Chapter 41: Dion - (Makai's Point of View)

Storm inhales a quick breath and tightens his arms around me as we continue to listen.

"I - gosh, I don't even know how to do this. Just-"

The voice choked up, and with a sniff and an audible deep intake of breath, it continued more steadily.

"I just want you to know that I've been waiting for years for you to come home. I had someone use software to keep projecting how you would look as you get older, so I even have cool pictures of you around the house."

What?

He laughed drily. "You probably think I'm crazy for doing that, but honestly, I needed it. I needed to feel your presence more, and also so that when you finally came home you would know that I never replaced you as my best friend."

I hear Storm sniff, and I feel wetness against my neck where his face was.

"Anyway, according to the projection, you should look almost like me, just with longer hair because you hated getting your hair cut when we were kids."

I snort, amused by how accurate that is.