national treasures| Charles Leclerc

thirty-six

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The silence in the room is heavy, but in a way that feels comforting rather than oppressive. 

It's not the silence of uncertainty, but the kind that exists when everything is laid bare, when everything that needed to be said has been said. 

As I look at her, I can feel the weight of the past and the present intertwining, and yet, for the first time in what feels like forever, I'm not suffocated by it.

Her words, soft but firm, are everything I needed to hear and more. 

I love you, too. 

They hit me in a place I hadn't even realized was still raw, opening up something inside of me I thought I'd buried. 

The years we've spent apart, the hurt we've caused each other, the distance we've tried to close—it doesn't go away with a simple admission. 

But it feels like the first real step forward, a recognition of what we've always known deep down, even when we couldn't quite say it.

I don't know when it started feeling like this, when the weight of our shared history stopped feeling like a burden and began to feel like the foundation of something stronger. 

But in this moment, as we sit together, the tension between us seems to dissolve. 

It doesn't mean everything is perfect, but it feels like we've finally allowed ourselves to be vulnerable, to admit the truth that we've both known for so long.

There's a soft exhale from Camille, a breath that's been held for far too long, and in that simple gesture, I can tell just how much this moment means to her, how much it means to both of us. 

There's something in the way she looks at me—more than just affection. 

It's understanding, a kind of mutual recognition of all that we've been through, all that we've learned. 

And yet, even in the quiet that follows, I can feel the promise between us. 

A promise to rebuild. 

To fight for this love, even when the world outside feels like it's doing everything it can to pull us apart.

I feel proud of her in a way that goes beyond anything I've ever felt. 

She's had to learn to stand on her own, to be more than just a reflection of me or of anyone else. 

She's carved out her own path, fought her own battles, and come out stronger on the other side. 

I've watched her do it, from a distance, always feeling this mix of admiration and regret. 

Regret that I wasn't there when she needed me the most, regret that I couldn't protect her from everything the world tried to throw at her. 

But as I look at her now, sitting across from me, I realize how much she's grown.

The woman before me is not the same girl I left behind years ago. 

She's stronger, wiser, more sure of herself. 

And yet, in the way she reaches for me now, I can see the same vulnerability I remember, the same softness that first drew me to her all those years ago. 

There's no pretense, no walls between us anymore. 

We're here, finally.

I can feel the past in the way our fingers intertwine. 

There's history between us, a history I can never change, but it's not something I want to erase anymore. 

It's a part of us, a part of the love we share. 

The mistakes, the heartbreak—they've shaped us into who we are now. 

But in this moment, I know the most important thing is what we're choosing to build together.

We still have a lot to work through. 

I know that. 

There's the weight of the media, the pressure of our careers, the doubts that still linger in both of us. 

But what we share now, what we've worked so hard to rebuild, is stronger than anything we've faced before. 

There's a clarity between us that wasn't there before, a sense of understanding that has deepened over time. 

It's like we've finally found each other again, not as the people we were when we first met, but as the people we've become.

I'm ready for whatever comes next. 

We'll face it together, just as we always should have. 

I reach for her again, pulling her closer, and as her head rests on my shoulder, I know that we're not just rebuilding a relationship. 

We're creating something new. 

Something ours.

This time, I'm not running. 

And neither is she.

⋆⁺₊⋆ ☾𖤓 ⋆⁺₊⋆

For so long, I carried the weight of what we were—what we could have been—but now, as I sit beside Charles, I realize that all of that doesn't matter anymore. 

The love I've always had for him was never truly gone; it was just buried beneath layers of hurt, pride, and the distance that time had carved between us. 

I think I forgot, for a while, what it felt like to just be with him, to be us without the complications of the world around us.

But now, sitting here in the quiet, I can breathe. 

There's no more holding back, no more second-guessing. 

This is real. 

This is us again, but in a way that feels stronger, more solid than it ever was before. 

We're not just trying to fix what was broken—what was shattered into so many pieces all those years ago. 

No, we're building something new, something different. 

Something better.

The way he looks at me now—there's no uncertainty in his eyes, no hesitation. 

There's only love, pure and steady, and I realize that I've missed this more than I could've ever understood. 

The years apart, the heartbreak, the silence—it all led to this. 

And in a strange way, I wouldn't change it. 

Because now, with Charles beside me, I know that what we have is deeper than it ever was before. 

We've learned, we've grown, and we've come back together with a strength that's undeniable.

I never thought I'd find myself here again, with him, in this way. 

I never imagined that the pieces of our past could fit together again. 

But now that we're here, I understand—this is what we were always meant to be. 

Not perfect, not without flaws, but stronger for having gone through everything we have. 

And for the first time in a long time, I feel whole again.

The future is uncertain. 

I won't lie to myself and pretend that everything will be easy from here on out. 

We've both got our demons, our doubts, our own battles to fight. 

And the world we live in won't make things simple, won't make it easy to just be us without the noise and the pressures from every angle. 

But for once, I'm not afraid of it.

I'm not afraid of what's coming. 

Because I know that, no matter what, we'll face it together. 

And with Charles by my side, I finally believe that we can build something stronger than we've ever had before. 

Something lasting. 

Something worth fighting for.