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"Ready?" I asked

"Wait," Cole said He looked lanced away, briefly, and shook his head at some unknown memory "You know, a psychic once told me I would have no other Forfeits after you That you would be my last At the time, I let ether, ruling the world And if it was fate, why fight it? It gave me license to do whatever I needed to do to keep you

"But even then I knew Deep down I knew you would beshape the an And then when I fell in love with you, an"

"Cole, we don’t need to talk about this now," I said

"We do," he said emphatically Then he took a deep breath "I ether anys"

I hadn’t thought about thatthat this ht be the last time I saw him I was sure he would form a new band on the Surface, but really, there was no reason ould see each other

But I’d never liked good-byes "We’re not going to say good-bye We’ve been through too ood-byes Besides, we’ll see each other"

He gaveyou want to say, say it now"

If I had anything I wanted to say What did I want to say to him? He had taken me to the Everneath Fed on me for a hundred years

But he would say he had saved me from my own pain Made the loss of my mother bearable

He had betrayedon hi

But he would say he was si fate a little push

"I don’t knohat I want to say to you," I said "Maybe, after some time, I’ll know But not now"

He frowned and nodded "Okay It’s okay"

He lifted his eyes skyward, and was it ain? He let loose a shaky breath He seeht at this minute I put my hand on his arm "I promise I’ll tell you one day," I said

"Okay," he said, bringing his eyes down to meet mine

I stood and reached my hand toward Cole He took it and I pulled hiain "Ready?"

He closed his eyes Squeezed the our hearts would literally hurt us He should know this Breaking our hearts would make usit

And then suddenly I knew

"Cole," I said

He stopped I thought about the queen and how she had died when I had broken her heart She had basically turned into an old lady and then transforht she had just died a dramatic death because we had destroyed her world

But before she had died, she’d said I didn’t knohat really happened when Everliving hearts were broken Cole was scared to break his own pick, but he didn’t seeht it would be painful, he’d be coh about his love for me to know that

But he wasn’t concerned abouthis? And hoe different?

Besides the fact that he was about a thousand years older than me

A thousand years old

"Cole," I said I spoke slowly "What happens e break our hearts?"

He gave a nervous smile "You knohat happens We becoasp of air and tried to pry the pick out of his hand, but once I started to fight against hihtly

"What are you doing?" he asked, accusation in his eyes

"Giveon the word "Give me your heart I knohat happens I knohy you’re scared"

He blinked a long blink "No, you don’t"

"Yes, I do Breaking your heart returns you to your natural state And your natural state is" I gasped as my voice drifted off I didn’t want to finish that sentence

Cole finished it for me "Over nine hundred years old" He nodded

I started shaking "No We can’t do this" I tried to pry his fingers open, but the stupid Everliving was strong I dug e "Give me your heart"

He slowly shook his head