Ok...
I needed to take a few minutes to collect my thoughts after I read this.
This chapter alone took me on a novel length roller coaster. Mainly because when you reveal they're both alive... but then one still has to die...
And it was not in the way I expected and it was so horribly bittersweet.
And my heart is broken because he will never know about wonderful love... the love that destroyed them. The goodbye was so heart wrenching too, and I can't even begin to imagine how he felt when she died, the confusion especially. And the "thank you" killed me a little because it was proper to say, but it was for something so simple to him that was just so profound in reality.
UGH
And your writing quality in this was superb. The last few sentences were beautifully worded.
Author's response
Definitely bittersweet.
Thank you so much!
I was so glad to wrap it up and I just loved writing this last chapter. :)