Good Morning

Ninth Morning

Nya wakes to the sound of voices drifting up from below, a soft murmur that makes her roll onto her side and blink up at the ceiling above her. She can't even remember the last time she has slept this well.

She's convinced that it has something to do with the fact that she had fallen asleep with her head on Jay's chest. Maybe it made her feel safe. Like he could protect her in some way. Or maybe it was because she knew deep down that she didn't want to be alone anymore.

Whatever it was, she couldn't help but be happy about it.

Her eyes close once again when the voices start up again. They're distant and muted, but she thinks it's her teammates on the lower deck, maybe fixing something in the engine room. She almost falls back asleep until a familiar voice breaks through the quiet.

"You shouldn't have done that."

Her heart begins to race. Nya rolls over, blinking twice to focus on the speaker. She'd forgotten he was awake.

"Do what?" she manages to ask, moving to sit up, even though it feels like her whole body needs to catch up with her.

"You shouldn't have left. You shouldn't have gone," he says, looking over at her with a pained expression.

He's right. But she got scared of her own emotions and ran away.  Even after everything that she's been through, she still can't accept that she's allowed a little bit of happiness. To give her heart away.

"I just needed to clear my head, Jay, and you've already been through so much," she says, wincing slightly at the way she sounds, "what difference does it make now? I'm here, aren't I?"

He moves forward then. He sits up behind her, and she can feel him press his back against hers before he reaches around and lays his palm over her heart. The warmth radiates through her body, and she lets out a sigh of relief that she hadn't realized she was holding.

"I've missed you," he murmurs in a whisper.

She tilts her head back, resting it against his shoulder and letting her hand find his. Their skin is warm and smooth, and his thumb is tracing small circles on her bare thigh.

"Are you alright?"

She nods slowly, completely unsure of what to say. His hand is strong and steady on her, and she finds herself leaning against him as his breath tickles the top of her hairline.

"I don't know what happened," he continues, "and I've told myself that I will not dwell on it because I need to move on. But I can't seem to stop thinking about it. Not that I want to," he says after a short pause, "but I just... I don't understand. How can one person be so cruel?"

They've met their fair share of villains, but this one, Nadakhan, was on another level when it can to sinister evil. She shudders at the memory. But that's all she has of the incident: a memory. Either time went in reverse or it never happened at all.

"And yet we still live," she offers quietly.

He leans back, looking at her with concern. "I think I might kill someone if they hurt you again."

"Don't worry," she smiles, "I won't let that happen."

"Thank FSM," he says, before pulling her back into his arms and laying his cheek against the top of her head.

Nya doesn't resist his embrace. Even when the words spill out of his mouth, she doesn't tense. She stays quiet and listens to him speak.

"For the longest time, I kept telling myself that I didn't care what happened to me as long as I stayed alive. I just wanted to keep going, but when he said those things to you..." He swallows hard, squeezing his eyes shut. Nya waits for him to continue. When he finally opens his eyes, she's met with a look of such sadness that she can't hold back the whimper that escapes her lips.

"I'm sorry," she says.

"Why are you apologizing?" he asks, sounding genuinely confused.

"I don't know why," she whispers, feeling the tears stinging at her eyes, "but I am."

He pulls her back in tighter, his thumb wiping away a tear that's escaped her eye. "I love you," he murmurs, kissing her temple once.

Her heart skips a beat and her checks flush red. She slams into his torso, hugging tight. I love you, too, she thinks to herself, but the words get trapped in her mouth.