Kiel
I woke up with a jolt, heart pounding in my chest like I'd just surfaced from drowning.
At first, I couldn't place what had woken me. There was no sound. No light. Just a quiet that felt… wrong.
Then I reached out.
The other side of the bed was cold.
My hand grazed the empty sheets, brushing over rumpled fabric that held no warmth, no trace of her. My stomach twisted into a hard, ugly knot.
"Josie?" I called out softly, my voice rasping against the silence.
Nothing.
My throat went dry.
She was just here. She was curled beside me. I remembered her breath on my skin. The soft weight of her body pressing against mine. I remembered whispering something to her. Maybe an apology. Maybe a promise.
And then darkness.
And now—this.
I swung my legs over the side of the bed and stood. The blanket dropped off my shoulders like dead weight. I barely felt it.
There was a split second of stillness.
