Cabin Bingo

There are rituals when you are friends with somebody for nearly thirty years. Little things, gestures, phrases, observations.

They are a comfort, a home to come back to from the unknown and unexpected, to greet you and to reassure you that not everything in the universe is changing.

When Una stepped over the threshold of Chris' hut in Montana, knocking the snow from her clothes, duffel bag slung around her shoulder, she was reminded of the countless of hours they had spent there during the course of their friendship. Whenever duty allowed Chris had retreated into his mother's cabin, spent some time there to recharge the batteries, to take care of the horses and to forget about the duties of an ensign, then a lieutenant, then a commander, then a captain and now an admiral for about one or two weeks.

And during all this time Una had been there, too. It had come naturally to invite her up there the first time after they had become inseparable at the academy.

Una had been wary at first. She would have been alone with a young man for quite some time.

And while she hadn't been afraid to hold her own, should Chris try anything funny, she was more worried about accidentally exposing herself when she did so. Especially because it had felt strange to her at the time that Chris shouldn't have an ulterior motive in inviting her up.

She had been told repeatedly that she was attractive and gorgeous. So it only made sense that Chris would try to hit on her, too.

Except that he hadn't.

He had just wanted to bring a friend to his mother's house and share his little world with her.

Una had learned so much about him during that vacation and it had changed her views on humans forever after the negative experiences of her childhood.

It had given her back faith that she had done the right thing by joining Starfleet.

That summer was thirty years in the past now. Dorothy Pike was long dead, her house in the hands of a caretaker who made sure everything stayed in order while Chris gallivanted around the galaxy with Una at his side.

But since then accompanying Chris here had become a ritual that helped Una recuperate for the challenges to come. It had become their retreat during war and peace times.

Until Chris met his fate at Boreth.

But that, too, was years ago now, meaning that time relentlessly pushed him towards his fate. And when Una stepped into this cabin now she knew that it would be for the last time before his accident.

"Hi," Chris greeted her with a smile and offered to take the coat of her.

"Hi," Una greeted him and gladly let him do this. Just like always, Chris was being chivalrous and Una was letting him.

In the kitchen the tea was ready. Just like always. And yet, it was the familiarity of the repetition that pained now, because both of them knew that their time together here was ending. And so every little gesture was laden with the knowledge of finality, making nothing innocuous and everything meaningful.

Una slipped out of her boots and put them under the stairs. Then she joined Chris in the small kitchen where he was already pouring.

"You look good," Chris said while he handed her the tea.

Una took a little sip. Herbs with chili. He had started doing that when he found out she liked all of her food spicy. But only here. Una wasn't a tea person anywhere else.

"You too," she said softly. "How have you been?"

It was the first time in decades that they had been separated. After Chris had turned over the command of the Enterprise to James T. Kirk his promotion had taken him back to Earth while Una had remained to make sure the transfer went smoothly.

And now it was done. The Enterprise was in both of their past now. Una's future was undecided whereas Chris'…

"Busy," Chris chuckled and there was a hint of his boyish innocence in his smile. But also foreboding and melancholy.

Una smiled to indulge him. Chris had been honest with her in the past. So him being evasive now wasn't because he had secrets from her, but because he himself wanted to pretend, at least for one last time, that everything would remain the same.

"Yes," Una agreed. "A change of command is a lot of work. It took some time to familiarize Spock with the way I had programmed the ship's computer. As a first officer he should know how I organized the files so he can either continue my system or make changes as he sees fit."

The computer had been a pet project of Una's that she had taken care of for some time. It hadn't been easy to let go of all that. But she knew that it would be in good hands with Spock.

"I'm still getting used to my office in San Francisco," Chris admitted and chuckled. "It feels so confined."

"I can imagine," Una said softly.

From a Captain's seat to an enclosed office space to a wheelchair.

Chris' world was about to get even smaller and more confined. But as they both knew about that there was no need to bring it up. For now he still had time and a lovely cabin. She emptied her cup and put it back on the counter. And tried a smile. "Thanks for the tea, you have perfected the recipe."

"I had a bit of time," Chris chuckled and Una was glad to have him guided onto familiar territory again. She vowed to make this stay unforgettable for both of them.

She smiled again and then looked towards the stairs. "I'll get settled and then I'm all yours. How does that sound?"

"Great." Chris smiled while pouring himself another cup.

Their stays were usually filled with laughter. Cooking and baking together. Walks in the snow. Talking. Listening. Even taking the horses out for a ride. Unwinding.

Una was thinking about all these things when she carried her bag up the stairs and into her room. She always had had her separate room. It was better that way. But when she passed the open door of Chris' bedroom, his bed tidy and neat, a sudden sense of regret filled her. Of paths never taken and roads never pursued, because the stars had never aligned.

Their relationship defied definitions. They were intimate and affectionate. They knew each other inside and out. They could finish each other's sentences. They had inside jokes stemming back decades. And there was probably not a lot she didn't know about Chris and vice versa.

They had been ride or die for each other the moment they had met. And Una had known that Chris was a person she needed in her life when he had never even made a pass at her during a period in her life when she was still trying to figure out how to keep her secret.

Waking up glowing in another person's bed certainly wouldn't have helped.

As the years went by Una had gotten better at masking but her friendship with Chris had become so cemented that it hadn't felt right to disturb that with making it physical. And then Doug had entered her life and various women had entered Chris'.

But despite lovers coming and going Chris and Una had remained. And it was the one constant the universe didn't seem able to pull apart.

Chris' last relationship had ended in such a painful way that he had withdrawn for a while, afraid and anxious that when the time came that he would be alone.

Because how could he ask of Una what was supposed to be the job of a partner?

Una opened the door of her room and threw her bag inside. She would unpack later. For now she felt it important to return to Chris and give him the company he so obviously needed.

The rest of the day was just this. Company. Food. Companionship.

And when the night settled they both retreated to their respective rooms.

Except sleep eluded Una while she looked out of the skylight above her head. The colorful light of the aurora danced in the sky, green and purple and absolutely magical. It reminded her that sometimes the magic wasn't found in space or between the stars.

But then it started to snow heavily and the window was covered in no time, separating Una from her stars, but yet warm and cozy under the blanket.

She sighed, her mind running into overdrive.

And then she made a decision.

Chris deserved companionship and some warmth in the days before he would be irrevocably changed. And even though he didn't talk about it Una knew his looming accident was foremost on his mind.

And so she climbed out of her bed, her blanket wrapped around her. She walked into the corridor, barefoot and with the hope to have made the right decision. On quiet soles she sneaked over to Chris' bedroom, grateful for the carpet on the wooden floor. It dampened the noise she made and made it less cold for her bare feet.

Una stopped and listened in on Chris. But no sound could be heard through the door. She wondered if he was asleep or tossing and turning like she had done. But she couldn't see through the closed door.

She lifted her hand to the doorknob, her fingers brushing the cold metal, hand shivering. She only had to turn it…

But in the last moment she shied away and returned to her bedroom trying to find the sleep that had eluded her until then.

In the morning they were snowed in completely.

When she climbed down the stairs, still in her sleepwear, the aroma of freshly baked pancakes and omelets wafted through the corridor.

That was always the best part about spending time with Chris for a longer period of time. His cooking was impeccable, delicious and full of love for the people he tried to cater for.

Una would miss it tremendously. When Chris had told her about the accident she had secretly tried to collect his most favorite recipes in a notebook after she had asked him to show her how this or that was made. She never knew if he caught on, but he willingly taught her.

Una would never be such a talented chef because she lacked the innate love for home-cooked food Chris had. The best she could do was reprogram the food synthesizers. But she had tried to made the effort for him, to preserve something for him and from him.

"That smells wonderful," she greeted him and Chris grinned. "I was wondering when you'd show up", he told her and soon had a plate ready for her. Una took it gratefully and walked over to the table.

"Slept well?" Chris asked her while he fixed his own plate.

"Yes," Una lied.

"Must be the surroundings," Chris said good-naturedly as he sat down opposite Una. "It snowed."

"I know," Una replied and felt pretty stupid. Outside the windows there was a white wonderland. "I love it."

They ate in silence for a bit until Una looked up. "Any plans for today?"

Chris grinned. "It snowed," he said as if that was the answer to everything. And maybe it was.

They tidied up together and Una got herself dressed. And then they went outside into the undisturbed whiteness.

Just like in space they were the first to leave footprints on an otherwise untouched landscape. And just like in space, their footprints changed their perception of their surroundings. Not far from where they currently were there was a little forest. Una remembered the hiking trails surrounding it from previous stays. Maybe this was where Chris was headed.

And so she started walking.

Until something hit her in the back.

"Hey!"

She turned around to see Chris laughing and forming another snowball.

"That's probably my only chance to ever hit you," he laughed. "When I'm catching you off guard!"

"Just you wait!" Una growled in playful indignation. She bowed down to form a few snowballs herself when she was hit by a second one.

"Damn you, Chris!" she yelled. She fell to her knees to get more snow and then started throwing her first projectile in his direction. It was a direct hit in his belly. He grunted and then guffawed.

"Now you see how it feels!" she called.

More snowballs were flying and both of them were good enough to score hits most the time. They kept at it until they both collapsed into the snow, exhausted and laughing. Una rolled over and suddenly there was Chris and he hugged her, almost out of breath because he was so amused.

Una laughed with him and hugged him back, because he was her best friend in the world. And he needed to be happy.

When they had caught their breath again, Chris got up. He brushed the snow from his clothes and then offered his hand to Una who gladly took it. He pulled her to her feet.

Now Una was shaking the snow from her clothes and hair. "That was fun," she confessed. "Just like when I tried the Enterprise Bingo with La'An."

"The what?!" Chris asked and Una stared. "The… Enterprise bingo?" she asked testily.

"Should I know this?" He raised an eyebrow. And Una grinned.

"Yes, yes absolutely you should," she decided and gave him the quick rundown of the different tasks the bingo contained.

"And you tried all of them with La'An?" Chris asked incredulously, laughing again.

"All of them," Una agreed. "And then some. We were just writing our names on the ship's hull when the Mongovian ship flew by. At that moment I knew that the negotiations had been a success."

"You wrote your name on the ship's hull?"

"Yes."

"So it's still there?"

"Yes?"

"I like that. Knowing that a part of you will always be out there. Good job, Number One." He patted her shoulder and Una felt strangely guilty for not having told Chris about this sooner. Maybe he would have liked to put his name on the Enterprise hull, too.

Una swallowed. And then she had an idea. "Would you like… would you like to play another round with me?" she asked quietly.

"Another round?"

"Of a bingo. A cabin bingo of sorts," she tried to explain.

Chris cocked his head in curiosity as he was prone to do when he wanted Una to continue, his interest peaked. "Go on."

Encouraged Una smiled. "We've been here so often, have experienced so many things together. Why not create a bingo of all sorts of activities and see if we can manage to do as many as possible."

To create memories. To have something to look back on.

Chris paused for a second and then he smiled, too. "That sounds like a wonderful idea."

After they had finished their hike they returned to the warmth of the cabin and over Chris preparing lunch Una started her first draft of the bingo and a PADD in front of her.

"Snowball fight? Check already. Make food together?"

"Watch the aurora together?" Chris offered and Una took it down.

"Sit in front of the fireplace with a cup of tea and some pastries and just talk," she added with his approval.

"Take the horses out for a ride," was his next suggestion and Una gladly added that one. "I'm surprised that wasn't your first idea," she teased him.

"It was, but I wanted to throw you off for a little," Chris chuckled and Una punched him playfully.

"Build a snowman," was her next activity and that earned a grin from Chris.

"Or a snow woman."

"Why not a snow Vulcan?" Una teased.

"Gladly, if you build the ears." Chris looked at her. "You always had the more nimble hands." He looked down on her hands and Una suddenly felt glad she had put on the golden nail polish for him. She tried a shy smile and for a moment it was as if time stood still. But then the moment was over and Chris was back at preparing the food.

Slowly their bingo card filled with everything they had done over the years, a testament of an unbreakable friendship and intimacy that was hard to reproduce. A life lived in fullest. And when the bingo was done there was one field left in the middle.

"What shall we write there?" Una asked Chris. He looked at it and reread what they already had put in. And then he shrugged. "Beats me, I'm out of ideas."

Una set the bingo card down and looked around the kitchen that had become a second home, a refuge. Even when she was pretending to be a human she had always felt safe here, protected by Chris and their friendship and the cabin's remote location, protected by nature, by everything.

She would find her room here in her sleep. She knew where Chris had all the cooking utensils, ready to assist him. And maybe, maybe that was it. Familiarity.

This was their last ever trip here in this capacity. Nobody knew what would happen to Chris after he burned. Not even himself. Una didn't even know for certain if he would survive for long.

Their time together and conversely their friendship had an expiration date.

And so, Una put in the only thing left that made sense.

"Something we've never done before," she read to Chris and looked at him askance.

He laughed. "Sounds good to me."

The following days were spent filling the boxes of their little bingo. And while Una enjoyed their various activities and the joy of spending time together, each time she ticked the bingo card off, she felt a twinge of sadness, because each ticked off box was a little goodbye.

They were saying goodbye in increments.

When they were almost halfway done through the bingo the box in the middle was still untouched.

It was the one thing neither dared to touch.

Maybe they were afraid of roads not taken.

Or they were afraid of consequences when they left the comforting embrace of familiarity.

Or they were afraid that choices they made now couldn't have any impact with so little time.

And yet, Una knew that this box was the most important of them all.

The one they had to fill before all the others. Because this box meant the creation of a new memory, not the repetition of old ones to keep them fresh.

Una had thought long and hard about these things while she again stood in front of Chris' door during nighttime. Normally she wasn't risk averse. But she also wasn't careless.

Going in meant changing the course of their lives forever in a time when Chris was actively saying goodbye. And there just was this lingering uncertainty whether that decision could do more harm than good.

And yet. It was something they had never done before.

Una inhaled, closed her eyes and listened. But again no sound came from the other side of the door. But this time she didn't turn back. This time she turned the handle and quietly entered Chris' bedroom.

She could only hope that what she was about to do wasn't ruining their friendship over things she had imagined. It was still time to turn back she could simply turn around and…

"Una?" Chris was sitting upright in his bed.

Too late.

"Hi, Chris," Una said softly.

"Una, are you alright?" His voice was tinged with worry.

The long answer was: Una was not alright. She was grieving the most important person in her life while he was still with her. Her heart was breaking for him every day she spent here, knowing that soon the only thing left of this trip were memories.

"I'm alright." That was the short answer. No use in worrying Chris with things he knew himself.

Una stood awkwardly in the room, suddenly very aware of her stupid decision. "I'm sorry, Chris, I shouldn't be here…," she stammered. She hadn't known herself how this would play out. But certainly not like this.

"Stay." His voice was soft, almost pleading.

"Okay," Una whispered. And slowly she walked to his bed, sitting down on the mattress. "Okay," she repeated, when Chris searched for her hand and held it.

They remained like this, wordlessly and then, when sleepiness set in Una crawled under the blanket with Chris and they huddled together, warm and safe, knowing they had each other.

When Una woke up the next morning, the warmth of Chris' arm around her startled her. She wanted to jump out of bed when everything came back to her and she relaxed again. Thus, she cuddled herself closer to him, her cheek on his chest.

She hummed when she felt his hand stroking over her hair.

"Good morning," he whispered.

"Good morning," she replied and smiled. It felt strangely natural to wake up in his arms. He was strong and warm and Una felt strangely safe in the little refuge they had built together.

Chris didn't stop stroking Una's hair. His movements were almost wistful, as if he committed everything to memory.

"Your hair is very soft," he said after a while. "I've always wondered how it would be like to touch it," he added quietly.

"You can touch it whenever you wish," Una muttered and looked up to him. Their gazes met and maybe it was the bright light of a winter morning, enhanced by snow and a lazy sun, but Chris' eyes had never looked so blue to Una. And right at this moment they were focused on Una's face.

In that moment Chris and Una were both stuck in that limbo of intimacy, of intimate knowledge of each other, of tenderness and gentleness and the implicit understanding that there was more.

Chris swallowed.

"You…" His voice sounded hoarse and he cleared his throat. "You're very beautiful."

Una felt heat rush into her cheeks. "You too," she replied and meant every word. It was something she had thought for a while already, and maybe Chris had never looked prettier than he did now, sleep-tousled and with the look of pure adoration on his face.

Una inched a bit closer and then stopped. What exactly made her stop she couldn't say. Maybe the uncertainty on how to proceed as this was thoroughly unfamiliar territory. They had never been so close before, physically speaking.

She cocked her head, trying to gauge what Chris expected of her now but he just averted his gaze. Una bit her lower lip.

Maybe it was for the best to disengage now before this became uncomfortable.

"Coffee and toast?" she suggested and rolled over, away from Chris.

He took a moment to regain himself and then cleared his throat.

"Coffee and toast, yes, good idea," he stammered. Una looked back at him and wondered if she had made the wrong decision.

Their breakfast was the usual. Small discussions about their choice of spread while the coffee brewed. The kitchen was filling with the scent of eggs that Chris fried.

Reminiscing about old times, even gossiping.

"You think La'An will have a hard time adapting to serving under you as First Officer?" Chris asked her over his food preparations.

"Not at all," Una replied while she set the table. Chris knew the answer to that question himself, he knew La'An as well as she did by now. But it was a safe topic. "I've trained her extensively. She'll do well."

"But probably not as well as you did," he said fondly while shaking the pan. "Best First Officer in the fleet."

Una decided to play the game. "Yes, nobody will ever achieve my greatness," she quipped. "Nobody will even come close to it." She pretended to look arrogant. "Especially when you had to save my sorry ass on the first away mission. Or when I managed to get the whole crew captured. Or when I…"

"We get it," Chris chuckled. "You pretended to make mistakes so people would be thrown of your scent concerning your brilliance."

"Actually yes, to a degree," Una confessed. "But you might have figured that out by now."

Chris stopped and turned around. "I guess I did," he said softly.

"Not in these things, mind you, but I understated my physical strength, for example. Or pretended to make mistakes in exams…"

Chris put the pan down and hugged her, pulling her close. He smelled like fresh food and himself. Una had always been able to make out his specific scent. She hugged him back. "It doesn't matter to me what you did to survive. I'm glad I had the privilege of serving with you for so long. You are brilliant, resourceful and dedicated. I couldn't have had a better First Officer." He stepped back a bit from the hug and took her in, his eyes searching for hers. He cocked his head a little. "You've improved my life tremendously, Una. Thank you your being such a huge part of it and going every step of the way with me." He hugged her again and Una grunted, moved by his sudden display of nostalgia.

'Improved', he had said. Past tense.

Una pressed his warm body close to his. "You're improving my life, too, Chris. You always will."

Present tense. Future.

"I would be dead or in prison by now without you," she added. "So if Illyrians did life debts I would have one towards you."

Chris let her go. "Any sane Captain would have done the same thing," he tried to downplay his achievement.

"Like Bob April who stated before the court he would never have sponsored me if he had known? Like Captain Batel who didn't hesitate to arrest me even though she clearly felt uncomfortable with the assignment but was 'only following orders'?"

Chris winced at the mention of Marie and Una inwardly cursed. That was not the way she had wanted the conversation to go. She tried to salvage it.

"What I'm trying to say is, you are special Chris. And you will always be special. You have an innate kindness that looks beyond superficial things. Not many people possess that, not even in Starfleet. But you do. And serving with you helped me to become a better person just because you were always there and showed me how it should be done. I owe you a lot."

She pressed his body closer again and when they separated she saw that Chris had blushed a little.

"Good to know," he mumbled and then served Una the eggs.

After breakfast they continued with their bingo.

They built their snow Vulcan right in front of the the cabin, in the dry cold winter air, the sun glistening on the snow. The little ice crystals were reflecting the light just right, sparkling, making the snow so magical.

At first the idea had seen whimsical. But there was something to be said about leaving all their responsibilities behind and just trying to enjoy the day like a pair of children. Especially since both of them not really had the chance of having a proper childhood; Una had always lived in fear and Chris had suffered under his strict father. That had been of of the first things to bond over and it had always been more easy to let go in the presence of the other.

When Chris started rolling the first ball of snow Una had watched him curiously. But then she helped him by rolling the second. She made sure the balls were round and even by smoothing over them with her gloved hands. When she was content they added the third ball for the the head.

Chris had brought some stones that served as eyes and a mouth, they even had procured a carrot nose for their little creation.

But when it got to the ears, things turned out to become more difficult because it didn't matter what they tried, the snow always fell down.

"Looks like it will me a snow human after all," Una observed after the ears had fallen down a third time.

"Not so fast," Chris called. "I have an idea."

Una raised an eyebrow when Chris procured two sticks.

"Sticks?" she asked incredulously.

"Why not? We can easily attach them and pretend they are ears?" Chris showed her what he meant and the snow man now had two antennae.

It looked as silly as it should and Una started laughing. "That is illogical," she imitated Spock.

"Fascinating," Chris added and they laughed some more. "Although Doug would probably have loved this."

Una nodded. "He probably would, yes. It's a shame I've never built a snowman with him."

"Something about the 'hot Vulcan climate'?" Chris teased and in reply got a snowball to his chest. "Hey!" he protested.

Una innocently turned around and pretended to walk away.

"I yield!" Chris laughed and called after her.

"Maybe it's a snow Andorian?" Una suggested.

"Deal."

The day flew by between warming up on the chimney afterwards and going outside for a second time, making as much of the fleeting daylight as possible. And then dinner together before they retreated for the night.

But this time there wasn't even the smallest shadow of a doubt that Una would sleep in Chris' bed again. As soon as she had crawled in he wrapped his arm around her and cuddled her close. "This is nice," he observed. He was warm and alive and smelt faintly of aftershave.

"Yes," Una agreed and settled next to him, until she was comfortable. She, too, felt safe with with him so close by and it calmed her down listening to him fall asleep. When she was sure that his breath had settled she dared kissing his cheek and whispered, almost inaudibly: "I love you."

There it was. The confession that had been bubbling in her chest for so long. Maybe it had always been true, maybe it had only started to become true during their stay here. But in a way, Una had always loved Chris. He had always been special and different and their relationship was defying words anyway. It was more than friendship and more than romance.

It was about two hurt souls who learned to heal with each other. Because they were so different and yet so similar they could learn from each other, become better persons with each other.

I love you didn't even half encompass the amount of feelings Una had for Chris. But she didn't have better words and so those had to do.

"I love you, too," his voice came back in the darkness. Una froze. She was so sure that he had fallen asleep. Had she awoken him?

For a moment time stood still and Una didn't dare moving. The moment was so unreal, so fleeting and yet seemed to stretch forever.

"I didn't want to wake you," she muttered eventually, unsure what else to say.

Chris' hand was stroking her cheek. "I'm glad you did," he whispered. "I might not have heard it otherwise."

Which had exactly been the point.

"Chris," Una started. What would she tell him? That she was stupid complicating things so shortly before his accident? That it hadn't been her intention to mess everything up? She should have kept quiet. She should have…

A warm arm wrapped around her and pulled her close and before Una understood what had happened, Chris had pulled her on top of him. She was looking down on his kind face, his features obscured by darkness and yet she would be able to see each and every one of them before her inner eye. She had memorized every little detail of his beautiful face. His strong nose, his soft lips, his angular jaw, his bushy eyebrows. His hands framed her face and pulled her close and then the soft touch of his lips on hers calmed the storm inside of her, like lightning dispersing the clouds.

The moment Chris kissed her Una opened up for him. It was not even a conscious decision, just the natural reaction of her body. And when she had gotten a taste of him she wanted more, so much more. She pushed herself into the kiss, moaning softly.

Chris wrapped his arms around her back while he held her.

And so they kissed for a while, tenderly, getting to know each other anew.

When they were finished, Una bopped her nose onto Chris' and hummed.

"Chris," she tried again, the turmoil returning. But before she could say something Chris kissed her again, silencing her doubts and fears.

This was more than a kiss, it was a confession, a sign of trust and understanding. And now that Una couldn't let go. When Chris released her she continued kissing his face, his cheeks and nose, his forehead and his jaw, mapping out the face she knew so well. But experiencing it through touch and caress was a whole different thing.

Chris turned around so Una was sliding back down onto the mattress facing him sideways. She hooked a leg over his body, pulling him closer. He was so warm and alive, so real and tangible.

Her forehead touched his and she went in for another kiss, then another peck, not getting enough of him.

"I love you," Chris whispered between her affections. "And maybe I have for a long time."

"I love you, too." Even if Una wasn't sure about a lot of things, she was sure about that. And maybe she could postpone asking the hard questions until the light of day returned.

Here, under the stars, she could allow herself to feel.

Hot kisses. Hands under her sleepwear pushing it gently up. The mutual discovery of bodies. Touches. Kisses. Caresses.

Breathed love confessions. Perspiration.

Making love. Such sweet, needed love.

While Una had opened herself up for Chris, feeling him move inside her, so wonderfully and bittersweet the aurora was dancing above them through the skylight, lending the room its magical, surreal light.

But what they experienced was not surreal. It was real.

And it was something they had never done before.

The morning could come. And even the future could come.

But nothing could take this away now.

Because they had each other.