time I was in a rough spot. Things were happening with my family, and you inadvertently brightened my darkening life. It was the luckiest thing in the world for me that your backpack ripped that day."

The back of Zelda's mind was chanting something like-just the first date. It's just the first date, can't say stuff like that when it's just the first date - Just how was she supposed to react to a guy saying that she had brightened his life? That she was beautiful inside and out? There wasn't a manual for something like this. Those lines could have been something straight out of a romance novel, and yet she believed him, Link really was a knight, and she couldn't think he'd lie to her about something like that.

Even though her flurry of thoughts was quick, it wasn't fast enough for the pause to go unnoticed. Link tilted his head to the side ever so slightly. "Sorry, that was a little corny..."

Zelda dropped her mouth open, and then closed it, and then she shook her head. "I didn't know at the time... but thinking back you did seem like there was something behind your eyes. But after a few days it wasn't there anymore, so I assumed I had imagined it."

Link shook his head. "No, it was there. But thanks to you, I think it's gone. After what you did to Dark..." he trailed off. "I wanted to kiss you. It was like you took my hurt upon yourself and then bestowed to him, squarely in the nose."

A smile spread across Zelda's face. "I just didn't think he knew what he was talking abo..." I wanted to kiss you. Did he really say that? It had flown right over her head when he had said it, like some sort of saying. A saying like 'I wanted to kill him,' something you didn't really mean. Yet somehow the look on his face, and they way he'd said it made her think that he meant it quite literally. "Ahhh..."

A soft smile spread across Link's face, and then raised his hand, gently framing her face with his palm. He leaned closer, but then he stopped. It was as though he was giving her a chance to bolt if she wanted to.

Where Zelda would normally have squeaked in surprise, and run away without looking back, she found she couldn't move at all. She just stared at Link as he leaned forwards, her face, if possible, was even redder than when she'd opened the door for the pizza. She bit her lip slightly, and then met his eyes.

That was all the encouragement he needed to see, and he leaned forwards.

Zelda leaned in too, and her eyes slid closed. Their lips met softly, and though it seemed like an eternity, they parted quickly.

"Thank you," Link said softly.

"For what?" Zelda asked, her voice quiet.

"For helping me."

The burning of her cheeks was almost distracting. "I don't think I can take credit for that. I didn't know I was doing it."

"That's what makes you so special. You can help someone without even trying."

Zelda looked down from his gaze. Why are you like this? How can you be so... so... Amazing. "You helped me too... And you'll help me again I hope?"

"With what?"

"Dealing with the repercussions of what I did last night," she said as she brought up her hand to eye level.