They remained at the junction a little longer. The residual light along the walls held its lowest setting.
It was soft enough that the edges of their faces stayed clearer than the finer details. Aiden still held her hands between his. Elizabeth did not step back.
"This is the baseline," he had said.
"Yes," she had answered.
She lifted one hand and rested it against the side of his neck again, the same place she had touched earlier. His pulse was steady under her palm.
The residual lock carried the contact as a low, even warmth without amplifying it. She kept her hand there and felt the regular beat. It matched the quiet she had started to associate with him when nothing else was demanding their attention.
"I used to think the baseline was whatever kept us functional," she said. "Now it feels like the opposite. Functional is what we do so we can keep this."
