Oh, time and wasted bullets.

Oh, nothing here is as it should be.

Oh, in time we'll make it through this.

Oh, in time.

The battle against the pirates and Warblerians was brutally exhausting.

While she knew it'd only been for hours since the pirates came ashore and began fighting the Artimeans in combat, Lani felt like it was for days. She knew her team was in trouble from the moment she saw the pirates; they were as big as they were strong. The fight itself was a blur. Lani was too caught up in the fight to remember vague details. First she'd thrown scatterclip after scatterclip and then moved in on firing the heart attack spells. It took a few shots to kill one pirate. Things only seemed to get worse instead of better.

A rather smelly and large pirate who'd tried to capture her had fallen on-top of her (not recommended), something that physically immobilized her due to her size. It took a many long frustrating minutes until she finally calmed herself down enough to utter the spell that she'd seen Alex often use. Taking a few deep, calming breaths, she put Queen Eagala's face in her mind. "Transport."

The hideous scream she heard was enough to brighten anyone's day.

She picked herself up off the rocks where she'd been laying. With a sword shoved in her belt, a shield in her hand, and determination on her face, she was totally ready to kick some pirate butt.

But then a stampede of pirates charged across the shore below, and she realized they were coming from the direction Samheed's team had been. Lani could feel a sickening knot form in her stomach. She feared the worst. Where was he? Was he okay? Where-

She didn't give herself time to think. She ran toward his station, up the rocky bank to the trees that lined the road. She didn't remember when she started desperately calling his name, her voice filled with anxiety and fear. Her legs burned. She kept running, her throat becoming choked up with built up tears. "Samheed!"

Out of nowhere, a body dropped out of a tree next to Lani. She jumped and whipped around, digging her hand in her component vest and searching for the nearest deadly component to attack. And then she saw his face. She dropped her hands to her sides and gave him a look. Even so, she couldn't stop the sigh of relief that escaped her lips.

"Hi," Samheed whispered. "Are they gone?"

She nodded and flashed him a grin from ear to ear, happy to know she hadn't found him in worse cases. Her heart was hammering fast and the panic was still driving her brain crazy. He wasn't dead or taken by the pirates, she told herself over and over. But even with him standing right next to her, the feeling didn't go away.

As they discussed what had happened, the rest of his team (including some of her own) headed for the mansion to intercept more pirates. Things were improving. Most of the warriors in their teams had survived. Then a critical moment happened, Lani's mistake when she was too caught up in her relief and eagerness to hang around Samheed. He walked a few ahead on the way to the mansion, going faster than she was.

She didn't see the brute who couldn't be anything but a pirate sneaking up from behind them. It was strange he had kept so quiet, judging by the injuries he had all over him. It was also strange he wasn't with his army, but it wasn't uncommon for the injured to be left behind and assumed of as dead.

Before she caught sight of the man, Lani was yanked from behind. She made a strangled noise in surprise as large hands hoisted her up and dragged her through the rocky terrain. She tried to scream out for help, but everything was happening so fast. Her attacker's hand was so large that when it clasped over her mouth, it covered her nose too. She could hardly breathe.

Mentally, she smacked herself in the forehead. She hadn't even heard him following them! She squirmed, screamed, and kicked her feet, but it did no help. Her body was almost completely covered by the pirate's arms wrapped around her in the death grip. She yelped in pain as he squeezed the hand over her mouth far too hard, and in response she bit the man's fingers. According to biting Henry multiple times she had sharp teeth, but not according to her kidnapper. The man didn't even notice and hustled down towards the shore past the trees and rocks, half-carrying her as if she was as light as a one-pound weight.

"Come on," the pirate growled. Like I can move when I'm being DRAGGED ACROSS THE GROUND, Lani thought.

She fought harder when she felt her boots meet the sand. Worry filled her now more than ever. She was going to the enemy ships.

She gasped from the sudden pain shooting from her waist and spreading all around her body. She was all too aware that her arms were pinned to her sides, and she couldn't reach for her spell components to fight back. She tried to breathe in fresh air through the man's fingers, but his stench was too strong. His tightening grip around her waist made everything even more painful, and she soon felt too exhausted to fight back. Her vision began to blur from lack of oxygen.

Suddenly, she was tumbling across the beach, skidding and rolling next to the water. She coughed violently and gasped for air, blinking in the broad sunlight that shined down on her. Once she regained the ability to breathe properly again, she rose shakily to her feet and swayed. Pain shot through her body as she did so, but that wasn't her main concern anymore.

Lani's throat constricted as as her brain supplied all the words she wanted to yell, but her voice became lost, stripped away as she tried to understand what she was seeing in front of her.

Samheed was just laying there, his breathing shallow as he stared up into the sunny blue sky. He looked almost peaceful if it wasn't for the bloody gash in his chest quickly spreading and darkening.

Her kidnapper was standing above him, breathing heavily with his sword withdrawn. The shock and satisfaction was evident on his face. There was blood all over his sword.

Lani stared in horror, realizing that Samheed must've run after her when he saw she was missing. He'd somehow tackled the huge pirate, freeing her but wounding himself in the process.

A wave of emotions passed through her. Shock. Confusion. Fear. Dread. Anxiety. And finally...anger.

For a moment, she didn't know how to move, or say anything. She could hardly even tremble, though her rage was so great that it was a wonder she didn't smolder and ignite where she stood. Although she remained perfectly still, the killing was evident in her eyes. Anger boiled through her veins. Her fists curled into balls. She scowled and took a step forward towards the pirate. Then another. And another. He no longer threatened her.

The pirate held his sword towards her and laughed unpleasantly. He looked at her as if he didn't believe she was capable of fighting him. "You think you can kill me as easy as I killed your friend, little girl? Go ahead and try."

She was infuriated by his smug, patronizing tone. That was it. Lani lifted the first component she could find and shouted the lethal words with no mercy. "Die a thousand deaths!"

She arched her sore arm back and threw. She watched as it flew into a perfect spiral, hitting it's mark directly in the face. He didn't have time to cry out or dodge the attack. The brute crumbled into a heap at the shoreline, dead.

All anger rushed out of Lani, replaced with apprehension. She hurried to Samheed's side and slid down to her knees in the sand.

"Oh no. Sam," she mumbled frantically, taking in all the blood covering his chest. She didn't think she could get him back to the mansion in time. She took a frantic glance around the beach, but there was no one in sight that could help. Any thought that came into her head was useless. Each one of them unable to help more than the last. She dug into her component vest but only found a various number of components that could only be used for fighting. No healing equipment.

She reached over and squeezed his hand very hard like the way she used to do back when they were stuck in the dark cave at Warbler. Her hands were sweaty and shaky, and she tried to ignore how cold his felt when intertwined with her's.

"Sam," she whispered fearfully again. "Please, talk to me. Say anything."

"Anything," Samheed rasped out. It looked like it almost pained him to speak or move, but he managed that same mischievous smile he wore so often. She let a small, choked laugh out. Even on death's door he was trying to make her laugh.

Lani stared into his orange eyes, disheartened by how faded they'd become. Even though all the people from Warbler had those eyes, they could never compare to his. He looked back at her, the fear and concern written in his eyes. He opened his mouth with a bit of difficulty. "Are you okay?"

She couldn't believe him. He was about to die and he was more concerned about her safety. "I'm fine. You aren't. We need to get you out of here! C'mon, just stand up. Maybe I can drag you back to the mansion-"

Samheed cut her off. "No. Lani, I don't think I'll make it..."

She sucked in a breath. "No. You're not dying on me. You aren't..."

She trailed off, disbelief in her voice. He really wasn't going to make it.

A hot tear fell across her cheek. "Samheed Burkesh," she whispered, anger seeping into her voice. "If you die, I'm going to kill you. You are such a-a" She struggled to find the right word and gave up at the task altogether. "I wasn't born with enough middle fingers to let you know how I feel about you!"

He managed to roll his eyes. "Good to know you feel that way."

Lani wasn't done talking. "Why did you fight that pirate? Why did you get yourself hurt? You idiot! I don't need your help in battle! You know that!"

"I was protecting you!" he yelled. That was a complete mistake. He winced in pain."You were going to be captured and most likely killed by that man!"

"So what?" Lani shot, glaring daggers at him. "You'd be okay! You wouldn't be-like this..."

A sob erupted from her chest. All the annoyance left Samheed's face as he stared at her in grief and pity, as if recognizing his fate. He squeezed her hand with as much force as he could, making her shudder and weep harder. She scooted closer to him and gently brushed his dark hair with her free hand. His eyes never left her's.

She needed to talk to him. To tell him things that hadn't been told. That's what people did when someone was dying, right? Tell them all their feelings in short notice? This was her last shot, and she wasn't prepared for it.

"When I first met you," she said through her tears. "Y-you thought I was stupid. And annoying. And young...and not capable of much."

The dying boy shook his head. He didn't think those things of her anymore.

Lani gave him a little smile and moved her hand to stroke the side of his face, something she'd never done before. "B-but, Warbler happened. I changed. You did too. That whole month of being stuck in that terrible place, I started to rely on you more than I've ever relied on myself in the fifteen years I've been alive. And I still rely on you."

She took a shaky breath and continued. "I've never told you this, but I knew you were afraid I'd run back to Alex."

Samheed's lips parted in surprise, and he looked down in shame. Lani shook her head. "Don't hate yourself for thinking that. If I was you-I'd be thinking the same thing. But you have to know, S-Samheed, you mean the world to me. I thought about what would happen after Warbler with me and Alex for a split second, but that was it. Our feelings were never strong enough to last. I realized I only thought of him as a friend. I realized who I cared about more than anyone else: you."

His glazed eyes drifted up towards her again, and she saw tears forming in them. Every time he spoke, it took more effort. She was surprised he wasn't fading as fast as most people when they were dying. "I...didn't know..."

She moved their locked hands so they hovered over his chest and sniffled. "I don't want to be alone," she whimpered quietly. "I don't want someone who will die for me. I don't want you to leave me. Please don't. Please don't leave me."

Samheed smiled a small, half smile. They both remembered having this same exchange in the dark cave. "I could...never...leave you."

Lani chest racked with another sob, her heart breaking. She wasn't smiling. She wasn't laughing. She didn't know if she'd be happy again. She tilted her head down, her jet-black hair falling forward and covering one side of her face. "Sometimes I f-feel like I'm not capable of anything. I'm not capable of saving others." Bitterness seeped into her words. "I should be the one dying, not you. Never you."

He shook his head ever so slightly and weakly lifted his free hand to her chin. She was terrified to see how much his arm was shaking. "Never say that. Lani...you mean more to me than...anyone I have ever...known. I don't know what you see in the mirror, but...you...know what I...see?"

He coughed up some blood, pain showing through on his face. He was fading more every second. "I see the...bravest...smartest...most beautiful girl...who has a heart ten times bigger...than mine. I see...a girl who works hard...and is driven to...always do better. Being...around you...makes me a better person. I'm not as...mean and rude as I used to be. And you know...what that means?"

He lifted her chin up ever so slightly so she'd be forced to look into his eyes again. She wasn't sure if her face was burning from crying so much or from all the things he'd just told her. All those words they never told each other but we're finally telling them now. And it was too late to go further with them. She noticed tears had escaped from his eyes.

She'd never seen him cry.

"What?" she asked.

"It takes...a lot for someone like me...to be...redeemed for all I've done. And you...you were the one...that made it possible."

He looked like he wanted to say more, but his face had become very pale and his eyes more glazed than ever. He was hardly focusing on her anymore. The hand that had been resting on her chin fell to the ground, and he took a ragged breath. Every time he opened and closed his eyes, Lani was afraid he might close them forever. Her vision blurred with tears.

"This isn't how it's supposed to end!" she cried, her voice rising shrilly. "You were supposed to get it through your thick head that I've fallen in love with you! You were supposed to realize how perfect we are for each other! You were supposed to ask me out on our first date and and I'd be crazy nervous but we'd have so much fun it wouldn't matter! You were supposed to be my first kiss-a-and you do it out of nowhere and we'd be as terrified about the whole experience as I am right now!"

She squeezed his hand as tight as she could, letting out all her frustration. "I can't live without you! I can't loose another friend! No-screw that, you're a million times more than a friend. You're my-you're my-s-soulmate."

The word rang out. She shut her mouth. The sound of the waves lapping over the shore filled her ears, and she closed her eyes. And there it was. Everything building up inside her had found it's way out. Very weakly, Samheed slid his hand from her's and placed his fingers over her palm. She reopened her eyes and worried her bottom lip as she watched him, tears freely streaking her dirty face. His eyes met her's for one last time with an intensity she'd never seen, and he gave her a weak smile. Slowly, he tapped into her open hand right before his body went slack.

I love you like crazy.

Lani's red-rimmed eyes widened, and she had nothing left to do but break down. "YOU PROMISED YOU WOULD NEVER LEAVE ME!" she screamed, furiously wiping away her tears. "I HATE HOW HEROIC YOU ARE! I HATE YOU! I HATE THIS! FIRST MY M-MOM-THEN MEGHAN-N-NOW YOU!" She punched him hard in the chest. Then again. And again. She couldn't count how many times she did that before she forced herself to stop. She leaned all the way down towards him, not caring that his blood was staining her shirt. Her throat felt raw and dry from screaming. She ignored the aching in her body. Lani placed her hands on either side of his still-warm face and let her forehead rest against his. She inhaled choked breaths in an attempt to calm herself down. Her tears rained down on his face.

After a while, she lifted her head, her heart doing all kinds of rocketing moves at how close she was to him. She took a quick glance down at his lips, and suddenly couldn't take her eyes off them. Of course this was the one time she was ready to kiss him. What a joke...

She knew who she wanted to spend the rest of her life with, but how could she when her other half was dead?

Lani swallowed hard as she stared down at his unmoving body in disbelief. "Sam, wake up," she pleaded. She grabbed him by his shirt collar and shook him. "God, you d-don't know h-how much I want to k-kill you right now. C'mon! I-it isn't hard to open your eyes, at least. I love seeing your eyes. Wake up! Please. I love y-you. S-Sam...I love you. Kiss me."

She leaned down. She didn't want her first kiss to be like this. She'd imagined it millions of times. At first with Alex-but that was only because she was crushing on him a few years ago. This was real. She'd never loved anyone (besides her family) as much as she loved Samheed Burkesh.

She pressed her lips against his and began to hyperventilate at the first touch of them. They felt warm. Kissing him felt like magic, but she knew she couldn't have it. She was kissing a boy who was minutes-maybe even seconds from death. She could still feel his heart beating, ever so faintly. A feeling so powerful ran through her body she had to pull away. Longing, sadness, and love filled in the cracks of her broken heart.

Sitting there quietly, gazing down at the incredibly loyal, stupid, sarcastic boy she loved, a million thoughts ran through her head. Suddenly, a wild thought entered her head, and she came up with a solution that might work if she tried hard enough.

She moved her trembling hands down to either side of his shoulders. She sniffled and blinked any remaining tears away. She needed to be focused for a spell like this. When she was ready, she envisioned the hospital ward. Not just that, but an empty bed where he could be easily tended to. She sucked in a deep breath and let it out slowly, pouring all her concentration and devotion into one simple word. "Transport."

In the blink of an eye, he was gone.

Lani staggered backward into the sand. She took a moment to look at herself. There was blood covering her clothes and sand in her hair. With some difficulty and newfound hope, she stood, her knees wobbling. She walked to the edge of the water and ignored the dead pirate a few feet away, dipping her hands in and washing her dirty face with saltwater. She did a quick wash with the rest of her body, wiping the dirt, mud, and blood off her jeans and shirt. After washing out her hair, she readjusted the sword in her belt and ran to Artime, her heart pounding a mile a minute.

Would he be alive or dead when she got back?

She scrambled up the rocky hill next to the beach, ran past the trees, and reached Quill in record time. She ducked past a group of pirates, almost got stabbed by another, and was chased by three for a solid five minutes. Her legs burned and she felt on the verge of collapsing, but she didn't stop. She zig-zagged around each building and ended up doubling back a few times to knock the pirates off her trail. When she was sure they weren't following her anymore, she headed for Artime as fast as her feet would carry her and was greeted by even more fighting.

She threw some heart-attacks or scatterclips at every pirate she came across, doing her best to help her fellow Artimeans out. She spotted Sky and Kaylee on both sides of the front door and finally reached the entrance to the mansion. She didn't know what expression was on her face, but she assumed it wasn't good. The two girls looked at her with concern.

"Lani! Are you okay? What happened?" Sky demanded.

"I have to go," Lani said quickly, panting heavily. She walked past them before they could ask her more and opened the door. She was awestruck and horrified to see how destroyed everything was. Chunks of the walls were missing. Some of the furniture was in pieces. Blood and debris were all over the ground.

She walked as fast as she could to the hospital ward and pushed open the door. She wasn't surprised to see a large number of people in the room. Some were unconscious. Some were getting bandaged or applying ointments on themselves. Lani was surprised to see that her brother, Henry, still wasn't back from the trip to save Karkinos. In his place, a large number of nurses were hard at work. They rushed back and forth to every patient that wasn't already being helped, quickly bringing them back to recovery.

She recognized a few of the injured Artimeans but hadn't talked to any of them. She slowly walked across the room and allowed her breathing rate to return to normal. She walked to the last bed in the room and spotted him. She covered her mouth in surprise and her heart twisted with relief.

The regular color of his skin: Middle Eastern, as Kaylee called it, was back. She ran to his side and pulled up a chair, staring down at his now-bandaged chest. His shirt was rolled up above the bandage so he could roll it down when he wanted. He looked surprisingly healthy for a boy who'd almost died. There wasn't any blood staining it underneath. But how?

She unraveled his bandage and her eyes went wide when she saw there was no wound at all! The wound area looked completely normal, except for the globs of some kind of strange, sparkling ointment. She didn't question it. Lani wore a delighted grin when she felt his heart, beating much stronger than it'd been less than an hour ago. She rewrapped the cloth around his chest and startled when she felt him make a small noise.

She let out a laugh of pure joy at the sight of Samheed's eyes opening and going wide in a panic. He took in large gulps of air, staring all around him in confusion. His eyes, brighter and fuller of color than ever, rested on Lani.

"L-Lani?" he whispered, unable to comprehend what was going on. "I'm..."

"Alive," Lani finished. Tears of happiness filled her eyes as she beamed down at him. "I don't know how. I used the transport spell to send you here and by the time I got back..."

Samheed let out a small laugh in relief. As much as he tried to act tough, the suspiciously wet glint in his eyes wasn't hard to miss. "I don't believe it. How was I saved?"

She shook her head. She had no clue. Maybe it was from the combined magical ointments that took away his wound? Or maybe it was from their kiss? Red creeped up to her face. She was definitely never mentioning that to him.

She fell into the chair at his bedside. Either way, it didn't matter. He was alive. That's what was important.

The pair sat in silence, listening to the commotion going on in the room. Samheed turned his head towards her. "You look exhausted."

Lani shook her head, though it was obvious she was.

They let silence take over a moment longer, and she closed her eyes and rested her head back. Maybe she could get a short nap in.

"Lani?"

She opened one eye. "Hmm?"

"Me almost dying really puts things in perspective."

She couldn't help laughing at that. Kind of embarrassed, she wondered if he was referring to all the things she'd said. She wondered if he'd heard everything. "I bet."

A hand brushed her forehead, and she immediantely relaxed into him. She waited for him to speak, but the boy said nothing, merely continuing to stroke Lani's hair. After a while, she heard him draw a deep breath. She opened her eyes and found him staring off into space, his hand still stroking the top of her head.

"After this war," he said with a sudden confidence and determination in his voice, "I'm taking you on our very first date."

Lani nearly fell out of her chair.

Did he just ask her out?! Her eyes widened in a panic. Never had he ever asked her out! Sure, they'd had countless small moments of enjoying alone time together and pranking their friends, but never a date. The look on her face must've been so hilarious he burst out laughing. His laugh was like music to her ears. Her face turned beet red, and she tried to hide it under a curtain of her hair. Once he composed himself, he stared directly into her large sunset-colored eyes with all the seriousness he could summon. "We as well start somewhere."

She smacked him lightly in the arm and her face reddened even more. "How do you know where we'll even have it after this war?"

Samheed scrunched his brows together and stroked his non-existent beard. "That is an excellent question, Ms. Haluki."

He resumed brushing his fingers over the top of her head, an action so calming she wished he could do it forever. Her eyes scanned around the room. Every patient was asleep, and the nurses had rushed off into another room to make more ointments. Samheed had been so close to death, but he was here, alive and well, and that was a miracle.

She felt like crying all over again.

She rose from her chair. She looked at him. He looked at her. Just one glance and he seemed to know exactly what she needed. He propped himself up without too much difficulty and gently tugged her towards him. Her bottom lip quivered, and all at once, her emotions were both borderline happy and sad. Then, he did something that surprised her. He guided her into his arms and let her head rest against his chest. He wrapped his arms around her waist and held her in a rare tight embrace. He'd only hugged her like this once, back on the rescue ship from Warbler. She swallowed down the emotions that threatened to spill.

"Hey, I'll have a cool scar on my chest now," Samheed whispered reassuringly (not something that was very reassuring to Lani). "That isn't the worst thing to have!"

He held her an arm's length away to get a good look at her face. He pushed her hair behind her ears and she was irritated when her eyes teared up again.

Samheed cursed some word that she didn't recognize; it was a phrase that was only said in the theater. "Well, aren't we just a ray of sunshine?" His sighed as he gazed into her eyes. His face softened. "Please don't cry. I'm sorry. I messed up."

"N-no...it's fine," Lani muttered. "It's my fault."

He tightened his grip on her arms. "It isn't! Look, we survived Warbler. We survived every stupid battle so far. We don't know how long this damn war with the pirates and Warbler will go on, but I do know one thing: I used to have no one worth fighting for and-and now I have you."

"I-" Lani started to bring up the fact that he'd almost died, but she cut herself off. It wouldn't make herself feel any better. She'd do the same thing as Samheed: she'd fight for him too.

She gave him a real smile. "Thanks."

They both knew how emotional and heartbreaking the experience today had been. Both had already lost their best friend Meghan, and losing each other was like losing one half of your soul. Lani now knew what Alex meant when he felt his soul ripped in half-when Aaron was almost dead. That's the same feeling she started to get once Samheed passed away. And now that he was back, that feeling was gone.

Samheed smiled back at her. "No more worrying about me dying. We're good at fighting. We've done it for years."

"Yeah, yeah we are," Lani said softly, rolling her eyes and grinning. He was right. She looked at him curiously and her eyes flickered down to his lips automatically. A chill ran down her spine, and she remembered when she'd kissed him when he was close to death and not functioning or being aware enough to kiss her back.

"Can we try something new?" she asked, her nerves taking over. The words fell out like a wisp of air, almost so quietly she was afraid he didn't hear her. But he did.

He blinked, not fully understanding. The smile faded from his face. "What is it?"

She forced herself to lean forward, just inches from his face. Samheed was caught off guard for a moment and his eyes widened from her being such a close distance. She could practically feel the blush radiating from his cheeks. He finally looked down at her lips and looked like he was about to have a panic attack. But he wasn't the only nervous wreck.

"W-wait, are you sure?" he whispered. But the look in his eyes told her he really wanted to.

Lani almost laughed at how scared he looked. Not that she wasn't scared; she was incredibly afraid, but the fact that Samheed, of all people, would be afraid of having his first kiss blew her mind. He wasn't afraid of many things. He swallowed nervously. His orange orbs met her's and something flashed through them.

She gave him a smile. She was practically vibrating with the anticipation and thought of closing the distance between them. With as much confidence she could muster in her voice, she said, "I've never been more sure. About what I said earlier-"

Without warning, he pulled her into him, and then they were kissing.

You put your arms around me and

I believe that it's easier for you to let me go.

You put your arms around me and I'm home.