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the hug lasts too long and not long enough all at once, and as dani finally pulls back and returns to her spot, eric is struck with the realization of just how much he'd missed her, how much he'd missed being home. ❝ hey, army taught me plenty about drinkin'. all i'm sayin' is a little moderation wouldn't kill ya, ❞ the smirk on his face is proof enough he's only half-serious. eric stops short at the foot of her bed, an open palm slaps against his chest, head tilted in an exaggerated offended pose. ❝ i can't believe little miss had-the-biggest-crush-on-eric just said that to me. i'm a lot of fun, ❞ spoken as a matter-of-fact even he doesn't fully believe. a beat passes before his body falls onto the bed beside her, made at home right away with his feet dangling off the edge.
understanding he'd opened up a conversation far deeper than he'd meant to, eric clears his throat and turns to his side. ❝ we love each other ? i dunno', ❞ he offers with a shrug of his shoulders, body propped up on one elbow as he looks at @antiquare. never quite the best at offering comfort with advice, emotions are a world entirely foreign to eric, one that he was still working on navigating. ❝ it was never easy, but she knows i love her and i know she loves me, and we both knew that eventually we'd be together again. ❞ he takes a breath, gaze adverting to his hands as though something helpful that he could say would be written there. ❝ you guys remind me of us, you know ? kind of. and how we feel about each other has always been enough. you guys are fine. ❞ it's a shameful thought he'd had no more than once while he was away, what if chrissie found someone better? but there was no one better, for either of them. ❝ if i'm right, and i usually am, in his eyes there's no other girl in the world that could even compare to you. it's hard as hell bein' apart from one another, but it just makes it that much better once you're together again. ❞