"Because I'm not," she says flatly. "Just because you serenaded me in front of hundreds of people and confessed your feelings for me doesn't suddenly make me yours, Zach. Or mean we'retogether.It doesn't work like that."
"That's just semantics, Caroline."
I cradle her jaw with one hand, and she goes perfectly still. Not pulling back, just… holding her breath. Her lashes tremble when my thumb skims her skin, like the touch startled something awake in her.
"You and I both know we've always belonged together. Three years apart didn't change that. Hell, it only made it stronger."
I lean in until our foreheads touch, my thumb tracing slow, gentle circles against her cheek.
"Labels?" I murmur. "Boyfriend, girlfriend—those are just formalities, babe. It's okay if you're not ready to call it anything yet... but don't ever deny what's been real between us since day one."
My voice softens, rough at the edges. "You've always been mine—the one constant in every version of my life. And I—" I smile faintly, brushing my nose against hers, "I've always been hopelessly, recklessly,irrevocablyyours."
Her cheeks flare crimson, eyes wide and searching mine like she's not sure what to do with all the air between us. Then her tongue darts out, a quick flick across her lips—barely a second, but it's enough to knock the sense out of me.
God, those lips. Soft, glossy, heartbreak written all over them.
"Fuck, I really wanna kiss you."
Shit.
Did I just say that out loud?
Her eyes widen instantly, a soft gasp slipping through those lips I wasjusttrying not to stare at. And yep—too late now. No take-backs.
Her lips part just a little more, and for a moment, I think she's gonna bolt—or slap me.
But she doesn't.
"I'm not sure... if that's a good idea," she whispers, voice trembling. But her gaze drifts right back to my mouth, and she swallows hard like she's fighting herself.
"Why not, babe?" I croon, half-teasing, half-pleading.
"Because..." she fidgets, shy and flustered, her lashes sweeping down. "I might be bad at it."
I can't stop the grin that spreads across my face.
It's ridiculous how happy that confession makes me. She's not hesitating because she doesn'twantto kiss me—she's hesitating because she's nervous.
Her eyes flick back up, cheeks pink. "Stop making fun of me, dumbass," she mutters, looking away. "I've never been kissed, so it's only natural that I might be bad at it."
I reach out, fingers catching her chin between my thumb and forefinger, tilting her face back toward me. "That's where you're wrong."
Her brows knit together. "Huh?"
"You already had your first kiss," I say, a smirk tugging at my mouth. "With me."
Disbelief flashes across her face. "What?"
"High school. Sophomore year." My smile grows softer at the memory. "I had that big geometry makeup test the next day—you were tutoring me. We were crammed over your desk, you explaining how to find the area of a trapezoid or something, and I was dead tired from practice. I must've knocked out right there."
Her lips part as I go on. "Next thing I know, I wake up to your face crashing into mine. You must've fallen asleep too, and boom—your lips landed straight on mine." I laugh quietly. "You snored, by the way. Really cute."
Her jaw drops. "I thought that was just a... dream."
"Oh, so yourememberit." I chuckle, my chest warm. "Guess it wasn't just me."
"I... I thought I was just dreaming," she says again.
