Lucas, aka Wilbur, pulls me through the crowded pub. We pass groups and groups of people, only barely missing them as we rush past. He pulls me up a small set of stairs until the cold, outside air hits us.

He slows slightly. He takes the hand of mine that's in his and raises it to spin me twice. My dizzy brain has to hold onto him for support. He pulls me close to his chest in a hug, out of breath from the rush.

I move my head to see his face. Lucas's face. Not my best friend. This is a stranger. A stranger with all my trust and all my secrets.

His breath is visible, as is mine. He smiles as our eyes meet. All of a sudden I feel warm despite the cold temperature. Our hands and entangled arms feel as if they're zinging with enough electricity to keep a small family warm in a blizzard.

His eyes trace to my lips. I almost think he's going to lean in when he starts speaking.

"We have to take a train."

"A train?" I ask, pulling away slightly.

"Yes, a train. Follow me."

And once again we're in the rush. This time the cold air tickles my face, and my ears feel slightly frostbitten. It's a euphoric feeling.

The train station is surprisingly not busy at all. Besides a few business men that are trapped in their screens, we're the only ones there.

Lucas buys our tickets, and we stand ready to get on in a few minutes.

"I've been thinking," Lucas thinks out loud as he stares off to somewhere in the distance.

"Tell me everything." I pull on his hand like a little kid would. "I want to know."

"We're Lilly-" he points to me "-and Lucas." He points to himself. "You know, so there's an L theme."

I nod. "Go on."

"What if we went with that and we're like..." He thinks for a second, his mind not quite able to connect the two idea thoughts together.

"Lovers," I whisper. My voice has a tinge of a whimsy tone to it. The idea has always been so intangible with friendship, but tonight we're not best friends. We're Lilly and Lucas. Lovers.

"Exactly." He tightens an arm around me. "What do you think of that?"

I move to give him a proper hug. "I think I could live with that for a bit."

Just like I did outside of the pub, I move to see his face. This time it's somehow managed to be even closer than before.

I move to the tip of my toes, closer to his lips. His eyes concentrate on my own lips for a moment before he shakes his head.

"Not yet," he whispers so quietly I almost doubt he talked. "It has to be perfect."

I laugh a little before falling back into his chest, enjoying his scent for a moment.

"Trust me, I want to." I can feel the hum of his chest with the side of my face when he talks. "Just wait till we get there, and I promise it'll be worth it."

"Okay," I say before facing him again, "Just don't make me wait all night, alright?"

"Alright." He smiles before giving me a kiss on the top of my head, something I'll have to settle for right now. Although, it does send butterflies and excitement through my chest.

The train sounds from the near distance. Lucas moves so we can both see it from the direction it's coming from. He leans down to my ear as he does so.

"You ready for our adventure?" he asks in a low tone.

We board the almost empty train. We sit further in the back; I sit by the window, and he settles in by the aisle. As soon as he sits, he wraps his arm around me.

The train ride is short. We can see the station in sight when Lucas starts getting ready to get off.

"What are you doing?" I ask him, still sitting down.

"We have to go quickly. It's a matter of life and death." His eyes widen to try and prove his point.

He's crazy. I think to myself. He's crazy, but I'm going to follow him anyway. This whole thing is crazy. We're both crazy.

Lucas grabs my hand as soon as the train comes to a stop. We dash through the station and into the streets, ready for whatever adventure Lucas had in mind.

_ _ _

"McDonalds?" I laugh as we walk up to the fast food place. "That's your big adventure?"

"Absolutely, now do you want fries?" Lucas asks.

"Of course," I reply.

Lucas orders two orders of fries and turns back to me.

"What happened to life and death?" I recall his words on the train earlier.

"We die without food." Lucas shrugs.

After we get our food, we sit on the street curb to eat it. The fries are fresh and delicious.

"What would you wear to a royal ball?" Lucas asks me randomly after a moment.

I think for a second, not even questioning where in his mind it could've possibly come from, before saying, "Red."

Lucas' eyebrows raise. "Really? Why's that?"

"Seduce them and be rich." I shrug as if it's the most obvious thing in the world.

Lucas nods. "Solid plan."

"What would you wear?" I redirect the question.

"A suit," he says, "with a red boutonniere to match you."

"Solid choice," I agree.

We fall into a quiet. Lucas finishes his food before me, and he rests his head on shoulder as I eat my last couple fries

I place our empty containers together, and Lucas sits up straight when he notices I'm done.

"I got it." He grabs the containers for me and walks over to the bin.

I'm standing on the curb when he gets back. I rest my arms on his shoulders since the curb adds a few inches to my height. He takes one step closer to give me more support, not that I need it.

"Look, now I'm as tall as you." I smile, glancing down at our shoes.

Lucas chuckles. I look back to his eyes and notice just how close we're standing. I tighten my hands around his neck, and he complies by stepping forward, somehow even closer.

We rest our foreheads against each other. He repositions his head, and our noses brush. I can hear him breathe in once.

It takes everything inside of me to hold back. It takes everything inside of me to not close the gap between us. I hold back based on his wishes, but I wish he would kiss me.

When he speaks, it's a low mumble. "I know I said I wanted our first kiss to be romantic, but I can't wait anymore."

I smile a little. This must be my fairytale because my wishes are coming true.

He begins to lean in, and my heart beats faster. It's not the definition of romantic, but my mind just races around one thought. And that thought is to kiss Wilbur-

I mean Lucas.

This is Lucas, not Wilbur. I can't be thinking about anyone but Lucas, even if they're the same person.

They're the same person. This is my friend. This is Wilbur.

I stop just before our lips touch.

"We're not supposed to do this kind of stuff, Wilbur," I whisper for only us to hear.

"I'm not Wilbur tonight," he whispers back, "Are you Maia?"

I can tell there's more to that question that he actually asked. If I say yes, then we'll pretend this never happened and move on. If I say no, then we'll continue and have one of the best nights of our lives.

And that's the reason why I shake my head no. I don't want to be Maia tonight.

"Then if it's alright with you," he says with a small smile. "I would like to kiss you, Lilly."

"I would like that very much, Lucas."

And then he kisses me right there on the curb.

His lips are soft, and I can taste the alcohol on his tongue. It's a euphoric feeling. One of those moments where you let down every guard in your body just for them. Just so they can get to know you and know exactly what you're thinking.

It's probably one of the best kisses I've ever had. I know he wanted our first kiss to be romantic, and honestly I couldn't imagine it better anywhere else than right in front of McDonalds..