As long as you love me 

Ethan

You know that feeling, the one where just looking at someone makes the world seem better? Where their presence alone brings joy, where for a moment, everything terrible in the world fades away? That's how I felt about Aria Ambers. She wasn't just beautiful, she was ethereal. I could stare at her forever. People say I only loved her because she was my soulmate, but no, I know I would've fallen for her regardless. She was someone I could effortlessly imagine a future with. Being with her was as natural as breathing.

Every time I looked at her, it felt like falling in love all over again. Her eyes pulled me in. Her laugh was music to my ears. 

It had been so long since we spoke properly. Our letters had been intercepted, our families' doing, I'm sure. After all, we were from rival empires, heirs to noble houses. But we never let that stop us. Just like my brother is engaged to the Crown Prince of Callisto, and Aria's sister is engaged to the Crown Prince of Allerick, but we've all chosen to ignore the politics. Stephen, the Crown Prince of the Allerick empire, was calm and collected, someone I respected deeply. Rumors about him and my brother's fiancée existed, sure, but I chalked it up to jealousy as I knew my brother and his fiancée were deeply in love. Our parents tried to warn us, told us not to think of the heirs of other empires as friends, but with Aria as my soulmate, it seemed like the goddess Terra's will.

And now, we were finally in the Academy of Magical Affinities. My heart raced with anticipation. I'd finally get to see Aria again. And my brother too, though he hadn't written much lately.

Nova, my familiar, was just as excited. His tail swished with anticipation, though he pretended not to care.

I'm not excited, he grumbled in my head. I just want you to train better so you don't accidentally summon a tornado again.

I laughed. We were bonded through a familiar link, so he could feel my emotions. He was just shy. Having a snow leopard as a familiar made me feel special, though really, he was just like an old, grumpy man in my head.

Hey, asshole I can hear you, Nova growled. You humans are so insolent.

Still, he meant well. He was just as eager to see Elora, Aria's fox familiar, as I was to see Aria. Elora loved teasing Nova, and secretly? He loved it too.

As our ship approached the island, my breath caught. The Island of Magical Affinities was like something out of a dream, lush forests blooming in every shade of green, waterfalls cascading down hillsides that shimmered like crystal under the sunlight. Magic shimmered in the air, thin, silvery threads glittered like spider silk in the breeze. The wind shifted as if whispering secrets, and the air carried the scent of wildflowers and sea salt.

It was beautiful. But more than that, it felt alive. It pulsed with the same rhythm as my magic, as if welcoming me home. I felt it in my bones.

I summoned the wind beneath me. I couldn't fly far, but just enough. Enough to fly into her arms.

The moment I saw her, our eyes met. Her smile crinkled, radiant. Breathtaking. I was in awe. Again. It proved the theory, I fall in love with her every single time I look at her.

"Hey, handsome. It's been a while," she said.

"I've missed you," I replied, voice trembling. Tears pricked my eyes.

She looked at me, understood immediately.

"You look ugly as hell when you cry like seriously. And also, pay up. I won our bet."

I laughed. A year ago, we bet I'd cry when I saw her again. She'd claimed she'd make me cry, but we both knew she wouldn't need to.

"Technically, I'm not crying," I said. "It's just the wind."

"Ethan, you control the wind. Come up with a better lie," she smirked. I wanted to kiss that smirk away.

Nova and Elora played nearby. The weather was warm. I worried for Nova, but he didn't care. Too busy enjoying himself.

"Yo, little bro! Thought your ship was arriving this evening," came Nicholas's voice. My older brother. He looked more like Dad now. People could tell we weren't blood-related, but he never treated me like anything less than his own. He pulled me into a tight hug.

Crown Prince Adonis Callisto and Crown Prince Stephen Allerick stood beside him. Adonis's beauty was unreal, and Stephen seemed just as regal, calm, and kind as before. I greeted them with respect.

"With the power of wind, did you really think I couldn't speed up our trip?" I teased.

"Look at that ego, did that grow with your height too?" Aria quipped. Everyone laughed.

"Can't wait for you to learn more magic and politics," Nicholas said sarcastically. "You'll fit right in. I'm so glad you're here." After saying that, he pulled me in another hug and I hugged him back just as tightly.

We gathered our belongings, and Aria and I walked hand in hand through the academy gates. That's when someone slammed into us.

"Lynx! I swear I'll buy you more meat, just stop running!"

"I'm so sorry," the guy said, catching his breath. "I really should control my familiar better...it's been a long trip."

We both turned to look at him, and froze.

He had light purple eyes. White hair. Warm olive skin. He was stunning. And more than that..

I felt it. Another soulmate bond.

It was like lightning in my chest... no, gentler than that. Like warmth seeping into a part of me I hadn't known was cold. A silent click of something ancient locking into place.

I turned to Aria. She was equally breathless.

"Ahhh sorry again! I'll be more careful! Goodbye!" He vanished before we could react.

"Did you feel that?" Aria asked, her voice barely a whisper. I nodded.

"I love you more than anything, Ethan," she said quickly, searching my face.

I smiled. "I know. I feel the same. But it felt like... a missing piece just snapped into place."

"He's so pretty. I never thought I'd feel this way about anyone else—but it feels right. Are you mad at me?"

She looked nervous. I'd never seen her like that.

"No, my heart. I could never be mad at you. I felt it too. Unless you're mad at me—"

"Well," she grinned, mischief returning to her eyes, "let's see who can find out his name first."

I laughed. Of course, she made it a competition.

"Bring it on."

Even as we laughed and teased, I felt something deeper shift. Like the winds themselves were holding their breath.