Work Text:
He felt himself crashing
And dialed her number
He knew it by heart
She was his heart
But he stopped before the last
Because he couldn’t
She had a life now
And it wasn’t him
She had her beau and her dogs
And he was just a friend
Just an old mentor
A warm memory
Who’d drifted away
His chest clenched, and he sobbed
She had another life
She was bigger than life
And he was fading fast
Pulse slowing
Life drifting
He took too much
He always took too much
No longer a young buck who could handle it
He tripped and fell
And heard the ringing
“Damian?”
His sweet angel’s voice
For real?
Or in his mind?
He closed his eyes and imagined her here
Knowing he’d never see her again
In and out he faded
A shudder
A gasp
“Damian!”
She echoed over fiber optics
So close
He opened his mouth but only gurgled
As he faded with the night
Too far gone
Even for her powerful reach
Her voice drifted through thoughts
He could barely grasp
As he faded in and out of consciousness
And in and out of life
Too much
It was all too much
He should have called her sooner
Or not at all
He blinked
And she was there
For real or in dreams?
Did it matter?
A palm on his cheek
Her tears on his face
Pleading
Come on!
Stay with me!
I need you!
Her touch amidst sirens
Her halo the only light
Her warm embrace
Bringing him home
Even as he kissed her goodbye