Wirt awoke in a rather fanciful lie, wondering what he and Beatrice would do with the day ahead of them. It was not long before he remembered what they had discussed the previous night along with its consequences. He lay wrapped in the warm embrace of his blanket for quite some time, unwilling to leave the quiet room and face what the night had wrought. He tossed and turned in a half-asleep state, too worried of what was to come to return to his slumber, but weak and exhausted enough to lay still. He had no need or want to leave the comfort of the couch until the smell of breakfast and fatty meat, bacon perhaps, coaxed him to the kitchen.

With his body still not fully free from sleep's grasp, Wirt stumbled into the kitchen and was greeted by the smiling faces of Beatrice's parents and the backside of Beatrice's head. "Good morning, Wirt," they said in unison as her mother pointed to the chair which he had claimed as his own.

"Just in time for breakfast," she said sweetly as he took his place.

"…Yeah," Wirt muttered softly as he rubbed his eyes. His heart began to sink, plummet rather, as he realized a greeting from Beatrice had never been given. He slowly turned his head to observe the rather blank, somewhat unstable look which covered her face. He opened his mouth to instead greet her, but stopped himself before he could. Something about her expression told him that she was not looking for a good morning, especially from his mouth. He turned back to the delicious smelling meal that was set out before him. His nose was correct when it predicted the bacon upon the plate, along with eggs and a slice of bread. He would have been much more willing to eat the comforting, home style meal if it were not for Beatrice's new behaviors.

His stomach soured at the sight, along with the worry of how long it would be before her mood bettered. He knew he was the cause and felt horrid for admitting to her what he had. It was a rather life changing explanation, an afterlife changing explanation at that. He could not forgive himself for how much he had hurt and confused the girl, and wondered if her feelings were the same. At the same time, he understood how unavoidable the explanation would have been. Perhaps, somehow, it was better that the words had come sooner rather than later. In some uncomprehensive way, it may have been worse the longer he let it fester. All he could hope for was forgiveness. If not, he was unsure of what to do or how to move on. He had returned for her. If she did not want to be in his presence, he had to find somewhere else to be and something else to do in the strange place. In his current state, he was a parasite to her family, and he knew he could not continue on as such. He would stay in hopes of the situation returning to what it had grown into before its fall, and if it did not, leave.

"Is something the matter, Beatrice?" her mother asked after she had stayed quiet for so long.

"Nothing, mom…. I'm a bit tired is all."

"Are you sure?" Beatrice nodded her head softly in response while picking at her meal with a fork, moving the food about rather than consuming it. "Your day at the pond must have exhausted the two of you," she added, turning to Wirt. His expression mirrored hers almost perfectly.

A series of days spent speaking little and doing nearly nothing at all seemed to crawl by as long, painful months to Wirt. The hours of his days spent awake were filled with little but thoughts relating to his family and worries of Beatrice. At times, he regretted ever doing what he had. If he would have left his relationship with Beatrice as it was before he had gone and never returned, he felt as though she would be much happier. He had not only hurt his family and friends, but the girl he loved as well. He had ruined everything, and it was all because of his choice.

As his mind grew more clouded with such thoughts, as his mood seemed to worsen every day, and as his body felt as though it was growing weaker, he made his decision. Beatrice had spoken but a few words to him over the course of days after their discussion. Although, he could not even count the number of days that had gone by since then, even though they seemed so slow. They melded together like an everlasting nightmare. He realized it was most likely as bad for Beatrice if not worse. If he left, then maybe she could forget, pretend to still be clueless of her fate and his. Along with that, he was under the impression that his mood was also affecting her family, especially her parents.

He could tell the two adults were worried by the way they looked at both him and Beatrice, how they seemed much less chipper than when he had first arrived. The change in attitude spread out to affect Beatrice's siblings as well. All were less energetic and lively and seemed to have little to do or say. Wirt knew it was all because of him. His presence in their home had completely ruined their blissful lie of an existence. If he was gone, said existence would return to its normal state. He wanted to do no more harm, only repair what he had destroyed.

He awoke early upon the next morning. It occurred due to a combination of another sleepless night along with the fact that he wanted to be gone before the others awoke. He planned so because he knew Beatrice's parents would be kind enough to persuade him to stay. Along with that, he knew himself well. He would grow emotional if he said his goodbyes in person. Seeing him in such a state would hurt both Beatrice and her family, and he wanted to hurt them no more than he already had. He had rummaged around to find a pen and ink, and hastily scribbled a note to leave behind.

I apologize for leaving in such a hurry, but I have decided it is time for me to return home. Thank you all for allowing me to stay here and providing what you could. I appreciate everything you've done.

Farewell,

Wirt

He sighed as he placed the piece of paper atop the neatly folded quilt and pillow which already rested on the sofa. All that was left was to pack what little he had, almost none of which he owned. Beatrice's father had provided him with a few sets of spare clothes considering the fact that he had arrived with none but the articles which he wore. Folding them into a neat stack, he buckled them together with a spare belt that her father had also provided. They would be exposed to the dirt and weather outside, but it was the best method of transport he could think of, having no bag or suitcase of any kind.

A sudden noise from behind caused him to jump ever so slightly and freeze halfway through retrieving his luggage. Feeling a presence behind him, he dropped the clothes to the floor and hesitantly, almost fearfully turned to see who it was. "…Beatrice," he muttered, making out her features in the dim glow of early dawn.

"…Wirt… what are you doing?"

"I… I… well, uh…" he sputtered out, raising out of his hunched over state and to his full height.

"You're leaving?" she asked, her eyes darting from the clothes to the bedding items.

Wirt turned his head down awkwardly and crossed his arms. "… That was the plan."

"Why?" she asked, almost gasping the word from her mouth.

"Because…"

"Because why, Wirt?" she returned sternly, taking his note in her hand and raising it up to her face.

"I… I feel like…" his voice began to crack, his emotions overtaking him, "like I'm hurting you… and your family by being her. I'm sorry, Beatrice… I should've never come back. It was a dumb idea." Wirt tensed as he felt her arms wrap around him but quickly accepted her comfort as her body pressed into his own. He wrapped his arms tightly around her waist and rested his watering eyes against her shoulder. Beatrice sighed, stroking her hand against his back.

"I'm sorry too, sorry for not saying anything to you these last few days. Don't blame this on yourself, Wirt. It may not seem like it, but I'm grateful you told me the truth. Before you ask, I still love you too."

"I… but-" Before he was able to speak another word, Wirt was interrupted by Beatrice's hand grasping the underside of his chin, and then her soft lips pressing against his own. The short, gentle kiss was enough to expel the nervous energy that was building up inside him. His muscles relaxed and a warm sensation grew within him.

"Please don't go, Wirt. Well, I wouldn't let you leave, anyways, but it sounds sweeter that way," she said with a soft laugh, caressing his cheek in her palm and using her free hand to crumple the note.

"You don't want me to?"

"Of course I don't. Don't be stupid. Do you realize how glad I was when you first arrived?" she asked, dropping the crumpled parchment to the floor.

"Yeah, I understand that, but you didn't look too happy after I told you how I did."

"I wasn't angry with you… well, actually, I was but whatever… what's done is done, okay? Most of what I've been going through is shock. I was in the process of trying to remember how long I've been here, how long I've been… and I don't know. I really don't know anything, let alone trying to remember my life before all of this. I've realized something though. I have a feeling that I've been here for quite a while, and this is really all I know. I may not ever get any older or do anything all that important, but I'm happy. I have all of my family here with me, have a fairly nice existence here or lack thereof… and now I have you too. There's not much more of anything that I need."

"You don't necessarily have to keep doing the same thing, I mean, look at what you did with me the first time I was here. Just because you'll never 'grow up' doesn't mean you can never do anything."

"…Yep, you're right. We'll have to plan some adventures, you and me, or at least a fun trip."

"Yeah-"

"I wasn't finished yet," Beatrice said in a teasingly stern tone.

"Oh, uh, go ahead then."

She smiled and nodded her head. "I'm still not very happy about how you got back here," she said, her tone growing more serious.

Wirt's eyes widened in fear. "I… I'm sorry. I know, I just…"

Beatrice sighed and held him close once more, the soft silk of her nightgown brushing against his shirt. "What's done is done. There really is no going back, is there?" She pulled away slightly, placing her hands upon his waist and gazing into his eyes. Wirt gazed back and gently shook his head. "Well, how about the two of us be optimistic for once and think about the good of it. Sacrificing the life you had back there, even if it wasn't the greatest thing, took a lot of guts. You're brave Wirt, braver than I ever thought you were. Along with that, you sacrificed everything to be with me. I'll admit that it's pretty romantic," she cooed, a light blush coloring her cheeks.

"Yeah… I guess it was."

"You're really not the best at planning though."

Wirt sighed in embarrassment. "Yeah, I know. I was thinking more about what I wanted then how it'd all work out when I got here."

"It'll be quite some time before you get to see your family again, and until then, I'm guessing you need a place to stay. I want you to stay here with me, and I don't just mean for a visit. I'm sure my parents wouldn't mind adding a great guy like you to the family," Beatrice said sweetly, giving him a light kiss upon the cheek.

"You think?"

"I don't know what we're going to do with you otherwise. I'll make it happen," she assured him, giving a soft but meaningful smile.

"Thanks, Beatrice."

"No problem," she said before giving a sigh. "I think all of this will take some getting used to for the both of us, but once we get the hang of things, it'll be great."

"…Yeah," Wirt muttered, his focus turned to the ground.

"Wirt, what is it?"

"…I miss them already…" Wirt said weakly as he locked his eyes with hers once more, tears trickling down his cheeks, "and I, I can't believe what I did to them, what I put them through, what I am putting them through. I wish there was a better way I could've gotten here."

"But there wasn't," Beatrice added, examining his exhausted face with concern. "Do you need to lay down? You didn't get much sleep last night, did you?" Wirt nodded his head and nearly fell to the ground as he stumbled backwards and collapsed onto the sofa. Even though the mood had grown serious, Beatrice could not restrain herself from chuckling lightly at his clumsiness.

"…When I do finally see them again, I'll apologize for everything… if they remember. If they don't, I'll make it up to them somehow," Wirt mumbled out as he thought.

"Scoot over, worry Wirt," Beatrice teased, wanting to lighten the mood.

"Huh?" he muttered, returning his attention to the girl.

"I said scoot over," she said, raising her voice ever so slightly and motioning with her hand for him to make room for her small body.

"A-alright," he said, turning onto his side and scooting the farthest back that he could. Beatrice rested her body upon the small strip of cushion, laying on her side as well to face Wirt. She pushed hands into the crevices between his arms and sides, and then pulled her body even closer to his. Blushing, Wirt returned the gesture by wrapping his arms around her own and placing his hands upon her back. He then frowned, letting out a deep and painful sigh.

"What now?" Beatrice asked, although not impatiently.

"Greg's going to be older than me when he gets here… and my parent's, well…"

"So?"

"It just seems wrong… weird."

"Age really doesn't matter here when you think about it; it doesn't really exist, after all. Age doesn't change how much your family loves you either. There's no point in worrying about your old home now. That's what this place is for after all, right? Most of us here don't even know about our fate or our existence there. We stopped worrying about it long ago."

"That does make sense, I guess."

Beatrice softly kissed his lips as she moved her hand to his. Sliding her fingers between his own, she brought her other hand up to his head and gently pet it before ruffling his hair. "All you need to worry about is catching some sleep," she said as she pulled her lips away.

"Yeah, you being here is going to help," Wirt whispered, letting his eyes fall shut as he squeezed her hand.

Beatrice huffed teasingly. "Then I guess I'll have to stay."

"…Beatrice?" he asked, his eyes still closed.

"Yes, Wirt?"

"I made the right choice. I was thinking I didn't there for a while, but I did."

Beatrice rested her cheek against his own and gently rubbed her smooth skin against his. "Glad to hear it," she whispered as she grew nearer his ear. Wirt replied by tightening his grip around her and scrunching her lengthy, slightly oversized gown against her skin. "Goodnight," she then expelled, almost breathlessly.

"It's morning, actually," Wirt said.

A pleased smirk came across Beatrice's lips as she rested her forehead against his. "Good morning."