I stirred awake, the warmth of her body still lingering in my mind as the sunlight spilled across the bed, golden and soft, brushing against my face. For a moment, everything felt perfect. She was there, her arms wrapped around me, her breath steady and close. I turned my head slightly, and there she was, her eyes half-closed, a sleepy smile playing on her lips.
"Hey," she whispered, her voice barely audible, like a secret meant only for me.
"Hey," I murmured back, my voice thick with sleep.
"Hungry?" she asked, her fingers tracing idle patterns on my chest.
I hesitated, savoring the moment. "Yes, but..."
"But?" she prompted, tilting her head, her hair falling in a messy cascade over her shoulder.
"But can we just stay like this for a while?" I asked, my voice soft, almost pleading.
Her smile widened, and she leaned in, pressing a gentle kiss to my cheek. "Of course," she whispered, her warmth enveloping me.
But then, as if the world had shifted beneath me, I woke again. The sunlight was still there, but the bed was empty. The warmth was gone. Her presence, her touch, her voice—it had all been a dream. Again. My heart sank as the reality settled in. She wasn’t here. She hadn’t been here for a long time. And yet, in my dreams, she always came back to me, if only for a moment. I closed my eyes, trying to hold onto the fading image of her smile, but it slipped away, leaving me alone in the quiet of the morning.