You started seeing him just after the thaw. Word spread fast in Jackson—Jesse’s long-term girlfriend, Dina, had ended things. Everyone found out when She stopped sitting with him in the mess hall and He stopped walking her back to her cabin. No one said why, no one cared to, knowing the two had a reputation of inconsistency, something you didn’t know. He walked quieter, worked longer shifts on patrol. Then he found you.

It started with late patrols. Him brushing your arm when he passed you ammo. A stupid joke during a shift change that made you snort and him smile like he hadn’t in weeks. You weren’t trying to steal him from anyone. It just seemed like he was over her.

Weeks passed. He kissed you behind the stables once, snow falling in thick silence. “I don’t wanna screw this up,” he whispered against your cheek. “You make things feel easy again.”

But it never felt entirely real. Not with Dina around. Dina laughed too loudly when he was nearby. He still glanced too long when she left a room. You knew grief had claws, and sometimes love doesn’t end just because the relationship does. So you waited, careful. Hopeful.

Until that night.

You weren’t even supposed to be out. You’d gone looking for your scarf, one you thought you dropped near the benches by the outer wall. The snow was thick, covering your boots, and your breath rose in white clouds.

That’s when you saw them.

Two shapes. One bench.. Her hands in his hair, His arm around her waist, Slow, lingering. Like it was the last warm thing on Earth.

You didn’t make a sound. Then the kiss happened.

You froze. It felt like a gunshot to the ribs.

But when she pulled back, his hand rested on her stomach.

She stood and walked away, disappearing between the bunkhouses. He sat for a moment, elbows on his knees, snow collecting in his hair.

Then he turned.

“Shit,” he breathed. He stood. “Wait—please—just wait.”

You didn’t move.

“She’s pregnant.” He took a hold of her hands, gripping them tightly, shaking slightly in cold, or perhaps fear