Skylar: The library was something of a safe space for Skylar. The surrounding shelves full of books muted the sounds of the lobby far off in the distance, the ruffling of pages occasionally filling the silence. Skylar liked to tuck herself away. Maybe it was hiding, but a part of her figured she deserved a little bit of seclusion. The last few weeks felt like nothing but noise. Her sister's words explaining how awful she'd been, Gunther and his good by, they all manifested as a cacophony in her head that she couldn't seem to quiet. The beginning of school activities came as a lifeline, the blessed distraction of sorority responsibilities and gathering school materials tamping down the thoughts just enough for the blonde to breathe again. The memory of everything that had happened still lingered, hanging around as a quiet, aching sadness that sat heavy on her chest. But if she just focused on recruiting, on the coming year, on her pending medical school applications, the ache would subside just enough for her to see straight again. Sitting in the quiet library, tucked away in a far corner, Skylar wasn't sure if she was breathing or drowning. So she kept her eyes down, filled her mind with the words displayed in front of her. She willed them to fill all the empty spaces, to push the negative out. Safe space, she just needed a safe space.

Gunther: August first. The date had been marked down in a stark black 'X' on Gunther's calendar, brought to mind every day he examined the dates in order to keep himself on schedule. How ironic, though, that the one day he otherwise would have been looking forward to, happened to be one that filled him with absolute dread. The past few days had been spent entirely secluded in the four walls comprising his room, only venturing out when hunger got to be a discomfort or to actually make a living at the mall. He could scarcely recall the last conversation, the most meaningful, he'd had with anyone - aside from Skylar. That particular exchange had drilled a hole into his brain matter, sticking firmly and sending miniature pings of remembrance that served to make him sick all over again. Mentally exhausted, the idea of actually leaving his sanctuary for a purpose willingly felt almost like learning how to walk all over again. But he'd managed to pull himself up, staggering and nearly blinded as the sun bathed him in it's harsh rays; fall meant absolutely nothing to Miami. Upon reaching his destination, the frayed, hard-wired state of his nerves seemed to steady, familiar sensations flooding through him; the scent of old leather and a slight must, lighting just dim enough not to be painful yet bright enough to offer optimum reading capacity. Soon enough, his legs carried him over to a familiar sections of forensic journals, pale fingers grazing over the labels before plucking the correct book. He opened up the pages with a slow, cautious manner, his mind reading the introduction as his body once again went on autopilot, footsteps bringing him to a familiar corner where he could sit and read in peace. Nose into the pages now, he sat down, flipping through with a renewed vigor and finding that his mind could once again become captivated with something other than familial and relationship bound drama.

Skylar: Gunther Clarington was a magnet, when he moved nearby Skylar imagined she could feel it. There were small parts and pieces inside of her that shifted and switched, rearranging themselves to better accommodate his presence, and Skylar knew the feeling like it was second nature to her. The minute Gunther sat down a few seats away from her, Skylar's eyes darted sideways, locking immediately on his figure, completely absorbed in his books. It was immediate, that feeling inside her, the shifting, the pull that tugged her closer to him, getting more painful the longer she sat still in her seat, fighting it. God, she was so dramatic, but it was like a physical thing for her. She knew this would happen, they'd run into each other, it was inevitable. She thought she'd be strong, that maybe she'd give him a small smile and keep walking, or give a polite hello and find a way to excuse herself. She thought it would hurt, but she'd be strong enough. The thing about life is it never does quite what you think it will. Skylar's hands pulled restlessly at the pages of her book, and her eyes never quite left Gunther. Words stuck in her throat, and her feet sure as hell weren't going to cooperate long enough to carry her through a hasty exit. Because as strong as she thought she was, Gunther was still the boy she loved, and she'd subconsciously wanted nothing more than to somehow find herself in his presence since the last time she'd seen him. She finally pulled her eyes away, and her gaze fell to rest on her book. She'd read it, escape that way, but the words blurred together. How the hell was she already fighting tears? A small sniffle escaped as she reined herself in. Ignoring the pull that was Gunther a few seats down, Skylar thought of magnets, and how hers clicked effortlessly into a perfect fit with Gunther's.

Gunther: So engrossed in the reading material, his senses once again becoming accustomed to the familiarity and realizing that he could finally let his guard down, that nobody was going to come and snatch this small piece of tranquility from him, any other presence in the space around him went undetected for a few moments. It wasn't until he'd gone to turn the second page, fingers curved around the edge that he felt a certain unease - that sensation of being watched. Dread flooded his senses, an overwhelming wave of nausea crashing over him briefly at the thought of who could be observing him. He half-wanted to bolt from the room, book in hand, and run until he was sure the eyes had completely lifted from his figure; or at least until he was properly exhausted not to focus on the fear. Fingers curled into a loose fist, and with all the cautiousness of a threatened feline, he turned to face his side - and his breath snagged in his throat. A great many factors shocked him, mainly of course, that Skylar Fabray was sitting mere feet away from him. Another that not only did she actually exist, that she wasn't some apparition, but she'd been ​staring​ at him. Acknowledging his existence. Wasn't that against some of the rules of essentially 'breaking up' with someone, at least in the infant stages? And yet another shock: she didn't leave. And neither did he. Meeting her gaze felt like a shock of frigid water to his entire frame, muscles locked and tense, as if waiting for the blonde to make the initial move. Which, in hindsight, was a ridiculous notion. What reason did she have to either move forward or back? He wasn't a threat, nor was he something she should have sought after. But in those moments, whenever she looked at him, and he met her gaze with apprehension and painful shyness, he ​wanted​ her to be closer. The fingers trembled now, and Gunther became dimly aware of his body screaming to move towards her, the internal 'fight or flight' war raging deep inside of him. And then, like a tranquil essence bathed in white and radiant, the solution struck - and what genius did it strike him in the moment. Scrambling to search his jacket pockets, Gunther's fingers triumphantly emerged with a scrap of paper, thanking his latest inability to clean anything out for the opportunity. Now, for a writing implement.. A lone book lay across from him, materials scattered along with notebooks, highlighters - and a ball point pen. He wasted no time in snatching it up, giving jittery glances in each direction in case the owner decided to come back. Once done, he took a deep breath, needing to calm himself down from the high of this revelation. The mission had to be carried out perfectly, one wrong word or sentence and the entire operation would blow up in smoke. The words were penned down with the utmost care, even as Gunther's hands threatened to tremble, he kept them steady. Breathing out again once he'd finished, he folded the paper into a 'football' shape, turning back to Skylar and, for a moment, simply staring. Even from the distance, he could tell she was fighting something back.. tears? Sobs? Hesitance gripped his movements; what right did he have to disrupt her further? Guilt welled up inside of his chest, aching, and he felt lost all over again. Going on the last instinct to move forward, he slid the paper into her direction, almost immediately burying his face into his arms and wanting the floor to open up, to swallow his entire, pathetic existence whole within a single gulp.

Skylar: Of course, Skylar’s eyes didn’t stay trained on her book for very long. It was like she craved the contact. Meeting Gunther’s gaze after weeks of actively avoiding it felt like fire, like something had lit deep inside of her, and it was threatening to consume her whole. But it was the best kind of fire, the kind that warmed her from the inside, the kind that felt just a little bit like home. That’s really what Gunther was, wasn’t he? He was home. He was late nights, and movie marathons; warm arms, and a comforting kiss on her forehead. Gunther was happiness, and hope, and heartbreak all wrapped up into one person, and Skylar felt every single one of those acutely as she gazed back into his eyes. Her stomach flipped, and every muscle tensed, coiled and ready to either turn tail and run, or launch herself into his arms. Her brain whispered one, while her heart screamed the other. It was all just noise, bouncing around in her head again, and she noted that today would be another day where she drowns, and she’d have to wait until the next day to break the surface again. Her eyes tracked Gunther’s progress with his note, lips quirking up in a small smile. Of course he’d write her. Of course he’d make contact without actually making contact. The slight hesitance before the note was slid over to her didn’t go unnoticed, and Skylar wasn’t sure in that moment if she wanted him to back out, or plunge ahead. The relief that filled her as soon as the note was beside her was all the answer she needed. Shaking hands pulled it towards her, and her eyes grazed over Gunther’s hunched, hidden figure before she looked at the piece of paper in front of her. She pulled it open slowly, carefully, as if it were glass and she couldn’t bear to break it. As soon as she drank in the quote, their quote from their movie, the words blurred impossibly in front of her. ‘Once you meet someone, you never really forget them.’ Of course you didn’t. One shaky had rose up to cover her mouth, like she could physically hold the tears in, if she just kept it there long enough. Why did he have to be so perfect, when she was trying to let him go? When she slid two chairs over to slip into the chair next to Gunther, Skylar wasn’t even entirely sure she was in control of her own actions. She knew that he was there, and he was saying the right things without saying anything at all, and she needed to be close to him. He was the surface, and she just wanted to breathe. One hand fell gently onto his arm, thumb tracing around until she was holding onto it. Not tightly, but enough that she knew he couldn’t just slip away, disappear like she had half-expected him to since the moment he sat down. She didn’t know what she wanted, but she knew what she needed. She needed his eyes to meet hers again, she needed his arms around her. She needed to fall into him, and she didn’t know how to convey that without outright saying it. A quiet “thank you” fell out in nothing more than a whisper, and Skylar hoped he’d be able to hear and understand all of it in just two words, in just the tentative hand holding onto his arm like it was a lifeline.

Gunther: Gunther wasn't exactly sure what he expected Skylar's response to be. He knew what he wanted, what he dreaded, but those were two entirely different outcomes, a fifty fifty. This could go south or head due north; and a part of him prayed for the former. Things would be easier if she could let him go, but in the depths of his mind, part of him knew that they would always be connected. Whether by shared, timid glances or the almost imperceptible quirking up of their mouths towards each other - there would always be ​something​ that kept drawing him towards her. And so, even knowing this, he all but froze as he heard the seat next to him shift out, nearly feeling her warm, delicate touch upon him before she even made a move. And when she did, tentative fingers gently draping over his arm, securing him there without even trying, he melted. Positively melted. The demons inside of his head seemed to shriek and shrink back immediately, terrified of the woman who only had to whisper in order to capture his heart once more. No pill or prescription could ever attain what Skylar had mastered; she was a medicine all her own, soothing and fast-acting, completely full proof. As if emerging from a cocoon, Gunther gradually lifted his head, dark-red rimmed eyes meeting Skylar's with a helpless yet hopeful gaze. He prayed that his intuition wouldn't betray him, sliding his arm through her grip to graze his fingers against her smaller ones, before finally threading them around his own. "It's okay," he breathed out, more to himself or to Skylar, he wasn't sure, releasing her hand only to curl the arm around her shoulders, giving her enough room to either pull back or lean in.

Skylar: Skylar met Gunther’s red-rimmed eyes and nearly broke all over again. His fingers intertwined through hers kept her grounded, reminded her that he was real, and he was sitting in front of her, apparently just as broken as she was. God, they couldn’t keep doing this to themselves, they were falling apart. How could they be so wrong, when his hand fit so perfectly with hers? When she only seemed to truly feel happy around him anymore? After George had unloaded on her, Skylar only had to send Gunther a simple text for him to have smiling once more. ‘It’s okay,’ he’d said, and Skylar felt everything melt away. All of the self-doubt, all of the pain, the heartbreak, the fear. He made it all disappear with two simple words, with just his presence, with how he opened himself up to her. Her sister’s words faded out, the texted ‘good-byes’ supposedly ending everything for them fell to the wayside. The noise in her head quieted to a dull, comforting hum, and Skylar all but fell forward into Gunther’s arms. Her arms entwined themselves around him, holding on like she was afraid he’d dissolve in her arms, like it was all some kind of dream. She buried her face in his shoulder, and it was all so familiar, so comfortable, she couldn’t help the silent tears that leaked out. It’s okay. It really was, as long as she could stay right like this, as long as this little bubble they were in lasted forever. Gunther felt like home, smelled like home, sounded like home, and Skylar settled as if she’d spent months on end traveling, and she was falling back into her own bed for the first time. Why did love have to feel so good, and hurt so bad all at the same time?

Gunther: For once, Gunther didn't tense as he felt those familiar arms winding around his waist. Skylar fit so perfectly into his side; she always had. Suppressing a whimper, his opposite arm joined to wrap around her middle, hugging her close as his fingers lightly pressed into her skin, reaffirming that she was, in fact, here. Not pulling away, not instantly flinching back and regretting ever opening his note in the first place, but willingly stationed beside him - apart of him, in so many ways more than physically. He didn't need to view her face to gauge that the blonde was more than likely weeping, always so silent, always so careful as to not disturb the world with what she deemed a reaction able to be controlled. Gunther wanted her to be able to cry, to let everything out to him, so he could hold her together as the world fell apart around them. It was all he'd ever wanted in the past months. And now here they were, his hand running in smoothing circles along her back, lips pressing to the top of her head. "It's okay, it's okay," he repeated quietly into her hair, taking in everything in case this did, in fact, happen to be the last time they were able to just.. ​be​. "I'm here. I'm not going anywhere,"

Skylar: Gunther’s hand running gentle circles on her back, and his quiet, comforting words falling around her filled her up, making her whole again. It was like she’d spent the last few months walking around as only half of a person, trying to pass herself off as complete. If she just smiled at the right time, said the right words, no one would realize that something was missing, that she wasn’t quite right. Those thoughts, that feeling of finally finding herself complete again, only served to make her cry harder. But this was Gunther, and he seemed to know exactly how to handle that, how to make her feel comfortable enough to let everything out. Her own hands played restlessly against his back, half comforting, half afraid. The thought that maybe, after everything they’d been through, he wouldn’t want her all over him like this flickered briefly through her mind. But his words calmed everything, fears sliding away effortlessly. Her breath hitched on an “I miss you so,” that sounded a lot like ‘I love you,’ and her arms tightened around him.

Gunther: There was so much Gunther yearned to say, thoughts to express, how wonderful it felt to finally have Skylar in his arms, no matter how much their closeness was meant to be frowned upon and avoided. How could something that obviously felt so right, so comforting, effortlessly able to bring their minds at ease, be even the slightest bit wrong? But feeling Skylar's chest against his own, able to feel the gentle thrum of her heart through out his entire body, as if they were completely in sync, none of that mattered now. There was nobody telling them anything; just two halves of the same whole, finally come together. His eyes slipped shut, tightened at the corners when he heard her voice catch, arms tightening slightly around her fragile frame as if he alone could keep Skylar together. "I missed you too. Every single day we didn't talk.. and even more on the days that we did," He managed to keep his voice even and strong, though he didn't doubt only Skylar could catch the small break towards the end. There was never a moment when he could hide something from her; and as maddening as that fact could be, he was so thankful for it all the same. Throat tightening, he pressed another, desperate kiss to the crown of her head, fingers moving up to thread gently through her blonde locks, "You're so warm. You're always so warm,"

Skylar: Skylar could hear the slight catch in Gunther’s voice, much like her own, and she subconsciously ran her hands up and down his back gently. A small “It’s okay, I know,” filled the space between them, and she turned her head to press into his neck. There was so much she wanted to say, so much she wanted to reciprocate. The kiss he pressed to the top of her head, his hand threading through her hair felt like sensory overload, like everything she had been missing for far too long, and she couldn’t help but press tighter against him. They fit so perfectly, clicking into place like they’d never spent any time apart. She chuckled against him as he spoke, blinking back the tears. Always, they were warm, and comfortable, and Skylar could picture herself falling asleep happily in his arms, with his fingers playing with her hair. She would, if she wasn’t afraid of missing just one moment with him. “It’s warm, and you’re comfortable. Let’s just stay like this forever.” She breathed against him, truly relaxing into the embrace.

Gunther: There was something unmistakably relaxing about being able to touch and hold Skylar again. She was a familiar in the world, someone who he could always be completely and utterly himself around. No matter how much he liked, even loved other people, there would never be anybody to simply ​get​ him like she could. For as long as he could recall growing up, Sky had been stationed as a constant in his life, a constant reminder of how beautiful and yet cruel the world could be, and most of all, how friendship could go so much deeper than simply hanging out and enjoying something together. They enjoyed ​each other​ more than anything. Hearing her validation, that it was okay to feel emotional, gave room for his shoulders to sag, still keeping his grip around her. He didn't want to let her go any time soon. And her laugh filled him up, cooling him down as if fresh spring water in a parched desert; he hadn't heard it in so long, and it was always so distinct from her sister's. So ​alive​. "Well, I'm not going anywhere, and I have a feeling you don't want to either.." he trailed off, biting down on his bottom lip, "We should go somewhere. A park, or for lemonade or.. ​something​. I just want to enjoy you, Sky. Enjoy us, the way we used to. Even just staying like this forever.. I'm so content with this,"

Skylar: There were no words to describe how much Skylar wanted to take Gunther up on his offer. Her thoughts bounced from nights spent cuddled up watching movies together, to sitting across from each other with milkshakes, laughter on the air around them. There were so many things that they used to do, that Skylar wanted nothing more than to relive, recreate. ‘I just want to enjoy you’ he’d said, and she understood one-hundred percent. She wanted to enjoy Gunther for just being Gunther. Everyone tried to convince her he’d changed, that he wasn’t the boy she grew up with, but it just wasn’t true. He was still very much Gunther, the same enthusiasm, the same gentle hands on her back, and the same comforting voice that filled her up, made her feel safe and whole again. There was something that set him apart from others, something in the way his eyes lit up when he talked about something he was passionate about, or the way he’d thread their fingers together, careful and soft even though they both knew they fit together perfectly. Skylar enjoyed everything about Gunther, whether they were clinging to each other desperately in the far recesses of a library, or carelessly intertwined on Gunther’s bed watching Pitch Perfect, with ice cream on their laps. Skylar would be content to do anything with him, but she wasn’t sure if that was an option. “I want to enjoy you, too, Gunner. You have no idea how much I want that.” Her voice hitched, and her fingers worked at the material of Gunther’s shirts. “Where could we go?”

Gunther: "Anywhere," came the immediate answer, all the thought he'd put into this moment beforehand, of the slightest possibility where they could be alone together and simply take each other in, without any outside interference. Still, he knew he had to take things slowly; there was no offer to whisk her off into a land with just the two of them, no matter how far to the ends of the earth he would have gone to make it happen if Skylar had said 'go'. Still, he could at least make this little moment memorable for the both of them. For her. In his mind, Gunther could see himself overcoming anything for Skylar, to the point of self destruction if it meant she could hold some shred of happiness. "Anywhere you'd want, I can make it happen. We go hide in the dark of a movie theater, or go to an actual theater and watch a play. We could even go incognito, make a game of it. Completely undercover," Although he didn't enjoy the idea of having to hide in any sense with Skylar, especially when he didn't feel their friendship was wrong (although he knew some feelings were definitely ill-timed on his part), there was a trace of mirth in his voice, and he pulled back just enough to crane his neck and peer into her eyes. "Somewhere only we know, y'know?" His thumb brushed at the tears hovering near her eyes, off her cheeks, "We can always go ​somewhere​, just name it,"

Skylar: Skylar’s lips quirked up in a small smile as soon as Gunther told her they could go anywhere. There were so many places, and all of them seemed impossible. The thought of going anywhere with Gunther incognito made her stomach flip uncomfortably, but at the same time she knew that there weren’t many other options. She’d walk across the quad with him arm in arm if she felt she could get away with it, but there was just too much working against them. The list of places they could safely go dwindled, and Skylar felt herself scrambling for options. All thoughts settled when Gunther leaned back, reassuring her with the simple brush of his thumb under her eyes. It felt perfect, and it almost made her cry all over again. “The moon.” She started with a smile, eyes dancing playfully. They’d be perfectly alone. “Or one of those foreign theaters. We could watch a film in a language neither of us knows, and fill in the blanks ourselves. Or anywhere, I just want to be anywhere with you.”

Gunther: Gunther felt as though it had been decades since the last time he'd touched her - actually brushed, skin against skin, just for the simple contact of it all. Although they would always be a part of each other, for better or for worst, there was something about physically feeling her that could satisfy him for days. Maybe it was the affirmation that, yes, it was Skylar, and that she was in fact willingly beside him, willingly talking with him. Her smile sent his stomach into a fit of elation laced butterflies, the corner of his own mouth slowly quirking up into a lop-sided grin. "It'd be much easier to lasso the stars for you from that point. But I like the foreign movie idea.. it'd be like going on an adventure, just like old times. I'd like that, Sky. I really would,"

Skylar: Skylar bit off the ‘how romantic’ before it could escape. There were so many reasons they shouldn’t be doing what they were doing, and she didn’t want to think about a single one of them. Gunther shouldn’t be roping stars for her, and she shouldn’t be planning on sneaking out of the library with him, but she wanted to. It had been a long time since Skylar had done something because she wanted to, not because she had to, or because someone else needed her to. Gunther sat before her with a lop-sided grin that made her heart race, and she just wanted to stop caring so much about all of the noise. If she could just love him for one afternoon without consequences, maybe it would be enough to tide her over until the next afternoon they could spend together by chance. It didn’t even have to be about anything more than just rekindling the friendship that they both held so dear. It was just them enjoying each other, and Skylar could shut everything off for long enough to do just that. “As much as I’d love the stars, I think a movie is a bit more achievable.” Her hands moved to lace fingers gently with his, pulling slightly in her excitement. “It’ll be just like always. Allons-y, mon cher.”

Gunther: Although the entire conversation bordered on 'inappropriate' where some people might be concerned, Gunther couldn't allow the opportunity to pass without some kind of togetherness. First and foremost, even if only the two of them knew it, they were best friends. No matter how many other people they encountered in life, became close with, theirs would always be a relationship for the ages, a bond where even a simple glance or touch conveyed thousands of words between them. How could anyone with even a fraction of their right mind still in tact let something - someone like Skylar go, ​a third​ time? He didn't expect this to be some grand gesture that would automatically set things right between them; realistically, though, it felt like at least a step towards mending their slightly frayed ties. Never broken, just, in need of a desperate adhesive to keep things together. His fingers stilled the moment Skylar's curved around them, and his gaze flitted between their interlocked hands to her face, "Just like the good old days.. Comment ​merveilleux​," With a positively elated grin, he pulled the blonde in for another hug, face pressing into her neck before releasing her to lean down and gather his things. "Now be quick, we haven't a moment to lose,"