Work Text:
“Rise and shine, little blossom!”
Maxwell smiles excitedly as he hears her walking over to open her door for him. She isn’t wearing shoes, he thinks.
Slowly, the door opens. A beam of sunlight flows into the narrow hallway of the train as her face appears in the small gap.
She grimaces tiredly, trying to stretch her pouty lips into a small smile. Her nose wrinkles adorably. One of her puffy eyes is slightly opened, regarding him with something between warmth and a look that could kill. Her other eye is firmly closed, obscuring her iris.
After a moment of staring at him, she makes a slightly annoyed and very tired noise before yawning. And Maxwell thinks it might be the most beautiful thing he’s ever seen.
“Maxwell, that’s the sun’s job,” she murmurs.
She doesn’t realize, he thinks. She is his sun.
The darkness that has captured his life, dominated his being, it scattered the moment he met her.
First, it was a single weak light beam slowly peeking through. Appearing like the light at the end of the tunnel. Giving him hope. Hope to make his brother happy, to get his brother back.
But every day she shines a little brighter. The sun bursts in, poking more and more holes into the blackness. It’s no longer a shimmer of hope, it’s becoming his savior.
The light allows him to see. And for the first time in years, he catches glimpses of himself. Contours in the darkness. Pleasant things he catches because she is guiding him, helping him see. Encouraging him to look.
Furthermore, she sees him. Truly sees him. With all his light, all his darkness. And she doesn’t leave him in the cold. Her friendship and her support, her very essence and presence warm him. His skin, his heart, his core, everything begins to warm up.
He feels like he has been frozen in a thick ice block and she melts through every one of the layers surrounding him. And he wants nothing more than to close his eyes and drink it in. To fully absorb all her warmth. To thaw completely, leaving him in a puddle of affection.
And when she isn’t close by, it’s like clouds obscure the sun. Making him shiver in the cold. Alone in the darkness. Hoping to find it again. Hoping for the sun to come back, to fight her way back through the clouds. To shine again.
He moves first elegantly, then desperately, searching for the sun. He craves it. Needs it to live. The light beckons and at the sign of the first sunbeam he turns toward it. Without any hesitation, without any thinking. He’s like a young sunflower. Dancing and twirling to follow the sun. His shadow falls behind him and lets him forget everything else.
There’s only one thought consuming his mind. The sun.
She is his source of energy. The one that not only lets him breath, survive, but makes him feel alive. His source of light, warmth, happiness. She is the one thing brightening his day. Painting it in every possible color, like a rainbow when the sun breaks through after the rain. Beautiful like the most stunning and mesmerizing sunset.
And he is addicted to her. She has drawn him in, and he has no power. Too captivated by her to turn away.
Desperately, he wants to come closer. To fully connect with her. His sunburn isn’t enough. Not nearly enough.
Yet, he knows, she is too hot, too dangerous to touch. Even a single step closer to her would burn him alive. So, with everything in him, he tries to balance his desire with the reality. Every day being a challenge to not get burnt too much. And sometimes, when he is too close, he is glad to occasionally encounter clouds. Giving him a moment in the shadow to cool down.
And maybe this is the reason why he likes the morning sun the most. She is just appearing, slowly creeping her way into his day. Sleepy herself, the sunrays are still weak, gently caressing him. And only him. No other being is yet fortunate enough to notice her rise. And she only shines for him. The stillness of the early morning only adding to the illusion.
He’s soaking up every second while she shines lazily but warm nonetheless. Lying to himself that she isn’t dangerous at this time of the day. But as she motions for him to enter her small room in the train, he feels his sunburn tingling again.