[It is nice. It's very nice. It's the nicest he's felt in years, at least; such a frightening feeling too, for how swiftly it could all end, and for how quickly it came up in the first place. The chaos of the last few hours feels dangerously far away. Is this another effect of this strange universe?
[He knows that it isn't. This is something far more terrifying. This is hope. The word festers in his gut. It can't be real; hope is dead and so is he. But Aubrey's cheek is warm under his hand, and the cicadas are buzzing, and the leaves of his tree are rustling in the breeze, and music from a phantom Shiganshina is humming in the distance.
[This moment may never come again; it's most likely that it won't. "Temporary". Wasn't he the one who said so? His heart aches at that. He's never been one to feel content with a simple life, but maybe if things had been different, he could have sat under this tree every night and felt at peace like this...
[He could pretend, just for a few minutes, that this is all there is to life, couldn't he?
[Subtly, gently, he shifts his hand to better hold the side of Aubrey's face. He leans in until their noses are brushing, then pressing together. His neck and arms break out with cold goosebumps, and his stomach flips just like he really were nothing more than nineteen.
[He kisses her. It's the freest thing he's ever done.]
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[He knows that it isn't. This is something far more terrifying. This is hope. The word festers in his gut. It can't be real; hope is dead and so is he. But Aubrey's cheek is warm under his hand, and the cicadas are buzzing, and the leaves of his tree are rustling in the breeze, and music from a phantom Shiganshina is humming in the distance.
[This moment may never come again; it's most likely that it won't. "Temporary". Wasn't he the one who said so? His heart aches at that. He's never been one to feel content with a simple life, but maybe if things had been different, he could have sat under this tree every night and felt at peace like this...
[He could pretend, just for a few minutes, that this is all there is to life, couldn't he?
[Subtly, gently, he shifts his hand to better hold the side of Aubrey's face. He leans in until their noses are brushing, then pressing together. His neck and arms break out with cold goosebumps, and his stomach flips just like he really were nothing more than nineteen.
[He kisses her. It's the freest thing he's ever done.]