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T feels shamefully sadistic by the way she feels. She bites at her lower lip in concern, affection blooming into her heart, warm and guiltily.
She walks to the couch and cautiously sits beside Dames.
He turns to her, his forehead creased with doubt and confusion. He has Damien's face with an intense but soft-looking sadness to it. Dames is a handsome man, just like Damien, but he seems softer for how much lost and sad and small he looks like. T hates to find him so beautiful, especially for this immense sadness he shines out.
Hesitantly at first, T reaches for Dames' wrist, touching the underside of it with her fingertips, softly.
T watches as he looks down at her hand and then up to her eyes, his eyes glassy and open.
"T, what are you--"
"Shhh," T whispers, enlacing her fingers with Dames', the back of her palm resting against his thigh. "I know you aren't Damien and it is ok that you aren't."
She wants Damien back to her. T really wants to know Damien is safe, she wants his warm body in her arms, alive and protected; but Dames has no fault on it - on what happened to Damien. And T realized it soon enough. She realized she didn't feel mad, or betrayed by Dames (even though it was an understandable feeling at first). She just felt (feel) sad about the whole situation. Sad for Dames' own sadness.
Dames keeps his eyes away from hers, his hues glued to their hands entangled.
After a long minute, Dames looks up and T can see he is about to burst in tears.
"You shouldn't..." he says so quietly but doesn't move away, running a thumb over the side of T's hand.
T shakes her head, still looking at him, at Dames' eyes.
"I don't want to replace him with you," the lump in her throat thickens and she stops talking for a moment, breathing deeply before proceeding, "I just want you to know that you're you and it is enough."
A small, lonely tear slides down his face but he nods, a curt nod. He doesn't seem to have the energy to dry it as he also takes a deep breath and T leans to clean it with a brush of a fingertip.
T leans onto Dames' shoulder, nuzzling against him.
"You're different, you're you," she says, at last, looking thoughtfully at nothing before turning her eyes up to him.
Dames then turns his head to her and smiles weakly, "Thank you."
T smiles.
"Let's rest," she says as she raises up, still holding and pulling him up with her.
"What are you doing, T?"
His voice is so small.
He looks vulnerable as he has been looking like since he realized he wasn't Damien, and it breaks T's heart. It's so deeply upsetting that such a good person could feel so much sadness and guilt when he has never done anything to deserve it.
T kind hates to think it is endearing and how much his sadness draws her in, leading her to want to comfort him however she can.
"You deserve better, Dames, and I really want to do--to be with you."
Dames frowns but eventually nods. They walk together to his room and they go under the blankets. T lays down face to face to Dames while keeping one of his hands against her heart and then other against his cheek. She thinks she shouldn't cuddle the way she used to with Damien, with him by her back, so she keeps turned to him.
Dames sighs, squeezing her hand a little while his other hand keeps a soft grip on her waist. "I don't...I don't want to make it creepy or..."
T shakes her head, passing a thumb onto his mouth. "Shh, you're ok."
T kisses him, just a tender peck on his lips, "Let's rest, Dames, we have a big day tomorrow."
He nods, slowly, kissing her back, joining their foreheads, "Thank you."
"You don't need to thank me, Dames," she whispers.
He pulls her closer, just a bit as if looking for a better position on the bed.
"No, I do, I really do," he opens his eyes for a moment, finding her opening hers, "I love you, just like Damien do."
She caresses his cheek with a sad smile, "If we got more time, I know I'd love you, too."
And she knows he understands that at some level they are different - he and Damien - and that T knows it, too. Love is also a too complicated and deep emotion to spout at whatever moment to any person. He probably knows that, too.
Dames isn't whoever, but she knows they both don't know each other well enough for this kind of declaration.
He leans forward, falling asleep on her chest as T runs her fingers in his hair.
T really wishes they could be together longer, even after getting Damien back, safe.
But life is like this, a broken promise.