Page 130 of Florescentia

Why did he need permission at all?

Then it all fell into place.

Encouraging my escapades wasn’t from boredom, or kindness, or curiosity. He’d always intended for me to go, but he needed me willing.

“You were going to convince me to die anyway, because that’s what you need, right?” A laugh escaped me, and I closed my eyes. “For me to release myself from my body, into your grasp, willingly. If you insist you care, tell me if my words are true.”

“Please”—the voice was deep, composed of a thousand voices blending together, possibly collected over the lifetime of stars—“stay.”

“You cannot keep me.”

He leaned down, his form shrinking to meet me at the ledge. The dark form stood, its body shaking. Could it be anger?

My eyes closed for only a moment.

When I opened them, he was human again in appearance. He stood with slumped shoulders, a heavy brow, and hopeful eyes. He wore day clothes, and he held out a hand for me.

I hovered my palm over his, tracing over it with my nail, never fully grasping.

I leaned in, his hands smoothed around my waist. His palms were so warm, they almost felt real. He touched his cheek to my head, his grip slightly tighter. I touched my forehead to his chest. He was good at pretending to take breaths. Instead of a heartbeat, that unnatural thrumming and the whispers of the cosmos untold.

I lifted my head, and his lips came to meet mine. They crashed together, held on. His grip was so tight that I feared, for a moment, I might give in. Stay.

We broke the kiss.

His lips hovered over mine, as if anticipating a change of heart.

I leaned up on my toes, feathering my fingers over his neck and jaw.

There was hope in his eyes, a bright flicker.

“Goodbye, Altair,” I said with a smile. “You were a life of lessons.”

Then I whispered against his lips.

“Obscuria.”

His face fell, and so did I.

Without hesitation, I slipped from his arms and stepped off the mighty ledge.

There was a roar, a vibration that struck me so deep within my core, I swore it would stop my heart completely.

With the falling came an ease, the sensation of floating. The cold waters never hit; no pain was ever felt. I was suspended—and then a stiffness at my back. Gravity settled, and I could feel myself lying on a flat surface. It was like falling out of a dream, then coming to consciousness on the floor.

The air was warm now, a little stuffy. My mind awoke, and I knew I had left that world.

With one hand, I smoothed over hard wood beneath me.

Then, I reached up with my other hand.

Ting!

And wood in front of my face, as well.

I opened my eyes to nothing.

Around my ring finger was a tightness, a string.