A/N: Fax lovers will hate me for this. But remember, reviews and criticism are always welcome!
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"I'm sorry."
She was dreaming. She knew that she was. She hadn't seem him in over a week.
Still, she knew that he really was there with her. He had developed the ability to project himself through dreams not so long ago.
He was standing behind her, so close that she could feel his warm breath whisking across her cheek. She didn't turn to face him she couldn't. She already knew that life would be difficult without him. If she even saw a glimpse of those pools of onyx, she might fall in. Unlike the youngest of the flock, she couldn't breathe underwater.
"I'm sorry," he repeated, his arms curling around her. She stiffened, forcing herself to stay calm and composed.
"You left us," she said. There wasn't a break in her voice, nor was there a trace of emotion. "We needed you, and you abandoned us."
He was silent. He respected her too much to even try to justify his actions. What he had done was wrong, no matter the reason.
A shiver shot up her spine as she felt his cold lips against her skin.
His lips trailed from her jaw down her neck, softly planting kisses in their wake. He needed this, a chance to apologize, one last chance to hold her and kiss her. She let him have just this one chance, because she needed it, too.
"I'll never forgive you," she gasped.
Melancholy was emanating from him. Pulling her closer to him, he quietly replied, "I know." She felt something warm and wet smear across her skin as he pressed his cheek against hers. They were tears, his tears.
"I love you," he whispered.
And those words were what hurt the most. She hated him for saying those words. She had always known, but saying it just made it so much worse. She hated herself, too, for melting against him, for letting her own tears fall down her face. But most of all, she hated herself for loving him back.
She felt her lips part, and she knew that those horrible, agonizing, wonderful words were going to tumble out. But she couldn't let them; letting them through would be the worst mistake she would ever make. Instead, a different set of words left her mouth.
"You don't want to know what I'll do to you," she growled, "if I ever see you again."
There was a pained silence. Then, he murmured, "Don't worry. There's nothing left to see."
He placed a gentle hand on her chin, turning her head ever so slightly. His dark, beautiful eyes, so full of love and remorse, gazed deeply into her brown ones. Then, he leaned in, and he pressed his lips against hers in a final, fiery kiss.
And when she woke up, she was crying.
