Black Clover - By My Side (Asta X Noelle)

Chapter 6: Holding Hands

[It appeared as though humanity would be destroyed by demons. But a single mage saved them all. He was called the wizard king, and he became a legend.]

Noelle POV:

It finally happened! I was able to tell Asta how I feel; I think to myself as I sit in the common room of the base. I never thought the day would come. I can't help but feel happy. I can feel a huge smile on my face. However, my thoughts are interrupted.

"Well, Noelle, you seem awfully happy in the morning," says Vanessa while holding a bottle in her hand. 

"I mean, there's no reason not to be happy, is there?"

"Well, you finally snagged yourself Asta, so I guess not." Vannessa takes a sip of her booze straight from the bottle. "Speaking of Asta, where is he?"

Flustered at Vanessa's response, I answer her, "H-H-How would I know? I'm not his keeper!" Although I said this, I know exactly where he is. Two days after the confession, we were able to find a cure for Asta's arms. With the help of Vanessa, Finral, and others, we were able to get help from the Queen of Witches. It's been a week since then. Ever since he was able to fix his arms, Asta's been off in the woods training. I can't blame him, although I wish he would spend more time with me.

"That boy sure does have the nerve to leave his cute girlfriend alone. Aren't you mad, Noelle?" Vanessa asks.

Creepy. It's like she read my mind. "Well, Asta got his arms back. He's probably just happy he can work out again."

"Listen, Noelle, have you two even gone out on a date since you started dating?"

"Well." We haven't. Not at all. But I don't want to tell her that. Plus, I don't want to get in his way of training. I know he's serious about wanting to be the wizard king. Maybe I'd be a distraction? Thinking like that gets me sad. It must have been obvious because Vanessa gets up from lying down and sits next to me.

"Okay, Noelle. I'm going to give you some advice. It's at times like this where you have to be assertive. You see, Asta is just a boy, not a man." Vanessa leans in closer to my face, "you know what I mean?"

Embarrassed by what Vanessa just said, I hide my face behind my hands, "N-NOT AT ALL!"

"You're mighty red right now, Noelle." Vanessa snickers, "tomorrow is the Star Festival. Why don't you go on a date then? We're all going to be there anyway, so it's perfect. You can show him around the capital."

My eyes light up at the idea of it. "That's a great idea!" I rush out of my chair and head towards the door. "Thanks Vanessa!" I say as I head outside. Now to find Asta and invite him out. I walk through the forest but have no luck finding him. Where could he be? Suddenly a familiar-looking bird flys in front of me. 

"Hi, Nero! Where have you been?"

Obviously, Nero doesn't respond, but it's nice to have him around. It's like he's apart of the team. Nero is also super adorable. Nero lands on the ground in front of me and extends his wing to the right of me. 

"Oh, are you showing me where Asta is? Thanks Nero!"

I walk in the direction of where Nero pointed, and sure enough, I find Asta doing pushups.

"Noelle! What's up!" Asta says as he holds himself in a pushup position. 

"Nothing in particular," I say as I twirl my pigtail with my finger, "how's training?"

"I was just about to hit 3000 when you got here. I was actually going to stop and go look for you."

Hearing Asta say that he was going to look for me makes me happy. I can tell that I'm blushing right now. I'm just glad that he wanted to see me. "Did you need something?" I say, trying to hide my excitement.

"Well, I was asking Captain Yami if there was any mission I could go on, and like usual, he said that I need a break. He said something about a Star Festival, and I thought it sounded cool. I have no idea what it is, but let's go together!"

Asta gets up from the ground, looks at me, and smiles. I can feel my heart flutter. He actually invited me out. He really does like me. "Yes! let's go together!" I blurt out without hiding my excitement. "You've never been, have you? The Star Festival is so much fun."

"Alright! It's a date," Asta screams, looking up at the sky. He then looks back at me, walks over, and grabs my hand. "Let's go back, Noelle."

"W-WHO GAVE YOU PERMISSION TO TOUCH ME," I scream out instinctively, "I'M ROYALTY." I jerk my hand away from Asta.

"Come on, Noelle, we can't even hold hands?" He says while grabbing my hand again.

Blushing and embarrassed, I respond in a low voice, "w-well... of course we can. You just caught me off guard." I tighten my grip on Asta's hand and smile as a means of an apology.

Holding hands, we walk off back to the base.

[Chapter 6 end]