Chapter 26

Jareth sighed as his shoulders slumped. "It doesn't matter. What's done is done."

"It does matter, though" Sarah said. "I hurt you, unintentionally, but I still hurt you. Oh, Jareth, I was an ignorant, naive, foolish young girl. I...I had no idea of what you wanted from me" she gave him a sympathetic look. "I was too young to understand. I had no interest in boys and you did frighten me. I could never have reciprocated your feelings. I couldn't have returned any boys feelings at that age. I'm sorry that I was blind to your feelings but I'm not completely to blame." She tilted her head to the side and stared at him with a small frown on her face. "You never stated your intentions or interest. You took Toby and while the thought behind it was nice, I guess, that is still no way to introduce yourself to a girl. And instead of acting like a man, you acted like a little boy, pulling on my pigtails to get my attention and going about it in all the wrong ways. Instead of being sweet, you were mocking. Where I wanted gentle, you gave me demanding. In place of flowers, I got a drugged peach. How did you expect it to end?" she asked as she shook her head.

Jareth stared at her before turning his head to look the opposite way. If Sarah didn't know any better, she would say he looked a little red in the cheeks. "I..cough...expected you to fall at my feet. I anticipated you accepting my offer of your dreams. Didn't you dream of being a princess? And princesses become queens one day. I didn't expect you to turn me down time after time" by the end his tone was turning petulant and his arms were once more crossed.

Sarah sighed and resisted the urge to introduce her palm to her face. "Jareth...How could you expect a 16 year old girl to know what you were thinking? And would you have thought as well of me if I had accepted?"

He actually seemed to stop and consider that. "I...would have been disappointed" he answered slowly. His arms uncrossed and his head turned slightly toward her as his head now tilted to the side in thought. "Part of what I liked about you was your innocence, your purity. You would not have been as innocent then."

"You wouldn't have liked me as much" Sarah stated.

There was a pause as Jareth appeared to be searching for the answer. "No, no I would not have" he said in a thoughtful and surprised tone.

"See? It worked out better in the end. I was too young for any serious relationship. I hadn't grown into my own person or discovered what I was made of. You helped me with that. Thank you, Jareth" she smiled at him and then reached up and kissed him on his cheek. The look on his face was worth the embarrassment.