Prompt: Jily in the rain.
He stepped out onto the balcony and saw her.
She stood, shoulders hunched, head down, leaning her weight on the low balcony railing; her body shaking with the repressed sobs.
"I'm not going back in there."
"Okay."
"And I'm not apologizing."
"And you shouldn't."
She was silent for a while. Then, "I'm not going back in," she repeated.
"It's raining."
"I know."
"Okay."
He stepped away from the safety of the overhang to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with her.
"What are you doing?" it was barely a whisper.
"I'm not doing anything. I'm just here. Just being here, for you."
"Oh."
He said nothing, just resumed his post as her silent sentry.
She kept her back angled towards him, seeming to curl in on herself.
Her tears continued to fall, mixing with the rain as it too spilled down her cheeks.
She wrapped her arms around her waist, as if holding herself together. Her shoulders shook with the force of silenced sobs.
He said nothing, but moved to stand behind her. He leaned forwards to place his hands where hers had rested against the railing, bracketing her, but still not touching.
A single sob wrenched its way free, and she shoved a fist against her mouth to silence it. Another followed. Then another.
She turned, and pressed her face against his chest, allowing him to shoulder some of the weight of her grief. The dam had broken, and her grief was a force she could not fight on pure will alone.
He wrapped his arms around her, pressing his lips to the crown of her head, "I've got you. I'm here. You're not alone."
He held her for a long time.
Eventually the sobs lost their strength, and slowly her tears dried.
And he remained.