"It's hearing your laugh after the hardest day of my life and feeling like everything is going to be okay. It's realizing that all the success in the world means nothing if I can't share it with you. It's protecting you... not because I have to, but because loving you makes it impossible not to."
He leaned in closer, his breath ghosting over Adrian's lips. "You became my peace. My home. My family. My safest place. My reason to believe tomorrow could be better than yesterday. And if I had to live my entire life all over again... I'd still spend every lifetime searching for you."
Adrian finally broke. A sob tore from his throat, and tears poured freely down his cheeks as he covered his mouth with one trembling hand.
Matteo smiled through his own tears. "Baby... look at the sky."
The moment Adrian tilted his head upward, the soft music surrounding them slowly faded into nothing.
