#MEETING ROSY PALMS FOXY.

[kaleschmidt]

ok but will anyone else think of the terrifying crossing of paths of jack dsaf and foxy fnafb or do i have to project that image in ur minds myself

[glazelilyy]

kaeya alberich's guide to love

pairing - kaeya alberich x gender neutral reader

word count - 5419

genre - fluff to angst, spicy

format - fic

warnings - MCD (major character death), slight descriptions of bodily injuries and gore, alcohol consumption, one (1) suggestive scene (skinship, mentions of removal of clothing, very very light description of sex, pet names (darling, sweetheart, dove, angel)

summary - kaeya alberich's foolproof guide to falling in love (based on his personal experience)

a/n - womp womp here's some angst with some slight spice and fluff :D (semi-inspired by "How To Finish Your Bucket List Before You Die- A Guide From Kaeya Alberich" by OHai_Here on AO3!)

RULE #1: FIND A BEAU THAT POSES A CHALLENGE; LOVE IS MOST FUN WHEN THERE'S AN ENTICING PURSUIT INVOLVED

his fingers gently traced the outline of the crystal goblet that contained blood red poison: safe enough for consumption but not safe enough to prevent his mind from falling prey to the tantalizing grips of drunkeness. though wine would usually be swimming, settled deep in his stomach, he opted to tease and tempt fate tonight and dance a misty waltz between the lines of a drunken stupor and agonizing consciousness.

"if you toy with that drink any longer, it's bound to get fed up and walk away."

you'd been sitting next to him for some time, quiet as a doll, but your beguiling, honey tinted voice sparked an intrigued glint in the swirls of his lilac eye. the ends of his lips quirked upwards, a sly, foxy glance perambulated your way with the upturn of his head to meet your piercing eyes and the gentle placement of his fingers to support his weighted chin.

"well now," he cooed, voice dripping with a rosy, sultry lilt yet no lighter than the soft, downy underbelly of a bird's feather, "that would make me up for grabs. now's your chance, darling, shoot your shot hm?"

pearls of crystal condensation snaked their way in races down the edge of his wine glass, still full with sweet temptation. but nothing to him was more tempting than to brush his thumb against the soft, velvety texture of your cupid's bow and see the cute scrunch of your nose in response. a new toy for him to tinker with, a prized addition to his collection should he manage to woo you.

instead, you set a bag of mora with a heavy weight on the bar's wooden counter—far too much mora for a single shot—and placed a palm on the counter, one on his stool, leaving you to lean uncomfortably close to him with a gem of a smile on your pretty lips; close enough for your noses to brush against one another, any more and your lips would slot perfectly against his.

"forgive me, captain, but i'm not interested."

your touch lingered even hours after you'd left the tavern with the sway of your hips and a teasing smile on your face—one that exuded confidence and stability, and had his heart battering against his chest.

kaeya hadn't realized that his mask had chipped away at the fibers with the burning embers of your aura until charles replaced his stale glass with a crisp, fresh one and slid a hearty laugh his way, "they've entranced you, haven't they sir kaeya?"

an impressed smirk was all kaeya offered in response: after all, he loved a challenge.

RULE #2: SUBTLY EXPRESS YOUR INTEREST IN A MANNER THAT EXUDES CONFIDENCE AND CHARM WHILE ALSO KEEPING YOURSELF A MYSTERY

an enigma is how kaeya would describe you.

like silky threads of crystal water or a fleeting, gentle breeze, you flitted through the gaps of his fingertips and skirted around the edges of his ears with the echo of your voice and the rims of his eyes with the grace of your presence at the tavern. it was almost as if you could read the grooves of his brain and feel the palpitating game he'd morphed into the invisible tango between your fleeting feet. "friends", was what you said, but enticing, addicting, intoxicating was every semblance of your being and he craved more.

but kaeya alberich was no man of desperation, no, not at all. he shall be fawned over, and never the other way around.

when the moon cast its gentle glow onto brick and cobblestone, he'd find himself sauntering over to your table, two glasses of delicious poison in his hands and a promise of a good time. the only offer you accepted was the alcohol he so kindly paid for. but no matter! to kaeya, this was all part of his game, all part of the hunt for your heart and the desire to see your eyes glow with his name etched in your irises.

kaeya's methods were...effective, one could say. but you were a true anomaly in his many years of experience. his charming one-liners had you doubling over in laughter and patting him twice on the back—most definitely not in a romantic manner. his cool, teasing touch in the subtle nudge of your arm or the manner in which he'd casually snake his arm around your waist only seemed to spur on your relentless teasing. he'd put on his fancy garbs and strutted his best in the streets, only to be called a "peacock" courtesy of your lovely voice and amused glint in your eyes. but the roses he'd bought from flora to tuck behind your ears just as you set off for another commission proved to be more effective in the slight genuine smile upon your lips and the quiet and hurried "thank you" whispered only for him.

it was proof, he knew soon that he'd see hearts in your eyes and feel your heartbeat from miles away only with the telltale click of his boots and signature laugh.

yet despite this, you ventured onwards merely being yourself. where most would be squealing and kicking up their feet at the sheer mention of capturing the captain kaeya's fancy, he was stunned to realize that you hadn't been affected in the slightest.

rather, it was him who'd begun to notice your teasing looks that often hurtled his way when he least expected them, or the sugary lilt to your voice whenever you called out to him upon seeing his figure in the streets. you were still a mystery, a puzzle he couldn't decipher, a story that his tongue struggled to wrap around, a mystic ornament whose origins he knew nothing of.

"captain kaeya! fancy a drink tonight?"

his head whipped upwards to meet your starry eyes, bound to no one and devoid of hearts, only an endless sea of light and constellations that were no one's to steal.

"my, you offend me, shouldn't you know my answer to that by now, darling?" he wriggled out of the confines of his thoughts and slung an arm around your shoulder, letting you lead him to angel's share for the night.

RULE #3: SHOULD YOU FEEL THAT YOU'RE GETTING IN TOO DEEP, ABORT MISSION

to his surprise, it wasn't in his fancy getups or the sultry dip of his voice nor the alluring musk he adorned or the frosted tips of his fingers, but rather the late night talks of your beloved hobbies and the stories in which silver linings never found their way into the conversation: these were what worked.

his previous beaus have all settled for what he was—what he presented himself to be. but you, you dug deeper into the caverns of his mind and had him dig up ridiculous childhood stories involving him, a certain redheaded wine tycoon, and a bucket of seashells, told under moonlight and over aged wine. kaeya settled for obliging your requests for more embarrassing childhood stories of the charming and suave captain kaeya, and he indulged in your tales of adventuring and mystical stories of scholars and monsters; if possible, he'd love to hear your voice forever and ever on repeat in his ears.

but once you uprooted the vines and twiny branches tangling his heart and revealed the tender muscle and flesh underneath, panic began to course through his veins. this wasn't supposed to happen, you were a challenge, a game to bide his time with, a mere toy to satiate the curiosity within him.

so why was he the one whose heart couldn't sit still around you anymore?

kaeya alberich is not a desperate man, and so he runs as far away as he can. no more lingering touches, sultry remarks, or roses tucked behind your ears. no more rooftop conversations shared between a bottle of vodka or embarrassing childhood stories. no more teasing dares or battle of wits when dusk kissed the top of your heads. no more: all that remained within him was barren of life and ice cold. kaeya alberich is not a desperate man, and yet his heart still longed for you. his soul cried out when you approached with bounded steps and a gleeful smile on your face, only for him to greet you with a stiff nod saved for politics and family dinners and a strained, professional smile reserved for placement when he detested using it most.

the boiling hatred for himself began to rise and build up in the thin confines of his esophagus upon the smile disintegrating from your face, leaving behind a crestfallen nod of understanding in his wake. what stung more was the fact that upon looking into your eyes, they still swirled with vibrant stars and bands of constellations, but among the barrage of light were tiny, dotted hearts that thrummed with every single second your eyes gazed into his.

but he knew and he knew well, there was no going back once he'd pushed you away well and good, even if you had begun to take a true liking to him.

he was in too deep once he realized that it hurt to push you far, far away where he could never hurt you, and you him.

RULE #4: RULE #3 CAN BE NULL AND VOID IF YOUR BEAU HELPS YOU REALIZE THAT YOU'RE AN IDIOT

satisfaction and stability is all he has ever sought out for, but such things are a luxury in a world that conspires against him. any semblance of those principles must be treated as you would a spy or a criminal: dangerous, conniving, untrustworthy. good things can't happen to kaeya—if they do, they either last a fleeting moment or are lies wrapped in glittery present paper and tied neatly with a little bow.

what were you to him? a fleeting moment? or a lie dressed in fancy clothing? the meaning didn't matter any more, he'd push and push and push until you were far away from him and he could finally breath and revel in the calmness that he no longer feared having to get hurt.

except, he already was.

his heart ached and burned in his chest upon a mere glance at your face: sullen and lacking its usual charming mirth—the same charm that persuaded him to begin pursuing you in the first place. despite his airy, fouette lined steps and the musical cadence to his voice, the emptiness where your late night chats and clinks of alcohol to celebrate nothing in particular used to sit, felt so void of the warmth that encompassed him in your company.

perhaps fate was mocking him when your knuckles knocked heavy against the wood of his door one night, and your constellation ridden eyes still contained hearts that begun to warble in his presence.

"have i upset you in some way, captain?"

his carefully constructed mask remained pristine in place, yet jostled slightly at the hammer of his heart as he fought the urge to retreat backwards and hide under the covers like a small child.

"not at all."

your arms folded themselves across your chest in a guarded manner, a frown settling on your lips. "you're not calling me pet names anymore."

like a mechanical doll, his lips curved upwards to mimic the charming smile he'd given you so many nights ago, back when it was all just a simple game to him, "oh? i wasn't aware that you liked the pet names so much-"

"it's not just the pet names, kaeya!" the rest of his teasing remarks died in his throat upon the reveal of glistening tears that threatened to fall from your lashes. "you've been ignoring me, avoiding me like the plague. if i've truly done nothing wrong, why am i being treated as though i have? i thought we were friends?"

kaeya supposed you were much like a siren, with your bated beauty and alluring voice, you'd have him jumping ship and swimming towards a false reality lest his guard be let down. even with tears rolling down your face, he'd be damned if he wouldn't test the murky waters that surrounded your archipelago.

that is: if he were brave enough to enter the tempest of waves and secure his spot among your rocky shorelines.

"is it because i fancy you?"

at the tune of your timid void, his blood ran colder than ice in his veins, stilling for a minute before proceeds onwards languidly in a stark contrast to the rapid palpitations of his heart in his throat.

his silence seemed to be enough a reply for you, "i-i see, i'm sorry, i wasn't aware that you were so disgusted with me. i thought there was a chance...but it seems i was too hopeful." his eye found yours and the galaxies and constellations within began to dim and fade with light, leaving behind the burned remnants of dull and faded hearts that littered the spaces in between.

your heels turned to walk away but a sudden surge of strength found its way into his arms and his hand caught your elbow, grip fueled by emotions he couldn't decipher.

"i'm...far from disgusted with you, angel." his mind was screaming at him to let you go, to increase the distance between desire and temptation. but his heart had taken the reigns and there appeared to be no stopping. he was completely enraptured by your siren's song.

"angel, huh?" you sniffled, dragging your sleeve across your eyes with a strained smile, "that's a new one."

"reserved for you and you alone, darling."

the familiar, teasing atmosphere felt so welcome in his arms, as did you.

"come here," he cooed, voice lacking its usual teasing lilt and full of only genuinely concern as he gently tugged you forward and let you melt into his body. so warm, so tender, and ever so soft, your body melted against the thundering flames of his heart and merged into his chest. it was a feeling he'd dreamed about for so long, and if he were still dreaming, he wished to never wake up.

"i don't understand, i can't tell if you like me or dislike me." you laughed incredulously and pressed the heel of your palm to your head, still wrapped up in his embrace.

kaeya couldn't understand either, why his mind ushered him to release you from his grip and shove your memories of warmth and sunlight to the corners of his brain to never see daylight again. in contrast, why was it that his heart demanded to shower you in affection and let you know every second of every minute just how wrapped around your finger he was.

"well, i am a man of many mysteries. this is just one more i have to decipher." upon the playful smack of your palm to his chest and the frustrated smile you sent him, his worry dissipated into thin air and joined the stars above.

"i got in too deep, you're quite enticing, you know?" his heart soared upon finally seeing the scrunch of your noise and letting your giggles weave their way through the gaps in his heart, "but that's the thing, you're my biggest weakness and i was...terrified, because let's face it, sweetheart: nothing good ever happens to me."

his last words were uttered directly into your scalp, the high and mighty, confident captain kaeya too afraid to stare into your eyes and realize how weak of a man he truly was. his arms locked so tight around your waist in fear that moving would mean time would restart again, and he was more than happy to relive this moment forever and ever.

instead, your hands found their way around his torso, and those velvety lips that he'd spent so many hours fawning over and daydreaming of what they'd feel like upon his, gently pressed themselves to the line of his jaw.

"you should've told me how you felt, you're a big idiot, you know that?" if possible, he might have sagged in relief and went completely limp in your arms right then and there, but the loving gaze in which you tangled him up in had him staying upright just to see the stars reignite in your irises,

"but you don't have to worry. i promise you," he watched with bated breath as your hands moved to hold his face, thumb gentle tracing under the fabric of his charcoal eyepatch, "you deserve genuine, good things, even if they aren't me. you deserve them."

it turns out that kaeya alberich was in fact, a desperate man. desperate in the way his hands came to cup your cheeks and tilt your head to the side, allowing him perfect access to the lips he'd dreamed of kissing for so long. you fit into him like a puzzle piece, the warmth he'd be devoid of for so long began to fill up with your scent and your name began to etch itself into the white of his irises all while your lips molded so perfectly against his.

"you are something good," he broke away, panting for air to say those few words, pressing one more chaste kiss to your lips before continuing, "you're the best thing that's ever happened to me."

and he'd never let go again, not when you so readily dove back in to capture his lips just like you'd done his heart.

RULE #5: TREASURE EVERY MOMENT WITH THEM; LET YOUR WALLS DOWN

kaeya hadn't felt this light since he was a mere child with no weight on his shoulders or chains wrapped around his waist.

the simple slip of your hand into his had him seeing stars and breathing in a nose full of fresh roses and sparkling carnations doused in sugar and honey. you were so addicting, a new type of craving where his liver would no longer have to fight nightly battles or scream at him to cease his indulgences.

you were a drug that so easily coursed through his system and had him on a constant high with your gentle fragrance that wrapped itself in silky ribbons around his heart and your feather light touch upon his icy skin.

everything with you was an adventure to him, whether you babysat klee and played pirates for the afternoon, or stole necklaces and jewels from treasure hoarders to give back to their rightful owners, any time spent with you was time that he wished he could scoop up into a box to place in his pocket.

everything about you was so tantalizing and genuine. the minute his eyepatch fell off to reveal the hidden stories underneath, your arms found their way around his shoulders, and your hushed whispered reassured him over and over that no matter what you'd be right by his side: and that was all he ever needed. you embraced him whether he has tears running down his face, or was covered in dirt and grime from a day of fighting, you cared not for surface level appearances as you did the kind soul that laid beneath his charming layer.

but kaeya felt more inclined to look beyond the physical layers of your body in a manner of his hands skidding upwards under your shirt: cool fingertips gliding across searing hot skin eager for his touch. your hands traced the outlines of the numerous scars on his bare upper body. he watched with sheer adoration in his eyes as you covered a certain willowy patch of burnt skin rooting outwards from his shoulder with your kisses and affectionate, gentle strokes of your hands.

he fumbled with the elaborate buckles of his clothes, hands shaking despite having danced this tango numerous times. but this particular time felt so vulnerable, with each article of clothing he removed he felt his charismatic layers come undone until he was nothing but the timid, shy boy he once was. in your arms he breathlessly stole kiss after kiss from your air deprived lips and sought to take hold of all the love you could give. he traversed through the grooves of your skin up to the crook of your neck, where his eyes met yours for a brief moment before sliding shut and letting the gap be filled with your intertwined love.

with the final removal of his eyepatch, he was bare for you to see with both of your eyes for the monster he truly believed himself to be. and yet, you looped your arms around his neck and tugged him downwards, trapping him in a tender, slow, and riveting kiss.

"i love you, (y/n)," kaeya whispered against your lips, forehead pressed tightly against yours. you responded in kind with the gentle scrape of your nails against his bare, scarred back and the words he drank from your lips.

the minute you became one with him was when he finally understood what it meant to love someone with all your heart.

RULE #6: BE PATIENT, AND UNDERSTANDING

you were an enigma, truly enthralling and incomprehensibly thrilling. but perhaps too incomprehensible for him to understand at points. to yell at you with indignance in his voice would mean to surrender his right to ever be called yours, but the minute your accusing voice comes barreling through his bedroom doors, he's retreating into his shell and immediately considering the "what if's".

"kaeya, you can't be serious! you're injured, you can't possibly even think that you're in fit enough shape to be leading squadrons right now!"

he watched as you tried a gentle method of persuasion at first, only for it to escalate until you were practically begging him with a hoarse voice to please just lay back down and get some rest.

"i told you, dove," he paused, wincing to avoid any strain seeping into his voice as he shifted on the bed, "i'm perfectly fine. they need me there, i can't just say no. you know how it is, don't you, sweetheart?"

left alone to bare the barrage of a hilichurl attack, it was a miracle he managed to make it out with only moderate injuries. his shoulders were bandaged, left arm put in a brace and shin patched up for scrapes and bruises.

"please, kaeya..." he tried to catch your arm as you sank to the floor, words caught on the thorny edges of your muffled cries and choked sobs. your hands gripped onto his like a lifeline and squeezed with all your might, "you're not expendable, please, you need to get better first."

the expendable line played over and over again in his head, for years even. the guilt began to seep its way into his heart and he found himself ceding to your prayers.

"alright, dove, i promise you no more fighting for now," kaeya's large palm gently stroked the top of your head and silently rubbed away your worries, "but i am expecting entertainment while i'm bed ridden, some kisses would suffice wouldn't you say?" he broke out into a charming grin upon seeing the defeated smile on your face.

it was worth it if it meant he got to feel your lips on his. he'd take any chance to cherish this feeling.

RULE #7: SPEND YOUR MORNINGS TOGETHER IN COMPLETE BLISS

"leaving already?" kaeya's sleep ridden eyes registered the bleary image of you tugging your attire on for the day.

"yep! it'll be a short mission, i'll be back in time for lunch. should we eat at good hunter today?" beaming, you turned your eyes to him while your fingers busied themselves with lacing up the boots on your feet.

kaeya shifted to sitting upwards in bed and propped his chin up on his fist, "y'know, you'd look really good in a corset." he mused out loud, a dreamy smile on his face.

"hey, mister, you're getting distracted! good hunter for lunch today?" despite the chiding phrasing and the snapping of your fingers in front of his delirious face, it seemed just like him, you couldn't stop the smile from creeping onto your face.

"anywhere you want, darling. i'm good as long as it's with you." he watched as you padded over and sat on his side of the bed, stretching your hand out to cup his cheek only for his head to turn inwards and press a kiss to your palm.

"alright, good hunter it is."

he was sure it was a pain to get him to loosen his grip from around your waist, even as you trudged down the stairs and tried to convince him at the front door that you didn't need a kaeya-shaped utility belt.

now he wishes he never let go.

RULE #8: ALWAYS KISS THEM GOODBYE—YOU NEVER TRULY KNOW WHEN IT'LL BE YOUR LAST

even with the passage of so much time, your lips never failed to make him weak in the knees. still in the doorway of your shared home, he loathed the idea of letting you go, even if your mission was to be quick and easy and you'd be back in his arms in time for lunch at good hunter.

"can this mission be rescheduled? i don't recall the last time i had a proper day off, and i can't even spend it with you." like a kicked puppy, he pouted into the crook of your neck and swayed your intertwined bodies in the archway of the front door.

"unfortunately not," you stifled a giggle and brought his face downwards for another tender kiss, "but i promise that you'll have all of me as soon as i come back."

"you better keep your promise, darling." a kiss to your nose, a kiss to both your cheeks, eyelids, temples, neck, and one more chaste kiss to your smiling lips.

"you know i'm one to keep my word."

he never expected to be able to so freely say such weighted words without a barrage of weighted emotions clinging to his heart, but now he utters them so freely, so truthfully, and so wholly that he can hardly believe that it's his voice.

"i love you, (y/n)." with one more, lingering, tender, and gentle kiss, he could never be satisfied but it was enough to last him until lunch.

"and i love you, kaeya. i'll see you later!"

RULE #9: COME RUNNING WHEN THEY NEED YOU MOST

"s-sir kaeya..."

kaeya watched impatiently as the young knight caught his breath, dressed in his city clothes in preparation for lunch at good hunter.

"that's me, can i help-"

"it's master (y/n), t-they've been injured-!"

kaeya felt his heart still.

"send a healer after me!" he muttered lowly, grabbing his sword and coat.

the knight needed to say nothing more.

adrenaline carried kaeya's feet to where he knew you'd be, sword floating ferociously behind his back. this world couldn't take you from him, not the one good thing that's ever happened to him. anything but you.

images of your smile, sounds of your laugh, the feel of your soft, warm skin against his and the feelings that erupted in his heart when you held him so tenderly and pressed kiss after kiss to his lips...he pleaded with whatever archon, whatever deity was out there to spare your life.

but upon arriving at your mission site, it was clear that no archons nor deities cared for his mortal desires.

it was such a beautiful day: sun poured from the heavens and a gentle breeze complimented the beaming sun. but the thick pool of blood that surrounded your limp body and the mitachurl about to finish you off had him rushing forwards and impaling his sword straight into the monster's heart with a strangled cry, blood swishing in his ears once he got a proper look at you.

"no no no no no (y/n) look at me, come on, open your eyes-!" he cried out desperately, dropping to his knees. all he could see was the red that soaked your clothes from the open wound in your chest, eyes shut and rolling around in the back of your skull.

his hands clumsily fumbled with his silky, periwinkle cape, taking great care to press it to the large gash that lined your chest. "come on darling, we're gonna have lunch at good hunter's, y-yeah?" his eyes frantically searched for any signs of consciousness, and he sagged in relief upon seeing the beautiful, gem like color of your eyes peeping back at him.

"that's it, that's good, sweetheart. keep looking at me, darling, don't shut your pretty eyes, okay? the medic will be here soon, i promise." blood spattered up from your lips in a horrid cough and he felt the familiar dread and putrid stink of death come up to haunt him from behind his shoulders.

but not you, you wouldn't fall prey to the clutches of death.

"hey, hey, you're gonna be okay, i promise." but it seemed like he was trying to convince himself of something that could never be, not with the amount of blood that seeped through the thin material of his cape nor the paling of your skin and droopiness of your eyes.

"kae-ya..." your supple palm, coated in blood, staggered upwards to cup his cheek and swipe away at the tears that pooled from his exposed eyes.

when had he started crying?

RULE #10: MAKE SURE THEY KNOW THEY ARE LOVED

"no, darling, this isn't goodbye. you're going to be okay, you're going-" it was as if his words had grown thorns and impaled the thin walls of his neck: nothing came out despite his growing pleads and dwindling reassurances. the medic was nowhere in sight and his cape was soaked through with irony, sticky blood.

"kaeya..." he hardly recognized the hoarse, exhausted voice that crept out from your lips—lips that he adored so much.

his hand pressed itself against yours that firmly placed itself against his cheek, "what is it darling? what's wrong?"

the tears that had collected in your eyes finally began to trickle down the sides of your face as you struggled to raise your other hand to hold his tear soaked face in your hands.

"i love you, please don't forget that."

the mirrored world of rosy tints and honey glows began to shatter around him once he realized the true implications behind your loving words.

"i know, i know, sweetheart, and you can tell me tonight, and tomorrow, and the day after tomorrow, and forever onwards," there was a manic desperate tone to his voice as he scrambled to put pressure on the wound and keep your warmth intact. he was sure if his knees were to dig any further into the earth, he'd become one with the dirt and perhaps that'd be a better fate than losing you forever.

"no...need to tell you...now...kaeya..." even on death's door, your stubbornness reigned supreme as your bloodied hand placed itself over the hand he'd been using to put pressure on your wound.

you arms silently stretched out towards him and he took your body into his gratefully, cradling your head to his chest as if you were constructed of fragile glass or thin marble.

his cries were ceaseless and of a man who was desperate for a miracle, for anything, just for your brevity and a moment longer where he can hold your face and kiss you without tasting the tang of blood on his tongue. even as your lips dried and breaths began to slow, his lips lingered all over your skin and left tingles in his wake, followed by strangled "i love you"s strung together with broken cries and warbled sobs.

"you deserve...good...things..." you quietly mumbled, taking great care to brush aside the locks from his face.

your words only elicited a mangled cry from his lips as his thumbs ran their soft pads over the plump of your cheeks, covered in both a mix of your tears and his, "but you are my good thing," and he repeats the words he said so many nights ago with heavy breaths and choked cries, "you're the best thing that's ever happened to me." and like so many nights, he pressed his forehead against yours and takes in the last sight of your beautiful eyes, aglow with love and satisfaction.

just as the medic arrives on scene, the wispy winds of your last breath fall against his lips and his world begins to crumble to dust.

RULE #11: NEVER FALL IN LOVE

date published: september 3rd, 2021