Epilouge
Aaliyah's POV
It's been almost a month since that party.
A month since Leo posted me.
A month since I trusted him again.
A month of soft mornings, late-night kisses, dumb jokes, grocery runs, study dates, and falling asleep on his chest like it's the easiest thing in the world.
A month of real.
And now?
We're lying on the roof of his apartment building - an old blanket under us, a city breeze moving through my curls - staring at the stars like we're two kids who don't know heartbreak exists.
He's warm beside me.
Too warm.
Chest rising slowly.
Eyes soft.
A small smile tugging at his lips.
I trace circles on the back of his hand.
He watches me.
"Whatchu thinking about?" he asks quietly.
"You," I whisper before I can stop myself.
His breath catches.
Just a tiny sound.
"You always say that," he murmurs.
"Because it's always true."
He looks away for a second.
Down at the city lights.
"I used to think I was... too much for people."
His voice is low.
Unsteady.
Honest in a way he isn't with anyone but me.
"I get angry. I shut down. I panic. I don't know how to-sometimes I feel like I don't know how to love right."
He pauses.
"And then you showed up."
My heart squeezes.
"You learned me," he whispers. "Like I wasn't too messy to figure out."
"Leo..."
He turns his body toward me fully, propping himself on his elbow.
His other hand slides to my cheek.
His thumb brushes my skin so gently it hurts.
"I want you to know something," he says.
"What?"
Everything goes silent.
Not the world -
my world.
My heart stops in my chest.
Because he's never said it before.
Not like this.
Not soft.
Not shaking.
Not like it's the truth he's been holding in for weeks.
I stare at him.
He swallows.
"I just... I need you to know I'm all in. I'm yours. I'm not going anywhere."
I sit up slowly.
He watches me like he's preparing for heartbreak.
And I cup his face with both hands.
"Leo," I whisper, "look at me."
He does.
Scared.
Hopeful.
Beautiful.
His breath leaves him like a punch.
"Aaliyah..."
"I am," I whisper again.
"I'm so in love with you it's stupid. And soft. And terrifying. And perfect."
His forehead drops to mine.
He exhales shakily - the kind of breath you let out when the thing you prayed for actually happens.
"I love you," he whispers again, voice breaking.
"I love you," I whisper back.
His hands slide to my waist and he pulls me onto his lap, carefully, like I'm breakable.
But his kiss?
Is not careful.
It's slow.
Deep.
Full.
The kind of kiss that says I found you.
The kind that says I'm not letting go.
My fingers slide into his hair.
His hands grip my hips.
The city hums below us.
And for once in my life, I'm not scared.
Not of him.
Not of us.
Not of loving someone this much.
Because Leo is not Malik.
He's not my past.
He's not my fear.
He's my choice.
He pulls back slightly, forehead still resting on mine, breathing hard.
"What now?" he whispers.
I smile.
"Whatever we want."
He kisses my cheek.
"Tomorrow?"
"Tomorrow."
"And the day after?"
"The day after."
"And forever?"
I laugh softly, burying my face in his neck.
"Forever sounds good."
He holds me tighter, burying his face in my shoulder like he finally understands the meaning of the word home.
And the rooftop lights glow.
The breeze softens.
His arms wrap around me like they were made for it.
If this is the end of the story-
It's also the beginning.