𝐠𝐨𝐥𝐝𝐞𝐧 𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐠𝐨 | ﾒ

The rain lashed down around us, the world reduced to a blur of water and light. I pulled my damp hair away from my face, feeling the cold droplets slide down my skin as my heart raced faster than the storm itself. RJ stood inches away, his expression a mixture of frustration and something deeper that I couldn't quite name.

"𝐈 𝐜𝐚𝐧'𝐭 𝐤𝐞𝐞𝐩 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐬𝐧'𝐭 𝐚 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠, 𝐏𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐚!" he shouted over the cacophony of raindrops hitting the pavement. The intensity in his bright hazel eyes cut through the grey, igniting a warmth that both terrified and exhilarated me.

"𝐑𝐉, 𝐢𝐭'𝐬 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐝!" I shot back, my voice trembling, not just from the chill but from the raw emotions swirling between us. He had no idea how hard it was to shake off the shadows of my past. "𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐦𝐞? 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐟 𝐈 𝐦𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐢𝐭 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐮𝐩?"

"𝐒𝐭𝐨𝐩 𝐬𝐚𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭!" His frustration crackled in the air, thick with tension. "𝐘𝐨𝐮'𝐫𝐞 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐩𝐚𝐬𝐭, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐈 𝐜𝐚𝐧'𝐭 𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐥𝐤 𝐚𝐰𝐚𝐲 𝐛𝐞𝐜𝐚𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮'𝐫𝐞 𝐬𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐝!"

I took a step back, feeling the rain soak through my clothes, weighing me down. "𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐝𝐨𝐧'𝐭 𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝! 𝐈 𝐜𝐚𝐧'𝐭 𝐛𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭."

RJ closed the distance, his voice low but fierce. "𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐥𝐞𝐭 𝐦𝐞 𝐝𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭. 𝐈 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮. 𝐉𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐥𝐞𝐭 𝐦𝐞 𝐢𝐧." For a moment, the storm faded into the background.