The Luna Choosing Game

If that partner was me, I would…

No. I shouldn’t go down that path, even within the safe confines of my mind.

Nicholas and I would never be together again. I had too many secrets that he would never understand. Even if he knew the truth, even if he’d understood, he’d never agree with the choices I had made.

If he knew what I’d given away, he would never look at me the same way.

When Elva appeared for her lunch, she shouted from across the room. “Nick–lass!” Then she ran through. the line, crawled under the table, and threw her arms out wide for a hug.

Nicholas leaned down to oblige. His smile was so warm, my chest ached.

If only Elva and I could have this all the time.

After lunch, and after Nicholas and I finished cleaning up, we joined the children out on the playground.

I pushed some of the kids on the swings, while Nicholas play–chased the children around the grassy lawn. He roared, pretending to be a monster. The children shouted with fake fear, broken with fits of

giggling.

Elva herself often broke the illusion by running up to Nicholas and demanding. “You’re not a monster.

You’re Nick–lass!”

Nicholas swooped her up into his arms and spun her around, while she cheered and laughed.

I’d never heard her so happy in her life. I could have cried bittersweet tears, so happy that she had this,

she would

let the kids tackle

called from the sidelines,

him. “Ah, there! A new monster approaches,

immediately took to the new game, running and play–fighting

distracted, Nicholas rolled up off the ground and walked to

the grass debris from his pants, but

I asked,

“Is it bad?”

teased, then turned his back

I had

moment, everything had felt just like it had three

His

back soon,” he

as soon as we

once but could never have

needed to return to our reality. A prince and a

us, too large to

back together,”

“Thank you.”

ride home, we sat mostly in silence. Elva slept soundly, having worn herself out with play.

into Nicholas’s side, with his arm wrapped protectively around