Chapter Text
Bright ran a hand through his hair. If he were a wiser man, he'd have something to say to Fa. Something... comforting. But had nothing. Not a thing.
After all this time, he never learned the right thing to say in a situation like this.
Bright entered the breakroom. It was empty. The silence struck Bright all at once. He darted over to the coffee machine and pressed a few buttons, filling the void with sound. There was the soft plop of a styrofoam cup followed by the hiss of water boiling. As the machine dispensed the coffee, Bright kept looking over at the door. He kept expecting to see Quattro walk in, casually waving at him like nothing happened. Or for Katz to storm in, raging about something or another.
The machine whirred as the last few drops of coffee dripped into the cup. It was all quiet again. Bright picked up the cup, feeling its warmth in his hands. The lights danced in their reflection in the coffee, white streaks on a brown background.
In this distance, Bright could hear someone call his name. Right, he remembered, he didn't have time for this. He placed the cup on a table and went back to work. Time to be the captain again.
---
Even on the bridge, surrounded by operators, it was eerily quiet. It was as if no one dared to speak. Bright found himself staring off into space, his mind a million miles away. He kept going back to the battle of A Baoa Qu. Even now, the destruction of the White Base didn't feel real. That ship had been his home for many months and in an instant... it was gone. At the time he might have said it had made him sad, but that wasn't quite right. He never knew how to describe the feeling. Emptiness, perhaps?
Perhaps that's how it felt now. Although, it was ironic... after A Baoa Qu they lost the White Base and the Gundam, but the crew largely survived. Admittedly, many of them hadn't made it to the battle at all, but those that did survived. And now the Argama and the Zeta were intact, but the Radish and most of their pilots were lost. His old commanding officers at the Federation probably would have thought of it as a lesser loss.
God, what a way to think of it.
"Captain," Saegusa's sudden speech nearly made Bright jump out of his seat. "Oh, sorry, I-"
"No, no," Bright shook his head. "Please continue."
"Uh, yes. We've found the closest colony; side 1, Shangri-La. There's too much interference to hail them right now; we'll need to get closer. Should we make a course to Shangri-La?"
"Oh, yes." Right, they needed supplies. Supplies, repairs, and to bring Kamille to a hospital. He should really check on Kamille, Bright realized. "How long will it take to get within range?"
"Approximately 20-22 hours at our current speed, Captain. If we increase our speed, we could get in range within 14 hours."
"No, keep on course. We need to keep Minovsky emission at maximum, in case there are any Titan remnants." Remnants. Huh. It was strange to think all at once the Titans might just be... gone. It might be over. Well, no. Of course, it wasn't over; Haman was still out there. Axis was still out there.
Bright once thought it was over 7 years ago. He was a fool then, and would be a fool now.
Once their next course of action had been decided, an uneasy silence fell upon the bridge again. Just the background hum of machinery and the soft thuds of fingers on keyboards. Bright watched the reflection of the console lights on the windows.
---
Bright leaned back in his chair. Behind him there was a familiar row of vending machines. Above him there were equally familiar fluorescent lights. And to the right of him sat a man with short blond hair. He held a burger in his hands, although he seemed completely disinterested in it. As if he only had it because it was expected.
A cold shiver suddenly ran down Bright's spine. No. This wasn't right. Something wasn't right.
"Captain?" Apolly cocked an eyebrow.
"This isn't right. It's wrong."
"I know." The pilot put the burger down and leaned back. "I know. I can't be here."
Bright opened his mouth to say something, but nothing came out.
Apolly smiled. "I'll leave soon, I promise."
"You don't have to do that."
"I have to. You know that."
"Apolly, you don't-"
"Captain!"
Something grabbed his hand. Bright awoke with a start.
"What-"
"You fell asleep Captain." Torres let go of his arm. "Uh, sorry for waking you."
"Oh." Bright pulled himself upright. His vision was a mess of blurry lights. He blinked a few times to get his eyes focusing again. Right, he was on the bridge still. Right. "My apologies."
Torres waved his hand as if to brush the offense aside, and sat back down in his seat.
With a sigh, Bright brought his fingers to his forehead. Thankfully, the rest of the bridge quickly diverted their gaze. Bright rubbed his eyes, hoping to snap himself back to reality. However, his eyes felt heavy and a dull pain throbbed behind his eyebrows. He quickly realized this was a losing battle.
"I'm going to go grab some coffee. I'll be back."
When he arrived at the breakroom, he found Astonaige and two junior mechanics eating lunch, quietly chatting amongst themselves. Bright pressed the button on the coffee machine. As the coffee rushed out of the machine, Bright looked over to see Fa enter.
Everyone stopped in their tracks. Her eyes were rimmed with heavy red lines, and the rest of her face was red and puffy. As she noticed the attention, her gaze darted to the side and her lower lip quivered. She seemed so small, so alone.
"Fa, hey..." Astonaige was the first one to dare approach her. "I- I'll get you some water, okay?"
"No, I'll do it myself." She muttered.
"It's okay, I'd be happy to-"
"I said I'll do it myself!" she snapped. Astonaige jolted back as she stormed towards the machine. Fa wiped her nose with the back of her arm and then pushed the button for water. The second it dispensed the water cup, she snatched it up and dashed out.
Bright grit his teeth. She may not want to talk to me, he thought, but I can't let her go like this. He darted out after her.
"Fa!"
She didn't stop.
"Petty Officer Fa! Stop!"
Fa let go of the handle. She thrust her hand against the wall to stop her momentum. Once still, she hung in that space, listless.
"Fa," Bright pushed himself towards her. "We should talk."
"...I apologize for my comments earlier," Fa intoned, even and rehearsed, "it was out of line."
"Never mind that." Bright clamped his hand against the wall next to Fa, trying to stop near her. He overshot by a bit, and had to pull himself back. "We need to talk."
Bright forgot what he was going to follow that up with. He had something, right?
"...yes?"
God, he wished Emma were here. She'd know what to say. Or Reccoa. If Kamille could talk to her they'd... probably get into a shouting match, but it'd be a cathartic shouting match. Hell, at this point Bright figured Lieutenant Quattro would be a better choice than himself.
"Fa, you-" Damn it, just say something. "You're not doing well."
Fa didn't respond right away, instead she turned her gaze to the floor. After a moment, she muttered, "I'm sorry."
"No, Fa, I'm not asking for an apology, I-" Bright stopped, sighed, and rubbed his temples. The dull ache had grown into a full-grown headache. "It's... it's been hard on you, and I understand that. I would only ask that you talk to me. Or anyone."
She pressed her trembling lips together and took several long blinks. "What- what would I even say?"
"What... ever is on your mind, I suppose."
Slowly, she took her hand off the wall and let it hang.
This could be going better, Bright realized. He should probably back off a bit. "When you're ready."
There was a long, painful awkward pause. Right before Bright could think to excuse himself, Fa murmured. "I need to go check up on Kamille. May I-"
"Of course. Actually," he grabbed one of the wall handles, "I wanted to check on Kamille myself. May I join you?"
"...of course."
As the two of them entered his office, Dr. Hasan looked up from his desk. "Ah, Fa, Captain."
"Where did you move Kamille to?" Fa looked around.
"Oh, to the beds over-" he didn't even finish his sentence before Fa rushed off.
Bright sighed and trailed behind her. On a bed near the window, Kamille lay staring out at the stars. Fa let her hand run down the side of the bed, eyes locked on Kamille.
"He's... he's been unresponsive." Hesitantly, Fa placed a hand on Kamille's arm. She held her breath, just a second, and let it go in a disappointed huff. "Dr. Hasan can't figure out what's wrong with him. He still has more tests to do, but..."
Out of a morbid curiosity, Bright leaned over the bed to stare Kamille directly in the eyes. Kamille didn't stare back. Feeling more than a little tasteless, Bright stepped back.
Fa held her grasp on Kamille for a little while longer, before letting her hand drop. With a soft sigh, she crouched on the ground next to the bed, still staring at Kamille. Bright waited. And he waited. Was she just going to... sit here like this? For God knows how many hours?
"In approximately 20 hours we'll be able to hail a nearby colony. We'll be able to take him to a hospital."
"Mm." Not a muscle on her face moved.
"Fa, you..." Bright crossed his arms. Damn it. Time to get the Captain Voice out. "You need to get some sleep before we arrive at Shangri-La."
She looked up at him. "Captain, I- I can't sleep right now. Please, let me take care of Kamille for now-"
"You aren't going to be able to take care of him very well if you're exhausted. You-"
His words died as Fa jumped up and shot a glare right into his eyes. "Just say it."
"What are you-"
"That I'm useless. That I'm-"
"What?!" His mind ran blank in his confusion. "What are you talking about?!"
"I'm no good in a mobile suit and now I can't even hold it together!" She clamped her teeth together hard enough that Bright could hear the grinding, but despite her effort she couldn't hold herself still. Fa trembled and tears trickled down from the side of her eyes. "I'm just pathetic."
"You're not-"
"Stop it! Just- just stop it..." She buried her head in her hands. "Stop it stop it stop it..."
Fa collapsed in on herself, sobbing and shaking. Lacking any words, Bright reached out a hand to her only for Fa to jolt away from him. Bright stood gobsmacked. She won't talk, Bright thought, she won't listen, and she won't let anyone comfort her. What was he supposed to do? He ran through idea after idea and came up blank.
Finally, she just ran out. Bright let out a guilty sigh of relief.
"She might just need some time to process a bit. It's still a very fresh wound," Dr. Hasan said as he walked up to Bright.
"You might be right." Bright peered down to Kamille. It was probably his imagination, but he swore he could see a flicker of concern in Kamille's eyes.
Dr. Hasan brought a packet of water to Kamille's mouth. "I've done as many tests as I could, still waiting for a few blood tests to finish analyzing, but I can't find any physiological source for his condition."
"...then, do you think this is Newtype related?"
The doctor shrugged. "They didn't really teach us about Newtypes in medical school, unfortunately. Considering how tight-lipped the Federation has been about this field of research, everything I've learned about Newtypes has been on the job." He squeezed the last little bit of liquid out of the capsule. "These things hardly ever hold any fluid..."
"Hm." Bright let his gaze fall on the door. He had to admit that the Newtype stuff was completely beyond him. If Kamille's condition was Newtype related, he wondered if that was better or worse.
"Captain," Dr. Hasan stood up. "When was the last time you've slept?"
"I've-" Should he count the impromptu nap, Bright wondered, "I've scheduled myself to rest in a few hours."
As Bright rubbed his temples, the doctor walked over to his desk. "Did you run out of those painkillers?"
"Oh, uh, yes, a little bit ago, but I haven't needed-" Dr. Hasan interrupted Bright by shoving a pill bottle in his hands.
"Take two every four to six hours, three to four times a day, as needed."
"Um. Thank you, doctor." Bright pushed the pill bottle into his pocket.
"If you've been having trouble sleeping," Dr. Hasan pulled up a binder and started writing in it, "I can prescribe some sleeping pills, if needed."
"Oh, no, I won't be needing that." Besides, every time Bright had taken a sleeping pill he'd been completely out of it the next day.
"Okay." The doctor closed the binder and stowed it away. "Let me know if the need arises."
"Of course, doctor."
As Bright left the doctor's office, he could feel his eyes sting. He rubbed his eyelids a few times, trying to keep himself awake. A few more hours, he reminded himself. Hm, he could use some coffee. That's probably a good idea. Bright made his way over to the break room.
Wait, hadn't he been here before?
---
The ship was dark, save for the light of the stars shining through the enormous bridge window. Bright stood and watched it all pass by.
(Wait, this wasn't the Argama. Bright didn't know this place.)
A small figure sat next to Bright, watching the same stars. The figure drew his leg up and rested his head against it. He sat in silence for a while. With the faint light, Bright couldn't quite make out his features.
"Hey, Captain." The figure spoke, so quietly Bright couldn't hear him at first. "Why won't you let me go out again?"
Bright exhaled, taking all of his energy to keep his face emotionless. "Because, Katz, you're dead."
"Oh."
Bright turned away. The stars moved past them. He took the time to count them, but there were so many. The longer he counted, the more stars there were. There were so many. So, so many. So many that the bridge slowly lit up, illuminated by the light of legions of stars. Soon, the stars started zipping by the ship, faster and faster. Bright could feel his heart hammering in his chest as the light strobed over the ship.
"Captain?"
Bright looked back to Katz. Slowly, Katz unfurled. He stretched out his legs, and then let his head fall back. As Katz's head touched the floor, his face was tranquil, empty. Then, his eyes opened up, bit by bit, until his eyeballs bulged out slightly. His mouth drifted open, bit by bit, until it stretched out entirely. The left side of his face burned, then skin boiled and fell away, exposing the muscle and bone underneath.
Bright recognized this face. He knew it well. It was Ryu's. His face looked just like Ryu's, when they dug him out of the wreckage.
"Captain." Katz wheezed out, barely able to move his mouth. "Captain."
Bright couldn't move. He couldn't look away.
"Bright." It wasn't Katz's voice anymore.
He couldn't move. He couldn't look away. The lights became faster and faster. It was so bright. He could see every detail of Katz's face, his terror filled eyes and the charred skin. But he couldn't look away. He couldn't move. More and more of Katz's skin burned and fell away. And he couldn't move. He couldn't look away.
Bright awoke to the sight of the dark featureless ceiling of his room. He stared at it for a good while, letting his heart rate fall down. He kept his eyes fixed on the ceiling, trying to memorize every detail. Hoping it would push Katz's face, Ryu's face, out of his head.
But every time he'd blink, Bright would see those terrified eyes. His slack mouth. The putrefied skin.
Frustrated, Bright tossed his blanket aside and walked to the bathroom. He flipped the switch, and his eyes flinched shut from the sudden light. When he managed to open them again, he recoiled from the stranger he saw in the mirror. Ever since he was a young man, everyone always said he had the look of someone who'd seen it all and wasn't particularly impressed with any of it. That world-weary boy looked like an optimist in comparison, now. In an effort to rejuvenate himself, Bright splashed some water on his face. This only succeeded in making his sunken, haggard face into a wet, sunken, haggard face.
Bright flipped off the light and stumbled out of the bathroom, nearly tripping over a chair as he made his way back to the bed. Out of curiosity, he stopped by his desk to check his alarm. With a heavy heart he realized that he had only managed to sleep for about two hours. He knew that trying to get back to sleep was a futile effort, but he didn't really have an option.
And so Bright fell back into bed and wrapped his blanket around his body. He closed his eyes, begging for that vision of Ryu's face to go away; when that failed, he stared at the ceiling. He repeated this loop over and over again, for hours and hours. Pushing a scream down, he slammed his fist against the bed. Every cell in his body was exhausted and he could not goddamn sleep. He didn't have the time for this. He didn't have the goddamn time.
By the time he managed to finally fall asleep again, his alarm rang twenty minutes later.
He lay in bed for a minute, wincing at the blaring alarm. Finally, Bright summoned the energy to drag himself out of bed and turn it off. He took another minute to gather the willpower to shuffle into the bathroom. By the time he managed to force himself through all the motions of his morning routine, he was awake enough. Enough that he could eke through the day.
He'd gone to work in worse condition before, to be honest.
Still, Bright knew that he was going to need coffee. As he entered the breakroom, he saw Fa sitting at a table in the corner. She sat hunched over, with a cup in her hands that she seemed not to know that she had. Her unbrushed hair fell over her face. He stood in front of her, but she didn't acknowledge him.
Bright sighed. One part of him insisted that he needed to talk to her. The other part acknowledged that the doctor might be right, that he had to let her go at her own pace. He can't push her. So he just nodded at her, and walked up to the coffee machine. As the machine came to life, a small voice startled him.
"Captain?"
"Uh, yes?" He turned to Fa. She turned away from his gaze and hung her head downward.
"Can- can we talk?"
Bright sat in a chair opposite Fa. "Of course."
"I'm..." She pulled on her thumbs. "I'm sorry for the way I've acted-"
"It's okay, Fa."
"It's really not. I'm..." Fa sighed. "I, uh..."
"You're not useless," Bright blurted out.
"Huh?"
"You're not useless." Bright laid his palm on the table. "You do a lot around the ship. And you are a skilled pilot. You're not useless in the slightest."
"Oh, I... um... I don't..."
"I'm not just saying that."
Fa blinked several times, unable to form a response.
"I, um," Bright drummed his fingers on the table, "felt the need to say that."
"...thank you."
For a loss of words, the two sat for a few minutes, staring off into various directions. While they sat in silence, Torres walked into the break room and up to the coffee machine. He clicked his tongue in annoyance.
"Someone keeps leaving cups of coffee all over the break room..." He muttered. Torres picked up the abandoned cup left in the machine. As he turned to throw it away, Bright jumped up.
"Oh, uh, can I have that?"
Torres gave his captain a quizzical look, but gave him the cup.
"Thank you," Bright muttered sheepishly.
With his coffee in hand, Bright returned to his seat. He took little sips while Torres waited for his own cup.
"Oh, Captain," Torres turned to Bright, "we should be within range to hail Shangri-La in approximately 12 hours. So far, we've not spotted any Titan remnants, although there has been some Axis activity."
"I see. Make sure Minovsky emission remains at the maximum level.
"Yes, Captain."
"I'll join you on the bridge in a few minutes."
He nodded, and with a coffee cup in hand Torres walked out of the breakroom.
As he left, Fa tilted her head up, "do you think they'll be able to help Kamille?"
"Possibly. To be honest, if his condition was caused by Newtype powers, I have no idea what we should expect." Bright frowned. He probably should have chosen a more... diplomatic answer than that.
"...I see."
"Fa, you're a Newtype. What did you see, or rather feel, around the end of the battle? When Kamille was injured?"
"I- honestly, not much." Fa fiddled with her thumbs. "I did feel something, though. It was... heavy. I don't know how to describe it. Like being crushed. I only felt it for a second, but I- I did feel it."
"I see." Bright placed his coffee cup down.
"Sorry I can't tell you more."
"No, no, that helps."
Fa took a long drink of water. "I checked up on Kamille earlier. He's... the same." She placed the cup down. "I should check up on him again."
"Fa, did you manage to sleep?"
"I, um... a bit, yes?"
"’A bit’ meaning...?"
"...about two or three hours, I think."
Huh.
"And how many times have you checked up on Kamille since?"
Fa nervously laughed, "why are you interrogating me?"
"It's admirable how much you want to help Kamille," Bright tapped a finger on the table, "I just don't want you to neglect your own health."
"I'm not! And... and..."
"And?"
Fa's shoulders dropped. "...I owe it to him."
"What do you mean by that?"
"I mean... I survived. I wasn't injured." Fa ran her fingernails across her palm. "I mean, it's my responsibility, right?"
"That doesn't mean-"
"If I had been faster, if I had interfered, Kamille may not have been hurt. Or I could have saved-"
"Fa, stop." Bright slammed his hand on the table. "You can't think like that."
"Captain-"
"No, you need to listen to me." Bright's gaze fell to the side. "I've... seen a lot of people die. You need to trust me when I say you can't think like that. It'll kill you."
Fa grew silent. She picked up her cup and rolled it around in her hands. "I..." She sighed. "I've certainly seen a lot of people die too, you know? I thought… Ha, I had thought by now it'd be easier."
"For some people, it never does get easier."
"Did it get easier for you, Captain?"
"...in a way, yes," Bright admitted. "And in a way I wish it never did." He knew it was a silly way to think of it, but part of him wished he could mourn like he used to be able to. Losing Ryu nearly killed him, but didn't Quattro or Emma or the entire crew of the Radish or so, so many others... didn't they deserve to be mourned just as deeply?
She raised an eyebrow, but didn't ask for elaboration.
"I just..." Fa took a second to find the rest of her thoughts, "I just don't understand. Why was it me?" She inhaled deeply. "Why was I the one to survive?"
Bright really, really wished he had something wise and comforting to say. He still didn't. All he had was honesty. "I don't know."
Fa clamped her eyes closed. "I just don't understand. What did they do wrong, that they deserved to die and I-"
"It's not about who did something wrong or who 'deserves' it."
"Then what is it about?"
"I don't know. Luck, I suppose." Despite himself, Bright could only laugh at that. "God, that's awful."
"It is." She forced out a mirthless laugh. "It really is awful."
"I wish..." Bright leaned back. "I really wish there was something I could say that would make this easier. But..."
"It's just awful, right?"
"...I suppose so." Bright let out a breath on one side of his lips. "I, uh, had hoped this talk would cheer you up."
Fa giggled. "It's fine. Sometimes... things are just awful." She let her gaze fall to the side. "How do you deal with it? When it's just awful?"
Bright had no idea if he even had an answer to that question. He shrugged. "You just... make it through, I suppose. As best you can. That's all you can do."
Fa just hummed, and took another sip of water. Bright turned his head to the coffee machine before he remembered that, right, he already had some coffee. Instinctively, he picked up the cup and blew on it, despite the coffee being nearly lukewarm by now. He downed the rest of the coffee all at once, just to finally get it into his system.
“Captain, have you slept?” Fa suddenly asked.
“Uh, yes, I have.”
“Really…?”
“Yes, of course.” Bright frowned. “Not especially well, admittedly, but…”
“For someone who keeps insisting on telling me to take care of myself,” Fa rest her chin on her hands, “you’re not very good at it yourself.”
Bright crumpled the coffee cup in his hands. “That’s insubordination…”
This drew a laugh, a small but genuine laugh, out of Fa. Bright hadn’t intended on cheering her up by making her laugh, but sure, yeah, he’ll take it.
“But…” her smile fell into a neutral expression, and she sighed, "I should check on Kamille."
Bright looked at her, as if to say something, but he elected not to fight this battle. He merely nodded. As Fa stood up, two children blundered into the breakroom.
"Shinta, Qum!" She put her hands on her hips. "I sent you two to bed not too long ago, did I not?"
"Uh... we can't sleep." Shinta hung his head.
"...we wanna see Kamille..." Qum added.
"Fa," Bright stood. "I think they should visit him."
She closed her eyes and nodded. "You're right. You're right." Fa knelt, down to the children's level. "Hey," she smiled. As soon as she opened her arms, both Shinta and Qum tackled her into a hug.
"Fa..." Qum sniffled.
"I'm sorry for yelling at you two, okay?" She patted both of their heads.
Bright smiled. "I'll see you later, Fa-" Suddenly, Fa stood up and wrapped her arms around Bright.
"Thank you," she whispered.
In his initial surprise, Bright had pulled his arms away. Slowly, he drew back, and placed a hand on Fa's head. "You too. Thank you."
With a smile, she pulled away from the hug. "I'll see you later, Captain."
Bright nodded. He watched Fa as she led the two children down the hall.
---
Dr. Hasan looked up from his desk to see Fa, Shinta, and Qum file in. The children scanned the room, trying to find Kamille.
"Ah, Shinta, Qum, are you two-"
"We're here to see Kamille!" Qum helpfully interjected.
"I'm going to warn you, okay, that Kamille is going to seem weird to you right now." He led the three over to Kamille's bed. "He can't move or talk right now."
Shinta jumped up and peered over the bed, into Kamille's eyes.
"What's wrong with him?" he asked.
"He used too much of his Newtype powers," the doctor explained, "and he's going to need a lot of help. We're going to take him to the hospital-" the children gasped, "but he'll be okay. They'll help him at the hospital."
Fa screwed her lips to the side. "Used too much of his Newtype powers" is... well, it's a fine enough explanation, she supposed. With the situation explained, Shinta and Qum backed away slightly, to observe Kamille at a more respectable distance.
"Can he eat by himself?" Shinta asked.
"No, he can't. We have to help him," Dr. Hasan said.
"Can he drink?"
"No."
"Can he... go potty on his own..?"
Dr. Hasan shook his head.
"Oh."
"He needs to go to the hospital." Qum's face was deadly serious.
"He will, Qum," Fa pet her head, "he will."
"We can help!" Shinta ran up to the doctor. "What can we do to help!"
Dr. Hasan chuckled. "I do appreciate the offer, but I can't think of anything right now. More than anything, Kamille really needs rest."
"And do you know who also needs rest?" Fa crossed her arms and tapped her foot. "I think somebody or somebodies need to go to bed."
"...oh." The two children hung their heads at the same time.
Fa took a little hand in each of hers. "All right, we're going to bed, okay?"
"...okay." Shinta muttered. Qum nodded.
As she led them out, Fa took one last look at Kamille.
---
Fa let her eyes rest on the expanse of space. The seconds flew by as she lost track of time, her mind adrift. The clattering drop of a plastic container shocked her back to reality.
"Oh," Dr. Hasan said, "I'm sorry. That was my fault."
"No problem," Fa placed her hand on the pile of folded blankets stacked near her. Right, she was going to get these laundered for the doctor. There were two more beds she needed to strip. As she walked to the right of Kamille to get the last blanket, she caught a glimpse of Kamille in the corner of her eye.
He had turned to face her.
"...Kamille?"
The corner of his mouth turned up, ever so slightly.
She dashed to his side, and grabbed his arm. He didn't respond to the touch, but she still smiled at him.
"Kamille, I... I don't know what's going to happen." She tightened her grip on his arm. "I don't... know if you're going to get better. But I'll be with you." She laughed to herself. "You aren't getting rid of me that easily."
With a smile, she turned back to the stars. "But I think you will. I think you will get better."