Blurred Lines | ✓ [1st Edition]

24 | Before We Land

"Kiss me like you wanna be loved,
You wanna be loved,
You wanna be loved.
This feels like falling in love.
Falling in love,
We're falling in love."

I stirred in my sleep when my body was moved slightly. Dazed, I opened my eyes only to see dark grey fabric. It took me a few good seconds to realise that the fabric belonged to Yuko's sweater.

When I realised that, my lips curved into a smile. With a satisfied sigh, I buried my face into his chest and inhaled the fresh scent of chamomile flowers and soap.

"Ris?" Yuko whispered, breaking the silence. "Are you awake?"

I hummed, nodding my head slightly. My smile turned into a grin when I felt Yuko kiss the top of my head before resting his chin on it.

"I wish I could wake up next to you like this every day," he murmured, his arms tightening around me. We were so close, like pieces of a puzzle that finally found each other. It felt like I was a puzzle piece that had fallen to the floor and was long forgotten about, before I was found and fixed perfectly next to him. Cuddling him was so different compared to Cody, where our limbs would often get tangled or we would get poked by awkward jutted out bones. But Yuko and I fit like a glove, filling every crevice with warmth.

"Every day?" I echoed, tilting my head up to look at him. He grinned and nodded.

"You sure know how to be cheesy," I commented sarcastically, laughing softly. Yuko rolled his eyes, and laughed along too.

"You sure know how to be a kill the mood," he snorted in defence. Pouting, I buried my face into his neck.

"God," I heard him mutter. "I...I am falling in love with you."

I sucked in a breath, freezing completely in his arms.

"What?" I breathed.

"I'm falling in love with you," he repeated in a louder voice, this time with more confidence.

"You're falling in love," I stated incredulously. "With me?"

"Yes, I am."

"Why?" I blurted out loud, eyes widening in disbelief.

"Why not?" he retorted, and raised an eyebrow. He had long abandoned his glasses and now that I was so close to him I could make out the splash of freckles across his nose and cheeks that looked just like stars.

"This is not the time to be answering my questions with more questions," I groaned when I snapped out of comparing his face to a sky, thumping my head repeatedly against his chest in mock frustration. I felt his chest vibrate with laughter, before he pulled away from our embrace. The sudden emptiness I felt with the new space between us scared me.

"You are beautiful, Ris. Inside out," he said softly, looking into my eyes and searching for something.

You are beautiful.

"Unbelievable," I murmured, breaking eye contact with him and staring at his shirt instead.

"It's not," he said, using a warm hand to tilt my face towards his again. "You are beautiful, Marissa. You need to know that."

"I...," I started, trailing off. There was no doubt in my mind that I was falling in love with Yuko too, so why is it so hard to believe him and admit my own feelings?

Because you're scared.

"You don't have to say anything," he mumbled. "I know you're...skeptical about relationships after Cody and that's okay. Take your time. I'm not going anywhere."