Page 77 of Did It Have To Be Gnomes?!
Chapter Twenty-Three
Miles
Iwas so excited about everything that I wound up rushing through my shower and getting ready faster than expected. So now I had all this time to spare before Winter was picking me up for our date.
Our date.
Crapola on toast, I was going on a date with Winter Montgomery.
If someone would’ve told me that in high school, I would’ve laughed in their face, then probably cried because I was foundout—I’d always been terrified that someone would notice my massive crush on the cute jock.
I walked into my kitchen, grabbed a glass out of my cabinet, and pulled the water pitcher out of the fridge. As I shut the door, the magnet I always kept on my fridge—the Carry A Faerie logo magnet—caught my eye, and I jerked back in surprise.
My logo had a gnome on it, but since I had to look at them every day already, I’d whited-out the gnome on the one on my fridge. But looking at it now, I could see the damn gnome—no whiteout in sight.
“What the actual hell?”
I leaned in to get a closer look. It looked perfect with not even a speck of whiteout. Was… was this a different magnet altogether? I certainly hadn’t put a new one on the fridge. But… where did the whiteout go? Could it have fallen off?
But… wouldn’t there at least be some residue or something? There was no piece of whiteout on the floor anywhere either. What the hell?
I glared at the thing, absolutely done with gnomes, then went about making my glass of water. I huffed at the little magnet after I put the pitcher back, flicked the gnome, turned on my heel, and walked into the living room.
I had a ton of time, so I figured I could hang out with Sola and Odin for a bit while I waited.
If Winter walked in right now, he probably wouldn’t be surprised to find me sitting on the couch with Sola on my shoulder and Odin on my lap. Odie was purring up a storm and so, so, so happy to have me home. It made me feel guilty that I was leaving again soon.
And Sola kept trilling away and rubbing her face on my cheek—making me feel even guiltier—so I gave her some scratches with one hand while petting Odie with the other.
“You two act like I left you for weeks instead of hours. Maybe I should get you a kitten friend, Odie. What do you think? You want a little brother or sister to keep you company?” For now, he had Sola, but once we bonded, she’d be coming with me everywhere I went. I made some kissy noises at them both. “You’re both too cute.”
Sola trilled at me again, then headbutted my forehead until I stared into her eyes. Odin continued his purring, and I kept one hand on his back, but Sola had my full attention.
“What’s up, pretty girl?” I whispered without breaking eye contact.
She made another little sound, kind of like a chirp, that I’d never heard before, and I felt her magic flare to life. Her fire erupted around her, making me flinch automatically before I realized it wasn’t hurting me at all.
Odin jumped off my lap to get away from the magic, but he sat on the other couch, watching us, curious.
I was curious too.
What in the world was Sola doing?
Was this just some ploy to get me to herself?
But then I felt her magic reach out for me, and I sucked in a breath. Could she… could she want to bond with me too?
Tentatively, I reached out with my own magic, and the adorable firebird didn’t hesitate to let her magic touch mine.
I gasped as our magics met, and in one smooth movement, the two weaved around each other. I pushed more power into it, a big smile on my face as I stared at Sola. I could feel her happiness, her excitement over our forming bond, and it matched my own.
We both let go at the same time, letting our magics do what they wanted without holding back. My purple magic met her red in a stunning display of power. It moved and swooped and spun around us.
A laugh bubbled up from my chest, and the second it came out, Sola let out the happiest trill I’d heard from her yet. I was beaming, and if a firebird could smile, Sola sure was.
I could feel her magic helping to boost my own and vice versa, but most of all, I could feel the affection this pure and trusting firebird had for me. She was so adorable, so good-hearted, and I was beyond lucky to have found her.
With one final burst of magic, our bond solidified inside my magic, inside my heart, inside my soul, and I knew I had a new forever companion. I had someone who’d stick with me no matter what.No matter what.
