Evergreen Mountain

Eighteen | What Happens After

I laid against Hal's chest, his legs on either side of me and my back pressed against his chest. I heard him turn the page of his book while I mindlessly scrolled through my phone. The rain was thumping on the roof, creating a cozy vibe inside the walls of the cabin.

I let myself soak in this moment. The heat of Hal's body, the feeling of his chest pressed against me, his steady breathing and occasional page turn. My mind flipped to my conversation with Will. My heart sped up, a dull throb of panic clawing at my chest. I sat up slightly, pulling away from Hal enough for him to shoot me a questioning look.

"Are you okay?" he asked, eyes searching me as he bookmarked his spot on the book and set it aside. I turned to face him, his legs still on either side of me.

"I'm fine." I smiled, letting out a soft chuckle. "I was just thinking about after. This trip, I mean." my heart was racing, panic starting to course through me.

"What do you mean?"

"Us, I guess." I blurted out. "What will happen when the trip is over. When we're back home." I rambled, dropping my gaze to my hands as I fidgeted. Hal reached for me, a hand tipping my chin up to meet his eyes again.

"Of course I do." he softly admitted, a small smile on his lips.

"Really?" I asked, relief rushing through me. He nodded before elaborating.

"I was nervous to mention it, worried you would snap out of it and realize this was just a trip hookup or fling." he dropped his gaze down to his hands now. "I figured living in denial was better than everything crashing down around me." he let out a low, humorless laugh.

I moved closer to him, sitting with my legs tucked in front of me. I placed a hand on his knee before reaching for his hand. I laced my fingers with his and lifted his hand to my lips, placing a soft kiss on the back of it.

"Well," I started, letting out a relieved breath. "I don't know about you, but I enjoy kissing you Harrison Haley. And I don't plan on stopping anytime soon." Hal met my eyes and smiled, laughing quietly. I squeezed his hand.

"But really. We lost six years, Hal. I just got you back, I'm not going to let you go so easily." I softly smiled at him. He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me against his chest, hugging me tightly. A content sigh left my lips as I wrapped my arms around him, melting into his embrace.

"Then it looks like you'll be stuck with me for a little longer." he murmured into my ear. I laughed and hugged him tighter, pressing a light kiss to his neck. "I'll take you as long as you'll have me." his voice was deep and serious as he said those words. I felt my throat constrict and my eyes burn. I squeezed my eyes shut and burrowed into his shoulder.

We sat like that for a while, the rain still drumming against the roof, our arms tightly wrapped around one another. I took a deep breath and pulled back. My fingers carded through the hair near the nape of his neck as I looked at him.

"This is not a fling or a hookup to me." I clearly stated. "We're going to make this work." the side of Hal's mouth ticked up as he leaned forward and pressed a light kiss to my lips.

"I'm quite fond of you, Andy." Hal mumbled against my lips. I let out a bark of laughter, his words making my chest flutter and laughter bubble up in me.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry." I apologized. "That's so sweet, I just wasn't expecting you to say fond. You caught me off guard." I explained. Hal rolled his eyes and placed a hand on the back of my neck. He pulled me closer to him so he could kiss my cheek as I tried to stifle my laughing.

"Dork." he grumbled. My laughter died down and I took a deep breath.

"Mmhmm. Your dork, unfortunately for you." I winked at him, making him roll his eyes. I pulled him in for a deep kiss, our breath and tongues mingling. My forehead rested against his as we both breathed hard, trying to catch our breath.