The firelight danced across Lina's bare skin as she stood before Luo Feng, offering herself without hesitation.
Luo Feng looked at her for a long, quiet moment. His eyes were heavy with grief, but there was also a flicker of something else — exhaustion, loneliness, and the deep ache of a heart that had lost everything. He didn't speak. He simply reached out and gently took her hand.
Lina's breath caught. She stepped closer, leaned in, and kissed him softly at first, then deeper, pouring all her warmth and care into that kiss. Her hands moved to his clothes, slowly undressing him until he was as bare as she was.
She led him inside the small tent where Suki was sleeping soundly, curled up in her blankets, breathing peacefully and unaware of the world around her.
Inside the dim, warm space, Lina guided Luo Feng down onto the bedding. She kissed him again — slow, tender, and full of quiet devotion. Her hands explored his body with gentle care, trying to soothe the pain she knew he carried. Luo Feng responded, his movements careful and restrained at first, but gradually letting go as the night deepened.
They made love for a long while — nearly three hours — moving together in the quiet darkness. It was not wild or passionate in the usual sense; it was slow, intimate, and filled with a shared sorrow and comfort. Lina gave herself completely, whispering soft words of reassurance against his skin, trying to help him forget the weight of his losses for those precious hours. Luo Feng held her close, his touches gentle, his grief momentarily eased by her warmth and presence.
When they finally finished, both of them were breathing heavily, bodies slick with sweat. Lina pulled a thin blanket over them and curled up against his chest, her head resting over his heart. Luo Feng wrapped his arms around her, holding her naked body close to his own.
They fell asleep like that — completely bare under the blanket, skin against skin, the quiet sounds of the night outside the tent and Suki's soft breathing the only things accompanying them.
For one night, in the middle of their long journey, the pain was held at bay by simple human warmth and connection.