Good Morning

With You

The first time she had kissed him, the whole world had felt like it was ending. Now, it feels like the beginning.

She hadn't thought about how the first kiss would be. In retrospect, her subconscious had been doing all the thinking, because there was no way in the Underworld that she would have thought to do it at that precise moment, not with the whole team and the whole universe watching, and certainly not in front of Lloyd. It had been a knee-jerk reaction to a situation where she could not think of a single other option.

Now, she can think of a whole slew of other options.

"Jay?"

"Hmm?"

"I have something I want to say to you."

She's been practicing the lines, repeating them in her head when she's alone. She had written them down and tried them out on the mirror. She's still not sure what she thinks about how she sounds.

"Shoot," Jay replies, his hand running through her hair, and her stomach leaps and somersaults at his touch, like always.

"I'm glad you're here."

There. She had done it. That wasn't so hard.

"Me too," he says, and he squeezes her closer to him. She rests her head on his chest, and the thump-thump of his heart is louder than anything.

"I was terrified," she whispers, and she's not sure why, because there's nobody around to hear. "I was afraid I wouldn't see you again."

"Me too."

"I wanted you to be here," she goes on. She's never spoken these words aloud before. "I'm glad I didn't have to lose you. I'm glad you were the one I kissed. And I'm glad you were the one that kissed me."

"Really?"

"Yes."

"Wow. That's the best thing I've ever heard."

She laughs.

"You're the best thing that's ever happened to me," she admits. She doesn't need to whisper anymore. "And I think you're the one I'm going to kiss next time. Not because the world's ending. But because you're... you."

"That's the nicest thing anyone's ever said to me."

She sits up and looks down at him, her face flushed.

"Can I try something?"

He nods. She leans in.

The first time, it had been a kiss that was trying to tell the whole world that there was life after death, after annihilation. Now, it's a kiss that's telling him that she's alive, and that they're going to stay that way.

His lips are warm and salty with an hint of ozone, that fresh, crisp feeling just before an storm, and she thinks he tastes better than anything.

She pulls away, her face even redder.

"How was that?"

"Better than the first," he says.

She's not sure why she asked. She knows the answer already.

"Good."

"Hey, Nya?"

"Yeah?"

"You're the best thing that's ever happened to me, too."

Her heart thuds.

"I don't think I'm ready to say what I want to say to you yet," she says.

"That's okay," he tells her.