Open Wounds | Captain Swan

24. I Will Always, Always Be by Your Side

[Hey, look who updated after ten years. I just want to give a huge shoutout to the amazing chekecp  for helping me with this chapter. I swear, I couldn't have done this without you! Oh, and this chapter will contain smut so if you don't want to read it I suggest you skip the chapter hehe.]

He pulled away, but the distance between them was nothing more than a few inches and twirled around. And before her mind had even processed anything, his lips were already on hers again.

Her back was pinned against the wall as she felt herself grow more nervous with every passing second. Considering events that took place in the past it wasn't weird at all, but she hated herself for it.

She tried to convince herself to trust her fiancé, but she quickly concluded that she would need encouragement if she even wanted to attempt to succeed.

She tried to focus on him, only him, but her efforts appeared to be in vain. She had to prorogue what they were doing. She could venture to disappoint him if they continued this any second longer, but persuading herself she hadn't been longing for him for a very long time was a lie, even though she had tried to deny it.

Her hesitation hadn't been a surprise to him and as much as his desire for her had a tendency to ignore it and continue and hope she would come around, he couldn't consider that as an option. It would make him seem abusive and that was a reputation he did not wish to have. Ignoring her doubts would be like the people of Pompeii ignoring the rumblings below Vesuvius.

When he pulled away and fixed his eyes on hers she had one of those regrettable moments again. She looked down to the wooden floor, a salty tear trickling down her cheek. She had a train of thoughts stuck in her head, which she desperately needed to say aloud to preferably Killian, but she feared he wouldn't have the patience to listen anymore after she had let him down again. She just needed that minuscule confirmation it was okay, so she could pound all her confusing thoughts out of the way.

He moved his hands from her small back to her cheeks, leaving her back cold without his touch. Her silly skin felt softer than a velvet pillow under his rough hands. He kept stroking her skin with her skin, saddling Emma with diverse thoughts wandering through her brain. He hoped she would let her guard down by herself, instead of waiting for his little push.

"I'm scared." The lump in her throat barley allowed her to choke out her confession softly.

She couldn't wait any longer, she needed to hug him right now. She flashed forward and embraced him in a record time. Although he was taken aback by her sudden movements, his eyes immediately filled with pride when she did.

"If it's the pain you're afraid of, I can assure you I'll be gentle." How he managed to ensure her of her safety while his mind was still dealing with the fact that she was showing vulnerability all by herself was a mystery to him. They may have been together for a good amount of time, but they were separated for at least half of it.

"I'm not afraid of pain." She mumbled into his neck as she used his steady breaths as an assurance. "I just know that once we do this my last wall will be down forever and there is no way to put them back up again. Our future will begin."

Before she had even bit her lip like she always did when she had finished a sentence that contained information about a sensitive topic he had already slid his arms around her waist and wrapped her legs around his waist.

She giggled swiftly, but managed to contain herself when she figured out he was still being serious. "I know the future is something scary, but it's not necessarily something to be afraid of. I know we also face an uncertain future, but there's one thing I want you to be certain of: that I will always, always be by your side."