"Fly me to the moon," sang the beautiful woman in the corner of the tavern.

She had stunning blue hair that flowed like the sea. Her gleaming diamond-like eyes conveyed her maturity, reflecting a life rich with experiences.

"And let me play in the sky," her mature voice captivated everyone who heard it, bringing dreams to life in their imagination.

In the same way, I couldn't stop hearing her song, I couldn't tear my eyes away from the pink lips that produced it.

"Let me see what spring is like," her demeanor emanated elegance, as if all of her moves were calculated yet instinctual.

The way she moved seemed to accompany the song, flowing with every word, every syllable.

"On Eldora and Riversigh." her voice made me want to–

"Amora!" a voice called out to me.

"Huh? What? Who?"

I frantically searched for the inconsiderate person who had interrupted my daydreaming.

"Ah! Sorry, Mister Frank," I said to the nice old man with furrowed brows and squinted eyes. "What did you say? I wasn't paying attention."

"You have to attend our patrons," he said, mentioning a party of three adventurers waiting for their beer. "Isn't that why I'm paying you?"

"Yes… Sorry."

*Fshh*

"I’m sorry for the delay." Three glasses were placed on the table with a smile of apology.

"It’s okay, Amora," the blonde swordsman said to me, smiling and not caring that my daydreaming had delayed their beer.

The short rogue scoffed, saying, "Finally." She grabbed the glass, which only highlighted the funny contrast between her height and the size of the cup.

"I can’t go on with, like, a dry throat for so long," a female elf with a curvaceous figure said, grabbing the glass with an elegance that didn't match her vocabulary.

"Enjoy your meal," I said with a bow before making my way back to the counter.

The swordsman waved and said with a loud and carefree voice, "Thanks, Amora!" The short rogue scoffed once again.

 

---

 

"Haa~" My shoulders dropped as I let out an exaggerated, long sigh.

Tilting them together with my head didn’t help make the exhaustion go away, but I tried anyway.

"You gave your all today, didn’t you, Amora?" said Mister Frank in a half-sarcastic and half-sincere tone.

"Yeah… Sorry for freezing out of nowhere," I said awkwardly. It wasn’t my intention to stop paying attention to our patrons.

"Oh. I know how it is," he said, looking at the sun setting. "It happened to me a lot of times with my dear Nancy."

"Nancy? You mean your wife?" I asked, not understanding the correlation between the two.

He had mentioned his late wife several times; it was clear that he missed her a lot.

"Yes," he said, "I looked at her just like you look at that woman." He gave me an 'I can see through you' smile.

"What?! No," I said, embarrassed by the idea of liking that woman the way he liked his wife. "I just liked her song, that's all."

"Hm? Is that so?" he said, nodding and holding his chin with his hand. "Then why, as a fan, don't you talk to her? I'm sure she would like to talk with one of her fans."

"Umm… Ok, I guess," I said, trying not to look into his eyes. It's not a bad idea; I could ask her the meaning of the song.

"By the way, what's her name?" I asked, looking at the horizon trying to fight with my eyes to keep them open.

"Estella."

 

---

Estella…

What a beautiful name.

Sitting on my bed, I whispered, "Mundus ignem proiciat," as I touched the candle on the bedside table, igniting it.

The candle's flame illuminated the blue cover of the journal resting on my lap. The word "Songs" was shakily handwritten on it.

Opening the book, I turned to the last page I had used.

My pencil turned from side to side as my impatient hands itched to find inspiration.

Whispering in a made-up melody, I began reading the lyrics I had written:

"Put your head on my shoulder,

Hold me in your arms, baby,

Squeeze me oh so tight,

Show me..."

How do I finish this?

The most popular genre of music is romance.

There are more love songs than singers can sing in their lifetime.

I’ve never dated anyone... Never tasted the honey called 'love'.

How can you describe what honey is if you don't know the taste?

But you can imagine it by observing what you see and hear when people talk about eating honey.

"Show me… that you love me too…"

My pencil finally touched the paper, and I started writing the rest of the song.

Imagining what I saw today, I got inspiration for the next verse.

"Put your…" I stopped. Can I write this? It’s so embarrassing…

Well, it’s not like anyone will read it anyway.

"Put your lips next to mine, dear…"

"Won't you kiss me once, baby…"

"Just a kiss…"

*Smack!*

I closed my journal.

My cheeks were burning red. How could I write something like that? It’s so embarrassing…

With my head on the pillow, my consciousness started wavering.

"Just a kiss goodnight, maybe… You and I will fall in love…"

 

---

 

"Amora…" a sultry voice said to me, "My dearest Amora..."

"Estella..." I said, touching her cheek while gazing deeply into her sky-blue eyes, "Please, tell me..."

"What do you want me to tell you, Amora?" she smiled, caressing my lips as if she were preparing them for something.

"Tell me... that you love me, Estella..." I replied, feeling her soft skin with my hands.

"Yes, my Amora," her lips, drawing closer to mine, whispered, "I love–"

"Gah!" I woke up, feeling hot and sweaty.

But it wasn't because of a bad dream. No, it was because the dream was too good.

I touched my lips; they were missing something, something that would make them feel complete.

Hers.

"What is happening to me?" I said, breathing heavily.

Standing up and getting ready for another day, I glanced at my bedside table, where my journal was.

"He said I should meet her," I thought. "Maybe I can talk about my song... Maybe she could give me some tips?"

With my journal in the pocket of my apron, I gazed at the girl in the mirror.

I wouldn't say she's attractive, but I wouldn't say she's ugly either.

She's just not remarkable...

Maybe she could use some makeup?

My unremarkable lips gained a tone of red, adorned by a lipstick I had never used.

"..."

"Mundus aquam proiciat!"

*Splash!*

And then I immediately turned them back.

"She wouldn't like girls with make-up... Wait!" I interrupted my thoughts.

Estella would never look at me, with or without make-up.

"Haa~"

What am I doing?

This never happened to me before.

This is not love, right?

How can I know if I'm in love?

The girl in the mirror, she doesn't seem to be in love.

She just looks like a confused girl, not knowing where to go or what to do.

"..."

Maybe this girl would look better with a little bit of make-up...

 

---

 

"In other words..." I mumbled while cleaning a table.

I lacked the courage to talk to her.

I lacked the courage to talk to her five times.

I had five chances to talk to her, in all of them, I chickened out and ran away.

Isn't it better this way?

She will be the piece of art I can see but never touch.

This way, the art will never be ruined by someone who doesn't know how to handle it.

*Click*

The door to the bathroom closed with a click.

"I don't remember anyone staying here," I thought, turning around.

It's already midnight, and Mister Frank has already gone home.

"Oh?" A captivating voice said, causing my heart to skip a beat with just one syllable.

It was her...

"Estella?" I said, wondering if I'm actually dreaming.

"Hello, Amora," she said with a captivating smile.

"Y-you know my name?" I stammered, my words struggling to keep up with reality.

"And you know mine, even though I never told you," she teased me.

"W-well... Mister Frank told me," I stuttered, holding my chest in case my heart burst. "But... How do you know mine?"

"Frank told me too," she said.

*Step, step, step*

Her heels resonated in my mind with every step as she circled around me.

Clutching the dirty cloth I used to clean the tables, my eyes tracked her every move, as if I blinked for one second, she would vanish and I would wake up.

"Amora."

*Step, step, step*

With her close to me, her sky-blue eyes stared at me from above.

Though taller than me, from this distance, she appeared even grander than the royal castle's tallest tower.

"Y-yes, Estella?"

Her hand gently raised my chin, tilting my face from side to side, as if she were studying me.

"You're using make-up, aren't you?"

She noticed?!

No one noticed, not even the regulars who talked with me everyday.

"Yes..."

Her smile, somehow, became even more captivating.

I found myself wondering if my heart could handle any more of these moments – these seconds near her.

"It suits you well..."

I thanked the World for deciding to use make-up today.

"...However, I find your natural appearance more charming."

My cheeks were tinted red, and it wasn't because of any makeup.

“Tha-thank you…”

She chuckled softly and said, "No need to thank me." She withdrew her hand – I wanted to pull it back towards me, but I restrained myself. "When I see something cute, my instinct is to appreciate it."

“Cute?!”

Am I having a heart attack?

Is this what heart attacks feel like?

“Yes...” Sparks traveled to my heart when her hand stroked my cheek. “Cute.”

She turned around to leave, her silhouette revealed before me, and I caught myself staring.

"Will we meet again tomorrow, Amora?" She turned her head towards me, casting a glance over her shoulder while her hand rested on the door frame.

"Yes... We will." I turned my head down, trying not to let her notice my inappropriate stares.

*Click*

“Haa~”

It wasn’t a dream.

My dreams never felt so wonderful, so real.

But it wasn’t complete.

It still lacked something.

“I forgot to show my journal…”

On the floor, my foot stepped on…

“A feather?”

 

---

 

My pencil scratched and danced across the paper, breaking the silence of the night.

“You're just too good to be true,” I mumbled, thinking about the lady in my head that I couldn’t erase from my mind.

“Can't take my eyes off of you.” My imagination ran wild and I couldn’t control it.

“You'd be like Heaven to touch.” In my mind, we were together, close, touching each other.

“I wanna hold you so much.” We were so close, so close that I could…

*Smack!*

I couldn’t take it anymore.

My heart ached, it screamed for relief.

"Is love supposed to be this painful?" I thought, sipping water to soothe my heated body.

I've never heard anyone associate pain with love before.

Is it just me?

I have to talk to her…

Maybe if she listens to me and helps me with this pain, I will feel better.

She's mature and older than me; she must have experience with love.

 

---

 

"We'll meet again," sang the most beautiful woman I've ever seen.

Her melody distracted me as I took orders and brought food and beer to the adventurers who had just returned from their life-endangering daily quests.

“Don't know where,” her voice echoed through the tavern, somehow hitting deep into my soul.

Her beauty was out-of-this-world, I couldn’t describe how beautiful she was except for the superficial compliments of “her hair is a beautiful blue” or “her eyes made me fall in love even more with her”

"Don't know when," the notes she reached cast spells on my mind, conjuring the perfect dream even when I wasn't asleep.

Just as she cast spells on me, I cast glances towards her eyes – not only her eyes, but her entire body – inviting me to freeze and stare for the remainder of my life.

“But I know we'll meet again some sunny day.” And just like a novice spellcaster, my glances were poorly cast. Our eyes met at the last glance before my cheeks burned, making me return to my tasks.

*Clap clap clap*

The entire tavern cheered for her splendid performance. Yet, somehow, I knew they didn't see her the same way I did.

I clapped as well, knowing that wasn’t the way I wanted to congratulate her.

*Ding dong*

The city bell rang, signaling the end of both the day and my shift.

"Talk to her, come on…" I mentally prepared myself, taking deep breaths and clutching my journal tightly, afraid it might fly away, preventing me from sharing my songs with her.

*Click*

"Hello, Amora," her alluring voice sounded behind me, making me feel something indescribable. Love?

"Hi, Estella..." I said, trying to say and do much more than I was currently doing, but I couldn't.

The only thing I could do was squirm and hide my journal behind me.

She smiled, tilting her head to see what I was holding. "What do you have there?"

“It’s just…” I was sweating, breathing heavily. She's just near me, what is happening?

“I wanted to share... my songs with you.” My hands trembled as I handed her the journal.

“Oh? How interesting,” she said as she opened the journal to a random page and looked at it with curious eyes.

The sound of her finger caressing the paper made me shiver, filling me with an incredible sensation. I wanted more.

"I loved it," her approval, too, filled me with happiness, but I still wanted more.

Looking at me, she said with a worried tone, "Are you feeling well, Amora?"

"Please..." I said, walking up to her with watery eyes. "Help me, Estella..."

I fell in front of her and she caught me with her arms, "How, Amora?"

"I'm in love with you…" I said between sobs, "I want you so much… You're the only thing I can think about…"

Her smile, her touch on my cheeks, the way she looked at me in that moment, electrified my heart.

"Is that so?" She said, caressing my lips as if she were preparing them for something.

That was it, the moment I had yearned for.

Her lips, perfectly pink, were drawing closer to mine.

Time seemed to slow down, and I couldn't wait for our lips to touch. Why was it taking so long?

Impatient and going against my passive nature, I used all the strength I had left in my body.

I pushed my head forward, finally making the contact between our lips that I had longed for more than anything in the world.

It was perfect.

Her lips tasted like honey, the sweetest honey I have ever tasted.

My tongue invaded her mouth, seeking to taste more of the sweet nectar that she hid inside her mouth.

I moaned, I shook, I squirmed.

Water came out of my eyes and a new sensation flowed from my womanhood.

I touched her, she touched me.

Does she want me the same way I want her?

Just by thinking about it, pleasure ran through my body.

*Rrrip*

My clothes, from my apron to my lingerie, were ripped open from the middle.

I didn’t know how, but I didn’t care.

Her cold hand on my breasts made me gasp, pulling away from our kiss with heavy breaths.

"What are you doing?" I asked, already knowing the answer.

"I want you too," she said, lowering her head to my chest. "I want your whole body, Amora."

Her tongue traveled from above my navel to the peak of my breast, making me feel every emotion.

She sucked, bit, and twisted.

I didn't understand much, but I knew that something was still missing.

My hand moved instinctively to my crotch; I wanted something there. What was it?

She grabbed my hand. "You don't need to do anything," she said. Her hand slowly followed the same path I was going, teasing me further and further, as if longing for the relief I would feel if I touched. "I will take care of everything for you."

She caressed the lips as if she were preparing them for something.

I wanted her to do it already. Why is she taking so long?

“Please…” I pleaded, “I need you, Estella…” my voice quivering.

Her finger slowly penetrated me, with every inch causing me to tremble in her embrace and moan loudly for everyone near the tavern to hear. I didn't care.

When she stopped, my sex covered her hand with my fluids, with my moans getting louder and longer.

After minutes of my body shaking with pleasure, I finally calmed down.

“Oh my,” she smiled. “I didn’t even start.”

What? There is more?

“My dear Amora,” she said. “Can I show you a secret?”

At this point, I would do anything for her.

“Yes, Estella…” I said, full of passion.

She took me in a princess carry, leading me outside.

“Wait! Somebody will see me!” I said, trying to stop her.

“There’s no one here,” she said with a smile that made me believe her instantly.

She opened the door with her shoulder, and I felt the chilly breeze of the night on my bare body.

Her gaze at the sky seemed nostalgic, which made me curious.

I wanted to know more about the woman I had fallen in love with.

She said a spell I've never heard of, "Dea mihi alas tribuat," and with it, her back glowed.

White wings fluttered behind her, making the breeze even chillier.

She was already gorgeous, but her new wings made her look like a goddess.

Her smile made me fall in love again, like all the dozens of times I fell in love with her that night.

She took flight and I saw the city slowly getting smaller.

Surprisingly, I felt no fear, despite being tens of miles up in the air.

Our eyes met again, hers matching the passion that mine always had.

And with our kisses, our touches, our moans miles above the city.

I fell with love.

 

---