Tilly let that sit.
Their arm tightened slightly around her, not a comfort gesture so much as a grounding one. “I don’t need you to have it all figured out,” they said. “But I do need you to stay when things get hard. Or at least tell me you’re leaving.”
Savannah nodded against them. “That’s fair.”
She was quiet again, then added, “I don’t want this to turn into another thing where I disappear when it stops being easy.”
That one landed.
Tilly finally looked down at her. Savannah’s eyes were open now, searching their face, unguarded in a way that made something in Tilly ache.
“I don’t want to be punished for being careful,” Savannah said. “But I also don’t want to keep hurting you by accident.”
“You already did,” Tilly said. Not unkindly. Just honest. “But this is better than pretending.”
Savannah exhaled, long and shaky. “Okay.”
They lay there for a moment, the blanket warm, Savannah still naked beneath it, Tilly still half-dressed, neither of them making a move to change that. It felt like an honest representation of where they were.
“Can I ask you something?” Savannah said.
Tilly nodded. “Yeah.”
“When you were distant after… was that you trying not to care?”
“No,” Tilly said immediately. “That was me trying not to get hurt again.”
Savannah closed her eyes briefly at that. “I’m sorry.”
“I know,” Tilly said. “And I’m not asking for perfection. I just need consistency.”
Savannah nodded. “I can try.”
Tilly considered her for a long moment. Then: “Trying counts.”
Savannah relaxed slightly at that, like she’d been holding herself too tightly.
They stayed there, the conversation ebbing naturally, not solved but settled enough for now. Tilly kept their arm where it was. Savannah didn’t pull away.
They stayed there for another moment, the quiet settled between them, not tense anymore. Just present.
Then Tilly shifted.
Not pulling away. Just enough to tilt their head down. Savannah looked up automatically, like she was waiting to see what came next.
Tilly pressed a quick kiss to her temple.
Savannah blinked.
Then another, lighter one to her cheek. And another, closer to the corner of her mouth, careless in a way that felt deliberate.
“Hey,” Savannah said, a laugh sneaking into her voice despite herself. “What are you doing?”
Tilly shrugged, lips brushing her skin again. “Resetting.”
“That’s not a thing.”
“Feels like a thing,” Tilly said, kissing her again, softer this time. “Hold still.”
