You Don't Need Lips to Kiss

Seraï peered over the side of the Vespertine . The vibrant blue ocean served as a stark contrast to her world’s murky greenish hue. She knew their triumph over the Fleshmancer wouldn’t just magically fix things, but it left her lost for what to do next. What could she even do? All flora and fauna from her world went extinct, with very little to no hope of bringing them back.   Her reflection staring back at her didn’t help. There was also no chance of restoring her human body. While she always tried to hold on to what little hope she had left, it was time for her to let go. However, that was easier said than done, since she couldn’t help but long for the things she never got to experience - and never will.  “Hey.”  Seraï was startled from her thoughts by a cheerful presence coming up alongside her.  “Are you doing alright?” Garl asked compassionately.  She didn’t answer, unsure of what to say. How much should she really let him know? She didn’t want to pain him with hopes and dreams that could never be. He was too empathetic to handle that.  “You can talk to me, you know,” he started. “I get that it’s been a while, being dead and all,” he added, glancing away sheepishly, “but I’m still here for you. I might not know everything that happened while I was gone, but I’m willing to listen.”  She tensed her grip on the side of the boat. Seraï knew that Garl had a way with words, and try as she might, she could never resist them.  “I feel sad,” she murmured.  She always started by putting her feelings into simple terms and expanded from there. She didn’t remember when or where she heard the advice to do this, but it worked.  “I miss the things that I’ll never be able to experience.”  Garl put a hand on her shoulder, but she kept her eyes on the water.   “What do you mean by that?” he gently asked.  She hummed a bit before speaking up. “Because of what’s happened to me, there are lots of things I’ll never be able to do. Smell the world around me, taste your cooking, kiss someone, have sex...”  She was embarrassed she let that last one slip out, but it didn’t seem to faze Garl. He didn’t seem to have much of a response at all actually. He stared at her, presumably lost in thought for what to say. There was no right answer in Seraï’s mind. There was nothing that could fix her, so being an ear to her grievances was the best anyone could do.  “I’m sorry,” he said, his voice heavy with sadness.  “I know,” she flatly, before mumbling, “It’s a lost cause.”  “No!” Garly quickly interjected, “There’s got to be a way to fix things.”  She gave him the closest she could get to a smile as she looked him right in the eye. “Your optimism is stupid.”  He paused, taken aback by her statement. “It isn’t,” he stated confidently. “We can find a way to-”  “We can’t.”  Her eyes welled with tears she refused to let fall. The two fell silent, unsure of how to proceed. When the pause started to become awkward, Garl spoke.  “You can stay underwater as long as you want, you can eat things people normally can’t...”  “What are you on about?” Seraï asked with a slight laugh, though there was no joy behind it.  “Things you can do that you couldn’t otherwise,” he declared. “Even if we can’t change what you can’t do, we can focus on what you can!”  She unknowingly perked up at his words, so he continued speaking.  “You can’t smell things without a nose, but since you don’t have a respiratory system, you can now stay underwater or in toxic gasses and stuff! You can’t taste what you eat, but you can eat whatever you want! At least almost anything.”  “I guess that’s true,” she admitted, looking back at the ocean below, “but it still hurts.”  “I don’t think that will ever go away,” Garl said to her surprise, “but you should try to work through it as best you can.”  Seraï nodded, unsure how to verbalize her thoughts.  “I also think you're selling yourself short,” he added in a much cheerier tone, bringing her gaze back to him. “You don’t need lips to kiss!”  “Huh?” she sputtered, clueless as to where he was going with this.  “Just like I don’t need two eyes to wink! It’s all about intention,” he explained.  He stepped back a bit, leading Seraï to stop leaning over the side rail and fully face him.  “Looking at you like this, you can tell I’m just blinking, but if I were to do this...”  He squeezed his eye shut, forming pronounced wrinkles around it.  “...you can tell I’m winking!”  Seraï giggled at his demonstration.  “See? As long as your intention’s clear, the technicality of it doesn’t matter,” he grinned, latching back onto the railing.  “Yeah,” she whispered to herself, feeling lighter than ever as she looked out at the horizon.  “And for the last one, uh,” Garl paused momentarily, “you got hands?” he sheepishly suggested.  Her face beamed bright red from that comment. At least it served as a reminder to be more careful with what she says out loud.   “T-thanks,” she stuttered, trying to get over that remark.  “Anytime,” he weakly replied as he turned his head away, clearly blushing from the conversation as well.  The two stood side by side, silently looking out at the ocean. Their hands were close to each other, so Seraï decided to stretch her pinkie and lay it on top of his. Stealing a quick glance at him, he didn’t seem to mind. She took a moment to gather her courage, and put his words to the test.  Seraï gently grabbed the back of his head towards the neck. Garl tried to turn to see what she was doing, but was stopped by metal pressed against his cheek. She lingered there even though she could feel him freeze up. Once content, she pulled back.  He immediately turned to stare at her, flabbergasted. Unsure how to continue, Seraï decided to end the night there. She briskly walked towards the stairs, hearing him quickly spin to not lose sight of her. Meeting his gaze before disappearing below deck, she left him with this.  “Thank you, and I’m sure you know my intentions.”