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If you thought surviving a zombie apocalypse was tough, try being a mute kid with a deaf best friend.
Tommy was mute. Selectively so, but he hadn’t spoken a word in a year. Not after an incident with his old survivor group. He used to be a loud exuberant kid and would not shut up. A group of young adults took him in because of his surprisingly good use with a baseball bat, despite being a rather lanky kid with no muscle. They tolerated him and the way he would run his mouth spouting useless information. Not many people could tolerate him for as long as they did. Tommy had been told numerous amounts of times that he was annoying, and sure he got told to shut up by the group all of the time, but he was happy with them.
Until his mouth got someone killed.
It was an accident, he had been shouting at someone for something stupid probably (he couldn’t even remember) and then there were zombies attacking. There was a small hoard of them, and they caught their group off guard. They scrambled to grab their weapons and the leader of the group, a tall girl with a nose ring and dark hair, shouted at her group to get into action. Tommy remembers grabbing his bat with nails and turning back to the boy he was previously shouting at. Then he went still with shock when he watched a zombie jump the boy. He saw the boy fall, saw the zombie bite him and rip off his arm with surprising strength. He saw the boy die before his eyes.
That was the breaking point for the group. Turns out the boy was the leader’s boyfriend and she fell apart when she watched her lover die before her eyes. Tommy couldn’t help but feel guilty and feel like he was a liability and danger to everyone else. He had gotten someone killed by attracting a group of zombies because of his shouting. It was no surprise to him when they kicked him out of their group, having enough decency to leave him with a weapon and a couple days worth of food.
Then they were gone, leaving Tommy alone. That was the day he swore never to speak again. Words got people killed, his loud mouth got people killed. So he stopped talking, and to this day hadn’t spoken a word to anyone. Not a shout, not a whisper, just nothing .
A couple weeks after he had been exiled from his old group Tommy stumbled upon another survivor when looting a house in the suburbs. He didn’t like going anywhere near the city or the suburbs but he was starving and running out of supplies; it was his only choice. He prayed he didn’t run into a group of territorial survivors or a hoard of zombies. With caution he exited the forest, hopped a few fences, smashed in a window, and started looting.
Until a droopy eyed boy with a bedhead dressed in pajamas found him in the kitchen. Caught like a deer in car headlights, Tommy still remembers the shocked look on the boy’s face as he stared at Tommy, standing on the stairs that led to the upper floor. He remembers the way he scrambled down the last two steps to find a weapon, only succeeding in tripping over his own two feet and fall flat on the floor.
Tommy remembered that in this moment he actually considered using his voice, to shout at the kid or say ‘hello’ or something. In the end he quietly watched the boy with curiosity. The boy on the floor got up slowly and the two of them seemed to have a stare down, both of their gazes unwavering. Tommy watched as the boy slowly moved to the desk near the stairs he had just walked down a minute ago. The boy quickly turned around and pulled the desk drawer open, pulling out a pad of paper and a pen. Confusion immediately hit Tommy as he watched the boy scribble on the paper and slide the pad of paper over to him, still keeping his distance. Hesitantly, Tommy picked up the pad of paper, looking at the messy handwriting.
R you going too to hurt me?
Tommy looked back up at the boy and shook his head. The boy stared at him for a moment longer before motioning for him to pass the pad of paper back. Tommy did as he asked, slowly sliding it across the floor. The boy quickly snatched it up and scribbled out some more words before the pad of paper was passed back to him.
I’m Tubbo! I’m deaf, but we can cum-comunikat communicate like this!
The boy was smiling at him. Tommy stared blankly, doing his best to mask the shock that he felt. How long had this boy been able to survive whilst being deaf? No zombies had managed to take him out yet? No survivors had taken advantage of him or killed him in his sleep?
Still baffled, Tommy motioned for the boy, Tubbo, to pass him the pen. The boy rolled it across the floor and Tommy quickly wrote a message back.
I’m Tommy. I’m mute, so this works for me.
Tubbo took a moment to read his message, his eyebrows scrunching up into confusion for a moment. Then he looked up at Tommy with pity, but also understanding, in his eyes. He smiled sadly at him before turning his attention back to the pad of paper. Tubbo moved slowly across the floor, moving to sit beside Tommy, still acting very cautious. He picked up the pen and it danced across the paper as he wrote. Then he passed him the notepad again, another message scrawled on the yellowish paper.
Will u stay with me?
Tommy looked the boy in the eyes and allowed himself to smile as he nodded at Tubbo.
That was the beginning of their friendship.
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Roughly a year had passed since the two had met. Since then, the two boys had taken up using sign language to communicate. It hadn’t taken Tommy long to discover Tubbo was dyslexic and after that he became determined to learn sign language. It was quicker and easier to talk that way and they were able to make up their own signals for certain situations. (Tommy still thought flailing his arms around was a funny way to say breakfast was ready, but Tubbo disagreed.)
The looted libraries for books on sign language. They also stole survival and wilderness guides along with other books that were useful. Tubbo liked reading ones about plants and healing, which was great because Tommy in no way was a good medic. The best he could do was slap a Band-Aid on a papercut while Tubbo was learning to clean wounds and reset bones, just in case. Tommy, in the meantime, read books on how to build shelters and traps. Even if they had to ditch the books so their packs weren’t too heavy they were useful during the period of time they got to carry them around. And they kept a couple of pocket guides that didn’t weigh much.
When they first decided to travel together they weren’t as in sync as they were now. It took them a while to learn to protect each other’s back. Tubbo at the front and Tommy watching behind him and in any spots that Tubbo couldn't hear. (At least his eyesight made up for his loss of hearing. Tommy swore the boy had a sixth sense sometimes.) It took them a bit to open up to one another and tell the stories about the scars that were on their bodies and in their minds.
Tubbo had told Tommy he wasn’t always deaf. He said that for a while him and his parents had survived in the first couple weeks after the outbreak of zombies, staking it out in their house. Then people started getting territorial. He was hiding in his house with his family when another group of crazy survivors decided to bomb the place with homemade bombs. The bombs had set the house on fire and the explosion killed his parents, and they nearly burned Tubbo alive before he managed to run. Tubbo said that he remembered that for days after the explosion there was a ringing in his ears. He expected it to go away, to recover his hearing, but soon enough the ringing had disappeared, his hearing with it. He hadn’t been able to hear a thing since.
Tommy often wondered that if they managed to get their hands on some hearing aids that maybe there would be a possibility that Tubbo would be able to hear again. Sometimes he swore when they heard very loud sounds that Tubbo would perk up more, as if he had heard something. He couldn’t be quite sure because he was unaware of all other noise. And it could be his sixth sense, his stupid ‘third eye’ as Tubbo joked about it. Tommy wasn’t sure how the boy developed the uncanny ability to sense things before they happened but it certainly was useful.
Even with his loss of hearing Tommy became Tubbo’s ears and Tubbo became Tommy’s eyes. Tommy helped Tubbo collect his herbs in case they got hurt and helped him hijack cars so they could travel easily (he still doesn't know where he learned that, Tubbo never told him). Tubbo helped him build their shelters and set up traps so they could catch rabbits and squirrels for food (even if it pained him and Tommy had to comfort him every time they caught one of the furry creatures).
When they fought zombies they fought back to back. They had guns on hand that they could use, even if they didn’t use them often because of the noise that attracted zombies and other survivors. Tommy fought with his trusty nailed baseball bat and Tubbo used the crossbow they had found in a hunter’s cabin. He even learned how to make his own bolts for the thing and had a pretty damn good aim.
Now they were on the move again, searching for a better spot to settle for a bit. Tubbo had hijacked another car almost a week ago. They had been on the road for a while and Tubbo had driven it through the forest before they found a spot they could pull the car off and out of sight of the road so they could rest for the night.
In the trunk of the car they had a bunch of supplies that they wouldn’t need at a moment's notice. Like some sign language and survival guides as well as extra fuel for the car along with their camping tent and some other things. They weren’t actually sure of where they were going, they were just trying to get away from the more populated areas. Tubbo wanted to find a cabin up in the hills or woods, away from everyone, and Tommy was down with that as long as they were sure they were safe.
Tommy turned to Tubbo as he checked the car. He tapped his shoulder to get his attention before lifting his hands to sign.
‘Want me to take first watch? ’ he signed. Tubbo shrugged but Tommy just smiled and leaned over to open the car door and shove him out. Tubbo glared at him before he got up and closed the car door to open the backseat door and crawl in. They took turns sleeping throughout the night leaving some pillows and blankets in the backseat so they could curl up and get some sleep. If Tommy had to guess he’d say they each got five, maybe six, hours of sleep every night. Not enough he knew, but it was their routine at this point. It’s what kept them alive.
He got out of his own seat and took his bat and a lantern, hoisting himself onto the roof of the car. If he spotted something he would quickly jump down and wake Tubbo. He was a light sleeper, despite being deaf, and the slightest movement could wake him up. Tommy was the same, but with noise as well as movement.
It was like that saying, sleeping with one eye open. That would be Tubbo and Tommy slept with one ear open. Sure they were often sleep deprived, but at least they were alive and otherwise somewhat healthy.
His watch went smoothly. The farther they got from the city and civilization, the less zombies they ran into, which meant they could sleep easier. But they were still very wary. Even survivors were dangerous, they had both been hunted by them before.
Soon enough he was waking Tubbo up for his watch and crawling into the backseat to get some sleep. He snuggled with one of their pillows, pulling the blankets close. His vision faded and soon he was asleep.
Hours later he woke up to hear knocking on the roof of the car. He quickly sat up and slid out of the backseat, grabbing his bat from the passenger seat of the car. He crawled on top of the car and sat next to Tubbo.
‘What did you see?’ he asked, his hands signing quickly. Tubbo took a second to process his message before signing back.
‘Look, there’s a light coming through the woods, ’ he said, before pointing to a spot in the forest. Even with the dim light from the sunrise Tommy could see the light. It was a ways away, but coming closer. Tommy checked to make sure Tubbo had his own weapon before he went to grab their guns. If they were dealing with survivors then it would be easier (and less painful and more merciful) to take them out with a gun. Zombies didn’t carry lights after all.
Tommy passed Tubbo his rifle and slung the strap of his own over his shoulder, keeping a hand on the handle of his bat. They watched warily as the light bobbed through the forest. Then, just as it seemed to get close enough that Tommy would consider themselves in danger, it started to fade away. Tommy sighed with relief and Tubbo set his gun down.
But when the gun was set down it went off with a bang, shooting out into the forest, making both of the boys jump. Tommy’s eyes widened as he heard the birds screech and Tubbo seemed to realize his mistake, even if he didn’t hear it he must have felt the gun go off underneath his hand and seen the small flock of birds fly into the sky. Their guns rarely went off on their own, and Tommy cursed that it had to happen again in this case.
The light paused, before it ran closer to them. Tommy hefted his gun up, Tubbo doing the same but with his crossbow. They watched the light get closer and closer before it broke through the trees, three men with it.
It must have been strange, seeing two teenagers with a car out in the middle of nowhere. Especially with one standing atop the car pointing a gun at them and the other kneeling as he aimed a loaded crossbow. The three men threw up their hands in surrender, one of them nearly dropping their lantern. They had packs on their backs and guns. All three of the men looked well built but eyed the weapons in the boys’ hands with caution.
They didn’t seem like they would pose the threat, especially since Tommy had a gun aimed at their heads as they stood there frozen, but one could never be too sure. In other cases, survivors wouldn’t have paused and just shot at the boys. It was almost strange to see the three men that looked more concerned for the boys than themselves. So Tommy looked down to Tubbo and raised an eyebrow. There was a silent message in that look.
‘Do I shoot?’
Tubbo blinked and shook his head. Tommy, not taking his eye of the three strangers, slowly lowered his gun. Then he crouched down and slid off the car, Tubbo still aiming his crossbow at the men in case they made a move. Tommy quickly went and popped the trunk open, grabbing one of their notebooks and a pen, wary of the men watching him and Tubbo carefully. Using a Sharpie he scrawled a message on it quickly and staying a good distance away showed the message to the three men.
No hurt? was what the message asked. The three men exchanged a confused look before the shortest (and oldest looking) of the three spoke up, clearing his throat with a short cough.
“No we won’t hurt you,” he said. “We aren’t those types of survivors.”
It had been so long since Tommy had heard a human voice. He almost craved it now that he had heard it. He looked up at Tubbo and tucked the notebook under his arm to sign to him, quickly relaying their message before asking one of his own.
‘Do we trust them?’ he asked. Tubbo glanced over them and signed back.
‘I say we do, but it’s your call.’
Tommy trusted his friend’s opinion, nodding to himself. If Tubbo thought they were trustworthy then he would trust them but proceed with caution. He looked back at the confused strangers, quickly writing out another message in the notebook.
We won’t hurt you if you won’t hurt us.
The three men nodded and lowered their hands. Again the short blonde one spoke up.
“We won’t hurt you, we promise,” he said. “We were hunting when we heard your gun go off. We were concerned.”
“You were concerned Phil,” the one with the faded pink hair said, crossing his arms. “I said we leave it but you and Wilbur insisted.”
“I can’t help being curious Techno!” the tallest one said. Tommy exchanged a bemused look with Tubbo before writing another message for the men to see.
I’m Tommy, the short one is Tubbo. He’s deaf, I’m mute… kinda .
He handed the men the notebook so they could read his message, still keeping his distance. The blond one gave him and Tubbo a pitiful look (Tommy didn’t like nor want their pity and he wished he’d stop giving them that look) before clearing his throat.
“My name is Phil,” he said. “The tall one is Wilbur and then this is Tehcno.” He pointed to the man with the almost pink hair beside him. “We’ve been together since the start of the apocalypse but have been in these woods for at least half of it. There’s a secluded cabin not too far from here we’ve taken as our home.”
Tommy nodded and repeated the message to Tubbo in sign, only for Tubbo to sign back to him.
‘Tommy, I can read lips.’
Tommy’s mouth dropped open as he aggressively signed back.
‘You’re joking.’
‘I’m not.’
Tommy crossed his arms and glared as his friend as the tall brunette, Wilbur, snorted. He obviously couldn’t understand them but the expressions on their faces gave some of it away.
“You two really can’t speak then, huh?” he asked. “But what do you mean by you’re kinda mute?”
Reaching for the notebook Tommy’s face went grim as he wrote another note.
I’m selectively mute. It’s none of your concern tho
The three men’s faces fell when they read that last message. Tubbo picked at his sweater and Tommy looked away. He was sure the men were suspicious and curious as to why he was selectively mute but he wasn’t ready to open up about it to three strangers he had just met. He trusted Tubbo, and Tubbo only, with that information as of now.
“How long have you boys been on your own?” the blonde one, Phil, asked. Tommy motioned for them to pass the notebook back and they obliged. He put the cap of the Sharpie in between his teeth as he wrote a message, holding the notebook up when he was done.
A year or so. We had a calendar we were following for a bit but it’s just a guess now.
“I’m assuming you’re orphans then,” Techno said, swiping his long faded pink hair out of his face. “If you’ve been alone this long.”
Both Tommy and Tubbo nodded solemnly. The three men shared a look, their eyes speaking to one another in a silent argument. Tommy almost wanted to laugh at them because it reminded him of all the glares Tubbo sent his way when he did something stupid.
Finally, breaking the silence, Phil spoke up again.
“You boys are welcome to join us for as long as you need,” he said. “It looks like you could use some more sleep, and food.”
Tubbo slid down from atop the car, still holding his crossbow close with his gun swung over his shoulder, and walked over to Tommy. He gave him a smile and took his hand, giving their joined hands a little swing. Tommy nodded and awkwardly wrote another note, something that was difficult to do with your non dominant hand. (Sure he was ambidextrous but his handwriting in his left hand was not the best.)
Yes please.
Phil smiled at the boys and turned to his companions.
“Well, we best be moving then if we want to get home by evening.”
Tommy smirked and wrote another note as Tubbo let go of his hand.
Better idea, want a lift?
He pointed at their car, which somewhat looked like he had been abandoned in the woods because of the shape it was in.
“You’re shitting me,” Wilbur said, taking the notebook out of his hands as he reread the message. “There’s no way you have a working vehicle.”
All Tommy and Tubbo did was smile as they walked over to the car. Tubbo sat himself in the front seat as Tommy dumped the stuff from the backseat in the still open trunk. He held onto his bat, in case their companions turned on them randomly, but let the three men squish into the backseat. He smiled and sat down in the passenger seat, notebook in hand.
Alright old men, show us the way!
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The world was changing.
It started with the zombies then it was like the world mutated. A few days' travel away there was a forest that turned blue and red. Strange creatures, some hostile and some peaceful, roamed it. New plants popped up and other creatures wandered the forests at night with the zombies, only to turn to ash as the sun rose if they weren’t hiding in the shadows. Magic graced (or cursed) the earth and only some people could read the ancient words that seemed to appear with it, taking over some books while other strange books appeared out of thin air.
Tommy and Tubbo had been living with the three men (they called themselves the Sleepy Bois which was very fitting) for a few months now. They had just started noticing the changes soon after they moved in, and watched silently when the adults would bring home the strange plants. Wilbur would stand around for hours with Techno in the kitchen brewing different concoctions and writing their discoveries down.
Meanwhile Phil was reading the books they had traveled far to get. The ones with the strange symbols that Tommy couldn’t read but Tubbo seemed to read better than actual letters. Phil didn’t really let him read them though and they let the man work with his witchcraft alone. He was always mumbling about wards he was setting up around the house and the property and Tommy and Tubbo left him to his work.
Tommy and Tubbo made their home in the attic of the cottage that lay just outside the woods, the place the Sleep Bois had taken as their own. There was barely enough room for Tommy to stand up to his full height in the attic, at least in the center of the room, but they were both used to small spaces at this point. They both learned how to grow out of their claustrophobia, for the most part.
Downstairs there was a simple kitchen and living room and a separate table they ate at. Down the hall there was a bathroom, the bedroom Wilbur and Techno shared, then Phil’s room (half of which was a library of sorts with all the books they had been collecting). There was a basement as well, which the boys never went down into unless they had to. It was just storage but the darkness made their claustrophobia act up.
The boys warmed up to the Sleep Bois somewhat quickly, giving them their trust a few weeks after they started to live in their attic. They started to look at them like brothers, and Phil like a dad. Maybe they were just filling the spots of the family members they had lost, but they felt like a family.
The Sleepy Bois even learned sign language so they could communicate. It took them a while, about a month, to even make some fluent sentences but they picked it up quickly in an effort to communicate easily with the boys. Techno was the best at it, Phil was pretty good as well, and Wilbur tried his best to sign but stumbled over the hand motions. It was at least somewhat readable and both of the younger boys were glad that they were trying, and Wilbur was slowly getting the hang of it. It was fun learning to teach them and Tommy had a good (silent) laugh when they realized the sign they made up for Wilbur’s name translated to ‘bitch’. The two younger boys were just very grateful that they had accepted them into their family and did their best to make them comfortable.
They would play board games once a week at the dining room table. They would read books by the fire together. Wilbur would pull out his guitar and sing, along with letting Tubbo pluck at the strings even if he couldn’t hear them. Poor kid lost the chance to listen to the music he loved to practice and Wilbur let him borrow his instrument often so he could play the songs he memorized. It wasn’t great but Tommy always clapped afterwards so he could see the smile on Tubbo’s face.
Things weren’t always happy. Sometimes the boys would wake up in the middle of the night gasping as nightmares and memories swirled in their brains. Tommy remembers waking up one night hearing Tubbo screaming. He quickly shook the boy awake and pulled him into his arms. He remembers how he could hear the Sleep Bois wake up downstairs and rush up the ladder to their room to check on them. How they gave them sad, pitiful looks when they saw how Tubbo was sobbing into Tommy’s shoulder as he held them.
Neither of the boys had opened up much about their past. All the Sleepy Bois got out of the younger boys was that they had been in a few accidents. The older men didn’t pester them about it either, letting them have time to open up when they wanted to. It hurt to think about the zombies that had almost gotten to them, the survivors that had tried to kill and abuse them, and of course the memories of how they became mute and deaf.
One day sunny day Tommy and Tubbo were at the house alone. Well, as alone as they could get. Phil was holed up inside fiddling with his magic and Techno and Wilbur were out on a quick expedition to retrieve something for their potions.
Outside the two boys dressed in some spare clothes (tank tops and shorts that was clothing they often wore to sleep) were hanging up the laundry to dry. They were having fun throwing clothes at one another and chasing each other across the lawn. It was chilly outside but neither of the boys wanted to stop to grab a jacket or shoes. Their chore was quickly forgotten when Tommy decided to chase Tubbo around, accidentally making him scream a bit even if he wasn’t conscious of that fact.
It wasn’t until Phil came rushing outside that they realized that he could have taken the scream the wrong way. Neither of the boys spoke, and Tubbo only screamed in his sleep, Tommy only making the smallest noises when he was hurt. So when Phil came rushing outside with a spare axe in hand only to see the boys mid-chase with one another all three of them froze.
And that’s when Tommy realized, oh shit, Tubbo’s scars were on display.
Tubbo’s body was covered with burn scars from the explosion and fire he was caught in. His entire left side of his body (and a lot of his backside) had burn scars of different degrees. From his forearm up to his neck and down his back and along the backside and a bit of the front of his left leg were scars. Tubbo always hid with long sleeves, sweatpants and jeans, hoodies, and other layers of clothing. No one blamed him for it because they were farther north and even in the summer there was a chill in the air. But this was the first time Phil had seen Tubbo’s scars. Tubbo self consciously wrapped his arms around himself and ran behind the laundry hanging on the line. Tommy glared at Phil before running after his friend, leaving the shocked older man behind.
Let’s just say that night was filled with a lot of tension when both of the boys vaguely explained how they became mute and deaf.
'I was caught in a fire, it’s fine, I was just too slow and got caught up in the flames. My parents died but I escaped. I’m fine.'
'I was with another group when zombies jumped us, it’s fine, I was just a little too loud. Someone died and so I was exiled from the group. I’m fine.'
(Neither of them were fine. Neither of them wanted to admit that.)
That was all the information the boys decided to share with their older peers and they were grateful they didn’t push them for more information. It was a touchy subject and both of them had awful nightmares that night, but they were grateful that they finally told the others a sliver of the truth. It lifted a little bit of the weight off their chests.
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It had been a long time since they had moved in with the Sleepy Bois. What they thought would be a couple weeks stay at most turned into a permanent residence. Wilbur and Techno were their older brothers in everything but blood, and Phil their dad. The three older men helped the teenagers through their mental troubles and the two boys aided their found family with their own troubles.
After some time Phil had started teaching Tubbo about magic. It was difficult because Phil said that casting spells meant you had to speak them aloud, which meant pronouncing them correctly. And Tubbo obviously couldn’t hear what he said. Instead he just read and studied, telling Tommy in secret that he had once managed to cast a small spell by just concentrating and speaking the word in his mind.
Meanwhile Tommy was being taught fencing by Techno. While Wilbur was definitely one of Tommy’s biggest supporters, Techno had taken him under his wings as well, showing him how to defend himself better. The two would also spend a lot of time in their garden, Techno tending to his potatoes as Tommy tended to his carrots. (No one else understood their obsession with having perfect crops.)
Wilbur watched over the two younger boys often to make sure they didn’t get themselves in any trouble. Tommy wasn’t sure how he managed it because they probably gave the man a scare daily. Either by doing reckless things in front of him or disappearing for hours on end and only leaving a vague note as to where the boys had run off to. (Wilbur, and the others, were still upset about that time Tommy and Tubbo up and left for two weeks only to bring back some food and a lot of gifts. They were pretty sure they gave all three men a heart attack when they returned covered in blood and sweat only to hand them stuffed animals they had traveled far to get. They were grounded for weeks after that.)
Almost every night the two boys would sit outside on a blanket they set on the lawn to watch the sun set. Sometimes the Sleepy Bois would join them, but most of the time they were alone. It was the two boys’ time to wind down and have time to themselves. It was their thing and they didn’t want to intrude.
One of these nights, as Tubbo and Tommy sat down on their blanket to watch the sun set, Tubbo took Tommy’s hand. Tommy raised his eyebrow in confusion but Tubbo just gave it a light squeeze before he closed his eyes and took a deep breath. After a few moments he let go and raised his hands to sign.
‘Tommy, do you think you can say something aloud, just once, for me?’
Tommy blinked in surprise and hesitated. In Tubbo eyes he could see that it was something important to him, but he wasn’t going to force him to. But Tommy cleared his throat and coughed a couple times. If this was important to Tubbo, he wouldn’t mind saying something, ever so briefly, for him.
“Hi Tubbo,” he rasped, his voice dry and scratchy after not using it for nearly two years. It was nothing more than a raspy whisper but tears sprang to Tubbo eyes as he gasped and smiled brightly. Tommy smiled back, tears also coming to his eyes as he coughed again.
“Hi Tommy,” Tubbo replied, his voice also hoarse and very quiet. “I can hear you.”
One selectively mute and one barely deaf boy exchanged tearful hugs as the sun set in front of them.
Maybe things would be okay, as long as they had each other.