Beautiful Tragedies| 18+

1-Im outside

Dom: I'm Outside.

Three little words. Three stupid words, and suddenly my stomach is doing somersaults. I stare at my phone, like maybe if I blink hard enough, the message will disappear. 'It's been months. You can stay calm.' Calm is not working tonight. I smooth my hands over the black lingerie I'd picked out, like it's armor. Like it's for me. Yeah, sure. The buzz of my phone still echoing in my ears. My little sister, Adriana, leans against the doorframe, grinning. 'He's really out there, isn't he?' I roll my eyes. Or at least I try to. The smile sneaks out anyway. 'I don't know why I'm so nervous.' She tilts her head. 'Because you like him,' she says, way too smug. I open my mouth to argue, then shut it again. Because she's right, and I hate that. I grab my keys, take a deep breath, and tell myself, 'It's just one night, just a conversation, just Dom.' But my heart knows better. Outside the night air brushes my skin. I see him leaning against his truck, like he owns the whole damn road. One hand in his pocket, the other holding his phone. He looks up. Our eyes meet. And something inside me cracks, like it like it wants to trust him again. ' hey,' he says, like no time's passed at all. And I whisper, 'hey.'
the air feels smaller, warmer. He looks me over, smirks. "You look good, shorty." And I just freeze for a second, just long enough for him to notice, and then I manage, "Thanks."

"That's all I get, just thanks?" I lift my chin a little. "Well, what do you want, a parade?" He leans in, voice lower. "Maybe just a smile then." I pretend to think about it, but the smile slips out anyways. And he catches it. His grin widens, like he's already won something.

His thumb grazes mine

"You still bite your lip when you're nervous." Instead of answering, i just huff a laugh, like, 'Shut up,' I say with a soft smile.

He leans back, pretending innocence. "Just noticing." It feels light, but there's that undercurrent, the same pull that always used to And he knows it. I know he knows it. And that's the danger.

He leans in just enough to make my heart forget its rhythm. "You're thinking too much," he says. I laugh quietly and tell him he doesn't think enough. That's why we get along. I shake my head, trying not to smile, but of course he catches it anyway. "There it is," he says. "I've been waiting for that smile all night." I look away towards the windshield, watching the street lights stretch across the glass. "You still make me nervous," I confess, barely above a whisper. He smiles, softer now. "Good. Means I still matter." And for a moment, neither of us speaks. The truck hums, music low, the night outside passing in a blur while inside, it's just the two of us lingering in the edges of what we can't quite say.

"Where are we going?" I asked. He glanced over, that lopsided grin showing. "Thought I'd grab a drink. You in?" "Sure," I said, because saying no was never really the point. At the store, I leaned back in the seat, pretending casual, while my stomach tied knots.