The evening air was cool, scented faintly with night-blooming jasmine and wet earth. Liora and Mara sat side by side on the rooftop, wrapped in a quiet that felt both comforting and fragile. The city stretched out below them, lights twinkling like distant stars, but here, the world seemed to shrink until it was just the two of them.
Liora's gaze lingered on Mara's profile—the curve of her jaw, the way the fading light caught the soft sweep of her eyelashes. There was something sacred about these small, unguarded moments. Moments where words weren't necessary, but feelings spoke in the hush between them.
"I don't want to lose this," Liora whispered, her voice thick with emotion. "Not you. Not what we have. It's the first thing that's felt real in a long time."
Mara turned to her, eyes full of gentle reassurance. "You won't lose me," she said softly. "We're both here because we want to be. Because this—" she gestured between them "—means something."
Liora swallowed hard, the knot of fear tightening in her chest. "But what if it's not enough? What if I'm not enough?"
Mara reached out, her fingers brushing over Liora's cheek. "You are more than enough. And whatever comes, we face it together. That's what matters."
The vulnerability in Mara's voice made Liora's heart ache — a beautiful ache that opened space inside her for something new. Something brave.
"I'm scared," Liora admitted, "but I don't want to let that stop me."
Mara smiled, a light blooming in her eyes. "Fear is part of loving. But love is stronger."
They sat close, the night wrapping around them like a soft cloak. The rooftop, once just a quiet garden, now felt like a sanctuary—a place where hope was fragile but fierce, where two hearts held on to each other in the face of uncertainty.
In the silence that followed, Liora rested her head on Mara's shoulder, feeling the steady beat of a promise—unspo
ken but real.
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