V's POV

Night.

The cold walls of her apartment seem even colder as I enter through the front doors, desperate to get a glimpse of her after these last few days.

I had to check if she was okay after I left her.

The past days had become unbearable, and it had only been days. I was supposed to be resilient, independent after everything I'd been through.

But resilience meant nothing with her absence from my side.

She wouldn't know of my visit— I was making sure of that. If her cheeks were healthy, full— and she was doing well on her own, then I would have to let her go.

After all, I was only a constant danger to a person who could've done much better than meeting me.

The sheer familiarity of her apartment door nearly brings me to my knees as I press my hand against the dull surface, carefully pressing the numbers on the number keypad.

I'd never forgotten.

The door swings open quietly, and the first thing I feel in the air is that something truly hadn't gone well. Even though the house is dark with night, and should be, it is too dark.

My breath grows fast.

An urgency overwhelms my cautiousness as I glimpse a limp figure collapsed against the couch, half of her body pressed against the window and the other facing the ceiling.

The moonlight makes her skin white.

A corpse, is the first thing that flashes across my mind as I rush over to the couch, the calmness in me crashing down into ruins.

This wasn't how it was supposed to go.

Her forehead is blazing hot, and dark shadows ring the undersides of her deep eyes. She looks like she hasn't eaten for the past year— face ashen with malnourishment and dehydration.

I was supposed to protect her by leaving.

Fear and worry blend together in a mix of pure terror as I take her fragile body into my arms, pressing her cold skin against my chest. She shudders and trembles in my grasp, and that breaks me more than anything I've ever been through.

She was supposed to be safe.

"V?"

__________________________

"V?"

My tongue is heavy and thick as I mutter. Not speaking a single word for days had taken a toll on my voice— the letter comes out as a rasp, sending strain through my throat like fire.

Everything hurts.

But I will not let him go.

My fingers tighten in a death grip on his sleeves, desperate not to let him slip away again. If this was a dream, then I didn't want to wake up. If this was reality—

Oh Lord, was he real?

"Tzuyu," His voice is something that I've missed the most. It sends a path of pleasure racing down my spine, leaving me basking in euphoria that the antidepressants could've never recreated.

"What have you done?"

A small giggle chokes from my lips, and I breathe— softly, carefully. If I went under again, and if he wasn't here when I woke up, I'd never forgive myself ever again.

"I—I just have a fever, don't wor—"

He closes my lips with a finger, and I smile at the action. It's such a V-thing to do that I want to believe that this was really happening. That this wasn't some dream my mind was creating to make me feel better.

"Don't worry," He growls, frustration and concern twisting his voice. "Don't worry? You look like you've lost at least ten kilograms— and I'm supposed to be fine with that?"

A deep sigh vibrates the air.

"You," He says, voice firmer and leaving not even an inch of space for argument. "Are going to eat. Right now."

Face still pained, he flings open the curtains so that the moonlight fills the entire living room, illuminating the kitchen as well. I'm thankful that he understands— I'd probably go blind if he turned the lights on.

"Wait here," He advises, setting me down on the couch. "I'll go and—"

Panic clouds my vision, and I wrap my fingers around his wrist before he'd even let go. He seems shocked as I shake my head, eyes welling with tears.

"No."

This was exactly how dreams always ended— and I couldn't. I couldn't let him go.

His eyes grow soft, and I instantly recognize the look. I'd examined that same look for hours, in the small screen of his camera.

His camera.

Still holding his sleeve in a death grip, I quickly snatch the camera from the stand and aim it right in front of his face. He looks even more stunned than before as I start snapping pictures like a madman, trying to capture every angle of his face.

At least I'd have this if I lost him again.

"Tzuyu," He repeats as he lowers down the camera. His eyes have dawned with realization, filled with two pools of dark sorrow. "I'm never leaving you again. I never expected—"

His voice fades as he grimaces, pressing his hand gently against my cheek. My eyes grow wide as the shade of his own grow quiet.

"You've lost so much weight."

"You're real though, right?" I pipe up, my hands still not refusing to loosen the hold on his wrist. I had to make sure of this first, and pinch myself for good measure.

"I'm sorry that I am," He whispers, eyes serene. His hands are gentle and warm as he untangles my fingers from his wrist, and I let him even though my heart rate had probably skyrocketed in panic.

"I'm getting you some food right now," He says, looking at me as if he still couldn't believe what had happened.

"And you're not leaving a crumb on your plate."

_________________________

In just an hour, he'd brought me back from a corpse to a happily bouncing girl snapping away one picture a second.

And I made sure that it was all of him.

"No more pictures," He stresses, his eyes disbelieving and angry as he holds up a green bottle.

"Is this alcohol?"

Even though his eyes are narrowed with fury, the smile grows even brighter on my face as I nod.

"But it's okay— I ended up not even taking a sip." I explain, hoping to calm the storm slowly brewing in his posture as he sets the bottle angrily back on the counter.

"Like that's supposed to make me feel better," He scowls as he forces me to drink another glass of water. He'd been doing this for the last hour— trying to get me to consume as much food and water as possible.

Needless to say, it was working.

I'd already gained two entire kilograms and a mountain of appetite— now that he was back, the hunger that I'd numbed had returned with claws.

And I was happy to say that my ravenous appetite made V happy as well.

"You're not supposed to be moving, Tzuyu." He says quickly as he watches me practically bounce around the living room floor. "Your fever is still high."

"The temperature is almost back to normal," I defend, watching his eyes narrow with steel. "I'm fine now, I promise. Honestly, I've never felt better."

I didn't even feel the fever anymore.

"Tzuyu," He sighs, burying his face in his hands tiredly. "I am never leaving you alone for even a second, ever again. What happened was just—"

He pauses, eyes sad and bitter. I understood why he'd left after— it was to protect me, and he must be heartbroken to know that he'd made another grave mistake. If he hadn't returned to check on me, terrifying shivers crawl up my back just thinking about what could've happened.

About how I could've turned out.

"It's all okay now," I say, patting his arched back comfortingly. When I start to coo softly, he gives me a look that clearly reads that he shouldn't be the one receiving this child treatment.

"Look!"

I push open the curtains even further, tugging at his sleeve to get his attention. Dawn had broken the horizon, and I'd been too distracted to notice until now.

His sigh is amused.

"Tzuyu, it's nothing special."

I shoot him a playful glare as I force him to sit on the couch next to me right in front of the sunlit window. Faint pink and purple streaks adorn the skies, beauty splitting the long night of darkness.

The glass is cool against my feet as I pull him into a sweet kiss.

"Yeah, but it's special when you're here next to me."