First Kiss or Second?

Talia didn't remember where she was when she asked Cyrus that or what season it was, but the man with the prettiest of blue eyes looked back at her and his usual doting and calm face had a slight ripple of surprise to it.

"Princess Talia..." he squatted in front of her and ruffled her hair that was short at that time. He didn't look troubled or enthusiastic. Him who was ten years elder than her sure was mature.

"Do you want to kiss ME or do you want to KISS me?"

He raised his brows and his soft blond hair moved gently along the breeze. That's the kind of feeling she always felt around him... Calm and protected.

Talia was smart enough to understand his intent by how he emphasised certain words.

"Mmm... I just wanted to kiss I guess," she said truthfully. That's all the girls in her class were talking about and she was curious.

" So, you are at that age..." Cyrus stood up, "Tell you what, Princess... First kisses aren't magical with fireworks bursting or flowers blooming in the background like in those movies and books you read. It would be just... Meh!" he pursed his lips and waved his hand.

"But don't worry, it would get better the more you do it," he said and left the balcony where the gentle tropical breeze ruffled her hair as she wrapped her arms around her knees inside that egg shaped bamboo swing she liked to sit.

'He'd know' she thought at that time. Cyrus knew what he was talking about as he had a lot of girls he liked. He had experience.

"First kiss... Can that be even considered a kiss..?" she mumbled. Somehow the boy she met at the creek came to her mind and brought a smile to her lips.

'How silly was I back then! And naive... And that boy blatantly lied that he'd marry me...'

Those few years she stayed in S Country were the best years of her life where she wasn't worried about anything and just led a normal life.

That was the one time she talked to Cyrus about it and he didn't bring that up again either. In a few months, she returned back to Esteria under the order of her grandfather and much to her opposition.

Then her dream skipped to another place. That musty attic of her high school. That place where all the unnecessary stuff were dumped. That place with a beautiful, dormer window. The view from there would be perfect. She'd skip the gym classes and would sneak in to the attic. She even made that place comfortable for her placing an old wooden stool by the window. It was her place. Her secret cave where she felt peaceful. Sometimes she'd be reading, sometimes she observed outside... It was her hiding spot.

In her second year, that guy would follow her there too. She couldn't understand why the guy who wanted to become a pro-basketball player all through the first year, would skip gym classes and stand by the window with her. They won't talk much and would just observe outside, with the silence between them comfortable. They rarely would discuss odd things too if they felt like it.

That summer day, the hawthorn blossomed in their school, filling the entire school ground with a sweet smell. But that attic smelled as usual, musty.

But she was taken aback by the sudden attack of that strong scent of hawthorn. The gait of the one walking towards her was familiar and she turned with a smile.

For some reason, from the day she met him in the class, he called her Iris and so she called him Fred... His middle name he hated.

"Fred"

The boy who was about to tickle her with the bunch of flowers he had sighed seeing his plan failing and passed the flowers to her with a bow.

She chuckled and got the flowers after going a curtsey still sitting and threw the flowers at the window. They landed by the

There was silence for a while as she was reading a maths book while he stood by the window watching outside,like usual.

Unconsciously, her view turned away from the book to the perfect side profile of the boy standing by the window. The summer sun reflected in his hair making it gleam in a nice shade of red. His tall nose, thin lips, sharp jaws... He's a looker!

She didn't know how long her yews lingered in his lips but he turned at her with a smirk making her heart beating like it was being rampaged by a raging bull.

"Ha!" he snorted, " What they say about the scent of hawthorn is true," he grabbed her hand and pulled her towards the window.

"Look... Your Cyrus is eating Miss.Upright up!" his voice that got a bit deeper vibrated beside her ear.

And as he said, the most strict teacher in their school was French-kissing Cyrus, who worked in the school until she finished her studies, in the midst of the hawthorn shrubs.

" Hmm"

She shrugged. This was not the first time she is seeing Cyrus kissing. In fact she had seen much more.

"You..."

Fred looked at her and wanted to tell something but in the end smiled popping in a chewing gum and said nothing.

As both of them watched, the kiss between Cyrus and the teacher intensified and his hands went inside her skirt. Wrapping one of her leg around his waist, Cyrus carried that woman further in the garden where the two teenagers view were blocked by more flora. They were obviously going to...

Talia bit her lips as a thought came to mind. She was already fifteen and she still haven't kissed yet. There is a fine specimen of a boy beside her who always accommodated her till then. She just wanted to take a chance.

"Fred, kiss me"

She said crossing her hands over her chest with her eyes focused on him. At seventeen he was already six feet two inches. She was not short and was five feet five inches and his green eyes had a golden glow as the sun reflected in it. She didn't know what he was thinking but he stared at her for full five seconds. Then he pulled out a tissue from his pocket and spit out the gum in his mouth.

She was sure, he was blushing but before she could confirm it, his face came closer to hers and something warm and soft landed in her lips.

She froze as she felt a surge of electricity pass through her lips to her heart, abdomen and then to her legs.

Who said first kisses aren't magical?

Her hands grabbed his shirt as he pulled back and as if he got the permission, wrapped his arms around her waist and placed his lips once again on her lips.

She felt the same surge of feelings.

This time he didn't leave but lingered on her lips and even bit her lips with his lips slightly teasing.

She felt like he was teasing and before she wondered what she must do, she felt his tongue trailing over her lips and she opened her mouth on cue. Another wave of strong current flowed through her as she felt her legs were going weak.

His tongue raided her mouth after teasing her lips for a while. At first it was hurried and a bit urgent but then he as if he has gotten hold of what he was doing, slowly let his tongue do the magic and she just followed his movements gently sucking and nibbling.

It was like waltz... With tongues...

She just followed his lead and it was dreamy.

They forgot how much time had passed as his hands travelled from her waist to inside her shirt, while both their lips didn't leave each other with their tongues danced together as they breathed heavily. Her hands were gripping his shirt as if it was her last hope.

That was her first kiss... At least the one she considered her first kiss.

With a red haired boy who was an enemy... In a musty room filled with the scent of hawthorn... And, it tasted like mint.