9 years. 108 months. 3,299 days. That’s how long I have been searching for the only woman I ever wanted to love out loud. The only one who made me want to soften, to feel, to imagine a life beyond the families we were born into. When we graduated high school, we planned to leave fear and expectations behind so we could finally live in our truth, but before we got the chance, our families were attacked and her father was murdered. By morning, she was gone, leaving behind nothing but questions and a silence that haunted me for years. As I rose to the top of the hierarchy, I never stopped searching for the woman I loved. And then I found her. She was mine before the world swept her away. And with her back in my orbit, nothing and no one would stop me from claiming what’s mine.