Got a bag full of clothes, a bottle of wine. Only say how I feel From the back of my mind
Everest exhales slowly as Isla settles against him, his arms instinctively curling around her with a gentleness that belies the quiet, unyielding hold he’s kept on his own restraint until now. The feel of her cheek against his shoulder, the heat of her body aligned with his—these are stimuli he might’ve once needed to block out or segment into manageable pieces. But now, they’re simply data points in a moment he doesn’t want to end.
He turns his head toward her, not to speak just yet, but to inhale slowly, pressing his nose into her hair as if the scent alone might anchor him more fully in the now. His hands smooth slowly across the small of her back, not coaxing, not rushed—just there, as present as the steady pulse under his skin.
"I’m glad it’s just me," he says quietly, his lips brushing against her temple. "Even if it means being different to how I was." There’s no embarrassment in it, just the same careful honesty that threads through everything he does now.
After a moment, one hand lifts, brushing wind-tossed curls away from her face. "When we both feel ready," he murmurs, "Perhaps we could extend our experiment timeline. Test overnight conditions. See if they have any impact on...results." His voice dips a touch lower, dry but warm.
He turns his head toward her, not to speak just yet, but to inhale slowly, pressing his nose into her hair as if the scent alone might anchor him more fully in the now. His hands smooth slowly across the small of her back, not coaxing, not rushed—just there, as present as the steady pulse under his skin.
"I’m glad it’s just me," he says quietly, his lips brushing against her temple. "Even if it means being different to how I was." There’s no embarrassment in it, just the same careful honesty that threads through everything he does now.
After a moment, one hand lifts, brushing wind-tossed curls away from her face. "When we both feel ready," he murmurs, "Perhaps we could extend our experiment timeline. Test overnight conditions. See if they have any impact on...results." His voice dips a touch lower, dry but warm.
