Ian 's hand froze in place, and his racing breath was the only sound competing with the rustle of the rain outside.
He looked into Tyla 's dazed eyes,
which were shimmering with a mixture of confusion and raw honesty.
Tayla held her breath; her heart was drumming against her chest like a rebellious beat.
She gazed into his dark eyes-those eyes that were always her refuge and her undoing at the same time.
She whispered in a voice that could barely be heard,
as if the words were struggling to escape:
"İan... it's not because I don't want you.
It's because I want this to be real...
I want to remember every second,
not let it get lost in the fog of a sudden desire. I want to be more ready."
She continued,
"I don't want this to be just a 'bad action' we do because we lost control... I don't want to wake up tomorrow and wonder if we did this because we love each other,
or because we were drowning in a moment of recklessness.
I don't want bad things to happen between us.
I want kindness and stillness and cute things that we can remember together."
Ian stopped completely.
His hot breath fanned her skin,
and his hand still rested at the edge of her waist. He closed his eyes tightly,
burying his head in the crook of her neck,
leaning his forehead against her shoulder as he tried to pull himself together.
He felt his heart beating violently against her chest.
Silence reigned,
except for the sound of the rain lashing against the window,
as if applauding this internal struggle.
After seconds that felt like an eternity,
he raised his head. His eyes held a mixture of sadness and realization.
"You always know how to bring me back to my senses the moment I lose my mind completely with you,
" he said in a husky voice.
"I don't do this just because I lost my mind...
I do this because, for the first time in a long time,
I feel like I belong somewhere... to you.
" He reached out to brush her lips with his thumb,
then pressed a soft,
lingering kiss-void of any wildness-onto her forehead.
He pulled away slowly and sat on the edge of the bed, running his hand through his disheveled hair.
Tayla sat up slowly,
pulling his oversized white shirt closer to cover her body,
suddenly feeling the chill of the air after the warmth of his skin.
She approached him and placed her hand on his bare back,
feeling his tense muscles gradually relax under her touch.
"Are you angry?" she asked softly.
He turned to her,
a small, weary but sincere smile appearing on his lips.
"Angry? Tyla, I am grateful.
Grateful because you love me enough to want to protect us."
"You aren't just a desire,
Tyla," he whispered,
stroking the back of his hand against her cheek with extreme tenderness.
"If you were,
I wouldn't have stopped now. You are the only real thing in the chaos of my life.
" He pulled her to sit in his lap once more,
but this time the embrace was different;
it was a hug that contained all the fear and longing they had felt under the rain.
"Stay here..." he whispered,
covering her and himself with the heavy duvet.
She drew closer to him, burying her head in the hollow of his bare chest,
inhaling his scent-a mixture of rain and his unique cologne.
Ian wrapped his strong arms around her.
"Let's just sleep.
I want to wake up and have you be the first thing my eyes see,
without regret, and without questions."
Then he teased her,
"You told me a moment ago that you love bad actions...
it seems you were only challenging me."
She raised her head slightly and looked at him with eyes shimmering with mischief.
"Maybe... but not tonight.
Tonight, I just want to be the Tayla that the 'quiet Ian ' loves."
He smiled and squeezed her tighter, as if hiding her from the world.
"And the quiet Ian is entirely yours.
Tayla surrendered to his warmth,
resting her head on his chest,
listening to his heartbeat as it began to slow and steady.
"I love you, ian,
" she said, closing her eyes.
"And I live through you,
Tyla," he replied,
kissing the top of her head before sleep overtook them both-the sound of the rain making it a night they would never forget.
Tyla woke up to the weak rays of the sun beginning to peek through the cracks in the curtains,
announcing the end of the long rainy night.
She didn't need to open her eyes to know where she was;
the warmth of the chest she was leaning against and the rhythm of ian's steady breathing above her head told her everything.
She moved slightly, trying not to wake him, but his arm-which was wrapped tightly around her waist-tightened even more,
as if he could feel her even in his sleep.
"Where are you going?"
His voice came out raspy and heavy with sleep as he buried his face further into the pillow.
Tyla smiled as she turned to face him; his hair was messy in a chaotic way that made her heart pound.
"I thought you were asleep... I wanted to go make coffee."
Ian opened his eyes slowly and looked at her with a deep gaze,
free of any noise,
filled only with the peace he had promised her last night.
He reached out to brush a rebellious strand of hair from her face,
his fingers stopping at the marks he had left on her neck,
which had begun to turn a deep shade of purple.
"Does it hurt?"
he asked in a whisper, touching them gently with his thumb.
Tayla's cheeks flushed as she remembered the wildness of last night. She replied shyly,
"A little... but it's a good memory regardless."
İan laughed softly.
She then touched his neck,
feeling the mark she had left on him-there was only one,
unlike him, who had left them all over her body.
"And you, does yours hurt?" she asked gently.
He laughed and said no. He sat up, pulling her back into his embrace.
He took her hand and kissed the palm deeply, then said,
"Don't go. The world can wait. Today, it's just us... no cameras,
no pressure, just you and me."
The moment was interrupted by the ringing of Tyla
's phone on the nightstand. It was a message from her mother:
"Tyla , are you okay? The rain has stopped; come home so we can have breakfast together."
Tyla sighed as she looked at the phone, then looked at ian, who was watching her expression.
"It seems the world has already started knocking on the door," she said with a smile.
İan got out of bed, shirtless as sleep had left him,
and headed toward the closet to pull out another shirt.
"Let's go then... I'll come with you."
"Okay," she said,
putting on her jacket.
He turned toward her, fixing his eyes on hers, and said with a calm possessiveness,
"I want you to wear this shirt of mine as you leave... I want my scent to stay with you all day."
Tyla smiled, feeling her heart soar with joy.
They left the house with their hands intertwined,
and though the streets were still damp, the sun had begun to dry everything-
just as it had done last night with their hearts.