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Completely lost in my thoughts, I stared out into the gloomy night, taking great pleasure in the many twinkling stars that made the black sky that night very special.

The soft, old music from the radio was very pleasant and let me sink into it again and again for a moment while Emilio calmly steered the car over the asphalt.

"Where are we going?" I wanted to know again and looked over at him exhaustedly, but then he suddenly nodded forward and I curiously followed his gaze to hold my breath for a moment.

"You've lived here for so long, butterfly," Emilio told me with a smile, drawing my attention back to him. "And you've never been to the Castillo de Santa Bárbara... That's a real shame."

I was so excited that I could hardly listen to him and turned my gaze back to the front, enjoying the beautiful view through the windshield, but that wasn't enough for me.

I opened my door with trembling hands and got out of the car in a hurry. My mouth must have been hanging wide open and I almost certainly looked like I'd seen a ghost, but for a moment that view really seemed completely unreal to me.

I carefully stepped to the edge of this parking lot step by step and took a close look at everything with bated breath.

There was the wide sea, which seemed so dark and gloomy, but also hopeful and free. Add to that the many lights below us in Alicante, which just looked indescribably beautiful at night.

"I knew you'd like it."

Suddenly Emilio was standing close behind me so that I could feel his warm breath on my neck despite the cold wind and I closed my eyes for a moment to just enjoy this moment with all my senses and absorb it. I never wanted to forget the smell of the sea up here or the feeling of the wind on my skin.

My life seemed very similar to my books after all, at least since I knew him, and the thought of ever losing him gave me a deep breath.

"You have no idea how much I like it," I whispered back to him and then felt how he thoughtfully put his jacket around my shoulders and then snuggled his arms around my waist.

We stood tightly hugged for a while, right there in that beautiful place, and I was glad that Emilio was standing behind me, because I didn't want him to see the tears that were slowly and silently running down my cheeks.

But they were tears of happiness... because there were so many emotions that I could hardly control them.

"Emilio?" I breathed, overwhelmed, slowly turning to face him while he continued to support me by my waist and looked down at me with a questioning expression.

I lost myself in his dark eyes and wished I had a picture of just how beautiful he looked. The stars behind him only rounded off his overall picture and amazed by the feeling he triggered in me just by looking at me so fascinated, I gently put my hands on his cheeks and took a deep breath.

"I don't want to spend a day without you... Not one more day," I began to try to put my feelings into words with a trembling voice, but I quickly realized that nothing I could say would have reflected in the slightest what he meant to me There was so much trust, so much passion and this unconditional love that I used to think only existed in books. "Because I love you and I will always love you. I don't care how many times you tell me you're a darkness possessed and a bad person, because I know better now and you're by far the most wonderful person I've ever had the privilege of knowing."

Tears welled up in my eyes again, but before they could spill down my cheeks, Emilio stopped them with his thumb and gently cupped my face in his hands, as if by that gesture alone he wanted to declare that I would be his forever.

My heart began to beat so wildly under his touch that I even felt a little dizzy, but that didn't seem to matter anymore either, because I was aware that he would always catch me...

My safe haven... My anchor... My Emilio...

"I love you since I saw you for the first time," he suddenly whispered into the wind blowing around us, giving me goosebumps all over my body that was hard to describe. "My innocent, delicate butterfly."

No sooner had he spoken the words that meant more to me than the world, my lips received his and this kiss here on the hill above Alicante was not just the mere touch of two lips...

It was a promise that was now sealed and I didn't think about the past for a second. The only thing that mattered to me was the future. I wanted to show him my homeland. Dancing and laughing with him, but also crying and arguing. I wanted tenderness from him, but also his desire and dominance...

I wanted everything...everything that made him...everything he was and would be, and that, with no exceptions or compromises.

"We're going to fly to Ireland, butterfly. I promise," he breathed suddenly into my mouth and I opened my eyes briefly to meet his, who were staring at me with such pride I couldn't help but freaking out like a little girl delighted with my luck.

Completely surprised by myself, I jumped onto his hips and wrapped my arms around his neck, planting countless soft kisses on his cheek.

"How can one be as diverse as you," he laughed and put his hands on my bottom to hold me tightly.

"You alone bring out these sides in me," I replied honestly and nestled my face in the crook of his neck for protection while I stroked his neck with my hands and at that moment already smiling imagining the beautiful woman with him in Ireland to enjoy nature.

Our happiness couldn't have been more perfect and we spent the next few hours exploring the view together, talking about our very different childhood memories and also snogging like teenagers on the hood of his car.

But as the saying goes...

Happiness was unfortunately not a constant feeling... It came and went, just as fate decreed...

And so at some point the lights below us unfortunately went out, with which the sun made its way up to the sky and with it all the suppressed thoughts about all the worries found their way back to us.

"I'll call Hector right away," Emilio explained into the silence while we both got back in the car and I just nodded to him wistfully before I settled back comfortably in the seat and closed my eyes wearily.

Who would have thought that some promises were made just for the memories.