TYX 5

¹“Thanks for walking with me.” ²Yex speaks, as the two walk along an open shore, a vast blue sea extending into the horizon. ³The sun has set, but its glow is still visible, and the light of the stars begins to pierce the night sky. ⁴But despite the nightfall, the air is warm. ⁵There is some distance between the two, but they walk in stride. ⁶Yex moves through the sand, but Tee walks closer to the sea, occasionally stepping in the waves that crash onto the shore. ⁷Tee speaks. ⁸“It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” ⁹Yex slows down, and takes a moment to gaze at the water, before responding. ¹⁰“It’s truly beautiful, indeed.” ¹¹Tee smiles, and slows down, too, the soft sound of footsteps lost against the roar of the waves. ¹²Yex speaks after a moment. ¹³“I don’t know where I would be without you. ¹⁴You have given me so much. ¹⁵You taught me how to make a fire, so very long ago. ¹⁶You taught me to be grateful, to accept the things that I can’t change, and to change the things I can. ¹⁷Thank you.” ¹⁸Tee stops walking, and looks at Yex. ¹⁹“No, I should thank you. ²⁰For I know that you learned these things from me, and they are important in life, yes. ²¹But you have given me something far greater. ²²You have given me a friend.” ²³Yex has stopped walking, by now, and they stand together, holding each other in a gentle embrace. ²⁴Eventually, Tee speaks again. ²⁵“But I worry about you, because I think I was wrong. ²⁶I think that we do not live forever, for although life is great, I fear death is greater.” ²⁷Yex responds. ²⁸“You don’t need me, in fact, I need you, because even if I won’t be here, you will. ²⁹And they will be here, too, and you will tell them about me, day after day, year after year. ³⁰You will tell them about my glory and my mistakes and everything in between. ³¹And they will laugh and cry and scream, and tell you that you’re right and tell you that you’re wrong, but you will not stop, you will continue to tell them my story. ³²And eventually there will be a day when they beg and beg and beg you to leave, yet their clothes are sewn with my name, and that’s when you can finally rest.”