Free Falling Sky by Lisa Swallow Page A

want me to buy things, but I have a lot you can borrow…”
    “Not my flat,” I interrupt. “Everything! Everything’s a mess! Look at my life! I’ve lost everything this year! I have nothing!”
    I clamp my mouth shut, aware of the sob fighting its way out of my throat. I can’t let this out and have him see me like this, but the dam against my emotions cracks a little every day. It doesn’t help when Dylan shuffles toward me on the sofa and takes my hand.
    “You have me, Sky. I’ll always be here when you need me, I won’t leave you again.”
    The dam breaks, and ugly sobs escape as tears flow. I hate crying in front of people, but I can’t hold this together anymore. “I’m sorry,” I hiccup though the noise.
    “Sky, I said you don’t have to be strong all the time. I’m here; I’ll catch you tonight and you let out what you need. Tomorrow, you can be strong again.” He rubs my cheek with his palm, wiping away tears. I rest my face against his, allowing myself to take comfort from him as the tears flow. He’s gazing at me with concern, and I’m sure my red face and snotty nose must look delightful.
    “Don’t hurt. I don’t want you to hurt.” Dylan wraps his arms around me and pulls me closer, squashing my face into his chest. With no jacket in the way, I inhale the comfort of my Dylan and feel his warmth through the thin material. The combination of his strong arms and words releases the control I’ve held.
    Dylan holds me silently, as I sob the last five months into his chest. The end of Grant and my old life, the limbo I’m stuck in, and the final kick of my safe place gone. And Dylan. Meeting him, resisting him, and at the point I was giving myself to him, he was torn away from me. The pain of the weeks after, built on top of the aching loss of my old life in the weeks before. I’m defeated; I don’t have the energy anymore.
    The tears ebb, and Dylan tips my face toward his, long fingers under my chin. Everything is stripped away now, back to a rawness of souls who share an understanding in each other’s eyes. Dylan places his mouth on mine; lips soft at first until I kiss him back, holding his head against my warm tears. The moment Dylan kissed me on the beach all those months ago and the reuniting kiss in the car earlier are nothing compared to this. His kiss reaches into the empty spaces inside and fills that emptiness, as if consuming the darkness. The reason for the pain of separation from Dylan makes sense, as the light missing from my world re-ignites in this moment.
    I’m in Dylan’s world again, our world. The hurt and confused Sky pushed away her memories of how melded we were and how the unity of our hearts and souls changed our lives forever. This is why. With Dylan, love becomes a different concept. Not hearts and flowers, or lust and need, but the unexplained, frightening place, two people go and are lost together. Love has become a word that can never express the reality of the universe crashing around yet holding us together.

Chapter Nine

    Sky

    The low drone of the TV pulls me back to consciousness, and I shift against the strong chest of the man holding me. Dylan’s asleep too, arms loosely wound around my waist, head resting against mine.
    The early sun filters through a gap in the long blinds opposite. My chest and stomach ache from the release of my emotions, Dylan’s presence comforting and worrying at the same time.
    Sitting forward, I pick up the TV remote and flick to find the time.
    “What time is it?” asks Dylan’s sleepy voice.
    “Six. Last I looked 2am.”
    He groans and I turn to look at him. He’s bleary-eyed; his expression confused. “That’s still the night before.”
    “For some of us.”
    “Are you okay?” he asks, placing a hand on my arm.
    “A little better. Thanks for listening.”
    Dylan cups my chin. ”I meant what I said, Sky. Whatever happens between us, I’ll always be here for you. However far you fall, I’ll catch