[o] [SE] longneck, ice cold beer never broke my heart

Iskra

BREATHE IT IN, IT'S JUST SNOW, WE'RE JUST FALLING
WE WON'T ALWAYS FREE FALL BACK TO NOTHING

He couldn’t quite put his finger on what had changed. He wasn’t as attentive as she was, and he didn’t always see the layers of meaning in things the way she did. But he could feel it—something had shifted, like a thinning had happened between them. It settled with greater certainty the more he spoke, and he tried to watch as much as listen as she responded in turn, as clever as ever. The conversation did little to fill the hollow space in his heart where his doubt thrived. Though it was as fascinating as anything she'd said so far, this one had wrinkled them, and so he cut it away with a frown. "S-sorry," he stammered a bit as she finished, an outstretched palm gestured towards her briefly. "I didn't mean to set you back to work again. I'm sure you deal with explaining love more than enough already."

A smile then, an attempted bridge back to safer ground, though he'd never know that he'd torn away whatever flower had been budding in her chest for him. Iskra's golden retriever energy carried him to safety in conversation rather often. "If you'd prefer to swap roles, I could tell you all about the different types of wood." A broader grin, because he knew she definitely would not want that. "Although that might also prove to be an effective sleep aid."

I'M JUST STARTING TO LEARN
I'VE ALWAYS BEEN CHASING GHOSTS