Trials and Consequences of Love

Chapter 29

Conversations in the dark – John Legend.

Cause I know what you're feeling, it's okay, girl, I feel it too. Let it be, baby breathe
I swear I'm right here, we'll be good, I promise, we'll be so good" – "High for this", The Weeknd.

***

🦋

"It's my last night with you and you want to us to fight over the remote?" I narrow my eyes at him and he flashes me a breathtaking smile.

"I'd rather do that than watch Titanic," he says and my mouth drops open.

"Okay but Titanic is an awesome movie! And I wasn't even going to watch that!" I say in disbelief.

"I believe you," he says sarcastically and I roll my eyes.

"What is the name of the movie playing right now?" I ask and he shrugs.

"I don't know"

"You're believable" I shake my head and he laughs.

"Look at the tv Alexandre and stop looking at me" I shake my head picking up the cup of water off the coffee table.

"You're more interesting to watch" he winks at me and I almost trip over my own two feet.

"Stop" I roll my eyes leaning against the couch.

"Can I ask you something?" I ask turning my head to look at him.

"Anything"

"Have you ever been in love?" I ask looking down at my fingers.

"I thought I was once, a really long time ago," he says and my eyes fly up to meet his.

"What happened?"

"Her name was Isabelle, we were together for six years, we moved in together when I first started university. One day I came home and she was packing her stuff to go back to France and her reason for leaving was that she was tired of me. She got married two months after she went to France. Six years and she replaced me in two months" he says monotonously but I can tell it still bothers him.

"She made me feel like I was the problem like I was the one to blame for her leaving when in reality she was the problem. She was cheating the entire time and I loved her too much to realize"

"I'm sorry that, that happened to you. Some people just don't know how to appreciate good people" I sigh resting my hand on the back of his.

I would never do that to you.

"If it makes you feel any better, Carson cheated on me for five years too" I offer him a weak smile and he returns it with one of his own.

"We deserve better," he says interlacing our fingers.

We deserve each other.

"Can I ask you a question now?" he asks, rubbing circles on the back of my hand with his thumb.

"Of course,"

"Do you think you'll ever attempt love again?" he asks looking up at me again.

"I think I'm testing the waters as we speak" I whisper looking right back at him. The intensity in his eyes making me feel like I'm the most important person in the universe.

"How about you?" I ask, biting my bottom lip.

"Do you think you'll ever attempt love?"

"I think" he starts, lifting our joined hands to his lips.

"I'm drowning in the very waters you're testing" he plants a single kiss on the back of my hand that sends my heart into overdrive; while his eyes bore into my soul.

"You don't mean that" I try to turn away but his free hand cups the side of my face.

"I mean every word," he says stroking my cheek with his thumb.

"No" I shake my head.

"You can't, you deserve someone prettier, someone stronger, someone that is everything I am not" I try to pull away again but his grip on me tightens -not enough to hurt me but enough to hold me in place-.

"No Red, I deserve you. You are beautiful and you are strong and you are everything that I want. The day I met you, everything in my life started to make sense. The day you walked into my life you claimed my heart and you captured my soul and they are yours to keep for the rest of my days and beyond. You are perfect and there is nothing about you that I would change. You are my strength and you are my weakness, you are everything to me and I wouldn't trade you or any part of you for anything in this world. If I had to lose everything and start my life over with only you by my side, I would do it in a heartbeat and I wouldn't complain because you are all I need. You are everything to me Valentina-Rosa, my whole world" he pauses to wipe a stray tear from my cheek.

"I can't promise you forever, but I can promise you a lifetime if you'll have me. I can also promise you that I will never try to change you, I will always want the same you. I swear to God and every celestial being that I will never break your heart. I'll be there for you always; I'll try my hardest to make you as happy as you can be and I'll try even harder to ensure that you never shed another tear. I will protect you from the world and yourself if it comes to it"

"I love you Valentina-Rosa and I want to spend the rest of my life making memories with you," he says resting his forehead against mine.

This should feel wrong but it doesn't; it should feel like betrayal but it doesn't. I'd be stupid to say I didn't want him and I'd be lying if I said I didn't love; in fact, I think I loved him before I even met him because the very moment my eyes landed on his, I knew he was 'the one'. Every time I hold his hands I get the same rush, every time we make eye contact I want to go out of my way to give him the world. That kiss at his club was just confirmation that this is what I want, that my feelings for him are real and that they're never going away. It's hard to trust words but when I look into his eyes I don't see a single lie. This is real and this is happening; it'll be a lot for sure but at least we'll get through it together, at least we'll have each other.

Forever, however long that may be.

"And I love you" I whisper and the moment the word leaves my lips, his lips latch onto mine.

This kiss is different from the one we first had it is everything from a confession of love to an expression of want. The kiss is demonically passionate, I feel like in that moment he captured my soul, my heart touched his and his touched mine, the kiss is raw and sensual; the kiss is as intoxicating as he is. The clash of our tongues makes fireworks explode in my stomach, once again I have lost myself in this beautiful man, only this time I feel no need to be found.

"I don't want us to rush into anything," I tell him when we finally pull away.

"We can go as slow as you want that's no problem," he says, tucking a strand of hair behind my hair.

"Thank you" I offer him a closed-mouth smile.

"When can I take you on a date?" he grins and I roll my eyes.

"This weekend, after I settle into my apartment"

"You know you this house is big enough for both of us" he drawls and I roll my eyes again.

"You could tell me that Jesus told you to tell me to stay here I'm still gonna move out" I narrow my eyes at him.

"A brother can try" he shrugs.

"That he can" I mumble leaning back against the couch.

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a/n: This makes me so happy, they're finally together. They deserve this, I'm happy for them.

Thank you for reading.

Word Count: 1287.