Sera gasped, blinking as the cool batter landed right on the tip of her nose. She stared at him, mock offended, eyes wide as a grin broke across her face. “You didn’t just—”

But her laughter betrayed her before she could even fake being mad.

She wiped her nose with the back of her hand and smudged a tiny bit of batter right onto his chin in retaliation. “There,” she said with a smug little smile. “Now we match.”

It was silly. It was messy. But God, it felt good. It felt normal. And after everything they’d endured—the sleepless nights, the tears, the fear—this simple moment, filled with laughter and love and pancake batter, felt like a quiet miracle.

She looked at him—really looked at him—and her heart swelled all over again. The way he smiled at her, the light in his eyes, the warmth in his touch. He was still here. They were still here.

“Don’t think flicking batter at me means I’m not still getting the first pancake,” she teased, nudging him with her hip again.

But her voice softened as she added, more sincerely, “I love you, Finn.”

Because she did. With everything. Always.

Sera smiled into another bite, eyes crinkling at the corners. “You’re kind of incredible, you know,” she added, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear. “Even when things were… dark, you still held on. You’re still trying. That means something to me. Everything, really.”

She looked at him, her gaze steady and full of quiet intensity. “I see how hard you fight, even when you think no one notices. But I do. I notice. Every time you smile when it’s hard. Every time you hold my hand instead of shutting down. Every time you look at me like I’m worth loving.” She paused, breath catching. “You don’t have to be perfect for me, Finn. You just have to be you. And you are… so much more than enough.”

Her voice trembled, just a little. “So yeah. Pancakes are amazing. But you… you’re everything.”

Sera let the silence hang for a moment, eyes soft as she reached across the counter and gently took his hand in hers.

“And I’m not going anywhere. Not now. Not ever.”

Sera’s heart clenched at the sound of his voice cracking, so full of raw emotion it nearly undid her. She squeezed his hand gently, then stood from the stool and moved to him without a second thought, wrapping her arms around him and pressing her face into the crook of his neck.

“I know,” she whispered, her voice thick with love and the weight of everything they'd survived together. “I love you too, Finn. So much it hurts sometimes.”

She held him like she was anchoring him to the earth, like if she just held tight enough, nothing could pull him away again. Her fingers threaded gently into his hair, her touch slow, calming, grounding.

“You don’t ever have to prove anything to me,” she murmured into his shoulder. “Just let me be here. Let me love you. That’s all I want.”

She pulled back just enough to look up at him, her eyes glossy, lips curled into the softest smile. “You’ve already given me the world, Finn. And I’m never letting go of it.”

Sera held him even tighter, like she could wrap herself around all the pieces he thought were broken and keep them safe. His tears soaked into her shoulder, but she didn’t mind—each one was a piece of healing, a sign that he was still here, still choosing to stay.

She kissed his temple softly, lingering there, breathing him in. “You and me,” she echoed in a whisper, her voice steady even though her heart was anything but.

Then she pulled back just enough to see his face, to run her thumbs gently under his eyes, wiping away the tears with all the tenderness in the world.

“You and me,” she repeated, firmer this time. “No matter what. Good days, bad days, pancakes and all.”

A tear slipped down her own cheek, but she was smiling—wide and real and full of the kind of love that didn’t run when things got hard. The kind that stayed.

“I’m so proud of you,” she said quietly, forehead resting against his. “And I’ll remind you every single day, if I have to. Because you’re worth that. And more.”