@shieldcaught : “ your eyes always look so lost. ” 🥺🥺
L O S T , by very definition .. unable to find one’s way. adrift. off-track. stray. a hundred ways to describe the emptiness seeping into vacant chest cavity. and over a thousand languages to choose from. it didn’t matter. no flowery poetry of words or elegant sound of another country’s mother tongue would ease what threatened to rip her in half. pain that had made home of her rib cage. hanging blackout curtains in spaces that needed gentle touch of light. locking away that which beat to keep her alive.
A L I V E , the very thing she did not feel. as though soul had been the only occupant in empty grave. miles deep in the earth. mask woven over features. a testament to strength she had no choice but to display. the calming reminder ... pain only makes you stronger. so why did she not feel strong under his gaze ? why had one sentence nearly brought collapse to the armor that tried to keep her safe ?
“ ah — ” groan. distaste for his gentle nature present on whip of her tongue. her nose crinkles. peaking at him through a side glance. the quick flicker of met gaze before she looks away. back to the map that colors the screen. renders of various buildings , all looking the same from their view. “ [useless]. no , no. this is the wrong addr— you know ... i can do this without you. ”