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spacesquidlings · 1 month

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One-Of-A-Kind

Enamoured by the sight of his bite marks on his wife's neck, Gavin has an idea for something unique to show that she belongs to him, something entirely one of a kind

Pairing: Gavin Bai x MC (Rowan) Tags: 18+ readers only, light sub/dom dynamics, unbearably horny Gavin, light bdsm, collaring, f!receiving blow jobs, possessive Gav, soft dom Gav, vaginal sex, fluff at the end I swear I SWEAR taglist: @aluneposting

The touch of Gavin’s fingers had been soft as he’d brushed their calloused pads across Rowan’s collarbones, a little line forming between his brow as his eyes had fallen to the hickies that dotted her neck.

He hummed, deep in thought as he trailed his finger over a line of them, pausing as his thumb brushed over the deep in the middle of her collarbone.

“Rowan,” he said, his voice measured and slow, soft as spun sugar.

She hummed, already half asleep, the warmth of the bed sheets tucked around her flushed skin making her drowsy. Steam from their bath wafted from the open bathroom door, filling the bedroom with the smell of lavender and rose and eucalyptus and all the sweet smelling things Gavin always let her use in their baths together.

He chuckled, brushing a strand of hair back from her cheek. “Pumpkin, are you asleep already?”

She nodded, rolling onto her side so she could bury her face against his chest, his skin still warm from the bath. “You smell really nice, babey.”

He snorted, the hand at her neck sliding up to cup her cheek. “Thank you, although you’re the one who picked out the soaps.”

“Mmm, I have really good taste.”

“The best taste.”

She sighed. “I love you, babey.”

He chuckled. “I have to ask you something important, sweetheart. Do you think you can stay awake for a few more minutes?”

She cracked one eye open, peeking up at him. “I can do my best, babey.”

He traced her collarbone, his brow furrowing. “And know that you can say no if you want to.”

She opened both eyes now, pushing past her fatigue to give him her full attention.

His cheeks were flushed a soft pink, his ears already crimson. “Well I wanted to try something, if you’re comfortable with it.”

***

Months passed after that initial conversation, and it had faded almost entirely from Rowan’s mind, despite how much time Gavin had been spending in the garage since then.

Their garage was big enough for Gavin to set up a dedicated space for some of his craftier hobbies, and he usually kept most of his tools for jewellery making out there.

And yet, despite how many trips he’d made to the craft store, and how much time he’d been spending hunched over his worktable, Rowan had almost completely forgotten why exactly he’d been working so diligently over the last two months.

It was still morning, soft golden light bleeding through the drawn curtains, casting rosy light across the bed as Rowan cracked open her sleep-heavy eyes.

Gavin was already wide awake, propped up on his elbow, a box wrapped in ocean blue wrapping paper lying on the pillow between them.

“Good morning,” she said, her voice still heavy with sleep. “Babey, why are you up so early?”

He shrugged. “I wanted to get my morning workout in.”

She rolled her eyes, tugging the blanket up over her head. “You left me?”

He chuckled. “I had planned to go out, but you looked so cute I couldn’t stand leaving you.”

She peaked out from beneath the blanket. “Well I’m glad you stayed, I love waking up next to you.”

He sighed, leaning down to kiss her. “I love waking up next to you.”

She smiled blissfully, bubbly delight spilling through her veins like champagne.

“Are you going to open your present?” Gavin asked, his eyes glittering with mischief.

She narrowed her eyes, her focus shifting to the neatly wrapped package. “What is it?”

Gavin hummed, his eyes twinkling, the tips of his ears pink, as he pushed it towards her. “Open it and find out.”

She slipped her hands out from beneath the blankets, dragging the box towards her and back underneath the sheets.

Gavin snorted, trying to pull the blankets back. “What are you doing?”

“Saving it for later,” she mumbled, struggling to keep the blankets up. “I want snuggles right now.”

He grinned as he managed to wrestle the sheets away from her, pulling them back to reveal where she’d hidden the box. “You can have snuggles in a minute.”

Rowan tried pulling the blankets back up over her, but all her attempts were futile against Gavin’s iron grip.

She yawned, plucking the little package from where she’d tried to hide it, playing with the golden ribbons that had been tied around it. “It’s so pretty though, I don’t want to ruin it.”

“I promise that what’s inside is far prettier.” He hummed, leaning down again to trail kisses along her jaw. “Although nowhere near as pretty as you, pumpkin.”

She giggled, his breath tickling her skin, her fingers sinking into his hair as his lips moved to her cheek, to the corner of her own lips.

Gavin bumped his nose against hers, cupping her face with one hand. “Will you open it? It’s one-of-a-kind, just for you.”

She nodded, warmth washing over her as Gavin’s soft, honey-sweet words danced through the air. As he watched her with his starlit eyes, with that sweet little smile curling across his lips.

How could she ever say no to him?

She sat up, tearing the wrapping paper away to reveal a plain brown box. She lifted the lid, revealing two necklaces on delicate silver chains.

The first chain was longer, about as long as the chain Gavin’s tags hung from, with a small silver key attached. It was simple, with no intricate designs or shapes on the handle.

The second chain was shorter, and Rowan figured it was closer in size to a choker, with a delicate pendant that was likely meant to rest at the collarbone. This one was slightly more intricate than the simple key, with an array of curving, interlocking lines, the way they curled over each other reminiscent of the way the wind moves through the trees. Cerulean blue gems had been embedded in the spaces between the lines, like fragments of the sky.

There were four blue gems in total, glittering as they caught the rosy sunlight that managed to sneak through the curtains, casting rainbows across the messy blankets. But there was a fifth space in the centre, and in the place of a blue gem was a golden one, smaller than the others, seeming to hover between the curved silver lines with nothing fixing it in place. As if the wind alone held it in place.

It was the colour of Gavin’s eyes, the gold of starlight, of summer sunbeams washing over ocean waves, of melted gold, of gingko leaves in the autumn. The colour of joy, of what she imagined love looked like, if it could be made tangible.

She ran her fingers over the little gem, smiling softly, because of how much it reminded her of him. Because of how warm it made her feel, happiness bubbling in her heart, the same gold of this little gem, of his eyes.

On the other side of the necklace was a small lock mechanism, which Rowan quickly realized fit the key from the other chain perfectly.

She flushed instantly, heat racing across her cheeks and down her throat as the realization struck her.

Gavin had asked her, months ago, on a night when he couldn’t stop staring at her throat and the bite marks he’d placed there, about what she’d thought about wearing a collar. For him. Something subtle that only he would really know about. Something that would show that she was his.

Her face had burned then the way it did now, and she felt as though she would catch flame. Her core grew tight, and she felt warmth blooming between her legs as she looked at the collar, at the key, up at Gavin’s twinkling eyes.

She set the collar back into the box, nestled between crumpled pieces of tissue paper. “Gavin, it’s beautiful.”

The little smile that had danced across his face blossomed wider, turning into a dazzling grin that stole her breath away. It was so open, so clearly delighted and pleased with her response, with himself.

Gavin brushed her hair back from her face, his eyes brighter than starlight now. “It’s one-of-a-kind, nothing else like it exists.” His voice grew lower, rougher, and he leaned forward to catch her lips in another kiss. “Just like you.”

Her eyes fell closed without thought, her mind already gone as she felt his fingers thread through her unkempt hair. She tipped her head back, wanting more, wanting him. She felt heat and tension blooming in her core, felt a wetness pooling between her legs already.

He was just so sweet, and it took so little for her to melt in his arms. He was her husband, her Gavin, how could she not?

“So what do you think, pumpkin?” He asked, his eyes meeting hers as he pulled away. His cheeks were flushed the same soft pink that stained the sheets from the morning sunshine, and it made her heart stumble, made her feel like there were butterflies in her stomach, in her chest.

She looked back down at the box in her hand, the wrapping paper crumpled and strewn across the pillow. She looked at the silver key, at the collar and its glittering gems. She could hear his voice echoing in the back of her mind, asking her if it would be okay, if she would be willing to try it with him.

“I think it’s beautiful,” she said, smiling up at him. She played with the chain that held the silver key, holding it up to him. “And we’ll kind of match.”

He chuckled, relief flickering in his eyes as he covered her hand with his, bringing it up to his lips. “I’m glad.”

She snorted as he brushed kisses against the back of her hand. “Babey, what are you doing?”

“Showing you that I love you.”

She giggled, his words tickling her skin as he spoke. “You always do that. You did that last night.”

A crimson flush crept up his neck and jaw, reaching into his hairline and washing over his ears. “Well, I can never stop loving you enough.”

Now it was Rowan’s turn to flush, her face hotter than before. Her voice was little more than a crackling squeak as she spoke. “You’re a dork, Gavin.”

He kissed her hand once more before setting it against the blankets, a blissfully happy look on his face. “I know.”

He reached into the box, lifting both chains, the key and the pendant swinging through the air, casting rainbows across the bed as they caught the light. “Can I-?”

She nodded, butterfly wings fluttering in her chest and her belly. She twisted so her back was towards him, sweeping her hair up from the back of her neck.

She heard the click of the lock as Gavin opened it, felt his lips brush against the spot between her neck and her shoulder. A shiver raced down her spine as he settled the collar against throat, the metal cool against her skin.

She sucked in a breath as she felt the chain tighten around her throat, the click of the lock shutting sweeping across her senses. Gavin kissed the back of her neck again, trailing his lips to the side, pushing her sleeve aside to scatter kisses along her shoulder. As if to say a silent thank you, to show his pleasure without words.

He pulled away, and she felt a finger caress the skin beneath the chain, as though he were already enamoured with it.

“Turn around,” he said, the quietness of his words doing little to disguise the roughness of his voice, how low it had become, sinking into her senses and making her core ache. “I want to see how you look.”

Rowan turned back around, hoping she didn’t look too silly. She was still flushed, her skin burning so hot it was a miracle she hadn’t set the blankets on fire yet.

She found Gavin’s eyes first, dark and hazy with desire. His cheeks were flushed too, and had she pressed her palms to his chest she would have felt the beat of his heart, felt the way it faltered and tripped in its erratic tempo.

He cupped her face with one hand, the other tracing the skin around where the pendant lay above her collarbone. “You’re so beautiful.”

She wanted to look away, to close her eyes and press her face against his shoulder, his chest, anywhere so she could hide how she felt her emotions beginning to overwhelm her. They spilled from her heart, racing through her veins like storming ocean waves, threatening to drag her down as they crashed against her mind again and again and again.

But she could not look away from Gavin, not when he was looking at her the way he was. Like she was the entire universe, like she contained all the stars and the planets.

“And you’re mine,” he murmured, running the pad of his finger over the pendant, keeping his eyes locked onto her, holding her in place. “My wife, my stars, my moon, my everything.”

The warmth that flowed through her now was different, so much different from what she had felt earlier. This was softer, like the sunbeams that slipped through the curtains to warm their room. Like her favourite blanket wrapped around her during a storm. Like a mug of something warm clasped between her hands. Like spiced wine touching her lips, fogging her mind.

‘My everything’

He kissed her, and she felt as if she was surely drunk, her mind so hazy from his words, her body turning to jelly from a simple touch.

The kiss was soft and gentle, at odds with the way his voice had dipped earlier. Even the way he drew her bottom lip between his teeth was tender, little more than a nip. One hand remained at her throat, still seeming enchanted by the collar. The other fell to the small of her back, the pressure from his palm drawing her closer.

She was breathless when he finally pulled away, although if she was being honest she was always breathless around him. She rested her head in the crook of his neck, listening to him hum as he rubbed her back.

“Can I have those snuggles now?” She murmured, her voice muffled against his shirt.

Gavin chuckled, shifting his arms around her so that he was cradling her against his chest. “Of course you can.”

“Can we lay down, too? I’m still sleepy.”

“As you wish, sweetheart.”

He swiped the empty box and torn wrapping paper to the side, the silver chain and key that hung from his own neck glinting as it caught the light. He laid back against the pillow, tucking her head beneath his chin as he pulled the blankets up over them.

“How’s that?” He asked, rubbing her back again.

“Very comfy.”

She felt his laughter reverberate through his chest, and she smiled as it danced through the room like the errant sunbeams skittering across the floor now.

They lay there for a long while, a drowsy haze washing over them as the warmth of the blankets and their tangled bodies drew them towards unconsciousness. Rowan’s eyes were so heavy it was impossible for her to fight against her own drowsiness.

When she awoke again Gavin was still curled around her, playing with her hair while she slept cocooned in his embrace.

“Sleep well?” He murmured, his fingertips brushing against her scalp as he ran his fingers through her messy hair.

“Mmhmm,” she cuddled closer, closing her eyes again. “I sleep best with you.”

“Well you can have me all day if you’d like,” he said, smiling.

“You’re off today?” Her voice was still heavy from sleep, and it cracked as her excitement piqued.

“I’m off for the next few days since we finished up that last case.”

She sighed, twisting the material of his sleep shirt between her fingers. “I wish we could cuddle all day, but I do have a few errands to run.”

He brushed her hair back from her cheek, stroking her jaw before his hand sank back into her hair. “What kind of errands?”

“Groceries, we’re both almost out of shampoo, the light in the living room is flickering, and Stella needs to be taken to the groomers.”

“So what you’re saying is that we can spend the day together?” He asked, his hand resting at the nape of her neck.

She quirked a brow in bemusement. “You want to spend the day running errands with me?”

“As long as I’m by your side, I don’t really care what we do.”

She whined, nuzzling her face against his chest. “You’re too sweet, Gavin Bai, and it’s not fair.”

He snorted, his finger brushing over the collar as he trailed his hand down the side of her neck. “I’m not allowed to want to spend time with my wife?”

“You are,” she muttered. “But you’re way too sweet, I don’t know what to do.”

“You could kiss me,” he teased, pinching her waist. “Or you could let me go with you while you run errands.”

“Can I do both?” She asked, squirming as he pinched her waist again.

“Of course you can do both, pumpkin.”

She tipped her head back, scattering kisses along his jaw. “Okay, but I want ten more minutes in bed.”

His hand brushed the collar again, his thumb running over the glittering pendant. “Anything for you, my love.”

Now Rowan snorted, smacking his hand away so he didn’t pinch or poke her side again. “And I want waffles for breakfast. And to go to a few stores I like before coming home.”

He pulled the blankets up around her shoulders, keeping her warm. “As you wish.”

***

Two plates of toasted waffles and eggs followed after Gavin was finally able to convince Rowan to let him carry her from the bed. She whined the entire way to the kitchen, earning Stella’s attention as she followed behind them, her fluffy tail wagging as she listened to Rowan’s complaints.

She demanded the strawberry waffles they had in the freezer, and Gavin had only just placed them in the toaster when she asked if they had any eggs left.

While he wasn’t proficient at making much of anything, he had gotten much better at making simple breakfast foods, like fried or scrambled eggs.

“If we have any left we should use them up, and then we can get a fresh carton,” she said, scooping out Stella’s breakfast and pouring it into her bowl.

So Gavin fried the eggs, adding the last of their cheese to the eggs as they cooked.

Rowan smiled as the food cooked, cupping her chin between her palms as she sat at the table, her eyes drooping closed.

While she had offered to help, Gavin had gently pressed her back into the chair, telling her to just sit, to relax. She was always preparing food for him, a light breakfast to take to work, filling lunches accompanied by little notes telling him that she loved him and was proud of him, warm and hearty dinners that were made up of more than noodles.

He could cook for her. He could make food for her. She deserved to be taken care of.

The collar around her neck sparkled beneath the kitchen lights, the blue gems reminding him of the glittering ocean waves she loved so much, the ones he took her to see as often as he could. The middle gem glittered beneath a stream of sunlight, and his chest grew tight as rainbows fell across the tiled floor.

He’d grown selfish when he’d chosen that final gem. The blue had been for the ocean, for the skies, for the blue flowers that had started blooming in the front yard when she’d first moved in.

But the gold had been for him. He’d done his best to match it to his eyes, the shades nearly identical.

It was meant to show that she was his, and how could the collar show that she was his unless it was connected to him somehow.

The chair scraped against the floor as she stood, the pendant swaying slightly as she moved, and Gavin felt his pants growing tighter around his cock.

Head washed over him, crawling across his face and down his throat and chest, and he was tempted to throw cold water over his head to calm himself down.

The day was going to be busy, he couldn’t detract it right now. He couldn’t let this get the best of him now. If he did then nothing would get done.

The chain around her neck seemed to move like quicksilver, the gems reflecting the light around the kitchen, hanging just above his favourite place to leave hickies along her throat.

He swallowed, focusing on the eggs, on the smell of the oil and the pepper and the rosemary and the basil he’d added. On anything other than the idea of pressing his lips to her skin, of drawing her skin between his teeth, of the cool kiss of the chain against his cheek as he focused his ministrations there, marking her there as surely as the collar marked her as his.

Gavin bit down on his tongue, realizing that he was horrible at trying to redirect his thoughts.

He turned towards the stove, glaring down at the eggs so Rowan wouldn’t see how hard he’d already become in the span of a few moments.

The boxers he wore made everything worse, of course. They were comfy and he liked wearing them after his post-morning run shower, but they were so loose that they did nearly nothing to hide his erection.

He tensed as Rowan’s arms wrapped around his waist, and he felt his face burning as he scrambled to find something to distract himself.

The eggs were almost done, he should focus on the eggs. Should he add more oil? No, then they would be greasy and he didn’t want them to be greasy. Maybe he should add more cheese, he knew she liked cheese in her eggs.

But there wasn’t any left, he’d used the last of it so they could buy more at the grocery store.

“Babey,” she murmured, and her voice snapped him from his anxious thoughts immediately, sending fire scattering across his nerves.

It would be so easy to turn around now, to throw her over his shoulder and drag her back to their bedroom. Breakfast be damned, errands be damned. He wanted to feel the flutter of her pulse beneath his lips, wanted to cover her body in marks, wanted to feel her walls quivering around him, wanted to hear her cry his name, completely drunk on him and how he made her feel.

Gavin took one slow, shuddering breath, struggling to regain himself.

“I love you,” she breathed, her fingers twisting into his shirt, pulling the hem past the waist of his pajama pants and boxers.

“I love you too,” he said, cursing himself silently for how hoarse his voice sounded.

“I could’ve made breakfast you know,” she muttered, and it almost sounded like she was pouting.

He chuckled, relieved at the direction the conversation was taking his thoughts. “Can’t I take care of you?”

“You do plenty,” she whined, and now he was certain she was pouting.

“Well I want to take care of you a little more,” he said, flicking the stove off and moving the frying pan to a cold burner.

She whined a little more, and he could feel her face pressing against the space between his shoulder blades. “Fine.”

He shuffled to the side, his movement becoming difficult with her clinging to his back.

“Rowan,” he said, stifling a laugh. “I can hardly move.”

“That’s awfully unfortunate.”

He patted her hands, doing his best to reach for the plates he’d set on the counter and dividing up the eggs between them. “Well you’re going to have to let go when I sit down.”

“Can’t I just sit in your lap?”

He sighed, but he couldn’t stop himself from smiling, both from how cute she was and how relieved he was that the tightness in his pants had nearly vanished.

He was okay, he could get through the day.

He would get through the day

***

Gavin was starting to think that he would not make it through the day.

They had eaten breakfast, and Rowan had won out, situating herself on his lap as they’d eaten, Stella circling the table, looking for spills and scraps.

They’d dropped Stella off at the groomers first before heading to buy replacement light bulbs for the living room. Then they had to drive to the little hair supply store that Rowan loved, to pick up more shampoo.

It was, unfortunately, just outside the store that Gavin’s attention slipped to where the collar still lay against her throat.

She’d told him she was happy to keep wearing it as long as he’d wanted, and Gavin had needed to bite his tongue to stop himself from telling her that he wanted her to wear it forever. Until the end of time and past it.

Her fall jacket had shifted as she’d moved, revealing the collar beneath the golden autumn sun. She’d been reaching for the shop door with one hand, the other firmly clasped in Gavin’s.

Where it belongs.

He couldn’t stop the thought from surfacing in his mind, the possessive way his heart grew tight.

His. She was his.

That was his wife, his partner, his everything.

She looked back at him, smiling, and his breath caught in his throat, the familiar feeling of his cock growing hard making his vision dizzy.

He scratched at the back of his neck, doing his best to smile back at Rowan as she dragged him inside, chattering about how he wasn’t going to be able to argue his way through getting two-in-one shampoo.

But he couldn’t focus on what she was saying. He could hear her, he could register the sing-song sound of her voice curling through the air, but he didn’t hear the words. Didn’t understand what she was saying.

All he could register was the sound of the blood rushing to his head, the way the collar looked as it rested against her throat, the little lock that only he had the key to winking beneath the store’s fluorescent lights.

He tried to focus his attention on how the store smelled, how colourful some of the bottles were, how loud the music blaring through the speakers was.

He was just glad he’d been smart enough to change out his boxers for something that would hold him in place better.

Although nothing was going to be able to hide his dick if he wasn’t able to keep his thoughts very focused and very far from anything to do with Rowan.

Which was so hard when her hand was still in his, when he could smell the light floral perfume she wore, when he kept catching sight of the collar he’d spent months constructing just for her.

He wanted to drag her home and pin her against the bed. He wanted her in nothing but that collar. He wanted to pound her into the mattress until she was a breathless, moaning mess beneath him.

She was his after all, and he could do whatever he wanted with her.

Control yourself.

He was stronger than this, wasn’t he?

Gavin swallowed, struggling to focus on the bottles of hairspray lined up on the shelf in front of him. On controlling his breathing and calming his heartbeat.

We’re in a hair product store, come on man.

Rowan, completely oblivious to the turmoil in his mind and his pants, turned to him, beaming as she cradled the shampoos and conditioners in her arms. “Okay! I’ve got everything we need.”

“That looks like a lot more than you said we needed,” he said, his voice strained as he struggled to keep his tone even.

“Well I thought you could change up your shampoo and conditioner since you’ve been complaining your head feels kind of dry and itchy. And this one smells like roses!”

He snorted, focusing on the fact that she was holding shampoos. That they smelled like flowers. That she liked flowers and flower smells.

But his mind quickly wandered to how her skin would smell when he pressed his face against the space between her breasts. How the room would smell like spring flowers the warmer she got. How the soft flesh between her thighs always smelled so sweet.

He nearly hit himself over the head with one of the hair dryers on display to shove the thoughts from his mind.

He needed to focus on something else, on anything else.

But it felt like the more he tried to distract himself the more the thoughts persisted, growing worse with every passing moment.

First it was wanting to bite and suck at her throat until it was covered in marks. Then he wanted to mark the rest of her, her breasts, her stomach, her thighs, her ass.

He wanted her naked, wanted to bury his face between her thighs and raw out every moan and whine until she was a shaking mess. He wanted her only thought to be him, he wanted the only word on her lips to be his name.

He wanted to sink inside of her, wanted to make her cum again and again until her legs shook, until her body shuddered around every movement he made.

The autumn air was blessedly cool when they stepped outside, and Gavin sucked in a deep, shuddering breath as he beelined for the car. He focused on the feel of the wind, the way it rippled and undulated through the air.

The air smelled different too, crisper now that they were into the fall. It was stained with the smell of warm spices coming from coffee shops and bakeries across the city, with an undercurrent of something earthy, promising rainfall soon to wash across the world.

He felt almost normal again by the time Rowan slid into the passenger seat, tossing the bag of hair products into the backseat.

He did his best to focus on the road as she chattered, asking him what he felt like having for dinner that night, so they could pick up something at the store.

He was almost confident he could make it through their day of errands until she reached out to squeeze his thigh, trying to draw his attention towards her.

“Can we get something to drink?” She asked, pointing to a little coffee shop she loved.

It was little more than a hole in the wall, but she loved going in, if only to clutch her paper coffee cup and wander through the small bookshelves behind the café counter.

Usually Gavin loved taking her into the store, loved holding her hand while she chatted, telling him about different books or trying to take a sip of his own drink.

But today Gavin couldn’t possibly fathom a detour. Especially not now that her hand was on his thigh, much too close for his liking right now.

Stars burst into his vision, and he squeezed the wheel until he was sure it would break, struggling to keep himself from swerving off the road.

“Maybe on the way home,” he offered, his voice a strangled remnant of what it normally was. But he didn’t have the energy to speak properly, not when he was struggling to keep something else in check.

“If we get it now it’ll get cold in the car while we’re in the store,” he continued, holding his breath as she nodded, retracting her hand.

“You’re probably right,” she said, slumping back against her seat. “But you owe me a coffee.”

He smiled, doing his best to keep his eyes locked on the road, to ignore the whiny tone of her voice, the way his cock twitched at the sound of it. “Anything for you.”

Any hope that Gavin could calm himself down enough to get through the rest of their errands fizzled out after they’d barely crossed the threshold of the grocery store.

Rowan had grabbed a cart, a small pink piece of paper with their grocery list scrawled across it in glittery gold clutched in one hand. He’d been trying to focus on the paper, on the first few things written at the top of the list, on the way the ink had smudged on the paper while she’d been writing it.

But then he’d noticed how the ink had smudged on her hand and fingers. And then he noticed the smudge of ink on her neck, just below her jaw, in the perfect place to kiss her. To suck at her skin until it was bruised from his lips.

Although there were other places perfect for that too. All across her chest, on the inside of her thighs, especially all over her neck, just above where the collar lay.

Gavin pinched the inside of his wrist before reaching for the cart and prying it from Rowan’s hands, swiftly moving behind it as he noticed the tightness of his pants around his dick.

“Why don’t you let me take the cart, pumpkin,” he said, his words sounding strained even to his own ears.

She beamed up at him, completely unaware of the turmoil seething in him, of the blood rushing to his cock as she smiled, squeezing his arm.

“Thank you babey,” she said, standing on her toes to kiss his cheek.

It ached, he ached, and it took all of his self-control to keep a firm grip on the cart and not to grab Rowan and drag her home.

“I was thinking we could get some beef for tonight! There was a recipe I wanted to try out.”

Gavin nodded, steering them towards the meat aisle, trying to focus on her words, trying to listen to the words Rowan was saying.

“What do you think?” She asked, holding up two different packages of beef.

Gavin blinked, not realizing that they’d already arrived, that she’d already chosen the beef for tonight, that she was asking for dinner for tomorrow, and for something to freeze.

He shrugged, pointing at the package in her right hand. “That one seems good enough.”

She looked at it, shrugging before she added it to the cart. “There’s not much difference between them anyways. Okay, then I want to get some pork to freeze for next week.”

Gavin tried to focus on his breathing next as he followed Rowan through the store, as he tried to focus not on the collar, or her smile as she talked at him, pointing out different things on their list and things that were not on their list but that she wanted anyways.

He definitely didn’t focus on the fact that she was his, that this beautiful woman trying to decide between strawberry waffles and pumpkin waffles was his. That she’d even told him that she was his. That all the collar did was prove it, prove that Rowan was his. It was a mark that didn’t fade.

Rowan spun around, her hair sweeping to the side, revealing the little lock that rested on the back of her neck, and Gavin’s heart seized, his vision going blurry as the ache in his cock became near painful.

A lock that only he had the key to. A lock that no one could open except for him.

He sucked in a deep breath, counting the seconds up to twelve as he inhaled, holding for twelve, and then exhaling slowly for another twelve seconds.

Rowan seemed to remain completely unaware, plucking things from shelves and setting them in the cart, asking his opinion on desserts and breads and how many eggs should they get, and should they splurge for the organic peppers this time, since they’re local?

When they got to the frozen food aisle he opened one of the freezer doors and stood before it, wishing the cold air could freeze his thoughts until they’d made it through the last of their errands.

“What are you doing?” Rowan asked.

“Trying to pick an ice cream.”

“You’re focusing awfully hard. Don’t you usually like the plain chocolate?”

Gavin frowned at the myriad of different flavours. Cookie dough, moose tracks, tiger trail, cereal flavoured, one named after a late night talk show, Vietnamese coffee.

“I wanted to try something different,” he muttered.

“Well I’ve had the one with the brownie pieces and it’s really good!” She chirped, tapping the unopened door beside him. “And it’s not too extravagant, which might be nice.”

Gavin nodded, wishing he could spend an eternity in the freezer aisle. He closed the door, moving to the side to open the other one, considering the ramifications of just crawling into one of the bottom shelves and telling Rowan to leave him there.

Instead he just grabbed the ice cream she had pointed out, and then an extra bag of hashbrowns further down the aisle, if only for the sweet relief of the frigid air slowing his thoughts and his blood flow.

“Do you want to get buns?” She asked, pointing to the bakery section.

He did, but he didn’t want bakery goods, he wanted to strip her naked and squeeze her ass between his hands.

Control yourself

He was staring at the cream puffs and doughnuts in the bakery display case and having some thoughts that were completely unacceptable for a grocery store bakery when he realized that he wasn’t going to make it through the rest of the day.

He grabbed his phone while Rowan was choosing between a pie and fresh cinnamon buns, his mind focused almost entirely on the last time he’d filled her, until his release had leaked down her legs, shining in the darkness of their room.

His

He shot off a quick text to his brother, promising repayment if he picked Stella up from the groomer and kept her overnight.

He pocketed his phone when he saw his brother was typing more after his initial “yes” and Gavin really didn’t want to know what nonsense he was about to say to try to rile him up.

Looking at his wife as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, as she tried finding the expiration dates on her bakery goods, the collar glittering as she tipped her head to the side, was already winding him up enough.

Gavin was sweating by the time they made it to the checkout, and he bagged everything as the cashier slid the scanned items to the other side of the counter, wanting to get home as quickly as possible.

He threw everything into the cart, and he considered throwing Rowan over his shoulder too and carrying her from the grocery store so they could get out quicker.

But no, he had to be patient, he’d made it through this much, surely he could survive another few minutes.

“That’s a beautiful necklace,” the cashier said to Rowan, hand resting just below her collarbone to indicate the collar around his wife’s neck. “Where did you get it?”

“I made it myself,” Gavin said, grinning as colour bloomed in Rowan’s cheeks, like pink petals unfurling beneath the morning sun. “A one-of-a-kind necklace for my one-of-a-kind wife.”

“Well make sure you keep him,” the cashier said to Rowan, handing her the receipt. “He sounds like a sweetheart.”

Despite his frustrations and the fact that he was still trying very hard to hide his erection, Gavin couldn’t help smirking.

He wasn’t sure if he would call it being sweet, especially not with how his entire body seemed to ache now, desperately needing to bury himself deep inside his wife.

They said their thanks and Gavin took Rowan’s hand as they exited the store, the cool air washing over them as they stepped outside.

He practically threw everything into the trunk of the car, his hands shaking as he slammed it closed, sucking in deep breaths as Rowan took the cart back to the store.

Patience

The car was already started by the time Rowan returned, and Gavin started pulling from the parking lot before she’d even buckled her seatbelt.

“We’ll have to go pick up Stella soon,” she said, checking her phone. “The groomer said we could pick her up after five.”

Gavin shook his head, speeding through a yellow light right as it was turning red. “Shaw said he wanted to take Stella to the dog park, so he’s going to pick her up today.”

Rowan hummed. “Well he’d better take lots of pictures of her then. She’s always so cute when she’s at the park.”

Gavin chuckled, cursing inwardly as someone cut him off, forcing him to slow down. “I’ll let him know.”

The drive home was nothing short of a harrowing experience as Gavin struggled to drive within the boundaries of the law. He was a police officer, he shouldn’t be driving above the speed limit or running reds. But the temptation was there, and if he was going ten or fifteen above the speed limit, who was really to say?

He practically fell from the car once they’d pulled into the driveway, racing to the trunk to get everything inside.

How he managed to carry so many bags and unlock the front door he would never fully understand, but he did it, and he was throwing the groceries into the fridge and freezer and cupboards before Rowan even stepped foot into the house.

She laughed, heading towards the front door after setting the bag with the shampoos on the kitchen table. “I’ve never seen you so efficient at putting everything away.”

Gavin panted, one hand clutching the handle of the fridge as he watched her walk away. “Where are you going?”

“I think there’s one more bag in the car. With the buns and some soups and the dried apricots I wanted to use for breakfast tomorrow.”

Gavin crossed the kitchen in three strides, grabbing her wrist and slamming her against the wall. He couldn’t take it anymore, couldn’t wait any longer.

“Leave it,” he said, and his voice came out as more of a growl. “You can get it later.”

Her eyes were wide, her cheeks flushed as she peered up at him from beneath her bangs. “But it’s just one more bag, babey. And then-”

He took her hands, pressing her knuckles to his lips. “Please? I’ve been so patient all day.”

She blinked, sucking in a breath as he flipped one hand over, trailing kisses up her wrist.

It wasn’t where he wanted his mouth to be, but he could mark her wrists and her arms just as surely as her throat and her thighs.

“I suppose,” she breathed, her voice shaking. “That the last bag can wait.”

It was all the confirmation Gavin needed before he was straightening, grinding his hips against hers as he pressed his face against her neck, sucking and biting at the skin around the collar, not caring anymore as the ache in his body grew, as he grew hard against her.

She was his, Rowan was his and he could kiss and bite her as much as he wanted now. And he would make very sure to draw out every last moan from her lips.

His hands fumbled over her clothes, and he pulled away just enough to yank her shirt from her body, to tug her skirt down her legs.

“You won’t be needing these anymore,” he murmured, unable to stop himself from smiling as she whimpered, her eyes falling closed.

“What is it, princess? Why won’t you look at me?” He asked, running a finger over her still clothed slit, rubbing against her clit.

She whimpered again and he repeated the movement, slower this time, delighted that he wasn’t the one being teased anymore. “Use your words, princess. I don’t know what you want unless you tell me.”

She breathed deeply, her face flushed, her eyes dark with lust as she finally opened them. “It just feels good. It feels really good.”

He arched a brow, a finger hooking into the waistband of her panties. “It feels good…?”

She whined, her fingers scrabbling against the wall as she realized what he was asking for. “It feels good, sir.”

Hearing her say the words sent a surge of fire coursing through him, the ache in his body and the tightness of his pants around his cock unbearable now.

“Good girl,” he breathed, dragging her panties down her legs, watching as her throat bobbed, as she chewed on her bottom lip to stop herself from whining.

He liked to praise her, liked to tell her she was doing well, but he liked the way he could twist it slightly, so she always knew who was in command here.

She was a good girl if she listened to him, and only if she listened to him. She would get praises if she did what he asked.

And if she listened? If she followed his instructions and she moaned and whined just the way he liked, then she was his very, very good girl.

“Let me hear you,” he breathed, kissing the inside of her thigh. “Let me hear every beautiful sound you can make.”

It didn’t take long until she was shuddering beneath his touch. She moaned as he licked along her slit, sucking at her clit until she started squirming, her legs shaking on either side of him.

He pressed his hands against her thighs, spreading them further apart and pressing them against the wall, holding her still while he worked.

“Stay there,” he ordered, letting it dip, letting it turn rough and low as his own need raced through him.

He needed to touch her, to taste her, to feel her writhe and squirm, to bring her to her release. Because he wanted to, because he knew he could, because she was his and only he could make her feel that way, make her feel as needy and desperate for him as he was for her.

He groaned as he spread her folds with his tongue, his cock throbbing as he imagined how it would feel when he ran it over the delicate flesh. When he prodded her clit with his tip, when he teased her entrance until she was begging for him to be inside her.

He wasn’t sure if he could hold off for much longer. Because he wanted to be inside of her, wanted to fuck her until the mattress broke.

He circled her entrance with his tongue, grinning as he felt her squirm, knowing her walls were fluttering as he teased her.

“Gav-Gavin.”

He hummed as she struggled to say his name, her words breathy and stained with a moan as he drew her folds into his mouth, sucking lightly.

She tasted so good he didn’t understand how he could stop. He dragged his teeth across the flesh, alternating between sucking and licking the delicate skin, the smell and taste of her arousal coating his senses. He tilted his head, trailing kisses along the inside of her thigh, murmuring that she was doing amazing, that she tasted so good. That she just had to keep moaning his name, had to keep letting him hear how good he was making her feel.

She had to, he needed to hear it. It only made his pleasure grow, blooming in his chest and his belly, turning his blood to liquid fire as he listened to her cries.

Knowing that he made her feel so good, that only he made her feel so good, made him feel so unimaginably good.

When he sank the first finger inside of her she nearly screamed, his mouth still working on her clit, his tongue still lapping up her arousal, his mind growing hazy. Like she was a fine liquor and he was completely drunk on her.

He moaned, her walls fluttering around his finger as he curled it, finding the sweetest spot inside of her.

The sounds she made were so sweet he almost gave up then, almost tore his clothes off and fucked her against the wall.

But no, he had to be patient. He’d waited all day for this, he could wait a little longer.

He sank a second finger inside of her, a third, grinning as she cried his name, as she squirmed, her fingers burying in his hair as her moans turned to begging.

He took a shuddering breath as she clenched around his fingers, her body beginning to shake, her walls beginning to quiver erratically.

“Do you want me to make you cum?” He asked, breathing the words against her as she whimpered. “You want to cum, my princess.”

She whined, panting as she tried to find her words. “I do, I do. Please make me cum, sir.”

He smiled, pressing a chaste kiss to her clit. “As you wish.”

He moved faster now, drawing out her orgasm with his fingers and his tongue, tasting the sweet headiness of her body as he relished in the way she shuddered around his fingers.

Her body shook, moving uncontrollably now, and she cried as her body grew taut beneath him as she came, clenching around his fingers so tightly he almost couldn’t draw them out.

He continued his ministrations until her body had stopped shuddering, until he was certain that the only thing keeping her standing was his hands on her.

He pulled away, making sure she watched as he licked his fingers clean.

He stood then, grinning as she sucked in a breath, her face a beautiful crimson, the colour reaching down her neck and over her chest.

He hooked a finger beneath her collar, drawing her towards him as he leaned down, pressing his lips to hers. He ran his tongue along the seam of her lips, and she opened her mouth for him, letting him in.

He hoped she could taste herself on his tongue, hoped she knew how hard it made him, lapping at her wet folds until she’d found her release from his mouth and his fingers.

He pulled away, and as Rowan stared up at him with wide eyes, her lips swollen from the kiss, he licked his bottom lip, letting her know just how much he liked how she tasted.

He kept his finger hooked in the collar as he dragged her to their bedroom before lifting her into his arms and setting her on the bed.

“Lay down,” he ordered, his hands falling to his waistband.

His clothes had to go now. She was laying on the bed, completely bare, her chest heaving as she watched him with wide, needy eyes.

His eyes raked over her body as he discarded his clothes, letting them fall in a messy heap by his feet. She was so beautiful, every part of her.

And she was completely and entirely his.

There were already marks on her arms, on the inside of her thighs, on her neck, but he knew he could leave more. Knew he could leave plenty more.

“Spread your legs for me,” he said, stroking his cock, catching the precum on the tip and spreading it over the head.

He hummed as he moved towards the bed, positioning himself between her legs as he knelt above her.

“Do you know how beautiful you are?” He asked, one hand falling to her hip as he dragged the tip over her folds, letting it rub against her swollen clit until she squirmed.

“So incredibly beautiful, and you’re all mine.”

He reached for one of her hands, pressing it against the sheets as he sank inside of her, pressing his face against her neck until he bottomed out, until she was gasping for breath.

Gavin sighed, kissing her jaw just as he pulled out, until only the tip remained inside of her, and then he slammed his hips against hers, and she cried out, the hand that remained in his squeezing tight, her other hand scraping down his back.

“Don’t move much,” he breathed, nipping at the skin above where her pulse thrummed an erratic, harried beat. “Let me take care of everything, princess.”

She writhed beneath him, and he couldn’t help chuckling, not as he felt her desperate attempts to lift her hips to meet his. But he just felt her firm, pushing her back against the mattress no matter how many times she tried to move.

He tsked, swiping his tongue over a new bite-mark. “Good girls listen and don’t move.”

“I-I am good,” she whined, sounding breathless.

His cock throbbed, and he thrust into her again, harder than before. “Are you?”

“Yes-yes. I’m your good girl, sir,” she cried, her back arching as his movements became more forceful, shoving her back against the bed with every thrust of his cock.

“Then don’t move,” he said, his voice rough as sandpaper, punctuating his words with another hard thrust.

She whimpered in response, her nails digging into his back as he moved faster now.

He slammed his hips into hers, drawing out breathless groans, the sounds spilling from her mouth turning wordless as he moved. He sank his teeth into the skin of her throat, running his tongue over every little indent his teeth made. And when he was sure her neck was properly marked he moved on to her breasts, sucking and biting at where they swelled on her chest before slowly working his way inwards.

His body felt taut, a ball of tension sitting deep within him, growing with every snap of his hips against hers, fire surging through him like a wave as the bed creaked in time to his racing heartbeat.

It didn’t take much time at all until he brought her to release, her body shaking beneath him, the flesh extra sensitive from his earlier work. He swore as she clenched around him, drawing out his own release not long after hers.

His movements turned jerky, the tension in his body snapping as the fiery waves dragged him under. He felt hot, felt his cock throbbing almost painfully as he came, spilling inside of her.

He kept moving, groaning, murmuring her name like it was a prayer as he thrust into her again and again, coating the inside of her legs with his release.

But he could hardly say he was done. Not when the coiled tension had barely loosened in his body. Not when he still felt hard, not when Rowan’s expression wasn’t nearly as blissed out as he wanted it to be.

It didn’t take much until he was hard again, and he could continue, the sound of her voice echoing through the room like thunder in a storm.

His own moans soon joined hers now, feeling more sensitive now than before, and with every clench of her body, with every one of her cries, he felt himself throb, growing swollen from all the need and desire building within him.

If it was a song, it was a lewd song, their voices punctuated by the sound of him thrusting inside of her, of the wet pop of his mouth against her skin as he continued to bite and suck every place he could find. But it was a song he had been craving all day.

The slickness of her folds, the way her body trembled around him, the way she cried his name like it was a prayer to the high heavens, the feeling of her soft breasts against his chest every time she arched her back.

And this new sensation, of the cool silver chain against his cheek and his jaw as his mouth worked at her neck, as he sucked at the skin until it was red, as he left marks from his teeth that would not fade for days.

The coolness was sharp, narrowing his focus to the task at hand. And it was a reminder that she was his, that was inexorably his. He had put that collar around her neck, he was the only one with the key.

She was his.

His

The coiled tension and fire in his body snapped as that thought repeated itself in his mind, over and over and over again with every thrust into her.

He gasped as he found his release, bright white stars and shapes exploding in his vision as he came harder than before, moaning until he was sure the walls were shaking as he spilled inside of her. As he filled her until he was sure her body would swell.

Rowan came soon after, her head falling back against the pillows as she cried, shuddering as his hips continued to snap against hers, losing any previous rhythm as he rode out his release, and helped her ride out hers.

He wrapped her in his arms, holding her tightly until both their bodies had stilled, and then for a while afterwards.

As all the frustration and desire melted away, a different sort of neediness remained. The type of neediness where he just wanted to hold her close, wanted to feel her skin against his and be reminded that she was his wife, that he loved her and she truly loved him.

He kissed her brow. “You were wonderful, pumpkin.”

Her eyes fluttered closed, exhaustion seeming to take over. “You’re always wonderful, babey. Always so wonderful.”

He kissed the corner of her lips this time, wincing as he pulled out. “You made me feel so good, princess.”

“Well I always feel good when I’m with you.”

His heart ached, and as he slumped onto his side on the bed he pulled her towards him, tucking her head beneath his chin.

“I love you so much,” he breathed. “More than you will ever know.”

She nuzzled her face against his chest and he felt his heart squeeze more, a gentle warmth washing through him. She was his, he couldn’t believe she was.

His wife, his love, his stars, his moon, his entire universe.

And she was his. She was entirely his.

“We should probably get cleaned up,” he murmured, although he loathed the thought of letting her go. Of standing and untangling himself from her arms.

She hummed, nestling closer. “But you’re so comfy.”

He snorted. “So are you. I could lie with you like this forever.”

“Then let’s lie like this forever,” she murmured, sounding like she was already half asleep.

Again he snorted, peering down at where his release was still smeared between her thighs. “But we should probably clean this up before it gets sticky.”

She whined, shaking her head. “I don’t wanna get up.”

He kissed the top of her head, trying to extricate himself from her embrace. “Don’t worry, I’ll still be close.”

“Will you carry me?” She asked, cracking her eyes open.

“Of course I will,” he murmured, brushing her hair back from her sweaty face. “You think I’d let my wife walk on her own after that?”

He shook his head, earning a giggle from her lips as he sat up. “No, I’m carrying her around for the rest of the day.”

“And tomorrow?”

“Of course and tomorrow.”

He stood, meaning to lean down and scoop her into his arms, but he paused, his eyes falling to the collar, seeming to glow against the red marks covering her skin.

“Do you want me to take this off?” He asked, brushing his finger across the pendant.

Although if he were being honest, he didn’t want to take it off. He wanted it to remain there, so even when those red marks did fade there would be something to say that she was his.

But Rowan shook her head, resting a hand over the pendant. “No, I like it. I want to keep it on.”

“You do?” He asked, his voice squeaking a bit, his cheeks and ears growing warm.

“I do,” she said, her gaze soft, her voice as gentle as a spring breeze. “To remind me that I’m yours.”

His heart ached, and he thought he would fall apart before her.

“It’s one-of-a-kind,” she said, smiling. “There’s nothing else in the world like it. Nothing else in the world to say that I’m yours.”

She hummed, lifting her left hand so her wedding band caught the light. “Except this maybe.”

Gavin held up his left hand, his matching wedding band glittering, a twin to hers. “Does that mean that this says I’m yours?”

She giggled, shifting closer. “It does.”

Gavin cupped her face with both hands, pressing his brow against hers. “Well someone like you deserves something special and unique.”

“Someone like me?”

He nodded, bumping his nose against hers. “Someone beautiful, special. Like no one else in the entire world.”

“You make me feel that way,” she breathed, curling into his arms.

He lifted her up, cradling her against his chest. “Well it’s true. I would never lie to you.”

And it was true. The things he made for her, the collar he’d spent months crafting, we’re all unique, incomparable to anything else. Or at least he liked to hope they were incomparable.

Because there was no one else in the world like her. She was entirely unique, completely unrivalled. And she deserved things that were as special as her.

Or as close to as special as she was, because he had never met anyone else like her in the entire world.

And he couldn’t quite believe that she was truly his.

But she was. She was his, and he would love her until the end of time.

#mr love queen's choice #love and producer gavin #mlqc gavin #love and producer #mlqc #gavin bai #mlqc gavin x mc #gavin mlqc #mlqc bai qi #bai qi #bai qi x mc #star kissed winds

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spacesquidlings · 9 months

Text

Fifth Planet From The Sun, Beloved By The Moons

By the afternoon of Gavin's birthday, the heat has already reached a fever pitch, but Rowan and Gavin have no plans to stay outdoors. They'll be travelling to a new, state-of-the-art museum that will capture Gavin's heart as surely as he has already captured hers. And with every new exhibit they wander through, Rowan will be reminded of how her love for him is fathomless; as endless as the ever-expanding universe.

Pairing: Gavin Bai x OC (Rowan)

Warnings: Mentions of suggestive content

Notes: Hello!!!! I’m here to wish the most happiest of birthdays to my favourite fictional boi and my favourite comfort character. I love you Gav!!!! I hope anyone who reads this has a marvellous time, and I hope it brightens up your day just as much as writing it brightened mine!!!!

***********************************************************************

Arms stretched high towards the cerulean of the afternoon sky, Gavin passed a long, slow gaze across the trees that surrounded the small cabin they had rented for the week.

Well, cabin was the wrong word. The building was wooden but it was circular with a domed roof, and Rowan had been so excited at the idea of staying in one that he hadn’t been able to say no to her when she’d been looking for places for them to stay that week. He couldn’t remember what it was called, but it was essentially a big round cabin. It had heated floors, a cozy little fireplace set in the middle of the main room, and a full bathroom and kitchen. It even had a loft that housed a cozy bedroom, with a massive, soft bed that took up nearly all of the floor-space.

There was even a deck a few feet away, with a couple of plush outdoor seats wrapped around an outdoor fireplace.

All things considered, it was quite a nice place. And the look on his wife’s face when they’d secured their rental of it had made it better than perfect.

“Gavin it’s going to be amazing,” she’d gushed, moving to curl up on his lap after she’d closed her laptop, beaming up at him with a smile that outshone the stars. “The loft will be so cozy it looks nice and warm!”

He’d chuckled at that, wrapping his arms around her and leaning back until her head rested on his shoulder, her chest pressed against his. “It’s the middle of the summer, pumpkin. Are you sure you want it to be warm?”

“Well the place comes with air conditioning,” she’d muttered, glaring up at him. “And you know what I mean.”

“Do I?”

That had earned him a smack. He’d deserved it, he’d known he’d deserved it. But that hadn’t stopped him from whining a little when she’d gently smacked him, rubbing his arm for emphasis. “You’d really hit me?”

“I barely hit you.”

“Your precious husband? Whose birthday is coming up?”

He’d gotten a few kisses for that, and he remembered smiling all the rest of that day. Remembered a few other things too that usually followed after kisses.

Well that was a lie, he remembered all of them. Every little sound she’d made and how she had felt against him and around him. And he would be lying again if he said he wasn’t hoping that this week wouldn’t be filled with similar activities.

He let his arms fall back to his sides, trying to peer between the trees that surrounded the small area. Another bonus had been that this particular cabin had been quite secluded compared to the other few that were on this property. The trees completely blocked them off from view of the others, and the area around the cabin was blessedly quiet.

It made it feel that much more private, that much more special. It made him feel like they were the only two people in the entire world. That maybe they were the entire world.

He knew Rowan was his entire world, anyways. And he didn’t want to spend even a fraction of a moment sharing her attention with anyone else, even a fellow camper coming to say hello or asking them if they knew where some of the hiking trails were.

Gavin liked to think he wasn’t that selfish, at least not about most things. He didn’t usually think that much of himself, too focused on his missions or his work or the handful of hobbies that had kept him occupied in his lonelier days. But he was selfish when it came to her. He was selfish and greedy and he wanted all of her attention.

And it was his birthday, too. He didn’t usually make a fuss for his birthday, had often seen it come and go with no fanfare in his earlier years. But Rowan always tried to do something special. Took him on vacation and made him special dinners and treats and bought him gifts and kissed him until he was laughing and breathless and his heart was so full he thought it might burst.

She’d made him believe that he was allowed to be a little selfish. That he was allowed to be treated like he was special, that he could want to be treated special. And he did. If Rowan got so excited about his existence, then why couldn’t he?

And why couldn’t he be a little selfish? And want all of his wife’s attention?

She was his world, sunshine to his sky, light to cast off the shadows, warmth to banish the cold.

He crossed his arms, turning around and peering back at the doorway of the cabin. Speaking of his wife, where was she?

“Rowan?” He called, taking a step towards the door. “Is everything alright?”

“TURN AROUND!” She shouted, her head popping out of the doorway a moment later. “Gavin Bai, you turn around right now.”

He blinked, cocking his head to one side. “Why?”

“Gavin if you don’t turn around I will blindfold you.”

He arched a brow, the corner of his lip twitching. “I don’t believe you.”

“You think I wouldn’t try?”

“You think you could?”

She huffed, stepping out of the door and crossing her arms, mimicking his stance. “I do think I could.”

“And why’s that?”

She tipped her chin up. “I know where all your tickle spots are.”

He flinched, but quickly regained his composure, fighting against his smile. “Sweetheart, I know yours too.”

“You won’t be able to see me though once I get the blindfold on you!”

“If.”

She sighed, slumping against the doorframe and looking for all the world utterly dejected and devastated. “Babey, please. It’s for your birthday!”

He took a step towards her. “Then I really don’t want to turn around.”

She pouted, her shoulders slumping. “I’ve been preparing for ages, though. I want it to be a special surprise.”

He couldn’t hold back his smile anymore, his heart aching now. He loved her. Oh how he loved her. She was his air and his light and his everything. He was a lone tree and she was sunshine and she was filling him with warmth with life.

He wondered how she would feel if he asked to reschedule their plans for the day. If she would be okay to let him lay his head in her lap and run her fingers through his hair. Maybe he would ask her to sing to him, or to tell him about the books she’d been reading or the projects she’d been working on. Anything just to hear her voice. To be close to her.

“Gavin?”

Her voice drew him from his reverie, back into the present moment. To the afternoon sunshine and the cloudless sky and the gentle breeze that did little to cool the warm July air.

“Sorry, I was thinking.”

A line formed between her brow and she straightened, coming towards him. “Thinking about what? Are you okay?”

He took a few steps towards her, closing the distance between them. She blinked, not realizing what he was doing until it was too late, until he had lifted her into his arms and pressed his face against her throat, trailing kisses over the pulse of her heart, sinking his teeth into her skin, earning a quiet gasp.

“Thinking of you,” he murmured, pulling away enough to meet her gaze, to catch her lips in a long, slow kiss. She tipped her head to the side, opening her mouth for him, sighing as his fingers tangled in her hair, holding her in place.

His body felt warm, and he felt dizzy, lightheaded like he was drunk or like he’d been spun around in a carnival ride.

He broke away slowly, wishing he didn’t need air. Wishing he could kiss her forever. Her eyes were glassy, her cheeks flushed, her breath ragged as she tried and failed to gain control of herself.

Gavin couldn’t help smiling again, not when he noticed the way she’d hooked her legs around his waist, how she clung to him, how she seemed unwilling to let go.

“Do you want to put today’s activities on hold?” He asked, letting his voice drop an octave, letting it sound rough and warm, and maybe just the tiniest bit needy.

Not that he was only a tiny bit needy. He was always needy. He was always needy for her.

He slid his hand up her thigh, played with the hem of her dress, which had ridden up when she’d wrapped her legs around him. “Maybe we could do something just the two of us?”

Her chest rose and fell slowly, her eyes unfocused as they skated over his face. “Something?”

He couldn’t help smiling at the quiet neediness in her own voice, the way she had so quickly been robbed of all thought.

He slid his hand up higher, beneath her dress, tracing his finger against the soft skin of her thigh. “Something for just us.”

Colour bloomed across her face, the crimson of a sunset sky, her breath catching. She blinked, like she was struggling to process what he was saying.

He took one step back towards the cabin, then another. Leaned close so his words caressed her ear. “I think there’s something I’d like to unwrap early.”

Out of anything he could have said, those were the words that seemed to snap Rowan back into the present. She shook her head furiously, struggling to extricate herself from his arms, although he was loath to set her down. He wanted to hold her, he wanted to keep holding her. Why couldn’t he hold his wife in his arms?

But she was unwrapping her legs from his waist, wiggling until he finally relented and set her back on her feet. She glared up at him, her mouth pressing into a thin line.

“I planned out a special day today,” she whined, resorting to slumping her shoulders and pouting. “I wanted to make you happy.”

“I’m always happy with you,” he murmured, ducking his head to find her eyes. “No matter what we’re doing I’m always happy with you.”

“I just want to make your birthday special.”

“It always is as long as I have you by my side.”

A smile pulled at the corners of her mouth, and Gavin grinned, delight dancing through his chest like sunshine over rippling ocean waves.

“We can continue later,” he murmured, grasping her chin gently and lifting it up, so he could see her face clearly, so he could see the beautiful blush that crept over her face.

She nodded, looking like she was at a loss for words once more.

He arched a brow, trying and failing not to laugh. But it was hard when she looked like that, still so flustered. “Wasn’t there something you were doing before?”

A line formed between her brow as she thought for a moment, then gasped, her eyes lighting up as she remembered. “Yes! And you have to turn around! And close your eyes!”

He chuckled, deciding that this time he would oblige. He turned around, covering his eyes with his hands. “Okay, I’m ready! How long do you need?”

“Just wait until I tell you it’s okay.”

“Yes ma’am.”

She sighed, long and loud. “You’re lucky I love you.”

“I’m the luckiest person in the universe to be loved by you.”

He was sure her cheeks were an even brighter red now, and he smiled wider, earning a light smack as she walked past him.

“You’d hit me on my birthday?!”

“It’s not your birthday yet,” she said, pinching his side as she passed him.

“I’ll get you back for that,” he teased, letting his voice drop low again.

“I’m sure you will,” she sang, as if he’d told her he would buy her flowers.

He should buy her flowers, now that he was thinking about it. He hadn’t bought any flowers in a while, and she loved to press them and hide them in books around the house.

It was a little like a scavenger hunt, and every time he found one he couldn’t help smiling. It always felt like a little piece of sunshine that she’d tucked between the pages, brightening up the day whenever one was found.

“Okay, you can open your eyes now!”

He did, spinning around to find her standing by their car, her smile filled with mischief.

“So when do I get to see my surprise?”

She rolled her eyes, moving towards the passenger seat. “That would ruin it! What’s the point of a surprise then?”

He sighed, although he knew it wouldn’t do any good. He doubted he would be able to pry any details from her. For now he would just have to yield to her decisions.

And anyways he would find out soon enough. If Rowan was packing everything in the car that meant whatever the surprise was would be brought with them today.

Although that was little consolation when he could feel himself itching to know what exactly she’d hidden.

He didn’t know what had happened; he’d used to be disciplined and patient. He should have been able to hold himself back, push the surprise from his mind while he focused on the parts of the day he did know about.

Although maybe it had to do with how he looked forward to every new day now. Every new moment. Maybe it had to do with how there was always something that made him smile now. That made glad he was alive, that made him so very happy he was alive.

He was pretty sure it had to do with Rowan. It was as if she was springtime sunshine, melting away the last vestiges of winter to make way for the explosion of colour and life that bloomed in its wake.

He’d remembered liking things, he’d remembered loving things. But everything had been just a little grey, a little ashen. Food tasted plain, colours seemed dull. Even blood red roses and fiery sunset skies had seemed faded and lackluster. Music, something he had loved since he was a child, the piano or his bass or even just bright songs on the radio, had seemed muted, had touched his heart. But never much more. Like a breeze rustling his jacket rather than a storm that tore at his very being.

Like his world had been washed out, or perhaps like he had been underwater. The world muffled and dulled.

But everything was vibrant now, everything was loud and brilliant and bright. She’d stepped into his world and brought colour rushing in after her. Sunrise and sunset were fire. He couldn’t remember food tasting as good as it did now. Even the littlest things brought him joy, making him feel like his heart might burst with the happiness that spilled through him.

Sometimes he would find himself staring at some beautiful flowers, or seeing something pretty in a shop window, or listening to a soft melody, and his chest would grow so warm he was sure a star was blooming to life inside of him. He would think of her, of her smile and her laugh. Of the way she would grip his hand and tell him how pretty something was. How she would cling to him after and chatter away about whatever was on her mind.

Although sometimes now he would catch himself just admiring things around him. Lakes and trees and flowers and sky. The warmth of a cup of coffee against his palms. The sweetness of a pastry or treat on his tongue. The softness of a blanket against his skin. A cool, refreshing wind rustling through his hair.

The world was big and it was bright and it was beautiful. They were things he’d always known, but now they were things he really felt.

Perhaps that was why he was so impatient now, wanting to peek at whatever Rowan had hidden away for his birthday. There was so much that made him happy now. So much that made him excited.

He felt a little like a child, if he were being honest. Like his body was too small for the sunshine and the happiness in his chest.

“Gavin?”

Rowan’s voice drew him from his thoughts, back into the present. She took a step towards him, her head cocked to the side. “What are you thinking of?”

He smiled, reaching out to take her hand. “I was thinking of you.”

She blinked, her cheeks the soft pink of a cherry blossom, her voice catching as she asked “me?”

He nodded, pressing a kiss to her fingertips. “You.”

“Was it good things?”

He closed his eyes, chuckling at the squeak in her voice. “Very good things.”

“Like what?”

He arched a brow, opening his eyes to peer up at her impishly as she tried and failed to look disinterested.

“Like that I love you,” he breathed, leaning forward so he could press his brow against hers. “That I love you with all that I am.”

Her hand tightened around his, her other hand reaching up to tangle in his hair. “I love you too.”

He grinned, leaning a little closer, so their lips nearly brushed as he spoke. “Enough to tell me about your surprise?”

She peeled away, shaking her head. “I love you so much that I won’t tell you.”

He sighed in defeat, letting his shoulders slump forward. “I guess there’s no winning.”

“It’s okay babey,” she cupped his face with both hands as she murmured his pet name, stroking his cheek with her thumb. “You’ll get to see it soon. And today and the next few days are all about you.”

He resisted the urge to point out that if they were all about him then she’d tell him what the surprise was. And she’d also postpone their plans for the day because he still desperately wanted to carry her back into the cabin and undo the little bows that held her shoulder straps in place, her dress pooling at her feet.

But he just smiled, enjoying the feeling of his cheeks being cradled in her hands. He would have everything he wanted soon enough. And it gave him time to imagine all the different ways he would take her dress off and make her melt.

She kissed his brow so gently he sighed. “I love you.”

“I love you too,” she breathed, pulling away just barely. “Although we should probably get going. We’ve got a lot to do today.”

“I’m glad I get to spend it with you,” he said, drawing her back for one last kiss. “There’s no one I’d rather spend it with.”

He would have kissed her more, held her tight in his arms forever if he could. She fit so perfectly against him, her heart beating in tandem with his, her breath curling against his neck, her hands pressed against his back.

He didn’t think anything could ever make him as happy as being close to her did.

But eventually the embrace did have to end, although after he buckled himself into the car he made sure to reach out and squeeze Rowan’s hand. To remind her he was right there, but also to remind himself that she was close. That she was there with him. Beside him.

“Alright, do you know how to get there?” He asked, slowly driving the car down the small gravel road that took them to their cabin.

Rowan hummed, opening up a map on her phone. “Once you get out of the campground you’ll want to start by turning right.”

He reached out to thread his fingers with hers, the car barely going more than 10 kilometers as they drove over the rough, uneven road.

They were heading to a new space museum that was opening up in the fall. Rowan had somehow managed to swing tickets to an early access viewing of the exhibits, and they had decided it would make a perfect summer trip for his birthday.

Had it been a normal museum Gavin probably wouldn’t have cared either way, but this one boasted private planetarium rooms made with tech almost as advanced as what the STF was often working with. The entire galaxy and known universe would be able to be projected in the circular room, so close he could touch any one of the planets or stars.

The rooms were also to be booked privately, so there would be no one in there other than him and Rowan. As if they were completely alone in the universe.

There were some other interesting exhibits he’d thought sounded cool, about spaceships and the history of space travel, and strangely even an exhibit on how space was depicted in fictional stories.

He would be lying if he said he wasn’t really excited for it. He’d always loved space and the idea of travelling through the stars. Of exploring different worlds and galaxies.

It was fantastical daydreams he’d had when he was a child, but they’d stuck with him even as he’d grown. And now here he was with the most important person in the entire world next to him, taking him somewhere his child self would have loved.

“Are you alright?” She asked, her voice tinged with worry as she leaned forward, squeezing his hand. “You look like you’re thinking about something serious.”

Gavin just shook his head, bringing Rowan’s hand to his lips and brushing a kiss against her knuckles. “Not at all. I was just thinking that I would have been very excited to go on this trip when I was a child.”

She gave him a funny look, arching her brow. “You think it’s childish?”

He chuckled, setting her hand down on her thigh. “No, no. I mean it’s something I would have loved. Had you taken little Gavin with you he would have been so happy.”

“Well what about big Gavin?” Her voice was soft as she spoke, and she reached out to tug at the sleeve of his shirt.

“Big Gavin is happier than he ever thought he would be.”

“He’s looking forward to today?”

He laughed, squeezing her hand. “He’s very excited for today.”

Rowan beamed, covering the top of his hand with hers. “I am too! I can’t wait to see the planetarium rooms! I wonder what galaxies we’ll be able to see.”

Hu hummed, pretending to be in thought. She was his everything, and if all he saw was her, then he would get to see the entire universe in that little room.

Although he wasn’t quite sure how to say that. Wasn’t quite sure if he could.

Even after years of dating and marriage and sharing whispered words late into the inky night, there were some things he still struggled to say. They would catch in his throat, his tongue struggling to form words that wouldn’t come.

He loved her though. He loved her so much. So he just squeezed her hand again, hoping it would convey everything he was feeling in that moment, everything he had felt since she had chosen to be a part of his life.

She squeezed his hand back, as if she understood completely. It made his heart grow warm, made his veins fill with sunshine gold. To be understood so entirely, even without words. He hadn’t known it was possible. Hadn’t known anyone would be by his side, would have worked so hard to remain by his side, to know him, to understand him, to love him.

He cleared his throat as a lump began to form, turning his eyes to the road as they emerged from the campground and turned onto the main road that would take them to the highway. “Where do I go next?”

“You’ll want to hop on the highway soon. Then it looks like we’ll ride that for a few hundred kilometres.”

He nodded, turning on his signal. “And you’re sure?”

“I’m sure!”

“You’re really sure?”

She pouted, crossing her arms and leaning away from him, towards the passenger side door. “That happened a long time ago, Babey! It was an accident!”

He snorted, remembering the “accident” in question. Rowan had read the directions wrong when they had been on their way to a new restaurant she’d been very excited to try. They’d made it to their reservation with ten minutes to spare, but not before going down every side street in the city and somehow ending up in the best parking spot in the miniscule parking lot of the restaurant.

He’d teased her about it since then, and if he were being honest it was a little funny. How was it possible to get completely lost and arrive early? He’d never done that before in his entire life. And yet somehow Rowan had, and it had brought him so much happiness he’d had to cover his face to stifle the laughter that bubbled through him.

“Don’t be like that pumpkin,” he cooed, squeezing her leg before returning his hand to the steering wheel. “Maybe we’ll arrive early.”

She huffed, rolling her eyes. “That was some weird freak of nature. I’m pretty sure there must have been a tear in the universe we drove through that got us there.”

“Maybe that’s your evol,” he teased, flicking his eyes to the side to find her resolutely staring out the passenger side window.

“Getting lost?” He could hear the pout in her voice, and he was tempted to pull over just to kiss it away.

“Teleporting maybe? Or bending reality to create something like warp travel?”

She spun around, her eyes wide. “You mean kind of like wormholes? In space?”

He grinned. “Exactly!”

“Babey, you’re such a dork. That’s the cutest thing I’ve ever heard.”

His face grew warm and he coughed, focusing on the road ahead. “I don’t know what you mean.”

“Only that of course you would come up with such a cute idea for an evol. And that it would be like something out of a sci-fi movie!”

His cheeks grew warmer still, the heat crawling up the sides of his face and his ears. “But I’m your dork, right?”

“Of course,” she sang, leaning towards him, folding her arms over the armrest between them so she could lean closer. “You’re my Gavin, my dork. And you make me so happy.”

He coughed again, scratching at the back of his neck, although he was unable to wipe away the smile that tugged at his lips. He was coming desperately close to pulling the car over so he could cup her face and kiss her until she was breathless.

“I’m so happy I was able to get tickets to this museum,” she said, falling back against her seat. “I keep checking their social medias and they keep posting about all these new exhibits. I feel like we’re going to walk out of there professionals in space facts!”

He hummed, happy to listen to her chatter away, happy to listen to her voice.

“Maybe we can buy degrees from the gift shop.”

“I doubt they’d have something like that,” he said, quirking a brow. “You can’t just buy a degree from a gift shop.”

“Not with that attitude!”

He snorted, turning back to the road.

“Oh, but that reminds me we’ll definitely have to get some things from the gift shop! So we can remember this trip!”

He doubted he would ever forget it. Every moment with her was so very precious, and every memory shared with her was kept safely in his heart, polished and shined so he would never forget.

“We can get whatever you want,” he murmured, imagining her running around a display of space-themed plushies. Maybe there would be some stuffed planets and stars, or little alien dolls.

“Not for me, babey, for you!”

He couldn’t help arching his brow again, peeking at her from the corner of his eye in bemusement. “You mean you wouldn’t want to buy any stuffed animals?”

She crossed her arms, tipping her chin up and closing her eyes as she feigned haughtiness. As if she didn’t cave within seconds of seeing a cute stuffed animal. “It depends.”

“A stuffed planet? A meteor? A star?”

She cracked open one eye to peer at him. “Do you think they have those?”

He grinned wider. “Well if they do, I’ll get them for you.”

She sighed in defeat. “Well maybe I want to buy you things, too. It is your birthday after all.”

“I don’t need anything,” he said. “I just need you by my side, that’s it.”

“But-”

“No buts,” he cut her off, shaking his head. “The only thing I need is you. Is sharing today with you.”

“What about things that you want?”

He rolled his eyes. “I want to spend today with you, Rowan. All I want is to spend my time with you.”

“Okay,” her voice was soft as she bobbed her head. “Well for the record I want to spend all my time with you. I want to share every single moment with you.”

And if that was the only gift he ever received, was being with her, being beside her, then it would truly be the best gift of all.

***

Gavin couldn’t help gaping a little as they got out of the car, staring up at the strange shape of the museum.

He would be lying if he said he’d been to many museums, but the ones he’d seen had always been square or rectangular, the outer walls made of bland grey concrete, usually with colourful banners unfurled over the drab colour advertising their exhibits.

But this one was a bit different. From where they stood in the parking lot the exterior of the building looked strangely circular, with cylindrical protrusions on either side. It looked sleek and white, reminding him of the interior of the STF, all smooth surfaces and flashing neon lights. There were markings on the sides he couldn’t quite make out, something that looked like a string of numbers, although he wasn’t entirely sure.

“It looks like a spaceship!” Rowan sang, clapping her hands. “Oh it’s so cool already and we haven’t even gotten inside!”

He tipped his head to the side, reassessing the building. He supposed Rowan was right, it did look a bit like a spaceship. Like something out of the newer Star Trek movies, maybe.

“Are you excited?” She asked, drawing him from his thoughts as she took his hand. “I wonder what the inside will look like if the outside looks like a spaceship!”

Her excitement was infectious, and Gavin couldn’t help grinning as he squeezed her hand in return. Her smile was as bright as any star, her eyes shining, filled with galaxies of light.

Oh he loved her so much, he thought his heart might burst.

“I’m so excited,” he breathed.

“Okay okay! Let’s go, I want us to get in early!”

“I thought the museum wasn’t open to the public yet.”

“It’s not,” she said, rifling through her bag until she found their VIP tickets. “But that doesn’t mean there aren’t lots of people who were invited to this early opening, though. And I don’t want to be stuck behind some pompous rich people or a couple of scientists who are just going to say the information isn’t good enough!”

She tugged on his hand, spinning around to face him. “I want to read everything in here! And I want to take tons of photos of you.”

“What about photos of you?” He cocked his head to the side, dragging her closer before she ran into a parked car.

“But this is for you!”

“Well I want photos of you, too,” he said, enunciating his words very carefully, and extra slowly, making sure to emphasize want. He wanted photos of her. He wanted to remember the little details of today.

“Are you sure? I’m not really that good in photos.”

“I think you’re beautiful,” he said, brushing her hair back behind her ear. “You’re always so beautiful. I want to remember every single moment with you.”

Her voice was small when she spoke again. “Okay, if you’re sure. But I want pictures of you too.”

He squeezed her hand, tucking it around his arm to keep her close. “As you wish.”

There were only a handful of people milling around outside the museum, snapping a few photos and peeking around the delicate gardens that had been set up on either side of the walkway leading to the entrance.

Rowan crouched down and plucked a flower with light blue petals, straightening to quickly twine it in Gavin’s hair. “There we go.”

His face flushed, and he lifted a hand towards the flower. “What’s that for?”

“A gift! For the most important person here today!”

He pulled the flower from his hair, tucking it into hers instead. “I think you would look much better with this.”

“But you’re so handsome, Gavin, you’re always so handsome.” She pouted, running her fingers lightly over his arm. “You don’t want my gift?”

“Of course I do,” he murmured, trying and failing to ignore the way he shivered beneath her touch. “Will you hold onto it for me? You look very beautiful with it.”

Her face turned crimson, and she bobbed her head, her voice a quiet squeak as she said “yes.”

He grinned, pulling his phone out and snapping a picture of her before she could stop him.

“What was that?” She demanded, reaching for his phone. “What did you just do?”

“I told you,” he teased, tucking it back into his pocket. “I want photos of you, too. So I can always remember.”

As if he would ever forget. As if he could ever forget a moment with her.

She heaved a very long, very tired sigh before jabbing a finger against his chest. “You’re lucky you’re cute.”

He tipped his head to the side, his starry eyes alight with mischief. “You think I’m cute?”

Rowan opened her mouth, then closed it, then opened it again. Had it not been for his tone, she would have said yes, of course. Because of course she thought he was cute. She had to stop herself from squishing his cheeks between her hands most days because she thought he was so cute. From biting him because he was so cute. But he was very clearly teasing her, and any words she might have said vanished from her mind.

She snapped her mouth shut, running her hands over the front of her dress to smooth out a few wrinkles, before turning on her heel and walking towards the door.

“Come on, pumpkin,” he whined, catching up with her quickly.

He took her hand, tugging her against his side before slipping his arm around her waist. If she looked up she would know he was grinning, but she was not exactly brave enough to look up at him. They had been together for years and yet still every time she looked at him it was like she was falling in love with him all over again. Her legs turning watery, her heartbeat fluttering, her breath catching.

And the impish smile she knew was on his face would do little to assuage that feeling. Instead she was certain her body would give out on her completely and she would keel over, knocking her head on the pavement. Like a Victorian woman suffering from a bout of the vapours.

Although she had not brought any smelling salts, so she had no idea how she would be roused from such a state.

It was probably safer to just not look up at him.

Which was so much harder than it should have been. Because when Gavin wanted attention, he demanded it. And she could already feel his hand squeezing her waist, his thumb stroking her side idly while his other hand brushed against the bottom of her chin.

“Now you won’t even look at me?” She could hear the pout in his voice now, although she could picture the way the corners of his lips would be turned up, his eyes bright as stars.

“I miss you.”

“I haven’t gone anywhere, babey,” she murmured, leaning her head against his shoulder. “I’m right here.”

The pad of his index finger tapped against her chin. “Won’t you look at me? On my birthday?”

How could she say no to that? How could she ever say no to him?

So Rowan turned and looked at Gavin, looked at her beautiful, kind husband. At his sunbright eyes and his gentle smile and the soft dusting of colour that still stained his cheeks.

Her knees did in fact feel weak, her face burning and her head spinning and her pulse racing as she met his gaze.

Hopefully if she fell Gavin would catch her, because she didn’t trust herself to walk steady in his presence.

“I do think you’re cute,” she said, her voice soft. “I think you’re so wonderful, and handsome, and adorable.”

His grin widened. “I think you are, too.”

She was pretty sure she would have kissed him right then and there if a particularly noisy group hadn’t started making their way towards them. They sounded like a group of scientists, discussing numbers and calculations and whether the museum would feature newer discoveries regarding the universe and using all sorts of words Rowan didn’t know.

Gavin gently guided her to the side to let the group pass before they continued making their way to the entrance. He lowered his mouth to her ear, his breath warm against her skin. “To be continued.”

She nodded, letting herself be guided up the path to the entrance. She handed their tickets to the staff member standing by the door, who hole punched the tickets before handing them back before opening the door for them.

A blast of frosty, air conditioned air greeted them as they stepped inside a large, circular room. Signs cluttered the walls, and small clusters of people chatted softly amongst each other, pointing to words on glossy, colourful pamphlets.

“Where do you want to start?” Gavin asked, surveying the room. There were signs pointing to the bathrooms, the gift shop, and a table piled high with more of those colourful pamphlets.

Rowan grabbed one immediately, cracking it open. “Hmm, it doesn’t look like there’s a map in here.”

Gavin hummed, squeezing her hand. “There’s a hallway up ahead. Maybe we can follow that?”

She looked up from the pamphlet to where he was pointing, a seemingly plain hallway that took a sharp right and disappeared completely from sight.

“What’s the worst that could happen?” He asked.

“What if we get abducted by aliens? And separated?”

He snorted, rolling his eyes. “I’d find my way back to you.”

“You promise?”

He chuckled, pressing a kiss to the top of her head. “That’s quite a silly question, Rowan. Of course I promise.”

She closed her eyes for a moment, leaning into him.

“Besides,” he continued, pulling away. “I would never let anyone separate us.”

“Not even aliens?”

He shook his head. “Absolutely not.”

That was a relief, although she doubted they were going to get abducted by aliens anytime soon. Or maybe they were, considering the hallway had curved to the right, the walls a stark white with bright, nearly blinding lights, and still she wasn’t sure where they were going.

Perhaps they were walking onto an alien spaceship, and they were about to be abducted. Spirited away to some unknown planet where they’d have to fight to make their way back home.

Rowan tightened her grip on Gavin’s hand, pressing closer against him as a shiver raced through her.

“Cold?” He asked, wrapping his arm around her shoulder and rubbing her bare arm. “Maybe we should have brought sweaters. I hadn’t really thought about that.”

She narrowed her eyes, remembering the soft pleading from him that morning, saying he thought one of her new dresses would look so beautiful, and wouldn’t it be nice if she wore it.

“And what exactly had you been thinking about?”

His ears turned bright red and he scratched at the back of his neck, quickly looking away. “Nothing much.”

“Now who’s the one who won’t look at me?”

Rowan was starting to wonder if maybe they should turn around when they were greeted with a pure white gangplank, leading up towards a dark, heavy curtain.

“Keep holding my hand,” he murmured, lifting their joined hands to press a kiss to her knuckles, sending butterflies cascading through her chest. “In case there’s any aliens trying to abduct us.”

She nodded, stifling a giggle as they headed up the gangplank and pushed past the curtain.

To Rowan’s delight it was not an attempted alien abduction. Instead, they found themselves at the beginning of one of the first exhibits in the museum. A beautiful, shining room with walls that seemed to glitter and glow. It took Rowan a moment for her eyes to adjust, and only then did she notice that there were millions of little model stars dangling from the ceiling, reflecting the lights, making the room feel so impossibly huge and bright.

“Oh wow,” she murmured, still clinging to Gavin’s hand. “They’re so bright.”

He hummed, shielding her eyes. “Careful not to look at them too long. I don’t want you to hurt your eyes.”

“I mean it’s hard to escape them,” she said, peering curiously around the room, wondering where they should start.

“You can always lean your face against my chest for a minute,” he said. “I’ll keep you safe.”

“I might take you up on that.”

She would definitely be taking him up on that soon, she could guarantee it. For now, though, she wanted to see some of the cool displays and exhibits, and she wanted to get as many photos of Gavin as she could.

They ended up starting with an exhibit displaying the birth of the universe. Whoever had designed it had chosen to depict the different theories for how the universe was born with colourful, scaled down dioramas. It was only the diorama big bang itself, the explosion that created everything, that was massive. It was taller than both of them, reaching up towards the starry ceiling, meant to illustrate the sheer size of it. The sheer power that created everything.

Rowan snapped a picture of Gavin as he read one of the placards, his brow furrowed in thought, his mouth moving silently as he scanned the words slowly, taking it in. She felt her heart soaring, higher than the domed ceiling covered in crystalline stars. He looked content, he looked happy. The light catching in his eyes, making them glow with an almost childlike wonder.

He seemed to radiate excitement, like he was his very own star, glowing with warmth and the most brilliant light.

Rowan forgot where she was for a moment, too lost in thought, too happy as she watched his lips move, his eyebrows shoot up. He was pointing to something new he was reading, his cheeks flushed. He was crossing his arms, smiling broadly, his hair spilling over his brow as he tipped his head to the side. She wanted to memorize every part of that smile, from the wrinkles around his eyes to the little dimple that appeared in his cheek to the shade of pink that bloomed in his cheeks like rosebuds.

She took another picture, not really caring if it was silly or not. She loved him, she loved him so much. She didn’t want to forget a single moment with him. Couldn’t bear the thought of this memory fading from her mind.

She lowered her arm to tuck her phone back into the little heart-shaped purse at her hip to find Gavin peering at her curiously, a bemused smile on his lips.

“What are you taking a picture of?” He asked, uncrossing his arms to take her hand again.

“You,” she said, her voice small as she let him draw her closer.

“I’m sure there are much more interesting things to be taking pictures of,” he said, casting his gaze around the starlit room. There were massive installations meant to depict stars and planetary explosions, and further away she could see paintings and beautiful artist renderings of the planets. There were multiple hallways branching off from the large room they were in, with displays she couldn’t quite see and colourful lights illustrating what would be in the following rooms.

It was all truly marvellous and beautiful and like nothing she had ever seen before.

And yet it all truly paled in comparison to the man before her. To his gentle smile, to the warmth in his eyes. He was completely incomparable. More precious and amazing than any star.

“No,” she breathed, squeezing his hand. “There’s nothing that can compare to you.”

He blinked, his blush deepening. Then he coughed, his gaze dipping down, his bangs falling so they covered his eyes.

“Gavin,” she reached out to cup his cheek, gently tipping his face back up. “Won’t you look at me?”

He did, although he looked a little sheepish, and his ears were the red of sweet, ripe tomatoes.

“I love you. Nothing in this room can hold a candle to you.”

His expression softened, his hand reaching up to cover hers. “I love you, too. I don’t know how I got so lucky.”

“It wasn’t luck,” she said. “You were just you. You were Gavin, and how could I not fall in love with you?”

He leaned into her touch, closing his eyes. He didn’t say anything, but he didn’t have to. He looked serene, he looked happy, comfortable. Safe.

She stroked his cheek softly, savouring his closeness for a few moments. They would need to move soon, she could hear voices growing louder, coming from that long curving hallway that led to the entrance of the exhibits. More people were starting to arrive, and they would be clamouring to get photos and absorb as much of the information as the museum could offer.

But for just a moment longer they could stand like this, virtually alone in the shimmering, shining room. Content to be close to the other, trying desperately to etch this moment into their memories.

Gavin tilted his head, pressing a kiss to the inside of Rowan’s palm before twining his fingers with hers and gently peeling her hand away. “What would you like to take a look at next?”

She hummed, spinning around as she observed the different installations and displays. “We could look at the one about star births! There’s something that looks really cool over there!”

He nodded, letting her lead him across the room. Similar to the exhibit they had just looked at, there were artistic models of all the different kinds of stars. Blue stars and white dwarfs and red giant stars and stars just like the sun that gave light to their own world.

He read the placards carefully, reciting the words out loud for Rowan, humming as he turned the information over in his mind. The beginning of the exhibit gave relatively simplistic information, facts that were easy to find when looking online or when taking an introductory astronomy class. But the further you moved into the maze of star sculptures and displays, the more detailed the information. Like they were trying to ease visitors into understanding the basics of astrophysics before using more complex terms and explaining things in much more detail.

Gavin had never really been one for complex sciences, and had often felt his brain grew messy and tangled if he tried to make sense of any of it. But he liked this, he liked the way it helped him mitigate so much of that confusion and frustration. He felt like he understood almost everything he read, and he couldn’t help beaming every time he straightened, feeling like a child again. Feeling as excited as he used to whenever he got to look up at the stars with the old telescope he’d used to own.

And more than anything else, he liked that Rowan was beside him. He would read something out loud to her and she would gape, the starlight from the hundreds of crystal stars hovering above their heads shining in her eyes, like she was made of galaxies.

She brushed her hand against his back as she leaned forward, her brow furrowed as she peered at a spinning, miniature reproduction of a star. It was an interactive display, and she gasped as she reached out to touch it.

“It’s so warm!”

Gavin chuckled, listing his hand to let it hover over the star. “It is. But stars are supposed to be warm.”

Like her. Like the way she made his own heart feel when he woke up every morning and saw her still sleeping face. Her cheek smushed against the pillow, her hair a messy halo around her head. Her bangs sticking up at awkward angles that made him smile as he smoothed them out.

Perhaps she was a star. Or maybe she was a galaxy of stars. There was no other explanation for the warmth and the happiness he felt when she was close by.

“Here, put your hand on this one,” he said, taking her hand and setting it atop another star, this one a fiery red. “It’s still warm, but it’s a bit cooler.”

She bobbed her head, seeming starstruck. “That’s so cool.”

He chuckled, pointing to a bright blue star next to it. “Now try that one.”

She reached out to press her hand to the blue star, only to yank it back with a gasp. “That one’s almost too hot to touch!”

He took her hand and pressed a kiss to her palm to ease the discomfort from the heat. “You’re right. Blue stars are the hottest stars in the universe.”

She blinked, turning back to the little model, her cheeks turning pink from the heat that radiated from it. “That’s incredible. That kind of star could keep lots of planets warm!”

He bobbed his head. “Theoretically, I think it could.”

He had liked researching about space when he’d been younger, hours slipping away as he’d read books and internet articles about space, the planets, the stars that bloomed in the sky every night. He couldn’t remember all of the details, though, about the stars, but he did remember once reading about how stars had to be in perfect position from planets to warm them, and to sustain life. Not only that, but there were different kinds of stars that could and could not sustain the growth and life of a planet like theirs.

“I’m not sure, though,” he admitted, furrowing his brow. “It might not last that long. The hotter and brighter the star the shorter its life.”

Rowan hummed thoughtfully, looping her arm through his. “I suppose that would make sense.” She wrinkled her nose. “Although it’s really hard for me to wrap my head around. Millions of years not being enough to sustain the life of a planet.”

He chuckled. “It is quite hard to picture it.”

“If there are other planets that have life on them, do you think they’re like ours?” She asked, pausing to peer at a diagram explaining the “goldilocks zone” and why it was so important to sustain life. “Do you think the people living on it would be quite different?”

He hummed. “I guess it would depend on their sun, and the environment.”

She leaned against him, sighing. “It would be really cool if we knew for sure there were other planets in the universe with life.”

“I’m sure there are. There would have to be. The universe is too big for there not to be.”

He peered over at her, watching her as she scanned the diagram, chewing on her bottom lip as she went over the information. “Although, I think our planet is best.”

She narrowed her eyes, looking up at him curiously. “Why is that?”

“Because it has you.”

Her eyes widened a little, her mouth opening in a small o.

“Gavin…” She trailed off, her voice lilting softly through the air, reminding him of a leaf twirling slowly to the ground.

“You’re the most beautiful thing in the entire universe,” he said, leaning closer to brush a kiss to her brow. “I know nothing else out there could compare to you.”

She pressed her face against his shoulder, and he could hear the pout in her voice as she whined. “You’re so lucky it’s your birthday.”

He chuckled, running a hand over her hair. “And why is that?”

“Because you can get away with saying sweet things like that!”

“I’m only telling you the truth. And the sweetest thing here is you, pumpkin.”

She grumbled wordlessly, glaring at him as she peeked up. He could see the wheels turning in her mind, and he considered what her retaliation might be.

Maybe she would say something equally as sweet that would make his face burn and his stomach dip like he was being thrown from a cliff.

Maybe she would kiss him until he felt a little breathless and then act like nothing had happened.

Or maybe she would step on his foot. Or pinch his waist. Or reach for the ticklish spot that her hand was awfully close to and-

He grabbed her hand before she could make her move, snorting as he held onto it tightly. “It’s my birthday, Rowan.”

“And?” She asked, her voice light and saccharine as she smiled at him just a little too sweetly. “I was going to make you smile.”

“You make me smile by being here beside me,” he murmured, his free hand wrapping around her back and slowly edging upwards.

She opened her mouth to respond, but then her eyes widened and she gasped, snorting as laughter bubbled from her mouth.

Gavin grinned in triumph as she wrenched away from him and he lost his hold on her most ticklish spot. “And I can’t help smiling when I hear your laughter.”

“That is not fair,” she groused, crossing her arms.

“But it’s my birthday,” he whined, trying to reach for her. “I thought I could have anything I wanted.”

She glared at him, stepping away. “Within reason.”

“I would say hearing your laugh and seeing your smile are more than reasonable.”

She scrunched her face up, lifting her shoulders up as her whole body tensed.

Gavin couldn’t help laughing at the sight, covering his mouth with one hand and reaching out to her with the other. “Come on, princess. Don’t be like that.”

She let her face relax, sighing as he took her hand and drew her through a display of stars. “I can’t say no to you.”

He ran his thumb over the back of her hand, her words making his heartbeat stutter and stumble, like a child still learning to walk. Did she know how much her words meant to him? Did she know that even the simplest, smallest things she said made him feel like he was filled with the light of a million stars?

He paused, tilting his head as he took in one of the displays. “Does that mean you won’t say no if I ask to take your picture?”

She turned to look at the display he had his eye on. A brilliant explosion of light, an artist’s rendition of a star exploding into life. The colour seemed to leap from the canvas, and Gavin could make out the texture of the paint from where he stood, making the fire and starlight seem so real he was sure that if he reached out to touch it that it would burn his hand.

He turned back to her, fixing the flower that he had tucked into her hair. “It just reminds me a little of you.”

Beautiful. Warm. Brilliant. His Rowan. His own star.

She tipped her head to the side, but she nodded, letting him take her picture next to the painting.

He was grinning as he tucked his phone away before taking her hand again. “Alright. Where to next?”

“Well I picked last time, so why don’t you choose next?”

Gavin hummed, wondering what to do next. And then he spotted a sign pointing to an exhibit all about space travel, and knew exactly where he wanted to go next.

There were spaceships in this next room. Replicas, of course, he knew it was unlikely they would have the remains of some of the most famous spaceships in history. But the replicas were astounding, lifesize models that reached towards the ceiling, seeming to vanish into the cluster of false stars that swathed the ceiling.

“Oh wow,” Rowan said, her head twisting from side-to-side as she took it all in. “These are huge.”

He nodded, drifting towards one of the closest spaceships, what would have been the ship for one of the first expeditions into space in history.

He couldn’t help imagining getting to be one of the crew members on one of those expeditions. Soaring out past the clouds, reaching towards the stars, unravelling the mysteries that still surrounded their own universe.

His heart ached a little. He didn’t regret what he did. He knew he’d made the right choice, working hard every day to keep his city safe. To keep everyone safe. To keep his Rowan safe.

But still, sometimes he couldn’t stop himself from dreaming a little. Dreaming about if he’d chosen a different path. If he’d chosen exploration and adventure instead.

He didn’t realize Rowan had moved so close, too wrapped up in his own thoughts as he gazed up at the hulking spacecraft. Didn’t notice as she snapped a photo of him, his mind swimming with all the possibilities of who he could have been.

What would his younger self have said, had he stood before a spaceship when he had been young?

That he wanted to be an astronaut, no doubt. That he wanted to touch the stars, wanted to bring one back to show his mom.

His eyes burned, although no tears came. She would tell him she was proud of him, and that if it made him happy he could be whatever he wanted. That she would be proud of him, that she would support him no matter what.

There were arms around his waist then, the steady warmth of Rowan’s body pressing against his back. She remained silent as she held him, but Gavin couldn’t help sinking into her embrace, letting himself be weak for just a moment as he closed his eyes, fighting against tears that turned exhibits around him murky.

His mother would have loved to take him here. Would have held his hand and pointed out all the cool things and told him how smart he was, how brave he was for dreaming of space.

He missed her. He missed her so much.

His hands fell to Rowan’s, still wrapped around his waist.

“I love you,” he murmured, his voice gravelly and rough.

“I love you too,” she breathed, her chin resting on his shoulder, her breath curling against his neck. He felt her lips brush against his skin, over where his pulse thrummed in its unending beat.

“Do you want to go?” She asked.

He shook his head. “No, I just need a moment.”

She kissed him again, tightening her grip around his waist. She didn’t need to say anything to show that she understood, that she knew what he was thinking of. That she would be here for him always, without question.

She anchored him, brought him back into the moment, back into the world around him. Reminded him that he was loved, that he was precious, that he had someone who was proud of him just for existing. Just for being him.

He let himself take a moment, let himself be enveloped in Rowan’s arms, in her warmth. She smelled like flowers, and cookies, and like the warm blankets they had snuggled into the night before. He felt himself relax, felt the tears begin to abate.

“Thank you,” he murmured, his voice still rough as sandpaper, the words feeling strange and foreign on his lips.

“I love you,” she murmured, pressing her face against his neck, her words turning muffled as she repeated herself against his skin. “I love you.”

He smiled, the heaviness that had washed over him beginning to disappear, like ocean waves drawn back by the tide.

He was certain his mother would have loved Rowan. Would have been so happy to know he was loved by someone like her. That he loved her with all his heart. That she was his entire world.

He turned around, Rowan’s arms loosening at his waist as he moved. He cupped her face with his hands, leaning his forehead against hers.

“Thank you,” he breathed, so quiet only she would hear.

He wished he could have stayed like that forever, wrapped up in his own little world, with Rowan’s arms around him. But the museum was beginning to grow louder as voices crescendoed through the building. More people were starting to arrive as the day grew longer and the sunlight turned to the bright, unrelenting gold of the afternoon.

He didn’t want to share this moment with anyone but Rowan. So, reluctantly, he slowly pulled away, smoothing her hair back and fixing the flower still tangled in her loose waves.

“Where to next?” He murmured, dropping his hand.

She peered over his shoulder, pointing back towards the spaceship. “It looks like you can go inside the different ships! Do you wanna try?”

He nodded, taking her hand. Needing to hold onto her. “Yeah, let’s take a look.”

The inside of the ship was fascinating. He knew it wasn’t a real, functional ship, and yet it felt so real he was sure that if he looked out one of the windows he would see the earth far below him, hanging like a blue pendant in an ocean of darkness. They walked along metal walkways, their steps echoing in the silent craft, taking in the interior of the ship.

There was a miniature gym, a recreation room, sleeping quarters that looked far from comfortable, and even a small kitchen.

Rowan wrinkled her nose as she surveyed the cramped sleeping quarters, the multiple twin sized-bunk beds stacked on top of eachother like blocks.

“That doesn’t look comfortable at all,” she mused, taking a step into the world. “You can reach out and smack the person in the bed next to you.”

Gavin chuckled, stepping into the little room after her. It did feel a little claustrophobic. Although it wasn’t that much different than some of the bunks he had slept in during military training.

“I think our room is much better,” he said, hooking his arm around her waist.

“You’re right, it’s so much cozier. And our bed is bigger. And the blankets are so soft.” She sighed, leaning against him as she closed her eyes.

“What are you thinking about?” He teased, poking her side.

“I’m thinking I want to take a nap,” she said, covering her mouth to stifle a yawn. “That would be awfully nice I think.”

He nodded, resting his chin on her shoulder. Curled up under a nice soft blanket with Rowan nestled safely in his arms. He would wear one of the soft, worn t-shirts she loved best. Or maybe he wouldn’t wear any shirt at all, so she could press herself as close as she could against him, squishing her cheek against his chest to listen to his heart. Maybe he would be able to coax her out of her dress too, the warmth of her body seeping into his, filling his veins with sunlight, spreading it throughout his entire body until it felt a little like he could glow.

He would pull the softest blankets they had over them both, cocooning them away from the harsh afternoon sunlight, the piercing scream of ringtones and alerts, the overwhelming cacophony of voices that filled most streets. Keeping them safe from anything that would dare try and intrude on their peace.

He kissed her cheek absently before they moved on to another one of the rooms in the ship. Perhaps he would try requesting a nice afternoon nap tomorrow. So that he could enjoy some time tangled in her arms, with nothing to do and nowhere to be.

He was smiling to himself when they reached the cockpit of the ship, a wide, rectangular room at the very front of the ship. Whoever had designed the exhibit and the replica ship had suspended the spaceship diagonally, so while they could walk on from the ground, by the time they reached the cockpit they were staring down from the ceiling of the exhibit, the glittering false stars casting wavering rainbows of light over the floor and the seats in the room.

“It’s like we’re really in space!” Rowan sang, rushing to the front of the room, gaping at the stars. “Oh they’re so pretty, Gavin. Like miniature suns.”

He wished he could reach out and pluck them from the ceiling, like apples from a tree. He would choose the biggest one, the one that glittered the most, that cast prisms of light through the air and made Rowan’s eyes sparkle. And then he would gently set it in her hands, and he would watch as the crystal star was set alight by the brilliance of her smile.

“I wish I could just reach out and take one,” she said, turning her head to look at him. “I’d take two! So we could have matching ones!”

He brushed a strand of her hair back behind her ear. “What would we do with them?”

She wrinkled her nose, frowning at the stars. “Maybe we could hang them in our room! Oh! Or I could hang one in my office and you could hang one in yours, and then when we look at them we’ll think about each other!”

For all his military training and all his daily workouts and exercises, Gavin felt himself turn a little weak. His knees wobbling like jelly, his heart overflowing like a too-full cup, his veins spilling over with fizzing light.

Did she know when he looked up at the stars he thought of her? Did she know that when he looked at the moon and thought of all the bright, twirling moons that surrounded the planets, he was thinking of her? His Rowan, his star, his moon.

He was worried his voice would crack if he said anything, like glass shattering across the floor, so instead he leaned his head against hers, breathing in the sweet, warm smell of his favourite person.

“Are you okay?” She asked, looping her arm around his waist.

“I’ve never been better,” he murmured, nuzzling his face against the side of her head. “I’m just thinking.”

“Good things, I hope.”

“It’s always good things when I’m with you, pumpkin.”

He could picture the colour of the blush surely creeping across her face now. The soft, sweet pink of the peonies they had planted in their backyard. Although she was so much sweeter, and so much prettier than a simple flower.

“You’re such a dork,” she muttered, her voice cracking. “You say such sweet things.”

“They’re nothing I don’t mean.”

She sighed, heavy her shoulders and up down as dramatically as possible. “Alright, well that just means I get to take my revenge on you.”

He pulled back, arching a brow curiously. “Revenge?”

She dipped her chin in a curt nod as she surveyed the room quickly. “Yes, my revenge. I am going to do something so sweet you’re not going to even know what to say.”

He snorted, letting her take his hand and guide him to one of the chairs bolted down in the mock cockpit. “And what’s that?”

“I will not be revealing my secrets any time soon.”

He pouted. Or at least he tried. He’d hardly stuck out his bottom lip before she’d leaned forward, her hand on his shoulder, and pressed her lips to his.

“No pouting! No pouting on birthdays,” she sang as she pulled away, her cheeks flushed. “It’s absolutely not allowed!”

He poked his bottom lip out again, doing his best to look as despondent as he could. He even drew his shoulders together, peeking up at her from beneath his lashes. “How will you fix it?”

Rowan laughed, leaning back down to kiss him again. Gavin dropped his act immediately, threading his fingers through her hair, his other hand wrapping around her waist and drawing her into his lap.

“This definitely fixes it,” he murmured, dipping his head to press kisses to her throat. “This makes things better.”

She whined softly, her chest heaving as she struggled to keep her breathing even. “Gavin, we’re in public right now.”

“No one’s here,” he breathed, kissing the spot above where her pulse thrummed.

“There’s probably cameras.”

He groaned, dropping his head to brush his lips against her shoulder, to gently sink his teeth into the soft, delicate skin.

Rowan gasped, her fingers digging into his own shoulders for a moment before he pulled away.

“Alright,” he said, leaning back, ignoring the way he could feel himself straining against his pants. “What were you going to do for your revenge?”

She blinked, looking completely lost for a moment. And then slowly light blazed in her eyes and she crawled from his lap, fixing him with a furious glare as she took several steps away from him.

“You’re an animal.”

He tipped his head to the side. “What kind of animal do you think?”

She grumbled something under her breath, pulling her phone out.

“What was that?” He asked, arching a brow.

Rowan huffed, pretending not to hear him.

“Come on, princess, won’t you tell me?”

She chewed on her bottom lip for a moment, staring at him for a long, long moment. Then she sighed, her shoulders sagging. “I said you remind me of a wolf sometimes.”

“Oh?”

She jabbed a finger at him. “Don’t even try to think of anything.”

“I mean wolves are pretty territorial and-”

“No thinking!”

He would be lying if he said he was thinking about anything other than the pink of her cheeks and how her lips were just the tiniest bit swollen and how he could make out the red around the bite on her shoulder.

“What are you doing?” He asked, straightening as she lifted her phone.

“I’m taking a picture, babey. I said I wanted to take pictures of you!”

He lifted his brow higher, but let her direct him to sit and stand in different poses around the cockpit. He couldn’t help grinning as she fixed his jacket or pointed at different chairs or told him to stare out at the crystal stars. He didn’t really know what she was planning, but from the starlight in her eyes it was clear it was making her happy, which meant it made him so very happy, too.

Finally satisfied, Rowan gave one huge nod and shoved her phone back into her purse. “Okay! I am all done.”

Gavin took her hand, pressing a kiss to her palm before twining their fingers together. “Did you have fun?”

“I always have fun with you.”

They walked from the false spaceship hand-in-hand, Gavin drawing Rowan closer against him as they passed by a large group of people trying to pile inside the exhibit.

“Looks like we checked that out at the perfect time,” he said, heading towards an exhibit that seemed to be focused on planets in their solar system. “We got our own private tour.”

“And I got some very handsome photos of you!”

Gavin’s face burned. “Will you show them to me?”

“Eventually.”

He couldn’t help laughing. Couldn’t stop himself from laughing; a huge, goofy grin tugging at his lips. It was such a simple, mundane thing, wandering around a museum with Rowan, pointing out different things, reading little placards and walls of info. Discussing some of the strange science facts that neither of them could wrap their heads around. Taking pictures while the other was turned around.

Or perhaps better yet taking what felt like a million poses as the other one instructed them on how to stand. Rowan running her fingers through Gavin’s hair, stating it wasn’t properly tousled as he stood before a spinning replica of Jupiter with its countless moons twirling around it like specks of confetti. Gavin smoothing out the wrinkles in her dress as he snapped as many pictures as he could of her in front of a glittering interactive display of stars, their light catching in her eyes and making her glow.

It was so mundane and simple. The switching between taking photographs, pointing to different exhibits, dragging the other towards something that had caught their eye. And yet it felt so special to him, so incredibly important he couldn’t put it into words. Just a feeling that bloomed in his chest like the first springtime blooms. That washed over him like a slow creeping tide, sun-warmed and gentle and all-consuming.

He couldn’t count the number of times they’d done something similar. Museums and zoos and aquariums. Tours through snowy outdoor light shows that glittered beneath frozen stars. Trailing aimlessly through the burning oranges and fiery reds of autumnal corn mazes, gasping at statues and animatronics hidden in corners to scare any visitors.

They were all special. Everything was so special with her. Every moment like it’s very own unique gem.

No, he was certain each moment was more precious than diamonds and rubies and sapphires. Maybe it was more like stars. Fiery, powerful celestial forces that filled their sky with light despite how far away they were. Offering light and guidance even beneath the heavy cloak of night. Little pinpricks of hope scattered through the sky like glitter. Pieces of light that held wishes and promises within their pale, glimmering light.

That was what each moment was with his Rowan. It was light, and it was hope, and it was the promise of happiness today and more happiness tomorrow, all bottled up in her eyes and her smile and her arms.

Gavin slipped his arms around Rowan’s waist, pressing his face against the back of her head as they stood before a relatively boring display case showing pieces of moon rock that had been plucked from the moon and sent back down to Earth.

It was utterly amazing, he couldn’t deny that. But it was also pieces of grey rock, and it was bland and forgettable when his Rowan was right here. When she was standing right here and it was so easy for him to draw her into his arms.

She rested her hands over his, stroking his wrist with her thumb. “Do you wanna get something to eat? There’s a cute little cafeteria with snacks and then we can check out the science fiction exhibit and the planetarium rooms.”

He nodded, but his arms tightened around her, his words muffled as they tangled in her hair. “In a minute.”

They stood there for a few moments, a comfortable silence washing over them as strangers filtered out from the room, on the hunt for more exciting things to look at. The room grew quiet, the sound of footsteps and murmuring voices melting away until all Gavin could hear was the quiet rush of the air conditioning and the sound of Rowan’s breaths.

He held her tight for another long, long moment before finally letting go. He struggled with words most days, but knowing that she understood, that she could feel the emotions behind the actions he could do in lieu of sweet words warmed his heart, offered him a sort of solace he hadn’t known he’d needed until he met her.

She squeezed his hand as he made to pull away, twisting in his arms so she could meet his gaze, so she could reach up and cup his cheek with her free hand.

“I love you,” she said, standing on her toes to kiss his brow. “With all my heart.”

He covered her hand with his, feeling more at peace than he ever had in his life. Feeling more happiness than he knew what to do with.

“Come on,” she said, taking both his hands and guiding him from the room, following the signs pointing towards the cafeteria. “Let’s see if they have any food in the shape of a spaceship.”

***

In perhaps the most disappointing of events, there wasn’t a single food item in the shape of a spaceship. A fact Rowan lamented bitterly as she and Gavin searched for a quiet spot to sit and eat their lunch.

“The water bottles have space ships on them,” Gavin offered, pinching her side as she briefly pouted down at the array of treats on her tray.

“It’s not the same,” she groused. “It’s a space museum you’d think they’d make something spaceship shaped.”

“The pancakes are shaped like moons,” he offered, gesturing to the stack of strawberry and chocolate chip pancakes on one corner of her tray.

“They’re round. That’s a normal pancake shape.”

“Moons are also round! And planets.”

She quirked a brow as she reached over to try and pinch him right back. “I don’t think that counts.”

Gavin batted her hand away with ease, jabbing her in the side in retaliation. Her body convulsed as he prodded at one of her ticklish spots, and she had to bite down on the inside of her cheek to stop a shriek of laughter from spilling from her lips.

“I think it does,” he murmured, a crescent moon grin arcing across his lips.

“Well how can I argue with the birthday boy,” she teased, scooting away as he arched a brow. “Whatever you say.”

He chuckled, reaching out to wrap his arm around her waist before she’d moved too far away, trying to draw her back to his side. “You’re too far away.”

“You pinched me!”

“You tried to pinch me.”

She didn’t put up a fight as he tugged her closer, her thigh bumping against his. “I only did that because you had already pinched me once.”

“You were pouting. I wanted to make you smile.”

Rowan glared at him, scrunching up her entire face even as he snorted.

“But I love your smile.”

His voice was so gentle she couldn’t hold onto her false scowl. His words were so soft, barely more than a whisper of a breath against her cheek as he leaned closer, cupping her face. They were laced with a quiet need, a want that stained his voice like the first blush of dawn in the grey of the early morning sky.

So of course she smiled, her heart warm, her body feeling a little like jelly. A little like it was melting beneath the amber of his gaze.

Colour bloomed in his cheeks, washed over his ears, reminding her of the beautiful snapdragons Gavin had given her on their last anniversary. His smile was as warm as the summer sun, his entire face softening as he looked at her.

She couldn’t help reaching up in kind, cupping his face in her palms, stroking her thumbs over his cheeks. He had shaved the day before, and yet already she could feel the scratch of stubble against the pads of her thumbs. Was he really real? Was he really here in front of her, sitting next to her, holding her like she was precious? Was he really looking at her like she was the most important thing in his world? Was he really hers?

Sometimes Rowan had trouble believing it. She hated going to sleep more than anything, terrified she would wake up and every beautiful moment would be a dream. Every precious second with him, every shared memory, would vanish like mist beneath the morning sun.

But then she would wake up and there he would be, curled up against her or holding her close as he waited for her to open her eyes. There he would be, warm and strong and utterly, completely real. And then she would feel happiness so strong it would make her eyes burn and her throat constrict and she would snuggle against him, squeezing her eyes shut against the threat of those tears.

“What are you thinking?” He murmured, drawing her back to the present, to this moment with him beside her and his face still held between her hands. He covered her hands with his, the rough callouses on his palms scraping against her skin. “Are you okay?”

She chewed on the corner of her lip, nodding furiously as she struggled to stifle the tears burning her eyes.

“Are you sure?”

She nodded again, gently pulling his face closer so she could kiss his brow. “I’m just so happy you’re here. I’m so happy you were born.”

She didn’t see his expression, not as she dropped her hands and pressed her face against his shoulder. “I love you, Gavin.”

Rowan felt herself enveloped in his arms, felt him gently pull her against his chest, tucking her beneath his chin. “I love you, too. More than anything.”

“Really?” Her voice was little more than a squeak, but she couldn’t find a reason to care. She wanted to hold him so close, wanted him to know how truly happy she was that he was real, that he was alive. That he had been born and she could hold him and love him and listen to the warm laughter that reverberated through him.

“Really. I would never lie to you, my princess.”

She wrapped her arms around his waist, holding him as tight as she could, her chest aching. She remembered wondering if she would ever feel a shred of happiness again, if her heart would ever feel warm, if she would ever feel safe. And now her heart was so filled with sunkissed joy and candy coloured delight and so much love it felt like she might shatter into stardust and iridescent light.

Gavin hummed, stroking her hair gently. “Although looking at some of the exhibits here has got me thinking.”

Rowan peeled away from her hiding place against his chest, curiosity getting the better of her. “Thinking about what?”

He brushed her hair back from her face. “I was thinking about how if I’m Jupiter, then you must be my moon.”

“Jupiter has almost a hundred moons,” she pointed out, even as heat began to crawl across her body.

He furrowed his brow for a moment, considering her words. But then he just took one of her hands and brought her palm up to his mouth, so close she felt his lips against her skin as spoke. “Then you’re all the moons, every moon. Although…” He trailed off, pressing a kiss to her hand. “I don’t think a single one of them can compare to you.”

“I dunno, did you read some of the information about the moons?” She teased, her voice wavering as he kissed her palm again. “They’re pretty important. We only have one and it’s so important. And where would we be without Sailor Moon? She’s definitely saved the world.”

Gavin’s brows shot up, his eyes squeezing shut as he burst into bright, warm laughter. It sounded like sunshine, like the wind rushing through leaves, like the way happiness felt when she woke up to a gentle kiss every morning.

He snorted, covering his face as he continued to laugh, his hair tickling her face as his forehead knocked against hers.

Rowan couldn’t help grinning, his laughter infectious. “It wasn’t that funny.”

He shook his head, his nose bumping against hers as he held her face between his palms. “You are the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”

Her heart was soaring on gilded wings, lifted high by the warm July winds. She was melting, turning into a Rowan shaped puddle. The only reason she hadn’t completely fallen apart yet was because Gavin was holding her tight, keeping her upright even as her body wanted to turn to jelly.

“Was that really the funniest joke you’ve heard?” She asked, her voice so quiet it turned to smoke even as she tried to tease him. She didn’t have the heart to tease him that much right now, not when she still felt a little giddy and silly from his sweet words.

Gavin was always sweet, always kind, always ready to murmur a sweet nothing into her ear at the perfect moment. But it was always when she was least expecting it, and it always threw her off, sent her reeling as her heart turned to a flurry of gossamer winged butterflies.

His laughter slowly petered off, and he breathed softly for a moment, sighing as he leaned his weight against her. “I love you.”

“And I love you,” she said, still feeling a little breathless from the delight in his laughter and his sweet words.

He pressed a kiss to her cheek before pulling away, smoothing back her hair. “We should eat, there’s still lots to see. And I’m starting to get very curious about my surprise.”

Rowan blinked, having almost completely forgotten about everything else that was happening, about all her plans that day. She looked around, realizing they were sitting in a rather cozy corner of the museum’s cafeteria, a low hum of voices floating towards them as other guests slowly filtered in to search for something to eat.

She frowned down at the food on her tray, still very much not spaceship shaped.

“Pumpkin, you need to eat. You haven’t eaten since before we left this morning,” Gavin chastised, pointing to her food.

She glared at him from the corner of her eye. “The shapes are boring.”

He didn’t bother responding before he grabbed her fork and knife and started cutting up the food on her plate. “Rowan if you don’t eat I’ll make sure you do.”

He held the fork out to her, a piece of fruit speared onto the tines. She knew he was giving her the option between feeding herself and being fed, and for a moment she considered being an absolute brat and refusing to take the fork from him. But that was something she would do in the comfort of their own home, not here, no matter how private their little corner felt. So she took the fork from his hands, earning a small smile as she took a bite.

Gavin squeezed her thigh, sounding pleased as he murmured a quiet “good girl.”

She almost smacked him, her entire body burning up as if she had been caught in a wildfire. She would have smacked him, if she were being honest, except that he grabbed her hand before she could even reel it back, smirking as a knowing light flickered in his eyes.

He brushed his lips against the pads of her fingers, his breath tickling against her skin as he spoke. “What are you thinking of?”

“Nothing,” she groused, glaring down at her food.

Snorting, Gavin released her hand.

“What do you want to go see next?” He asked, poking at his own food now.

Rowan fished the museum map out of her bag, smoothing out the wrinkles as she examined the exhibits splashed across the indigo coloured map like splatterings of paint. But before she could find the next exhibit she wanted to go to, her phone began to buzz.

Once. Twice. Three times. The signal her and her “teammates” for the day had agreed on.

Gavin arched a brow, curiosity seeping into his mind as he set down his fork. “Is everything okay?”

Rowan nodded, passing him the map. “Yeah, everything is great! Although I think I need to run to the bathroom really quick.”

“Are you sure?” He asked, unable to keep his suspicion from threading between his words. “You haven’t had a message all day, and now-”

Her phone buzzed three times again and she stood, shaking her head. “It’s nothing. It’s just a little reminder I set for myself.”

He narrowed his eyes. Rowan wasn’t exactly the best liar, and he had already committed all of her tells to memory. There was the way she breathed a little deeper, her chest rising and falling a little slower. Her eyes stayed locked on his face, but when she was talking her eyes normally would roam all over a room, pausing on his face only briefly before flicking elsewhere and back again. And she was much stiller than normal. Usually she was twisting a bit of fabric around her fingers, or she was pulling at the straps of her top, or tucking and untucking her hair, or bouncing her foot from side-to-side, or reaching out to play with his fingers.

It was like she was holding herself very carefully, like she was making sure she was in complete control of every motion and breath she made. Like she was telling herself to be “normal” and to not act “weird.” Even though this attempt at control was what gave away her lies in the first place.

“What aren’t you telling me?” He asked, leaning forward to take her hand, stopping her escape.

He didn’t think something was wrong, not exactly, but he couldn’t stop the persistent, niggling feeling that something was off.

His mind started to race as it brewed up a million different scenarios for why she was suddenly acting strange. She was worried she was pregnant, she was sick with something she hadn’t told him about yet, she was being blackmailed to do something terrible, she was part of some secret organization that would put her in serious danger…

His mind churned for what felt like an eternity, constructing scenarios that went from potentially plausible to downright ludicrous. He had to forcibly reel his thoughts back in, reminding himself that most of those were all fantastical situations that were more at home in a fictional story than in real life.

But still he couldn’t banish the feeling that something was going on, and that she was keeping secrets from him.

Gavin opened his mouth, the beginning of his interrogation on the tip of his tongue. But Rowan leaned down, the ends of her hair tickling his face as she kissed the top of his head.

“Rowan-”

He didn’t get much further than that, his thoughts melting away like fog beneath piercing, golden sunbeams of a summer afternoon. Rowan pressed light, chaste kisses to his brow and cheeks and the tips of his ears and just behind them. Her hands lay delicately on his shoulders, little more than the pads of her fingers pressing against the fabric of his shirt.

He was certain she was teasing him, with her featherlight kisses and her whisper of a touch. He wanted to thread his fingers through her hair and wrap an arm around her waist and hold her close to him. He wanted to pull her into his lap, he wanted her to wrap her arms around his neck.

But instead all she gave him was the ghost of an embrace, a phantom of a touch. He felt haunted, lost in a shadowed maze, chasing after the spectre of light that had bloomed in her wake.

He leaned forward, wanting to kiss her back, wanting to be close to her for a moment longer, but Rowan was stepping back, beaming at him with mischief in her eyes.

“I’ll be right back, babey,” she said, her voice lilting like the opening of a love song. “Don’t miss me too much.”

And then she was gone, and his heart was aching because he did miss her already. The cafeteria felt very large and for one of the very few times in his life he felt incredibly small, poking at his food as he waited for her to return.

He could feel something scratching in the back of his head, a little like when Stella, their dog, pawed at the back of his head first thing in the morning when she wanted to go out.

But this was different, if only because Stella wasn’t actually pawing at the back of his head. It was more like there was a tiny Stella in his brain, scratching at the back of it, trying to get him to remember something he could not figure out.

He continued to poke at his food, chewing slowly as he swept his gaze across the room, searching through the growing swarm of people for his most beloved person, wondering what she would want to do once they were done eating. Maybe they could check out the science fiction exhibit next. He would be lying if he said he wasn’t particularly excited about that one. Rowan had shown him some photos that had been posted on the museum’s website, and there were interactive displays and video footage and so many cool things he wanted to check out.

He wanted to look down at a diorama of Arrakis and read all the placards explaining important scenes and moments from the books. He wanted to step through a life-sized Stargate and step into the interactive hologram exhibit beyond it. He wanted to sit in the cockpit of the accurate-to-film Millennium Falcon and listen to the audio guide explain the real science that went into its design.

But mostly he wanted to hold Rowan’s hand and imagine living in a fantastical world with her. Any universe with her in it was magical, but he sometimes liked daydreaming about flying through space with her, or travelling through time holding her hand.

He knew it was childish, but it made his heart feel warm. There was a certainty to his fantasies; the knowledge that she would want to be a part of them, that if they were in any universe she would want to be with him. And that she would not mock him for his musings, that she would hold his hand and brush his hair back from his brow and listen with her eyes wide and bright. That she wouldn’t say they were childish or silly, that she would cherish them as much as she cherished him.

Gavin was so lost in thought that he almost didn’t notice Rowan returning. She settled her hands on his shoulders, reeling him back from the hazy world of his mind and into the sharp intensity of the real world. She pressed the pads of her thumbs against the base of his neck, massaging gently as she leaned down, resting her forehead against the side of his head.

“I missed you,” she breathed, her lips hovering just behind his ear. She sighed softly, her breath tickling his skin, and he could feel the gooseflesh rising on his arms.

He wanted to draw her into his lap and press his lips to hers and kiss her breathless. It was his birthday after all, he should have a free pass to do whatever he wanted.

But he would have to wait until they returned to their cabin for the evening before he could do all the things he wanted so desperately.

For now he would settle for tilting his head back so he could catch her lips in a gentle kiss. “I missed you so much.”

Rowan beamed as she pulled away, her hair falling over her cheeks in soft curls. Her face was flushed, the soft pink of a newly blooming peony.

He should buy her some flowers. He should buy her a bouquet of sweet peonies and tulips and daisies. All in the different shades of pink that stained her face when he pressed his lips to hers.

Rowan peeled away from his embrace, sliding back into her seat only to glare down at her food. “I see it didn’t change shapes while I was in the bathroom.”

Gavin snorted, spearing a forkful of food and raising it to her mouth. “At least eat it for me. It is my birthday after all.”

Rowan rolled her eyes, but acquiesced, a small smirking dancing at the corners of her mouth. “You’re lucky it’s your birthday.”

***

Once they were done eating, Rowan let Gavin take her hand and guide them through the museum to the Science Fiction exhibit.

It was one of the last exhibits aside from the holographic planetarium rooms, and their reservation time wasn’t for a while yet. So they headed to the Science Fiction section next, passing through a doorway that made it seem like they were about to enter the bridge of the starship enterprise.

There was a light in Gavin’s eyes as they stepped into the first section, like twin stars had exploded into existence. Like there were galaxies within his eyes, millions upon millions of stars and suns glittering as he looked around the room.

Rowan wrapped her arms around his, pressing herself against his side, her heart aching. She wanted to be close, wanted to be as close to him as she possibly could, warmth radiating from him. He looked so open, so happy, a childlike joy so pure and sweet in his expression that she wanted to squish his cheeks and kiss him until he laughed.

He was happy, she was so very glad that he was happy.

Her eyes burned and she looked away, forcing herself to focus on what a robot was saying as it explained the different ways robots and androids appeared in sci-fi media. But her brain couldn’t focus, could only think about Gavin. Gavin’s eyes, Gavin’s smile, Gavin’s heart beating and spreading all his joy throughout his being.

“Pumpkin, what’s wrong?”

She blinked furiously trying to compose herself as she tipped her head up to meet his gaze. A line had formed between his brows, concern swimming within the golden depths of his eyes.

“I’m alright,” she murmured, rubbing his arm in what she hoped was a pacifying gesture.

He hummed, his lips pressing into a thin line, clearly not buying it, but after a moment his expression softened, and he pressed a kiss to the top of her head. “Why don’t we go take a look at some of the Star Wars stuff.”

She beamed up at him. “Lead the way.”

Gavin kissed her head once more, sending warmth and gossamer-winged butterflies streaming through her from the place his lips brushed against her skin.

The sci-fi exhibit ended up being easily the largest exhibit in the museum, with massive installations and interactive holograms and in some sections robot guides.

She was utterly in awe as they wandered through replicas of different ships featured in the Star Wars films, listening to audio overhead explain the different mechanics that would have made the ships function, and how fiction melded with science to inspire these creations. It was so realistic, like they were truly in the middle of an intergalactic space chase, like they were on their way to a fierce space battle and all they had was a rusty laser canon attached to the ship.

“I feel like im in the middle of a movie,” she murmured, squeezing Gavin’s hand as they walked around a group of ewoks brandishing spears. “Like if I look up I’ll see starfighters flying overhead.”

Gavin chuckled, lifting her hand up to press a kiss to her knuckles. “I would keep you safe. You wouldn’t have to worry about being hurt.”

She quirked her brow as they made their way towards one of the next parts of the exhibit. “Oh? Do you think you’d be a jedi?”

Gavin hummed, even as they stepped down a small ramp that led into a faux-desert that had been constructed within the building. “I think even if I was, I would leave the order.”

She frowned, ducking her head as they headed into a ‘cave,’ eerie music playing softly from speakers she couldn’t see. “Why?”

He cupped her face with one hand, stroking her cheek. “Because I would want to marry you. I could never give you up.”

Her face burned, and she tried to look away, but Gavin held her fast, his voice lilting with restrained laughter. “I’d leave the jedi in a heartbeat for you.”

She blinked, her words drying up on her tongue.

His words themselves weren’t particularly romantic, but it was the way Gavin said it, the way his voice dipped as his eyes fell to her lips, as his mouth curved up like a crescent moon, the only source of light in a starless night. It was the way he leaned closer, his breath tangling with hers. How she could feel his lips brushing against her skin as he spoke.

She swallowed, her mouth dry as a desert, her gaze falling to his mouth, to the smirk playing on his lips. He was far too confident, and far too pleased with himself. He’d been teasing her all day and he hadn’t let up for a second.

She tried to scowl, although there was no true intensity behind it, and Gavin just ended up snorting with laughter, his smirk becoming a bright smile.

“You know I remember when you used to be too shy to hold my hand,” she grumbled, crossing her arms over her chest and glaring at the ceiling.

Gavin tsked, leaning down to flick her nose, startling the scowl from her face. “But you like when I hold your hand.”

“I-”

He took her chin between his thumb and forefinger, tilting her head up towards him. He was grinning, a stupid little self satisfied smirk that made her heart stumble and her face burn, like a match had been struck beneath her skin. She couldn’t find her words, they were lost and stumbling in an endless wood and she couldn’t seem to catch them. And all his grin did was grow wider as she stared at him wordlessly.

He leaned closer, mischief sparking in his eyes. “And you like when I tell you I love you.”

She didn’t know if she could move even if she wanted to, and she was so mesmerized by the dark lashes framing his golden eyes and the warmth of his skin so close to her and the way he began to stroke her jaw with his thumb.

She didn’t want to move, she just wanted to melt into his arms and be held very close and listen to the sound of his heart beating.

She forgot, too, that she should have been moderately annoyed at him for teasing her yet again. But all thoughts had vanished from her mind the moment he’d stepped a little closer, her world contracting until it was only him, all him. Perhaps she didn’t mind, so long as he would continue to look at her like she was the moon and stars. Like she was his everything.

He brushed the most painfully chaste kiss against the corner of her lips, his lashes fluttering against her skin as he closed his eyes. Rowan could feel the beat of her pulse beneath her skin, could hear the rush of blood in her ears. Perhaps she was already melting, perhaps she would need to be carried from the museum in Gavin’s arms.

But of course he pulled away all too soon, his grin nothing short of smug as she blinked up at him, as she shivered in the absence of his warmth.

It occurred to her then, as her senses slowly returned, that they were absolutely being one of those annoying couples people complained about in public. The couple that stood in line for roller coasters cuddling even when it was over 30 degrees, with their hands locked together so tightly you were convinced they were fused together. The couple that was almost certainly found in the corner of the library making out when it was supposed to be a prime study spot.

But it was also Gavin’s birthday, and he wasn’t one to care much about other people’s opinions anyways. And she wasn’t about to stop him when he was pressing kisses to her face.

Gavin took her hand again, drawing her deeper into the ‘cave,’ lights flashing as holographic info boards bloomed into view, explaining the science that went into the writing and creation of the planet Arrakis. The caves, the spice, how the journey would affect the protagonist.

Rowan would be lying if she said most of it didn’t go in one ear and out the other, like water spilling through open hands. She’d watched many a sci-fi film with Gavin, loving the brightness of his eyes and how excited he always got when he watched a trailer for a new movie, even if he did his best to act calm. And she loved watching them with him, loved sitting curled up beside him or sharing a bag of popcorn with him in a darkened theatre.

But she would be lying if she said she understood a word of what the exhibit was saying, or if she even understood half of what happened in Dune. She just knew Gavin enjoyed it, so she did too.

The desert planet exhibit slowly morphed as they continued walking, the walls of the false cave they walked in turning blue and translucent, the decorative stalactites hanging from the ceiling becoming white, seeming to drip icy water onto their heads as they passed. Fog began billowing around their ankles, and Rowan shivered, pressing closer to Gavin.

“They really went all out trying to make this realistic,” she murmured, her gaze tracing over the ‘icy’ stalactites. Gooseflesh raced across her body and she wiggled closer, trying to leach Gavin’s warmth.

He chuckled, slinging his arm around her shoulder and drawing her against his chest. He rubbed his hand up and down her arm, resting his cheek against the top of her head as they walked. It felt like they were experiencing an information overload, little passages branching off from the main ‘cave’ that changed depending on what show or movie they were inspired by.

They walked through the passage inspired by Hoth from Star Wars first, and Rowan nearly leapt out of her skin when they turned a corner and found themselves face-to-face with the monster that had attacked Luke in the first movie.

It must have been an animatronic because it shuffled towards them, lifting it’s big hairy arms and screeching as it came near them.

Gavin knew it was fake and wouldn’t hurt them, and yet he couldn’t help tightening his arms around Rowan as she stared up at the animatronic beast with wide eyes. It was frighteningly realistic.

Or rather, as realistic as something could be that was based on a movie from the eighties.

He rubbed Rowan’s arm as he gently propelled them both around the screaming animatronic and into the next part of the exhibit.

“Scared?” He asked, unable to keep the laughter out of his voice. He was definitely starting to push his luck with Rowan, but he couldn’t help teasing her just a little more. He loved the shade of pink that stained her cheeks, loved the way she screwed her face up into a little pout.

And it was his birthday, so he was sure it was allowed.

Rowan turned her face away from him, huffing quietly, and he craned his neck to see the way her bottom lip stuck up and her nose crinkled as she did indeed pout.

He was going to kiss her so much when they got back to their cabin. He was going to kiss every little part of her, he was going to sink his teeth into that bottom lip and hold her hips against him so she knew just how much he enjoyed it.

“It’s just an animatronic,” she grumbled, her nostrils flaring. But barely a second passed before she let out a shrill screech, as another beast emerged from a shadowed alcove that they hadn’t seen.

Gavin couldn’t hold in his laughter as she leapt in his arms. Her entire body was shivering, her fingers practically claws against his forearm.

He kissed the top of her head, holding her tighter, silently thanking whoever had designed this exhibit.

“I’ll keep you safe,” he breathed, and this time she did not have a retort, letting him guide them through the cavern and back out into the light.

They wandered through the rest of the exhibit, stepping through a replica Stargate, a hologram whirring, speakers singing as they stepped into the space beyond it. They took turns sitting in the cockpits of different fictional ships, Rowan striking such goofy poses Gavin had no choice but to fill his camera roll with photos of her brilliant, beaming face.

The fictional weapons and droids section was the last part of the sci-fi exhibit, the entrance to the final room surrounded by flashing lights and the buzz of clashing lightsabers.

Visuals of famous fictional sharpshooters like Han Solo covered the first wall they came across, their preferred blasters suspended in the air before them, flashing lights simulating blaster fire drawing the eye.

Rowan blinked as she stared up at one of the murals, the pallid blue lights shooting bursts of starlight flashing across her vision. Even as Gavin guided her away, one hand on her lower back, still she could see the flurry of stars in her periphery, practically blinding her as she stumbled through the exhibit.

There were lightsabers and futuristic swords next, with little info cards that glowed the same colour as the sabers they hovered beside. Rowan leaned forward, humming as she read one of the placards on a saber with a black blade that looked more like a sword than anything else she’d seen in the movies.

“Babey,” she said, pulling on his hand and pointing to the display in front of her. “What’s this one? Is this from Star Wars?”

He propped his chin on her shoulder, his hair tickling her ear. “It is. I think it’s just in the cartoons, though.” He pressed his cheek against hers, the low rumble of his hum vibrating through her, warming her heart, making her legs feel a little like jelly. “Although I think I’ve seen it in one of the live action shows.”

“Do you think we could watch some of those shows when we get home?” She asked, leaning her head against his in kind. She could feel the way his brows lifted high, his mouth quirking to the side.

“You want to watch them with me?”

“Of course I do,” she murmured, slipping her arm around his waist. “I want to share the things that you love.”

She didn’t have to look at him to know he was blushing, she could feel the warmth creeping into his cheeks, could feel the quickening of the beat of his heart. She even felt the whisper of his lashes against her face as he struggled to calm himself, quietly reeling from her words.

Maybe he hadn’t changed that much, maybe he was still the same man who had once bashfully rubbed at the back of his neck and muttered a quiet retort when she’d told him she liked the cologne he was wearing. Maybe he was still the sweet, shy man whose face had turned the red of a sky blanketing a wildfire when she’d kissed his cheek.

“I love sharing with you,” he finally responded, tilting his head to the side to brush his lips against the corner of her mouth.

Now it was Rowan’s turn to burn up, and she squeezed her eyes shut so she didn’t have to see the smug look that was most definitely glowing in his eyes.

She just wanted to make him happy, wanted to see the bright, innocent joy that bloomed in his face like midnight stars. It was light and warmth, and it was precious, beloved.

He was precious, beloved.

And there was nothing she loved more than watching the light swell in his eyes, watching as his expression grew brighter, as some invisible slipped from his shoulders little by little each day.

They wandered through the rest of the exhibit, murmuring to each other as they pointed out different weapons and robots. Rowan mused about whether either of them could wield the swords and lasers and guns that were propped up in the room around them and that dangled ominously from the ceiling on wires she could not see. She stepped up next to one of the interactive displays to wrap her hands around the handle of a particularly massive space gun, pulling the trigger so the barrel lit up in emerald and ultramarine.

“I wish they had weapons from some magical girl shows,” she lamented, stepping away as a swarm of children raced around her feet, shouting about how they wanted to try out the gun.

“There’s lots in space, you know,” she continued, taking Gavin’s hand as they continued on. “There’s Sailor Moon, and there’s She-Ra, and there’s-”

“You mean like that?” He asked, pointing to an array of sparkling, life-sized versions of the different scepters and wands and pens and swords and literal actual guns that had appeared in some of the magical cartoons she loved.

Rowan squealed, dragging a laughing Gavin behind her so she could peruse the different wands, picking up an interactive one that sang and sparkled as it moved.

“Look at it!” She sang, getting to enjoy some childlike joy of her own as she waved it around. “It’s just like in the shows! I wonder if it can…” She trailed off, fiddling with the handle, only for light to pulse from the wand and the little alcove the wand was displayed in began to glow and sparkle, pink and red and purple and yellow and blue all bleeding together into a cacophony of light.

She didn’t notice Gavin taking her photo, or the delighted smile that was dancing on his lips. She was too focused on the wand, on the staff next to it that exploded into light when lifted it, and then on the spinning tiaras next, and the demo one she could pick up and fling around and around.

He could feel fatigue beginning to creep into the edges of his mind, an added weight like some of his bones had been encased in lead. But he couldn’t bring himself to speak up, to let her know he was becoming tired.

His heart felt so warm, his chest like there were stars being born there, galaxies and galaxies of them, bright and warm and life-sustaining. The day had been about him, he knew, about indulging in some of the childishness he was finally allowed to experience. But seeing his Rowan wander around the exhibit with the colourful, sparkly magical weapons made him all the happier. Now he got to see her bright smiles, got to see the shining wonder in her eyes that he had been carrying in his heart for most of the day.

He didn’t care that she dragged him from the exhibit and into a tiny one they hadn’t noticed at first, the walls painted in different shades of pink with sparkles and sunshine yellow whorls decorating the walls.

Rowan yanked him around the room, the magical girl exhibit quiet, the other guests no doubt preoccupied with the spaceships and stargates and screaming blasters and droids. There were more magical weapons, and sculptures and replicas of spaceships and outfits from the different shows. A shimmering info board was suspended from the ceiling, lights flashing around them like trails of glitter guiding them through the information about the shows, the costumes, the characters.

He captured a few more photos of Rowan as she ran around, squealing and waving her hands in front of every case, leaning her whole body into every diorama like she was trying to become a part of the action. Gavin would keep these photos forever, cherishing that smile, that pure, unfettered joy.

She was spun sugar and sweet teas and pink frosting. She was candied flowers and strawberry ice cream and syrupy honey. His teeth ached from her smile, her laugh. She was a confectionary of warmth and sweetness and everything he loved.

Gavin resisted the urge to wrap his arms around her and bury his face in her hair. He didn’t want to break the enchantment that glittered in her wake as she pointed at all the different things, as she mimicked the poses of some figurines, as she explained to him her favourite storylines, as she critiqued some of the information, citing that some of it read as if the people writing it didn’t care about the story at all.

“It’s so clinical,” she grumbled, frowning down at a little diorama of the Sailor Moon-verse, the different planets surrounded by halos of light as information about each planet and the sailor that protected them scrolled across the top of the glass over the diorama.

She pointed to Venus, wrapped in an aura of orange and yellow light. “It doesn’t even mention the interesting history of Sailor Venus! There was like a whole chapter at the end of the Sailor V comic about her and her reincarnated lover!”

Rowan pouted, the glow of the display gilding her face. She could have been art from a museum, her eyes bright as stars, her smile golden from the light, the line of her jaw traced in gold, then scarlet, then azure, then the snowy white of a first snow. Her hands perfectly posed above the glass, fingertips hovering over the words scrolling across the top as it explained the history of the moon kingdom, now. Her hair fell into her face, curling against her cheeks, alight like a flame had been set beneath the waves, casting it in bronze and auburn and the brown of soil that had been freshly tilled.

She would be named something like joy. Or delight. Or perhaps creation, her body leaning over the diorama of planets and moons like a goddess peering over the cosmos she had brought to life.

He took another picture, before she noticed. She was mesmerized by the display, and he was mesmerized by her. By his Rowan, who was his joy, his delight. She made his heart warm, made him feel like he was brimming with universes and cosmos and so stars.

She looked up then, and he slid his phone back into his pocket, although the effort was pointless as she scanned the room, her brow furrowing as she considered something.

“I’m sorry,” she said at last, stepping away from the lit up display. He could see her teeth worrying her bottom lip, took note of the hunch of her shoulders as she crossed her arms over her chest. “Today is supposed to be about you, and I’ve spent the last little bit running around this exhibit when there’s other things you’d rather do.”

When he ached to hold her this time, he did not resist. Instead he reached for her hand, taking it in his and pressing it to his heart.

“The only thing I want to do is spend time with you,” he said, holding her gaze. “And I want to see your smile.”

She hesitated, her eyes slipping to the floor, to the carpet embroidered with pink and purple symbols from all the different shows and comics featured within the magical girl exhibit.

He pressed his index and middle fingers beneath her chin, tipping it back up so he could find her eyes. “If I get nothing else for my birthday, I’d like to see your smile for a little longer, today. And share the things you love too.”

The blush that crept over her cheeks reminded him of the sky as the sun began to set, soft pink staining the cerulean first, following by a rosy red that turned to fire as the sun set the horizon ablaze.

“Will you tell me more about what was missing in that display?” He asked, jerking his chin at the lit up diorama of the planets. “I’m not familiar with Sailor V, I don’t think it was in the comics you showed me.”

Her previous embarrassment washed away as her eyes widened. And there, curving over her lips like a crescent moon, was her smile once again.

“Did I not show you the Sailor V comics?” She mused, her eyes flicking up, to the side, back to him as she thought. “I don’t know if I brought them with me. I was preoccupied with some other things…” She trailed off, chewing on her bottom lip.

“Well once we get home,” he suggested. “Will you show me? Are there any episodes about it?”

She deflated a little, shaking her head. “No, but I wish there were. I don’t even think there’s any episodes about it in the reboot.”

She hummed, looking back at the display. Gavin’s hand fell from her chin, and he scratched at the back of his neck. “Will you explain it to me, though?”

Again that brilliant light in her eyes, replacing the sheepish look she’d had before. “Yes! But…” Again she trailed off, her gaze sweeping through the room, fixing on something to his left. He was pretty sure he heard the jingle of a bell and a

Gavin turned to look, his own gaze falling on a light up tunnel with flashing pink lights. He could see the inside of the tunnel was pink, and he was pretty sure there was an extensive dessert menu hanging on either side of the hall. There was music playing too, so faint he couldn’t quite make out the tune.

“Can we go down there? While we talk?” She asked, pointing to the lit up hall. “I think I know what show it’s going to be about, but I want to be sure.”

He squeezed the hand he still held as he gave his assent. Of course they could, of course he would walk with her. He would go anywhere with her, so long as she was happy. So long as he could be by her side.

***

Perhaps Rowan should have felt a little bad, for the time she’d spent dragging Gavin through the comparatively tiny magical girl section of the museum. She didn’t even remember reading it on the map, although she supposed the section labelled MG would have stood for magical girl, the corner of the museum dedicated to the exhibit so much smaller than the others even on the map that it couldn’t fit the full exhibit name on the map.

But she didn’t feel bad, not even a little. She had, at first, but Gavin had squashed that feeling like a spider beneath his shoe.

Which was, in fact, something he did have to do quite often because there was no way she was squishing a spider. No way she was feeling the crack and squish of its exoskeleton so close to her skin.

Gavin had been kind, had been so sweet, his words giving her courage, and she had brimmed with relief for a few moments before it had been eclipsed by her excitement. There had been so many colours and so many things she loved, altogether in one bright maze of an exhibit. It had been quiet, too, most of the other guests preoccupied with the massive spaceships and dense texts that populated the rest of the museum.

But she had been so excited, and Gavin had held her hand, asking questions as they wandered through, making her heart sing every time he chimed in, every time he asked a question or made a remark or asked to watch the shows with her. It had been bubbling, brilliant joy, like sparkling pink rosé in her veins.

By the time they finished in the magical girl section it was almost time for their turn in one of the little planetarium rooms. So Gavin had squeezed her hand, drawing them back through the museum and the bustling crowd towards the domed planetarium that sat in the very centre of the museum.

They stood in line for a while, and Rowan leaned against Gavin, feeling fatigue beginning to set in. Her legs felt heavy, her feet aching from walking for so long. She winced as she tried readjusting her stance, the backs of her shoes pinching her heels.

She’d have blisters by the end of the day, and they hadn’t brought any blister bandages with them. She’d have to buy some later or suffer through more pain when they went out again.

Or, of course, Gavin could carry her. Which she wouldn’t be opposed to in the least. And she doubted he’d need much of a reason either. Then she could rest her head in the crook of his neck and listen to the beat of his heart.

There were, of course, issues with that plan, but she chose to ignore them for now. At the very least he could carry her around their yurt and the little bit of private space around it.

“Is this the last stop for us?” He asked, unfolding their map, his eyes scanning over the different exhibits highlighted on the side.

“I think so,” she said, the sound of a child’s laugh ringing through the echo-y hallway they were waiting in.

She smiled a little, her mind wandering as she imagined a tiny hand in her own. Or perhaps a tiny person perched on Gavin’s shoulders, cooing at the spaceships and the figures and the lights.

“What are you thinking of?” He asked, his voice reeling her from her daydream.

Her cheeks heated and she looked away, focusing on the queue, on how much longer they’d need to wait. She could see someone coming down the line, checking reservation times.

Rowan felt a pinch at her hip and spun around, gaping at Gavin.

“Tell me what you were thinking,” he insisted, a sly smile on his lips. “I want to know.”

“You’re awfully nosey today.”

He chuckled, his hand hovering over her waist, like he might pinch her again.

“I was just thinking about how much longer we have to wait,” she sniffed, crossing her arms. “We’ve both been really looking forward to this part.”

He arched a brow, his eyes glittering with mischief, as if he didn’t believe her. But he didn’t pry. He just pinched her again, smirking.

“When you’re ready to tell me, let me know.”

She narrowed her eyes, wondering why he was being so weirdly cryptic. What did he think she was thinking about? Why did he think it was something she wasn’t ready to tell him yet?

But she didn’t have time to mull over his response any longer as a staff member walked up to them, a small tablet in her hand.

“Party name?” She asked, typing in their information.

Her face brightened as their information popped up on her screen, and she beamed. “Mr and Mrs Bai?”

Gavin squeezed Rowan’s hand, looking smug. They hadn’t been married for so long that the sound of their shared name had lost its enchantment. It seemed like quite the opposite had happened, Gavin seeming more and more delighted every time he heard it.

“We’ve got planetarium room J reserved for you two,” she said, gesturing for them to follow. “It’s just around the corner here.”

She took the around a curve in the hall, pausing before a silver door that reminded Rowan of something she’d see on a spaceship.

“Here are your pamphlets,” the lady said, handing them each a rather hefty pamphlet. “It includes information on how to work the planetarium projections and holograms, and it has some basic information on the planets and galaxies we know of.”

The silver door opened with a soft whoosh, ice-touched fog rolling out to wrap around their ankles.

“Don’t worry about that,” the woman explained. “That’s just for theatrics. A bit of dry ice and fog adds a bit of drama!” She waved at them to enter. “You two have fun!”

They stepped into the room, a slight chill wrapping around them as the door whooshed shut and they were left to stand in the fog.

Pallid blue light shone down from the ceiling, bathing the small room in an eerie glow. It was circular, around the size of their living room, with what looked like steel counters curving around the circumference of the room.

Rowan wandered towards the counters, finding dials and buttons and gauges flashing ivory. She hummed, flipping through the pamphlet the woman had given her, trying to figure out how it all worked.

Gavin came up behind her, hooking his arm around her waist and peeking over her shoulder. “This looks like some of the stuff at the STF.”

“Do you think you can get it working then?” She asked, squinting as she tried to make out the instructions in the weak light. “This makes no sense to me, I-”

She didn’t get a chance to finish her sentence as Gavin leaned over her, his fingers dancing over the controls. He flicked a switched and pressed a few different buttons and sketched something she couldn’t understand over a little control pad, and suddenly the light was brightening, turning to a soft golden glow. She could hear humming around her, the whir of fans and engines and tech coming to life.

And then as if standing in the centre of the universe as the big bang came to be, galaxies exploded around her.

Rowan gasped, clapping her hands together as she took in the holographic universe swirling around her. Planets hovered in midair like dangling ornaments, stars blinked into existence and meteors twirled like snowflakes in a storm.

“What do you want to look at first?” He asked, drawing her towards the centre of the room, to where galaxies spun and danced like tissue paper on the wind.

She reached out her hand, the pad of her index finger brushing over the space where the milky galaxy hovered. There was a flash, and then it was expanding, their home galaxy blooming into existence around them. She watched as earth and mars and venus and saturn spun around their sun, whirling in time to different dances that the others could not follow.

“Look,” she sang, careful not to touch anything as she stepped through the glow of the hologram and stood before one of the planets. “It’s jupiter!”

Gavin chuckled. “And all its moons.”

Rowan gaped at the moons, her finger hovering over the closest one.

The hologram of jupiter grew larger, the moons orbiting around Rowan and Gavin now as well as the projected planet.

“Cyllene, or, Jupiter XLVIII-”

Rowan jumped at the sound of the cool robotic voice that filled the room, echoing against the metal walls.

“Is it telling us facts about it?” She asked, furrowing her brow as the voice grew quiet, the moon she’d touched spinning before her eyes.

The sound of paper crinkling drew her attention, and she looked over to see Gavin flipping through the pages of the pamphlet, a line between his brows. “It looks like we can activate the voiceover vocally, or if we select certain planets it will trigger automatically.”

“I’m gonna try another one,” Rowan reached out, sliding her finger over the moon beside her, and the hologram shifted as the new moon replaced the one the robot had called Cyllene.

The room chimed, followed by the cool robotic voice from before.

“Chaldene, or, Jupiter XXI, named after Chaldene the mother of-”

Rowan gaped, tipping her head back as if she could find the face of the voice that echoed through the chamber.

Gavin watched her spin in a circle, her arms lifted over her head, as if she were trying to feel the shooting stars that tumbled past.

“It feels kind of cool,” she said, dropping her arms as she again focused on the planet and moons before her. “Like I’m walking through a light rain, maybe?”

Gavin shifted, holding his arms out next. There was the chill of the fog creeping around their feet, but more than that there was a subtle coolness that wrapped around him, gooseflesh pricking his bared skin. If one of the shooting stars or moons or planets brushed against him he shivered, like a drop of frozen rain had slid down his back.

“I think you’re right,” he said at last, dropping his arms too. “Although if you’re cold, I can do my best to warm you up.”

Even in the wan light of the hologram he could see the colour creeping into her cheeks, disappearing beneath the curtain of her hair that veiled her face as she tipped her head forward.

He could have teased her more if he wanted to, but found himself too enchanted by her as she continued to select the different moons, listening to the computer list off different facts about them. She pinched her fingers and spread them wide when she wanted to zoom in further on the surface of some of the moons, although she wasn’t always successful, the holographic recreations fuzzy and lacking any specific details of the satellites’ surfaces.

He felt like maybe he had been put under a spell, a charm crafted of starlight and moon dust and freezing ocean water only found beneath Europa’s silicate-and-ice. Because how else could he explain how he could not focus on the hologram in the room at all, could not focus on the stars that bloomed to life and exploded into darkness around him when all he could focus on was Rowan.

She was still preoccupied with the moons, asking the room more information about them, about the potential for the ocean hidden beneath the frozen crust of Europa. The room responded in kind, sending the galaxy whirling around them as it brought another moon to the forefront. Ganymede, this time.

Gavin knew all of this information, of course. Once he’d become interested in space and in their universe he’d gotten lost down a rabbit hole of articles and books about the different planets and galaxies, and he kept up to date on every new discovery.

So he knew that there were moons that could be hiding life beneath their frozen surfaces, that there were interstellar oceans that they didn’t fully comprehend.

But watching Rowan, her eyes wide and filled with the light of the stars sailing past, he felt that wonder anew, magic and awe sparking in his heart like embers to kindling. She was gaping, the galaxy reflecting in her eyes, and he felt like he was seeing the universe for the first time. Like he was taking in the stars and the planets and the moons with new eyes.

Perhaps he was; experiencing it all now with his wife beside him. She seemed to be the axis his new universe spun around, a brilliant star that gave him warmth and life. He’d joked about being Jupiter and her his most precious moon, but truly she was the warm, beautiful planet, and he was nothing more than a satellite caught in her orbit.

She took his hand, startling him from his thoughts. “It’s your birthday, what do you want to look at next?”

How did he tell her that he would be satisfied looking at her? That she was the most precious thing in the universe, that no mysterious ocean or hurtling asteroid or cannibal galaxy could be as awe-inspiring as her? As precious as her?

He would tell her, he decided. He would just tell her later, once they’d gone back to their circular cabin and he’d pressed her against the bed and kissed her until her face was burning bright as a red star.

But for now he just squeezed her hand, their fingers tangling together as he suggested experimenting with the different modes the hologram had. Why not watch the galaxy bloom to life, shifting and melding and expanding over time?

She nodded her assent, trailing behind him as he flicked a few buttons to activate the time-lapse mode. Again the sound of whirring machines filled the room, and the temperature seemed to drop, the fog spilling from vents around their shoulders now. Within moments they were standing in a sea of drifting fog, their legs swallowed up by the pallid mist.

“It makes it feel kind of spooky,” Rowan admitted, pressing closer to Gavin.

She knew the fog was meant to elevate the atmosphere in the room, to enhance the experience itself of being in a private planetarium room, but it just made her skin crawl. It reminded her of the haunted house she’d tried to go through a few years ago. She’d had the chills while waiting in line, and they had only gotten worse as she’d stepped past the curtain and into the shadowed maze of the haunted house.

She’d been shaking so hard by the time she’d gotten to the first jump scare that she’d cried when the actor had leapt from their hiding place.

Gavin had been with her then, and he’d drawn her close, searching for the nearest exit. Afterwards he’d bought her pumpkin doughnuts and a hot chocolate from a food truck near the haunted house before taking her home and holding her tight on their shared couch.

Gavin’s voice was warm, drawing the fear from her heart like poison from a wound just like he had back then. He still held her hand now, his thumb tracing over her knuckles.

“Look,” he murmured, pointing with his free hand at a collection of stars. “The birth of stars.”

She followed his gaze, but she felt herself drawn back to him, the exploding stars gilding his face with their light. There was a comfort in being next to him, a warmth that washed over her and banished the chill that had descended.

He looked like a star himself, bathed as he was in the light of the growing universe. Planets twirled on invisible axes, asteroids hurtled past, stars bloomed to life and exploded into darkness in the blink of an eye. Galaxies collided, planets were vaporized, and the vastness of the universe around them expanded, entire worlds growing smaller as everything else stretched past any hope of comprehension.

But Gavin was the one constant in the chaos of the universe. Only he remained the same, warm and steady and kind, his hand like a tether that kept her from twirling away in the wake of the ever-changing tide that swept through space and time.

His eyes were bright, his smile kissed by starlight. He must have turned the volume down on the room’s voice, because it was little more than a hushed whisper, like the rustling of leaves in an autumn wind. Gavin spoke over it, explaining to Rowan the different planets, the different stars they watched wink in and out of existence. He pointed to a black hole, started telling her about the theories surrounding them as it swallowed galaxies whole.

She shuddered, pressing closer still. It was a little terrifying to think that such things were out there, ready to consume everything she held dear and tear it to shreds.

Gavin continued, too caught up now in the holograms around them to notice her discomfort. He grew more and more animated as he spoke, the amber of his eyes shining like molten gold, like flickering fire.

He looked so happy, utterly enchanted by the stars. And Rowan felt like she was enchanted in kind, although the spell cast upon her was because of the man before her, rather than the terrifying unknown of the universe.

There was joy in the way he moved his free hand, the way his words lilted as he spoke, the way the corners of his eyes crinkled as something flashed before their eyes. It was pure, undiluted, almost child-like, and her heart ached as she listened to him, as she watched splotches of pink appear on his cheeks.

He was happy, excited, to be here, to be sharing this with her.

Tears pricked at her eyes, but she blinked them away. Today was Gavin’s birthday, and she would not let him see her cry. But she would cry later, burning tears of joy streaking her cheeks when they turned in for the night and she buried her face against his chest. When the happiness and love staining her own heart were finally too much to bear, and it was safe to let them spill, knowing she would not confuse Gavin or upset him to see her cry.

She loved him so much, he was so precious to her. Her husband, this most wonderful man beside her, her most precious star.

***

Rowan squinted when they stepped from the planetarium room, the lights of the corridor so much brighter than the pallor of the dark room and the holograms.

The chill from the fog still lingered, buried in her bones as it was. She tugged at Gavin’s arm, pouting as he chuckled before wrapping his arm around her shoulder, drawing her close to his chest as they made their way to the exit.

They had one more stop before they were done at the museum, before Rowan could put the rest of her plan into motion.

She couldn’t help grinning, although she tried to play it off as excitement as they walked beneath the sign for the gift shop. Before them was a sprawling room with shelves stuffed nearly to bursting with toys and books and figurines. It felt a little like stepping into another of the exhibits, so many things to look at Rowan didn’t know where to start.

Her heart thundered in her chest, but she forced herself to take a very deep breath, redirecting her focus to the shelves on the far end of the shop, stacked high with colourful boxes.

“I think those are lego sets,” she said, dragging Gavin through the shop, their footsteps muffled on the moon-and-planet carpet. She wondered, vaguely, if the carpet had been stolen from a bowling alley. It certainly looked like it belonged in one.

There was still pink on Gavin’s cheeks, and they stood before the exclusive lego sets, trying to decide on which spaceships they wanted to build. Rowan furrowed her brow, trying to remember which ones he already owned, which ones she’d helped him build already.

She was pretty sure he had just about every Star Wars set, although there was a brand new one that had released not too long ago.

She chewed on her bottom lip, trying to remember. She liked to keep up on lego releases so she could be prepared with gifts for Gavin when he returned home from long missions, or for holidays and birthdays, or honestly when she just felt like treating him. It was probably the easiest gift to give him, his face always lighting up like a kid at christmas when he unwrapped a new set.

Once they had settled on a few sets Rowan wandered over to the plushie display, smiling at the embroidered grins and rosy cheeks of the plush planets and suns and moons. She couldn’t help it, she had to get at least one. Or maybe two.

One for her and one for Gavin.

She felt his breath against her ear as he settled his chin on her shoulder. “I think the planet ones are the best.”

She arched a brow, pointing to the plush Jupiter. “I suppose we have to get that one for the birthday boy.”

He chuckled as she gathered the plush into her arms. “Of course.”

“But he needs a friend,” she murmured, her hand grazing over the different plushies.

Gavin reached forward, tapping his finger on a smiling moon. “Why not this one?”

She snorted, but collected one of the plush moons, nestling it in the crook of her arm next to the Jupiter.

“Now they’ll be best friends,” she announced, beaming at him as he straightened.

Gavin cupped her cheek with his free hand. “Maybe more than friends?”

“Maybe.”

They wandered through the rest of the shop, collecting a few other odds and ends before heading to the cash. Rowan had been preparing for this day for months, had planned out exactly what she would do when they got up to the register with their hoard.

So she was ready with her card in hand, slapping it against the screen of the card reader before the cashier had even finished reading their total.

Gavin’s eyes widened, his wallet in his hand. “You didn’t have to-”

Rowan beamed at him as the card reader beeped, the transaction completed. “You can carry the bags.”

Gavin slid his wallet back into his pocket, blinking at her as he took the bags from the cashier. “Rowan, you know I-”

She took his free hand, pressing a kiss to his palm. “Happy birthday, babey.”

Gavin stumbled behind her for a moment, dazed. He usually liked being the one to pay for things when they went out, liked taking care of her, even if it was just buying little treats and knick knacks.

He felt a little like there were wings in his belly, delicate butterfly wings made of gossamer and sunshine. They were fluttering furiously, and he couldn’t help but feel a little like a boy again, like his crush had smiled at him and leant him her pencil.

He swallowed, his cheeks heating. He would have to thank her later, would have to show her exactly how thankful he was for her gift.

Rowan groaned as they made their way into the parking lot, running a hand through her hair. “It’s so hot, I forgot how warm it was supposed to be today.”

Gavin squeezed her hand, scanning the parking lot. “Let’s get to the car and we can get the air conditioning going for you.”

It took him a moment longer to spot their car than he had anticipated. He’d thought they’d parked quite close to the entrance, barely more than a few moments walk. But the car was quite a few rows back, and he could feel sweat coating his skin like a film by the time he unlocked the passenger side door for her.

Rowan slid inside, and Gavin moved to the door to the backseat to toss their bags inside. But he found himself pausing, his eyes narrowing.

The backseat was virtually empty, nothing but a simple pink blanket spread out over the seat. But hadn’t it been full that morning when they’d left?

He distinctly remembered something in the backseat he hadn’t been allowed to look at. Except now it was gone.

Gavin set the bags in the back before going around the side and settling into the driver's seat, turning the key in the ignition.

“Rowan,” he said, turning to her as the air conditioning blasted frosty air into the car.

“Hmmm?” She looked over at him, her face red from the sun.

“Don’t you remember us parking closer?”

She furrowed her brow, turning around to lean forward, peering up at the museum. “I don’t think so?”

“It feels like it took longer to get back to the car.”

She quirked her mouth to the side, leaning back. “Maybe it’s just from the heat? I feel like when it gets hot out everything feels like it takes longer.”

He hummed, supposing she had a point. But how did that explain the empty backseat?

Gavin opened his mouth, but closed it again as Rowan watched him curiously. She didn’t seem to have any idea what he was talking about, and it was entirely possible he was remembering wrong. He had been a little preoccupied with her and with his excitement at coming to this museum.

Shrugging, Gavin shifted the car into drive, slowly pulling out from their parking spot and heading towards the lot exit.

“Why don’t we do a little driving around,” Rowan offered, as the main road came into view.

He arched a brow. “Where to?”

“I don’t know, I just…” She trailed off, her eyes flicking down to her hands, her fingers hooking around the chain of her bracelet. “I don’t want today to end yet.”

He flicked the turn signal on, leaning his head back as he watched the cars racing past him. Something seemed off, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on it.

“There’s a little town nearby. We could head over there and wander around a bit.”

He could admit that it was a bit odd that Rowan would want to wander around in the late July afternoon, the heat beating down on them as it was.

But he brushed his suspicions off, not caring if it was slightly strange that his wife wanted to walk around. It was his birthday, and she was partial to cute little towns with little shops and parks to wander through. And it was a perfectly good excuse to hold her hand for a little longer.

He merged onto the road at last, heading towards the town that the museum was located on the outskirts of. It was busier now than it had been that morning, the roads growing busier the closer they got to town. Rowan chattered aimlessly, her fingers brushing against his arm as she told him about something she had read, as she asked him did he think there would be any ice cream shops, it was the perfect day for ice cream.

He followed the signs that directed him towards an ‘olde towne,’ which he assumed was something like the downtown. That would surely be the place Rowan would like best, and there would be plenty of shopping and places to wander hand-in-hand.

“Oh babey, look! A little bookstore!”

Gavin took that as his cue to find a parking spot, quickly pulling into a little lot behind a collection of shops.

Rowan scrambled from the car before he had even pulled the key from the ignition, popping coins into the parking meter in front of them.

“What are you doing?” He asked, stretching his arms up as he stood.

“Just making sure we have loads of time,” she sang, popping another two dollar coin into the machine. “I don’t want us to get a ticket.”

He chuckled, tucking the key into his pocket and wrapping his arm around her waist. “How long do you think we’re going to be here, pumpkin?”

Her bottom lip popped out and she looked away. “I just want to make sure we’re not ticketed. Parking tickets on birthdays are the worst.”

He sighed, earning a sharp yelp as he pinched her waist. “What am I going to do with you?”

“Stop pinching me, I hope!”

He snorted. “But it’s my birthday, I thought I could have anything I wanted.”

She narrowed her eyes, stepping out of his arms. “You want to inflict bodily harm on me?”

He couldn’t help it then, reaching forward quick as lightning to pinch her waist again. Rowan squealed, smacking his arm.

“Stop that!” But she was laughing, even as she jogged away from him.

“Don’t worry,” he assured, closing the distance between them quickly. “I’ll make sure to kiss it better tonight.”

She puffed out her cheeks, her face turning scarlet. “Or you could just not pinch me.”

“But where would be the fun in that?”

Rowan poked his chest, pouting. “You owe me.”

“On my own birthday?” He challenged, smirking.

“Debts don’t care about birthdays!” She announced, turning her nose up. “And I’m here to collect.”

Gavin sighed, cupping the back of her neck to hold her steady as he leaned closer, savouring the way her knees wobbled and her breathing faltered.

“Can I pay it back later?” He murmured, his eyes dropping to her lips, a lazy smile playing at the corners of his mouth. “I have a couple of ideas.”

She squeaked, and he could feel the flutter of her lashes against his skin.

He hummed, his free hand idly stroking her side. “What do you say?”

Her voice cracked, sounding strangled, like there was something caught in it. “I-I-”

“What is it, pumpkin?” He couldn’t keep the laughter from his voice.

“I just meant like…” She trailed off, her voice catching as he tangled his fingers in her hair.

“Like buying me some candies, or a book, or some flowers,” she managed, her eyes looking anywhere but at his face.

He chuckled again, pulling away, although he was loath to move so far away from her. “Well there was never any question of that.”

She sighed, her head falling forward. “What am I going to do with you?”

“Hopefully a lot, since it’s my birthday.”

His cheeky little comment cost him dearly, Rowan pinching his arm in kind before marching off. He winced, but quickly shook off the pain, chasing after Rowan to twine his hand with hers.

“I’m only teasing,” he said, letting her choose the route, deciding it was probably best not to push her too far. He had to save up a little mischief for later.

Rowan didn’t respond, her face scrunched up in a facsimile of a pout. She just tugged him forward, glaring at him in their reflection in a shop window.

“Why don’t we look for a sweet shop?” he suggested, trying to offer her an olive branch. “There’s usually at least one in a town like this.”

Rowan halted her steps, her shoulders relaxing. “Will you buy me the chocolates with the maraschino cherries if they have them?”

He nodded. “Of course.”

“And if there’s any raspberry ones?”

Again he nodded.

“And if there’s any orange ones?”

He squeezed her hand, biting back another laugh. He would buy her the moon if he could. He would string the stars on a chain of gold for her neck, he would pluck the rings from Saturn for her fingers, he would twist the stardust trail behind a meteor through her hair.

Of course he would buy her a little bag of candies if she wanted. If that showed even a scrap of how much he adored her.

“As you wish.”

She rolled her eyes, muttering under her breath about how dorky he was being yet again, but Gavin couldn’t find it in himself to care. Perhaps he was a little silly and dorky, as she so often liked to tell him before kissing his cheeks or wrapping her arms around his waist.

But he was hers, and she loved every little part of him, even the silliest parts.

Gavin let her draw him into shop after shop, the sun warming his face, the heat seeping into the marrow of his bones. They were greeted with blasts of air conditioning and chiming bells as they pushed open different shop doors, the smell of chocolates or spiced drinks or old leather permeating the different spaces.

They wandered around the fancy chocolate shop that was in fact in the little town, only a few streets over from where they’d parked. Rowan wandered aimlessly, lifting up little packets of hot chocolate or prepackaged assortments of candies while Gavin leaned over the chocolate display case, scanning the options carefully before pointing to the different sweets he wanted.

He had them all packaged up by the time she had finished her rounds through the store, a box of hazelnut chocolates in the shape of little animals in her hands.

She looked a little sheepish as she held the box up to him, chewing on her bottom lip. “Can we get these too?”

She didn’t need to ask. Gavin was already taking them from her hands, tucking them under his arm as he made his way to the register.

“Should we stop and get something to eat?” He asked, his card already on the card reader so Rowan couldn’t pull her little trick on him again.

She seemed to mull over his question, her eyes scanning the shelves behind the cashier, catching on the pink striped wallpaper that reminded him of cherry flavoured candy canes.

“I don’t feel that hungry,” she said, sighing. “The food from the museum is sitting kind of heavy in my stomach.”

He rubbed her back idly, taking the pink paper bag of their things in his free hand.

He steered her towards the door, concern flitting through him like a moth at midnight. “A drink then?”

She nodded. “A drink would be nice.”

Gavin kept his hand on her back, steering them both through the throng of people ambling around on the sidewalks. “I think I saw a little tea place this way.”

“Ooo and the bookshop is just over there!”

He couldn’t help smiling, his attention diverted for a moment before he resumed his mission. “Maybe we should sit down first, if you’re not feeling well it could be from the heat.”

Rowan grumbled something under her breath, but Gavin decided not to respond. Verbally, at least. Because he definitely pinched her side again, something he was becoming a little too fond of doing, if only to elicit the gasping response Rowan always seemed to give him whenever he pinched her.

He would make sure he was very gentle when he made up for it later.

It took a bit of wrangling to get her to sit while he went to order them both something to drink. She insisted that she was fine, that she wasn’t an invalid, that she was perfectly able to stand on her own feet and wait in a queue.

But Gavin wouldn’t take no for an answer, and after a prolonged battle between their wills, Rowan had relented, letting him guide her into a seat at a small table next to a window.

He might have had to pull the birthday card again, but he would be lying if he said he was ashamed of it. If it meant convincing his wife to rest then he was more than happy to abuse it until the day was done.

The line wasn’t particularly long, and Gavin ordered iced teas for them, one a sweet strawberry tea and one lemon.

A pair of kids ran past his feet, squealing as they chased after their mother, who was carrying a bag of cookies and a tray with three iced drinks balanced on it. Gavin’s eyes trailed after them, their laughter ringing like bells. He wondered what it would be like if there had been someone smaller with him and Rowan, little hands grasping at his, a stream of questions about space and rocket ships as they’d wandered through the museum.

He would have had to buy extra chocolates at the last shop, and he smiled as he imagined how Rowan’s voice would have lilted as she’d chattered with the little voice. Then he would have tossed the child onto his shoulders, and they would have squealed as happily as the children following their mother squealed.

Perhaps there would only be one, or perhaps two, or-

His daydream fizzled apart as his name was called, the drinks he’d ordered set on the counter.

He did his best to ignore the strange feeling that had bloomed in his chest, not quite melancholy not quite want, tucking away the image of chubby cheeks and little grasping hands held safely in his. Instead, he grabbed the drinks, heading back to the table.

Rowan smiled at him as he approached, and she cooed about how she’d missed him, although he was sure it had only been a few moments at the most.

Not that it really mattered, not when he’d missed her so much too.

They chatted for a little, sipping at their drinks, but Rowan’s eyes kept sliding out the window, fixing on something in the distance.

Gavin followed her gaze, his focus settling on a greenspace, the entrance to a park. And just beyond the park entrance he could make out a group of kids shrieking as they raced through a little splash pad.

Rowan opened her mouth, closed it again, her hands wrapping around her plastic cup.

He angled his head to the side, flicking his gaze between her and the splash pad, the strange ache returning to his chest.

It took him a long moment to identify what it was, as his focus shifted back to Rowan, as his mind wandered once more to the hazy fantasy tucked in the back of his mind.

Longing. It was longing.

“Gavin,” she said at last, her eyes growing distant, like she was watching something in her mind’s eye, something tucked deep inside of her. “Have you ever…”

She trailed off, and Gavin was certain he knew what she was thinking of now.

They’d talked about it a little, back when they were dating, and again after they’d returned home from their wedding and honeymoon. And it had come up here and there, when they walked past aisles of childrens toys or walked past a youth soccer game or when Rowan received an invitation to a baby shower.

But maybe it was time to talk about it in earnest. Maybe now it was time to move past talking.

“Have you ever thought…” Her voice cracked as she again trailed off, her head dipping down, casting her eyes down to the scratched surface of the table.

How did she ask it? How did she find the right words?

‘I know we’ve talked about having kids before, but have you ever thought about us trying for real?’

Certainly she couldn’t just say that. It was ridiculous, she was sure he would think she’d gone mad, that the sun and the summer heat had gotten to her.

But the thought had always been buried deep in her heart, the quiet want that had always seemed to grow a little more with every passing day. And then today there had been the two little kids racing around the store, calling for their mama as she’d carried their treats and drinks to a little picnic table across the street.

Rowan had followed the sound of their laughter, her gaze fixing on the splash pad not far from the picnic tables in the park across the street. And it had been hard to not imagine, to stop herself from imagining, carrying a tray of drinks and snacks for her own children. With amber eyes like Gavin and chubby cheeks and little dimples that always came out like the sun after a storm when they smiled.

Perhaps they would run screeching through the splash pad, terrorizing each other and her and Gavin. Perhaps they would sit and chatter quietly, perhaps they would try to drag her onto the splash pad with them.

It hurt a little, the ache in her chest where the longing had buried itself like roots. They had agreed, initially, to enjoy their time just the two of them for a while. But she…

She sighed, shaking her head as the words to her question dried up on her tongue once more. She was being ridiculous, she didn’t even know why she was asking this. It was Gavin’s birthday, the focus was supposed to be on him. On making him happy. On making sure he was kept distracted until his final surprise was ready.

She opened her mouth to dismiss what she had been trying to say, but Gavin cut her off before she could.

“I have,” he said, his eyes following the same trajectory as hers had earlier. “I have thought about it.”

She didn’t know how she knew, she was no telepath, she had no evol to speak of. But somehow, deep in her belly, Rowan knew he was talking about kids. About wanting to have kids, too.

She felt like she was walking on ice, the raging ocean a few inches from her feet churning furiously, daring her to take another step, daring her to risk going forward, further out to see.

She swallowed. “And?”

The late afternoon sunlight was the gold of autumnal leaves, and it refracted into millions of rainbows as it spilled across Gavin’s face, catching in his eyes, glittering with magic.

“I think we should talk about it more,” he said, reaching across the table to take her hand. “I think we should try.”

Delicate wings of sunshine and silken petals swarmed her chest and belly in a typhoon, whipped around and around the invisible wind in her heart.

She didn’t know she had leaned forward until almost her entire torso was stretched across the table, both her hands grasping Gavin’s now, her heart’s rhythm stumbling from excitement.

“Really? You really mean it?”

Gavin laughed, his hair turning to gold in that brilliant sunshine. “I really mean it.”

She sat back, beaming. “That makes me really happy, babey.”

He arched a brow, mischief in his eyes now. “How happy?”

She pulled her hands away, taking hold of her cup once more. “I don’t think I like your tone.”

“I’m only asking so I know how you’re going to treat me later tonight.”

His voice dipped low, turning sultry, and Rowan considered tossing her iced tea over her head to douse the heat curling in her belly.

She sniffed, pretending like she was unbothered. “I guess you’ll just have to find out.”

When they were done their drinks they returned back to wandering, and Rowan was finally able to drag him into the little bookshop she’d seen.

Her reasons for bringing him in were two-fold: one, to buy herself a little more time because she hadn’t gotten the all clear text yet, and two, because she really wanted to look at a few books with him.

They likely would have covered more ground had they split up, but at this point it was a sort of tradition to wander around together, whether they were on a mission or not.

Neither of them had brought anything with them to read, and Rowan thought staying at the yurt would be a golden opportunity to rest and catch up on doing the fun little things they liked doing together. Like building lego sets and reading together.

It was a little game they had started years ago, picking out one or two books they thought the other would enjoy. Rowan ran her eyes over the colourful spines of different fiction titles, trying to determine what her husband would like best.

Something in space, perhaps? To fit with their trip? Perhaps something completely different, a genre he didn’t normally read?

She considered buying him a mystery novel, but Gavin was notorious for getting about halfway through any murder mystery and solving it and stuffing the book full of sticky notes and messy thoughts crammed into the margins, making the books unreadable.

So perhaps mystery was out of the question.

From the corner of her eye she caught Gavin sliding something from the shelf.

“What’s that?” She asked, turning her head to the side, tipping it back as Gavin stiffened.

“It’s a surprise,” he said, snorting when she tried moving closer. “You don’t get to see it.”

She pouted. “Why not!”

“Because it’s my birthday, and I said so.”

“Boo, you’re no fun.”

She disentangled her hand from his marching away.

“Pumpkin, where are you going?”

She jutted her chin up, deciding that although normally they would wander together, today they would not.

“If I can’t see what you’re looking at then you can’t see what I am!”

She could hear his laughter, warm and sweet as melting honey, chasing at her heels.

It made her consider turning back around. But no, she would pick something out for him on her own, and then she would get to give him two surprises today.

She wandered for a while, scanning the titles in the science fiction section over and over, considering the options. Perhaps she could get him the book about space necromancers? It was in space, but she remembered reading some reviews that it got quite confusing at parts.

She pulled the book from the shelf anyways, tucking it against her chest as she continued to browse. It was his birthday, she could get him another.

She ran into Gavin after she’d made her third selection, deciding Gavin deserved lots of options, and she’d hastily covered the book covers with her hands before he could take a peak.

“Don’t look!”

He closed his eyes, sighing, but there was a smile dancing on his lips, belying his facsimile of fatigue.

“So you want a few more minutes?”

She looked down at the books in her arms, scanning the titles quickly before giving him a firm nod. “I’m ready!”

He opened his eyes, gesturing to the register with a jerk of his head. “Then shall we go?”

They purchased separately, and were soon wandering through the town again. Rowan clutched the paper bag of books against her chest, the crinkle of paper beneath her fingers making her smile. She hoped Gavin liked what she picked out. She hoped he would be happy.

She eyed the sun, haloed by wispy white clouds. It was so warm, and her eyes felt heavy, like they would close at any moment. She wanted to find a nice patch of grass and take a nap, curled up in a buttery sunbeam until nighttime washed over the world and the stars bloomed in the sky.

Beside her, Gavin yawned, his head falling back, the sun washing over his face as his eyes squeezed shut.

Rowan wished she was a photographer, or perhaps a painter. She wished she could capture that moment, when he was gilded by sunlight, his hair ruffled, his cheeks pink from the sun.

But instead she tucked it away in her memories, leaning against him as he straightened.

“I feel like I could use a nap,” he admitted, letting her tug him past a crowd outside an ice cream shop. “Do you want to head back yet?”

She shook her head, stomach twisting into knots.

Not yet.

“I want to wander around a little more,” she said instead, squeezing his hand.

He just smiled, seeming content to be dragged around. “As you wish.”

They wandered aimlessly, popping into the different shops that lined the rustic “olde towne” they had found. There were hat shops and dress stores and a shop that specialized in wool sweaters imported from Ireland.

There were little bakeries and a used bookshop and a flower shop, where Gavin purchased Rowan a small bouquet of peonies, some of her favourite flowers.

She had lifted the pale pink blooms to her nose when she felt her phone buzzing in her pocket. Relief washed over her and she sighed, breathing in the sweet smell of the peonies.

“Before we go,” she said, swinging Gavin’s arm between them. “Do you think we could walk through that park? It looks like it’s nice and shaded and it might be nice.”

“Lead the way.”

Again that relief swelled, followed by delight and excitement that tumbled and tangled together in a tumult in her chest. She was so excited she could barely keep her breathing in check as she walked with Gavin through the park, passing the splash pad and the raucous group of children racing through it. As they walked deeper into the park, passing older couples and people walking dogs and teenagers rollerblading past them.

The sun had finally begun to set, too, painting fiery shades of orange and copper and red across the once-cerulean sky. It looked like someone had taken a flame to a canvas, letting the blue paint turn to smoke and memory.

A soft wind chased after the setting sun, ruffling in their hair and snapping at their clothes. The hum of cicadas was a constant symphony, filling the air even as the path began to grow quiet.

Gavin wondered, distantly, if they should turn back. It was still bright and warm, but now that the sun was beginning its descent all he could think of was curling up in bed with Rowan, his head pillowed on the soft curve of her breast. But he was also loath to let the day end, savouring this precious time with her.

He thought nothing of the little copse of trees nearing them on the right, but it did prick through his reverie when Rowan began heading towards it.

“Where are you going?” He asked, stepping onto the grass to follow after her.

But she just turned around, a coy smile on her lips. “It’s a surprise.”

He furrowed his brow, confused. The quiet tinkle of silver bells danced in the wind like the beginning of a melody, and he caught a scrap of blue fluttering from the side of a tree.

He followed behind her, his confusion melting into curiosity, that too melting away when he stepped into the little circle of trees.

There were blue and gold ribbons strung between the trees, knotting and twining together so they formed a silken archway above their heads that shifted and sighed in the wind. Silver wind-chimes had been hung from the tree branches, pealing in bright song. A checkered picnic blanket was stretched across the space, loaded with plates of sweets and cupcakes and sandwiches and salads and meats. To the side there was a little pile of wrapped presents, the silvery wrapping paper seeming to glow in the fading light.

He gaped, awestruck as Rowan took a seat on the blanket. “What is this?”

She spread her arms wide. “It’s for you! It’s your birthday surprise!”

He continued to gape, amazed at what she had done.

“But how did you… When did you…” He couldn’t finish his sentence, even as the question prodded at his mind.

How had she gotten all this done? How had she gotten this all set up when they’d been at the museum all day?

She patted the ground next to her, and Gavin sat, resisting the urge to pull her into his lap and kiss her breathless. He couldn’t believe it, couldn’t think of anything at all.

She tucked her hair back, looking a little sheepish. “Please don’t get upset, but I had to get a little help from Eli and some of your colleagues. And maybe Minor too.”

Gavin blinked. Logically he knew that this would mean extensive harassment at work. He could already imagine Eli’s shit eating grin when he came back to work.

And oh the teasing he would get from Minor. He wouldn’t be safe for weeks.

But those thoughts all swept away as he met Rowan’s gaze, as he looked around him at everything she had prepared for him.

His eyes burned, and he had to blink to stop himself from crying. He could feel a lump in his throat, choking off his words, stopping him from telling Rowan how happy he was, how amazed he was.

She watched him quietly, a crease forming between her brows. “Babey? Is everything alright?”

He didn’t even pretend to have any self restraint this time as he gathered her in his arms, dragging her into his lap so he could crush her against his chest.

Rowan gasped, but the sound was quickly muffled as she pressed her face into his hair, her fingers splaying out on his back.

“Thank you,” he managed, burying his face in the crook of her neck. He sniffled, feeling like a child as silent tears streamed down his face. “Thank you, Rowan.”

She rubbed his back, massaging gently. “I love you, babey. I love you with all my heart. I love you more than there are stars in the sky.”

He sucked in a breath, squeezing his eyes shut tight.

“Happy birthday, Gavin. I’m so happy that you were born.”

He felt like he was shaking, but her arms steadied him. She held him tight, murmuring soft words, gentle words. That she loved him, that he was precious to her, that he was kind and good and strong, that he was so easy to love, that she couldn’t imagine life without him.

He was crying like a child and he couldn’t stop. Not for a long long while as night cast itself over the world, stars emerging like diamonds tossed across the sky.

Gavin peeled away from her slowly, ducking his head so she did not see the stains from his tears. But all Rowan did was cup his cheeks and gently turn his face up, wiping the drying tears with her thumbs.

The song of the windchimes steadied him, helped to bring him back from the haze that had been his tears. He sniffled again, covering Rowan’s hands with his.

“Thank you,” he murmured. “Thank you, Rowan. I’m so happy.”

She smiled, more brilliant than the stars, more ethereal than the moon. “I’m so glad. But you haven’t even had the food I prepared yet!”

He released his grip on her, begrudgingly, so she could collect a paper plate for him and begin piling all the food she’d brought onto it.

“I tried my very best to make your favourites,” she sang, stacking two salads on top of each other. “Although you will have to forgive me for the cupcakes. I just couldn’t resist.”

He watched as she settled a small cupcake on the centre of his plate, blue and purple icing swirling together, crusted in gold and silver star-shaped sprinkles.

“It’s all wonderful,” he said, his cheeks warming as she fussed over him and the food. “I’m sure it’s all delicious.”

“Well,” she groused, preparing her own plate now. “I hope so. If anything is bad we can blame Minor.”

He snorted, wholeheartedly agreeing with her. There was no way his Rowan would make anything that didn’t taste good. “Deal.”

He was only about halfway through his food when she started pushing presents towards him, but Gavin tucked them to the side, promising up and down that he would open them later.

“Do you not want them?” She asked, clutching a small bag in her arms.

He had just sunk his teeth into his cupcake, and he chewed quickly. “I do want them, in just a minute, love. I want to enjoy sitting here with you for a moment.”

A flicker of light caught his eye and he looked up, watching as a shooting star streaked across the sky.

He closed his eyes for a moment, breathing in as he spun the magic of his wish.

He wished that he would spend the rest of his birthdays with her. That he would spend every birthday and every day in-between with his Rowan.

He opened his eyes to find her leaning close, her thumb brushing against his face a hairsbreadth from the corner of his lip.

“What is it?”

There was mischief in her eyes as her hand fell away.

“There’s a bit of icing on your face.”

He lifted his brows, his hand coming up to wipe it off. But Rowan batted his hand away, leaning close, so very close he could catch the specks of green buried deep in the sea of her eyes.

Her lips brushed against the corner of his mouth, and he felt her tongue flick against him.

“There,” she sang, sitting back. “All better.”

He felt a little out of sorts, his breathing heavy, his heartbeat stumbling like a toddler in a race. There was heat in his core, a tightness in his pants that he struggled to ignore.

He eyed the presents piled on his side, then Rowan again, who looked more than a little proud of herself and her shenanigans.

“You know,” he said, shifting closer, pinching a strand of her hair between his thumb and forefinger, letting his voice turn sultry and soft. “I think there’s something else I’d much rather unwrap right now.”

Rowan smacked his arm, feigning outrage. But all it did was make Gavin laugh, made the heat in his belly grow, made his head feel a little like he’d drunk an entire bottle of champagne.

He swiped his finger across the icing of a cupcake, wiping his finger against Rowan’s cheek.

“There,” he murmured, sucking the rest of the icing from his finger. “Now we’re even.”

He didn’t have a moment to react before an entire cupcake was being smushed against his face, cake crumbling over his shirt, icing streaking down his neck.

Rowan cackled, wiping her hand on the blanket. “Now we’re even.”

Laughter bubbled in his chest, brilliant as sunshine, light as spun sugar. He wrapped his arms around her, dragging her close, wiping his messy face against her throat.

Rowan shrieked, squirming in his arms. “Gavin that tickles! Let go!”

But he in fact did not let go, nuzzling his face more against her, smearing icing all over her throat and her collar and part of her shirt. He nipped at her skin, licking some of the icing as she continued to gasp and squeal, her hands smacking his arms uselessly.

“Gavin!”

He hummed, his nose bumping against her chin.

“Gavin that tickles!”

Finally he relented, releasing her just enough so she could breathe, but keeping her firmly in his lap.

“That was uncalled for,” she wheezed, trying and failing to glare at him as she wiped her palm across her chest.

He shrugged, grinning. “Maybe.”

“Maybe?”

“But I had fun,” he said, running a hand through her hair, pushing it back from her face, golden candy stars getting caught in her bangs. “And since it’s my birthday…”

She groaned, throwing her head back. “Okay okay, you win.”

He chewed on his lip for a moment, a habit he’d picked up from Rowan as he regarded her carefully.

“Rowan?”

She straightened, her hands falling to his shoulders. “Hmm?”

“Thank you,” he said, his voice soft as feather down. “Thank you for this.”

Her gaze softened too, and she cupped his face, her fingers still sticky with icing. “Babey, I love you more than I can say. I just want you to have a happy birthday.”

How did he explain to her that every birthday now was happy? That she had reminded him that he was alive, that the world was beautiful, that there was still joy to be had in the smallest of things? How did he explain to her that every birthday he was happy he had been born, that he was happy he was beside her?

How did he tell her that every day with her was a gift, was more precious than any newborn star or glittering galaxy could be?

He didn’t know how, didn’t have the words to say it right. So instead he kissed her, gentle this time, tasting the sweet buttercream of the icing and the sugar of the sprinkles and the chocolate of the cupcakes on her.

She was his star, his guiding light. She’d brought warmth and happiness back into his life, she’d brought him laughter, brought him joy and comfort and love.

He felt like he might cry again, but did his best to hold it back. He wanted to enjoy the rest of the evening before they packed up, he wanted to take his time tasting the different foods she’d brought while he opened the gifts, and then he wanted to return to their cabin and take his time tasting all of her.

She sighed as they broke apart, her eyes closed, icing caught in her lashes as they splayed across her cheek.

He grinned, unable to stop himself, feeling a ghost of that earlier laughter bubbling in his throat.

“Rowan?”

She opened her eyes, peering at him curiously.

He gestured to the icing smeared over them both, smiling. “Will you help me clean this up?”

She laughed, plucking a napkin from the little basket perched nearby. The windchimes sang in tandem, the melodies twining together in a starlit song that sent gossamer wings flitting in his heart.

Rowan kissed his cheek, sending warmth spilling through him like sunshine across a wildflower field. “As you wish, my love.”

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