The scrape of her key in the lock has Ever on his feet at once, the small apartment suddenly feeling like it’s been waiting for her as much as he has. He moves with the kind of quiet economy that marks everything he does: cork eased free, glasses tipped just so, the red wine catching the light of the setting sun as it splashes into place.
Her announcement—everyone lived—pulls a soft chuckle from him, the sound faint but genuine. "Then you might be due for a few more of those...unusual tokens of gratitude," he murmurs, lips quirking as he imagines another heap of ill-gotten rings or half-broken necklaces dropped on her desk by rough hands that can’t articulate thanks in any other way.
When she lets her hair fall, his gaze follows with undisguised interest, as though he’s watching something familiar and miraculous all at once. He takes a few steps toward her, holding one glass delicately out until her fingers close around it. Only then does his hand slip to the small of her back, guiding her gently nearer. The kiss that follows is measured, polite in the way Ever always is, but the warmth beneath it is unmistakable. It carries all the unspoken relief of knowing she’s home, safe, and here with him—and the hint of something more he’s never quite able to mask when she’s this close.
Her announcement—everyone lived—pulls a soft chuckle from him, the sound faint but genuine. "Then you might be due for a few more of those...unusual tokens of gratitude," he murmurs, lips quirking as he imagines another heap of ill-gotten rings or half-broken necklaces dropped on her desk by rough hands that can’t articulate thanks in any other way.
When she lets her hair fall, his gaze follows with undisguised interest, as though he’s watching something familiar and miraculous all at once. He takes a few steps toward her, holding one glass delicately out until her fingers close around it. Only then does his hand slip to the small of her back, guiding her gently nearer. The kiss that follows is measured, polite in the way Ever always is, but the warmth beneath it is unmistakable. It carries all the unspoken relief of knowing she’s home, safe, and here with him—and the hint of something more he’s never quite able to mask when she’s this close.
I will not be brave
but i'm grateful to get through
but i'm grateful to get through
