I blinked awake, tangled in the warmth of the bed, and for a moment I had to remind myself where I was.
Here.
Alive.
Awake.
Beside me, Ken hummed softly in the kitchen, the scent of fresh coffee curling through the air.
I slipped out of bed quietly, trying not to disturb him, but he turned at the sound of my movement, eyes lighting up like sunlight.
"Morning," he said, voice low and teasing, the corners of his lips tugging upward.
I couldn't help but smile, soft and small. "Morning," I whispered back, brushing my hair behind my ear.
"Are you ready for today?" he asked, a playful gleam in his eye.
I tilted my head, curious. "Today? What do you mean?"
"Come on," he said, grabbing the car keys from the counter, "we're going exploring. You don't get to see this city just from your condo window."
Something fluttered in my chest.
Exploring? Him saying that made the world feel lighter somehow.
I followed him out the door, slipping into my jacket, trying to ignore the butterflies crawling up my stomach.
The drive was easy, filled with small talk and laughter, and I realized how normal it all felt.
Not the dream, not the coma world, not the impossibility of parallel versions colliding, just this.
Him.
Me.
The road stretches ahead.
"So… where are we going?" I asked again, unable to hide my curiosity.
"You'll see," he said, eyes on the road, a mischievous smile playing at his lips. "Trust me. You're gonna love it."
When the skyline finally faded behind us and the smell of saltwater filled the air, my breath caught.
The beach stretched before me, vast and endless, waves glittering like liquid sunlight under the morning sky.
I didn't think I could feel this much joy in one moment.
My chest felt too full, my heart too heavy with relief and wonder.
Ken parked, and we got out.
Sand sifted between my toes immediately, soft and cool.
I laughed, almost involuntarily, and he grinned at me, taking my hand in his.
"Feels good, doesn't it?" he asked.
"Like… like I've been here before," I said, voice barely above a whisper.
Something in me recognized the way the waves licked the shore, the way the sun caught the edges of the water.
Familiar.
Comforting.
Impossible, yet real.
Ken squeezed my hand, and I felt the warmth of his palm seep into mine, grounding me. "Maybe we have," he said softly. "Maybe this is where we were meant to be all along."
We ran down the sand together, chasing the waves, laughing as the cold water splashed against our legs.
He twirled me around once, catching me mid-laugh, and I felt lighter than I had in months, lighter than I had ever imagined.
I could feel every heartbeat, every breath, every small miracle of this reality.
The sun kissed my skin, the wind tangled in my hair, and I looked at Ken, really looked and saw every small detail, every freckle on his hand, every curve of his smile, the warmth in his eyes.
"Ysabelle," he whispered, slowing as the tide licked at our feet, "look at this. Just look at it."
I followed his gaze.
The waves glimmered like a thousand tiny suns, each one reflecting the world, reflecting us.
For a moment, I couldn't breathe, couldn't speak.
It was too beautiful, too alive.
Ken bent down, scooping up a handful of sand, letting it slip through his fingers. "This," he said, "this is real. Not a dream, not a coma, not a story someone wrote for us. This is us. Right now."
I pressed my forehead to his shoulder, letting myself feel the moment. "It feels like… we've been waiting for this forever," I murmured. "Like every impossible thing we've gone through… led to this."
He laughed softly, brushing sand from my hair. "Maybe the universe just wanted to make sure we appreciated it," he teased. "And maybe it wanted to give us a chance to live the life we couldn't in the dream."
I tilted my head up, looking at him. "You mean… everything we did there, in that other… world… we can do it here too?"
"Yes," he said, nodding. "But this time, it's real. We get to touch it, feel it, taste it, live it. No limits. No comas. No dreams."
The words sank deep.
Real.
Real.
I let myself laugh, genuinely, freely.
It was a sound full of relief, full of wonder, full of love.
We ran further along the shore, chasing the waves until our toes were soaked, our clothes damp, and our hearts racing.
He scooped me up suddenly, spinning me around before setting me down again, and I squealed, wrapping my arms around his neck.
"This is… perfect," I whispered, breathless.
"No," he said, brushing a wet strand of hair from my face. "You are perfect."
The waves licked at our feet again, the sunlight spilling over the horizon, and I realized something: I had finally arrived.
"I'm going to get you!" he shouted, pretending to lunge at me, and I squealed, spinning around and kicking at the water, droplets spraying like diamonds in the sunlight.
"You're going to have to try harder than that!" I called back, my hair whipping across my face, salty and wet, but I didn't care. I had never felt so alive, so… light.
Finally, he caught me, his arms wrapping around my waist, holding me tight.
I gasped, laughing, the sound lost in the rush of waves.
He lifted me just slightly off the ground, spinning me once, and then set me down gently.
"You're impossible," he teased, brushing a wet strand of hair from my cheek.
"And you love it," I shot back, smirking, though my chest was still racing from the chase.
We walked along the edge of the water, toes sinking into the sand, the surf washing over our feet.
Ken kept stealing glances at me, small smiles tugging at his lips, and I realized I was doing the same.
Every smile, every laugh, every brush of his hand against mine felt electric, like the world itself had shrunk to just us, just this moment.
At some point, he grabbed a small driftwood stick from the sand and started drawing in the wet ground, doodling hearts and our initials, and I laughed, crouching beside him to add a few of my own.
"This is ridiculous," he said, grinning, "but I kind of love it."
I leaned close, brushing my fingers against his as I traced a heart beside his initials. "Ridiculous is the best part," I whispered. "Because it's ours."
He leaned in, forehead against mine, breathing mingling with mine. "It's everything I've ever wanted," he murmured. "Everything I didn't know I needed until now."
I shivered slightly at his words, heart hammering in my chest. "I feel the same," I admitted softly. "I've… waited a long time for something like this. For us."
Ken smiled, brushing a thumb across my cheek, and the warmth of him made my chest ache with happiness. "Then don't wait anymore," he whispered, tilting my chin up, lips brushing mine in a soft, lingering kiss.
The world fell away.
The sun, the sand, the waves, everything melted into the warmth of his touch, the taste of his lips. It was slow, tender, but it carried all the longing, all the missed moments, all the dreams that had somehow led us here.
I melted into him, pressing closer, wrapping my arms around his neck, feeling the steady beat of his heart. "I missed you," I whispered between kisses.
"I missed you too," he replied softly, voice full of awe and something I couldn't quite name, but it felt like home.
We broke apart just enough to laugh breathlessly, shaking our heads at how silly we looked, faces damp with salt and sun.
I grabbed his hand again, fingers lacing tightly with his as we ran toward the waves, letting them crash over our feet.
"Race you to that rock!" I shouted, pointing to a large stone a few meters ahead.
"You're on," he grinned, sprinting, and I chased him, feeling the spray of water, the warmth of his hand brushing mine, the sheer joy of being alive.
After a while, we collapsed on the sand, side by side, staring up at the sky as the sun climbed higher.
My fingers traced patterns on his arm, feeling the realness of him, solid, tangible, warm.
"You know," he said after a while, voice low, "I could stay like this forever. Just you and me, waves, sun, nothing else."
I nodded, resting my head on his shoulder. "Me too. I don't think I've ever been this happy… this is free."
He kissed the top of my head gently. "We get to make it real now. All the things we only dreamed about… we get to do them for real."
And I believed him.
I believed in him.
In us.
In this universe that had somehow given us a second chance to laugh, to play, to love, completely, unapologetically, joyfully.