“I’ve been wanting to do this for quite some time,” he finally says, holding himself back for another second. It’s just enough time for me to place my hand on the solid muscle of his chest.

Then Anwar kisses me.

And I am reduced to a puddle of a person.

This kiss might last a second or an hour, I cannot tell. But what I can already tell, without a shadow of a doubt?

Today is going to be an absolutely above-average day.

Click here

“Then let’s get moving,” Anwar says with a smile.

If he’s at all disappointed I asked to cut into our alone time, he certainly doesn’t show it. He just seems so… enthusiastic. It makes me wonder, as we start walking, if I owe him another warning about the detours our trip has taken.

“I know we’ve messaged about it a bit,” I start, “but if you’re really coming with us for the next leg of the trip, you should know—”

“Amelia, are you trying to talk me out of joining you?” Anwar asks. “Because if I’m intruding on your friend time, I don’t—”

“No!” I blurt. “It’s not that at all.”

“Then trust me when I say I couldn’t be more excited to meet your friends and get to hang a bit. With them… and especially with you.”

My cheeks feel flush, warming from the heat of Anwar’s words. “Then it’s settled. But don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

We round the next corner and end up finding Chase, Logan, and Cleo strolling toward us.

“Miss us already?” Chase asks, surprised.

“Anwar let me in on a local dessert secret, so I needed to report back. Cleo, you’re going to faint over how good these pancake balls are.”

Cleo gives me a smile, but it feels slightly dimmed. Or maybe distracted? She seems preoccupied studying Anwar, like she’s searching him for something.

“Well, I can actually propose a trade,” Cleo says, snapping herself back. “I just finished a fresh doodle of the four of us in front of that windmill over there.”

Cleo holds out the sheet of ripped sketchpad paper, and indeed she has drawn us all in full cartoon color: Logan in his standard athleisure, Chase in his young professor uniform, Cleo in her romper, and me in my pastel linens. We stand on either side of a bright windmill—Chase with Logan, and Cleo with me. As usual, the doodle feels perfect, capturing something essential about our afternoon here.

“Wow, that is deeply awesome,” Anwar says, taking in the doodle. “Think there’s room for one more in the middle there?”

Anwar smiles at Cleo, and she returns the gesture, but something about it feels… hollow? Or am I still just being paranoid about Anwar fitting in?

I already invited Anwar along, so there’s no backing down now. Besides, the others will really like him once they get to know him. And we came all this way, we can’t just leave it at twenty minutes. I want to get to know Anwar better myself, after all.