I could hear my heart pounding in my ears as I quickly made my way down the steps of the bus, the cold air stinging my face. I wrapped Sam's scarf around me even tighter, a small smile escaping from my lips as I got another whiff of his cologne.

My new favorite smell.

When I got back to the bar, I could see Josh, Danny, and Sam sitting together at one of the further tables. I guess the others had gone back to their bus for the night. I hesitated for a moment before actually going back inside, hoping to catch his attention.

Thankfully, it wasn't long before Danny looked up, flashing me a smile. He waved, and then playfully nudged Sam, motioning towards me. Sam rolled his eyes, shoving him back before turning back to face me, now beaming from ear to ear. I bit down on my lip, giving him a small smile, waving back. He didn't hesitate to jump up, quickly throwing on his jacket and making his way outside.

"Hey!" He said, flashing me a smile. He shoved his hands into his pockets, already shivering. "What are you doing back? You wanna come in? I'm sure we can order another round." He said, motioning inside. I bit down on my lip, shaking my head.

"N-no, I.. I just-"

"What.. you miss me already?" He laughed, his cheeks burning red.

"Yeah." I said softly, staring back up at him. "I do." His face dropped, staring back at me wide-eyed with a surprised smile. He peeked back inside to see Josh and Danny staring us down. My cheeks burned as he took me by the hand, pulling me out of sight further down the sidewalk.

"Jess.. what's going on?" He asked, flashing me a toothy grin. He looked down, noticing his scarf, reaching out for it and pulling me in closer. I giggled to myself, smiling back up at him, gently taking his hand. He moved in closer to me, intertwining our fingers.

"I.. I just.. Sam, you make me.. so happy." I said softly, looking down at our hands. He lifted them up, kissing the top of mine, staring back into my eyes. My cheeks burned.

"I do?" He whispered, his smile growing, now leaning his forehead against mine. "But.. what about-" I quickly shook my head. He stared back at me, wide-eyed.

"You.. f-for.. for me?" He asked, his cheeks burning. I bit down on my lip, nodding.

"Jess.." He sighed, reaching up, caressing my face.

"Sam.. I.. I want y-"

"And what's going on out here?" I heard as the door to the bar swung open. I quickly backed away, feeling my cheeks burn bright red. Sam gently let go of my hand, looking over at Danny and Josh, who were making their way down the sidewalk.

"Nothing." Sam sighed, his cheeks burning. "You guys ready to head back?"

Danny smirked back at him, eventually nodding.

"Yeah.." He said, his eyes moving back to me. My heart started racing.

As we walked back, Sam and I slowly trailed behind, gently brushing our hands against each other. I peeked up at him, trying my best to contain my smile. He smirked down at me, eventually hooking one of his fingers in mine.

When we got back to the bus, Josh made his way up the stairs. Danny stopped, turning to face us.

"You guys coming in?" He asked, peeking back at Sam. Sam shot him a wide-eyed look, playfully shoving him away. Danny laughed, hopping up the steps and closing the door behind him. I saw Sam smile, shaking his head as the blinds quickly closed.

Danny knew.

Sam turned back to face me, shoving his hands into his pockets again. It was freezing out, but all I wanted to do was stay out here with him; it was still so beautiful as the snow continued to fall, the air still silent, the only thing I could hear was the sound of my own heart beating in my ears. He stared back at me, his eyes in a daze and a gentle smile spread across his lips.

"Sam, I just.. I want to be happy. I.. I deserve to be happy and.. I have never been happier than.. when I'm with you. You're my best friend, and I.." He reached out, grabbing onto his scarf, pulling me in closer, leaning his forehead against mine. He stared back into my eyes, his smile growing, making me lose my train of thought. He giggled, reaching up, gently holding my face in his hand.

"You make me happy too." He said softly, gently running his thumb along my cheek. My heart started beating faster the longer he held his stare on me.

"Sam.. the day of the accident, I.. I had wanted to kiss you for.. a long time. I.. I was so relieved but.. I just.. I thought I lost you, and-"

"Me too." He whispered. "I meant it."

"Me too." I sighed.

"And I meant it before.." He said, his lips curling into a smile. My cheeks burned as his hands moved down to my neck, pulling me closer.

"Me too."

He sighed, leaning in close.

"Stay with me tonight." He whispered into my ear. My heart jumped as I felt his warm breath on my neck. I bit down on my lip, nodding.

He took my hand, leading me back to the bus. As we slowly made our way up the stairs, I looked around to see that everyone else had already gone to bed. Or at least they were pretending to. He quietly lead me over to his bunk, where he slid off his scarf from my neck, tossing it onto the floor, along with his coat. Reaching overhead, he grabbed a t-shirt from his luggage, and placed it on his bed.

He looked down at his sweater, giving me a questioning look. I nodded, holding my stare on him as he gently pulled it over my head, sliding on the t-shirt in its place. He pulled his shirt over his head, tossing it onto the floor next to his coat. My cheeks burned as my eyes moved down to his bare chest. He quietly giggled as he grabbed my hips, carefully lifting me up into the bunk. He looked down at my jeans, and then peeked back up at me with another questioning look. I bit down on my lip, nodding as my cheeks burned even more. He smirked at me as he slid them off, adding them to the pile of our clothes on the floor.

I crawled over towards the head of his bed as he quietly hopped up next to me, maneuvering himself underneath the blankets. He then lifted my end of the covers, motioning for me to join him; I could already feel the heat radiating from his body, and all I wanted was to intertwine myself within him. I wrapped my arm around his stomach, gently resting my head on his bare chest.

His fingers then slowly tangled themselves in my hair, tilting my head up to face him, meeting his lovestruck gaze. His eyes lingered on my lips, as if begging for permission to taste them again. But little did he know, he would never have to ask for permission to do anything, but I loved that he always would.

"Sam.."

His smile grew as his hand grazed my cheek; my skin burning where his fingers lingered across my skin, his warmth effortlessly melting all that was left of my icy exterior.

I was nothing but a puddle in his hands.

"Can I kiss you?" He whispered, tenderly caressing my neck, pulling me in to him.

"Please." I sighed.

And then his lips met mine, and suddenly I had forgotten the names of every other boy I had ever kissed, because in that moment.. his were the only lips I'd ever want to kiss again.

And again.

And again.

And again.

I crawled into his lap, my hands wandering into his hair, tangling themselves within. His kiss was intoxicating, getting me drunker by the second until my head started to spin. I then felt his lips curl into a smile as he gently backed away, staring back into my eyes as if to make sure I was really there, to know that.. it was finally happening.

He showered me with kisses in-between our silent laughter and giddiness that took over as dumbstruck smiles remained on our passion-stained lips. Losing all concept of time, every moment with him felt like a second and a lifetime; we barely noticed the early morning sun peaking over the horizon, bathing our newfound love in its gentle glow.

Though we would never admit it, we would dance around the word until our muscles ached and our feet were numb - we both knew there was no other word that could embody what had happened that night. We had both fallen into the word harder than either of us could have ever imagined..

But in every sense of the word.. I was his.