“Are you okay?” she asks.
I exhale. “No. But I will be. The girls… were you okay?”
She nods. “Yeah. They took care of me.”
Good. Relief slides in, unexpected and real.
I nod once. “Good.”
I stay standing, tension locked through me, unsure of my footing
“You don’t have to hover by the door,” she says gently.
My jaw tightens. “I don’t want to get this wrong.” The honesty slips out before I can filter it.
Her eyes soften. “You won’t, and even if you do, you’re allowed to.”
Something in me loosens.
She crosses the space between us and touches my cheek, slow and deliberate. I lean into it before I can stop myself, the contact grounding in a way words haven’t been all day.
“Are you okay?” she asks.
I don’t lie. “No.”
She nods like that answer is expected. “Do you want to talk?”
I hesitate. Then shake my head. “Not yet.”
“Okay.” No pressure. No disappointment. “Do you want quiet?”
“Yes.”
She steps closer, studying me. “Come here.”
I don’t hesitate. I close the space between us and reach for her first, catching her like I’ve been holding myself together with sheer willpower all day. My arms lock around her waist and I pull her in, breathing her in like oxygen.
“I’m here,” she whispers.
“I know,” I say, and this time I mean it.
The kiss that follows isn’t frantic. It’s heavy and intentional. Full of everything I haven’t said yet. My hands slide into her hair, grip gentle but sure, like I need the contact to anchor me.
“If I start talking,” I murmured against her mouth, “I’m going to lose it.”
“Then don’t talk,” she says softly.
I kiss her again, slower, like I’m calming something inside myself instead of chasing it.
We sit on the couch tangled together, her weight in my lap, her head tucked against my neck. I breathe her in and let the tension ease by degrees. Not gone. Not fixed.
But quieter.
Her breathing evens out first.
Mine follows slower, like my body doesn’t trust calm yet.
I rest my forehead against her shoulder and let my eyes close, not sleeping, just existing in a way that feels unfamiliar. I can’t remember the last time I let someone see me without structure, without control layered over every response.
