Dinner went surprisingly well. Terry pulled the foil packets out of the fire after a time, and let them cool on some stones until they were ok to handle. When they opened them, it was his stew, just like it always was, but this time he had someone to share it with, which made a world of difference to him. It was basic, but it was his. Elton and Delores seemed to be delighted by how it turned out and complimented him several times. He kept pointing out Ernest had shown him how to make it. They ate, and laughed, and talked.

  Terry was surprised when an older knight made his way carefully up and asked about what it was and Terry gladly shared the recipe. The man watched the three of them nervously as Terry explained. The man thanked him without giving a name.

  "Thank ya, Mr. Lingal. Honored to meet ya." He said before he returned to his own fire and some hotdogs he was cooking on skewers. All three of them watched him go and then exchanged confused looks. Terry didn't think Elton's stories could have spread that far. I should make more to share next time I’m here though, he thought. After dinner they sat for a while. There was some conversation, but Terry mostly sat and let the night wash over him. He watched his two friends talk about little things. Things that before this he would have tuned out. But now, having them with him was a joy.

  He felt, very much, that this simple night might be his favorite moment of his whole life. He felt something cold grip his heart as he realized something. When he died, he hoped this was where he went. This moment. With his friends. He tried to not let them see he was getting emotional. The firelight betrayed him. It reflected on his shining eyes and eventually on a few tears. They noticed, and when Delores said something, he told her he was fine. Just thinking of things. She seemed worried, but didn't bring it up again. He just tried to burn this simple time into his memory.

  After dinner it was time to get some rest for the next day. Terry quietly piled the fire with enough wood to hopefully last most of the night. He managed to get down to his boxers and shirt afterward and quickly climb into his sleeping bag. He’d seen Elton get ready and the man was dressed like a prospector from the 1840’s climbing into his own sleeping bag. Terry specifically didn’t watch Delores and rolled over and closed his eyes.

  The sleeping bag was enchanted. Dottie had bought it for him before he’d left and packed it without letting him know. It was a special gift and she hadn't wanted a big deal made about it. It would maintain a comfortable temperature in heat or cold until the weather reached dangerous extremes and tonight he was grateful for it. It was already colder than he was used to and there might be frost in the morning at this rate. He smiled. He wasn't alone any more. He curled himself up in the large thing and began to drift off.

  That’s when he felt someone press against his back. He looked over his shoulder and he knew what he was going to find.

  “Hi?” he said.

  Delores’s head popped into view with a grin.

  “Hi!”

  Neither of them said anything for a minute. Finally Terry spoke.

  “Don’t think your sleeping bag is going to be enough?”

  She gave him a look like he was an idiot.

  “Terry, I’m a girl. I KNOW I’m going to get cold. Don’t get weird like I’m not wrapped around you daily on the back of Thunder.”

  He wished she hadn’t used that terminology, but he nodded.

  “No, it’s fine. I just wanted to check it was you and not Elton.”

  She laughed. Every now and again he was proud of his sense of humor.

  “Look,” she said, “thank you for sharing with us. The food, AND the truth. I know that couldn’t have been easy for you.”

  “Thank YOU for believing me. YOU believing means the world to me.” He said. “You should get some sleep, though. I know I need to be up early.”

  He laid his head down and felt her curl against his back through both of their sleeping bags and found himself falling asleep quickly.

  It was only about twenty minutes later that he woke up feeling a shiver wrack Delores’s body behind him and he sighed. He knew it. He just knew it. SOMETHING was going to happen and he’d have to do what he was about to do because he was Terry Lingal and OF COURSE he’d do this and OF COURSE fate would try to throw this at him. He sighed, again. This was because he cared. She was cold. He wasn’t. It wasn’t fair, and he cared about her entirely too much for his own good. So Terry rolled over and made what he was sure was going to be a mistake. He'd just have to be strong.

  As soon as his back separated from her, Delores shivered again. Her face was scrunched up and she was nearly in a fetal position.

  “D, I know you’re awake.”

  She barely looked up at him.

  “You moved.” She said and shivered again. He winced.

  “Look, it’s way colder than either of us thought.” He reached out and felt her sleeping bag and his eyes bugged. “And your bag SUCKS! What the heck!?”

  “SHUSH!” came a bark from Elton. Terry moderated his tone.

  “Look. My bag is enchanted. I’m going to unzip it, you’re going to climb out of yours and into mine, ok?”

  She arched an eyebrow.

  “You sure?”

  He was NOT sure. He thought this was, again, a terrible idea and he was stupid. He was going to do it anyway because that’s what you do when you’re a knight. You do stupid things for a living.

  “Yes. Besides, it’s much better than you shivering on my back all night.”

  What followed was a semi-complex maneuver of unzipping his bag, laying it over hers, her climbing into his, and then him zipping the bag up as quickly as possible. In that brief moment he almost swore. It was so much colder than it should be. The weather must be fluctuating wildly. They were going to be dealing with the fallout of this kaiju thing for ages.

  When she was in the bag, Delores curled up against him and just shivered for a while. He looked at her head and, remembering her lack of hair, zipped them into the bag completely.

  “Holy poop, your feet are freezing, woman!” he said, confident the bag would muffle his voice from their bard.

  “I TOLD YOU I AM A GIRL.” She said indignantly.

  “I assumed a human girl and not a lizard! Crimeny! Are you cold-blooded?!”

  She laughed at that and then shivered again.

  “This is highly unfair.” She grumbled. “This bag is already warming up. I want one.”

  “Dottie got it for me. I checked the prices. You don’t want to know.”

  He looked down at her, though he could barely make anything out. He was suddenly aware of how much skin he felt against him. Cold skin, but skin. Shorts. She wore some kind of shorts. He closed his eyes and tried to steady his breathing and his heart rate. Every time she shifted, he was far too aware of it.

  Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  “Um, hey.” He said after a minute. “I’m, uh, I’m going to do something. I don’t want you to freak out or anything, but, well, I-I’m just going to do something.”

  He could feel her eyes on him more than see them. He very slowly, very carefully, and very deliberately put his arms around her.

  “I figure you’ll get warm fast-yikes!”

  She was wrapped around him so fast his reflexes almost kicked in. He didn’t know what they would have done, but he didn't think it had anything to do with combat. That frightened him.

  “Thank you, Terry. Seriously. Thank you. You're very warm-KIND. Very kind.” She said with her cheek pressed to his chest. He tried to reposition a bit and managed to get mostly on his back and she moved her head to his shoulder. She snuggled. He tried not to whimper.

  He laid there for a while and considered trying to sleep. While the new position was much more comfortable physically, he could feel her breath against his neck and he thought his heart was going to beat its way out of his chest. And she could hear it. She seemed to keep finding ways to snuggle in more. He unzipped the bag to get some air. He thought he might hyperventilate if he didn’t. He looked down at her on his shoulder and found her eyes already meeting his. She seemed warmer now. She wasn't shivering. He could see so much more of her in the fire light. He had no idea what the expression on her face meant, but he couldn't help but watch her. He thought she'd never looked more beautiful. He was still nervous, but it didn't matter suddenly. He just wanted to look at her.

  “There are times,” she said softly, “when I am terrified that I’m going to wake up and you’re going to be gone. You’ll have been a dream this whole time and I’ll be back in Biloxi. Or Bay St. Louis.”

  This wasn't the first time she'd said something like this to him. He hated the idea of her being back in her old life, and old job. He thought, well, he hoped, that his being there had made some positive impact on her life.

  “I don’t plan on going anywhere if I can help it.” Was all he could think of to say. It seemed to be enough. She laid her head back down. He felt her palm move and lay on his chest. She'd never been this. . .comfortable with him. She cuddled there. He realized he did not have the desire or will power to stop this if the Pope himself were standing there watching.

  “Talk to me.” She whispered.

  Terry found it difficult to think of something to talk about. One of his hands was on her back and the tank top she appeared to be wearing was. . . Was it silk? Any time he moved his hand she seemed to cuddle into him more. His face turned red and he silently thanked the darkness.

  “What do you want me to talk about?” he said after a moment.

  She moved. She wasn’t exactly ON him, but she wasn't really next to him now, either. She rested her chin on his chest and looked up at him. Her eyes had grown soft and reflected the flames. For the first time, he wondered if the Order was everything it was cracked up to be. She gave him a sly smile as her head tilted slightly.

  “Tell me about your first crush.” She said, and even if he hadn’t seen the smile he could hear it on her voice. Poopie, he thought. She knew he wouldn’t lie. She KNEW. He'd never had a crush. Not before, well, now. He wasn't about to tell her about herself and expect her not to put the pieces together. His brain moved swiftly, and he grinned as he thought of something true, witty, and as loaded with meaning as she wanted to take it.

  “As soon as I have one,” he said, “you’ll be the first to know.”

  She gave him an unbelieving look.

  “Terrance.” She said. “No girlfriend or boyfriend I can believe, but not even a crush? There's chaste, but. . .”

  He looked at her and hoped he didn't suddenly look sad. He found himself doing that more and more when he thought of his childhood.

  “You know how I lived, Delores. I didn’t go near people unless I was needed.”

  Delores had the most pained expression on her face. She always did this when he mentioned his past. It’s like thinking of him as a kid hurt her. He wished it didn't. It had happened to him. She had her own trauma and that was heartbreaking enough. Terry would rather think about her past. He knew the thoughts were hypocritical as soon as he had them.

  “D, please don't look at me like that. I know how my past must sound to you. It’s just, well, sometimes you don’t know something is missing in your life until you find it. Then the hole for it becomes obvious. I thought my life was fine. It wasn’t terrible. Just lonely. I didn’t know I wasn’t happy.”

  If anything, that made her expression worse. Her eyes glistened and he felt awful for doing this to her. He wished he could lie.

  “What about now, Terry?” she asked, her voice drenched in sympathy and sadness. “Are you at least happy now?”

  He remembered the thoughts he'd had since arriving at the rest area.

  “Of course I am. I don’t think before now I actually knew what happiness was. It makes my past feel darker, but yes. I AM happy.”

  He had to look away from her for a minute. He just, well, he had to. He had to tell her. It would make her feel better, and he felt like he could admit this to her. He looked back and met her eyes.

  “YOU make me happy, Delores. You’re probably the first thing that ever has.” He smiled at her.

  Delores stared at him for so long he thought he’d said something incredibly stupid. He couldn’t figure out her expression at first but suddenly, her eyes softened again and her expression became completely open. Before he could speak, she shifted until her face was directly above his. Their noses were almost touching. Her eyes were all he could see. They were all he wanted to see.

  “You are,” she whispered, “the kindest, sweetest, most amazing human being I have ever met.” Then she kissed him.

  Terry always said he wasn’t a poet. He never felt like he had the words to express anything correctly. He felt he didn't know how to describe the kiss except as the softest, most tender thing he had ever felt in his life. He lost track of everything. Time, space, self, all of it melted away. That moment between them was all he cared to know. He thought he’d never felt anything so wonderful, and when she stopped he just laid there. He hadn’t even realized he’d closed his eyes. When he opened them again she had her hand over her face. She had pushed herself further away.

  “I am SO sorry.” She said. “I know you have your vows. I’m sorry. I just made things complicated and I’m sorry. I just. . .” Her face scrunched up and she looked miserable. “It’s just that you make me feel like I’m actually special.”

  Delores began crying. He looked at this poor girl that he'd stumbled into as a business partner. She was always so sympathetic towards him. She saw his past and it made her sad, but every time she talked about hers it was of neglect and disrespect. It made him upset. He wished he could fix it. She deserved so much better. He found his hand on her cheek before he'd realized what he was doing. She leaned into it and held it there with hers.

  “You ARE special, Delores.” He spoke in a whisper. “I’m just sorry no one else in your life has been able to see it.”

  She broke with that. Her head dropped to his chest and slow quiet sobs came. He laid his cheek on the top of her head and held her tightly. He wept as well. For himself and the child he'd been. For choices from his past he was starting to regret. But most of all for her. She should never have been treated the was she was. She should have been loved.

  Terry had no idea how long they stayed like that, but finally, after both of them seemed to have spent their tears, he kissed her on the top of the head.

  “Are you ok?” he asked.

  She tucked her head under his chin and pulled herself closer.

  “I might be. You?”

  Terry seriously had to think about that.

  “I don’t know. I will be though. I don’t have any other options.”

  Delores was silent for a moment before she spoke again.

  “I wish you didn’t think you had to say that. It’s alright to not be ok. It's all right to hurt. With me it is, anyway.”

  She lifted her head finally and looked at him.

  “Terry, thank you.”

  “For what?” he asked.

  “For being you. Not for being a hero. Not for being a knight. Not for being whatever it is you expect yourself to be. Thank you for just being you. Believe it or not, that's more than enough for some people.”

  Terry felt he had no idea how to respond to that. As he looked at her, she pushed her head forward and kissed him once more. He looked at her with his eyes wide.

  "Weren't you just apologizing for doing that earlier?" he said.

  “That might be the last one I get. I shouldn't have to apologize for it.” She said, some of her normal cheekiness returning.

  Maybe it was the emotional dam breaking. Maybe it was the right comment at the right time. Whatever it was, Terry burst out laughing at that answer. Delores laid her head down and giggled. Elton raised his head and stared at the two of them.

  “I AM ASKING YOU TWO TO PLEASE GO TO SLEEP.”

  They looked at him and both covered their mouths, but the look on his face made them laugh even harder. The bard slammed his head into the pillow grumbling curses that neither of them heard. Finally the laughter trailed off. They both laid there.

  “I really needed that.” Terry said, grinning up at a cold, starry sky. Delores stayed there in his arms, occasionally a fit of giggles hit her, but she drifted off to sleep not long after. She never once tried to move away from him.

  He held her in his arms feeling for all the world like this was the first right thing he’d ever found, and he knew that the life he’d sworn to, said it wasn’t. One of these two things was wrong and he was terrified of which one it was.

  Finally, her soft breathing put him to sleep.