Page 51 of You Found Me in the Dark
“About?”
“You.”
That word, that one word, settled deep under my ribs. I blinked once and then let out a quiet breath, reaching for him without overthinking it. My fingers curled into the center of his hoodie and tugged gently. “C’mere.”
He raised an eyebrow.
“I want you to lie down with me,” I said, suddenly shy but trying not to sound it. “If that’s okay.”
Reed didn’t hesitate. He shifted, adjusting the pillows in the bed of the truck, and lay back. I followed, curling onto my side beside him. Then, without another word, I reached for his arm and pulled it over my shoulder, dragging his hand down to rest against my hip as I tucked myself close.
He let out a soft chuckle like I’d surprised him. Maybe he hadn’t expected me to want this much closeness. But he didn’t pull away. His body was solid and warm behind me, his hoodie soft against my skin. I pressed back into him, letting the rhythm of his breathing steady my own. The stars glowed above us, indifferent and quiet, but something in me buzzed loud and alive.
His chest rose beneath my cheek, and I felt the slow, careful way he held me.
“I could stay here forever,” I whispered.
He squeezed my hip gently. “Then let’s pretend we’ve got forever. Just for tonight.”
And with his heart beating steadily beneath me, I let myself believe we did.
The stars stretched endlessly overhead, a soft, silver blanket tucked across the sky. Reed’s arm was still draped over me, hand resting against my stomach, steady and warm. His thumb had found a slow rhythm—tracing light, lazy circles just above the waistband of my leggings, near my hipbone. It wasn’t rushed or intentional. It just… was. Gentle. Grounding. I stared up at the stars, but I wasn’t seeing them anymore.
My voice came out quieter than I expected. “I used to look up at the sky like this and wish I could disappear into it.”
Reed didn’t say anything. Just pressed his palm a little closer. A soft reminder: I’m here.
“I want you to know some things about me, Reed.”
He replied with a simple, “Okay. Just take your time.”
I nodded and continued, “My mom left when I was fifteen.” The words tumbled out slowly. “She didn’t leave a note or say goodbye. Just up and gone. One day she was there, and the next it was just me and Cam, and my dad.”
Reed’s thumb slowed, circling smaller now. More careful.
“Dad wasn’t the same after that. I think part of him broke when she left. He tried for a while, but it didn’t take long before he started drinking. I think he was just looking to numb everything. He stopped showing up for us. For me. Truthfully, he was a shell of his former self.”
I felt Reed’s lips brush the top of my head, just barely. Like he needed to stay close.
“I learned how to take care of myself, since Cam was still away at college. I taught myself how to stay small. How not to ask for too much.” My throat tightened. I blinked at the sky until my vision blurred. “I was a lonely high schooler until I met your sister. In my sophomore year, my first school year after my mom had left, I met Tyler. We met at a football game, shockingly enough. I was head over heels. Most girls at fifteen didn’t know to stay away from the twenty-one-year-old who hung out at high school football games. Clearly, I met that description.”
Reed’s hand stilled.
I swallowed hard. “I didn’t tell anyone about him for a long time. Not even Harper. He was charming at first. Funny. He knew exactly what to say to make me feel seen. Then again, he was an adult and I was a kid. He started isolating me and making me question things. Controlling what I wore, where I went, and who I talked to. And when I tried to break things off…” My voice faltered. I curled my fingers into the hem of his hoodie.
“He didn’t make it easy.”
The silence between us felt sacred now—like it was holding space, not suffocating me.
“I was ashamed. I thought it was my fault. I thought people wouldn’t believe me if I said it out loud. So I didn’t. Not for a long time.”
Reed’s hand moved again, slow and reverent, tracing those soft circles on my hip like he was soothing each buried bruise.
“I moved in with Cam not long after my dad had taken a turn for the worse. When Tyler and I finally broke things off, I got a secret tiny butterfly tattoo right here.” I took his hand and guided his fingertips lower, letting them graze the ink just above myhipbone. “It was the first thing I did for myself. A symbol that I was finally free. What he did fucked me up for a long time, but I got through it thanks to my little found family.”
Reed didn’t speak. He didn’t need to. He just pressed a kiss to my temple and tucked me in closer.
“Are you okay now?” he asked quietly, voice like gravel and velvet.
