It starts with just the two of them and it ends the same way.
The two rebels, opposites at first glance, yet more similar than they had ever dared to imagine. They found in the end that they were better together; as a team they could attain greater things than they could alone. After the mission was over, they made their way downward, towards the beach. Cassian has his arm around Jyn for support and they trudge forward; she leads him along, step by step.
One more step.
She wonders if it was enough. If all their planning, their pain would help anyone in the end. If everything they had done was all for naught. If someone had actually received the Death Star plans in time. All she has is hope, and she holds onto it. Clings stubbornly to the belief that they did it, they accomplished their goal. She wonders if Galen can see her now.
Just a few more.
He knows they've won. He knew coming into this battle he wouldn't make it out alive, and he didn't care. All that mattered was they did it, they sent the plans, they won, and he repeated this over and over and over in his mind like a mantra, as a way of staying sane. He looks up only to see the endless ocean spread out before them and he feel his heart sink as he sees the chaos in the distance. He knew death was inevitable and he didn't care, he didn't care, he didn't—
They collapse to their knees.
There's just something so different about death when you're staring it in the face. You can tell yourself that you're ready, but the fear and uncertainty grips you all the same, winding its way into your heart. Cassian, staring out at what he knew was the end, felt Jyn reaching for him, desperate. He closed his hand around hers, gaining strength from it, feeling his heart pound.
"Your father would be proud."
Cassian turned his gaze towards Jyn, who nodded in understanding. Galen truly would be proud to see what she had done for the rebels, this girl who had saved them. Who had saved him. Continuing to look in her eyes, her gaze felt heavy upon him and he felt a tightness in his chest. This girl who he loathed in the beginning but now relied heavily upon for support. This beautiful girl gazing at him with saddened hazel eyes with her hand clasped in his. This girl who he did not love. Not yet. The tragedy lay in the fact that, despite his wishes, he could see the spark. He could read in her face the flame that might have been, had there only been a little more time.
He could not help but think how sad it was that their beginning must come at the end.
A moment passed and neither of them knew who moved in first, only that they were together at last. Time seemed to slow and they were given a gift: a small taste of infinity. Safe in each other's embrace, the fear seemed to dissipate. Their hug was full of utmost tenderness yet a subtle strength lay beneath it. Her breathing and pulse became steady and calm and his slowed to match, until the two heartbeats were one rhythm, ticking away their final moments. What was to become of them didn't matter, nothing mattered but here and now and the warmth of their bodies pressed together. They pull each other closer until no space is left between them at all, squeezing each other tighter with each passing moment.
He buries his face in her shoulder, breathing in her sweet scent. She lets her fingers run gently through his hair. He clutches at her back with desperation, then relaxes, surrounded by an all-encompassing warmth that soothes him and allows him to close his eyes. There is a new sensation running between them, electricity sparking something, a match, a flame, a sense of belonging. After years of running, of solitude, there is a unique comfort in the fact that in the end, they are not alone. They will never be alone.
They wonder if this is what home feels like.