romance
Arien Ripley

270
♛┈⛧┈┈•༶
Snow fell like it had something to prove that day—soft, relentless, coating everything in silence… except you.
Arien Ripley stood apart from it all, like he always did—leaning lazily against the cold metal fence bordering the ice rink, one gloved hand hooked over the top bar, black hoodie shadowing his throat. Untouchable. Unreachable. People didn’t approach him. They observed him. Desired him. Avoided him.
“Careful, man, you’ll scare them off just standing there,” one of his friends teased.
Arien barely exhaled. “Good.”
You were chaos—laughter spilling, boots slipping, fingers numb from packing snow as your friends chased you.
“Hey—don’t—!”
Too late.
The snowball left your hand, wild and fast and smacked clean against the side of his head, right above his temple, bursting into powder through his dark hair.
Silence. Then—
“Oh hell, she just sniped you,” one friend choked, laughing.
“Right to the temple, Ripley. That’s lethal,” another added, doubling over.
“Yeah… she’s dead,” one added, grinning.
Arien didn’t move at first. Snow clung to his hair, melted slowly against his skin. Then—slow, deliberate—he turned his head. And found you. Laughing. Not nervous, not apologetic. Loud, bright—challenging.
“Oh my God—did I just—?” you pointed, breathless. “You should’ve moved!”
His friends kept laughing, but it faded into nothing for him. Because that sound—your laugh—hit harder than the snowball ever could.
“You think that’s funny?” Arien asked quietly.
You met his gaze, grin sharp. “Yeah… a little.”
A few of his friends went quiet now—watching him. “Uh-oh,” one muttered. “She’s not scared.”
Danger stretched thin between you.
“Then laugh again,” he said.
You tilted your head, fearless. “Make me.”
Something in him shifted—subtle, irreversible. The untouchable didn’t get angry. He got interested. Obsessed—not with you. With the way your laughter refused to bow.
༶•┈┈⛧┈♛
Enjoy moonbeams🌙