My heart flutters in my chest as I approach the darkened room. I sit for a moment at the threshold savoring the familiarity of my surroundings. I gaze at his prone form in the bed. I take in all that I can in these stolen moments before he awakens to my presence in the room.

I recall another time like this with the large man. I had watched him steal a few moments of rest in the small skiff as we'd escaped into the night and away from the planet. He'd slept then as he must have slept every night in the slam, with his guard up and shiv in hand, stroking its length.

Now as I stare at his large frame tangled in the sheets of the bed I contemplate the utter peace on his face. Gone is the tight set of his jaw, the worried crease at the corner of his eye. My heart and body ache to embrace him, and yet I hesitate to break this tranquility that may be only fleeting. It pains me to know that my presence in his bed had never caused it. And how my slight movements had always caused him to tense. I was saddened that sometime during my absence had he found his peace.

I stand, sure that the motion will cause his eyes to open. I see him rise, in my minds eye, and I see myself walking towards him. He'll touch my face the way he always does, to see me better. But he does not stir. I step towards the bed, my breath held in anticipation. I lift the covers and recoil to see my fingers stained with blood.