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 Posted: Fri Jul 11, 2025 5:27 pm
Aliez didn’t argue with him again. Not about being seen, or about what any of them were there for. Maybe Vyn believed it was selfish to want to be known. Maybe they’d all been raised to believe that. But Aliez didn’t. He wasn’t going to press him, though. Not now. Not when Vyn had finally let someone in, even just a little.
He adjusted the wrap carefully, ensuring the pressure was even, then leaned back just enough to give Vyn a little more space. His hand hovered for a moment, before gently brushing a lock of hair away from Vyn’s face.
“You don’t have to sleep,” Aliez said, almost a whisper. “But you could rest your eyes. Just for a while. I’ll stay, if you want. You don’t have to say anything. You don’t have to explain. I’ll be quiet.”
Once more, he reached for the medical bag and pulled out one of the soft energy blankets they kept inside. It was woven with faint traces of crystal fibers, designed to gently replenish a Velencian’s reserves over time. He knew Vyn would likely prefer to have his energy drained completely so he didn’t have to feel, but since he was healing, Aliez would insist that he needed more energy so his body could respond better. He shook the blanket out with ease and carefully laid it over Vyn’s lap and legs.
“You’re allowed to rest, even if just for a few hours. No one will think less of you,” he promised.
And if they did, Aliez wouldn’t let them say it.
He settled beside the bed again, knees drawn up loosely in front of him, arms resting over them. He didn’t reach for Vyn again. He didn’t push. Whatever Vyn decided, Aliez would be there. Even if it hurt.
“Just… breathe, Vyn,” he whispered. “That’s all you need to do right now.”
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Posted: Fri Jul 11, 2025 5:28 pm
Vyn didn’t say, They can’t think less of me than they already do, because he didn’t know if that was true and he tried hard not to be unfair, even if he rarely felt anything remotely positive directed toward him anymore. Tolerance, maybe, but not fondness—if there’d even been any of that in the first place. It was all of his own doing, Vyn was sure. If he didn’t like himself, how could he expect anyone else to?
But he didn’t say that either: They can’t think less of me than I already think of myself. If he did, Aliez would only try to reassure him. Aliez would sing praises Vyn didn’t want to hear, not from someone he already knew to expect it from.
He didn’t say, How am I supposed to breathe when I still feel like I’m drowning? Aliez wouldn’t have an answer, except perhaps a clinical one. Breathe in deeply, breathe through the pain, breathe out slowly. Vyn did that without being directed and it never helped, because Velencya was still dying and Velenia was still out of reach. He would choke on bitterness and misery until the day their people were guaranteed a future.
Instead, Vyn accepted Aliez’s offer and fell silent. He kept his eyes closed. He relaxed as well as he could and tried to turn his mind off, tried to stop his thoughts from whirling uncontrollably, tried to stop emotion from taking root…
… tried to sleep without dreaming and not lament waking.
Fin
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