Redhawk Caldera Stray away from the forces that make you

She wanted so badly to finish that sentence at first, but there was no way, and she let it die.  The taste of blood lingered on her tongue and, as the overwhelming initial sensation passed, she felt the constriction even worse than before.  She probably couldn't have gotten the words out if she tried.  Fortunately, Bronco angled himself, and as she felt him shift she followed suit to rest her head upon him.  It opened her chest some and helped considerably.

She owed him the biggest backrub for this.  He was still here, and he'd stayed despite her attempts to get him to leave.  For the first time, she felt the lid of that box she'd shut crack open... just a tidge.  A little hope that, despite everything, maybe they'd be okay.  It wasn't a defined or conscious thought.  It was more a shift in her thinking and a slight chip in the wall that she'd build up between them.  It let a little warmth in where before there'd been only wary chill.

Despite the elevation, it wasn't long before darkness claimed her.  She'd fought against it earlier, but now that Bronco was here against her instead of outside, she couldn't resist.  It was harder now to deny it when it offered respite from everything she had to deal with awake.  To Bronco it would likely seem as though she'd simply fallen asleep, her head still resting across his neck.  Essentially it was the same thing... this time it wasn't the shifting fog, but complete and total unconsciousness.  She wouldn't wake when he left; something that was becoming a pattern for her.