“I love you.” He froze, his back to me. Swallowing the lump in my throat, I doubled down. “I love you.” He was completely still, save for a muscle jumping in his neck. Slowly, he turned to face me, his expression a kaleidoscope of emotions I couldn’t decipher.

“No you don’t.” He shook his head, ran his hands through his hair. Turned away from me again, then turned back. I couldn’t take my eyes off him, couldn’t tear my gaze from his. I’d finally told him the truth and I felt free. Terrified, but free.

“Yes, I do. And I knew I’d regret it if I didn’t say it right now. I love you. I always have, and I fear I always will.”

“What do you expect me to say to that, Lexi?”

“I don’t expect you to say anything. I just needed to tell you.”

“You don’t love me. You can’t. I can’t -“ His expression had grown distressed. Suddenly he stepped forward, gripping my upper arms tightly, his expression earnest. “Lexi, you can’t love me.” He shook me then, as if trying to wake me up. “It’s not safe, I’m not safe.” I kept my eyes locked on his as he shook me again. “You can’t…”

“I do, and nothing you say can change that. Radical acceptance, remember? We must accept all that we cannot control. Including other people’s feelings. Even if they scare us.”

“But radical acceptance doesn’t mean we don’t have a choice. You can choose to let this go. You can choose to forget about me.” There was a war going on in him - I could see it in his eyes.

“No, I can’t. Loving you is as natural as the air we breathe. Nothing I can do to change it.”