I think I can manage being collateral damage
Everest nodded, though his shoulders stayed tight, the motion small and cautious like everything else he did lately. The fact that Mateo had eaten something appropriate and slept was...reassuring, if not surprising. Enough that some of the tautness eased out of Ever’s arms, though it didn’t quite reach his face.
"Good," he said quietly, tapping once against the side of his leg with two fingers before smoothing his palm flat over his thigh again. "Protein is important." There was a flicker of something like old instinct there—an impulse to offer a detailed breakdown of electrolyte intake and ideal pacing for non-runners and to record Mateo's starting heart rate—but it snagged against the tired clutter in his mind and died before it could form fully.
Instead, he let his gaze flick once around the Plaza—mapping the exits again, noting the open paths, cataloguing the people—and nodded once more. "We can start." He drew in a slow, careful breath. "I’ll keep the pace under five miles an hour to start." Too specific, maybe, but safer than letting things spiral. He shifted his weight minutely forward, waiting until he was sure Mateo was ready, then murmured: "On three."
One. Two. Three. And Ever set off, neat and steady; already counting every step between here and safety.
"Good," he said quietly, tapping once against the side of his leg with two fingers before smoothing his palm flat over his thigh again. "Protein is important." There was a flicker of something like old instinct there—an impulse to offer a detailed breakdown of electrolyte intake and ideal pacing for non-runners and to record Mateo's starting heart rate—but it snagged against the tired clutter in his mind and died before it could form fully.
Instead, he let his gaze flick once around the Plaza—mapping the exits again, noting the open paths, cataloguing the people—and nodded once more. "We can start." He drew in a slow, careful breath. "I’ll keep the pace under five miles an hour to start." Too specific, maybe, but safer than letting things spiral. He shifted his weight minutely forward, waiting until he was sure Mateo was ready, then murmured: "On three."
One. Two. Three. And Ever set off, neat and steady; already counting every step between here and safety.
Even if I had to lose you to know you I'd still be that temporary phase that you grow through
