He doesn’t interrupt, just listens with that steady gaze that always makes me feel safe.
I take a breath.
“I need you to know that I’ll understand. If, after hearing everything… you decide you don’t want to be with me anymore. I mean it. You’re not obligated to stay. You’ve already done more than enough. So… if you walk away after this, I’ll understand.”
For a heartbeat, the hallway feels too quiet, like the world paused to hear whether my biggest fear will come true.
In my mind, a thousand voices scream at once—Please don’t leave me. Choose me. Nobody ever chooses me.
Elijah’s entire body tenses. “No. No, no, no—STOP.” His voice cracks through the silence.
His hands grip my shoulders, not to hurt, but to anchor.
“Do youreallythink I would leave you? That somethinghedid—something out of your control—could make me stop loving you? Ava, there isnothingin this world, not past, present, or future, that could erase how I feel about you.You are it for me.You are my reason. Myeveryreason. And I will love you until my last breath—and beyond.Do you understand me?”
Tears blur my vision, and I nod.
He leans in, voice stern now. “Use your words, Ava.”
“Yes,” I whisper. “I understand.”
And then he kisses me—like he’s trying to undo the hurt, like he’s trying to burn his love into my skin, into my bones, deep into my soul. I melt into him, because in his arms is the only place that doesn’t ache.
“I love you, Ava,” he breathes against my lips. “And Ialwayswill.”
I pull back just slightly, my voice trembling. “But it’s just me…”
He cups my cheek, eyes burning with emotion.
“That’s all I’ve ever wanted.,Just You, Just Me, Just Us.”
Elijah doesn’t let go.
He holds me there like I’m made of glass and gold at the same time—something precious, something fragile, something he refuses to lose.
His forehead rests against mine, and his breath is warm as it brushes my skin.
“You’re not just ‘enough’ for me, Ava,” he whispers.
“You’reeverything.I need you to start believing that—not because I’m telling you, but because it’s the truth.”
I close my eyes and let his words sink into me, like they can stitch up something raw inside.
“I want to believe it,” I whisper.
He nods gently. “Then let me help you. Every day. Every night. However long it takes. You don’t have to carry this alone anymore.”
My arms tighten around his waist. The warmth of his body, the familiar scent of his cologne—everything about him feels like safety. Likehome.
“Elijah… I was so scared. I thought I would never see you again.” My voice cracks, quiet and childlike.
“I know, baby. I know.” His hand cradles the back of my head, fingers weaving gently through my damp hair. “But it’s over. You’re safe now. And I’m not going anywhere.”
I want to stay like this forever, wrapped in him, away from the world and everything it tried to take from me. But I know there are things I have to face—truths I have to speak.
Still, for one more minute, I let myself sink into his embrace.
“Do you think they’ll look at me differently?” I ask, barely audible.
