Sunlight spills through our living room window, painting golden stripes across Summer's skin as she nestles against me on the couch. Saturday stretches before us, lazy and unstructured. I can't remember the last time I felt this content just existing in a moment.
I trace my fingertips along her arm, marveling at how something so simple can feel so right. Her blonde hair cascades over my chest, catching the light like spun gold. She smells like vanilla and something uniquely her, a scent that's become synonymous with comfort in my mind.
This past week has blurred together in a haze of work days and night hours spent wrapped around each other. The only clarity I've found is right here, in moments like this, with Summer's weight pressed against me. It's as if my constantly racing thoughts finally slow down when she's near.
I study the curve of her cheek, the delicate sweep of her eyelashes, feeling something powerful swell in my chest. It's only been a few weeks since she walked back into my life, but this pull toward her feels primal, undeniable. The intensity of it should probably scare me, but instead, it feels like coming home after being lost for too long.
Summer turns her head suddenly, catching me watching her. Her blue eyes narrow with confusion, a small smile playing at the corners of her mouth.
"You're just staring at me," she says, reaching up to touch her face self-consciously. "Do I have something on my face?"
"No," I say softly, my voice catching unexpectedly in my throat. "You're perfect."
Something breaks inside me as I say those words, a wall I've been carefully maintaining since she returned. The emotion rises like a tidal wave, unexpected and overwhelming. My vision blurs, and I feel the hot sting of tears welling up in my eyes.
Summer sits up immediately, alarm flashing across her face. "Baby, what's wrong?" Her fingers brush my cheek, catching a tear before it falls.
I try to speak, but the words lodge in my throat. My chest heaves with a silent sob I can't contain. Everything I've been holding back, the fear, the hope, the desperate longing, crashes through me at once.
"Scott, you're scaring me," she whispers, her eyes searching mine.
I take a shuddering breath, knowing I should wait, knowing it's too soon, but unable to hold back the truth that's burning through me.
"I love you, Summer," I finally manage, my voice breaking. The admission feels like jumping off a cliff without knowing what waits below. "I love you so much."
Her eyes widen, genuine surprise flickering across her face. For a terrifying moment, she's completely still, just staring at me as if she can't believe what she's heard. Then something transforms in her expression, her pupils dilate, her lips part, and her entire face illuminates with a joy so pure it's almost painful to witness.
"Oh, Scott," she breathes, her voice barely audible.
She surges forward, capturing my mouth with hers. There's a desperation in the way she kisses me, like she's trying to climb inside my soul. Her hands cradle my face, thumbs wiping away tears I didn't realize were still falling.
When she pulls back, her eyes are glistening too. "I love you so much, Scotty," she whispers against my lips. "You're my entire world. You always have been."
She kisses me again, deeper this time, her body pressing against mine with urgent need. I can taste the salt of our mingled tears, feel the rapid beating of her heart against my chest. There's something transcendent in this moment, something beyond physical desire, a connection that feels both terrifyingly powerful and absolutely essential.
"I wasn't sure you'd ever say it again," she confesses between kisses, her fingers threading through my hair. "I thought I might have broken us beyond repair."
I pull her closer, suddenly afraid she might disappear if I let go. "I tried not to," I admit. "I told myself it was too soon, that I needed to be careful this time."
Summer rests her forehead against mine, her breath warm on my face. "What changed?"
The question hangs between us, weighty with expectation. I search for the right words, my thoughts suddenly scattered like leaves in a storm. How can I explain something I don't fully understand myself?
"I don't know," I whisper, and it's the honest truth. My voice breaks on the words. "I really don't know what changed. It just... happened."
Summer cups my face in her hands, her thumbs stroking my cheeks. Her eyes are so blue they seem to glow in the sunlight streaming through our window.
"It doesn't matter," she says softly. "The why isn't important. Just that you do."
She shifts, straddling my lap to face me directly, her expression more serious than I've ever seen it. Something in her gaze pins me in place, makes it impossible to look away.
"I promise you, Scott Adams," she says, each word deliberate and measured, "I will never, ever give you another reason to doubt me again. Not one." Her fingers tighten against my skin. "I will be here with you for the rest of your life. Through everything. No matter what happens."
The certainty in her voice triggers something primal in me. Fresh tears spill down my cheeks as emotion swells in my chest, too big to contain. I wrap my arms around her waist, pulling her against me with desperate strength.
"Please don't…" I choke out, burying my face against her neck. "Please don't ever leave me again."
I hold her so tightly I worry I might hurt her, but I can't seem to loosen my grip. It's like my body understands something my mind doesn't quite grasp yet, that losing her again would destroy me completely.
*****
[Summer's POV]
Scott's arms wrap around me like iron bands, his face buried in my neck, his tears hot against my skin. His vulnerability washes over me in waves, and I drink it in, savoring every trembling breath, every desperate word.
I feel powerful. Invincible. Like a goddess receiving worship.
His grip is painful, but I welcome the pressure. Let him bruise me. Let him mark me as his. I've worked too hard for this moment to mind a little discomfort.
"I'm right here," I whisper, running my fingers through his hair. "I'm not going anywhere. Never again."
I close my eyes and just breathe him in, letting myself float in the pure satisfaction of victory. My plan worked even better than I expected. All week, I've been carefully crushing bits of those pills into his orange juice, his tea, even his dinner. Just enough to create that warm glow when he's with me. Just enough to make him associate that feeling with my presence.
I never expected him to confuse it with love.
Scott pulls back slightly, his eyes red-rimmed and vulnerable. God, he's beautiful like this—completely open, completely mine. I cup his face, wiping away his tears with my thumbs.
"I love you so much," he says again, his voice steadier now. "I don't know what I'd do if you ever left again."
I press my forehead against his. "You never have to find out."
His hands slide up my back, pulling me closer as he kisses me with a desperation that makes my heart race. There's something different in his touch now, a certainty that wasn't there before. The last of his resistance has crumbled.
Perfect.
My mind races ahead to Monday while my body responds to his touch. I need to figure out how to get more pills. The four I found are almost gone. I have enough for tomorrow, but that's it. I can't let him crash now, not when I've made such progress.
I sigh with deep satisfaction as my body melts into his embrace, a wave of pure elation washing over me. There's nothing like the feeling of having him exactly where I need him to be. Scott's declarations of love have sealed what I've been working toward, and now I just need to secure our future.
It's time to contact Taevion. I'll have to text him tomorrow about meeting in the park on Monday while Scott's at work. The thought sends a little needle of disgust through me, but I've been monitoring the security cameras all week, and Scott hasn't checked them once. He's too trusting, too wrapped up in the haze I've carefully crafted around him. He won't even notice I've slipped out.
Once Monday comes and goes, we'll be locked in together. Permanently. No more scrounging for leftover pills or measuring microdoses. I'll have a pile so strong that I should be able to trigger him into relapsing for real. And then I'll just be there for him while he feels confused and lost in his new rock bottom. When all is said and done, his only addiction will be me.
"What are you thinking about?" Scott murmurs against my hair, his hands still exploring my back with reverent touches.
I pull back just enough to meet his eyes, arranging my face into the expression of adoration he expects to see. "Just how happy you make me, baby."