Justin rolled over in his bed with a grunt.  Rubbing the sleep from his eyes he opened them to stare at the form that occupied the space next to him.

She was beautiful when she slept.  Her features were softened by slumber and she looked peaceful, a look that hadn't adorned her conscious face in a while.

Watching her last night, curled into his sweatshirt, he had decided that he was drowning along with her and he needed air.  He had promised her that he wouldn't leave her, but the love he had was no match for whatever demons had control over her.

He decided that he was going to give himself some space, if only to protect his own sanity and become a better friend than lover.

Letting out a sigh he turned his face away from her sleeping form and rolled out of bed.

He could wait to break the news.

~*~

Something had changed last night.  Something in his eyes and his touch had been off.

Waking from her sleep, Gia turned to find the other half of the bed empty.

She stared at the ceiling, letting the memories of the night before roll through her mind.

He had held her tighter than he had in a while, and she could feel it in his grip that he was scared of something.  When he carried her upstairs to the bed and proceeded to make love to her with more passion than she thought possible, she knew.

She knew that it was ending.  She wasn't sure how she knew, but something about his eyes and his actions made last night feel final.

The last time they would sleep in the same bed.

The last time he would hold her.

The last time he would ever make love to her.

Gia closed her eyes tightly to ward off the tears that were threatening to spill.

She couldn't blame him, really.  Although he had promised her he wasn't going to leave her, she had pushed him to this point herself.

Her depression had torn a hole in their relationship, and because she was afraid that he would walk away she had started to pull away first.  A vicious cycle.

Gathering all over her energy she pushed herself up from the bed and onto the carpet.  Grabbing a t-shirt that had been thrown across a chair, she pulled over her head and moved toward the door.

Stopping, she took a look around the room.

The bed was messy from their activities last night, and she had to smile.  It had been better sex than they had had in a long time.  It was a bitter sweet feeling.

Clothes were thrown around the room, covering random pieces of furniture and carpet space.  Neither of them were neat-freaks, and until they had to do laundry, the mess would stay.

Shaking herself from her reverie, she slid through the opening in the door and toward the kitchen.

She could hear sounds of his movement and she could smell the beginnings of breakfast.

Gia stopped at the entrance to the kitched and leaned against the wall, watching him.  He stood at the stove, bare chested, in a pair of basketball shorts.  He didn't look any different that any other morning, but the feeling of it all was off.

"Hey you." She spoke, startling his attention from the bacon he was frying.

"Hey, I didn't know you were up.  I figured you would sleep in for at least another hours."

"I woke up when you left the bed."

"Oh."

A silence filled the spacious kitchen, neither of them knowing what to say now that the small talk was finished.

Gia padded over to his lanky form and wrapped her arms around his shoulders from behind.  She placed a chaste kiss on his shoulder, then his neck, and let out a sigh.  It was already starting to hurt.

Justin turned in her arms and placed his lips to her forehead.  Giving her a gentle squeeze, he propelled her toward the table where breakfast had been set out.

"Sit, eat. The bacon is almost ready."

Gia eyed the spread on the table, not sure if she had an apetite but wanting to do as he said.  Anything to keep him from breaking her heart sooner than necessary.

Justin watched as she placed food on her plate.  She glanced up and gave him a smile, which he attempted to return.  He quickly turned back to the stove to finish cooking, but mostly so she couldn't see the tears he could feel starting.

He truly loved this woman.  She had been the light of his life for a while now, but he couldn't compete with her problems.  His love wasn't enough to save the both of them.

Gathering all the strength he could muster, he picked the skillet off the stove and moved toward the table.

He would sit and eat with her first, enjoy the last few moments of normalcy that had found them.

He could always tell her later.