I've Found You

Chapter 18

A/N: i'll leave a link to the song i had on reply while i wrote this chapter in the comments, feel free to listen to it, and thank you so much for reading <3

*Val’s POV*

It had been about a day since I’d had the dream, or, to better describe it, the nightmare. The image of Jai slowly backing away from me as I mustered attempt after futile attempt to reach him was imprinted into my mind like a tattoo. I couldn’t stop thinking about him. I couldn’t stop missing him.

I felt pathetic for giving my heart so completely to another human being, especially one who I wasn’t sure felt the same way. In the back of my mind I wondered what he was doing at this very moment. Had he found another girl? Was he even upset by my absence? Did he miss me at all?

My mental tirade was interrupted by the sound of someone walking around downstairs. My whole body froze. I wasn’t expecting my parents home for another few weeks, at the very least, and the only other person who had a key to my house was Jai (I had given it to him when I made him a copy of my keychain, though I’m not sure why), but he was on a different continent than I. As quietly as I could manage, I sat up from my bed and tiptoed to the door, grabbing a hairbrush on the way as means of protection, although I’m not sure how exactly that would help me.

Opening the door slowly, I peeked around the corner. My heart was racing a million miles per hour. Someone was in my home and I had no idea what to do. As soon as I caught sight of the hallway, I dropped to my knees. My breath hitched in my throat. I rubbed my eyes, trying to decipher whether or not I was still asleep. There was no way that what I was seeing could be real, could it? I pinched my arm. I was definitely awake.

Lying on the floor in front of me was a trail of red rose petals. Not single petals spaced a few feet apart like the last time this had happened, no, there had to be hundreds of them, at least an inch deep, and they led all the way down the hallway and to the foot of the stairs. Moving in a dreamlike trance, I followed the rose petals.

I couldn’t help the tears that fell freely down my face as I rounded the stairs and came face to face with him in the kitchen. We stood there for countless moments, just staring at each other, drinking in one another’s presence.

“Jai,” I whispered after what felt like an eternity.

“Valerie,” he whispered in return. I could tell by the glimmering wetness that covered the surface of his cheeks that he was crying, too.

I couldn’t stand in the same spot any longer. I broke free of the trance that had kept me rooted in place and bounded into his open arms, weeping softly into the crook of his neck.

“You’re here, Jai, you’re really here,” I sobbed.

He stroked my hair and attempted to comfort me while I allowed the emotion that had taken control of my life for the past few days leave my body. I couldn’t process that this was real. I felt as though I was in the middle of a beautiful, sweet dream, and that I would wake from it any moment, to find myself consumed by sadness once more. But the hardness of his body against mine while we held each other told me differently. He was real, and he’d come back for me.

Pulling back from me, he held my body at arm’s length and looked solemnly into my eyes before he spoke. I had never been so happy to hear someone’s voice in my life.

“I’m so sorry for walking out on you like that, Val. I hadn’t known it would affect you enough that you would just leave without even saying goodbye. But those days I spent without you were a real eye opener for me. I love you, and I don’t want to spend the rest of my life without you in it. I know it’s going to be hard, but we care enough about each other that we can make it work. I know I never asked you this before, and it felt like I didn’t have to, but I want to make this official. Please be my girlfriend, Valerie? The distance means nothing to me; I want you all to myself.”

My reply was wordless. I crashed my lips into his with enough force to sink a steamship. The need to be with him in that very moment was a frantic beat in my blood. I grabbed him by the hem of his shirt and dragged him upstairs with me, scattering rose petals in every direction on our way. When we’d reached my bedroom, Jai pulled me into him with a growl, kissing me hard, bruising my lips.

His hand was in my hair, fisting it roughly and holding me in place so I couldn’t turn away. As if I’d want to. He kissed me with a passion that I felt in every cell of my body. He smelled so good, so familiar; I was starved for the taste of him. His body felt so perfectly right against mine. I felt a slow, hot trickle of arousal gather at my core. My heart thundered in my chest.

He picked me up and tossed me roughly onto the bed, collapsing on top of me. His arms that, until then had been clasped around my waist, slid lower, and his hands delved beneath the shorts I was wearing. He wrenched my hips forcefully into his, allowing me to feel just how aroused he was. I couldn’t take it any longer, I needed him.

Within minutes, the both of us had undressed each other, our clothes landing carelessly on the other side of the room. Pulling my legs up over his shoulder, Jai positioned himself at my entrance. I was already panting, anticipating the feeling of his exquisite length inside of me. I whimpered as he shoved into me in one thrust, my body struggling to accommodate the fullness I hadn’t realized I’d been craving so much. Wrenching my hips into his to meet every powerful thrust, he made love to me for what felt like an eternity, his gaze dark and possessive, his breath leaving him in short, primitive grunts every time he hit the end of me.

Our orgasms hit us at the same time. Gasping his name, I watched as his body was racked by a convulsive shudder, followed by an agonized sound of ecstasy. I was quite sure the sounds leaving my mouth mirrored his own. In those moments of orgasm, I owned him as completely as he owned me.

Pulling out of me and rolling over so my body was positioned on top of his, Jai kissed me softly on the tip of my nose. Looking into the depths of his chocolate coloured eyes, I wondered how I ever thought I would be able to get by without him. He was my soul mate. I truly believed that we were meant for each other in every possible way, and that in the end, we would always find our way back to each other, no matter what continents we were on.

“I love you, Jai,” I said to him, nuzzling further into the warmth of his arms.

The smile he gave me in return was absolutely radiant. My heart stuttered in adoration.

“I love you too, Val. I’m so happy I finally found you.”

THE END