The storm outside was fierce, as though nature itself was trying to drown out the tension in Leo's room. Lightning flashed every few seconds, illuminating the room in stark white light, only to be swallowed by the darkness again. The soft pattering of rain against the window was the only thing that kept Leo grounded in reality.
He lay on his back, staring at the ceiling, his body still humming with the aftermath of what had just transpired. Kieran was beside him, propped up on his elbow, his face soft and unreadable as he looked at Leo. The warmth from their earlier closeness still lingered in the air, but now there was a quiet, delicate tension hanging between them, thick with unspoken words.
Leo turned his head to face Kieran, the vulnerability in his gaze unmistakable. He couldn't remember the last time he'd allowed himself to feel this exposed, not just physically, but emotionally. Everything he'd been running from—every part of himself he'd hidden—had come crashing to the surface during that kiss. And now, he was terrified.
Kieran's gaze softened, but there was a wariness in his eyes, too, as if he knew exactly what Leo was feeling. "Leo," he murmured, his voice low, tentative. "We don't have to talk about it if you're not ready."
But Leo shook his head. His throat tightened. He needed to say it—needed to know that Kieran understood. "I've never felt this... this connected to someone before." His voice cracked slightly, but he didn't care. "I don't know how to deal with it. How to deal with you."
Kieran didn't pull away. Instead, he reached out, his fingers brushing lightly against Leo's wrist. His touch was soft, deliberate, as though he was afraid Leo might shatter beneath the pressure. "You don't have to deal with me," Kieran said quietly, his thumb tracing slow circles on the inside of Leo's arm. "You just have to be with me."
Leo swallowed hard. "That's the problem," he said, his voice strained. "I don't know how to be with anyone. I've spent so long pushing people away. I don't know how to let anyone in."
The silence that followed was heavy, and Leo's heart began to race as Kieran's fingers traced up his arm, his hand coming to rest just above Leo's elbow. Kieran's touch wasn't rough or demanding. It was soft, patient. But it burned.
"I don't want you to fix me, Leo," Kieran said, his voice barely a whisper, though it held more strength than Leo could have anticipated. "I just want you to trust me. To let me in, the same way I'm letting you in."
Leo felt his breath catch in his throat. His eyes searched Kieran's face for some kind of confirmation, some sign that this wasn't just a fleeting moment. "But what if we're not enough? What if—"
Kieran interrupted him, his lips brushing against Leo's forehead in the gentlest of gestures. "We will be," he said simply, his breath warm against Leo's skin. "We don't need to have it all figured out. Not yet. We just need to keep moving forward, together."
Leo closed his eyes, letting Kieran's words wash over him. For the first time in a long time, Leo felt like maybe—just maybe—he didn't need to have everything figured out. He didn't need to protect himself from what felt so raw and real. Kieran was right. He didn't need to fix anything. He just needed to trust.
And for the first time, Leo allowed himself to do just that. He opened his heart, just a little, to the possibility of more.
The rain outside intensified, but neither of them moved. Their bodies, still pressed together in the quiet aftermath of everything they'd shared, felt like they belonged together—no longer just soldiers fighting side by side, but two people, standing on the edge of something unknown but full of potential.
"I'm scared," Leo confessed, his voice barely above a whisper. "I don't know what this is. But I don't want to lose it."
Kieran's thumb brushed over Leo's cheek, a gesture so simple yet so profound. "You won't lose me, Leo. Not if you don't want to."
They were so close now that Leo could feel Kieran's breath against his lips. His heart beat louder than the storm outside. The world outside his room—outside of them—seemed far away, as if nothing else mattered in that moment except Kieran's steady presence beside him.
Kieran's lips hovered above his, close enough that Leo could feel the warmth between them. "I'm here," he whispered, his voice rough, as if the words themselves had taken effort. "We're here. Together."
Without thinking, Leo's hand reached up to cup Kieran's face, pulling him in, the kiss soft but laden with everything they had yet to say. There were no more barriers, no more doubts. Just the quiet understanding between them.
And when they broke apart, gasping for air, their faces inches from one another, it was like the entire world had paused, waiting for them to make the next move.