Work Text:
Lottie was trying not to fall, which, at the moment, was far more difficult than you'd expect.
She was also trying to keep breathing, and that was nearly impossible. She was panting and tumbling, and she was sure that she was about to die. Nothing in her entire life had ever been that hard.
“You're not even trying!”
If it wasn't for the fact that she was sure she was about to die, she would have cursed: it was extremely impolite, and mean, most of the times, but she didn't care. Then, she felt her legs abandoning her.
She didn't fall, though.
“Alright, Lottie. I think we should stop. You need to rest”, he finally said, catching her before her fall.
“No way. What makes you think that?” She snapped towards Jamie.
“Hey, it's not my fault. You haven't done the exercises I recommended, have you?” She shyly locked her eyes to the ground. It was true. She did almost every exercise Jamie told her to do, but not every single one. They were meant to improve her resistance, so that was the reasons she was so tired right now. “And besides, I told you many times how to move your feet from this position,” She watched him as he showed her the right way to protect herself from a punch and use it to her own advantage “to this one. But for some weird reason, you keep doing whatever you want.”
“I did exactly what you told me to do!”
“No, you didn't. You were not focused. I expect more than this from you.” Lottie sucked her air. She hated disappointing people, even if it was this evil dictator.
“Why don't you understand? It's not easy for me like it is for you!” Jamie watched her as he began to take his things from the ground, a few feet from her.
“Of course. I've done this my entire life. It doesn't mean I expect you to be perfect, but today you were a complete mess.” Lottie was too tired. She was not going to start an argument now.
“Fine. I'm going to my room. See you tomorrow.”
Jamie just watched her as she spun out of the room in a rage. It was an uncommon thing to see Lottie Pumpkin mad, but he actually found it quite amusing. The thing was that it was not uncommon for her to get mad while practicing with him.
She'd always been hardworking, and she wasn't afraid of failing. She also knew learning how to fight wasn't easy, especially for someone like her, and she was ready for it. But there was something about punching, dodging, and the whole fighting dance that made her feel unusually angry. No, not just that.
She felt alive.
After a shower, Lottie finally got into her bedroom, finding her best friend, Ellie, waiting for her. They both smiled at each other and Lottie silently prayed that she didn't ask anything about her afternoon. Luckily, Ellie started talking about her fencing lesson. She didn't know about Lottie practicing with Jamie, and it was for the better way. Both Lottie and Jamie didn't want Ellie to be worried and decided to keep it a secret. Lottie was determinate to protect her princess friend, but she knew Ellie would never accept it.
Lottie kept practicing. Everyday. Sooner than she'd expected she improved her fighting skills, and now she was almost able to keep up with Jamie. She was very proud of herself, almost as he was.
That afternoon Lottie was full of energy. She threw a punch, and Jamie blocked it effortlessly. She turned slightly and tried again. She managed to hit him, even though he barely flinched. She kept going, again and again. She felt strong and powerful. Happily, she saw that Jamie was starting getting a bit tired. She put all her energy in her next moves. It was almost like a dance. A beautiful, exciting dance. She smirked as she kept going. Jamie's face wasn't showing any trace of emotion, but Lottie recognized a spark of amusement in his eyes. She threw another punch and Jamie caught it in his left hand. They stopped without noticing, her fist still in his hand. They were panting hard, too tired from their activity. Lottie looked into Jamie's eyes and smiled, trying to catch her breath. She was about to say something or at least trying to say something.
But Jamie surprised her.
He leaned in, and in a couple of seconds, his lips were on hers.
Another thing that surprised Lottie was that she, in fact, did not break the contact, but leaned in too, trying to get even closer to Jamie. His right hand moved to the small of her back, while the other one left her fist and went up to her nape, his thumb gently caressing her jawline. Her hands cupped his face kindly while she parted her lips.
This is how my first kiss should have been; Lottie found herself thinking.
He slowly but firmly deepened the kiss, and they both started having some problems with the whole breathing thing again. A soft moan escaped from both of them, and Jamie interrupted the kiss. He watched her as trying to catch his breath while she was doing the same, and jolted back. His fingers reluctantly left her body and her hands stood where his cheeks were just a second before.
“Sorry,” Jamie whispered.
“Jamie...”
“No, it was inappropriate of me. I'm sorry Lottie.” He stormed out of the room so fast that Lottie couldn't even process it. She stood there, replaying the kiss in her head.
“Jamie...” she repeated, too late for him to hear it.
Outside the room, the boy leaned against a wall, suddenly exhausted from all the emotions he was feeling.
He'd just kissed Lottie Pumpkin.
And Lottie Pumpkin just kissed him.
It was something so innocent, sweet and perfect that could have lead to a catastrophe. All because he lost his control for once. He shook his head in confusion. What did he do? And the worst thing of all, he couldn't stop smiling at the thought of it.
He was so screwed.