I decided, for once, to actually heed everyone's advice, and spend the rest of the day recuperating in the warmth of my own bed.
Ash dutifully and gladly took care of my every need. My one-stop source for comfort, for companionship, bedridden here… if spiritually I was really that malnourished, then her smile, her voice, her mere presence alone was definitely chicken soup for the soul.
And boy, was she ever filling…
Me finally rousing back to the land of the living has definitely flipped a switch inside her because I've never known her this touchy-feely with her affections outside from the influence of an empty wine glass…
Seriously, she could almost rub my skin red raw from the number of times she's run her hand on my cheek alone.