The sun dipped low over Maple Hollow, brushing the town in soft shades of gold and rose. The air carried the scent of autumn — leaves, warmth, and the faint sweetness from Hannah's café still lingering through the open windows.
Emma and Hannah walked home from the park slowly, as if neither wanted the day to end. Their hands were still intertwined, and their laughter came easily, light and genuine, blending into the evening air.
When they reached Hannah's porch, the sky had deepened into twilight. The light flickered across their faces, gentle and familiar. For a long moment, they simply stood there, watching the horizon fade.
"I don't want this to end," Emma said softly.
Hannah smiled, brushing a strand of hair from her face. "It's not ending. It's just changing."
Emma's eyes softened. "Then whatever comes next… I want it with you."
Hannah took her hand again, her voice quiet but certain. "You already have it. Every piece of me."
They leaned together, foreheads touching, the quiet around them full of promise — not of perfection, but of something real, lasting, and deeply theirs.
When Emma finally pulled back, her smile trembled between tears and joy. "You know, the light here—it never really fades. It just softens."
Hannah's thumb brushed along her cheek. "That's because it stays with us."
They stood in the doorway, wrapped in the soft hum of evening, the golden hour lingering a little longer than it should — as if even the day itself wasn't ready to say goodbye.
And as the first stars appeared above the rooftops, their laughter carried out into the quiet streets of Maple Hollow — a sound that felt like home, like a beginning disguised as an ending.