He didn't want her to leave him.

Just when he decided to stay.

Because, one, that would be poor timing, and two, if she did, it would be difficult not to leave.

If he had told himself a year ago that he felt this way, the old Chase would have laughed in his face.

Why, him feeling upset? Because of some girl not wanting to stay? Ridiculous.

That's why he wished it did not bother him as much as it did.

Ever since Rory found out Chase was half-fey, she had grown more and more distant. He found that she could barely look him in the eye since she came back from the Mirror Vault. She'd been crying in there too. Something had happened that he was not aware of.

At first he thought Rory didn't like that he was part fairy or the true age difference between them. Perhaps it creeped her out?

But that assumption couldn't be right because she was generally appreciative of his wings when he saved her life with them. In some ways, she accepted the pinkness, which Chase would forever be grateful for.

Or perhaps during Rory's time in the Mirror Vault, she realized that she didn't need him at all. She did all of it without Chase's help. Even Lena could guide her, and she was at EAS. Dying.

Or what if she's tired of dealing with a monster like him?

Suddenly, his relationship with Rory was as fragile as glass. One wrong move on his part and it could shatter.

But all his assumptions were proved wrong when they were on their way to the Water of Life.

He had to hold hands with Rory, which probably would've been a lot more pleasant under better circumstances. By doing so, he heard a mean version of Lena, Rory's mother, her father, and some random mean girl's voice. But the one that stunned him the most was hearing exactly what his own taunting voice said to Rory:

"I don't even know why I'm friends with you. You're not pretty like Adelaide. You're not skilled like Kenneth or even Ben. You're not smart like Lena. I could have anyone I wanted. I could have any life I chose. What makes you think I need you in it?"

He had never heard of anything more wrong in his life, and Chase has heard his father say pretty stupid things.

Rory was definitely skilled.

Ever heard of the Mighty Snap Kick?
She was smart.

Sometimes she did idiotic things, yeah, but she is still sometimes a genius and that works out.

She was also nice to look at. Definitely. But, he'd rather keep that to himself for now.

Rory was worth everything he's ever done for her and although she may not realize it, he really needed her.

He needed her to stay friends with him, so he could stay too.

But Rory didn't know any of that, which made her grow distant. All he ever did was tease and make fun of her. He got so caught up in his own doubts of Rory leaving him that he actually made her think that he wanted her to leave.

Crap. This is such a mess, Chase thought remorsefully. He watched Troll Rory scan the Glass Mountain's hallway.
Did he ever say anything meaningful?

No, not to her.

But that changes now.

Chase blinked, then stared at his troll hands, trying to sum up his courage.

"I need to tell you something," Chase said, sounding more confident than he was.

Rory turned around to give him an exasperated look. It was so achingly familiar it made his heart beat the slightest bit faster. He wanted to punch the stupid organ. "Do you really think this is the best time?"

"Yeah, I do, actually." He sucked in a deep breath and tried to meet her eyes. "The stones on the way to the Water, the ones that sounded like me…"

Rory reddened.

Chase swore he would slap his own face if he mirrored her look. "Last year, on my birthday Amya asked me if I wanted to come back and live with her. She was going to ask the Unseelie King if it was okay, and she could probably have done it." He paused. "He gives her pretty much everything she wants, because of Cal. I was thinking about it."

He noticed Rory's shoulders stiffen. She doesn't want me to leave.

That, or she thinks everything about this is creepy and she wants to escape from this conversation.

Yes. Chase had his own share of doubts. Once, for example, he doubted in his own ability to eat three pizzas stacked on top of one another. (Obviously, it wasn't the only doubt.)

"Dad was never around," he continued, ignoring the lump in his throat.

Rory looked doubtful. "You had Adelaide. And the triplets."

Chase rolled his eyes. First off, Adelaide has a crush on me and probably only cares about herself and kissing me. Cross her off the list. Second, the Triplets are in their own little world and they always forget the extra…"human"…right beside them.

"Shut up," Chase said, "this is my story. And they don't actually know me that well."

Not like Lena. Not like you.

He felt warm. His heart was beating relentlessly in his ears.

"But I didn't do it. And this year, she asked again, and I wanted to say no right away. That got me thinking what the difference was between this year and last year. And the only thing I can think of was you."

Then Rory's shoulders stiffened.

OhcrapIjustsaidsomethingveryweird.

He forced out a desperate cough. "I-I mean, I'm sure that wasn't the only reason… But things were better after you came."
Rory turned to him. Her eyes sparkled, like she was actually touched by his words, and Chase found himself lost in them for a second.

"Are you telling me this because you think we're going to die?"

That was one way to kill the moment.

"I think Mia heard what the stones were saying to us." And if the Snow Queen used Rory's doubts against her, at least Rory would know that whatever she doubted about their relationship was not true.

Rory's mood instantly shifted, making Chase realize that maybe it wasn't the best thing to say. "But she wasn't touching us! It doesn't work without skin-to-skin contact!" she fretted. "We didn't hear what the stones said to them."

"She's a magic spy. Listening spells are the first things you learn. Even Dad knows a few," Chase explained, in a serious tone. "But Mia heard. Lena, or the stone that was supposed to be Lena, said the thing about wanting new friends. She'll use it against us. The Snow Queen likes to mess with your head."

And now they were in the Glass Mountain. The prison of said Snow Queen.

Rory made a face at him. It had 'Okay, so we're doomed' written all over it. "That's actually really smart of you. I'm impressed."

Holy crap. Did she say what I think she just said? Act cool.

Chase felt a grin coming up as he pointed his thumbs at himself. "Grew up with fairies. They invented mind games."

Wow. Thumbs. Very cool.

Rory just stared at him. Her eyebrows creased, as if deciding whether or not to say something. And when she did, he found it hard to breathe.

"I never minded that you're half Fey. But I care that you didn't tell me. And I care that I didn't notice." Rory looked away, abashed. "I feel like a sucky friend for not noticing." She glanced at him. "But the actual Fey bit —that's actually pretty cool, like finding out you have superpowers."

He was incredibly lucky to have a friend like Rory, and one day, he would prove that he felt that way right in front of her.
Chase felt yet another grin forcing its way to his face. "Are we done?"

"Done. That was really awkward. Let's not do that again."

He sure as heck wanted to do this again. He felt awesome. But it could wait for another time. "Unless our lives depended on it." Which, luckily for him, would happen pretty often.

"Yeah," Rory said, with the hint of something else in her voice. "Unless our lives depended on it."

They continued on their mission, braver than ever. They saved Ben from the Snow Queen, duped said queen like total bosses, and saved Lena and everyone else in EAS from death. No one left this world, not this time.

Maybe Rory didn't consider him a monster like he thought.

He certainly didn't feel like one, especially after the Surprise Birthday Party he was given later that day. He thought he would never stop smiling like a huge doof.

Chase really had the best friends ever.

So he was pretty dang happy that he decided to stay.

The next thing he knew, he had his arms wrapped around Rory Landon.

The Triumvirate's friendships only grew stronger from there.

And although Chase didn't realize it at the time, a new feeling arrived. A similar feeling to what he felt when he stared into her eyes in the Glass Mountain. It wasn't like the feeling he felt in the past, like when they dealt with the Beanstalk a year ago.

This was a very different feeling.

That feeling would hide in the corner for a while until forced to reveal itself.

And unfortunately for him and the people who would try to force that feeling to change…

It would never, ever leave.

—

PLEASE READ, REVIEW, COMMENT, AND FAVOURITE PLEASE!

I am so sorry this took long! It was harder to write than I expected and life was a lot more busy than I thought. Hopefully you'll find the story worth waiting for…

Anyway, a special thanks to my awesome friend, Piper Anderson (who is an amazing writer btw). She read and helped edit my stories and did so much more for me. You da best.

I have a follow-up story planned and it's currently a WIP, so stay tuned.

Until next time,

May V