Chapter 60

Chapter 60
“Do you think we’ll ever stop looking over our shoulders?” I asked quietly.

Julian didn’t answer right away. He stared out the window, the gray morning light softening the edges of his face.

“I think,” he said slowly, “when you’ve been hunted long enough, peace feels like a trick.”

I turned toward him. “So we’ll always feel like we’re waiting for something to go wrong?”

“Maybe,” he said. “But eventually, you get used to breathing without choking.”

I pulled my knees up onto the couch. “I want to believe that.”

“Then believe it,” he said. “You’ve believed in worse things before.”

“Like what?”

“Elijah.”

I sighed. “That wasn’t belief. That was survival.”

“Same thing, sometimes.”

I looked down at my hands. “I still don’t know what I am.”

“You’re Ana.”

“That’s not an answer.”

He smiled softly. “It’s the only one that matters to me.”

I turned my head away. “What if I don’t know how to be her anymore?”

“Then we find her together.”

“And if we fail?”

“We won’t.”

“You can’t promise that.”

“No,” he said. “But I can promise I won’t let go of your hand while we try.”

I blinked fast. “You’re exhausting, you know that?”

He laughed. “I’ve been called worse.”

“I’m serious.”

“So am I.”

I reached over and traced the line of his jaw. “You always look like you’re waiting for me to disappear.”

“That’s because I am.”

“Julian.”

“I lost you once.” His voice was low. “And then I lost you again when I had to pretend you didn’t remember me.”

“And now?”

“I don’t know if I’m holding you or just dreaming I got you back.”

“You’re not dreaming.”

“Then why do I still feel like you could vanish any second?”

I took his face in my hands. “Because I did vanish. But I came back.”

He exhaled slowly. “You did.”

“And I’m staying.”

His voice cracked. “Say it again.”

“I’m staying.”

He closed his eyes. “One more time.”

“Julian.” I kissed his forehead. “I’m staying.”

When he looked at me again, his expression was different. Softer. More certain.

“You don’t owe me anything,” I said.

“I’m not here out of debt.”

“I just don’t want to be something you feel responsible for.”

“You’re not.” He touched my wrist. “You’re someone I choose. Every day. Every breath.”

I rested my head on his shoulder. “Then let’s start over.”

He looked down at me. “How?”

“Like we never had to burn for this.”

He smiled. “Okay. Hi, I’m Julian.”

I laughed. “Hi, I’m Ana.”

He offered his hand. “Want to go somewhere with me?”

“Where?”

“Anywhere,” he said. “Just… away. From all of this.”

I hesitated. “We’ve been hiding so long. I don’t want to run anymore.”

“It’s not running if we’re walking forward.”

I smiled. “You’re full of poetic excuses.”

He grinned. “And you’re full of good reasons to follow them.”

I sat up straighter. “Okay. One condition.”

“Anything.”

“No more secrets.”

His face turned serious. “No more.”

“No more choosing for me.”

“Never again.”

“No more lies.”

“Not even soft ones.”

“And if I falter—”

“I’ll catch you,” he said. “Every time.”

The promise hung between us, quiet and holy.

“I believe you,” I whispered.

He kissed the back of my hand. “Then let’s go write something new.”

And for the first time in a very long time—

I believed we could.