Tessa sat beside Will, her Will, tears streaming down her cheeks. She was still holding his hand, even though it had long since gone limp.

"Will... Will, come back!" She knew her cries were for nothing. She kissed him over and over, hoping he would just come back to life, the humor back in his eyes. 

Remember him as he was. You loved him. You two had an amazing life together. This does not define your history. Tessa's thoughts didn't help. He was still gone.

Her friends were long  gone... except for Jem. The only person who could give her an ounce of comfort. The only one who truly understood her pain.

But even he was distant, different. He was a Silent Brother, not quite... well... Jem. The person she loved, but not. The one she remembered... but just not. And now that Will was almost gone, on his deathbead, she wasn't sure there was truly any room left for her. Anybody who loved her, and could  love her. While Jem loved her, he couldn't, as a Silent Brother.

He wasn't Jem, but Brother Zachariah. And as Will whispered his last words, "I love you both, with all my heart," Tessa knew her life was incomplete. Crying, she felt as if she were completely alone, the only other person she loved seperated by an imaginary wall... but one she could never break.

Even though you're gone now, I love you both, too. I always will.

"I love you, too."