heart open, testify, tell me i'm not crazy
Marcus held her gaze, even as she pushed back against him. The stubborn lift of her chin, the way her arms crossed like she could simply decide the danger away—it made something tight settle deeper in his chest. His eyes flicked briefly toward the pool again, then back to her, as if he didn’t trust it not to change when he wasn’t looking. The distant hills still shimmered there, calm and untouched, like it had never held anything else. For a moment he didn’t answer her question. Then, he exhaled slowly, forcing the edge out of his voice before he spoke.
Her words lingered and they should have been comforting. Instead, it made that something in his chest tighten further. Because that wasn’t the point. Marcus shifted his stance, stepping slightly between her and the pool without making it obvious, his hand finally slipping from her wrist but staying close, ready. “It’s not necessarily about needing someone else.” he said. “It’s about not putting ourselves somewhere we can’t get out of on our own.” He glanced around the basin, unease creeping back in. “The Greatwood doesn’t always give you a second chance.”
He took another breath, almost a sigh. ”Let’s just go check something else out, hm? Maybe we can fly a little.”
Her words lingered and they should have been comforting. Instead, it made that something in his chest tighten further. Because that wasn’t the point. Marcus shifted his stance, stepping slightly between her and the pool without making it obvious, his hand finally slipping from her wrist but staying close, ready. “It’s not necessarily about needing someone else.” he said. “It’s about not putting ourselves somewhere we can’t get out of on our own.” He glanced around the basin, unease creeping back in. “The Greatwood doesn’t always give you a second chance.”
He took another breath, almost a sigh. ”Let’s just go check something else out, hm? Maybe we can fly a little.”
m a r c u s
