Chapter 14 : I hate sushi.

( ( Tyler's POV ) )

I decided to find Sydney first since I needed to be sure Princess didn't do anything to her especially after her screaming fest last night.

I didn't have to search too long, she literally stood out from the crowd, she really looked beautiful [ No wonder the evil queen was so intimidated ] And she seemed to be talking to one of the seven dwarves, Dopey.

[ That's not a dwarf, that's a freaking prince. Like prince charming level handsomeness ] She was staring at me but when I finally closed the distance, she had her eyes closed. " Is that you Miss Sydney "?

It was like she'd seen a ghost then ran away from the ghost and the ghost found her again. Then I introduced myself and she threatened to call the guards [ I'm impressed by how quickly she gets into character ]

It was obvious she wasn't joking around and wasn't particularly keen about strangers. I scratched my head [ How do I make her believe me? ] then I remembered the pen I'd taken from the book earlier, " Don't do that, I'm sure you recognize the pen ]

And of course she did, she snatched it from me and looked so angry I thought she'd break it just by staring at it. " Of course I do, the damned book that caused all this ", She couldn't have said it better but it seemed like she'd scared Dopey.

She must have realized it too and apologized [ So she can be gentle ] I thought we could relax before trying to figure out a way out of this game. But Sydney really has an overactive imagination and I knocked her head lightly, " You humans way of thinking is always odd and negative ".

She rubbed her head lightly, " You say that like your not human ". I froze instantly, panicking in my head [ She knows! I'm so screwed ] I laughed nervously and she leaned in closer, poking her now fair finger at my chest " You are human, right "?

[ I can't give myself away ] and gently removed her finger from my chest, " Of course I am ". She didn't seem convinced or terrified either and she kept wagging her finger at me.

" I don't think so, you don't even know the human form of greeting ". My internal panic only grew [ I'll never become a Professional Storyteller if she finds out ] but the mode of greeting turned out to be kissing?

I'm no expert in human history but I've never really come across kissing as a form of greeting, [ No wonder I flunked that class ] She went on about how people did it and even fairytale characters [ I guess that makes sense]

" But since you didn't know that, I guess you're not human ". That is, my brain had shutdown from all the panicking [ It's a lot of work ] but I forced myself to remain calm, sorta " Of course I do.....I just forgot to greet you since I was so excited to see you ".

I have no idea what she said after that [ I can't let her know ] and kissed her. I felt relieved, like I'd finally done something right but she'd suddenly stood up and was wiping her mouth. [ Didn't I get it right? ]

But I had to maintain my cover, even if it meant kissing her a thousand times " Didn't I do that right? Let me do it again ". She seemed surprised by that [ I'm an awful kisser, aren't I? ]

I tried to redeem myself but she just pushed me away, " That won't be necessary, you did fine ". That was all I needed to hear, I was so busy complimenting myself I wasn't paying attention.

When Sydney suddenly grabbed my shirt, catching me off guard and taking me down with her. We landed in the fountain with a splash. It was surprisingly deep but not that death.

I swam up but Sydney wasn't up yet. Clearing the water from my face. I lifted her by the waist and she seemed like she was choking on something, " Are you alright "? She frowned and pointed at her mouth, " You're right, that was a dumb question to ask ".

I pushed on her stomach and after a few tries, she coughed up one of the little fish that was in the pool. She coughed a few more times and I patted her back, " Better ".

She stuck out her tongue, spitting whatever was in it " Ugh, that wasn't as good as I thought ". I sighed [ Why am I even worried about her? ] " I hate sushi ". I couldn't help but laugh and she frowned, " What's funny? you nearly killed me ".

I couldn't stop myself from laughing and she pushed me back into the water before struggling out herself, " You're crazy, a walking disaster area ".