Lillian sat on the stone bench beside the fountain, the water slowly rushing from the basin a little cherub held in its hand.
Jameson stood beside the fountain, looking at his reflection in the water. He held onto the edge of the fountain, his heart steadily beating, as an awkward silence settled between them.
Lillian studied Jameson closely, wanting to break the silence. She let out a sigh, but nothing came out. She licked her lips as she felt them drying out.
Jameson touched his reflection in the fountain lightly, the tips of his fingers getting wet.
Letting out the breath he had held in, his eyes wavered.
What was he going to say to her?
What if she's truly not Shannon and all of this is nothing but a ploy? His knuckles whitened as he grabbed the edge of the fountain tighter. There was no way he could know unless he made the move to find out.
But if he truly made the move, would she be angry?
He needed to fix everything and hope that, after helping this prince fix his broken life, it would revert to normal.
Jameson pulled his mask; he turned to face Lillian.
Lillian looked away from the rose flowers she was looking at to distract herself, frowning.
"You," she paused, shocked to see Jameson.
It really was him.
Jameson's eyebrows drew together, trying to jog his memory, "me?" he asked back, wondering if they had already met without him knowing.
Lillian pulled her mask to help him jog his memory. As he saw her face, a smirk appeared on his lips.
"My little fish," he chuckled, all this while she was right within his grasp, but he just wasn't focused; he truly was convinced that it could be her from their previous interaction.
"You look beautiful," he said, again testing the waters this time.
Lillian's cheeks reddened, trying to recall where she had heard this. The word felt familiar to her.
"Thank you." She replied.
Jameson sat down beside her, and Lillian scooted back a bit.
Jameson's brows shut up, wondering why she had scooted back.
Lillian continued, "I thought we weren't meant to pull the mask until midnight?" she inquired.
Jameson's lips tilted up, "Well, it's just both of us in the garden, and you already pulled yours."
Lillian let out a slight chuckle, dropping the mask to her side, and she fiddled with her hands.
Another awkward silence hung between them. "Naruto is mid," Jameson said out of the blue.
Lillian looked at him in shock, "It is not, that's og's of og's," she replied, her eyes widening.
Jameson looked at her, smiling freely now, "caught you."
Lillian placed her hands over her mouth immediately; her cover had just been blown.
[Ding: anomaly found, ally or enemy?]
The system notifications came. The screen popped up for both Lillian and Jameson.
'Huh, so we have to decide whether we'll be allies or enemies, that explains some things,' Jameson muttered to himself.
Lillian bit her lips, wondering if he was an enemy or an ally, wondering on what she would pick; she did remember earlier that her system was based on vows, but was it the same as Jameson's own?
What if he turns out to be an enemy and not an ally? This would disrupt the story's balance and change a good amount of the storyline, even down to the parts she had yet to write before she died.
The only way to find out was to take a leap of faith and bet on it like crazy.
Jameson wasn't in a hurry; he knew they still had a good amount of time before making a decision.
If truly she's the Shannon he's looking for, then she's an ally, and he'll make sure not to let her go.
He looked back at his screen again, and that's when his eyes fell on the penalty.
[Penalty: death or the story progresses]
Jameson felt sweat trickle down his back. This system wasn't making it any easier for him, huh, he'll have to be careful, for both he and Shannon.
Jameson spoke up, breaking the silence, "You're from Earth, aren't you?" he asked, his eyes directly boring into Lillian's.
His lips set in a thin line, as he casually sat on the bench, his hands at the back holding the edge, with his legs outstretched.
Lillian paused, weighing her answers. If she lied, this could spell death for her at the hands of the prince. She gulped silently, "Yes, I'm from Earth."
Jameson smirked. The next question he was about to ask, only Shannon would've known this, "Did you have someone you loved?" he asked, deciding to pace the question.
Lillian's muscles tightened, 'Why was he asking this all of a sudden?' she thought to herself.
Looking back into his eyes, "Yes, yes, I did, but there was nothing tangible to it, since I truly didn't have his heart, I guess," she responded.