The only noise that he could hear was the soft rasp of his own breath, echoing in the confines of his space suit. No, there was another sound; another person's breathing that slowed from its original, frantic pace to a slower rhythm that soon matched his. There wasn't any creaking from his suit as he floated, motionless, amongst the stars. Outside of the tiny artificial world that contained him was a void, a vacuum, and it sucked away any other sound before it could go anywhere.

Scent.

Recycled air had a dry, stale quality like nothing else, and he savored it as it flowed across his tongue and through his nose. This was what he'd grown up with, and as each breath brought more of it to him, he felt minute knots of tension dissipate. The pressure that had been building up around him flowed away with each exhaled breath, replaced by the waiting emptiness of space.

Taste.

His mouth was starting to become stale after the hour or so -- he didn't remember how long it had been, he'd lost track long ago, so long ago -- that he'd spent floating around. Licking his dry lips, he savored the faint hint of salt on them, from his sweat. Salt and something else. Someone else.

Touch.

Pressure against his side alerted him to the other breather's presence, but he didn't move for a long time. Finally, he slowly extended a hand to the side, just a little bit. He wasn't sure if he would take up the offer, but a hand gently slipped into his own, clasping his fingers firmly. 'I'm here,' the grip seemed to say. 'Don't worry, I'm here.' It was comforting, and he felt even more at home.

Sight.

Stars floated in his vision, the wide faceplate revealing everything all around him. Including the suited figure floating next to him, hand entangled in his own. He knew that if he looked behind him he'd see the white bulk of their ship, the tethers connecting them to it trailing their way lazily through space. Turning gently, his gaze drifted to the other face plate, meeting concerned Prussian blue eyes that were shaded under a mop of dark brown hair.

"Hey, 'Ro," he said softly, voice breaking the near-silence that had been cloaking them.

"I was worried," Heero replied, equally as quietly.

"Sorry. Didn't mean to disappear like that. I needed to get...out, though. Couldn't stand the sight of Une's face any longer.

"It's okay. Just tell me next time. She started yelling."

Duo laughed. "Okay, I'll warn you before leaving you alone with the Scary Lady again."

"Thank you ever so much," Heero said, dryly, and squeezed his hand firmly. Despite the teasing, that touch once again said, 'I'm here, I'm not going anywhere,' and he felt his breath hitch.

"...I don't want you to go." His voice was thin, a quiet whimper against the vast uncaring coldness that surrounded them.

"I don't want to go either." And then there were arms around him that gave him a heat he could feel even through the layers of the spacesuits, a silent conversation vibrating all around him in that desperate touch.

'Don't leave me.'

'I won't, no matter what.'

'You have to go.'

'It doesn't matter, I'll still be with you.'

'I love you.'

'I love you too.'

Once more, all he could hear was their paired breathing as they clung to each other, floating together in the depths of space.