#awstty

Patty looks over. Awsten’s looking at him with an adorably lovestruck expression. Patty grins and leans over to kiss him. “Not me, silly, the stars.”

“Yeah, there are two stars out here: me and you.”

Patty laughs. “You’re so cute.”

Awsten leans against Patty, so Patty puts an arm around him to hold him close. All around them, the desert is quiet and still. Patty looks back up at all the stars.

Beside him, Awsten winds his arms around Patty and holds him just a bit tighter. “I love you,” he says, his voice low but audible.

Patty knows that tone. Awsten still isn’t looking at the stars, for a reason Patty doesn’t like. He forgets about the stars and turns to face Awsten. He reaches out to take hold of Awsten’s face and moves it up so they’re looking directly at each other.

“Hey,” Patty says. “Awsten. I love you. I love you.” Awsten makes a sad sound in the back of his throat. Patty pulls his face forward so he can kiss Awsten breathless. Awsten relaxes against Patty, and his arms go slightly lax against Patty’s back. When Patty moves back, Awsten’s eyes are closed.

“I don’t want you thinking we shouldn’t be together,” Patty says.

“I wasn’t—”

“Awsten—”

“I just… I still can’t stop— I almost—”

“But you didn’t,” Patty says firmly. He pulls Awsten close again and kisses him again. Awsten sighs into Patty’s mouth and Patty carefully guides them both back down into the car.

“I don’t want you thinking those things about yourself,” Patty says. “You’re beautiful, Awsten. You’re brilliant and wonderful and kind and so funny. You make me smile every time I see you.”

Awsten still looks conflicted. “You deserve—”

“Don’t you dare,” Patty says, leaning down on top of Awsten to kiss him again.

He knows what Awsten was about to say. ‘You deserve better than someone like me.’ Patty’s going to kiss that out of him, no matter how long it takes. And he’s going to keep going to therapy with Awsten until Awsten can smile and love himself just as much as he did before. He got out of that hospital, albeit with some pretty impressive scars, but he woke up and got out nonetheless. He made his physical recovery. Now they’ve just got the mental recovery. And they’re going to take that together.

“I love you, Awsten,” Patty says.