Worrying about each other

The night air was biting cold as Athena opened the door to her rented house. The old hinges groaned softly, followed by a rush of frigid wind slipping inside with her footsteps.

"Oh God, I hate winter," she muttered, shivering.

She closed the door gently and kicked off her shoes while holding her breath. The living room lights were dim. Silent. Only the ticking of the old wall clock and the faint hiss of snow sliding off the roof could be heard.

She walked in, then stopped at the doorway to her bedroom.

Asher was asleep on the only bed in the house, curled up with soft, steady breaths. His fingers clutched the edge of the blanket, barely covering him like a child afraid of the cold.

She stood there for a moment. Her gaze softened. The sight before her was something she never imagined, this handsome and innocent stranger sleeping in her bed, now bearing her last name. It felt almost like… a husband.

"This is ridiculous," she whispered with a smile, walking closer to the bed.

She gently pulled the blanket up over his body, carefully tucking it in so he wouldn't wake. Then she touched his forehead lightly, checking for a fever. Just cold, not sick.

"No fever. That's good… I hope he keeps getting better. I hope he remembers who he is soon."

After that, Athena turned off the bedroom light and went back to the living room.

She set her work bag on the table, lit the small fireplace, and grabbed the long black winter cloak that hung behind the doo, her favorite, though it had faded with time.

With a bit of effort, she lay down on the old sofa near the fire. It was narrow. Uncomfortable. But she was used to it.

She folded the cloak and pulled it over her from feet to chest. Not warm but enough.

The flames danced behind the glass of the fireplace, casting golden shadows on the walls. Athena stared at them quietly, then sighed deeply.

"Today was too long. Too strange. But also… somehow, it felt whole. For the first time, I don't feel alone," she murmured.

Just before her eyes closed, her thoughts wandered back to something Asher had said earlier.

"If I fall asleep and forget you when I wake up…"

She stared at the ceiling, eyes heavy but heart alert.

"How can someone like that exist?" she whispered. "A grown man, handsome and quiet, but with a soul like a child."

She paused, smiling softly. "What if Lucy was right, and he really is some kind of reborn adult?"

Athena chuckled at the thought. "This is the weirdest day of my life… but I like it."

She squeezed her eyes shut, imagining Asher's innocent gaze.

...

3 AM.

Asher opened his eyes slowly.

The air was cold against his fingertips, though his body was warm under the blanket. The mattress beneath him was soft. Too soft, maybe.

He blinked slowly, adjusting to the dim light in the bedroom. But there was a strange emptiness in his chest.

Athena.

He sat up and looked around. No sound of another breath in the room.

Quietly, he got out of bed and padded barefoot to the door. The floor was cold, but he didn't complain. A soft golden glow from the fireplace greeted him in the living room, casting warm colors across the space.

There she was.

Curled up on the narrow sofa in her worn-out cloak, sleeping lightly. Her shoulders twitched now and then when the wind slipped through the window cracks.

Asher stood frozen.

For a long moment, he just looked at her. Something stirred in his chest. A feeling with no name, but too strong to ignore.

He turned around and went back to the bedroom. At the edge of the bed, the blanket was still rumpled from where he'd left it. He picked it up and returned to the living room.

His steps were careful. His breath barely audible as he approached her.

He gently laid the blanket over Athena's sleeping form, wrapping it around her like she was something fragile. His hand paused on her shoulder, making sure she stayed asleep.

Then he sat in the little wooden chair near the fireplace. The flames flickered softly, like the heartbeat of the house.

Asher leaned back, looking at the fire, then back at Athena l, realizing just how peaceful she looked… but also, how exhausted.

Sleep pulled at his eyelids again, but he didn't move. He just sat there.

The fire danced quietly as Asher watched it, stealing glances at Athena beneath the blanket.

Then suddenly, she mumbled in her sleep.

"…Asher… Asher, where are you? Did you forget again?"

The voice was faint, but Asher heard it. Clear as day.

His body went still. He leaned in closer, making sure he wasn't imagining things.

"Asher…" she whispered again. "Please don't go…"

Asher slowly got up and knelt beside the couch, watching her sleeping face. Without hesitation and not knowing it was only sleep-talking he gently touched her arm.

"Athena?" he whispered. "I'm here."

Athena stirred, her breath heavy. Her eyes blinked open, still hazy with sleep.

"Asher?" she croaked.

She sat up slightly and noticed the blanket wrapped around her. Then her eyes drifted down to Asher, kneeling beside her, his face flooded with quiet relief.

"Asher, what are you doing?" she asked.

"You called me," he said with a faint smile. "I thought… maybe you were scared I'd forgotten you. But I didn't. I'm still here. And I still remember everything with you."

Athena paused, confused for a second before shaking her head, half-amused, half-moved.

"You… thought I called you?" she asked softly. "That was just me talking in my sleep, Asher…"

Asher frowned slightly. "Talking in sleep?"

"It's when people say things without knowing it. It's not real," she explained gently.

He looked down, a little embarrassed for taking it so seriously. But then he looked up again with a small, determined smile.

"But I still remember," he said. "I remember you gave me a name. you smell nice. your laugh. And I remember you're kind."

Athena had no words. She just stared at him, heart aching with something soft and warm.

"Thank you, Asher," she whispered. "And thank you for the blanket."

Asher gave a slight nod. "I didn't want you to be cold."

Athena leaned back, letting the warmth of the blanket and the fire wrap around her again. She could still feel Asher's gaze.

"Go to sleep, Asher," she said at last. "I'll sleep too."

Asher returned to the chair by the fire. But this time, he didn't look at the flames.

He looked at her.

Feeling the quiet stare, Athena opened her eyes again, peeking at him.

"What are you thinking?" she asked.

"I… I don't know," Asher said, lowering his gaze. "I just want to do what you do."

"What?"

"Where did you go?" he asked, brows furrowed. "You were gone so long. I thought you wouldn't come back. I wanted to look for you… but I didn't know where to go."

Athena couldn't help but smile. That face, that innocence, it was too much.

"I tell you before," she said gently. "I work. I go to work every day from nine in the morning to eight at night. On Saturdays and Sundays, I don't go. I stay here."

She paused.

"Maybe we can do something fun then. Go to the park? Walk around town?"

"Is tomorrow Saturday or Sunday?" he asked quickly.

"Saturday…"

Asher grinned wide, cheeks glowing with excitement, as if that were the best news in the world.

Athena just watched him with a soft, amused smile. Somehow, her sleepiness was gone replaced by a quiet urge to stay up and keep talking. To teach him everything.

Everything he'd missed from the world.