It's the unspoken truth between them. It was never an easy road for them, and yet at the same time, it seemed so natural to slip into. Their relationship, undefined yet understood. To break that sanctity, even after so long? It takes the breath out of him. She's never been more serious in her life.

What he wants to say is some quip she wouldn't understand about how their lives ended up being part of a drama instead of a wacky romantic comedy.

What he says instead comes after a long several moments of trying to find his voice, scrabbling for words that have disappeared completely on him while he tries, and fails, to keep his face from crumpling into something pathetic and sorrowful. Because she means this. She means she's going to leave, and she means she's going to die, and it's going to suck an assload. His voice is small, cracks on the first letter like a creaky door. "Don't."

Don't do any of those things. Don't leave. Don't suffer. Don't die. And don't say something like that. Don't say it now when it might not ever have a chance to happen again. He's no good with emotions, never has been, and he emphasizes his small yet emphatic point by leaning in to desperately kiss her.