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Short filmTranscript
00:00I'm halfway to the terrace doors when my vision blurs again. Not here, not now.
00:06I press my palm against the cool glass, willing myself invisible. The ballroom behind me glitters
00:12with champagne and cruelty. Every laugh feels like it's aimed at my back. I wore the red dress
00:19because Marcus said it made me look desperate. I wore it because I wanted to feel like someone
00:23else for one night. Someone who didn't flinch when her phone buzzed. Someone whose daughter
00:29wasn't asking why mommy cries in the bathroom, but desperation has a way of clinging to your
00:33skin no matter what you wear. Leaving so soon? The voice stops me cold, deep, controlled.
00:42The kind of voice that doesn't need volume to own a room. I don't turn around, can't. My mascara is
00:50already a disaster and I refuse to give this night one more piece of me to ruin. I'm fine, just need
00:56air. You're bleeding. That makes me look down. There's a thin line of red trailing from my palm
01:04where I gripped my champagne flute too hard. I didn't even feel it break. Story of my life,
01:10not noticing I'm hurt until someone points it out. I spin around, ready with some excuse,
01:16and the words die in my throat. He's tall, dark suit that probably costs more than my rent.
01:21Eyes like a threat you can't look away from. Gray, maybe blue, the kind that catalog everything about
01:28you in three seconds flat. There's a scar cutting through his left eyebrow, faint but there, and his
01:34hands are in his pockets like he has all the time in the world while I'm falling apart.
01:38I said I'm fine. My voice cracks anyway. Traitor. He doesn't move closer, but somehow the space
01:47between us shrinks. You're running from someone. It's not a question. I laugh, bitter and sharp.
01:55What gave it away? The tears? Or the fact I'm trying to escape through the garden exit? The way
02:01you keep looking over your shoulder? He tilts his head slightly, studying me like I'm a puzzle he's
02:06already solved. And the bruise on your wrist you tried to cover with that bracelet. My hand flies
02:12to my wrist instinctively, fingers closing over the delicate gold chain that hides absolutely nothing
02:18from someone who knows what to look for. Heat floods my face. Shame. Anger. Something worse.
02:26I don't know you. You don't get to. Dante Moretti. The name hits me like cold water. Everyone knows that
02:35name. You don't live in this city without hearing whispers about the Moretti family. About what they
02:41do. About what happens to people who cross them. I should run. Every instinct I have left screams at
02:49me to run, but I'm so tired of running. I need to leave. I whisper instead. My daughter's with a sitter
02:57and I promised I'd be home by ten and it's already... You have a daughter.
03:04Something in his expression shifts. Not softer exactly, but different. Like that detail matters
03:10more than it should. She's four. Her name's Lily. I don't know why I tell him this. Don't know why
03:17my voice steadies when I talk about her, like she's the only real thing left in my world.
03:21She drew me a picture today. A house with flowers and two people holding hands.
03:27She asked when we'd live somewhere with a garden. And you came here instead. The judgment in those
03:33words should make me defensive, but it doesn't. It makes me honest. Dangerously honest. I came here
03:41because my ex-boyfriend sent me an invitation with a note that said if I didn't show up, he'd tell
03:45everyone what I did. What I am. My laugh sounds broken. Joke's on him. I barely remember who I was
03:53before I became someone's mistake. Dante's jaw tightens. What did you do? I testified against him.
04:01Put him away for three years. The words tumble out faster now, like a confession I've been holding
04:07behind my teeth. He was dealing using our apartment as a stash house. I didn't know. I swear I didn't know.
04:14Until the night he came home covered in someone else's blood. I took Lily and ran. I thought the
04:20police would protect us. I thought doing the right thing meant we'd be safe. He got out. Two weeks
04:27ago. Good behavior. I wipe at my face, smearing whatever's left of my makeup. He's been following
04:34us, leaving notes. Last week, someone slashed my tires. Yesterday, Lily's preschool called saying a man
04:42tried to sign her out early, claiming to be her uncle. She doesn't have an uncle. The air between
04:48us changes. Charges. Dante takes one step closer, and I should back away, but I don't. Can't. There's
04:56something magnetic about the way he looks at me, like I'm not broken. Like I'm someone worth standing
05:01still for. Marcus Vega, he says, and it's not a question. That's who you're running from.
05:08My blood goes cold. How do you... He works for someone who works for someone who thought they
05:14could operate in my territory without permission. His voice drops lower, darker. I've been looking for
05:21a reason to handle that problem. Congratulations. You just became very interesting to me. I shake my
05:27head, backing up now. No, no. I don't want to be interesting to you. I want to disappear. I want my
05:34daughter to have a normal life where she doesn't learn to sleep with one eye open. Then you picked
05:39the wrong party to run from. He moves fast, faster than someone that size should move, and suddenly
05:45his hand is on my elbow, steadying me as my heel catches on the terrace step. The touch is firm, but
05:51careful. Controlled. Everything about him is controlled except for something burning behind
05:57those cold eyes. Let me go. I breathe. Not until you tell me the truth. He's close enough now that
06:04I can smell him. Cedar and something darker, expensive. Did he touch her? Your daughter.
06:11The question breaks something open inside me. No. God, no. But he threatened to. He said if I didn't
06:18come tonight, if I didn't apologize and beg him to take us back, he'd make sure I never saw her again.
06:23That he'd tell the courts I'm unfit. That he'd... My voice cracks completely. Dante's other hand comes
06:30up, thumb brushing away a tear on my cheek with surprising gentleness. You're not going back to
06:36him. I don't have a choice. There's always a choice. His smile is sharp enough to cut. You just
06:45haven't been offered the right options yet. My heart hammers against my ribs. What are you saying?
06:51I'm saying Marcus Vega made a mistake tonight. He brought you into my line of sight. Dante's fingers
06:58trail down to my jaw, tilting my face up so I can't look away. And I don't like men who threaten
07:04children. Or women who have the courage to stand in a room full of people who'd sell them out for a free
07:09drink. You don't know me. I know enough. His thumb traces my bottom lip, and I forget how to
07:16breathe. I know you're terrified, but you came anyway. I know you'd burn yourself to ash if it
07:24meant keeping your daughter warm. And I know that if I let you walk out those doors right now,
07:29you'll be dead by morning. The words should sound like exaggeration. They don't.
07:34So here's what's going to happen. His voice is silk over steel. You're going to take my hand.
07:41You're going to walk back through that ballroom like you own it. And you're going to let everyone
07:45see you leave with me. Why would I do that? His smile could start wars. Because Marcus Vega is
07:52watching us right now from the second floor balcony. And when he sees you under my protection,
07:57he'll know that touching you means going through me. I glance up. Sure enough, there he is.
08:03Marcus, with his cruel mouth and cold eyes, staring down at us with an expression that makes my stomach
08:08turn. When I look back at Dante, his hand is extended, waiting. This is insane. This is
08:16jumping from one fire into another. This man is dangerous in ways that Marcus could never dream
08:22of being. But when I think about Lily's drawing, that little house with flowers and two stick figures
08:28holding hands, something in me decides. I take his hand. His fingers close around mine, warm and sure.
08:37And just like that, the world tilts on its axis. What happens now? I whisper. Dante's smile is a
08:45promise and a threat. Now, Bella, you belong to me. Three days. That's how long we've been at the
08:53safe house, tucked away in the hills outside the city where the air smells like pine. And morning
08:57comes too bright through windows I can't cover. Dante says Marcus won't find us here. Says this place
09:04doesn't exist on any map, any deed, any record that matters. I want to believe him. Lily does.
09:11She's adapted the way kids do, with terrifying ease and zero questions I know how to answer.
09:16She's made friends with Dante's sister, Lucia, who visits every afternoon with her son, Marco.
09:23They chase each other through the sprawling garden while I watch from the kitchen window,
09:27my coffee going cold in my hands. I haven't slept in three days. You're going to make yourself sick.
09:35I don't turn around. Don't need to. I've learned the sound of Dante's footsteps. Measured,
09:41deliberate, the kind of walk that says he's never surprised by anything. I'm fine. You're exhausted.
09:48He moves closer. I can feel the heat of him at my back. When's the last time you ate something?
09:54I had toast this morning. That was yesterday morning. Was it? Time has this liquid quality here.
10:03Hours bleeding into each other, day and night losing meaning when you're waiting for the other shoe to
10:07drop. For Marcus to kick down the door. For this fragile piece to shatter. Dante's hand settles on
10:14my shoulder, firm but careful. Come sit. I made breakfast. You don't have to take care of us.
10:21The words come out sharper than I intend. We're not your responsibility. No. His voice drops lower.
10:29You're my choice. That distinction shouldn't matter. It does. I let him guide me to the table where he's
10:37laid out eggs, fruit, fresh bread from the bakery in town. It's too much. Too normal. Too close to the
10:44fantasy I stopped letting myself have years ago, someone who sees me struggling and simply helps.
10:51Eat, Dante orders, sliding a plate toward me. I pick up a fork because arguing takes energy I don't have.
10:58The eggs are perfect. Fluffy, seasoned, just right. Where'd you learn to cook? To my mother.
11:07Something crosses his face. There and gone. She insisted all her children know how to feed
11:12themselves. Said depending on others for basic needs makes you weak. Smart woman? Stubborn woman?
11:21His smile is small, private. You'd have liked her. The past tense sits heavy between us. I don't ask.
11:31Some wounds don't need prodding. We eat in silence for a while. Comfortable silence, which is worse
11:37somehow. Because I'm getting used to this. Used to him. Used to the way he moves through the kitchen
11:43like he belongs here. Like we belong here. Like this temporary arrangement could be something more.
11:48Tell me about Marcus. Dante's voice cuts through my thoughts. How you met. I set down my fork. Why?
11:59Because I need to understand what I'm dealing with. He leans back in his chair, those storm gray eyes
12:05cataloging every micro expression on my face. And because you need to say it out loud. He's right.
12:12I hate that he's right. I met him at a diner where I was waitressing. Lily was one, maybe 14 months.
12:18I was living in a studio apartment that cost too much and trying to finish my degree online between
12:24shifts. The memories taste bitter. He came in every Tuesday. Always left a huge tip. Always asked how
12:32my day was. Like he actually cared. He was hunting. I didn't know that then. I pushed food around my
12:39plate. He seemed safe. Stable. Had a real job. Or so I thought. After three months of Tuesday dinners,
12:46he asked me out properly. Took me to a nice restaurant. Paid for a babysitter. Treated
12:51me like I was worth something. Dante's jaw tightens, but he doesn't interrupt. Six months
12:56later, he moved in. Another six, and he was paying all the bills, said I should focus on
13:01school and Lily. I thought I'd won the lottery. My laugh sounds hollow. Turns out the only thing
13:08worse than struggling alone is realizing the help you accepted came with strings you can't
13:13see until they're wrapped around your throat. When did you know? That he was dealing? About a year
13:20in. Found a duffel bag full of pills and cash in our closet. I closed my eyes, seeing it again. The
13:27way my hands shook. The way my stomach dropped. He came home and found me staring at it. Didn't even
13:33try to lie. Just told me I had two choices. Keep my mouth shut and enjoy the benefits. Or leave with
13:39nothing and watch him tell child services I was an unfit mother. So you stayed. So I stayed.
13:47The shame of it still burns. For eight more months. Convinced myself I was protecting Lily by keeping
13:53the peace. Then one night he came home covered in blood. Someone else's blood. And I realized
13:59protection was just another word for cowardice. Dante reaches across the table, covers my hand with his.
14:05eyes. The touch grounds me. Steadies me. I grabbed Lily and ran. I continue. Went straight to the
14:13police. Testified at his trial. Thought that would be the end of it. I meet his eyes. You know the rest.
14:21I know he's a dead man. The certainty in his voice should scare me. Instead it settles something in my
14:26chest. Something desperate and vicious that wants Marcus to hurt the way he hurt us.
14:31What happens when he's gone? I ask quietly. What happens to us? That's up to you. Is it? I pull my
14:42hand back, needing distance to think clearly. You said I belong to you. That doesn't sound like I get a
14:48choice. Dante's smile is dangerous. I said you belong to me for protection. What you choose to do with that
14:56protection is entirely your decision. And if I choose to leave, then I'll make sure you have
15:01everything you need to disappear. New identity, new city, money to start over. He pauses. But I don't
15:09think that's what you want. My pulse kicks up. You don't know what I want. Don't I? He stands,
15:17moving around the table with that predatory grace that makes my breath catch.
15:21I think you want someone who sees you, really sees you, and doesn't run. Someone who looks at
15:27your daughter and sees a gift instead of a burden. Someone who makes you feel safe enough to fall
15:32apart because they'll catch you. He stops in front of me, close enough that I have to tilt my head
15:37back to meet his eyes. I think you want me, he says softly. And that terrifies you more than Marcus
15:44ever did. You're insane. But my voice shakes. Probably. His hand comes up, fingers threading
15:53through my hair. But I'm also right. I should move, should tell him this is a bad idea, that we're both
16:00damaged and dangerous and destined to destroy each other. But when he leans down, when his mouth hovers
16:06over mine for the second time in three days, I don't pull away. Tell me to stop, he whispers against my
16:13lips. I can't. Why not? Because you're right. The confession breaks something open inside me.
16:22Because I do want this. Want you. Even though it's insane and reckless and probably the worst decision
16:29I'll ever make. His smile is pure sin. Then stop fighting it. When he kisses me, it's not gentle.
16:38It's claiming. Desperate and hungry and inevitable. His hands frame my face, holding me like I'm
16:45something precious and breakable. And I kiss him back with three days of tension and fear and longing
16:50I've been trying to bury. This is wrong. This is trading one dangerous situation for another.
16:55This is the first time in years I've felt alive. Mommy! We break apart, breathing hard.
17:02Lily stands in the doorway, dirt on her knees and leaves in her hair, grinning like she's discovered
17:07buried treasure. Marco and I found a frog! She bounces on her toes. Can we keep it? Please?
17:15I press my hand to my racing heart, trying to remember how to be a mother instead of a woman
17:19who just kissed a mafia boss in his kitchen. Sweetheart, frogs need to live outside.
17:24We can build it a house, Lily insists. Dante, you'll help us, right? He looks at her with
17:31something soft and unguarded, and my heart does this painful flip. Of course. But the frog gets
17:39to decide if it wants to stay. That's fair. Lily nods seriously. Then she looks between us,
17:46her little face scrunched in thought. Were you kissing? Heat floods my cheeks.
17:52Lily. Lily. My friend Emma's mom kisses her boyfriend all the time. She shrugs, already
17:58losing interest. It's gross, but Emma says it means they love each other. Before I can
18:05formulate a response, she's gone, racing back outside to her frog and her new friend and
18:10her blissful ignorance of how complicated adults make everything. Out of the mouths of babes,
18:17Dante murmurs. I turn on him. Don't. Don't make this into something it's not.
18:24And what is it? A mistake. Adrenaline. Stockholm Syndrome, probably. I push past him, needing space,
18:33needing air. We're trapped here together, and I'm grateful for your help, but that doesn't mean
18:39that you have feelings for me. He follows me into the living room. That this thing between us is
18:46real? We barely know each other. I know you take your coffee with too much sugar and no cream.
18:54I know you check on Lily three times every night even though she's perfectly safe.
18:57I know you cry in the shower where you think no one can hear. His voice gentles. I know you're
19:05terrified of wanting something for yourself because every time you've wanted something,
19:09it's been taken away. The accuracy of it steals my breath. I'm not Marcus, Dante continues.
19:18I'm not going to manipulate you or trap you or make you small so I can feel big,
19:22but I'm also not going to pretend this doesn't exist. What if it's just proximity? What if the
19:28second Marcus is handled and we're safe? This all disappears. Then it disappears. He closes the
19:35distance between us. But what if it doesn't? What if this is real and rare and worth the risk?
19:42Before I can answer, his phone rings. He glances at the screen and his expression goes cold,
19:47that arctic look that comes before violence. I have to take this. He steps onto the terrace,
19:55voice dropping too low for me to hear. I sink onto the couch, trembling. Because he's right.
20:01This is real. And that's more terrifying than anything Marcus could do to me.
20:06Through the window, I watch Dante pace, his body language screaming tension. Something's wrong.
20:12Something's changed. When he comes back inside, his face is carved from stone.
20:16What is it? I'm on my feet immediately. Did they find Marcus? No. His voice is flat. Dead.
20:26Marcus found us. The world tilts. What? He's in the city. He has a photo of Lily playing in the garden.
20:35Taken yesterday. Dante's hands curl into fists. He knows where we are. My knees go weak. How?
20:41Someone in my organization gave him up. The fury in his voice could level buildings. Someone I trusted.
20:49We have to run. No. He grabs my shoulders. Running won't work anymore. He'll keep coming. Keep hunting.
20:57His eyes bore into mine. There's only one way to end this. What way? His smile is sharp enough to draw
21:04blood. I give him what he wants. Horror floods through me. No. Absolutely not. You can't.
21:12Not you. He cups my face. Thumb brushing my cheekbone. Me. I'm going to let him think he's
21:19won. That he can trade me for information about my operation. And when he gets close enough,
21:25he'll kill you. He'll try. Dante's voice is pure certainty.
21:30But I didn't survive this long by playing fair. My hands fist in his shirt. You can't do this.
21:37There has to be another way. There isn't. He kisses my forehead. Soft and final. This ends tomorrow.
21:46One way or another. Dante, promise me something. His voice cracks just slightly. If this goes wrong,
21:54if I don't make it back, promise me you'll take the money I've set aside and disappear.
21:59Take Lily somewhere beautiful and safe and never look back. Tears stream down my face.
22:06Don't ask me to promise that. Promise me. I... The words stick in my throat. Say it.
22:15His hands frame my face. Say you'll survive this. Say you'll give Lily the life she deserves.
22:20I promise. I promise. The words taste like ash. But you have to promise me something too.
22:28Anything. Come back. My voice breaks. Come back to us. Because I'm done running and I'm done being
22:37afraid and I'm done pretending I don't want this. Want you. So you have to come back.
22:41Look. His smile is devastating. I'll do everything in my power. Then he kisses me like it's the last
22:49time. Like he's memorizing the taste of me. Like he's saying goodbye. And I kiss him back like I
22:55can will him to survive through sheer force of wanting. When he pulls away, his eyes are wet.
23:01Tomorrow. Tomorrow. He whispers. This all ends tomorrow. I watch him walk away. Watch him
23:09disappear into his study to make his plans and prepare for war. And something inside me breaks
23:14clean in half. Because I finally found someone worth staying for. And tomorrow, I might lose him
23:21forever. Six months later. The house smells like vanilla and cinnamon. Lily's insistence that we bake
23:28cookies every Sunday. A tradition that started in those first shaky weeks when normal felt like
23:33something we had to practice. I stand at the kitchen counter, watching her through the window.
23:39She's in the garden, showing Marco how to plant tomatoes in the raised beds Dante built last month.
23:44Her laugh carries through the open door, bright and unbroken, the sound of a child who's forgotten what
23:50it means to be afraid. I'm still learning how. You're doing that thing again. I turn.
23:56Dante leans against the doorframe, arms crossed, a small smile playing at his lips. There's a new scar
24:03on his jaw. Thin. Barely visible unless you know to look for it. I know to look. I've traced it with
24:10my fingers in the dark, felt him flinch and then relax under my touch. What thing? I ask. Waiting for it
24:17all to fall apart. He moves toward me, unhurried. We have time now. We have time. Checking the exits.
24:24Planning your escape route. He's right. Even now, even here, part of me still expects Marcus to appear.
24:32Expects the past to claw its way back and destroy this fragile thing we've built.
24:36But Marcus is gone. Not dead. Dante made sure I understood that distinction.
24:42Alive. But buried so deep in the system he'll never see daylight again.
24:47Charges that will keep him locked away for decades. Evidence that materialized from nowhere.
24:53Testimonies from people who suddenly remembered what they'd seen.
24:57That day. The day Dante walked into Marcus's trap. Plays on repeat in my nightmares.
25:02The hours I spent at the safe house. Pacing. Praying. Bargaining with a god I'd stopped believing in.
25:10Lily asking why I kept crying. Me lying. Saying I had something in my eye.
25:15Then Dante's car pulling up the drive at sunset. Him stepping out. Bloodied but alive.
25:21Whole enough to catch me when I ran to him. The way he held me while I sobbed into his chest.
25:26Soaking his shirt with relief and terror. And something bigger than both.
25:30I came back. He'd whispered against my hair.
25:35I promised you I'd come back.
25:38Stop it. Dante's voice pulls me back to now.
25:43His hands frame my face. Thumbs brushing away tears I didn't realize I was crying.
25:48I'm here. You're safe. Lily's safe. Marcus is gone.
25:53I know. My voice breaks. I know that.
25:57But sometimes I wake up and think this is the dream.
26:00That I'll open my eyes and I'll be back in that apartment, waiting for him to come home.
26:05Wondering which version of him I'll get.
26:08Look at me.
26:09He waits until I do.
26:12This is real.
26:13The house is real.
26:15Lily laughing in the garden is real.
26:18What we have.
26:19This is real.
26:19I want to believe him.
26:22Most days I do.
26:24Tell me again.
26:26I whisper.
26:27Tell me how it ended.
26:30He's told me a dozen times, but I need to hear it.
26:33Need the confirmation that it's really over.
26:36Dante sighs, but he doesn't refuse.
26:38I met him at the warehouse.
26:42Let him think he had the upper hand.
26:44That he could trade me for information.
26:46He brought six men.
26:48I brought twelve.
26:50And?
26:51And when he realized he'd been played, he tried to run.
26:54Got as far as the parking lot before my people stopped him.
26:57His jaw tightens.
26:59I could have killed him.
27:00Part of me wanted to.
27:02But I thought about you.
27:03About Lily.
27:04About how you'd chosen to do the right thing even when it cost you everything.
27:09My throat closes up.
27:11So I did the right thing too, Dante continues.
27:15Called some friends in the FBI.
27:18Turned over everything I had on his operation.
27:21Names.
27:22Locations.
27:23Evidence of every crime he'd committed for the past five years.
27:27Let the system handle him the way it should have the first time.
27:31Why?
27:32I ask, even though I've asked before.
27:34Why risk letting him live?
27:37Because you deserved better than becoming someone who's loved by a murderer.
27:41His voice gentles.
27:43Because Lily deserved to grow up knowing her mother chose justice over revenge.
27:48And because I'm trying to be the kind of man who deserves you.
27:51The words crack me open every time.
27:54You already are, I tell him.
27:56You saved us.
27:58You saved yourself.
28:00He kisses my forehead.
28:01I just gave you a safe place to land.
28:04The sound of children's laughter drifts through the window.
28:07Marco's teaching Lily some complicated handshake.
28:10Both of them dissolving into giggles when they mess up the sequence.
28:13Dante's arms circle my waist from behind, pulling me back against his chest.
28:28You gave her courage and resilience and unconditional love.
28:32The rest is just details.
28:34I turn in his arms, looking up at him.
28:37There are still shadows under his eyes.
28:40The weight of the choices he's made.
28:42The life he's led.
28:43But there's light there, too.
28:45Light that wasn't there six months ago.
28:47Do you regret it?
28:49I ask, walking away from that life, choosing this instead.
28:54After Marcus, Dante restructured everything, stepped back from the parts of his business that kept him in the dark.
29:00Not perfect.
29:01He'll never be perfect.
29:02But better.
29:04Cleaner.
29:04The kind of life where Lily can know what he does without learning to fear him.
29:09Not for a second.
29:11His smile is soft.
29:13Real.
29:14I spent 35 years building an empire I didn't care about.
29:18Then you walked into my life and gave me something worth protecting.
29:22I didn't walk.
29:24I correct.
29:25I ran.
29:25Crying.
29:26In a red dress and broken heels.
29:29Semantics.
29:30His thumb traces my bottom lip.
29:33The point is, you trusted me when you had every reason not to.
29:37You let me in when the smart thing would have been to run as far from me as possible.
29:41Maybe I'm not that smart.
29:43Maybe you're braver than you know.
29:46The kitchen timer beeps.
29:48Cookie dough.
29:48Ready to be baked.
29:50Lily will want to help.
29:51Will insist on making at least three shapes that don't exist in nature and covering everything in sprinkles.
29:57But for a moment, I let myself just be here.
30:00In Dante's arms.
30:02In this house we chose together.
30:04In this life that still feels like something I might wake up from.
30:08I love you.
30:10I say.
30:11Not for the first time, but it still feels new.
30:14Still feels like something I'm learning to say.
30:17Without fear.
30:18His eyes go soft.
30:21Say it again.
30:22I love you.
30:24Stronger now.
30:26Surer.
30:26Even though you're bossy and overprotective and you reorganized my entire kitchen without asking.
30:33The spices were in complete chaos.
30:36I love you.
30:37I continue.
30:38Because you see Lily and me as a package deal.
30:41Because you built her a treehouse even though you're terrified of heights.
30:45Because you wake up at 3 a.m. when I have nightmares and hold me until I remember where I am.
30:50His forehead drops to mine.
30:52I love you because you're fierce and terrified and doing it anyway.
30:57Because you make me want to be better than what I was.
31:00Because you and Lily walked into my life and made me realize I'd been living in a house instead of a home.
31:06Dante, marry me.
31:07The words hang between us, impossible and perfect.
31:12I pull back to look at him, searching his face for the joke.
31:16There isn't one.
31:17He's serious.
31:19Completely devastatingly serious.
31:22That's not a proposal, I manage.
31:25That's a demand.
31:27Fine.
31:28He reaches into his pocket, pulls out a small velvet box.
31:32Marry me, please.
31:33Make this official.
31:35Let me be Lily's father in every way that counts.
31:37Let me spend the rest of my life proving that you didn't make a mistake when you took my hand that night.
31:43My hands shake as he opens the box.
31:46The ring inside is simple.
31:48A single stone.
31:49Elegant and understated.
31:51Nothing like the massive diamond Marcus used to promise me.
31:55The one I returned the day I testified.
31:57This is real.
31:59This is mine.
32:00I'm still scared, I whisper.
32:03I'm still broken in places I don't know how to fix.
32:06So am I.
32:08He takes my hand.
32:10Slides the ring on.
32:12It fits perfectly.
32:14But maybe we can be broken together.
32:16Maybe that's enough.
32:19Through the window, Lily shrieks with delight over something Marco showed her.
32:23The sound pulls at my heart.
32:25Proof that we survived.
32:27Proof that choosing hope over fear was the right call.
32:29Yes, I breathe.
32:33Yes, I'll marry you.
32:35His kiss tastes like coming home.
32:37When we break apart, Lily's standing in the doorway, covered in dirt and grinning.
32:42Are you kissing again?
32:44Gross.
32:46Get used to it, Dante tells her, scooping her up even though she's muddy.
32:51I'm going to be kissing your mom a lot.
32:53Does that mean you're going to be my dad?
32:56She asks it so simply, like it's the most obvious question in the world.
33:01Dante's voice goes thick.
33:03If you'll have me.
33:05Lily considers this with all the seriousness a four-year-old can muster.
33:08Then she throws her arms around his neck.
33:11Okay, but you have to help me with the frog house.
33:14The first one didn't work.
33:16Deal.
33:16I watch them, my daughter and the man who chose us, who fought for us, who became the
33:22family we needed, and something in my chest finally unclenches.
33:27This isn't the life I planned.
33:29It's better.
33:31Messier and harder and more complicated than any fantasy I used to let myself have.
33:36But it's ours.
33:38Built on honesty and second chances, and the kind of love that doesn't fix everything
33:43but makes the broken parts bearable.
33:46Mommy, the cookies!
33:48Lily wiggles free from Dante's arms.
33:50We need to bake them now.
33:52Right.
33:53Cookies.
33:54I move to the counter, pulling out the dough.
33:56Who wants to be in charge of sprinkles?
33:59Me!
34:00Lily bounces.
34:01Can Marco come help?
34:03Of course.
34:04She races back outside to get him, leaving me and Dante alone again.
34:09I say quietly.
34:11For what?
34:11For that night at the party.
34:14For not letting me run.
34:16For seeing something in me worth saving.
34:18He pulls me close.
34:20Kisses my temple.
34:22You were always worth saving.
34:24I just reminded you that you were worth fighting for, too.
34:28Through the window, I watch Lily and Marco race back toward the house, laughing and carefree
34:33and safe.
34:33This is what healing looks like.
34:35Not perfect.
34:37Not without scars.
34:39But whole in the ways that matter.
34:42I lean into Dante, breathing in cedar and coffee and home, and let myself believe it.
34:47This is real.
34:48This is mine.
34:50This is the life I almost didn't live.
34:53And it's more than enough.
34:54If this story hit you right in the feels, don't keep it to yourself.
34:59Like if you're Team Dante, or Team She Deserved Better and Got It, subscribe so you never miss
35:04when I drop the next emotional rollercoaster comment below and tell me,
35:08Would you have taken his hand at that party?
35:10Be honest.
35:11I want all the thoughts.
35:13Share this with someone who loves a good mafia romance with actual healing.
35:17We love growth, people.
35:18Your support means everything, and helps me keep writing stories about messy, beautiful second chances.
35:24What did you think of Lily and Dante's relationship?
35:27That frog house conversation?
35:29The proposal?
35:30Tell me everything.
35:31I live for your reactions.
35:33See you in the next story.
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