“she placed one hand on his cheek, and felt him cringe. his eye twitched.
“easy now,” she whispered, and he leaned closer.
she felt his jaw clenching and his stuble tickled her left palm. she placed her other hand on his right cheek.
he leaned forward, and said, “you know, how in love stories, and love in general, love is always fast and furious, with rushes of blood to the head and all that? how you just know, and then you’re together forever, until you realise you have nothing in common and then it ends? you know, how with most people it just strikes you and you never look back and you trust your better half without a second though? how you trust yourself like that? well, i can’t do that. i can’t ignore my brain, it tends to scream at me very often. someday, during breakfast, when you’ll be wearing my shirt and i’ll be eating out of your plate, i’ll love you. but for now, i don’t. it needs to be easy. it needs to go slow. i need to know my heart first, before i can learn all about yours. i will need kisses, and long, comfortable silences, and i’ll need homemade meals cooked together. i’ll need birthdays, i’ll need christmases where you’ll try to decorate the tree, but break the star and you’ll want to cry, and i won’t let you, and i’ll get you a new one. i will need stupid fights about exes, but i’ll only do that because you’re amazing and i’m scared you’ll leave.
it’ll be soft and slow, maybe too slow, but i want to love you. and I will love you, that much i can promise you.”
she bit her lip, and he kissed it, and didn’t let go.”
