Chapter 34: The Confession
The fairy lights glowed softly above them, casting warm shadows across the courtyard.
Lucia stood with her hands clasped in front of her, suddenly very aware of how quiet everything had become. The laughter from earlier was gone. The friends were gone. Even the city noise seemed distant, like Brooklyn itself had stepped back to give them space.
Jin shifted slightly, shoving his hands into his jacket pockets, then pulling them out again like he didn't know where to put them.
"So," he said, clearing his throat. "This is… unexpected."
Lucia smiled. "That's one way to put it."
They shared a small laugh, the kind that eased nerves but didn't fully chase them away.
For a moment, neither spoke.
Lucia could feel something building in her chest—not panic, not fear, but anticipation. Like standing at the edge of something important and knowing there was no turning back.
"I kept thinking about the first note," Jin said suddenly.
Lucia looked at him. "The one under my door?"
He nodded. "I almost didn't leave it. I thought it might be weird."
She smiled softly. "It wasn't."
"I'm glad," he said. "Because after that, I couldn't stop."
Lucia tilted her head. "You're saying the grape notes were an accident?"
He laughed quietly. "No. They were a choice. Every single one."
Her heart skipped.
They took a few steps closer, still leaving space between them, like they both wanted to be careful with what this moment was becoming.
"I didn't notice it at first," Lucia admitted. "How much those notes meant to me."
Jin raised an eyebrow. "Really?"
She nodded. "I was used to big promises. Big words. Big disappointments." She paused. "Your notes were small, but they stayed."
His expression softened.
"That was the idea," he said gently. "I always believed that love grows the same way habits do. Slowly. Quietly. Through consistency."
Lucia let out a slow breath.
"That scared me," she said honestly. "Because it felt real."
Jin's lips curved into a small, understanding smile. "It scared me too."
They stood under the lights, the glow catching in his eyes, making him look both nervous and hopeful.
"I didn't want to rush you," he continued. "I didn't want to turn something gentle into something heavy."
Lucia took another step closer.
"You didn't," she said. "You gave me room. And somehow… that made me want to step closer on my own."
Jin's breath hitched slightly.
"Lucia," he said, her name softer now.
She looked up at him, really looked at him. The familiar face. The steady presence. The man who showed up in quiet ways.
"I kept telling myself we were just friends," she said. "That this was just comfort. Just timing."
"And now?" he asked.
"And now," she said, smiling nervously, "I miss you when you're not around. I reread your notes. I look for you before I realize I'm doing it."
His smile grew, slow and genuine.
"That sounds a lot like falling," he said.
She laughed softly. "Yeah. It does."
Silence stretched between them, not awkward, just full.
Jin took a deep breath.
"I like you," he said finally. "Not in a dramatic way. Not in a movie-scene kind of way." He paused. "I like you in a quiet-morning, shared-snacks, checking-in kind of way."
Lucia's chest tightened.
"I like you too," she replied. "In a stay-longer-than-planned, feel-safe-being-myself way."
They both smiled, shy and relieved at the same time.
"So," Jin said carefully, "what does that mean?"
Lucia thought about it.
About expectations. About pressure. About how easy this felt when she stopped overthinking it.
"It means," she said slowly, "we don't rush. We don't pretend. We just keep choosing each other."
His eyes lit up. "One grape at a time?"
She laughed. "Exactly."
They stood there, closer now, close enough to feel each other's warmth, but neither moved further. There was no need.
This wasn't about a moment.
It was about what came after.
Jin reached into his pocket and pulled out a small folded paper.
Lucia raised an eyebrow. "Another note?"
"Old habits," he said sheepishly. "I wrote it earlier, just in case."
She unfolded it.
No matter where this goes,I'm glad I met you.And I'm glad I didn't rush past something real.
Lucia looked up at him, eyes shining.
"I'm glad too," she said.
The fairy lights flickered gently above them as they stood together, smiling, hearts steady, feelings finally spoken.
Not loudly.
But honestly.