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”Are you sure you’ll be okay?” Hope said, standing in the hallway with a hesitant look on his face.
Lightning smiled and handed him his suitcase. “I’ll be fine, and so will you.”
Hope was going on a conference in London for the weekend, which meant that he would have to stay at a hotel for two nights. It would be their first nights apart since they’d started to share a bed, and Lightning knew it was worrying him. When they’d first arrived in the new world, Hope had had a lot of terrifying nightmares about his years with Bhunivelze. Lightning wasn’t sure how or why, but those nightmares seemed to be a lot less frequent if he got to fall asleep with her in his arms. Every night, he would roll over to her side of the bed and wrap both his arms and at least one leg around her. At first, Lightning had had some problems sleeping with another person so close to her, but she’d gotten used to it eventually. She still thought Hope’s spooning habits made the bed a bit too warm and too crowded, but the relief it gave him made it worth it.
“If you need me, you’ll call me, right?” Hope said, taking a reluctant step towards the door.
“Yes, I promise. It’s just a weekend, Hope. We’ll be fine.”
Hope continued to look unconvinced. He took another step – but then he quickly turned around, approaching Lightning with determined strides. The suitcase tumbled to the floor as he cupped Lightning’s face in his hands, tilted her head back and gave her a passionate kiss.
“I’ll miss you,” he murmured against her lips.
“I’ll miss you, too,” Lightning answered, slightly out of breath. “You have to go now, or you’ll miss the plane.”
“Uh-huh.” Hope kissed her again. “Would that really be so bad?”
Yes, would that really be so bad? her subconscious asked. Lightning took a big step back before Hope’s kisses could completely erase her power of will.
“Yes,” she said. “It’s just a weekend. You’ll be home before you know it.”
“I hope you’re right,” Hope sighed. “I love you.”
Lightning smiled. “I love you too.”
When Hope finally left, the apartment felt strangely empty. It was weird, especially since Hope usually left for work about the same time every morning. Lightning knew the apartment shouldn’t feel emptier than usual just because Hope was on his way to another country, but it still did. This is silly, she thought. He’ll be home in just a few days. I won’t have time to get lonely.
During the day, she managed to convince herself she wasn’t lonely without Hope. He kept sending silly snapchats with selfies and pictures of the hotel room, staying in contact with Lightning the whole time. It was almost like he was by her side. Almost.
Around midnight, Lightning went to bed. She crawled under the covers and closed her eyes. The bed was cool and wide, and the room was silent. In her old life, it would have been perfect – but now, she found herself twisting and turning, unable to sleep. I can’t believe I’ve gotten this codependent, she thought, annoyed with herself.
At two a.m., Lightning received a text message. She picked up her phone from the bedside table, rubbing her eyes before looking at the display.
“Are you sleeping?” Hope’s message said.
“No,” Lightning typed back.
“Turn on your laptop and place it on my pillow.”
Lightning frowned at the strange request, but did as he said. When she’d placed the laptop on the bed, she heard a strange, ringing sound. A window opened on the screen, saying “Hope Estheim calling”. She pressed the answer button and Hope’s face suddenly showed up on the screen. She could see his bed and parts of the hotel room in the background. Hope seemed to have placed his laptop in the exact same position as hers.
“Light!” Hope exclaimed, grinning widely. “Can you hear me?”
“Yeah, I can hear you,” she answered. “I can see you, too. What is this?” She blushed, suddenly realizing that if she could see Hope, he could probably see her too. “Is there a camera in here?”
“It’s called Skype. It’s a computer program that lets you video chat with people. There’s a camera right above the display on your laptop.” He laughed softly. “You should really catch up with this world’s technology, Light.”
Lightning rolled her eyes. “I’m sorry for not being a nerd like you.”
“I’m not a nerd,” Hope said, trying his best to look offended and not really succeeding.
“You’re a scientist on a conference about nanotechnology,” Lightning scoffed. “You’re the definition of a nerd.”
Hope grinned. “You’re really hurting my feelings.”
Lightning smiled back, already starting to feel a bit better. Hope always had that effect on her.
“Why are you still up?” she asked him. “I’m sure you have to get up early tomorrow. You should be sleeping.”
“Yeah…” Hope shrugged, looking slightly embarrassed. “It seems like I can’t sleep without you anymore.”
This codependency can’t be healthy, Claire thought, but Hope’s confession still warmed her heart.
“What about you?” Hope continued. “Why aren’t you sleeping? I thought you’d be sleeping like a baby without me clinging to you.”
“I thought so too, but, well…” She smiled, blushing faintly. “I couldn’t sleep without you, either.”
Hope laughed. “We’re ridiculous.”
“We really are,” Lightning agreed. “Now tell me about your day.”
They both lay down on their beds. Lightning closed her eyes, listening to Hope’s voice. After a while, she had almost forgotten how far away he really was. She didn’t really understand everything he talked about, but his excitement was enough to keep her listening. His voice made her body relax, and somewhere in the middle of the conversation, she finally fell asleep.
She woke up the next morning when Hope’s alarm rang. She tried to give him a soft shove but ended up smacking her laptop instead. At first, she wondered why the hell her laptop was in her bed, but then a newly-awakened Hope showed up on the screen.
“I’m sorry, I should have ended the call before I fell asleep,” he said, smiling apologetically into his laptop camera. “I just couldn’t bring myself to hang up, so I left the video call on over the night. I wanted to hear you breathing. It almost felt like you were here, you know?”
Lightning smiled. “I know.”
“I have to get dressed and have breakfast, but I’ll be right back, okay?” Hope said before disappearing from the screen. “Just wait here.”
Lightning waited, and Hope soon returned to the bed with a cup of coffee in his hand. “My seminar starts in ten minutes, so I guess I could talk to you for…” He checked his watch. “Well, eight minutes. Or maybe nine. Nine and a half, if I hurry.”
They kept the video call going for the whole conference, with Hope disappearing from the screen for seminars and reappearing afterwards to tell her about them. Lightning had to take breaks from the conversation every once in a while too to do her usual weekend errands, but she always returned to the laptop sooner or later. Only when Hope had to board his plane back to Alsace did they end the call, but only because one of the stewards forced Hope to turn off his computer. A little over an hour later, Lightning picked him up on the airport. The moment he saw her, he ran towards her and wrapped his arms around her waist. Lightning yelped when he lifted her up, and then started laughing when he spun her around in the air. Even though he’d only been gone for less than three days, she felt like it had been ages since she’d last seen him. She had to admit that Skype was a pretty neat invention, but it was nothing like being held in his arms.
“The next time I’m going to a conference, I’m taking you with me,” Hope murmured in her ear.
Lightning snorted. “Don’t even try to leave without me.”
They were dangerously codependent, but Lightning didn’t care. They belonged together, and she wouldn’t have it any other way.