He held my hands and kissed the top of my head. I stepped down off the porch, he followed. We laid in the grass; the air was cool against my skin. A gust of wind flew in.

The wind rippled the tall brown grasses and whooshed across the plain, echoing in the open space and crisp night air. It was cold, and fresh, and enchanting as it glided over the glimmering stars and the vast lightless sky, whirling the grasses around our bodies. I gazed once more into the night, in this beautiful place from which all the stars in the universe were surely visible. The darkness of the night, and the wind’s grand flight through our empty home inspired a sense of longing in me. I knew then that I had always yearned for much more than this simple life… I wanted adventure.

Then I realized that none of this mattered. As long as he was here, loving me, I could never leave. He wanted me, and I cared more for him than I did for my absurd, lofty dreams.

So this is what it feels like to be in love.