the broken

Chapter 30

MAY, 2009

Dan

The darkness of the night wraps around us like a blanket and the silvery light of the moon kisses Phil's skin. He looks so pretty. My head spins as his lips whisper across my neck, and I squeeze his hand as we stare up at the night sky. I am dizzy with happiness and drunk on the way time stretched before us, endless days at our hands. The pine needles are cool and soft underneath me, and the wind blows over us like a cool blanket.

It's beautiful and I'm terrified and in love.

"They're so beautiful, aren't they?"

"Yeah, they are," Phil mumbles against my neck, causing delicious shivers to trickle down my spine. I turn to look at him and realize he's looking at me.

"What do you mean, you're not even looking at them!"

Phil just smiles softly.

"I know."

"Shut up."

His words fill my heart with rose colored champagne, bubbling up.

Phil whispers, and I swear I can see the stars in his eyes.

He hooks his hands around my neck and pulls me to him, kissing me oh so softly. We must have been laying there like that for hours, hours full of kisses as soft as rain and filled to the brim with magic, but finally Phil sits up and stands, pulling me up with him.

"We should probably go," he says, and I follow him, reluctant to leave this magical place where the sky watches over us, our own kingdom, just us.

We trek back through the dark forest quietly, until Phil looks back to where I'm trailing slightly behind him and grins.

"I'll race you to the car."

"Go!" I shout as I take off, smirking at the surprised look on his face before he too begins to run.

"Dan, that's not fair!" He calls out, but I just laugh and run faster, weaving through the dark trees, footsteps padded by the soft carpet of pine needles. The forest is dark and scary at night, but I can't find seem to make myself care. I didn't see the dark shadows or the dark branches tangling with the sky, I saw the soft moon light shimmering on the ground and felt the cool air brush past me as I ran. I heard Phil's breathing, the muted thuds of our footsteps and the slaps of the branches as they scraped our skin.

Alive.

Finally, I break through the edge of the forest and spill out into the open field that Phil had parked in earlier today, coming to a tumbling stop at the car. I flop onto the hood breathlessly as Phil skids to a stop next to me. We sit for a second, breathing heavily, but finally, a breathless Phil gives me a half hearted punch on the arm.

"Hey, no fair, you beat me."

I just laugh and press a breathless kiss to his cheek.

"Sorry, Philly, guess I'm just too fast for you."

Phil wraps his arms around my waist and rests his forehead against mine, steering me backwards until I'm pressed up against the hood of his car. I can feel his heart fluttering and his cool breath whispering across my neck. I want him all to myself.

"I guess so."

Breathless, I wrap my arms around his neck and crash our lips together, kissing him like my life depended on it. He smiles against my lips and kisses back, pressing our bodies together until I can feel the heat radiating off of him. His lips wander away from my lips and down my jaw, trailing down my neck and causing a mess of noises to spill out of my lips, my hands reaching up and tangling in his hair.