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You were having the most bizarre reunion of your entire immortal life.
Ban was alive, nearly a hundred years after you first met him, looking exactly as he had when you last saw him. And he was laughing. You forgot just how much you missed his laugh.
“Still kicking and breathing, huh?” He teased.
You grinned. “You know it. Can’t get rid of me that easy. So what’s your excuse for not kicking the bucket?”
He shrugged. “Ah, you know me. Stole a chalice from the fountain of youth.”
You laughed, shaking your head at him. Same, old Ban. “Sounds just like you.”
Some of your best memories were stealing things with him. You remembered, one year, you’d had a competition to see who could steal the most expensive thing without getting caught. And then you’d gifted it to each other for Christmas. You had both laughed, looking at your ridiculous reflections in the river. There you were, smudged with dirt, adorned in rags, and he’d gotten you a sapphire brooch. And there he stood, right beside you, clothes ripped and ragged, hair wild and unruly, and you’d gotten him a gold chain necklace. Even as absurd as you both appeared, somehow the trinkets you’d gotten each other just made sense. He was always telling you that blue brought out your eyes and you were always telling him that he had a heart of gold. So what, if your accessories didn’t match your tattered attire? They matched your ideas of each other. Even if you never had anything nice again, at least you had a reminder of his affection.
But your favorite memory of him, the memory to top all memories, was the day you first met him.
You’d stolen a sack of apples, but discovered it was unreasonably heavy. Not wanting to give away your jackpot but not wanting to lug it around everywhere you went, you settled on hiding it in a secret location. Then you went about your day, bathing in the river, sneaking around town, foraging in the woods, just doing whatever you felt like. When you came back to have a midnight snack, you could’ve sworn that the sack felt lighter, but you figured you must’ve overestimated how much you’d stolen. When you came back the next day, it was even lighter than it had been before, but you figured you’d just forgotten how much you’d eaten; after all- you had been half asleep. It wasn’t until you checked it a third time that you started to wonder if maybe an animal had started snooping around your goods. You were lost in thought, wondering if you should just take the sack with you (after all- it was much lighter now) when suddenly a kid your age appeared, with a scowl on his face.
“You know it’s rude to take other people’s things, right?”
You scoffed, straightening to defend yourself. “This is my bag, what are you even talking about?”
He crossed his arms. “No it’s not. I found it a couple days ago, so it’s mine.”
“Yeah, well, I stole it a couple days ago, so it’s mine.”
He stared you down, debating if he believed you or not. “Well if it’s yours then why’d you leave it here?”
You gestured to your scrawny physique. “Do I look like I can carry a bag that heavy around? I just stashed it and I’ve been coming back to snack on it here and there.”
“Here and there? Wait. Are you the reason the bag felt lighter yesterday? And the day before? I knew I wasn’t going crazy!”
Suddenly you burst into laughter.
He raised a brow, looking you over curiously.
“I thought I was the one going crazy. I thought I imagined the bag getting lighter, it was really messing with my head.” You admitted sheepishly.
“So… I guess we were both taking from it then.” He laughed awkwardly, shifting his weight back and forth, as though he were nervous how you’d react to that information.
You took a step towards him and his posture stiffened, readying himself to go on the offensive at any moment. But then you smiled and suddenly everything was okay. “I don’t mind sharing if you don’t mind sharing.”
He lifted his chin to look away from you. Finally, after debating it, he grumbled, “Yeah, yeah, it’s fine. But just know, I’m gonna eat a lot more now that I know I have competition.”
You laughed and his heart stuttered in his chest. “It’s not competition. If anything… we’re a team now. How about this? Whatever I find, I’ll share with you and whatever you find, you share with me. Honestly, it’ll be so much easier with two of us working together, so whaddya say?” You held your hand out for him to shake.
He stared at it for a moment.
“You’re supposed to shake it-”
“I know what it’s for! I was just thinking!”
“You take a long time to think-”
“I DO NOT! Did you ever think that maybe you don’t take enough time to think??” He demanded.
But you smiled at him again and there was that same fluttering feeling in his chest. So he took your hand. Shook it, and shook it hard. And he agreed to your demands.
You both laughed about the whole thing later that night, once you’d stolen a cake from a bakery together and cut up some apples to garnish it with. You said it was to commemorate your friendship’s “birthday” and he rolled his eyes at how cheesy you were being but he went along with it anyway, pretending to blow out fake candles, even shyly singing the birthday song with you.
You never forgot about that night for as long as you’d lived. And you’d lived a very long time by now.
“So… immortal Y/N. What a terrifying thought.” Ban teased.
You snorted. “Oh please, I’m the terrifying one? Who’s the towering giant clad in red leather? I’d be significantly more afraid of him living forever. Also, I’m not sure how I feel about this color on you. I think you’d look better in-”
“-Gold?” Suddenly he pulled a necklace from his pocket.
Your heart stopped. It was the same one you’d given him all those decades ago. So he still had it. “Maybe I was gonna say blue.” You turned to show him the brooch that was still sitting neatly in your hair like it had every day since he’d given it to you.
“How ‘bout that? You still have it.” He said, breathlessly.
“And you still have yours.”
“Course. I’d never lose it.”
“You did lose it once.” You laughed.
He groaned. “A hundred years later and you still can’t let it go.”
“Hey- I worked hard to steal that for you. I can’t believe you dropped it in a river of all the places. Almost drowned trying to fish it out. ‘Member that?” You teased, poking his nose.
He rolled his eyes. “Yeah, yeah. I’ll never do it again. So, you gonna tell me how you’re still alive? What’d you do, steal from the same fountain?”
You fidgeted with the edge of your jacket. “Nah, my story isn’t nearly as fun as yours. Cursed by a demon. You know- the whole ‘doomed to watch everybody you love die’ thing.” As you spoke, the weight of your words hung heavy in the air. Your eyes seemed to dim even if only for a second.
He wanted to touch you. To hold you. To make everything okay again. He didn’t know how to do it but he’d do anything for you. He’d never seen that look on your face before and he hoped you’d never have to make it again.
In all his years, he’d never regretted choosing immortality; because of that, he’d never thought that maybe there were people who wouldn’t have wanted it, who wouldn’t have chosen it. But you’d had it forced on you. And then had to deal with its repercussions. What must that have felt like and who did you lose to make you feel that way? He confessed to feeling somewhat jealous; he hadn’t found anyone he cared about enough to mourn losing them to time. You were the only one he’d ever mourned.
You had spent every waking moment together as children, but once you’d grown, you’d both realized you wanted different things from life. He wanted to travel the world, do what made him feel good, what made him feel alive. You wanted to stop your shenanigans, maybe get an education, maybe settle down. In the end, you loved each other but it wasn’t enough. You parted ways as amiably as you could, but the “what-if’s” never went away, and when you had both finally realized how much time had passed, how much you needed each other, all you had left to cling to were regrets.
He’d regretted the way he’d left things with you. The way you looked as you watched him sail away, the way your lips quivered as you tried to send him off with a smile, the way your eyes nearly squeezed shut for fear of the tears spilling down your face. The way he tried to convince himself he was only seasick and not simply homesick. He regretted it all.
You’d regretted the way you’d left things with him. The way you hadn't tried hard enough to tell him to stay. The way you'd said goodbye instead of see you later, like you were fine with closing the chapter when you knew you weren't. The way you missed him but never looked for him, for fear that his life might be all too grand and great without you. You regretted it all.
But it was clear now that fate had given you a second chance.
And you were not about to waste it.
Neither was he.
He nudged you with his arm. “Well, I’m not going anywhere. Not anymore, not now that I have you beside me at long last.”
Your smile returned.
God, he loved that smile, he loved it so damn much. That smile that crinkled the corners of your eyes, the smile that softened your cheeks into a rosy pink, the smile that was forever engraved into his dreams, into his soul. The smile he never thought he’d see again. And he wasn’t going to lose it- not again, not now that he finally found you. Thank god that he found you. Thank every god that did or didn’t exist that he found you. He’d never been the religious type but he’d get on his knees to praise whoever brought him this miracle.
“You know, eternity’s a long time. Sure I won’t drive you crazy?” You teased.
He chuckled. “You definitely will- that’s a guarantee. But I’ve missed it. And I won’t take it for granted, ever again. I won’t leave you, ever again.”
“Well then, I suppose we’d better get started on forever.”