Level Five Skipped: Chronomentrophobia

"Yes, I'm in love with you, Shyrene Novah Rosen, and I've never been sorry for that a day in my life. It's become part of me, actually, over these years and I feel like I don't know who I am if that was any different," Blake was still embarrassed and had a hard time with communicating his feelings, but he was getting more courageous as he talked, probably reminding himself that the hardest part was already over with. However he goes on, Shyrene already knows the truth.

"And I don't know if I deserve to love you, deserve to have you, deserve to even stand here like this right now and face you with words as powerful and serious as this, but I do know that it's true. I haven't been more certain about any thought I've ever had, or feeling I've ever felt, but this I know. I do," He faced another direction, the expression Shyrene had hard for him to look at. Maybe he felt unsure of what'd she'd think of him or what would happen to the two of them depending on what she'd say would change everything for him discouraged him. I couldn't say, because I couldn't see it. All I could see was her shortened hair and the back of her head. "What I am sorry for is—."

"I love you too, Blake Lee Qirmiz," she said, cutting in, and I could swear with it came a flood swelling up in his eyes. I didn't have good visual evidence for that though, as this blinding white shone from above them, specifically, leaving me off to the side in the darkness. Oddly, for as beaming as it was from my perspective, neither of them acted like they were phased.

"Do you think you've hurt me or something? Don't apologize for anything. When I saw you for the first time, I saw you as potential love. Someone I can fall in love with soon enough, and I as right, but we had our own lives, and I didn't want to be the type of person that would jump into yours and claim I could be better for you than anyone else because there's no evidence of that until it's began, but scenarios would keep me up at night.

"I'd tell myself, maybe, it's true you're in love with someone, but are you happy with her too? Why don't your eyes twinkle when you're with her? Why don't you stare at her like she's the most amazing blessing in your life? Because, you can be happy with someone, and not in love with them, and also in love with someone and not happy with them. For the kind that's everlasting, you need both and that's the kind you deserve," she laughed lightly, shaking her head, flustered. "If you want to give me the privilege of being the source both of those, then I'm going to devote myself, and cherish it for everyday that I have."

"Well, thank the Lord that this finally happened," a voice perked out from above, appearing to have came from the light. I recognized it in an instant because I heard it all the time when I was at the surface dream layer; it was my grandmother, who was in charge of a lot of things going on somewhere around the dream world since she passed.

I thought before, I'd hold a grudge against her when I saw her for putting me through this, but hearing her, it's like I understood it in a click, how necessary all of this was, and how it was for my own good. How if it didn't exist, the terrible long term effects there can be in my mental and physical health. She seems to have the best intention for everyone, Shyrene and Blake included.

"Your Majesty?" The two of them said when they heard her, bowing slightly. They exchanged looks as they cleared their throats from the interruption of their moment, before they squinted up at the light, and overtime it faded off, until it was bearable to look up at. I could see her, Lola Yenn, up above us. Shyrene put that shared look with Blake into words. "It's been a while since we've seen you Your Highness. We're forever indebted to you for saving our lives, but with all due respect, what's the reason you've come to see us?"

"I'm proud of you both for what you realized today. That feeling has been inside of both of you for years, but it's like wine. It's aging beautifully," Lola Yenn started off, yet none of us knew what she was talking about, "I had to come witness it for myself."

"If you're proud of what just happened, are you telling us that our ultimate task was our confession?" Blake spoke up, curious. He was slyly placing his arm around Shyrene's shoulder, as if he's never done it before, and in a way, he hasn't. Friends and lovers change a lot of things.

"In a sense, yes," my grandmother replied, nodding, "on the day every world disintegrated, besides our one, the gods granted me a wish for making a decision that they thought was humble, and that would benefit the one remaining world. I didn't need anything. I was Queen after all, and for the most part I had the ability to get anything I wanted. I was spoiled that way, so I knew someone out there had to need it more, and that's when I stumbled over your paperwork," there was a mini lull to her speech, and it made the entire thing more impelling and profound.

"Everyone in the entire population had their stories fulfilled. Whether that meant they already found the love of their life, succeeded in business, found happiness, or maybe sadly confessed to find that that person didn't return their feelings, they went through with everything. They've passed that peak in their lives; that climax, and it's only the two of you that didn't.

"You've had mutual feelings all the way since then, and neither of you knew. Every god rooted for you, so it wasn't hard to convince them to give you one last chance to building a life together. The catch was that because you were from another world that was being torn apart, the surviving world couldn't make compromises for you in order to be careful and have close security of what we had left. That's why you ended up here, but this isn't all in store for you. After you finish this task with Ellie, the earth you've only heard about from here had a very promising future for you both too. Let's just say you both have very steady hands blessed with keeping people alive, so focus on getting this done safely, alright? I'm so happy you have the chance to reach your full potential."

"Th-this is too good to be true!" Blake stuttered through a phrase, more than satisfied with the news, and it bonded him and Shyrene into a tight hug of excitement, but most of all in their love for each other.

Out of their happiness, I couldn't help but to take a glance at Camdyn since we had something before, who, though had his eyes shut, had a single tear rolling down his cheek. Though I was genuinely in celebration mode for the two I met in this world in my head, I felt a pang in my chest as I looked at him, because I knew it was because of me. From the conversation between him and his past self that I had to have overheard, the only way that could go downhill is because of the halt on us, and what used to be. One day, instead of associating clocks with his late mother, he'd be associating it with his ex-girlfriend.

I guess in some situations, both sides are victims.

"You're lucky, Ellie, that Shyrene and Blake's timing benefited you, because if I didn't play with the rules right now to let them be who they should've been all this time, and to reflect on that, you would go out of control much worse than you've ever been because of what you're looking at right now. You'd have the biggest loss of lives on this level than any other. If I wasn't here, you couldn't have passed this level. When it comes to Camdyn, that's how you are, whether you accept that or not.

"I'm granting you a break too, so use it wisely, since I'm not supposed to do this. I have nothing to do with these harsh levels. Typically I'd want nothing to do with it. I just need you to realize why you're here," Lola Yenn explained, passing her attention to me out of nowhere. "And if you've heard me say anything about Camdyn being not right for you, this is the first time I'm telling you that I was wrong. He's nothing like your father, and he's a good guy. Talk it out."

"But Lola," I tried to respond, but she was gone by the snap of the fingers, the bright light back into the dark it was before.

DUE TO ROYAL STATUS REQUEST...

LEVEL FIVE HAS BEEN SKIPPED

LIVES REMAINING, SEVEN

PREPPING LEVEL SIX

PLEASE WAIT

The font was up above me in her place, like a warning that was supposed to frighten me into listening to her. It's likely accurate that I should be thankful for what she did for us, and that she might've saved our asses from what could've been very bad because of me, all for the sake of wanting to push us toward the finish line, but my ego wouldn't quit snapping at me. I didn't want to be obedient, or patient, or mild, and most of all, I didn't want to be thankful.

It felt like I was breaking every rule in the book out of that ego, but I did try to heed her advice anyway. Kneeled beside him, by a body that was barely coming to from being traumatized by his own thoughts up to a little bit ago, I doubted that he could hear anything I'd say to him, which made the first try easier. He was so helpless laying there, so vulnerable, and so open to anything that could harm him, and damage mentally was already done. That was something too, that people don't notice.

"I'm sorry Cams, that you had to climb over this mountain of a fear to get to me, and that the most you can do now is convince yourself that we're not impossible. I admire your faith though, whether things come better or for worse. Where'd you get that from anyway?"

I adjusted my position, so I went from my knees to being fully on the floor, like I was preparing myself to be here a while. I don't know if I really was or I wasn't. "But why is it so hard to approach you, like I used to? I prepared so hard for us to have to be strangers again because I thought that's how it had to be, that now that you're here, like this, I slip up and treat you more or less than whatever it is I should be doing. Are you someone that I used to know, or a friend or more? I don't know what I'm supposed to do. Camdyn, what am I supposed to do?"