I wanted to ask him why and how he was here, but I couldn’t bring myself to. I was terrified of hearing an answer that would shatter this moment. And if this really was a dream, I didn’t want to wake up.
He seemed to have sensed the change in me without hearing a single word.
“I’m here, baby. That’s all that matters,” he whispered as he pulled me closer.
“Now go on. Sleep. I’ll always watch over you.”
He kissed my forehead and wrapped me in the warmest hug—the kind I had missed the most. His words worked like a spell. I curled up against him with tears slipping from my eyes as I slowly drifted to sleep.
“Valko!”
I jolted awake, heart racing, questioning if any of this dream had been real. I could still feel the warmth of his body, almost as though the marks he’d left on my skin still hadn’t faded. I rushed to the mirror and pulled down the collar of my top.
There it was, a faint pink patch on my neck where he had marked me, trailing down toward my breasts. I pinched myself a few times just to make sure I was truly awake and not still trapped in some cruel illusion. Even my panties were still damp from the hyperrealistic dream, something that hadn’t happened in a long time. I had even sworn not to touch myself since he had been gone.
My mind raced. Was I hallucinating? Was my longing finally playing tricks on me? For once, I forced my doubts aside, slipped into my robe, and stepped into the living room to investigate.
The air felt strange, cool and charged with a static that made my skin crawl. I noticed the balcony’s sliding door was slightly open. I hurried over, expecting someone to be there, but there was no one outside. The moon looked unusually bright, which only made me question things even more.
Panic tightened in my chest as something about the energy surrounding me felt ominous. I yanked the door shut, locked it, and took one last glance outside.
Something caught my eye. That is when I saw the mark on the glass. A huge handprint, and I knew exactly who it belonged to. I rushed toward it and pressed my palm against the glass, tracing the outline of the print with trembling fingers. For a second I swore the print on the other side shifted, even though no one was outside.
“Valko?” My voice trembled. “I know you’re there. Hang on a little longer, okay? Save your energy.”
I swallowed the lump in my throat, fighting back tears as I dared to hope that my suspicions were right.
I felt and saw three faint slow taps answer from the other side of the glass. Then the strange energy in the air faded, and everything went still again.
I sank to the floor and broke down, cried until my chest ached and until I had nothing left to hold back. I didn’t even know how much time had passed when I finally grew tired of crying.
I dragged myself up, poured a glass of water, and sat at the dining table, trying to make sense of everything.
I was sure now that my mind wasn’t playing tricks on me.
A flower sat on the table. A lily of the fucking valley. I snatched it up and inhaled its scent. Fresh and fragrant, just as it should be.
I must have looked like a madwoman as I cradled the flower, but I knew deep down he’d be back. I just don’t know when.
Whatever happened tonight, I could no longer dismiss it as a figment of my imagination. Perhaps it was proof that he’s still out there somehow, reaching for me, fighting the gaps between us to leave little signs and remind me I wasn’t alone.
This time though, I wouldn’t let anyone else tell me what to believe. I would trust my instincts, follow the signs, and figure things out for myself.
He was closer to coming home than I had ever dared to hope.
—
#ValkoIsLoved #BringValkoBack for fuck’s sake ‼️