that neither of us is scared. Of course he never has exhibited typical scared behavior when I thought he might, all those months when I was in his face trying to get his attention, and now, well… So there are all these declarations – soulmate here, L-word there – which should make me nervous, and yet… I believe him. First of all he knows it’s early and he might be getting ahead of himself. Second of all, I can tell that he gets me, that he sees just who I am, that there’s not some fantasy-Cloudberry of his creation standing between him and me, so it makes sense, and I can feel, suddenly, sure enough of myself and my worthiness to believe that what he is telling me is just the truth.

We deserve this.