Page 146 of Try Line Hearts
Eli turned toward him fully, hands sliding into Lucas’s coat pockets and finding his fingers again, like they belonged there.
“Hey,” Eli said. “You don’t have to earn being loved.”
Lucas swallowed. His eyes burned.
“I know,” he said hoarsely. “It’s just—when you grow up with love as a condition, you start thinking warmth always comes with a price tag.”
Eli’s gaze didn’t waver. “My mum loves you because you love me. My dad respects you because you chose me in public. Kiri loves you because you’re an endless source of stress and she finds that entertaining.”
Lucas let out a choked laugh.
Eli’s mouth curved. “And I love you because you’re you. Not because you’re captain. Not because you did some dramatic thing once. Because you’re the man who still holds the door for old ladies and then panics if someone thanks him.”
“That’s not—” Lucas started.
“That’s exactly you,” Eli said.
Lucas stared at him, and something inside him loosened again, like it kept doing lately—like the universe was determined to pry him open with kindness until he stopped flinching.
“Alright,” Lucas whispered. “Okay.”
They began walking again, slower now.
Outside, the city moved around them—taxis gliding past, a couple stumbling toward a late-night bus stop, laughter echoing from somewhere down the street.
No one shouted or pointed or asked for a photo.
Sometimes that still surprised Lucas.
He’d thought being visible would feel like danger.
Sometimes it felt like… air.
They found the place Eli mentioned near the river—small, warm, windows fogged from bodies inside. The kind of late-night spot that served comfort food and didn’t ask questions. They ate in a corner booth, shoulders touching, sharing chips without speaking much.
Lucas watched Eli talk with his hands, watched the way he smiled at the waitress, watched the ease of him moving through the world as himself.
Lucas had spent so long thinking love had to be controlled to survive.
Eli loved like breathing. He finished his sentence winked at Lucas across the table.
“Hey,” Lucas said quietly.
Eli stopped, eyebrows lifting. “Yeah?”
Lucas took a breath. The words weren’t dramatic. They didn’t need to be.
“Thank you,” Lucas said. “For… not giving up on me.”
Eli’s gaze held his. “I didn’t not give up because I’m a saint,” he said. “I didn’t give up because I’m stubborn.”
Lucas huffed a soft laugh.
Eli leaned closer. “And because you did choose,” he added, gentler now. “You just took the scenic route.”
Lucas swallowed. “Yeah.”
Eli kissed his temple again, deliberate.
