Just us sent a new crack through her heart, and Melpomene couldn't do anything but close her eyes and breathe. Maybe she needed to lean into this ache, this hope, this wish she could hide herself in Alan's arms and cry all her pain out.
But if it was a pain she could cry out, she would have expelled it a hundred times over by now. No, the rot was deeper than tears could reach, no matter who was holding her.
She swallowed, her throat tight and achy, and opened her eyes again. Alan's were fixed on Telos and that cracked her heart too, but this crack bought on a faint smile. "Do you... do you want to hold him?"