Side by side. Step by step. My stomach is in a huge knot. Perhaps it had all been joking around. Surely no one would actually say those things to me. Those lovely, wonderful things that made me melt. It was all just a game. How obvious. Just a little joke over text. Now, neither of us said anything about it.
I can feel the heat of their body as we walk down the uneven walkway. So close. Can they hear my heart thundering away, threatening to rip through my chest and declare how torturous it was to be kept inside? My hand brushes theirs. I apologize. Again. Again. Again. My hand keeps bumping theirs ever so briefly. The contact is short, but I cannot pull my mind away. How would that hand feel in mine?
I imagine our fingers interlacing. Our palms touching. How had I never thought about this? Their hands are so graceful. So perfect. Palms. So unnoticeable and yet now so distracting. They're so delicate, so sensitive. I desperately want to grab that hand. To gently stroke it. To open it and place a kiss on their palm. I want their hands everywhere. Each touch with thought and care and passion.
But I do nothing. How could I? After all, we'd only been joking. Just playing around. Nothing serious. My hand suddenly feels cold and empty, tingling every time it skims against their beautiful, graceful, perfect hand. I apologize again. This time they say nothing. The pit of dread in my stomach bubbles and burns. I've upset them. I've made things uncomfortable. I knew this would happen. I knew it I knew it I-
Soft. Their hand is so soft. And so warm. My breath catches in my throat. Our fingers fall together, like missing puzzle pieces finally coming together the way they were always meant to. Gold. White. Gold. White. Beautiful alternating colors. No longer separate, we are one. They give a little squeeze, and I have to fight to keep a squeal from coming out. How could something ever feel this right? Such a simple act, and yet I want to sing. There is nothing but love in their touch. I squeeze back, feeling the fire in my chest run down my arms, turning to lightning in my fingers. This moment is perfect. I feel complete. Balanced. Like my life will never feel right without them. My hand will always be empty without them. I can't help the smile that spreads across my lips. I look at them. Their eyes are already on me.
We melt.
