"Alex, I'm the one who touched your hand. You didn't reach out to me, Alex. I… I'm the reason I'm dead, Alex." Gabe leaned his head on the wall. He just wanted to give Alex a hug, to hold him close and tell him everything was okay. Even if it wasn't.
Alex whined faintly, shaking his head and staying curled in the bed. "If I w-wasn't like this…you'd still…you'd still be here…"
"Alex, I would never want you to be any other way. I… Things are going to be okay, Alex. Even if- if I'm dead, you'll at least be okay." Gabe clenched his fists.
Alex let out a shaky sob, shaking his head and curling up tighter. "But I want you here." He said brokenly.
"I'm right here, Alex," Gabe said. He just wanted to go through this wall, to curl up with Alex. "I'm going to keep you safe as best I can…"
"But you're not here. You're a…a ghost." He said in a quiet voice.
"Alex, I might not- I might not have a body anymore, but that doesn't mean I'm not here. I'm still me, Alex…" Gabe opened his eyes a moment.
Alex let out a shaky breath. "It's n-not the same." He replied, shaking his head.
"No, it's not, but I am. I… Alex, I still care about you so, so much…" Gabe bit back his tears.
He shook his head again, still crying. "You're a ghost and i-it's all m-my fault."
"No, Alex. It's my fault." Gabe wiped away a few tears, trying to keep himself together for Alex.
"I killed you. It's my fault."
"I'm the one who grabbed you. You… You might have been the one you had the ability to, but I'm the one who used it against myself, Alex. It's not your fault, I swear Alex."
He shook his head a little bit.
Gabe was quiet when he didn't hear Alex respond. Finally, he took a deep breath.
"I love you, Alex…"
Alex sniffled softly. "I don't deserve it." he replied in a heartbreaking tone, curled up in a tight little ball.
"Yes, yes you do," Gabe said, finally starting to actually cry. "Y-you do do much, Alex…"
"I don't." Alex replied, shaking his ehad again. "I don't."
"Alex, even if you don't think you deserve it, I still do. I still do, Alex, and you can't change that." Gabe clenched both hands. He just wanted to get in.
Alex sniffled quietly. "I don't." he repeated quietly.
Gabe closed his eyes.
"But I still love you…"
"But I don't deserve it." he said again.
"Alex, I don't care how much you don't deserve it. I still do, and that's not going to change."
He sniffled, shaking his head a little bit.
"I love you, Alex." Gabe's voice was softer now. Broken.