(Olivia)
I felt his breath warm against my skin as we stayed close, our foreheads touching after the kiss. His words kept on repeating in my head, breaking down every wall I'd spent years building.
"I'm here. I'm not going anywhere." For so long, I had lived in a world where love was a lie, a game that others played at my expense.
But Derek… he wasn’t like that. He wasn’t Aaron, who had torn me apart and left me with nothing but regret and anger.
Derek saw me, not the damaged version of myself that I had believed I was. And I didn’t want to let fear ruin this.
I opened my eyes and slowly pulled back to look at him. His eyes were locked onto mine, filled with the same determination and belief in us that I desperately needed. I swallowed hard, realizing how important my next words wer
