BB

The dim glow of the projector flickered to life, casting a dreamlike image across the empty theatre.

It was a cityscape at dusk, with the last light of the sun melting into the horizon.

The air smelled of metal and old fuel, a sharp contrast to the illusion of warmth before them.

The Commander stood motionless, his eyes locked on the projection before him. He already knew she was there before she spoke.

Lunasia: "It’s beautiful, isn’t it? The first time I saw Paris, I thought it would be more breathtaking than the stories… but it was just another city."

The Commander: "…"

Lunasia: "But you… you were different. When I first saw you, it was like seeing a masterpiece for the first time. My own Mona Lisa."

The Commander turned to face her.

The soft glow of the projection traced her profile, casting delicate shadows along her face.

There was something distant in her expression, something he couldn't quite reach.

The Commander: "That’s a strange way to put it."

Lunasia chuckled.

Lunasia: "You don’t like taking pictures, right?"

The Commander: "I never saw the point."

Lunasia: "That’s fine. I don’t need them anyway. You’re already burned into my memory. My heart’s own projector."

The words sat between them, heavy, yet fragile.

The Commander exhaled, shifting his weight onto the table as he studied her face.

The Commander: "You’re talking like you won’t see me again."

Lunasia: "Maybe I won’t."

She smiled, though there was no joy in it.

Lunasia: "Or maybe I just don’t want to forget."

The distant hum of machinery filled the silence between them.

The projection flickered slightly, the artificial Parisian sunset darkening into night.

The Commander: "Lunasia—"

Lunasia: "Can you give me one last kiss?"

The request was soft, almost lost beneath the hum of the projector.

The Commander clenched his jaw, his hands balling into fists before slowly relaxing.

There were things he wanted to say. Things he should say. But none of them came out.

Lunasia took a step closer. Her cold fingers brushed against his cheek.

The touch was featherlight, as if she was memorizing the shape of him, committing every detail to memory.

Lunasia: "Forget me if you must."

Lunasia: "But I… I won’t forget you. Not even if the world ends."

The Commander closed his eyes, letting himself fall into the warmth of her presence, just for a moment.

The kiss they shared tasted like cider and sorrow, the lingering bitterness of something fleeting, something slipping through their fingers before they could ever truly hold onto it.

When he pulled away, Lunasia was smiling.

A real smile, soft and full of unspoken words.

Lunasia: "Thank you, Commander."

The projector blinked out. Darkness swallowed the room whole.

And by the time the Commander opened his eyes again—

Lunasia was still there.

She stood in the dim light, her gaze unreadable, yet tender.

The silence stretched between them, heavy yet delicate.

Slowly, she stepped forward, reaching for him once more.

Lunasia: "One more… just one more."

The Commander hesitated, then met her halfway.

This time, the kiss was deeper, unburdened by words, by the uncertainties of tomorrow.

Just the warmth of two souls caught in a fleeting moment.

Her fingers curled into his jacket, holding onto him as if anchoring herself to reality.

The world outside was vast, unrelenting—but here, in this moment, they belonged only to each other.

The kiss lingered, time stretching into eternity.

And when they finally parted, she didn’t let go.

Lunasia: "Commander, please allow me this one moment of selfishness…"

The Commander: "Lunasia…"

She pulled him down beside her, resting her head against his shoulder.

Outside, the ruins of Frankfurt hummed with distant movement, but here, inside this fragile bubble of time, it didn’t matter.

Lunasia: "Tell me a story. Something from before. Something about us."

The Commander thought for a moment before speaking, his voice soft.

The Commander: "Remember that time several weeks after you settled in the S09 Base? The AR Team wanted to see the nearby city, but a storm rolled in."

The Commander: "We got separated from the others. We had to run through the rain, and I dragged you into that tiny café on the corner.

Lunasia laughed, the sound quiet and wistful.

Lunasia: "And you spilled coffee all over yourself."

The Commander: "And you laughed so hard the barista gave us free pastries."

She sighed, pressing closer.

Lunasia: "I wish we could go back there."

The Commander: "Maybe someday."

They sat together in the dim light, their fingers intertwined.

The moment stretched on, as delicate as the fading glow of the now-extinguished projector.

When she finally fell asleep against him, the Commander stayed awake, watching the rise and fall of her breath, memorizing the warmth of her presence.

For tomorrow, like all things, would come too soon.