#mcnstercus

HE WASN'T IN THE BEST MOOD AS OF LATE. dylan knew what it was, but he couldn't really do anything about it. no matter what he did, the man couldn't sleep. which is how he found himself at a diner in the m i d d l e of the night. the workers used to him already at this point. his hearing aids next to him on the table as he stared blankly at the journal in front of him. when he felt someone sit across from him, he didn't glance up. just put the aids back on and sighed to his sister. "you didn't have to come all the way here." he spoke softly.

THE MOMENT SHE PASSED THROUGH THE DOOR, she slammed it shut and leaned against it. she couldn't hold back the tears. f i n a l l y alone, she didn't feel the need to hold them back anymore. it took her a moment longer then it should have to notice she wasn't actually alone. had it been any other time, she would have been embarrassed. “ oh. ” she tried to wipe away her tears. but now that they started, she couldn't stop. “ i- i thought this room was empty. ”

HE HADN’T MEANT TO SEE HER. that's not true. all he wanted to do was see her. but he also told himself he’d stay away, that some ghosts deserved to stay ghosts — especially to her. but then there she was. xochitl. alive. radiant. untouched by the years that buried him. the sound of her laugh carried through the street, soft and familiar enough to knock the air out of his chest. the world tilted; for a second, the veil between before and after thinned, and he was alive again, sneaking through palace halls, tasting salt and starlight on her lips. tomas froze halfway across the square. every instinct screamed to turn back — to let her keep her peace, to not drag her into whatever half-life he was living now — but his feet didn’t listen. his pulse stuttered, hands curling at his sides. “ xochi, ” he said finally, her name b r e a k i n g from him like a confession. it felt too real, too alive, the way it fit in his mouth after all this time. he swallowed hard, voice rough as gravel. “ guess i’m worse at staying gone than i thought. ”

@mcnstercus

SOMETHING IN HIM B R O K E – he wasn't sure what did it for him. but he realised it officially when he happened to see emilia. his younger sister. the sight of her used to make him smile, yet as he caught sight of her, he found himself frowning. he knows what happens after someone dies. . . life goes on. people grow up and eventually stop mourning you. it was a g i v e n. it's what he wanted for his sisters. yet–- he couldn't stop the aching feeling. but like for cat, he pushed it all aside and decided to approach his youngest sister... who was officially older than him now. how fucked up is that?! his mind offered bitterly. she had just put in an order when he ended up behind her. “ i'll take the same thing. ” he told the lady behind the stand, then waited for his sister to turn to him.