Life Had Been Too Smooth

August knelt before Diana, his heart heavy with a sorrow he struggled to contain. Despite his best efforts to maintain a blank expression, the anguish clawed at his insides, threatening to spill over. He could feel the weight of her impending loss, the finality of the moment pressing down on him like a suffocating shroud. As she coughed up another mouthful of blood, her eyes, though dimmed by pain, remained fixed on him.

Her faint smile, juxtaposed with the tears streaming down her cheeks, tore at his heart.

"...d-did...y-you...*cough cough*....watch...me?" she managed to ask, her voice a fragile whisper.

August held her trembling hand firmly yet gently, nodding as he fought to keep his voice steady.

"Yes, I watched everything. You were truly graceful in battle, Diana." His words were meant to uplift her, to remind her of the strength she had shown, but they felt hollow in the face of her suffering.