Sempre: Redemption by J. M. Darhower Page B

barren, the leaves long gone as winter settled in, but the thick branches were as sturdy as ever.
    “Is this necessary?” Haven asked as she started climbing the tree. “Couldn’t we have gone out the door?”
    “We could’ve,” Carmine said, jumping down to the ground, “but where’s the fun in that?”
    Haven managed to scale the first few obstacles easily, but her foot slipped when she neared the bottom of the tree. She lost her grip on the branch and screeched, closing her eyes when she started to fall. She braced herself for sudden impact, but Carmine reacted quickly. He grabbed her, attempting to gracefully catch her, but the blow knocked them both down.
    Carmine groaned as the air was brutally forced from his lungs. Haven pulled away from him, rolling over. The frozen earth felt like solid concrete against her back. “That was sure . . . fun .”
    “Yeah, I didn’t think that shit through,” Carmine said, standing up. He brushed at his clothes before grabbing Haven’s hand and pulling her to her feet. “Maybe we should’ve just used the damn door.”
    The cold night air felt like pins and needles, stabbing against Haven’s flushed face, but she smiled regardless as she took in her surroundings. The flakes were starting to settle on the ground, dotting the lifeless grass with small patches of white. Thick clouds covered the sky, blocking the stars from view, but the vibrant moon continued to shine through. There were no animals or birds out at that hour, no fireflies flickering in the night—no sign of life except for the two of them.
    It was as if they were alone in the world, and as terrifying as that was to Haven—the thought of nothing else existing anymore—she felt secure knowing at least he was still out there.
    She took a few steps out into the yard, glancing up into the sky as snow rained down on her. Wetness hit her skin, coldness seeping through her clothes. A chill ran through her body as she closed her eyes and opened her mouth, capturing some of the bland flakes on her tongue.
    Despite the fact that it was bitterly cold, warmth spread through her.
    Haven opened her eyes and peeked over at Carmine to find him staring at her. Flakes stuck to his thick, dark locks, and she reached up, running her fingers through his hair to wipe them away.
    “You’re beautiful, tesoro ,” he said quietly.
    Heat rose to her cheeks at his words. “Such a charmer.”
    “Run away with me,” he continued, leaning down to softly kiss her lips. “We can disappear before the sun comes up.”
    Pressing her hand against his chest, she pushed away from Carmine with a laugh. “We can’t run away.”
    He sighed. “It’s a nice dream, though, isn’t it?”
    “I don’t know how nice it would be,” she replied. “How would we ever feel safe if we constantly had to watch our backs? I don’t want to run from anything anymore. I’m tired of running. I want to be able to walk away, just stroll away somewhere together, hand in hand, nothing else mattering. I want to stand at an intersection and choose which way to go without having to worry about what happens if it leads us somewhere someone else doesn’t want us to be. Now that’s a nice dream.”
    “Yeah, you’re right,” he said, still staring at her. “Beautiful and smart.”
    She timidly ducked her head, peering at the ground as her blush deepened. She started kicking around at the small accumulation, her toe digging into the frozen dirt. “Does it snow a lot in Chicago?”
    Carmine was quiet for a moment. She glanced back at him, seeing he wasn’t watching her anymore. He stared off into the distance, a dazed look on his face. “Too much,” he said eventually. “I like snow and all, but they get blizzards. I’m not looking forward to it.”
    “But think of all the snowmen and snow angels and the snowball fights.”
    His lips curved into a smile, but she could see the sadness back in his eyes. She felt guilty for bringing up Chicago, not