"Yes."

It was brief, monotone. Even harsh, to some. Leaving behind a total silence, if not for the crunch of the snow under their shoes.

But not to him. To him it meant everything.

"...it is a stupid question to ask," he continued. " I value you and our time together. And I will mourn you as well, I can't say I won't forget you, so it's unreasonable for you to ask that from a person. But I will try." He turned towards him and stopped. Pitch black eyes fixated on him.

No false promises, no lies. It was the nicest thing he had heard in a while.

The other stood completely still with cold harsh eyes. But with his attention fully on him.

He had longed for attention. To know he was more important than the bug that was crawling on the tree ahead or the path they were walking on that was buried under layers of snow.

Once his father had paid attention to only him. Talked with him. Gave warm feeling hugs. Declarations of 'I love you' s.

Back when they lived in their cottage up north in the country side.

His brothers had done the same as well. Looked after him, spent time with him, indulged his curiousity...

Back when their family was a family of 5, instead of 4.

Back when he thought nothing could change the truth behind those words.

But he found that those declarations were lies.

No one paid attention to him anymore, adressed him dismissively. And contacted him to only ask for something from the store if he was out. No hellos or thank yous. Like he was an annoyance.

He had fed up with it eventually, and ran away. Leaving behind a family of 3, that was probably happier without him now. Probably enjoying dinner with each other, totally unphased by his absence. Maybe, they were even glad to have his portion of the meal to themselves. They wouldn't have to waste a plate of food 3 times a day anymore.

As he scavenged for food from forests and ransacked campsites at night, he thought how happy they were right now to get through it.

Despite how unhappy they made him feel, they were still his family. And it made him somewhat happy that they were happier without him around.

And how sickly cruel that was.

Atleast he was sure The Other wasn't like this.

He didn't give him false declarations like "I will love you forever." but told him "I will try to not forget you." and the truth in those words mattered to him way more than the alternative.

The other hated physical contact, not even placing a comforting hand on his shoulder. But him standing by his side felt way more impactful than the brief, admittedly warm, hugs that left phantoms after their departure.

His eyes were cold and harsh. Emotionless, unlike a fatherly gaze. But he could see in them that he only paid attention to him in that moment.

And that's what mattered.

"Thank you." He declared. He meant it, more than he thought he could.

"I didn't do anything worth thanking for." He wholeheartedly disagreed with that.

He didn't have his father here. Nor his brothers. He didn't know if what they had was friendship. But he had someone he could trust more than them.

He would most likely forget about him after his death. He wasn't worth remembering anyways, a sad little teen lost to the world.

But having his attention solely on him was good enough.

"Thank you." He uttered again. The other didn't reply but beckoned him with his head to the direction they were heading towards, making them continue on their journey.