Just slightly.
But I feel it.
“Yeah,” he says quietly.
Like he’s accepting something.
Like he’s stepping into it.
Like he knows there’s no going back now.
“Yeah,” he repeats.
And for a moment—
Everything else fades.
The war.
The danger.
The uncertainty.
All of it.
Because right here—
With him standing beside me—
With his hand still holding mine—
It feels steady.
Real.
Worth it.
A knock sounds softly at the door.
We both look up.
Neither of us moves right away.
Because neither of us wants to break this moment.
But reality doesn’t wait.
It never does.
“Come in,” Russ calls.
The door opens—
A medic steps inside.
“Doctor Taylor,” he says gently, “we’ll need to run a few more tests.”
I nod.
