A Dance With Death

|| Chapter 46 - United ||

             

He stiffens under my hold, taken by surprise, but hugs me back. I hold him tight, tears running continuously down my cheeks, numerous sobs escaping my lips and body shaking with nervousness as well as relief. Eight years of his absence, eight years since he died in my hands, eight years of despair, of him being under Caius' control and me succumbing to an endless pit of depression. All this time of trying to find answers, of trying to figure out what had happen to him; and after everything that's been happening in the past hours, he's here. Finally, he's with me. Not as an apparition, not as a hallucination, not as a disguise for an all-powerful being, but as Niall –– my friend, my brother. 

I hold on to him for dear life, not wanting to let him go. His presence makes me feel complete. His essence has made me forget everything. All I know is that he's back. I've been given another chance to be with him, to see him in a state he didn't deserve to be in.  

This feeling is something I've never felt before –– I've never felt as satisfied as I am now. There is no greater happiness than this. 

I pull away, still sniffing, to take another look at him. The softness in his eyes, the hidden beauty in the way his face brings joy in every heart. Most of his grace is gone, even if he physically appears the same. With no trace of the evil shadow underneath his features, I've realised how much I have missed him, especially with Caius around. 

"You're okay," I breathe out, solace represented in my tone.  

His pale lips curve into a faint smile, but not with the same sense of content. The exhaustion described on his feature represents what he's been through. I know he'll never be the same again. 

"You're. . ." He drawls, thinking of a word to describe me, ". . .old." 

I laugh. "Thirty's not old!" 

"Okay, old guy." 

"I'm not old." 

"Whatever you say, grandpa." 

I slightly push him back, trying hard to look offended, managing to earn a smirk from him. "Shut up!" 

"Woah woah, I've been gone eight years. Cut me some slack." 

I grin, my happiness knowing no bounds. He's truly here. Niall is back. "I've missed you." 

His smile disappears. "I've missed me too." 

- - -

Niall and I just talk after that. No discussing about Caius, no talking about the afterlife, no words of regret, nothing. Just a plain, normal conversation that normal friends have after meeting after almost a decade. The cafeteria is empty and it's just us two. The reapers decided to leave us alone. Well, Althea did. The rest of them had to agree with her, having no other plausible argument. 

I tell Niall about the boys, what they've been up to. I tell them about my life after the concert, about where I live, what I do, when and how I got married. The usual. He listens to everything with great interest, his chin resting on his palm and elbow on the table. I tell him about a few light-hearted moments of my life, and he smiles and laughs along. He tries hard to be happy for me, happy that I moved on, but there's something in him that tells me that he regrets missing all of it. The way his eyebrows are pulled down in an unsettling manner shows how his mind cannot be diverted from what's on both of our minds. 

"You know I'd forgiven you, right?" Niall blurts out all of a sudden. He then frowns, internally cursing himself for having said that. 

"What?"