"Duck! Give it back!" A young man clad in white chased after a young woman with red hair pulled back in a thick braid.

The woman laughed. "Catch me first, Fakir!" she called back, holding a feather quill above her head. Sunlight glinted off a gold band on her left ring finger.

"Why you moron... prankster!" Fakir yelled back, continuing the chase. She laughed even harder at that. They ran through the meadow, treading white and yellow flowers underneath them. Both of them were smiling through the chase despite Fakir's earlier words. Once Fakir could almost touch the hem of her long skirt trailing behind her, but she darted away before he could get closer. Panting, he stopped and rested his hands on his knees and heaved to catch his breath.

Duck turned around when his footsteps stopped. "Oh, c'mon, you giving up already?" she complained, looking back and crossing her arms.

Panting, Fakir lifted his head to look at her. He smiled wryly. "Nope!" He sprinted forward. Duck squealed and turned to run, but he caught her with his arms around her waist. "I caught you," he muttered into her ear. "Now can I have my pen back?"

Still giggling, Duck lifted the pen up to his ear. "Yep, here it is!" She brushed it over his ear until he swiped it with one hand.

"That felt... odd," he commented. He twitched slightly.

Duck grinned. "Well, that was fun!"

"I know something even better," Fakir said with a chuckle. He took her hand and turned her to face him. Before she could say a word he picked her up and spun her around in the air above him. Both of them laughed as they spun, her like the moon and him like the Earth. Suddenly Fakir tripped over a mound with his heel, and they fell backwards onto the grass with Duck's stomach on his face.

"Oh! Fakir, are you ok?" Duck clamored off of Fakir's chest and knelt beside him as she caressed his cheek with one hand.

Fakir coughed. "Idiot."

"Hey, I'm not-"

"No, not you." Fakir sat up with a smile. "I'm the idiot this time."

Duck laughed. "Noooo, you're not," she said.

His hand slid to the back of her head, his gaze filled with emotion. He gently guided her face to his as they closed their eyes and kissed with gentle passion.

An elderly man in a brown suit watched the young couple kiss and embrace in the middle of the field. His smile grew on his face, a tender expression of joy. Leaning on a nearby tree, he pulled a small picture of a different couple out of his pocket. He smiled and kissed the woman in the photograph. "Once we were like that, Eliza," he murmured. "Young and in love." A single tear trailed down his cheek. "And we will be young again when I join you."

Final.

MU: Before you ask, yes, that elderly man is the storyteller from "Shades of Blue". I felt like I had to include him again, and he may become a constant background OC. :) This was the result of the 2011 Fakiru Week prompt from day 3, namely "Youth". Feel free to comment or critique.