I held her tight, my arms wrapped full around her, nose buried in the scent of her wet hair. Her body was small and soft and pliable against mine, everything about her in that moment making me want to hide her away from the world. I wanted to hold her on the couch while we watched a movie. I wanted to rub her shoulders and run her a bath. I wanted to cook for her, and the fact that me offering that seemed so wild to her, that she didn’t believe anyone would want to take care of her without being paid to do so… it only made me want to do it more.
