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“Oh, no, you're supposed to stay right there,” he said when I reached him.
“I know Addy, but?—”
He took me by the hands, leading me back to the spot.
“You know we don't have to do this if you don't want to,” I reminded him, and his eyes widened in horror.
“What? No. That's—that's the opposite of what I want.”
I raised a brow and he paused, still holding my hand to look into my eyes.
“I'm nervous,” he finally admitted. “I'm about to do something wrong and illegal to get the life I've always wanted.”
I looked down, suddenly unable to meet his fiery orange gaze.
“I'm putting my morals aside as well as the fear of what we will face later,” he admitted. “Despite that, in the back of my mind, I know that none of it matters.”
He touched my chin, gently tilting my face up to meet his gaze.
“I know I won’t regret this. No matter how despicable it is to do.”
“Do you really think it is that bad?” I asked.
He frowned and shook his head.
“That's the problem Alil. Suddenly, it doesn't seem bad to me at all. We should be able to choose who we spend the rest of our lives with... but that doesn't mean the rest of society will feel that way.”
“You don't know that,” I argued. “Things have been changing lately.”
He shrugged loosely.
“Yes, and I was one of the ones pushing back on those changes. There will be others doing the same, I'm sure... but no matter what punishments I face for this, I know we will see our way through it together.”
“I guess we will both have to be punished,” I said. “After all, I was the one pushing you.”
“You weren't?—”
“I was?—”
“Wait, let's argue about this later,” he said, cutting me off. “It's almost time.”
My heart suddenly started racing as I followed Addy's gaze through the trees, toward the setting sun.
Then, as we watched, it slowly lowered, bathing us in an orange glow as it went down.
My breath caught as I turned and looked at Addy. All the purple flowers, bathed in orange light—it was just like us.
I shook my head, impressed and moved by the beauty of the moment.
“Addy,” I breathed.
He shrugged bashfully.
“I couldn't take you to the top of Mount Ethos,” he said. “I couldn't give you a ceremony guided by the alpha council, or a party with our friends and family.” He smiled gently. “All I have to give you is my heart and my kiss, with the desert sun and stars as our witness.”
I swallowed, suddenly choked with emotion.
“You've given me everything that matters,” I whispered when I could finally speak.
