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"I don't want to go."
The words tear a hole right through Pomni's heart. Jax sounds so scared, so frightened. Even if he has done this to himself, Pomni believes that somehow she can fix this.
"Jax? Look at me?" Pomni takes his face in her hands, making him meet her gaze. They're both still kneeling together in the darkness. It's just them and the void.
Jax makes himself meet Pomni's gaze and, god, he truly does look scared. Pomni smiles reassuringly, gently stroking his cheek with her thumb.
"Breathe with me? In and out." Pomni instructs, slowing down her breathing. If she could get Jax focused on her, maybe they could both get out.
Jax copies her breathing, slowly calming down as she watches him.
"That's it, doing so well. Now for the hard part." Pomni says gently, not letting go when Jax tenses. "We are going to leave together."
"I…I can't. There's no way of going back from this." Jax's voice is almost a whisper. He tries to push Pomni away, but she won't allow it.
"You can, you will. You deserve so much better than this." Pomni says firmly.
"So did Kaufmo and Ribbit. Look what I did to them. Did they deserve this?" Jax gestures around them.
"You were scared, you were taught to hide your feelings and who you were or something bad would happen to you. What you did was terrible and I'm not excusing it, but Jax. You deserve to live." Pomni feels tears fill her eyes. "Please live, for me?"
Jax seems to pause at this, then asks in a quiet voice. "Would they ever forgive me?"
"The others? In time they could, you've got to allow them that." Pomni says gently, giving his hands a squeeze.
Jax swalllows hard, giving a little nod. "Yeah…you're right."
"Now come on, please?" Pomni slowly stands, holding out her hand to him like she had done before.
She holds her breath as Jax looks at her hand, then at her face, then carefully accepts her help.
There's a blinding flash of light, the feeling of hands grabbing her, then Pomni finds herself on the floor of the circus hallway. All around her are the others and for one horrible moment Pomni believes she failed.
Then she hears the shaky voice calling her name, "Pomni?"
The others gasp and she turns to the voice, seeing Jax on the floor. The real Jax. He's sat huddled in on himself, looking afraid.
Pomni wastes no time racing over to him and hugging him hard. Jax freezes, but then returns her hug tightly.
When Pomni pulls back, she is shocked to feel Jax's lips on hers and melts into the touch.
Suddenly nothing else exists but this, her and Jax. Together. Safe.
Jax deserved to live, same as the rest of them. She had brought him back and now she would never let him go again.