Page 118 of Stalker's Toy

Let me burn.

Her eyes are green blazes as I pull away.

The noise of the gallery floods back into focus, but I don't want any of it.

I want the silence of her breathing, the sound of her heartbeat against my ribs.

"You're insane," I tell her.

"Perfect for you, then," she says, her lips still inches from mine, her voice a low taunt.

I pull away just far enough to see her face, flushed and beautiful.

Her eyes shine like glass, and the shadows of the room spin around her like they're afraid to touch.

Weareinsane together, and she knows it.

It's like the fucking art doesn't even matter.

Like she's the only creation I've ever wanted.

This madness, I want it to last forever.

The wild heat of it.

Her eyes catch mine.

She doesn't need an explanation.

When I take her hand and tell her to come with me, she just lets me sweep her away.

I want this moment to stretch on forever.

I want the way she kisses me, feral and unafraid, to be permanent.

But I want something else too, and she sees it in my eyes.

She feels it in the way I grab her hand,in the way we slip like shadows into the unlit corridors beyond the main gallery space.

I guide her through the dim passageways, through whispers and dark corners, taking her deeper into my world.

When the voices of the crowd become a distant hum, Mia squeezes my hand, her grip strong and sure. "You’re not afraid they’ll miss you?" she asks.

"Let them." I smile. "They won’t know what to do without me."

It’s true.

Every second we’re gone will feel like an eternity to them, a gaping absence they can’t explain.

But for us, it’s a stolen moment, a piece of forever.

She looks around, takes in the half-finished walls, the covered lights, the raw edges of a project still in flux.

The edges of a vision not yet fully realized.

"It’s beautiful, Henrik," she says, voice low, almost reverent. "Dark and haunting."

"Not half as haunting as you." I pull her close, kiss the top of her head.

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