Making her Joyful Again || RF Julie x FEM reader || L1TTL3_R0TT3N

- Ch. 33: When the Last Petal Fell -

[listen to Goddess by Laufey for the best experience]

It was strange to wake up after that. The days had blurred together, [Name]'s head was always in pain, her sense of reality had warped completely. She had no routine. Every single day was the same. 'Wake up, eat as much as you can without vomiting, sleep, repeat.' But she could barely sleep.

The nightmares she had were terrible. Every night without end, she'd see her face again. Julie's. Malea's. No one had really come to check on [Name]. Cod, of course, and Thymia. Harold was too scared to leave the void because somehow, he assumed it would make things work. "Being in the same parallel brings bad omens", whatever he meant.

So she would rot in bed endlessly. But [Name] wasn't alone, because Julie was right beside her the whole time. She was still asleep and hadn't woken from her coma.

So here she lay, the sun spilling into the warm to keep them both warm, her thumb stroking Julie's soft skin. She was still perfect and pink, as if she was only asleep and could wake up at any moment. [name] wouldn't indulge in such delusions, though.

She could only imagine the terrors she was experiencing. "Can you see her face, too? Did you know her real name?" She whispered. She leaned closer to her sleeping form, wanting to bring as much body heat along with her as physically possible. "The last thing I want is for you to be chilly." She kept a blanket covering both of them despite the fact that [Name] was still sweating.

"Or are you warm?" She whispered, knowing she wouldn't get a response. She had so many questions that she wanted answers to. "Was any of this real? Was I another plot point for you?" Her voice grew quieter and quieter. She was scared Julie could actually hear her. "Do you think about me? Ever, at all?" She leaned her head against her chest and listened to the sound of her faint heartbeat.

"If I kiss you, will you wake up?" She let her arm expand and wrap around Julie's shoulders. Her nose pressed against Julie's pink neck, hoping that if she stayed here, she'd have her smell memorized. She gave a short laugh at her daydreams. "You aren't a princess stuck in a tower. I'm sorry." She stroked her cheek, her thumb tracing over her bottom lip.

"If everything was...normal, do you think you could've loved me?" She curled herself up against Julie in a fetal position, swinging the unconscious woman's arms around her, dreaming that when she woke up she'd hold her tighter.

"[Name]..." A whisper, faint as the winds that were blowing outside, stirred [Name] from her thoughts. "Julie!" She gasped, looking up at her, cradling her face in her hands. Julie's eyes were barely open, eyebags weighing heavy on her face. "What are you still doing here..? You should've left, you aren't safe--" [Name] cut her off quickly.

"Hey, hey, no, I promised. Remember?" She smiled not because of Julie's words, but because the fact alone that she was awake made her teary with relief. "Don't speak. It isn't good for you."

Despite her warning, Julie pressed on. "Julianne is coming, she's going to kill you.." She coughed. [Name] covered her mouth with her sleeve, leaning Julie's head against her chest. "You gotta learn when to rest."

"[Name], you'll die if you stay here." She could hear the wheezes in her voice. Julie was weak, so weak that she was possibly on the brink of death. She couldn't risk losing her again. "I don't want to lose you. Not you, never you." Julie spoke through her wheezes. 

[Name] tightened her grip on her. "Julianne is coming. She...she told me. I don't have much time, you have to go.." [Name] could feel her slipping away. The thought of it terrified her. She held a finger over her mouth. She knew she wasn't sick, especially not with something contagious. Even if she was, [Name] seemed eager to take the risk if it meant being with her. "I won't let her hurt you."