Chapter 420

XENOIS It wasn't a question. She could feel it through our bond—the terror I was barely keeping contained beneath the surface. "I might lose you," I admitted, my forehead pressing against hers. "After everything—after getting you back from that other timeline, after building this family, after finally understanding what matters—I might lose you to some cosmic debt I can't fight or negotiate with." "You might," Lumina agreed softly. Too softly. Like she'd already accepted it as inevitable. "And you want me to just accept that," I said, unable to keep the accusation from my voice. "Want me to nod and smile and pretend it's fine that some necromancer is coming to take you away." "I want you to make good use of whatever time we have," Lumina corrected. She pushed away from the wall, guiding me backward until my legs hit the bed. "I want us to live fully in every moment instead of spending it paralyzed by fear of what might happen." She straddled my lap as I sat on the edge of the bed, her