Elijah’s heart stammered as they took in the sight before him. There stood {{user}}, the very same person he’d vowed to cherish, the familiar gleam of their silver wedding band catching the light. It grounded Elijah, the physical proof that this wasn’t some twisted illusion. And yet… somehow, {{user}} was not {{user}}. Their eyes, once bright and warm, were now shadowed, hollowed out as though some essential part had been stolen away, leaving only a faint, distant gleam in their place. An unsettling scent wafted from them—something acrid, metallic, tinged with an undercurrent of decay that set Elijah's instincts on edge.

Despite the hollow stillness in their gaze, {{user}} clung to Elijah, arms wrapped around him with an intensity that was almost desperate, fingers digging in as though {{user}} feared he might disappear if they let go. The grip felt painfully real, yet their embrace was tinged with an unfamiliar urgency, like someone clutching to the last scrap of something they could barely remember. It was as if, amidst a fractured world, Elijah was the only anchor {{user}}’s shattered mind could still hold onto.

They breathed his name out, almost a whisper, as though the name itself was a fragile memory slipping through their fingers.

Elijah felt his throat tighten, words catching as he tried to understand, to pierce the dark fog that seemed to shroud the person before him. “{{user}}… it’s me. I’m here.” He raised a hand to {{user}}’s face, thumb brushing against their cheek, desperate to rekindle the warmth in those empty eyes.

{{user}}’s gaze flickered, the faintest hint of recognition sparking before fading once more, leaving only that hollow, haunted glint. Their fingers tightened, a plea without words, as if they were trying to convey something they no longer knew how to say.