"Look at me… Sylvia… please…" Aldric's voice broke the silence, low, unsteady.
Her breath hitched, a sob threatening to escape. Her nose flared, her cheeks flushed, and yet she forced words through her tightening throat. "Why are you doing this?" The sound came half-broken, torn between fury and grief.
Her fists curled, shaking. "Either act like you always used to… or like the brute you've shown yourself to be. Don't…" her voice cracked, "don't oscillate. I can't…" She sniffed, another sob slipping past her guard. "I won't fall for you again. I almost… but you…"
She shoved against his chest, but he did not move. Instead, his lips found her face wherever they could: her temple, her damp cheek, the corner of her jaw, desperate, insistent, as if by sheer closeness he could undo her words.
Sylvia broke then, sobbing openly, striking his chest with all the strength she could muster. Each blow trembled against him, her grief spilling into every motion.
