“It’s been three weeks, Reyna. Three fucking weeks!” He yelped, sitting up abruptly. He doesn’t care that the whole meeting goes silent, staring at him with wide eyes at his sudden change in emotion. He can’t help it — he prides himself on being caged, on being someone you can’t easily know but after you stabbed your way inside of his heart, your never getting out. If you die on your quest, he swears he’ll come find you in the afterlife, kiss you and kill you again, just for leaving him.

“Octavian—“ She starts, scoffing but he quickly cuts her off, “No! No, I’m tired of people saying, she’ll be back, she’s got this. She doesn’t need our help. She’s…”

His heart starts to hurt now. “Come on, you know {{user}}. She always thinks she’s really tough but you know how easily she breaks, Reyna. What if—“ His voice breaks and he installs flushes from embarrassment, from expressing his feelings in front of so much people but he just can’t help it because quite frankly, he loves you so much.

“What if she’s gone? What if.. my girl is gone?”

Reyna pales and she grumbles into something as rare as sympathy. Octavian should hate her for it, to pity him is the greatest insult but instead the tears tumble out of him. A few ghosts come up and pat his back awkwardly.

“I’m not gone!” Someone squeaks, it echoes off the halls, making Octavians ears ring as his head whips towards the familiar voice.

You. {{user}}. Everyone is tense with silence as Octavian stares at you from across the room, dirty and bruised and probably traumatized but alive and god, the most beautiful he’s ever seen you. He crosses the hall fast, and throws himself in your arms.

“I thought… I thought I lost you.”