Melody's POV
I folded the last of my clothes into the small suitcase, my fingers moving slower than necessary. The room was silent except for the soft scrape of hangers and the occasional zip of my bag. I hadn't lived here long, but somehow the four walls already held a collection of memories mostly chaotic, a few comforting. Mostly involving him.
As I reached for the last blouse on the chair, I heard the door click open behind me.
I didn't turn. I already knew who it was.
"You don't have to leave," Marvis said quietly.
I blinked and sighed, still facing the window. "I can't stay where I don't belong."
A moment passed. Then footsteps. Calm, steady.
He stopped right behind me, so close I could feel the warmth of his breath near my hair. "You belong wherever I am."
I turned slowly, words caught in my throat. His hand reached out, gently brushing a strand of hair away from my face. Then he leaned in and kissed my forehead softly. The kind of kiss that held everything he couldn't say.
I closed my eyes.
"You paid for my tuition," I whispered, barely able to speak the words.
"Yes," he replied simply.
"But why?"
He stepped closer. "Because I want you to finish what you started. Because I believe in you." His voice dropped lower. "Because I care, Melody."
My heart stuttered. I looked away, but his fingers found mine and held them.
Before I could pull back, he kissed the back of my hand slow and sure as if sealing a promise without needing to say it aloud.
"You're confusing me," I said, barely above a whisper.
"I know," he replied, with the smallest smile. "But I'm not playing games."
"Then what are we?" I asked, not daring to meet his eyes. "Because yesterday you avoided me, and the week before I hated you, and now-"
His finger tilted my chin up gently, urging my eyes to meet his. "Now, I'm here. And I'm not letting you leave without hearing the truth."
Then, without warning, he pressed a kiss to my cheek. Light, almost shy. Like a question and an answer at once.
I blinked at him, stunned. "What truth?"
He exhaled. "That you matter more than anything else right now. More than business. More than power. More than every plan I ever made before I met you."
My heart thudded painfully. "You're just saying that because you feel sorry for me."
He shook his head. "If I felt sorry for you, I would've let you walk out."
Then he kissed the tip of my nose a soft, unexpected gesture that made something flutter in my chest.
"I didn't come to you looking for love," I whispered, trying to sound stronger than I felt. "I came because I was broken. Because I wanted answers."
"And I didn't expect you to fix me either," he said, brushing his fingers along my jaw. "But here we are."
We stood in silence, the space between us barely there.
"I still want to go back to school," I said.
"Good," he answered.
"I still want to find out the truth about my family."
"I'll help you," he said, his tone steady.
"I'm still scared of what all of this means," I admitted.
"So am I."
Then he kissed the corner of my mouth, just a whisper of contact, and my breath caught. It wasn't rushed. It wasn't demanding. It was warm. Damn.
I pulled back slightly, unsure, but he didn't push. He just looked at me like I was something rare, something he didn't want to lose again.
"I'm still mad at you," I said, my voice shaking.
"I know," he said softly. "And I'll wait until you're not."
He touched my shoulder gently and leaned down again. This time, his lips found the spot just below my ear…a soft, lingering kiss that made my fingers tighten around the suitcase handle.
I let go of the bag.
"You make it so hard to walk away," I whispered, my heart pounding.
"Then stay," he said, his voice raw now. "Not because you owe me anything. Just stay… because you want to."
I stood there, torn between sense and feeling.
And then, slowly, I took a step toward him.
He pulled me into his arms gently, his hand resting at my waist. Our foreheads touched, breath mingling in the stillness. One last kiss, this one on my temple, melted whatever resistance I had left.
My hands gripped the front of his shirt. I buried my face into his chest and breathed him in. Familiar. Safe. Dangerous.
"Okay," I whispered. "I'll stay."