"I am thinking about the furnaces, yes," Kai agreed smoothly, turning his head just slightly to press a soft, lingering kiss into Yena's dark hair while his arm wrapped securely around her waist to anchor her against his side. "But I am also thinking about how incredibly far we have come since those desperate days of fighting for scraps in the outer rim, and how strange it feels to hold the fate of entire galaxies in the palm of my hand without feeling like I am going to collapse under the crushing weight of it all."
Yena smiled softly into the cool night air, a warm and deeply affectionate expression that crinkled the corners of her amber eyes, and she shifted closer to his side so she could rest her hand flat against the solid, reassuring armor of his chest.
