Late night Promise

### **A Late-Night Promise**

The night air was crisp, carrying the faint scent of rain as Emma and Liam walked side by side through the quiet streets. The world around them felt different at this hour—slower, softer, as if they were the only two people left awake. Streetlights cast long shadows, and in the distance, the occasional sound of a passing car broke the silence.

Emma pulled her jacket tighter around her. “I can’t believe we lost track of time again,” she murmured, glancing at her phone. It was past midnight.

Liam chuckled. “It always happens with us. One minute, we’re talking about movies, and the next, we’re discussing the meaning of life.”

She smiled, nudging him playfully. “Well, you do have a way of turning everything into some deep conversation.”

“And you always listen,” he said, his voice softer now.

Emma looked at him then, his face partially hidden in the dim glow of the streetlights. She loved these moments—the way the night seemed to strip away all distractions, leaving only the two of them and their words. They had been dating for nearly a year, but it still felt like there was so much more to discover about each other.

As they reached the small park near her apartment, Liam stopped and took her hand. “Let’s sit for a bit,” he said, leading her to a bench beneath a large oak tree.

The city was silent around them. Emma leaned her head against Liam’s shoulder, feeling the warmth of him against the cool night air. “It’s nice like this,” she whispered. “Just us, no rush, no expectations.”

Liam hesitated before speaking. “Emma, have you ever thought about the future?”

She lifted her head, tilting it slightly. “What do you mean?”

He exhaled, running a hand through his hair. “I mean… us. Where we’ll be a year from now, five years from now.”

Emma’s heart skipped a beat. She hadn’t expected this conversation tonight, but maybe that was the magic of late-night talks—they led to things that daylight was too busy for.

“I think about it,” she admitted. “But the future is kind of scary, you know? What if things change?”

Liam nodded slowly. “Things will change. That’s life. But… I don’t want us to change in a way that pulls us apart.”

His words hung in the air between them, fragile and full of meaning. Emma felt her throat tighten. She had always been afraid of making promises she wasn’t sure she could keep. But with Liam, everything felt different.

“I don’t either,” she said softly. “I want us to keep talking like this, even years from now. I want us to always be… us.”

A small smile played on Liam’s lips. “Then let’s make a promise.”

Emma raised an eyebrow. “A promise?”

He took her hand, intertwining their fingers. “No matter what happens, no matter how much life changes, we’ll always make time for each other. Even if it’s just a late-night walk, like this.”

Emma looked at him, searching his face for any hint of doubt. But there was none. Just quiet certainty.

She squeezed his hand. “Okay,” she said. “I promise.”

For a moment, they just sat there, letting the weight of their words settle in. The city hummed faintly in the background, life continuing as it always did. But for Emma and Liam, this moment felt infinite.

Eventually, she leaned her head back against his shoulder. “You know,” she murmured, smiling to herself, “we’re probably going to lose track of time again.”

Liam chuckled, pressing a kiss to her forehead. “Good. That just means we’re doing something right.”

And as the night wrapped around them, two hearts beat in quiet harmony, bound by a simple promise—one that would carry them through whatever the future held.