The sky deepened into twilight, soft purples and blues stretching across the horizon. The river mirrored it, gentle ripples scattering the fading light across our faces. We lay back for a moment, shoulders touching, simply watching the world turn quietly around us.

“I keep thinking about all the nights we survived,” Julian said after a pause, his voice low. “Not just the big battles, but the quiet ones, the ones nobody knew about.”

I turned my head toward him, letting the last light ...