Chapter 24: Splinters & Stardust
The room still smelled like sun-warmed skin and secrets.
Nova woke first, Bea's breath slow against her shoulder, one arm thrown lazily over her waist. For a moment, she didn't move. She just watched the soft rise and fall of the woman who had changed everything.
But the day was already creeping in—through the cracks, through the broken places.
Nova slipped out of bed and walked barefoot to the window.
Outside, the world looked the same. But inside her? Nothing was untouched.
---
The Splinters
Later that day, they worked in silence—cleaning debris from the storm. A broken panel. A shattered frame. The house, though still standing, bore its wounds.
Just like them.
Nova scraped her knuckles on a nail. Blood beaded. She hissed softly.
Bea was there in a second. "Let me see."
Nova didn't flinch when Bea kissed the small cut.
"You always run to my pain," Nova whispered.
Bea met her eyes. "Because I want to be where you hurt. I want to be part of the healing."
Nova leaned into her, forehead to forehead. "Then don't just be the cure. Be my constant."
Bea smiled. "Only if you promise the same."
---
The Stardust
That night, they couldn't sleep.
The stars were too loud.
They climbed onto the roof—barefoot, wrapped in a shared blanket. Nova's hair was still damp from her evening bath. Bea's voice was quieter than usual.
"Do you ever think we're too broken?" Bea asked.
Nova shook her head. "I think we're already shining. We just don't know it yet."
Bea laughed gently. "You sound like poetry."
"I feel like poetry when I'm with you."
They lay back, watching the sky.
One star shot across the heavens, slicing darkness.
Nova turned to Bea. "What did you wish for?"
Bea whispered, "You. Over and over. In every lifetime."
---
End of Chapter 24