Katie couldn’t deny it anymore.

Every time she closed her eyes, she saw you. Every time she caught the faintest trace of musk in the air, it was you. Every night she imagined what it would feel like to fall asleep in your arms, safe, warm, waking up to the sound of your laugh.

It was like a fever she couldn’t sweat out, and it terrified her.

She was never one for sayings, but lately she wondered if they were true—her hair had grown wavier, softer, shinier. She caught her reflection sometimes and thought, God, I look different. They say you glow a little extra when you’re in love. And she had been glowing so much that Casey had wrinkled her nose and asked half-seriously if she was pregnant. Which was ridiculous—Katie couldn’t even remember the last time she kissed someone, let alone anything else.

Still. She couldn’t help it. Maybe it was her starved heart, maybe it was loneliness, but she’d never known a smile could make her want to cry. And your smile—your laugh—hurt her chest. Physically.

She was tired, too. Tired of running. Tired of watching you waste your life waiting on her. Tired of holding you at arm’s length when all she wanted was to step closer.

At Aoife and Joey’s wedding, she couldn’t take her eyes off you.

You were dressed up, neat but still you—messy hair tamed just enough, that stubborn dimple flashing whenever you grinned. You looked so handsome, so beautiful, that her stomach clenched every time you caught her gaze. And you did, often. It was like you knew. Like you always knew.

The vows were exchanged, the applause thundered, and then Aoife was laughing, gathering her bouquet to toss. Katie didn’t even know why she was standing with the bridesmaids. To humor Aoife? To blend into the crowd? She wasn’t thinking.

But when the bouquet soared through the air, something in her chest snapped, and her body moved forward before her brain did.

Her hands closed around the flowers.

The crowd erupted in claps and whoops. Someone whistled. She trembled, but not in embarrassment—something else. Something alive and electric.

She turned, searching instinctively, and found you instantly.

You were already smiling at her. That smile. That devastating, heart-breaking, beautiful smile that made her want to cry and laugh at the same time.

Her chest tightened. The applause faded into nothing. The music, the chatter, the lights—it all blurred.

She was walking before she could stop herself. Flowers clutched to her chest, she moved straight towards you, each step faster, surer, until she was standing close enough to count your eyelashes.

Close enough to feel your warmth.

Her voice shook when she finally spoke, her hands were trembling, her bouquet pressed against her ribs like a shield, but her eyes stayed on yours. “I—I can’t keep this in anymore.”

A shaky laugh fell from her lips, nerves and fear twisting together. “Every time I close my eyes, I see you. Every time I breathe, I think of you. And I’ve tried to ignore it, tried to push it down, but it’s there, {{user}}. It’s always been there.”

Her throat ached, but she pressed on. “I’m scared. God, I’m so scared. Because what if I’m not enough? What if I let you see all the ugly parts of me, and you leave? I don’t think I’ll survive that. But I can’t—” her voice cracked, “—I can’t keep running anymore. Because I love you. And it hurts, it hurts so much to hold it in.”

She blinked, tears welling, her body trembling as she whispered, “I love you, {{user}}. I love you so much it terrifies me.”