HollandWe were sleepy with the kind of happiness that doesn’t perform. After dishes and a last shared lemon bar (we negotiated; he “lost”), we brushed our teeth at the same sink, bumping shoulders, trading the mirror like civilized adults. In bed, we lay facing each other with the blankets tucked up around our chins like kids at a sleepover.“I love you,” I said first, just to hear it land again.“I love you,” he echoed, the words warm enough that the room didn’t need the lamp.We kissed, not to chase heat, just to seal the ordinary miracle we’d made. When I rolled against him, he made that small contented sound that says home, and I tucked my foot between his calves like I’d been doing it my whole life. We let the night be quiet and kind. No tests. No new edges. I fell asleep with his breath in my hair and the bond purring like a cat that had finally found its favorite lap.Morning came politely. For once, my first thought wasn’t fear; it was coffee. My second was him. I reached acr
Last Updated : 2025-10-23 Read more