The house had gone quiet hours ago. Virginia nights carried a different kind of silence, not the distant hum of taxis like Manhattan, but something softer. Crickets and wind moving gently through trees.
Amy lay on her back, eyes open, staring at the ceiling.
Jace slept beside her, one arm thrown carelessly across the mattress, his breathing slow and even. Every now and then he shifted slightly before settling again.
She checked her phone.
12:17 a.m.
She sighed softly. She couldn't sleep.
It wasn't anxiety. It wasn't fear. It was… fullness. Her heart felt too full for sleep.
After a moment, she carefully slipped out of bed, making sure not to wake him, and padded toward the balcony doors. The cool air greeted her when she stepped outside. The night sky looked beautiful but still a bit cold.
She wrapped her arms around herself and leaned lightly against the railing.
Everything felt beautiful.
Too beautiful.
Inside, the sheets rustled.
Jace stirred.
He blinked at the empty space beside him, then noticed the balcony door slightly ajar. He yawned long dragging a hand down his face before stepping outside.
He didn't say anything at first.
He just walked over to the small outdoor sofa and sank into it, watching her quietly.
"You planning to run away without me?" he asked, his voice thick with sleep.
She smiled faintly but didn't turn around. "Just needed air."
He studied her for a second.
Then he stood and walked toward her slowly.
"What's the problem?" he asked sensing uneasiness in her voice.
"Nothing."
He reached her, gently placing his fingers under her chin and turning her face toward him. His eyes were clearer now, awake in that intentional way he only was when it mattered.
"Amy," he said quietly, "you can tell me anything."
Her breath left her in a small sigh.
She looked back up at the sky before speaking.
"Doesn't it scare you?" she asked.
"What does?"
"How real everything is becoming."
He sighed slightly. She continued slowly, searching for the right words.
"We're getting married, Jace. That's not a dream anymore. It's not something far off someday. It's this year and sooner if we blink too much." She swallowed lightly. "You offered to move to Virginia… or buy me a house here… just because I said it was beautiful."
A soft, almost disbelieving laugh escaped her.
"You make everything sound so simple. Like it's nothing." she said.
He watched her carefully.
"Are you having doubts?" he asked gently.
She turned to him quickly. "No."
The answer came immediately.
"No," she repeated softer. "Not about you."
He relaxed a little.
She looked down at her hands resting on the railing.
"I just… I find it hard to believe sometimes," she admitted. "Your family accepted me so easily. Your mum. Rebecca. Nick." Her voice thinned slightly. "Even your dad… in his own way."
She hesitated.
"My own family…" She trailed off, shaking her head lightly.
There it was.
The small ache beneath the gratitude.
She looked at him again.
"I'm just… really grateful, Jace. For you. For this. For how you chose me."
He didn't respond immediately.
Instead, he cupped her face fully this time, thumbs brushing lightly against her cheeks.
She blinked.
"My family?" he started. "They see what I see. You make me better. You calm me down. You challenge me. You love me in ways I didn't even know I needed."
He rested his forehead against hers.
"And I didn't offer Virginia because it was simple. I offered because if you wake up one day and decide you want mountains instead of skyscrapers, I'll build you mountains,i'd do anything for you Amy."
She laughed softly through her emotion.
He kissed the corner of her mouth.
"Everything is becoming real," he admitted. "And yeah… it's big. But big doesn't mean scary. It just means important."
"I wouldn't want anything now if you don't want it too, if you feel everything is happening way too fast, we can always slow down" He added.
"No no, I don't want that, I want it just the way it is now" She said almost immediately.
"Then deal" He smiled.
"Deal" she said back and he kissed her forehead.
She exhaled slowly.
He guided her toward the outdoor sofa and sat down, pulling her gently until she settled beside him. After a second, she shifted and rested her head on his lap, curling her legs properly.
He brushed his fingers through her hair absentmindedly.
The night air wrapped around them like a blanket.
After a moment, he spoke.
"How many kids do you want?"
She looked up at him, suspicious. "That's random."
"Answer the question." He chuckled.
She pretended to think deeply.
"Four."
He almost choked. "Four?"
"Yes," she said confidently. "A girl and three boys."
He stared at her. "Three boys?"
"Three boys.....yeah....they'll be her protectors."
He burst out laughing quietly so he wouldn't wake the entire estate.
"Why are you laughing?" She asked feigning annoyance.
"You're planning a whole security team?"
"Exactly."
He shook his head, smiling down at her. "And here I was thinking maybe two."
"Two is boring."
"Amy!, but four is chaos."
She grinned. "When have you not liked chaos?,...Imagine three little boys running around with your stubbornness."
He groaned. "I'm not stubborn." He said slicking his hair back.
She laughed. "And one tiny girl who looks just like you," she added softly.
He went quiet at that.
"Ok that I might consider, I can't wait to be a girl dad," he said after a second, his voice unexpectedly tender. "I'd spoil her."
"You'd spoil all of them."
"Especially her."
She reached up and tapped his chin lightly. "You'd probably cry the day she goes on her first date."
"I'd interview the boy or she wouldn't date till she's 29."
"You'd terrify the poor boy."
"I know."
She laughed, the sound floating into the night air.
"I think I would want her to bear your name" He said after her laughter died down.
That made Amy scoff. "My name?" She asked.
"Yh, a little version of you, she'd be a picture of you" He said thoughtfully.
That made her smile. "I think I'd actually like that"
They began talking about little things then other names they liked, how she wanted a spacious kitchen, how he wanted another studio space near home so he wouldn't have to travel too far from her and the kids. She said she wanted family dinners every Sunday. He said he wanted music playing in the house constantly.
At some point she grew quieter, just listening to his voice as he spoke about teaching their sons how to ride bikes and letting their daughter sit in his studio while he edited photographs.
"And I'll make sure I teach the boys how to ride a bike, teach them how to play chess and let little Amy sit with me in the studio as I edit photographs"
Her fingers curled slightly into his shirt.
"Promise me something," she murmured.
"Anything."
"If life ever gets overwhelming… we'll come back to nights like this."
He nodded without hesitation.
"We will."
The moon shifted slightly higher as he kissed her forehead.
The crickets continued their quiet rhythm as he continued telling her how their future looked like in his mind.
Amy's breathing slowly evened out.
Jace looked down few minutes later and realized she had fallen asleep right there on his lap.
He smiled soft, full, certain.
Everything was becoming real. She was his and they'd make a beautiful family soon.
And for the thousandth time, he felt how real being with her was.