kavinskysjoseph:

BOOKS MEME | (3/9) nine otps.
→ Penryn Young and Raphael from Penryn & the End of Days by Susan Ee.

He pulls me into his arms and holds me tight.
He is the one pocket of warmth in a sea of ice. Being in his arms feels like the home I never had. He’s still panting his laugh that rumbles through his chest. My chest moves with his, making me smile.
But somewhere along the way, the mood changes. He keeps going, his chest convulsing in spasms that sound a lot like a weak laugh but isn’t. He holds me so tight that if an army of scorpions came and tried to drag me out of his arms, they wouldn’t be able to.
I stroke his hair and repeat the words of comfort he whispered to me the last time we were together. “Shhh,” I say. “I’m here. I’m right here.”
He’s as warm as the afternoon sun on a summer day.