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He whispers it in the quiet dark of the cockpit, the engines low as he slowly steers the ship between the glittering stars. You stir awake in the chair beside him, eyes blinking open with a sleepy grin.
Here at the edge of the galaxy, at the edge of everything Ben’s ever known, does he feel safe enough to share his secret. He knows you’ll keep it safe, protect it as if it were your own.
He murmurs it once more, the words pressed against your skin as he peppers soft kisses across your glowing face, the stars your only witness to his affection. Your hand settles on his beating heart and Ben knows this is what it means to be alive.
Here at the edge of tomorrow, at the edge of forever, does he wish he could command time, to still the ticking of its eternal clock in order to live in this perfect moment with you.
When you utter it back to him, voice heavy with sleep and every bit as earnest, Ben decides it’s his favorite song, committing each syllable to memory.
i love you.