[ Rain's POV ]
My heart felt like it was being held together by threads as I looked at him. Fran, the stoic, untouchable is now a Fran, who was weak, vulnerable, and crying like a child at my feet.
In that moment, a flood of memories crashed over me. Every late-night study session, every shared meal, every time he protected me without saying a word. It felt like our lives were a book that had already been written, and no matter how many pages I tried to tear out, the ending remained the same.
Fran was my world. I couldn't escape him, and honestly? I didn't want to anymore.
I knelt down to face him, cupping his face in my hands. "Fran... look at me."
His eyes were red, filled with a loneliness that broke my heart. I didn't say it out loud, but the thought was loud in my head: I love you. I've always loved you. I leaned my forehead against his, letting our tears mingle. I couldn't let him go. Not now. Not ever.
He pressed his large palms against my cheeks. They were warm, grounding, and so familiar. I managed a small, tearful smile, and the tension in his shoulders finally began to snap. He pulled me into a hug so tight it felt like he was trying to merge our souls back together.
After a while, once the sobbing subsided and our breathing evened out, the weight of the drama started to feel... a little much. I let out a shaky laugh against his shoulder.
"This is so awkward," I whispered.
Fran chuckled, a wet, raspy sound, as he pulled back to look at me. He reached out, gently wiping a stray tear from my cheek.
"What? Stop that," I said, playfully swatting his hand away and scooting back. We both laughed, the sound breaking the heavy silence of the apartment. It was the most awkward confession in history, but it was ours.
I sat on the sofa while Fran disappeared into the kitchen. He returned a moment later with a glass of water, hovering over me with an attentiveness that was almost overwhelming.
The second I finished drinking, he snatched the glass away to set it on the table, as if he were on high alert.
He sat beside me, his eyes glued to my face. "Do you forgive me now?" he asked softly.
I took a deep breath. "What actually happened, Fran? With Athena... I mean-?"
"I went to tell her to stay the f*ck away from you," he said, his voice hardening for a second. "I know what she told you. I'm sorry I didn't handle it better. She's..." He trailed off, his jaw clenching.
"I know. She came to talk to me too," I said. "And the post?"
"Gone. I told the admins to shut it down or they'd regret it."
I couldn't help but smile. This was the Fran I knew, the one who fought the world so I wouldn't have to.
"Okay," I said softly. "Will you forgive me, too? For trying to leave? Won't you kick me out again?"
"Eh?" Fran made a face. "I never kicked you out. You're the one who's always trying to run away. Tsk. Maybe you just wanted to stay with that 'Goldy' guy more."
He pouted, looking so much like a sulky teenager that I couldn't resist. I started poking his sides, and within seconds, we were tangled together in a tickle war, laughing and gasping just like we used to. For a moment, the pain of the last few weeks vanished.
I was just about to pin his arms down when he suddenly caught my wrists. The laughter died out instantly.
The air grew thick and still.
Fran's eyes searched mine, darting from my eyes to my lips and back again. My heart began to do somersaults.
He slowly raised his hand toward my face, but I noticed something I'd never seen before.
His hand was shaking. The Ice King was actually trembling.
The sight of it, the raw, honest nerves of a guy who was usually so confident, this made a grin spread across my face.
The tension broke as I let out a giggle.
Fran blinked, his senses snapping back as he realized I was laughing at him. He pulled his hand back quickly, looking embarrassed.
"Did you just laugh at me?"
"Well, you're kind of cute," I teased, leaning in. "Why are you so tense?"
"Well..." He looked away, his ears turning a faint shade of pink.
"You make me nervous, Rain."