SOUL

I love you

The tension in the room was suffocating. Leo had been pacing, unable to sit still, his mind reeling from what had just happened. Mary had taken a risk—too big of a risk—and it had nearly cost her everything. The moment she had walked into danger without a second thought, Leo's heart had stopped in his chest. Now that they were back at his place, he couldn't hold it in anymore.

"can you please say something?" she asks "lets just get the lecture over with"

"Do you even realize what could've happened?" he snapped, his voice raw with emotion. "You could've been killed, Mary! You can't just throw yourself into situations like that without thinking. It's reckless, and I—" He broke off, running a hand through his hair, his frustration pouring out.

Mary stood across the room, arms crossed, her eyes narrowing as she watched him. "I was doing what needed to be done, Leo. You know that. We didn't have time, and I—"

"I don't care!" he cut her off, his voice rising. "I don't care about the case right now. I care about you."

Her lips parted slightly in surprise, her expression softening for just a moment before she steeled herself again. "Leo, nothing happened - he didn't see me!"

"But you don't get it, do you?" Leo's voice trembled with a mix of anger and something deeper, something raw that he hadn't allowed himself to say aloud. His eyes met hers, and for the first time, Mary saw something in his gaze that made her breath catch—fear. Deep, soul-crushing fear.

"You think you can handle it," he continued, his voice quieter now, but no less intense, "but what if you didn't? What if you didn't make it back? You're risking your life, and I can't—"

He stopped, his hands clenched into fists as he tried to rein in the surge of emotions threatening to tear him apart.

"I can't lose you, Mary," he whispered, his voice breaking. "I can't."

The weight of his words hung in the air like a thick fog, and for a moment, Mary didn't know how to respond. She had seen Leo angry before, frustrated, even protective—but this was different. His voice was filled with something that made her chest tighten, made her heart pound in her ears.

"Leo..." she began, taking a small step toward him, but he shook his head, cutting her off.

"No, you don't understand," he said, his voice rising again, but this time it wasn't out of anger—it was out of desperation. "You don't understand what it does to me, watching you put yourself in danger like that. I can't take it, Mary. I can't."

Her breath hitched, the gravity of his words sinking in, but before she could say anything, Leo took a deep, shuddering breath, his fists unclenching as his shoulders slumped with the weight of what he was about to say.

"Do you know what it feels like?" he asked, his voice softer now, filled with an aching vulnerability she had never heard from him before. "To love someone so much that it scares you? That every time they walk out that door, it feels like a piece of your heart is walking away with them, and you're terrified they might not come back?"

Mary's eyes widened, her heart pounding so hard she could barely breathe. "What—"

"I love you," Leo said, his voice breaking with the force of the confession, like it had been trapped inside him for so long and was finally free. "I love you more than I've ever loved anyone in my life, and it's killing me."

Tears welled up in Mary's eyes, her breath catching in her throat as Leo's words hit her like a tidal wave. She had always known there was something between them, something unspoken, but this—this was so much more than she had ever imagined.

"I've been in love with you for so long, Mary," Leo continued, his voice trembling. "Since the moment we met, I think I knew. I felt it deep down, like my heart was waiting for you before I even knew what love was. And it scared the hell out of me."

Mary took another step toward him, her body moving without thinking, but Leo held up a hand, stopping her as he poured out his heart in a way she had never seen before.

"I've always pushed people away," he said, his voice thick with emotion. "Because everyone I've ever cared about... they've been taken from me. My family, my friends. Everyone. And when I realized how much you meant to me, I thought if I kept you at arm's length, if I didn't let myself feel it, maybe I wouldn't lose you, too."

Tears streamed down Mary's cheeks as she listened to him, her heart aching with the weight of his words.

"But I can't do it anymore," Leo continued, his eyes locking onto hers with an intensity that made her knees weak. "I can't pretend like I don't love you. I can't act like I don't care, because I do. I love you more than anything in this world, and it's killing me to think that I might not be able to keep you safe."

His voice broke, and he took a shaky breath before continuing. "I've tried to love other women. I've tried to forget about you, to move on, but it never worked. They weren't you, Mary. They couldn't be, because no one else is you. No one else is as beautiful, as strange, as brave, as—God, as funny as you are. You're everything I've ever wanted, everything I've ever needed, and I'm terrified that one day I'm going to lose you."

Mary's tears fell freely now, her heart breaking and swelling all at once as Leo spoke.

"I love the way you look at the world, the way you see things no one else sees," he whispered, his voice filled with a reverence that made her chest tighten. "I love the way you make me feel like I'm not alone, like maybe I can be a better man when I'm with you. And I love how brave you are, even when I hate it because it scares me to death. You're the most incredible person I've ever known, and I would do anything for you. Anything."

He took a step closer to her, his eyes filled with a deep, soul-crushing sincerity as he reached out, gently brushing away her tears with his thumb. "So please," he whispered, his voice shaking. "Please don't keep throwing yourself into danger. I can't lose you."

Mary's heart was pounding so hard she thought it might burst. She could barely breathe, barely think, as Leo's confession washed over her. He loved her. He had always loved her.

Without thinking, without hesitation, she closed the distance between them and kissed him.

It was soft at first, gentle, but the moment their lips touched, something broke open between them—something raw and powerful and filled with years of unspoken feelings. Leo's arms wrapped around her, pulling her closer as the kiss deepened, as if he was afraid to let her go now that he had finally told her the truth.

When they finally pulled apart, breathless and trembling, Mary looked up at him, her eyes filled with tears and love and something so deep it scared her.

"I love you, too," she whispered, her voice shaking. "I always have."

Leo's breath hitched, his eyes searching hers as if he couldn't quite believe what he was hearing. "You... you do?"

Mary nodded, her tears falling freely now as she smiled through them. "I love you, Leo."

Leo's face broke into a soft, disbelieving smile, and he pulled her close, resting his forehead against hers. "I'm never letting you go," he whispered, his voice filled with quiet, desperate relief. "Never."

Mary closed her eyes, leaning into him, her heart full and overflowing. "good," she whispered back.

And in that moment, she knew it was true.