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His heart pounded violently in his chest, bashing into his ribs as if it could escape and make its way to Talia. He closed the app and sat up. None of this made sense. What they felt. Like she said, it wasn’t logical or smart. Yet, as irrational as it was, he missed her. He missed her so much. He…
He loved her.
And she loved him.
It was crazy. It was stupid. But neither of those things made it any less true. Why had they both let this beautiful thing go? They hadn’t even talked about trying to do it long-distance. Maybe because neither of them wanted that. His emotions didn’t always make room for middle ground. For safety. He didn’t want to just try something for a while in case it might work. He knew in his soul it would. He wanted her in his arms every night, and he could have her there. But he’d have to give up his comfort. He’d have to walk away from his family home full of old memories, in order to breathe in the new ones he so desperately wanted.
He checked his watch. She was on her way back to Denver, but she’d told him roughly where she lived. Before he had a chance to overthink it, he packed a bag and requested a last minute flight for the morning. It cost a fortune but what the hell, he didn’t take vacations or spend much, so he had a hefty savings account.
All night, his heart pounded like crazy. He barely slept. He texted Talia a single bad joke, but she didn’t respond.
Driving to the airport, he felt slightly unstable, but also warm and soft. Blanketed in the feeling that his dad would have cheered him on. He would have loved Talia too, and would have called her Gabriel’s delbar-am. But in some ways she already felt like more than the one who held his heart. She was his atashe del-am. The very fire of his heart.
The airport was back to being what it had always been. Loud, bustling, people coming and going, hearts breaking or souls connecting. He breathed in the life of it. The life he’d forgotten existed.
Unsure what to do with the hour he had until his flight, he wandered to the gift shop. The shelves had finally been restocked and the selection of cheesy souvenirs was back to what it had been before the storm. He poked through the stuffed animals and the snow globes, remembering Talia’s amber eyes glistening when she opened her gift. Smiling, he ran his hands over the clothing rack full of ugly, discounted holiday sweaters.
“Can I interest you in some candy?” A silky voice, warm as a cup of cocoa wrapped around him.
He spun and stared, his heart thumping so loud it drowned out the lingering remnants of holiday music still spilling from the overhead speakers.
Talia stood there in her bulky winter coat, her dusky cheeks ever so slightly flushed a rich plum, her familiar pleather bag slung over her shoulder.
She was holding out a candy cane.
His insides fluttered like snowflakes in a soft breeze. He had no idea why she was there and not in Denver and he probably should have asked questions, but he didn’t want to ask a damned thing. He grabbed her and pulled her into his arms. She held him tight and he pressed kisses to her forehead and her temples.
“Well, hello to you, too.” Laughing she pulled back and stared up at him. “Are you playing hooky from work?”
“No. I was, um…” He held up his bag. “I was coming to see you.”
A little smile hovered at the corners of her lips. “To see me? In Denver?”
“Yeah. I—” On his way to the airport, he had thought of lots of words to say when he saw her. Romantic ones, silly ones.The options were overwhelming. But now that she was there, standing in front of him, he forgot anything he’d planned. “Talia, I missed the fuck out of you, and I wanted to be with you at midnight tonight. And the next night. And maybe a few more nights. All of them, actually. All the nights. I know that’s dramatic. I’m dramatic. And cheesy. But I—”
She kissed him hard and pulled back, her eyes shimmering. “Are you serious?”
“Yeah, I’m serious.”
“Well, I missed the fuck out of you too,” she said, breathlessly. “Here I was, thinking I would be the dramatic one, but you are killing my drama queen vibe.”
“You can’t take my crown away.” He pulled her close and slipped a hand into her hair, pulling her toward him. He teased her lips with his, before giving her a slow, soft kiss that left them both shaking, not with desire but with something far more beautiful.
He pressed a finger under her chin and tilted her face toward his. “Look, I don’t care what we do or where we go. I just…I want to be where you are.”
She chewed on her lower lip. “Are we crazy?”
“I think you know the answer to that.” He grabbed her bag and slung it over his other shoulder. “It’s a solid ho-ho-yes. Now, come on.”
“But your ticket…”
“Screw it. I’ll postpone my flight for when we travel back to Denver. To live. Or to move your stuff here. Whatever you want.” They made their way to the desk to do just that, and afterward, she kissed him until his knees shook.
He gripped her hand, turning it to press his lips to her palm, before he threaded his fingers with hers and led her out of the airport.
The sky was painfully bright, the kind of wintery blue that blinded you, even as it filled you with a whole new set of senses. He looked over at Talia and she was just as bright. His own personal sky.
And he was never going to stop looking up.
THE END
