Chapter 44
brISBANE, AUSTRALIA
T hunder was rumbling amongst the cataclysmic clouds, the wild wind brushing Avery’s strands of hair away from her face.
She brought her knees to her chest, chin tipped back as she observed the angry sky, listening to rain crashing down on the concrete and the booming roar of the heavens.
It was past midnight, and the only source of light came from the patio’s lamp, casting a golden luminescence on her profile. The mugs that had once been filled with hot chocolate were empty, and all there was left was each other’s unwavering company.
Rowan couldn’t manage to find the strength to look away from her. She was so mystifying and electric—somehow more enthralling than the thunderbolts cracking through clouds.
Rowan buried his hands in the pockets of his fleece jumper, scoffing softly as he went back to getting lost in his thoughts.
“How’s your hand?” Avery asked, peering at him.
He showed his hand, flexing his reddish fingers and bruised knuckles. “You should see the other guy.”
She snorted softly, inching closer towards him to drape the blanket over them both. “Was punching him necessary?”
“No, but it’s what I had to do. I don’t make the rules. I’m sure the main male protagonists in the books you read act the same way.”
“They do,” she agreed, nodding. “Are you really mad at Tate?”
Rowan shrugged lazily. “No. To be fair, I’m not that surprised. He’s always had a thing for Riley.”
With a soft sigh escaping her mouth, Avery leaned her head on his shoulder, allowing her sweet fragrance to swivel around their peaceful cosmos. “I have crazy thoughts running across my mind right now.”
“Tell me about them.” He draped an arm across her shoulders and kissed the crown of her head. After spending an hour or so outside, Tate had come to explain himself, but Rowan had struck his right fist into Tate’s nose before he had the chance to open his mouth. Tate had only sworn, clutching his nose as he muttered he had deserved it.
An hour later, as Tate went back inside, Avery had come out. To sit in silence, talk about anything and nothing, to help him ride those reckless waves of emotions. She’d whispered many times how proud she was of him, and her comfort and support were exactly what he needed.
“What if Tate is Nora’s dad?”
Rowan stiffened, settling his gaze on a puddle of rain where droplets crashed into it relentlessly. He wasn’t stupid enough to pry into his best friend and sister’s secrets, but the thought made him angry. For Nora, who deserved to know who her father was—Tate or not.
“That’s between them,” Rowan said.
“But it would make sense,” Avery murmured.
“It would.”
Letting out a sigh, he tipped his head back. “I don’t know why they hid it from me. And how the fuck Stephen somehow knew about it.”
“Probably because they were scared of your reaction. And because it was just a one-night stand, right?”
He cast an incredulous glance her way, his lips tipping upwards. “You and I both know they railed each other more than once, baby. But whatever, I’m not mad. Just surprised. I’d be happy for them if they dated.”
Avery hummed in understanding, passing her fingers through the hair on his nape, causing him to sigh in relief. “Feels good?” He nodded. “What’s going on inside your head, lover boy?”
Rowan leaned into her touch as she cradled his jaw, her thumb brushing the faint dust of freckles on his cheek. “Today was hectic. Should I feel bad for what I said to Stephen? Because I don’t. It makes me feel like I’m a terrible person.”
“You’re entitled to feel like this, but I promise you’re the best person ever. This situation was messing with your head, and I think you really needed to say this to him. I’m truly sorry that he’s never going to see you for who you are. You’re one in a million, Rowan. I’m so glad the universe has brought us together.”
He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, sighing softly. “Thank you. For having my back, for being the incredible woman that you are. I don’t know what I would do without you. I don’t even see the rest of my life without you.”
Avery held the power of disentangling all the knots that had formed in his nerves. She kissed him softly, sensing his growing despair, and he smiled against her lips, resulting in her mirroring the action earnestly.
“Make me forget about tonight?” he asked when they parted ways.
There was a gleam of mischief alighting the edges of her irises. “I have an idea, but you’re going to think I’m insane.”
“Doesn’t change from the daily thoughts I have of you.”
“Thanks, idiot.” She stood up and threw the blanket at him.
“You love me,” he supplied with a grin as he watched her zip her coat up to her chin.
“Doesn’t make you any less stupid.”
Rowan leaned back in the chair, crossing his hands behind his head. “Okay, show me what you’ve got.”
She marched backwards until she stood under the pouring rain. Rowan straightened himself, frowning as he watched her spin around, a squeal filled with excitement escaping her mouth.
He shook his head, baffled by the sight before him. “You’re insane, woman.”
“I told you!”
“What are you doing? You’re going to catch a cold.” His heart swelled until it was on the verge of combusting. The sight of her genuine delight and her unfaltering smile set the wild birds inside his stomach free.
“So?” She lifted her shoulders in a shrug. “I know a guy who takes great care of me when I’m sick.”
“Lucky lad,” he droned. “Wiping snot off his girlfriend’s nose.”
“Can you stop?” She laughed, shaking her head. “I’m trying to be romantic and you’re just being yourself.”
He stood up and walked towards the edge of the patio, leaning against a pillar and watching Avery tip her head back.
Rain rolled down her face, black tendrils were sticking to her skin, yet she managed to be the most beautiful woman he had ever seen.
He loved her. He loved her. He loved her.
If he walked through a field of dead flowers, Avery would be the persistent flower that kept on blooming no matter how dark and grey the skies were. No matter what fell upon her. She was the vibrancy proving that nothing would stop her from being alive regardless of the moments during which petals lost their will to stay upraised—she’d still push through to shine.
The moment a lightning bolt struck in the dark sky, a single string of light flicked upon her—proof that she was part of the heavens’ magic.
“I love thunder,” she announced. “I love how angry it sounds. How loud it is when it booms. When I used to live across from Miles, he would come over when there were thunderstorms. Don’t tell him you know this, but he’s scared shitless of them, so he would come to my place, and we would play board games until it calmed down.”
“What makes you love it so much?”
He grabbed his phone and put some music on. Not just any music, though. Kiss Me by Sixpence None the Richer echoed from the speaker, making Avery’s smile widen. Then, he took a step forward, feeling the first droplet of rain crash on the bridge of his nose.
“I just love it,” she explained, extending her hands for him to hold on to. Their palms fitted perfectly, and everything made sense now; they were made for each other, existing in the same universe where their stars were aligned. “The furious banging when it cracks overhead. The electric lightning bolts brightening the sky. The violent gusts of wind. The rain. I also love the sound—”
“I love you,” Rowan breathed out, cupping her damp face shakily. He observed rivulets of water cascade down her skin, her eyes light up, her lips tug upwards. “I’m hopelessly, utterly, and unequivocally in love with you, Avery.”
Time came to a halt. The world ceased spinning. His heart stopped thundering.
He’d known it for a while but hadn’t realised it until recently. And saying those words felt freeing. Avery needed to know. Needed to understand that her love wasn’t unrequited.
“About damn time, lover boy.” She pushed his hair away from his forehead, chocolate eyes shining with adoration.
And then, the sounds surrounding him returned to buzzing in his ears, the coldness of the rain making him feel alive. He smiled broadly, grazing the pad of his thumb over her lower lip. Beneath his fingertips, her jaw was trembling—perhaps because of the cold, or perhaps because of the confession she had been waiting to hear. “I don’t know why it took me so long to say it back. I know I’ve been in love with you since I met you. I just wasn’t convinced I deserved it. Deserved you.”
“You’re the most deserving person. You are fully worthy of love,” she promised softly. “And you are so loved. Always have been.”
“I now realise it. I was seeking love in the wrong place for the longest time, but now that I found it with you, I’m never letting it slip away.”
“Good.”
Winding his arms around her waist, they started swaying to the rhythm of the music. The rain beating down on them didn’t matter. The cold air didn’t matter. Because every time he would be in Avery’s presence, the entire universe would reduce to her, and solely her. She had welcomed him into her orbit with open arms, and within the immensity of it all, she had given him her heart, trusting that he would never so much as put a fissure in it.
He lifted her until her feet hovered above the grass, her arms raised towards the angry sky whilst their laughter echoed in symphony.
When she touched the ground again, he placed his forehead against hers, letting the violent downpour tug them downwards until they were drowning. But as long as he was in her company, knowing she returned equal affection towards him, going back to the surface to breathe and survive didn’t feel like an impossibility now.
“You’re a ray of sunshine, Avery. I see daylight when I’m with you. I see a whole world painted in colours when I’ve been fully certain it was all black and white. Loving you is so easy but being loved feels so effortless. Thank you for believing in me.”
In the end,Rowan knew his persistence in chasing the slipstream was worth it. Winning didn’t always mean he was brandishing the biggest and shiniest trophy—it meant he had achieved his goals, securing what he’d been running after his entire life: happiness, love, and security. And with Avery in his arms, her heart bound to his for eternity, he knew he could let himself fall, and fall, and fall, confident that she’d hold his hand the whole time and catch him before he could break to pieces.