The BLTS Archive - Snow-blind Sequence One:
Snow-Blind
by kageygirl (kageygirl@gmail.com)

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Comments: Microfiction. It snowed all day on Friday. And every three
minutes, the newscasters reminded us that it was the 25th anniversary
of the Blizzard of '78. Whoop-dee-doo. :)

Beta thanks: Leah poked me about a couple of punctuation points. And
told me to post, already.

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Trip saw nothing but white.

An unbroken brightness, colors and shapes lost in a featureless wash.
His hearing had gone as well, and all he had left was touch. He felt
warmed through, and remembered that hypothermia was supposed to be
like that. A comforting warmth, before you slipped away forever.

The shuttlepod hadn't been like that. He'd felt cold inside and out,
staring at the dispassionate gray bulkheads, watching everything fade
to darkness. Watching Malcolm grow pale and still and hazy, as Trip's
own vision failed.

He stretched out his hand now, and Malcolm grasped it, fingers twining
with his own, warm and solid. Trip took a deep, shaky breath, then
another, and colors began to creep back into his world. He saw
Malcolm's eyes first, staring down at him, a blue so hot they almost
seemed to shimmer.

Malcolm's cheeks were flushed, and a drop of sweat broke away from his
hairline, trailing down the side of his face and leaving a glistening
path behind. Trip brushed the backs of his fingers after the droplet,
feeling Malcolm's skin moist and heated. Malcolm turned his head and
kissed Trip's fingers, then smiled down at him. "Was that all right,
then?"

Trip curled his hand around the back of Malcolm's head, feeling
sweat-dampened hair slip between his fingers as he pulled Malcolm down
to kiss him. He kept his eyes open, loving the play of emotions on
Malcolm's face at moments like this. When he had to pull away, still
recovering his breath, he continued the kiss with his thumb, tracing
along the edge of Malcolm's lower lip. "'All right?' That was
incredible. Feel free to do that again, anytime."

Malcolm chuckled, and slid down next to Trip, making the mattress dip
as he settled in. "I thought I'd lost you for a minute there."

"You did." Trip kissed Malcolm's forehead, tasting traces of salt,
feeling the heat still radiating from the other man. A comforting
warmth, one he'd already embraced. Forever. "But you helped me find my
way back, too."

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The End