He didn’t feel wholly safe. He felt safer resting there beside Gabriel, wrapped in those strong arms. He’s dreamt of that for a while now. It was nothing like the real thing. Gabriel felt warm and solid against him. Dal could hear his heart beat in his chest and feel the rise and fall of his breathing. There so many details his imagination hadn’t considered.

But these weren’t the ideal circumstances. Far from it. He curled in closer for more contact with the one thing anchoring him in reality. He was going to be lost the moment they were apart, Dal knew and dreaded it. But he had to get back out when the sun went down. Gabriel would have to work away from him at some point.

Then he’d fall back into the spiral of his dark thoughts. Then the shaking would get worse. The fear and horror of seeing that face distorted through the water would haunt him.

“I don’t feel safe without you.”