He leans in, attentive.... «The First to Die at the End»

He leans in, attentive.

"You said that if someone you hold in your heart dies, then you die too. I love my parents so damn much, every time I got to talk about them in past tense like they're nothing but ghosts instead of the living, breathing, solid people they were, it breaks me." We're minutes from midnight. "Here's the truth no one ever wants to admit when death is on the horizon, or when you're deep in that grief-as long as you keep existing, you'll keep breathing, and if you're breathing, one day you'll start living again."

I know it's stupid, but I swear I can see in his eyes that he gets me, that he's burning those words into memory for that tragic day he loses someone, that he's really taking it to heart.

"But no matter how much you're living, Valentino, it's still going to be haunting if you don't get the chance to say goodbye to someone you love. Especially if given the chance."