Chapter 22: The Space Between Heartbeats

The morning air was cool against my skin, carrying the scent of damp earth and roses, of something new, something untouched. The garden had always been a place of peace, but today, it felt different. Not restless just waiting, like the world knew something unspoken lingered between us.

You stood at the edge of the wooden pathway, your gaze fixed on the horizon where the sun was slowly climbing, casting its golden glow over everything it touched. The light caught in your hair, traced the curve of your shoulders, and for a moment, I simply watched.

There was something about you in the morning before the world fully woke, before thoughts became words, before anything had the chance to break the quiet.

You exhaled softly, almost as if testing the weight of your own breath in the stillness. "Do you ever think about how hearts never really stop moving?"

I frowned slightly, stepping closer. "What do you mean?"

You turned to me then, something unreadable in your eyes. "Even when we're standing still, our hearts are always beating. Always reaching for something. Always waiting for the next moment."

I let your words sink in, let them settle between us like the space between heartbeats brief, fleeting, but always there.

"Maybe that's what love is," I murmured. "Not just the big moments. Not just the words. But the waiting, the reaching, the in-between."

Your lips curved slightly, almost like you had been waiting for me to say that. You reached for my hand, pressing it against your chest, letting me feel the steady rhythm beneath my palm.

"This," you whispered, "has never been still. Not since I met you."

The wind stirred around us, gentle, carrying the scent of roses and the warmth of something unspoken. I closed my fingers around yours, holding onto that truth, feeling it in the space between us.

Because love wasn't just something that happened. It was something that never stopped happening.

And as long as our hearts kept moving, as long as they kept reaching, I knew this love, our love would never stand still.