Allie
The photograph had been taken before either of us understood what we were becoming.
Winter market lights glowed behind us.
I wore a cream coat and held a paper cup near my chest. Chase stood beside me in a dark jacket, his head turned slightly toward me instead of the camera.
I was laughing.
He was watching me.
The photographer had probably intended to capture two public figures attending the same event.
Instead, the image held something private.
Something that had existed before we named it.
Mia placed the photograph on the centre of my laptop screen and leaned back.
“This one.”
I stared at it.
“We are not looking at the camera.”
“That is why it works.”
“It looks accidental.”
“It was.”
Chase stood behind my chair with one hand resting lightly on the back.
Noah sat o
