A Tall and Small Collection | S2

Forward Together

Excitement. Nervousness. Freedom. The silence finally shattered, tension released like lightening in a bottle.

The path forward was uncharted territory, but the unknown could now be faced with the pair of them.

Giving in to the feelings that, for so long, had kept his heart pounding in his chest, Soren let himself sink into the pressure of Ashlynn's fingers against his back as her impeccably soft lips pressed against his chest. She completely dwarfed him in size, but love isn't measured by how tall or small a person is.

Eternity wouldn't have been long enough to stay there, unmoving, entwined in her fingers, but all good things must come to an end. They separated, but only just barely enough for Ashlynn to dip her head forward toward him.

Soren lifted his own head and kissed her again, noticing the glistening tears of joy slipping down her cheeks and lining her face. A smile tugged at his lips as they pulled away simultaneously, both speechless from the moment.

Instead, they gazed into one another's eyes, unable to stop themselves from smiling. It was Soren, however, who ended up breaking the silence with his signature chuckle.

"Not what you were expecting? Our talk I mean," he asked, hazel eyes taking in every fragment of twinkling light in Ashlynn's blue-grey eyes.

"No," she smiled. "Not at all, but I wouldn't change it." She wiped off her tear-stained face with her left hand, relief evident on her face.

"I'm sorry for not saying something when I woke up this morning. I did have some things to take care of," apologized Soren, to which Ashlynn shook her head.

"No. I'm just glad you said anything at all," Ashlynn said as she gently pressed the pads of her fingers into Soren's back again. Then, a thought came to her, which made her chuckle. "I wonder what the bobbins will say."

At this, Soren sighed and placed his hands on his hips, his eyes rolling slightly.

"Rey will call me out on it and Dorian will just look at us like he knew the whole time," replied Soren. Ashlynn felt her eyes widen.

"They knew?" she asked, feeling her cheeks pinken in embarrassment. Had it been that obvious?

"No, not really anyway," reassured Soren. "But Rey does seem to have a sixth sense about these things, and Dorian knows how to play it cool." Ashlynn let out a sigh of relief.

"Good. Um... speaking of which, when... or... I guess... when do we tell them?" asked Ashlynn. At this, Soren laughed and gave Ashlynn's finger, which was still pressed against his back, an affectionate tap with a loose fist.

"As if we could keep it from them," he smiled. "We barely kept it from each other." Ashlynn looked away bashfully, her heart still fluttering through backflip after backflip.

"True. I don't know how I managed this long. I... I guess when... I heard about your daughter and... Lucy... I just wanted to give you space and time," said Ashlynn. "And... I was afraid too. I mean... I was trying to figure out how and when to tell you, or at least hint at it, while trying to figure out how we – this... us – would work. Then, everything that happened with the attack... I couldn't contain it anymore. Sorry... that was a lot. I'm still jittery."

"I can tell," Soren teased. "Your cheeks are flushed, and I can feel your pulse racing in your fingertips." Ashlynn playfully bumped Soren's shoulder with her thumb. He staggered a few steps, but was against her fingers again in no time.

"And only you would know that second one, so I'm feeling pretty good," she teased back. Soren nodded and let his body relax into the warmth of Ashlynn's hand again.

"Fair. And... to your other point... about us – gosh, that sounds good to say out loud – I think we'll figure it out together," said Soren. "I think we can do anything as long as we're a team. As long as I'm with you, it doesn't matter how challenging something is." Ashlynn, feeling tears once again creeping into the corners of her eyes, nodded stiffly as she fought back the urge to cry at Soren's words.

"I guess someone had to be the first, if we are that is... not that it matters," said Ashlynn. Soren, at this point, stepped forward and rotated his body so it was pressed against the side of Ashlynn's thumb, draping his arm over the crook it made with the rest of her hand, and squeezed affectionately.

"What matters is that I love you, and nothing is changing that."

Choked up again and completely overwhelmed, Ashlynn leaned forward and kissed the top of Soren's head tenderly.

Pulling away after a moment, she whispered, "I love you too."

The sun sank lower, casting the final rays of golden light against the horizon before slipping out of sight. While the sun set on this very long and emotionally exhausting day, a whole new life was just dawning.

When they composed themselves, Soren once again slipped into Ashlynn's pocket, and they made their way back down the elevator to Ashlynn's room.

Sure enough, the moment the pair entered the apartment, settling on the couch with the others, and smiled at each other, Rey and Dorian exchanged knowing looks. Then, just as Soren predicted, Rey was the first to speak up.

"I knew it! I told you Soren! Didn't I call it? I called it, right Dorian?" Rey cheered. "I'm so happy for you two! It's about time too!" Dorian, grinning from ear to ear, continued to wrestle Mayzie while giving Soren and Ashlynn teasing glances, as if their feelings were obvious and inevitable.

The family spent the rest of the evening making dinner and watching movies, all the while snuggling on the couch and having finger wrestling matches when they switched from one movie to the next. The bobbins and Mayzie, finally settling down late in the evening, stayed cupped in Ashlynn's hands while Soren took a seat in the crook of Ashlynn's neck.

For the first time in days, there was some semblance of peace among the family – and all of them were determined to keep it that way.