Say You Won't Let Go

Home & Stories

Her chest rises and falls quickly, trying to catch her breathe. Her arms are up near her head, allowing herself to be vulnerable with me.

"You're so beautiful." I tell her, running a hand through her hair. She smiles faintly, giggling airily.

"So are you." She coos, reaching up and cupping my cheek. I lean into her hand.

"Cuddle?" I offer, recognizing the cheerful gleam in her eyes. She extends her arms out to me. I fall down onto her body, allowing her to wrap her limbs around me.

"Tell me a story." I hum against her chest, nuzzling up into her neck.

"About what?" Lauren asks, playing with my hair while looking down at me adoringly.

"Anything." I tell her, sighing out any negative emotions so I can soak in all of Lauren's affection.

"Well, once upon a time, there was a young princess who ruled a bright kingdom..." Lauren starts off, biting her bottom lip in thought. She starts to play with my fingers. "But the princess had a dark secret. She longed to marry someone she was told she couldn't but the vines of the castle grew too thick to see through her windows so she stayed quiet, as she couldn't leave."

"Is this princess you?" I yawn, poking her chin.

"Shhh," Lauren shushes me, placing her finger on my lips. I pretend to bite it to which she flinches at. "Don't ruin the magic."

I roll my eyes, sneaking my arms around her waist. She uses her free hand to run through my hair, pushing it back.

"But one day, a girl came to the castle. She was from the kingdom of... Seattleville and she had come because the greenery was dying." Lauren says softly with concern and warmth in her eyes, kissing my forehead when I frown.

"I let her into my castle walls and she came up to the highest tower—where she belonged. But the king and queen didn't like this new girl. They didn't even like their own daughter."

"But the princess liked this girl a lot. She liked how she smiled and how her eyes gleamed when she laughed. The vines stopped growing around the windows and they blossomed flowers."

I exhale slowly into Lauren's neck, shutting my eyes as I listen to her story.

"But the princess began to fear her emotions because she felt they were hopeless. She spun back into darkness as she watched the vines cover her windows. She left the girl alone in the highest towers—high enough for where the shadows couldn't get her but she could jump to them."

"Lo..." I whisper, lifting my chin to kiss her jaw. "You don't have to—"

"I want to finish the story." Lauren blinks her eyes quickly, resting her chin on my forehead.

She continues the story, "but one day, the girl's father came to the castle. He told his daughter about how all the greenery had died because the girl neglected the problem and stayed with the princess. The girl was very sad that night and the princess just wanted to comfort her and wanted to be close to her. So she kissed her."

I kiss her neck to show emphasis. She giggles and sighs contently.

"The queen and king found out and they were livid. They burned the flowers off her vines and they broke everything that she loved. They kicked her out." Lauren tells me, staring up at the ceiling. "But the girl had enough of it. She brought strength to the princess and together, they drove the queen and king out of the kingdom."

"Hell yeah, they did." I coo, making Lauren laugh. I can feel her laugh echo in her chest, making me smile.

"So the princess and the girl fell in love and ruled the kingdom for as long as they possible could as queen and queen. And they lived happily ever after." Lauren concludes, seeming happy with her retelling of our story.