Chapter Text
You and Bridget had been walking for a few minutes, already having passed by the school gates and making your way through the dense forest. So far, the ‘date’ had been amazing, even if you were just walking (still arm in arm) to your destination, though conversing in the way. The beautiful scenery of the flora of the forest made it even better.
Though, not even that could compare to the beauty of your pink haired companion.
“So, have you ever gone explore this part of Auradon before?” Bridget asked, effectively snapping you out of your thoughts.
“Well… I did venture into it once– something to do with this specific plant for this specific potion.” You weakly recalled, to which Bridget gave you a small warning glance. “Which, I had a really good grade on.” You added truthfully, smirking as her features softened, a pleased look on her face.
“This is your first time visiting The Enchanted Lake, then?” She asked and you nodded. “Oh, I just know you’re going to love it! It’s so wonderful!” She giggled and it took everything in your power to not melt right then and there. “I don’t want to spoil you anything, but…” Bridget continued on, rambling about the lake. You were half paying attention to her words, half admiring her.
How her eyes brightened every time she remembered a detail, how she talked with such happiness. Her hair blowing in the light breeze, as if it had a life of its own. You couldn’t help it.
“…and there are these rocks! They are so shiny and beautiful! I hope to…”
You mindlessly nodded to what she was saying. A smile forming on your face mirroring her own.
As if a simple rock could be as beautiful as you.
“What did you say?”
Might as well melt and never see her eye to eye again. You couldn’t have possibly said that out loud… right?!
Think, Y/n! Think! She was talking about some rocks, but what can I say about a rock?! Rocks come in different shapes… rectangular… square… round– round! What else is round?
“Cupcakes!” You blurted out, startling both your friend and yourself in the process. Still, you continued on with your lie. “The cupcakes, B, oh Gods the smell has been killing me, I know they are going to taste delicious and– and look beautiful! More than the rocks itself!” You said, your sights going down for a second to emphasize to were said cupcakes laid, inside the pink basket at your other arm.
Phew, nice save.
Bridget squinted her eyes, looking at you with skepticism for a few seconds, you, on the other hand, were trying to give her the biggest, most innocent (and totally not awkward) smile you could pull at the moment.
Eventually, she let it go, matching your smile with a grin of her own, her cheeks a slight shade of red.
“W–Well then, you’ll have to wait and see for yourself.” She said, tugging your still intertwined arm a little to adjust herself, before clearing her throat.
The movement caught you off guard, and you wobbled a bit. “Oh, but I already sense it, see, I know the baker.” You took the opportunity to be somewhat in charge of the conversation (and hopefully get rid of the awkwardness of your previous words) and challenged.
“Do you now?” She bit back. The teasing glint in her eyes matching your own, her previous shyness gone.
“Mm-hmm. She’s by far the best one, dare I say best one in the whole world.” You said, moving your head around a bit to make your point, as your other arm still held tight to the basket. “But she’s not only good at that, she’s incredibly smart and kind as well.” You finished.
“I–Is she? Yes?” She asked, smiling with anticipation, eyes gleaming.
“Of course! And you know what’s the best part? I get to call her my friend.”
“Just a friend?”
You internally panicked.
“Uh– yeah?” You questioned blankly, clearly not expecting her answer. “W–What else am I supposed to call you– her?”
She chuckled. “We are best friends, Y/n!”
“Oh, right!” You sighed as discreetly as you could. This was Bridget you were talking about, you should have expected her to say something among those lines. But still.
You continued walking on for a few more minutes, enjoying the nature once more which helped you calm your beating heart a bit and eventually came up a wooden, dare you say lousy, barely kept together bridge.
The Princess of Hearts did not waste a second and immediately began crossing it without a doubt. Unfortunately, the same couldn’t be said for you. Still, you took a deep breath and while having high doubts about it, you were not going to let it stop you. You found some courage and started walking. It truly did not help the fact that you had only one hand available, as the basket was still being tightly gripped by your other hand.
“Oh, look! You can see the lake from here!” Bridget exclaimed, pointing out to it.
While she was in the middle of the bridge, you were a few paces behind her, not really bothering to look to where she said, but rather looking straight ahead and gripping tightly the rope that held it.
Don’t look down, don’t look down, don’t look down.
Why was this bridge so long, anyway? And so unstable. Surely not many people have used it, unless they are thrill-seekers.
Step by step, you came closer to her. Yet suddenly a breeze hit the bridge, not as light as it was before, naturally swinging it a bit, and consequently staggering you too.
You looked down.
Bridget turned to look at you just in time to catch your face turning pale while your eyes got bigger and bigger by the second, seemingly stuck in place.
“Hey, Y/n.” She said in a calm tone, immediately understanding the situation and came closer to where you stood, frozen. “Can you look at me, please?”
You couldn’t. No matter how much you wanted to do as she said. “W–We are so… so high up.” You stammered.
From the corner of your eyes you could see Bridget’s arms moving, one of them extending in for the basket to which she grabbed, your hold on it being almost nonexistent as you used all your power to hold onto the rope and, while you should have expected it, it still took you by surprise when you felt her other warm hand on top of your own, her fingers caressing it softly and carefully.
The pink haired could sense your relaxation, if only a bit, as your grip slackened. She smiled.
“Look at me.” She said once more in that sweet tone of hers, and when she talked like that, who were you to deny her?
Heading her words, you slowly lifted your head, your eyes fixed only on the girl in front of you.
“I’m going to grab your hand, is that alright?” She asked to which you nodded rapidly. “Just keep looking at me.”
And you did just that. The feeling of her hand gripping your own and her big, gentle eyes never leaving you only added to help you regain your cool, although you were almost certain that it also heated up your face a bit.
You were almost at the other end when you took a small step in false, swinging you a bit yet again. Bridget tightened her grip on yours.
“I’m not going to let you fall.”
“You better, or I’m pulling you with me.”
She knew by the way you answered that you were starting to get back into your senses. A soft smile took over her features.
“Aaand– one more step… almost there… done!” Bridget exclaimed, putting the basket down on the dirt path.
“Oh my God, I live.” You took a slow steady breath, feeling the adrenaline being lifted out your body and slowly started to slouch into Bridget, who let go of your hand in order to cradle your form, nicely caging you into her body.
“You live!” She giggled, caressing your back softly. Her warm touch adding to the calming effect. “Nicely done Y/n, I am very proud of you.”
“You’re only saying that.”
“No, I mean it! Truly!” She said pushing you back slightly, now being face to face and only a couple inches apart, for you to see the truthful look on her visage and in turned, she looked at your pitiful pout. “The fact that you could overcome your fear is a very big step. I have to say though, I did not know you had a fear of heights.”
“Me neither.” You answered her begrudgingly, embarrassment creeping into your face. That, however, made you think of something. You had a panic attack. In front of Bridget. You lost your cool.
In front of Bridget.
In front of your crush.
Oh my God I made a complete idiot of myself! What if Ella finds out? I’d never hear the end of it!
You opened your mouth to start talking, but Bridget seemed to notice the slight surprise in your face as she beat you to it.
“I won’t tell Ella, nor anyone else. Don’t you worry.”
“Promise?” You asked, pouting once again.
“I promise.” She said, giggling. “We should get going now, we don’t want the food to get cold, do we?”
“OH MY GOD THE FOOD!” You exclaimed, looking at your surroundings, finding the basket at the pink haired’s side. “I am so, so sorry! I completely forgot about it back there!” You said, making a move to grab it.
“Actually, I want to carry it now.” She said, lifting it up into her arm before you could. “You’ve been holding it all the way through here, I don’t want you to carry all the weight.” Her decision was final and both of you started walking again.
“But I feel bad making you carry it.”
“Why?”
“Because you’re a pretty princess, duh. You shouldn’t be doing any of this. In fact, I should be laying a pink carpet for each step you take instead of stepping on this ugly, peasantry dirt.” You said, dramatically bowing in a playful manner.
Bridget blushed at your comment, momentarily rendering her speechless. She’d never received as much praise as she did when she was with you, be in a teasing manner or not and though she sometimes felt as if she didn’t deserve such words, it did make her feel all giddy and happy inside.
Pretty princess.
“And my knight in shining armor, who pulled me out of my panicky trance back into firm land.” You added laughing lightly, not at all aware of her inner turmoil you were responsible for.
Your knight in shining armor.
She could feel her heart pounding rapidly, her eyes elsewhere but on yours. Could her cheeks become redder than they already were? She needed a distraction, to distract you. She couldn’t handle any more praise or she might lose it and kiss you right there and then.
Thinking about it, she technically already did it once. And it worked pretty well in her opinion.
With not so much thought, she suddenly leaned in and gave you a peck on the cheek, effectively shutting you down almost immediately.
Much like the first time she did it, the feeling of her soft lips on your cheek made your brain all mushy, eyes wide in surprise.
Bridget took the opportunity and once more intertwined her arm with yours, a soft shy smile on her face. “Let’s continue, we are close.”
You nodded, still shocked, but nonetheless let her lead you in whatever direction she may desire.
After a few more minutes of silently walking, Bridget reflected back on her action, feeling self-conscious. She hoped, prayed that you won’t feel awkward or straight up hate her for it. Yes, she’s done it before, but the fact that you didn’t say a single word in 10 minutes was concerning to her. Stealing a glance in your direction, she could see that you still held your sights straight ahead, yet she could sense you weren’t really paying attention to your surroundings.
A new feeling blossomed in her chest however, when she looked on and saw exactly what you came to see in the first place. The sound of a waterfall hitting her ears. The Enchanted Lake.
“Oh, I didn’t even notice! We’re here!” She said, lightly shaking your still intertwined arm.
That seemed to get you out of your thoughts, as you came into a beautiful view of the lake. The big, rounded folly being the first thing to get your attention. Though some of its columns were broken and covered in vines, it didn’t make it any less enchanted. The glistering water only adding more magic to the scenery.
“Wow…” you said in awe, your eyes looking around, capturing all the details you could.
“Wonderful, isn’t it?” Bridget voiced, looking around as well.
“Now I know why people call it enchanted. It really looks like it, huh.”
Your pink haired companion giggled, making your heart flutter. “Shall we settle in?” She asked looking at the folly.
“After you.” You replied, bowing down in a comical manner; as if the smirk on your lips were betraying you, to which Bridget curtsied in the same fashion.
And so, you made your way to said folly. Bridget insisting on arranging the picnic all by herself, making you go to a so called ‘rock hunting’. You supposed it must have been those rocks she had been talking about earlier, inevitably making you regret not paying her that much attention. You, of course, objected; though were quickly silenced by her quickly pushing you to the shore of the lake and thankfully giving you a brief description of what you’re supposed to grab.
“They are shiny, small– like a silvery color, rounded with a few peaks going all over them,” she had said.
She didn’t mention however how rare they were, given you have been searching for a few minutes and still found none. But, if the Princess of Wonderland wanted these rocks that much, then you weren’t going to give up that easily.
Said princess, on the other hand, felt half successful that she was able to keep you occupied with your little treasure hunting, while her other half was growing anxious as she prepared for your shared evening. She set up a pink checkered picnic blanket in the middle of the folly, pulling the contents of the basket on top of it, though she did not take out everything.
She was finally happy with how she assembled the food; different trays holding the kind of snacks she knew were your favorite, both sweet and salty.
After spending a few seconds silently praising her decoration skills, she got to work on the final surprise.
She took a small deep breath as she braced herself to look at the cupcakes that were still in the basket, happy that they were in fine conditions, and took them out. She set them at the very front of the blanket, for it to be the first thing you would see once you came back, which both terrified and thrilled her.
A not-so-distant sound caught her ears, one that she knew oh so well, and by the tone of it she could already picture your smile as your voice grew closer and closer.
It was time.
She wasn’t prepared however, when upon turning around she’d be faced by your drenched form. Her eyes widened almost immediately as she took on your wet self.
“B! B, look– I found two!” You said a bit breathlessly from your little diving activity. “Turns out, these bad boys were at the bottom of the lake. That’s why I couldn’t find them.”
She tried, really tried to come up with something to say– but it seemed as if she was enchanted herself, for her eyes wouldn’t leave you. The way your clothes hugged your figure and that stupidly sweet triumph smile you were wearing, rendered her speechless. If for a moment.
Her cheeks turned red for the umpteenth time.
Say something!
“You alright, princess?” You asked, smiling innocently at her.
“I–I…”
“No– seriously, you okay, Bridget?” You reiterated, furrowing your eyebrows in concern, slowly approaching her. “Here, your oh so precious rocks.” You took the moment, grabbing her still hands and placing said rocks on them, smiling proudly.
You didn’t really know if they were that hard to find but the fact that you got two made you extra proud.
The sudden contact seemed to be the way to finally break off her spell as her attention shifted to the objects in her hands. She studied them carefully, in awe. They really were as she had previously described them and she was more than content with them.
She smiled shyly, words finally coming off her mouth. “T–Thank you, Y/n!” She exclaimed, looking back at them. “Oh, aren’t they beautiful?”
“Incredibly.” You replied.
You weren’t talking about the rocks.
She looked up to you once again, mirroring the soft look you were sporting. She suddenly had a special thought, an epiphany. She never thought life would grace her with such a free spirit as yourself, for her to feel appreciated since the first time she had encountered you.
Blessed. Perhaps she didn’t grow up with many friends, because you were destined to be in her future, making her feel such intense emotions– all pleasant, and so, so loved.
She could only hope she could make you feel like that as well.
“Y/n,” she started. “Thank you, once more, for them. If you wouldn’t mind… there’s something I need to ask you.”
“I’m all ears.” You said smiling kindly.
Yet instead of speaking, Bridget moved to the side, revealing your little picnic area. Yet what first caught your attention were the cupcakes.
They were placed horizontally, white glittery letters on top of pink frosting reading, ‘Castlecoming?’
You stared at them for a few seconds, and then your sights traveled up looking in awe at how everything was so well placed, it seemed so Bridget in a way. Perfect.
Said pink haired kept looking at you, big brown eyes searching your face for a hint of how you were taking this.
“B–”
“Will you go to Castlecoming with me?” She interrupted promptly, a sudden wave of confidence she wasn’t all that familiar with filling her being.
After a moment of silence, (or her words finally registering in your system) you finally teared your eyes away, watching the pink haired girl with practically heart eyes, warmth spreading off your chest. A grin made its way to your face as you answered, “I’d love to.”
Bridget’s smile was the biggest you’d ever seen, but only for a moment as you were engulfed in her arms by the next second to which you properly returned almost immediately.
You both took your time in the intimate moment, savoring the feeling of being so close to one another, and in a way of also saying words that wouldn’t come out yet. One step at a time.
After it, Bridget seemed to finally realized that you were still pretty much wet, if the hug didn’t give it away, and quickly went to grab a towel she had brought just in case to drape it over your shoulders, obviously, making you blush.
─── ⋆⋅ ♡ ⋅⋆ ───
And so, the afternoon went on, with the both of you sitting comfortably on top of the blanket, talking about whatever, enjoying each other’s company and Bridget’s incredibly tasty recipes.
“So that’s why you were so secretive about the cupcakes, huh?” You questioned in jest.
“Well… I did want it to be a surprise!” She retorted. “Might I add, I believe it has worked perfectly.” She added, smiling brightly.
“You did catch me by surprise, that much I can guarantee you.”
Yet as your conversations went on, you couldn’t help the way your thoughts went back to the cupcakes. Yes, she had asked you to Castlecoming, but technically, she hadn’t said anything about it being a romantic date. Because surely with all the events that had transpired in the day, it had to go deeper than just friendship, right?
“Hey, can I ask something stupid?”
“Nothing you can say is stupid, Y/n.” She replied, looking at you with sincere eyes. “Most of the times, anyways.” She jokingly whispered to herself.
“Hey, I’m right here!” You exclaimed, feigning disbelief as you softly smacked her.
“I’m only joking! You know that.” She giggled, not wasting a second as her hand quickly engulfed with yours before it was out of her sight. “What I meant is, that you can ask me anything.”
You gave her a weak smile. “Right, uh…”
You sighed, briefly closing your eyes for a second before opening them again. The pink haired’s curious gaze not faltering. This is it.
“So, I was just wondering if, you know, you’d like to…”
You squeezed her hand lightly, looking to the side, away from her much too curious eyes. “Go to Castlecoming notasjustfriends.” You rambled.
Nailed it!
Instead, you were met with a short silence before Bridget decided to break it. “I’m sorry, I didn’t quite catch that.”
Oh, man.
You sighed once more, looking back at her. “Alright, we’re going to Castlecoming together, right?” She nodded, her cheeks turning a soft pink at the reminder. “So like, what if we go… assomethingmorethanfriends?”
“Y/n!”
“Your bad hearing is not my problem, princess!” You let go of her hand, crossing your arms in front of your chest.
“I can hear perfectly fine!” She pouted.
“Yeah? Well it’s not really showing.”
“Just say it!”
“But I don’t want you to hate me!”
At your words, her gaze visibly softened. Her hand came up to rest on your arm. “I could never, ever hate you.” She said, a soft smile coming to rest on her face. The fact that you weren’t telling her something because of such a reason stung. “For what it’s worth it, I love y– spending time with you!” She finished rapidly, internally cringing at her almost revelation.
Her words did not affect you at all. “Fine.” Nor did her hand as it was still in the same position she left it at. You took a deep breath, quickly thinking of your next words. “You.” You pointed at her. “Me.” You pointed back at yourself. “Castlecoming. Friends? No. More.” You finished proudly. Surely she had to get that.
You could practically see the gears moving in her head as the words clicked in.
“Friends… no more?” She asked carefully, removing her hand from your arm.
“Yeah!”
“You don’t want us to be friends?!” She concluded.
“No! I mean yes! I want to be your friend, I love being your friend. I just…” you sighed, lowering your eyes in slight embarrassment. It didn’t help that you felt your face hearing up too.
Oh, come on, I did not go down a barely put together bridge and threw myself down a lake to not ask anything, especially since Bridget– Bridget! Asked me to Castlecoming already. The thing is practically done.
You turned your sights up to look at her curious yet worried expression, mind made up. “As much as I love it, I’d love it even more if we go to my first ever Castlecoming as something more!”
Silence.
“…that wasn’t too hard now, was it?” Bridget questioned softly, looking at you adoringly, her cheeks flushed. You however, were completely malfunctioning.
“…what?” You asked, staring at her dumbfounded, your mind was rushing to get her answer to make sense. Bridget, on the other hand, savored your expression and giggled at it. “You– you knew?!” You asked in disbelief.
“I did tell you I have a good hearing.”
“Wha– why didn’t you say anything! I–I made a complete idiot of myself in front of you!” You said and you swore your face turned red.
“W–Well… I…” she cleared her throat, her previous blush intensifying. “I might have wanted you to ask me properly!” She defended, pouting.
You looked at each other for a few seconds, eyes locked on one another, before eventually starting to giggle at the silliness of the situation. Because of course, the Princess of Wonderland herself already heard and of course she wanted you to finally say it. Was this you finally paying over for all the times you’ve teased and embarrassed her?
“Truly you didn’t strike me as the type of person who would go to such lengths for someone to admit something.”
“It’s not just a something, and you know that!”
“I know, I know, it’s just that– oh, you are so lucky that I love you this much, if not–” yet as soon as the words that were coming out of your mouth caught up to, you stopped. You did not just confess to her, did you?!
Once more, a silence formed over you both and took everything in your power to not break it saying the first thing that came to your mind. Yet for some reason you couldn’t tear your eyes away from Bridget. Perhaps it was the surprise look that overtook her features as the words were carefully registering in her mind, not to say how her entire demeanor changed once they did.
“Y/n,” Bridget said your name in a surprise calm tone, yet her face betrayed her as she portrayed her most radiant smile, happiness radiating off her being. “I’d love to go with you, to your first ever Castlecoming, as something more.” She giggled, staring intently into your eyes only for a moment to glance at your lips. “And… I love you too.”
Hearing those words finally, finally come out of her mouth made you incredibly happy, dare you say, the happiest human on Earth, since nothing could ever compare to having someone– having Bridget– not only acknowledging your feelings but also returning them, and she made it seem so easy, so natural.
Her looking down at your lips again made you look at hers, and in such a vulnerable, intimate, beautiful moment, it felt as if the time was right to finally give yourself in as your hand slowly climbed up to rest on her face, secluding itself on her cheek.
With careful movements you slowly inclined forward, hesitantly, as if silently asking for confirmation on your doings, to which Bridget replied leaning in herself.
You took that as a yes.
You dare not to smile in anticipation as the proximity between your lips were slowly closing in, closing your eyes as you began to feel Bridget’s breath ghosting over them, making your heart flutter erratically. And by the content hum that left her being after they finally connected to hers in a sweet, much too gentle way, you could say she was feeling the same.
It was everything you could think of and more. Making it seem as if her soft, cherry taste lips were made to fit right into yours.
You parted away after a few seconds, opening your eyes to look at Bridget, who was slowly opening hers. You took in her features, mapping her entire face. Gently, your thumb rubbed across her cheek, committing the rosiness in them to memory. Her head leaned into your hand, wordlessly reassuring your action.
“Bridget,” you started. “I think you’re the most wonderful person in this world.” And it was true. You often wondered why nobody else was willing to see it, to see how she cares for everyone, even the ones who definitely don’t deserve her kindness by how they have treated her. “You are so beautiful– not only on the outside but B, Gods Bridget, you are so special.” You stated.
“You are being way too kind, cupcake.” Bridget replied, grabbing your hand to rub it with her thumb, looking down at it, thinking carefully of her next words. She found that for the first time in a long while she didn’t feel as nervous as she might have previously thought. Perhaps it was because the inevitable happened, and it felt oh so natural and so in place, not only for her but for you as well. “Though I’m very thankful you think such things of me. I could wish for nothing more.” She grinned, scrunching her nose adorably.
“And don’t you dare sell yourself short– you make me laugh, yes even when it’s not the time,” she said in playful caution at your smirk, remembering the many times you decided it was more important talking to Bridget than doing your work in class. “You’re always there to lend me a hand, even with tasks as these–” she pointed to the vibrant rocks on the side with chuckling breathlessly. “Y/n, meeting you was the best thing that could ever happen to me. You light up the room. I love you.”
Your eyes were starting to feel misty at her revelations, not really taking into account the depths of her feelings towards you. “And I love you.” You replied honestly. “A lot.” You said lastly, leaning in to kiss her cheek.
Bridget gave you a bashful expression, silently savoring the feeling of your lips on her reddened skin.
“These rocks,” she spoke up suddenly, grabbing them into her hands, as if remembering of their existence just know. “You make a wish and throw them back into the lake.”
“After all the trouble I went for?” You said in a playful accusatory tone.
“I can always help you find them on our next date.” Bridget casually said. Standing up, lending her hand for you to take, which you took gratefully.
You stood io soon after, and with intertwined hands, you made your way to the side of the folly that was facing the lake. You chucked in disbelief. “So this was a real date, then?”
“…only if you wish so.”
Yet instead of answering with words, you found yourself closing your eyes, holding the rock close to your hand, in a way trying to convey your strong feelings into it– your wish.
“I wish for many, many more.”