In the beginning, there was the Stormy Mountain, the Great Tree, the Everflowing Waterfall, and the Eternal Flame.

I don’t know if you realize how much it means that at the end of the night, I come home to you.

Is it brave to tremble, and be out of breath? Is it brave to be afraid?

No, it can’t be.

Do you know what that does to me? You can’t. No. Mismatched libido means you don't understand the way desire crawls across my skin on the daily. You don't understand that you deny me with your thoughtlessness. You don't think it cruel.

A car accident from 4 different perspectives.

We haven’t spoken in an hour, not since we stopped yelling. We’ve cooled off, and we’ll talk at length tomorrow, but right now neither of us want to be alone in the silence of the night.

Not every soldier gets to come home, not really.

Warning: This story contains mature topics such as PTSD and violence that soldiers can experience when deployed.

“Mom always said to get me a man that can cook.” He says. I raise my eyebrows as I look down at him, “okay,” he confesses, “maybe not directly to me, but I listened when she told my sisters,”

“Are we celebrating?” they say, and I can’t help but to smile into their skin.

In this moment, nothing matters but the breath that sustains you.