The Spider & the Storm

by Kelsey Kingsley

Because sometimes, our memories were crueler than the ghosts that haunted us, and the only thing you could do to chase them away was to caffeinate and wake the hell up.

graffiti—a black-and-white sketch of a long-legged spider trapped inside a wild and chaotic storm. Drenched in rain, surrounded by bolts of jagged lightning, the spider wore a look of devastating horror—and

“And I'm glad that, of all the witches in this city, you chose to catch me in your web.”

“We mourn what once was, and we mourn the possibility of what could’ve been.

“Because you'll be there,” he said with finality. “And I just decided that, for as long as we have together, I'll go where you go.”

“You just tell me what I'm fighting against, Charlie, and I'll go into battle with you.”

“Let it go, Charlie,” she whispered, touching her forehead to mine. “And until you do, I'll love you enough for both of us.”

“My soul doesn't know how to not love yours. All I had to do was meet you to know that I had been put into this universe to hold you and protect you and shelter you from every terrible thing that had ever come your way until you were strong enough to face it on your own. And whenever that happens, if ever it does, my soul will stand beside yours, even while the rest of the world has been conditioned to run from us both.”