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Ashley cheered and linked her arm through mine, already chattering plans for hairstyles and accessories as we hurried off campus together. Glancing back briefly, I spotted Derek still standing alone exactly where we had left him. His face seemed unreadable in the distance, but I imagined confusion and curiosity swirling behind those grey eyes that had seen more of me than intended today.
There was no time to unravel that tangle of troubles now though. Leonardo was my sole focus. We had fought too hard to find each other again. I refused to waste a single second of our limited time worrying about undeserved insults from petty mafia princesses or magnetic pull toward daring rugby captains. Tonight was about the man who truly held my heart, who saw and accepted every side of me.
Back at Ashley’s house, we raced up to her bedroom, giddy with breathless exhilaration over our narrow escape from campus chaos. I quickly stripped out of my rumpled, dirty clothes from the scuffle while Ashley zipped around gathering up the makeup, shoes, and jewelry we had excitedly picked out last night.
Soon I was ensconced in her plush bathrobe as she went to work taming my wild locks into soft curls and waves. I closed my eyes, letting her skilled hands work their magic transforming me from disheveled warrior back to elegant enchantress.
“Okay, now keep your eyes shut - no peeking yet!” Ashley singsonged later, adding mysterious finishing touches to my face. I obligingly kept still, anticipation building at what glamorous look she had created.
Finally, Ashley tapped my shoulder. “Alright, ready for the big reveal?”
With a deep breath, I opened my eyes and slowly pivoted to face the standing mirror. An awed gasp escaped me. The goddess staring back took my breath away.
“Ashley...it’s perfect!” I managed finally, tears glittering in my eyes. She had worked nothing short of magic.
The full princess ensemble came together flawlessly. Ethereal makeup accentuated my eyes and cheekbones. Ashley had woven small flowers into my cascading curls like something from a Chagall painting. And the sweeping blue dress glittered like stardust. I looked the part of Cinderella finally going to the ball she had dreamed of her whole life.
Ashley hugged me tight from behind, meeting my luminous smile in the mirror. “You look incredible, Nat! Leonardo’s not gonna know what hit him.”
As we did a few giddy twirls, I blinked back happy tears, overwhelmed with gratitude for such a gifted best friend. The disastrous campus detour could have sabotaged everything. But thanks to steadfast Ashley, I was impossibly ready for my enchanted date night just in time. And I would savor every dazzling second of it now.
After one final awed survey in the mirror, I carefully made my way downstairs, clutch purse dangling gracefully from my wrist. My stomach fluttered with exhilarated anticipation. Leonardo would be here any moment to sweep me off on our long-awaited fairytale evening. And I intended to treasure every magical memory together.
Ashley had busied herself tidying up the living room, wanting things in perfect order for our departure. When she caught sight of me descending the stairs in all my finery, a huge smile lit up her face.
“Look at you, absolute vision! I’d say we did good.” She winked playfully, but her voice was warm with sincerity.
I did a graceful twirl, admiring how the chiffon fabric floated ethereally around me. “I can’t thank you enough. Getting me red-carpet ready in the nick of time...”
Sudden tears sprang to Ashley’s eyes as she rushed forward to hug me tightly again. “Anything for my best girl,” she whispered. “Now go have a night you’ll never forget!”
Before my own happy tears could spill over and ruin the flawless makeup job, the buzz of the doorbell sent us springing apart. My pulse skyrocketed. This was it - finally a perfect evening ahead with my soulmate, who had never given up on me or on us despite the odds.
With Ashley cheering me on, I glided gracefully toward the waiting promise of our long-awaited enchanted date night. A night for making new memories together to hold close through whatever waited ahead. Tonight, no shadows of the past or future could touch us. It was just me and Leonardo, embracing joy and magic again as if the world held nothing but wonder for us still.
Leonardo’s POV:
Here's the passage rewritten in a more natural tone:
I leaned back with a frustrated sigh, running my hands through my hair. I'd been poring over files and notes for days, but I was still no closer to figuring out what the hell sparked this whole chaotic situation with Natalia's family.
Her dad seemed to be at the center of it all, but his motives were a complete mystery. My usual informants could only tell me theguy had become increasingly unhinged and paranoid lately. Like he was on some kind of personal vendetta. But I still didn't have any clue what set him off or how to protect Natalia from the fallout.
The not knowing was driving me crazy. Some ugly demon had ripped Natalia's whole world apart overnight. She at least deserved answers about the danger she was in. I had to keep digging until the truth came out, no matter how messy it might be. This was too personal to let go.
Glancing at the clock, I was shocked to see it was past 9pm already. Time always disappeared when I got caught in obsessive tunnel-vision work mode like this.
My phone buzzed with an incoming text that made me pause. Seeing Natalia's smiling face light up the screen sent a pang through me after the dark mental path I'd been going down. A preview of the light still left untainted in all this mess.
Natalia: Happy Friday, handsome!??Just daydreaming about our date tonight. I hope you're getting excited too! Already counting down the minutes until I'm back in your arms where I belong.?? See you soon, my love!
A smile pulled at my lips almost involuntarily. With everything going on, I'd nearly lost track that tonight was supposed to be our big romantic date out on the town. Natalia deserved that magical escape from her reality more than ever now. And I coulddefinitely stand to forget the ugliness and just be with her for a few hours too.
Checking the time again, I figured I had just enough to quickly clean up and make myself presentable for my princess. I felt grimy and beat from endless days and nights on this case. A long hot shower would help clear my head.
I turned the water temp up as high as I could take it, letting it wash off the mental strain and exhaustion that had been weighing me down. The heat felt good on my sore muscles too. I took my time scrubbing away the remnants of too many restless, staked-out nights until I was cleansed of it all, at least on the surface.
Toweling off, I wiped the fog from the mirror and checked myself out. Rugged stubble and fatigued eyes stared back at me. Natalia deserved a polished prince, but this was the reality behind the feared facade - just another whipped, desperate guy willing to walk through fire for the woman he loved. Nothing mysterious there.
