｡𖦹°‧ 𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐜𝐨𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐧' 𝐯𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐚 𝐬𝐰𝐢𝐫𝐥 ⭑°‧꩜ .ᐟ

( 44. 'future' )

WALKER & ARIELLA sat on the hood of his car, parked at the edge of an overlook, the distant lights of the town flickering below them.

ariella leaned back on her hands, tilting her head to look at the sky. "the stars always look better out here," she mused.

walker glanced over at her, his knee bouncing slightly, a habit he had whenever something was on his mind. "yeah," he murmured, though his gaze wasn't on the sky—it was on her.

she noticed. "what?"

he hesitated, then exhaled a quiet laugh. "nothing. just thinking."

ariella nudged his leg with her foot. "thinking about what?"

walker was quiet for a moment, then finally said, "the future, i guess."

the words hung between them—gentle but heavy.

ariella's heart gave a little jump. "oh," she said softly.

walker smiled at her reaction, his thumb absentmindedly tracing circles on his knee. "not in a weird way," he added quickly. "just... you know. wondering where we'll be. where we want to be."

ariella studied him for a moment, then shifted so she was facing him fully, her knee brushing against his. "okay," she said. "where do you see yourself in a year?"

walker huffed a small laugh, rubbing the back of his neck. "a year?"

"yeah. a year from now. "

he thought about it—actually thought about it—before answering. "hopefully... still here. with you." his voice was steady.

ariella's chest tightened, not in a bad way, but in that overwhelming, heart-is-too-full kind of way. "with me," she repeated softly.

walker smiled. "yeah. with you."

her heart thudded against her ribs, but she kept her voice light. "you're making this sound like i'm just a part of your plan now."

walker didn't hesitate. "you are."

ariella blinked. she hadn't expected that—not so simply, not so easily.

he continued, his voice softer now. "i don't want to talk about the future like you're not in it, because... you are. at least, i want you to be."

ariella swallowed the lump rising in her throat. "i want to be," she whispered.

for a few seconds, they just sat there, staring at each other like the whole world had shrunk down to this one moment, this one conversation.

then ariella cleared her throat. "okay, so... a year from now, you're here. with me. what about two years?"

walker chuckled. "wow, you're really making me plan ahead."

"go idiot"

he leaned back, thinking. "two years..." his voice grew quieter, more thoughtful. "well be likeeee 18, 19 sooo maybe we have an apartment of our own?."

ariella smiled. "and a cat."

walker grinned. "definitely a cat."

walker nodded slowly, then added, "and maybe... maybe we're not just talking about where we're gonna live. maybe we're talking about what comes next."

ariella's heart fluttered again. "what comes next?" she echoed, almost afraid to ask.

walker met her gaze, his voice steady but sincere. "yeah. like... what we want for the long haul. what we both want."

ariella bit her bottom lip, a nervous but excited energy bubbling inside her. "and what do you want, walkie?"

he reached over, taking her hand in his. "i want you."

silence.

then a small, breathless laugh escaped ariella. "that's it? just me?"

walker grinned. "isn't that enough?"

ariella shook her head, smiling so wide it almost hurt. "you're funny."

"but serious," he added, his thumb tracing slow circles on the back of her hand. "i don't know exactly where life's gonna take me, but i know i want you there."

ariella didn't realize how hard she was gripping his hand until he gently shifted his fingers, interlocking them with hers.

she exhaled softly. "i want that too," she finally said. "i want you there—wherever 'there' is."

walker's smile was the kind that started slow but took over his whole face, and ariella couldn't help but match it.

for some time, they just sat there, hands entwined, the night stretching out before them—full of questions, full of possibilities, but most importantly, full of each other.

and for now, that was more than enough.