“maybe the common denominator for them is that they’ll always be together.”

“it’s at odds with the other things he wants—the primary want being for nothing to change.”

“he must learn that his arms are a better place of worship than any altar.”

“his mind is a mesh of clouds, of palettes of blues and purples, of the man with the loveliest eyes he’s ever seen— an endless universe to get lost in.”

“i’ve watched the two of you grow up together. i’ve seen the way he looks at you. // “how?” // “he looks at you like you are the most beautiful person he’s ever laid eyes on. like you are capable of walking on water, of reaching into the sky and plucking the stars to lay them beneath his feet. he looks at you like you are the only person he sees, the only person worth looking at, even in a room crowded with people vying for his attention. he looks at you like he loves you.”

“i knew you’d look good in passion, but— fuck — i didn’t know you’d look this good— even more than i dared to imagine.”

“i can love you for two.”

“it's sad, he thought, that something so beautiful and protected got buried just like that, never to be spoken about again.”

“you know, some might like staying in their places for many years at a time. but others, you have to give them space to breathe every once in a while.”

“something in the air shifts. fate starts feeling breathless, too.”

“can i just say, without spoiling anything, you have found yourself a keeper.”

“this is what loving him feels like, he supposes, warm, safe, familiar. ”

“maybe you can recommend a better love story, since you don’t like the ones with unhappy endings. // “i don’t think there are any happy endings in mythology,” // “good thing we aren’t myths, then, isn’t it?”

“there are days i don’t remember, days that weren’t worth remembering but i know i loved you that day like i know the sun rose on that morning. i know i’ll love you tomorrow like i know the sun will rise at five or six or seven, it doesn’t even matter because at some point sunlight will seep in between those curtains and i’ll still love you, alright?”

“they are yin and yang, a perfect balance, achieved after years and years of just barely missing each other.”

“and the thing about everything moving in slow motion is that you catch the little things.”

“i would relinquish my fate to find a home with you.” // “i would relinquish my fate to build a home with you.”

“if i can do nothing else for you, at least let me know how to make you smile.”

“be it your affection or your scorn, i find myself with desire to monopolize both equally.”

“you are a prince. i am not even a captain any longer, i am disgraced. and yet━ i would steal you away from all you were born for if you did not stop me. i want to steal you. if you do not tell me no, i will whisk you away into the night. i won't ever allow you to leave my side. // “that sounds like love.”