The biggest smile I’ve ever seen inches across his face.
The world resumes…
I fall back down to earth…
Oxygen fills my lungs…
As my head explodes in a myriad of shattered pieces of memory of this very smile.
“Noah.” My limbs feel as if I’m floating, my vision fading in and out. My eyes flutter closed. My knees give out. Strong arms hold me close against a warm chest as my sense of self evaporates.
***
Have you ever had the best sleep of your life?
The kind of sleep that, as you start to wake up, you’re perfectly happy, content, warm, cozy, and at peace?
Stretching, my hands slap against something.
No, not something.
Someone.
I startle from my dreamlike state, struggling to untangle myself out of whatever I’m wrapped so snugly inside of.
“Hey, hey, hey,” a deep, familiar voice whispers quickly. “You’re safe, sweetheart.”
Noah.
Alaska.
We found him,the Noah inside my head celebrates.
The montage of his smiles flickers to life in my head as a film reel. I play it on repeat, wondering what was the cause of each one.
My eyes fly open, and Noah kneels beside me as I lie on that raggedy couch I found him on when I walked through the door. Hints of golden sunlight shine around the edges of the window,but thick curtains block most of it out. I must not have been out long.
Noah smiles so brightly and genuinely, though I can tell he’s been crying. His hazel, gold-flecked eyes are red, and his face is puffy. I memorize every detail of his expression. His wide eyes, the wrinkles of his smile line, the sharp contours of his nose, his high cheekbones. Perfection. Every inch of him.
It terrifies me.
“Where’s Ashton?” I ask.
Noah’s brows scrunch together. “He, uh—” Noah runs a hand through his hair and blows out a breath of air. “Nick and Ashton went to the store for groceries.”
He stands and takes a few steps back from the couch. “Do you remember me, Esme?” The hope in his voice cuts me like a knife, and then I remember Ashton told me hewascut by a knife. Stabbed by a knife. Beaten and broken and bruised.For me.
Readying myself, I drop my gaze to his neck, but I can’t see anything due to his hoodie and the low light of the room.
Clearing my throat, I sit up and look around the cabin. It’s on the smaller end, looking like it’s two bedrooms. The living room is connected to the dining area and kitchen, and the fireplace is doing a wonderful job at keeping the place warm.
“Esme?” he asks again, hope undulating in his voice.
“A little,” I confess, not brave enough to make eye contact. “I’ve remembered glimpses of things, but I—” I exhale, hating myself for not remembering everything when the joy I felt at his smile came rushing back. “I remember your smile. And that it made me happy.”
Startling me, Noah throws his head back and laughs. It’s a crazed sound, as if he hasn’t laughed in years and is trying out the action again. “My best feature. It cost my parents over five grand, so I’m glad it’s memorable.”
Finally, I lift my face toward him while tucking my legs underneath me on the couch. I tug the blanket around me tighter as if it’s a shield. “When will Ashton be back?”
