{{{rose}}}

 

The s m i l e, which was so rare and genuine, faded away from her
features. It was replaced by a f r o w n, another rarity from the
girl. Yes, her father does actually pose as a threat to their relationship,
but in reality, what was the point of her caring? She’s been friends
with Scorpius for years, and in reality, she never truly did care what
her father had to say about her relationship with him. If she did, they
wouldn’t be here right now.

        Admittedly, family did not come first to her. In fact, it was always her
        F A T H E R that ended up coming first. Even if she is S E L F I S H,
        she has let him come first on more than one occasion.

For once, Rose is not going to have her father affect her decisions. 

        Taking a step forward and taking both of his hands,
        she looked him in the eyes and sighed.

❝Hyperion, I am actually confronting my personal feelings. You know
that I basically refuse to do that. Yet, here I am, admitting that I return
those feelings. My father will not be the person to tell me who I can and
cannot be with.
If you don’t believe me, then I’ll P R O V E it. If you want, I will go to my
father right now and tell him I how I feel about you!❞

    ❝D‘you mean that ? Hell , wait , I know you mean it .  
    I’m just surprised , I guess .❞

 The happiness he feels is greater than smiling ; he’s just stunned .  
 It’s wonderful , absolutely wonderful . In his joy he realizes how very
 much he likes Rose . When she says Hyperion , it’s not so much a
 name as it is phoenix song , or laughter , or her , bright and sharp
 and clear . She’s braver than he could hope to be and colder than he
 expected ; it was not bad . It sharpened him , made him listen .

 God , he could listen forever . This absolutely beautiful , brilliant ,  
 incredible girl is standing in front of him saying what he’s always wanted
 to hear —-  and he’s not smiling ! He finally reacts , mouth splitting
 into a wider grin than he’s felt in a long time , and his hands slip from
 hers to clap her on the shoulders .

    ❝Rosie , this is wonderful ! Don’t tell your father – I mean ,  
    tell him if you’d like , but don’t do it for me , but – this is –  
    scale of one to ten , how inappropriate would it be for me to
    kiss you in the library ?❞