Page 11 of The Nixie and the Frost Elf

"Definitely not." He heads over to the tray of balls and finds one that suits him. "Ready to laugh?"

"No, but only because I'm sure I'm going to be just as bad."

He grins and carries his ball over to the front of the lane. Magic swirls within the ball as he touches it. I don't think it does anything to the ball, it's just supposed to look pretty.

An adorable look of concentration crosses Edur's face as he releases the ball, and it goes barreling down the lane. Much to my surprise, it does hit a skittle, but only the one. It wobbles for a moment and falls over.

"It's better than nothing," he says cheerfully.

I laugh and watch as he fails at knocking any down with his second bowl. Unfortunately, I'm probably about to make just as much of a fool of myself as I choose a ball for myself and head over to the lane. A surprising amount of nerves spring to life as I head towards the line that signals where the lane starts. I know it doesn't matter if I win or lose, but I don't want to fail.

I take a deep breath and try to position myself in the right place to knock some pins down. I swing my arm back, feeling the weight of the ball and putting my own behind it as I let go. It rumbles down the lane, and I watch it while chewing on my bottom lip. I think it's about to go into the gutter, but it glances off one of the skittles, sending it falling into another, and before I know it, three are on the ground.

"Look at that, you're winning already," Edur jokes.

I laugh. "Not for long, I'm sure."

"You underestimate exactly how much I suck at bowling," he responds.

His words soon prove to be true, and as rusty as I am when it comes to bowling, he's far worse, and I'm somehow in the lead when the food arrives. I perch on a stool and eat a slice of dairy-free anchovy pizza, enjoying the strong salty taste of the fish, especially as it drowns out a little of the taste of the dairy-free cheese. I used to eat the normal stuff, but as I've grown older, I've realised how foolish it is of me to insist on eating something bad for me, and I stopped.

Edur saunters back over after taking another dismal turn.

"You didn't tell me you were that bad." I gesture towards the scoreboard.

He leans against the table beside me. "Maybe I can blame the magical scoring system. It's not keeping track of my points well enough."

"Mmhmm, if you say so."

He grins and bumps his shoulder against mine, reminding me of the easy way we used to share affection when we were younger. I've missed this, even if the distance has been completely of my own making.

"So, how's the pizza?" he asks.

"Definitely better than at the bowling alley when we were younger," I respond.

"Something has to be, because our bowling skills definitely aren't," he jokes.

I find myself laughing along with him, feeling so much lighter than I did before we agreed to a date. Something that feels this good can't end badly, I'm not going to let it.

Chapter 6

Edur

No matter how much I try to focus on the day's lectures, I can't seem to manage, with my mind constantly thinking over how well the date with Lexi went. I thought bowling might be the right choice, allowing us to break the ice and have a good time, without the pressure of anything like a formal dinner.

And it had gone even better than I'd expected. We'd laughed, she'd definitely flirted with me, and if I hadn't been so nervous about pushing her too far, I would have asked if I could kiss her.

I walk down the corridor, lost in thoughts of what I should suggest for our next date, only to pause when the haunting notes of an expertly played violin float out from one of the music rooms.

It's not a trance that pulls me towards the sound. I'd recognise the music and the flare anywhere. Years of hearing Lexi practice isn't something that can be erased from my mind, especially not when it comes with the magic of a nixie in it.

The door is cracked open, and I look through to see her in the middle of the room with her eyes closed. Her dark green hair is pulled back so it doesn't get in the way of her playing, exposing the gills on the side of her neck and the slightly darker green patches on the tops of her ears.

Her lips are parted, and the expression on her face would be enough to make anyone fall in love with her. The first time I watched her play, I thought that my reaction to her was just because of the inherent magic she holds as a nixie. I'm not sure why they have a connection to violins, or exactly how it works, but I know there is one.

Over time, I've come to realise that the reaction I have to watching her has nothing to do with magic at all. There's no way I could watch this and not feel like I'm falling in love.

"I know you're there, Edur," she says, not even breaking her stride in the notes she's playing.