Nya is awake first, which is weird because Jay is always the early riser out of the whole team. Bluebird, Blue Jay, Early Bird, she has too much fun with all the nicknames she has for him. She's been awake for a few hours now, watching him sleep and listening to him breathe.
His chest rises and falls normally, the sound of his breaths strong and healthy.
No labored breathing, no gasping for breath, no slowly dry-drowning. The memories flood back to her, stinging painfully.
She wasn't strong enough. The water would not obey her. It reminded her of how powerless she felt in the Never realm. Surrounded by water that wouldn't listen.
She absentmindedly traces her hand over his abs, feeling their hard planes under her fingers as though it were just another day. But this isn't any other day. This is today. And there's something about knowing what they're doing right now...it makes everything feel so surreal.
They are both here, alive, real bodies of flesh, blood and bundled nerves.
He stirs beneath her hands, but does not wake. He mumbles something into slumberland before falling silent again. Nya kisses his chest lightly, then curls up next to him in bed. Her heart feels like it might burst from happiness—or maybe that's the guilt? Or both. Maybe that was why she couldn't move when she should have been able to do anything. Because she knew she shouldn't be happy after all that had happened between them.
It doesn't matter anymore. Nothing matters except for the fact that she can finally rest easy without having nightmares every single night about melting into the sea.
Her eyes fall closed. There are so many things she wants to say, but none come out. Instead, she buries her face against his neck, inhaling deeply of his scent while she tries to sort through her feelings. She still needs time to process it all, to come to terms with the fact that she's not going to lose him. That he's okay.
That the sea won't take her again. That she's going to live.
The warmth of his body, the steady rhythm of his breathing lulls her back to sleep.