𝙖𝙜𝙖𝙥𝙚 | 𝘢𝘬𝘪 𝘩. ᯓ ᡣ𐭩

045. | ʟᴏᴠᴇ ᴡɪɴꜱ ᴀʟʟ ᴘᴛ. 2

The doubts were there, the questions about how this could be possible, but his heart overrode rational thought. It was her. It was really her. He could feel it in his bones, in every fiber of his being.

His eyes were fixed on her, glued to her every movement as he slowly got to his feet, his heart full of hope, full of love, full of a thousand things he couldn't put into words.

The sight of her stirred up a wave of emotions within him - hope, disbelief, joy, fear. He was torn between wanting to run to her, to hold her in his arms and never let go, and the fear of getting his hopes up - only for it to be dashed.

He stood rooted to the spot, his mind a battlefield of emotions as he struggled to come to terms with the impossible sight before him. His heart ached, the sight of her stirring a mix of emotions. This was supposed to be impossible, she was supposed to be gone, but here she was, right in front of him.

Aki didn't know how, didn't know what to make of it, but as he looked at her and saw the familiar spark in her eyes, there was no denying it. It was her — his Touko.

Touko's heart was in her throat as she met Aki's gaze. She could see the shock in his eyes, mixed with disbelief and confusion.

Her own eyes darted over him, taking in every detail of his appearance. He was just as she remembered, his face, his hair, his build, and yet there was an extra weariness, a tiredness to him that wasn't there before.

A hundred different emotions ran through her mind, but the predominant one was relief. Relief to see him, to know he was safe and sound. The sight of him, so real, so alive, filled her mind. It felt like she couldn't get enough of him, couldn't look away for a moment. It was almost overwhelming, the reality of him standing there.

Her thoughts were a jumble of emotions — relief, happiness, love, but also a pang of guilt, a reminder of everything she had put him through.

Her heart ached at the sight of him, at the thought of everything he must have been through, the pain he must have felt. She wanted desperately to go to him, to throw her arms around him and assure him that this was real, that she was there, alive and whole.

In that moment, everything else faded into the background. It was just the two of them, standing there, their gazes locked.

Time seemed to stand still as she took in every detail of him — the way his hair fell slightly across his forehead from the neat topknot he held it in, the way his eyes held so much emotion, the way his body seemed to hold so much strength and vulnerability at the same time.

There were a million things they could have said, a billion words that could have been spoken, but instead they stood there, simply staring at each other, each caught in a whirlwind of their own emotions.

Kishibe, ever the practical one, broke the silence with an amused snort "What are you waiting for? You two gonna stand there and stare at each other all day?" he said, a note of impatience edging his voice.

"Go on, kid." he added, his tone gentler now, encouraging. "He's right there."

His words snapped Touko out of her stupor, reminding her of the reason she had come all this way. She looked at Kishibe, then back at Aki, her heart beating faster.

Her eyes shone with tears, a mix of emotions — relief, happiness, guilt, love — filling them. She didn't need any more encouragement, the dam inside her breaking as she started running towards Aki.

The snow crunched under her feet, the cold air stung against her face, but she didn't notice any of it. All she could think about was getting to him, closing the distance between them. Her feet crunched in the snow, her breath misting before her in the cold air as she pushed herself forward, every step bringing her closer to the man she loved.