His voice spilled into the darkness as we emerged onto more solid ground. I felt the shift—the stairs had vanished, his stride leveling, sure and steady now. We were no longer descending. We were walking a path. Moving closer to whatever waited.
The music of water swelled around us, layered with the delicate trickle of unseen springs. The air turned cooler, crisp against my skin, and the faint perfume of wildflowers drifted in, sweet and impossibly pure. The serenity of it all felt unreal, like stepping into a dream.
Where are we?
“Do you truly believe love only comes once?” I asked, incredulity threading my tone—not just at his words, but at the softness with which he spoke them.
“I do.”
“It’s… surprising,” I admitted, still caught between disbelief and wonder. The sensation was like
