She sighed.
"It was really strange, to see them like that.
Young, radiant, loving, and brimming with hope. I had thought... that it would be a solace, to finally know what they were like. To know that they have not always been just a pair of ghosts.
Especially my mother."
She looked down at her hands and added, her voice sounding wistful: "But to be honest..."
Nephis sighed.
"..In the end, witnessing them only made me feel lonelier."
Sunny remained silent for a while, not knowing what to say. Everything he wanted to say to her would be forgotten in a few moments, never leaving a mark. So, there was no point.
Eventually, he looked at the ceiling.
"There is this guy that I know. Who became an orphan early on. He was lonely for a long time, too. But then, he met a girl."
He paused for a few seconds.
"And then, he lost that girl. And then, he found her again, only to lose her again. Come to think of it, I guess it's wrong to say that he lost her -
rather, it was him who became lost. In any case, what I am trying to say is... actually, I'm not sure what I'm trying to say."
Sunny smiled.
"I seem to have had some kind of idea when I started talking, but now, I don't know. You don't have to feel like that, I guess."
Nephis chuckled softly.
Standing up, she walked over to the bed and sat down, looking at Sunny from above. There was a strange emotion in her eyes... both bitter and sweet, both powerful and timid.
Perhaps it was longing.
Nephis smiled.
"Well... how does the story end? Was that guy found in the end?" Sunny answered her smile with one of his own, then shrugged.
"I'm not sure yet. Time will tell..."
She gazed at him deeply, not saying anything.
Slowly, her smile dimmed, replaced by a calm and sober expression. And the strange emotion in her eyes grew more intense.
Sunny wanted to speak, but before he could, Nephis leaned down and kissed him deeply. Her lips were like flame, setting his heart on fire. His hands rose, hovered hesitantly near her waist for a moment, and then wrapped around her tightly.
As if intending to never let her go.
Never let her go again.
Responding to her kiss, Sunny pushed himself toward her, and then gently pulled her onto the bed.
A flash of lightning illuminated the world, and somewhere in the distance, a deafening thunderclap shook the world.
However, neither Sunny nor Nephis were aware of the storm, fully and utterly lost in each other.