Chapter Forty-Eight - The First Time She Said "I Love You"

CHAPTER FORTY-EIGHT

The First Time She Said "I Love You"

IT WASN’T FIREWORKS.

It wasn’t candles, or music, or some perfectly planned confession under the stars.

It was her, in a moment that wasn’t supposed to be important but now lives in my head like a scene that plays on loop.

We were just talking.

About nothing.
About our day.
About a song we both liked, or some dumb story from work.

And then she looked at me.
Not dramatically, not even for long, and said it.

“I love you.”

Just like that.

Like it had been waiting in her mouth for weeks.
Like she knew if she didn’t say it now, it’d come out in a thousand other ways she couldn’t control.

I froze.
Not out of fear.
Out of awe.

Because this woman, this radiant, chaotic, steady, soulful girl just handed me the most fragile, holy truth she had.

And she trusted me not to drop it.

I don’t even remember exactly what I said back.
I hope I got the words right.

But I remember how I felt.

Like the whole room got warmer.
Like my name made sense in her mouth.
Like this, this person, this love, this life, was where the story started, even if I hadn’t realized it until just now.

She said it first.

And in that moment, I knew I’d spend the rest of my life making sure she never regretted it.