The gesture was so small and innocent, but it made my heart race. It felt like a big step, a neon sign declaring our relationship to the world.
Chase mistook my surprised joy as hesitation. “You good? We don’t have to, if you don’t—”
I clenched his fingers harder. Maybe too hard.
“Ow, okay, I get the point,” he said through a laugh.
“You need to teach me all these things,” I mumbled, a bit defensively. “I’ve never been in a relationship before, remember?”
“It’s cool. We’ll take it at our own pace.” He smiled. “You can start by, uh, not pinching me like a crab.”
“Sorry.”
I stopped clenching his hand. Somewhat. I didn’t want to let him go. I’d never felt this way about anybody before, and it would’ve frightened me if it didn’t feel so good.
Chase’s companionship was natural and easy. I’d always heard that love was difficult, and that it took work, but I never experienced that with Chase. We had a couple annoyances here and there, mostly at the beginning, but he made me feel safe and comfortable. Cared for. Loved.
I probably didn’t tell him that I loved him enough.
“I love you,” I said abruptly.
Chase was mid-step on the sidewalk when I’d blurted that out. He halted. His blue eyes rounded and his cheeks flushed pink.
“I—I love you, too. Obviously,” he added.
As if unable to stop himself, his mouth broke out into an ear-to-ear, puppy dog grin. That was another thing I liked about him. It was so easy for him to show his affection, which made me feel secure. I never doubted how he felt about me.
I cleared my throat. “It felt right to tell you.”
He chuckled. “Thanks. It’s nice to hear.”
The pad of his thumb caressed the back of my hand, reminding me he was there, and we were linked.
A warm layer of calm settled over my heart. The future felt inviting instead of frightening. All because Chase was with me.
I gripped his hand a bit tighter. Not crab-tight, but enough to transmit the gushy, romantic feelings I couldn’t express out loud.
I’d get there. One day.
25
Chase
“Chase.”
Faust’s voice echoed in my mind. The way he called my name felt different than usual. I was still riding the high of my tender moment with Sagitta, so I didn’t think too much of it.
“Yeah?” I asked.
“Could I have a word with you privately?”
That was weird. Everything he said to me was already private, given the whole talking-inside-my-mind thing. But his serious tone and lack of overblown pet names tipped me off that something was different.
“Sure. Give us a minute?” I asked Sagitta while pointing at my head.
He nodded. It was a stark contrast to when he’d yell at me for even entertaining the idea of talking to Faust. Now he’d accepted him, the same as I had. It was wild how quickly life could change.
I walked off and stood beneath a nearby maple tree. I was alone, and it was quiet except for the leaves rustling gently in the evening breeze.
