Six sides

She watched from the safety of the treeline.

He had spent so much time clearing the space.
Chopping down the trees
Ripping out the trunks.
Pulling up the bushes and weeds.
Smoothing and leveling the land with his hands.
He was... breathtaking.
Something to make her heart skip beats.
If her eyes were hungry, her body was starved.

Now as she watched he stood, heavy brick in hand, laying the foundation for the Wall.
She watched him examine that brick.
Check it from all sides for imperfections.
Carefully weighing it in his hand.
Six sides:

One to hide the pain
One to soothe the loneliness
One to dampen the anger
One to show the longing
One to express the frustration
One to dry the tears

And then, having weighed the brick he reached down for the trowel, scooping up a bit of mortar. And the mortar was this:

One part true grit and determination
One part shameless love and endless fear
One part honor and loyalty

He smoothed the mortar over the brick, turned it over, and stood there contemplating. Then he stepped back, looking at it, tears in his eyes.

And she stood in the treeline, torn.
God.
To let him build it or to stop him and leave him defenseless?

So she stepped out into the sunlight and slowly walked to him.
Standing in front of him he regarded her, blue eyes glistening with hope and fear.
Oh God, so much fear.

Facing him, she took the brick from his trembling hand and the trowel from the other.
Then she stepped over beside him and made her decision.
She couldn't change the bricks.
But she could change the mortar.

She leaned down and into the bucket she poured from her heart:

one part selfless love and trust
one part unconditional acceptance and encouragement
one part admiration and hope

and his arms came from behind her,
hands covering hers, shuddering, as they made slow circles in the bucket.
His breath on her neck made her nipples scream.
In her ear he murmured over and over again,

"Tink, do you know what you're doing?"
"I think so, Blue. I'm helping you build your Wall. It's the same Wall... just held together with something a little different. It will look the same from the outside, but from the inside, where only you can see... you'll know it's different."

And the two of them began, shoulder to shoulder, to craft the Wall.
And when she brought him windows, something he'd never used before, he looked at her and shook his head in amazement.
"Windows let in light, my Blue. And warmth. And a fresh breeze from the ocean."

But it was the door that moved him.
"A door?!?"
"Yes, my Blue. A door. How else will I get in?."