The only sound heard from within the darkened forest was the crackle of a steadily burning fire. No bird chirped nor creature prowled amongst the trees surrounding the flame. The wind stood still, the leaves and bushes with it, as no rustle was heard that could overpower the crackle of the flame. Not a thing moved within the woods as the fire burned back the night. This included the pair of strangers to the world, fallen just that morning.


    Side by side, they sat in silence, their gazes locked forward, not daring to look in each other’s direction. Earlier in the day, as they worked cleaning the camp of Alice’s scattered belongings, they shared a few short sentences. Pointless chatter about the weather, the sun shifting above, the beauty of the trees around them. Several of these short conversations had started, yet none had bloomed into anything more than a few quick back-and-forths shared by the two.


    As they gathered the firewood into a pile, climbing up to rip it from the surrounding trees and bundling piles of ivy and leaves, they shared a few quick laughs. Laughing as Jake slipped and fell, the small pile of broken branches falling out from under his arm and scattering to the floor. Laughed as Alice stumbled under the trailing ivy beneath her, tripping forward as it tangled under her feet. These short bursts of amused joy would soon fizzle out to nothing.


    Sitting around the prepared fire, they shared a short story as Alice brought the campfire to life. Jake complimented her playing, recalling the creature he found on his way to her. Embarrassed a bit, she stuttered as she recalled her encounter with the monster, going into little to no detail about what had happened. All that followed this was the silence, stretching on and on as the two sat staring into the flame, unsure what they could possibly do now.


    Both could feel it. An overwhelming pressure, tense and uncomfortable settled on their shoulders as they sat. A pressure that had only grown worse and worse as the day stretched on. A pressure neither really knew what to do about now.


    Reunited again, determined to travel together again, both felt a sense of relief. Joy at their new bond, their new renewed and shared desire to fall forward through all of reality. Yet despite how much they wished it wasn’t the case, that wasn’t all they felt.


    The fire stood firm, no breeze to sway in the flickering light it cast as it burned through its fuel, bathing Jake’s face in shimmering light. He wasn’t sure how to begin to understand what he felt, his insides coiled tight in a knot. He remembered the feeling of desperation he felt when she shoved him aside and ran off screaming in rage. Recalled the emptiness beside him as he searched through the woods.


    He could still feel it, fresh inside him. It reminded him of the first days he fell. The loss and confusion he felt as he realized what was happening. Realized he’d become separated from everything he’d ever known, everyone he’d ever loved.


    He glanced at his side. Saw her form flicker amidst the slight sway of the fire''s shadow. A sigh built up within as he came to terms with just how much she meant to him. He’d had ideas about it before. Suspicions when he’d become so single-minded about helping her, so devoted to trying to find her a home. But this… this somehow felt different.


    It scared him. To stare into her face, see her eyes squint against the flickers of the fire, her hair laid across her face still and silent in the night. It scared him to realize truly just how much she mattered now. Fear built up in his core as he worried about what might happen now. Worry about where they might land next filled his entire being.


    Despite what she said, despite her assertion, she still enjoyed their travels, falling from world to world in the face of the dangers. Despite her claims, she still found their journey fun despite the hells they’d fallen into; Jake couldn’t help but worry. His imagination ran wild as he envisioned worse danger after worse danger, envisioned more and more gruesome fates consuming them, grinding them down to nothing. He’d accepted already he’d likely die on his unending journey. But now, having to accept she’d be with him, hand in hand as he leaped blindly to his death…


    A shiver ran down his spine. His eyes dropped to the floor, his hands interlaced as he struggled to find what to say, struggling to break the newfound ice formed between the two. In truth, another fear burned within him when he looked her way and thought about her. He envisioned her happy, a contented smile on her face as she walked free of him. Waved goodbye as he fell, never to see her again.


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    It was her choice now. It always should have been, always was in his mind. But now it truly was her decision how long she stayed with him. He had no clue when she might stop; all he could do was assume they’d be together indefinitely. In the back of his mind, he’d always known their separation would hurt, but thought he’d managed to curb his feelings. Always tried and remind himself she wouldn’t be around forever, might not even be around for long, to help with the eventual pain her departure would bring.


    Now though… he couldn’t do that. As far as he knew she’d be around forever, travel with him forever. It excited him to think about, delighted him as he reflected on the joy her company brought. Yet at the same time, this new uncertainty about when she may choose to leave… scared him.


    Glancing again to his side he stared at her face for a moment, his mouth struggling to form any sounds. He wanted to share some of what he felt and talk with her now before his worries drove another wedge between the two. In the end, however, he stayed silent. Found himself unable to break through the tense wall built between the two, unsure what he could say to sate the anger she must still be feeling.


    And she was angry. Sat there under the light, something inside her burned. It was hard to describe. She’d felt such joy earlier in the day. Such delight at the chance to continue traveling and see all the wonders reality had to offer. Such joy at being allowed to continue falling with him…


    But when she looked his way, she couldn’t stop her anger from flaring up. Still, it bubbled in the pit of her stomach, kept alive despite how hard she tried to appease it. She didn’t know if it was fair to stay mad about something he must have explained when they first met. Stay mad about the goals he held to keep her safe, to care for her…


    Still, she couldn’t help it. White hot rage burned within her when she thought back to his words. Couldn’t help but question if they really knew each other at all. She couldn’t help but wonder if every story, every laugh, every moment they’d shared was an act meant to keep her happy. A play he put on to keep her going till he could find the perfect world for her.


    She hated the thought. Hated to feel such doubt. But she couldn’t shake the feeling that she didn’t know him at all. She hated it, it made her enraged to think after all this time, he’d resisted trying to get to know her. That he’d doubted her so much, he felt the need to coddle her, carry her around at arm’s length. Worse of all, she hated the loss of trust she once had.


    Despite his claims, his new promise, she couldn’t bring herself to trust him. She''d considered pushing him away, screaming at him to leave her be when he first proposed it to her. Still, she couldn’t bring herself to do so. Couldn’t deny herself that she would regret it, regret not taking the chance to try again. Regret not taking the chance to start anew. Still, though, as she looked at his silent frame awash in the fire''s glow, she hated the sense of doubt she felt. This feeling, she couldn’t trust him.


    Her thoughts were complicated, running circles as she tried to make sense of the whirlwind of emotions bubbling deep in her core. She felt her fingers slip absent-mindedly. Felt the tension of the strings grace them as she gazed into the still flame. Heard the tune, plucked mindlessly and at random as she sat lost in thought, filled the air. Watched the fire dance in kind, swaying and pulsing and growing in response to her random song.


    A small smile found its way across her face as she played, her thoughts momentarily distracted. As the fire danced in time to her song she felt at peace, eased by the strumming strings within. She wasn’t quite sure how long she sat distracting herself, mind nearly blank as she strummed. She only knew she was brought back to reality by a series of sounds, sharp and violent, played out next to her.


    Jumping with a start at the sudden interruption, she glanced next to her only to find Jake perched beside her, the clay flute raised to his lips. He glanced at her, eyes uncertain, before he continued to play, doing his best to follow along to her melody as the shaky and offbeat sounds of his flute began to fill the air.


    She watched him play for a minute, continuing to strum, before a laugh escaped her. He looked so uncertain in himself, so uncoordinated as he desperately tried to play along. Even just the same four notes she lazily played seemed too much to him. He seemed overwhelmed, a bit panicked.


    He looked hilarious. Continuing to laugh, she raised the harp to her chest and began to play in earnest. The sudden shift in her playing seemed to surprise him; she saw his eyes widen a bit, but still, he played alongside her. Though choppy and undignified, he didn’t quit. Both their melodies were beginning to combine midair, forming something almost resembling a song that echoed out through the darkened forest.


    As the fire danced and swayed to their playing, she smiled to herself. She didn’t know if she was a fool to trust him again. Didn’t know if she’d come to regret it. She didn’t even know if she really knew anything about him. But she wanted to. She wanted to believe she knew him. She wanted to believe they were close. She wanted to believe this creeping sense of doubt would leave her, that she could one day come to trust him again.


    She let out another laugh, allowing her voice to fill the air and join the pairs’ music. Their duet filling the stillness of the air, the pair found they could ignore their concerns, both focused solely on the song they played. The song that enveloped them both.