Gratitude

One day, before the crack of dawn, and before the rising of the sun beyond the horizon, the ticks of a clock dip low, its asymmetrical black hands pointing at four in the morning, as Ryan and Aura are finally getting ready for rest.

After recording himself as Darla_Darling for another weekly gameplay commentary, Ryan had been working on trimming that video down for the remainder of the night. His lips are warm, still faintly sweet with the taste of hot cocoa from earlier. Meanwhile, Aura had just finished up a stream and was already logging off. As he found himself slotting in between Ryan's long arms and broad shoulders, all toasty and snug in the comfort of their shared bed, Aura can't help but think back on all of the shit storms they'd ever had to conquer, just to reach this stable point in their lives.

While the whirlwind of thoughts are simmering to a halt, he can't help but say, in the still and steady tranquility of their room, "I'm glad that you're here."

Because he can't imagine a life without Ryan.

Not anymore.

Aura once tried to, for what felt like forever ago, but he just couldn't. He could never truly move on and he's glad that he didn't. Meanwhile, every now and again, Ryan still thinks about all of his close encounters with death throughout his past. The thought will visit him on occasion, to remind himself that things are better, here in Aura's presence, in their home, and he was so close to throwing it all away, once upon a time.

"I'm glad that you're here too," he murmurs, into Aura's purple ear. "I don't think I'd be here without you."

And the weight of those words, the significance behind them, is so great. It's so much, it's all so much, that Aura can't help but feel sent over the edge with tears.

He knows what Ryan is trying to convey with that.

He knows that it's true, that Ryan most likely wouldn't be here in this world if things had been different. If their paths hadn't clashed once more, all those years before, then who knows what their fates would've been like now.

"I love you."

And this time, when those three words are spoken for, they're coming from Aura. And usually, he's the one to echo them back, rather than voice them out loud first. He's typically not the type to care about vocalizing such terms of endearment like that, he never grew up hearing it or caring much for it, but being in a relationship with Ryan has taught him that sometimes it's okay to remind someone just how much he cares.

In response, Ryan hugs him even tighter, even closer, his hands gripping onto the thin sweater that Aura has on, clinging a bit onto the fabric there as he finds himself nuzzling into his shoulder. He mumbles a heartfelt reply back, in the fur of his collarbone.

"I love you too."

After Ryan makes an effort to kiss the corners of his eyes, erasing the salt of Aura's tears from his cheeks, their mouths join together, in this soft and chaste reunion. And then, they're eventually drifting away in an easy slumber, in the shared warmth of each other's company.