Chapter 3: Falling in Love

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Aurora

It started slowly—like the sun rising, gradually filling the sky with light. I didn’t realize when it happened, but I was falling for Nathan. The boy who had once
seemed like a distraction had become the person I looked forward to see every day. I’d spent years
keeping people at a distance, believing that no one
could truly understand me, or worse, that no one
would care enough to try. But Nathan was different. He made me feel seen in a way that no one else had
before. And that scared me.
I wasn’t supposed to feel this way. I wasn’t supposed to let myself get close to anyone, let alone someone
like him. He was everything I wasn’t—confident, bold, and unafraid to face the world. But despite our differences, there was something between us that I
couldn’t ignore.I found myself thinking about him constantly. It didn’t matter if we were together or apart—he was always in the back of my mind. I wondered what he was doing, what he was thinking, if he was thinking about me. It was ridiculous, really. I’d never been one to get
caught up in feelings like this, but with Nathan, I
couldn’t help it.
One evening, we were sitting by the lake, watching the sunset. It was one of those rare moments where
everything felt perfect. The sky was painted in shades of pink and orange, the air was warm, and the sound of the water lapping against the shore was soothing.
We sat in comfortable silence, just enjoying each
other's company. But my mind was racing.
I knew what I was feeling. I knew I was falling for him.
And I knew I couldn’t hold it back any longer.
“Nathan,” I said softly, breaking the silence.
He turned to look at me, his eyes soft and full of
curiosity. “Yeah?”

I hesitated for a moment, unsure of how to say the
words that had been building inside me for weeks.

“I... I think I’m falling for you.”

The words hung in the air between us, heavy with
meaning. For a moment, I wasn’t sure how he would react. I had never put myself out there like this before, and the vulnerability of it all made my heart race.
But then, he smiled. “I’ve been waiting for you to say that,” he said, his voice was warm and filled with something that made my heart skips a beat.
I blinked, caught off guard. “What?”
He chuckled softly, leaning closer to me. “Aurora, I’ve been falling for you since the day we met. I just didn’t  want to push you.”

The relief that washed over me was overwhelming. All this time, I had been afraid that I was the only one feeling this way, but now, hearing him say those words, I realized that I wasn’t alone in this.
---

Nathan

I had known for a while that I was in deep with Aurora, but I had kept it to myself. She was complicated—guarded, careful with her emotions, like she was afraid to let anyone too close. I didn’t want to scare her off by coming on too strong, so I waited, hoping that one day she’d let me in. And now, sitting by the lake, watching the sun dip
below the horizon, she finally said the words I had
been waiting for. I’m falling for you. I couldn’t stop the smile that spread across my face. She had no idea how long I had wanted to hear her say that.

For weeks, we danced around our feelings,
pretending that we were just friends, even though we both knew there was something more between us.
But now, there was no more pretending. We were
both in this, and it felt right. It felt real.
I reached for her hand, lacing my fingers with hers.
“You have no idea how happy that makes me.”
She smiled, her eyes sparkling in the fading light. “I
was scared,” she admitted softly. “Scared of getting
too close.”
“I get that,” I said, squeezing her hand gently. “But I’m not going anywhere, Aurora. You don’t have to be scared of me.”
We sat there for a while, just holding hands and
watching the stars begin to appear in the sky. I
couldn’t remember the last time I had felt this
content. With her, everything felt easier, like I didn’t have to try so hard to be the guy everyone expected
me to be. I could just be Nathan.

Aurora

Falling in love with Nathan was like stepping into the unknown. It was exhilarating, but it also terrified me. I had spent so long convincing myself that I didn’t need anyone, that I could handle life on my own. But with Nathan, I realized how much I had been missing.
He wasn’t just my friend anymore. He was the person I turned to when I needed comfort, the person who made me laugh when I was stressed, the person who made me feel like I wasn’t alone. Being with him felt like finding a part of myself that I hadn’t known was missing.
But as much as I wanted to give in to these feelings,
there was still a part of me that held back. A part of
me that was afraid of what might happen if I let myself love him completely.

Nathan

The more time I spent with Aurora, the more I realized how much she meant to me. She wasn’t like any other girl I had ever met. She was strong and independent, but there was a vulnerability to her that she tried so hard to hide. And for some reason, that only made me want to protect her more.
We started spending almost all our free time together.
We’d study in the library, grab coffee between
classes, or just hang out at my apartment, talking
about everything and nothing. It was easy being with her, like we had always been meant to find each other.One night, we decided to go out for a real date—our first official one. Up until that point, we had spent so much time together that it felt like we were already dating, but this was different. This was intentional.
I took her to a small Italian restaurant just off
campus. It wasn’t fancy, but it had this cozy, intimate vibe that I knew she’d love. We sat in a quiet corner, sharing a bottle of wine and laughing over stories
from our childhoods. For the first time, I felt like we
were really letting our guards down with each other.By the end of the night, I couldn’t stop smiling.
Aurora had this way of making even the simplest moments feel special. And as we walked back to campus, her hand in mine, I realized just how deeply I had fallen for her.

Aurora

That first date was perfect. It wasn’t extravagant or
over the top, but it was exactly what I needed. Nathan had this way of making everything feel effortless, like we didn’t have to try to impress each other. We could just be ourselves, and that was enough.After dinner, we walked through campus, the air crisp and cool. The stars above us were bright, and I felt this overwhelming sense of peace wash over me. I hadn’t felt that way in a long time—not since before college, before the pressures of my family’s expectations had started to weigh me down.
As we reached the entrance to my dorm, Nathan
stopped and turned to face me. His eyes were soft,
full of something that made my heart race. And before I knew what was happening, he leaned in and kissed me.
It wasn’t my first kiss, but it was the first one that felt like it really mattered.
When we finally pulled away, I felt breathless, like the world had tilted on its axis. Nathan smiled, brushing a strand of hair behind my ear.
“I’m really glad we met,” he said, his voice low and
sincere.
“Me too,” I whispered, my heart still racing from the kiss.

That night, as I lay in bed, replaying the evening over and over in my mind, I realized something important: I wasn’t scared anymore. For the first time in a long time, I wasn’t afraid of falling in love. With Nathan, it felt safe. It felt right.

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