Feathers That Bleed

by Sana Khatri

“I love you.” I pull her closer to me, and watch as she inhales sharply in return. “I fucking love you, Cignette Adler, and I won’t be able to do any of it without you. Living, breathing, functioning – none of it. I’ll need you by my side every step of the way, so I want you to get a hold of yourself and stop feeling sorry for the both of us. It’s not going to help anyone, and it’s not the way to honor Jayce and Maverick. So yeah, whether you like it or not, you’re stuck with me, and I’m too fucking selfish to let you hurt yourself.” She cups my wrist with one hand, and fists the front of my vest with the other. She looks dazed, almost shocked. “Say that again,” she rasps, then sniffs. I bend and touch my nose to hers, making sure to keep my eyes on her. “I love you,” I repeat myself. “I think I’ve loved you for a while now, but I kept pushing the thought away in fear of rushing you with it. Every time I’d feel my body buzz in your presence, or feel a welcoming weight on my chest when you were near, I knew; knew what the fuck it meant. And as much as I’ve loathed the term for the power it holds over us, I can’t deny that I feel it for you. I’m in love with you, and it’s a thing that’ll never go away, because it’s instilled into every fiber of my being.” She laughs, and then she cries. She fists my vest tighter, then tilts her head to the side and places a kiss on my lips. “And I love you. I’ve known it since the night you took me to that hill after Varsha killed Gavin. You...

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