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POV Avery
I could hear their voices.
Distant. Muffled.
As if I were underwater.
I knew they were talking about me. I recognized Jackson's tone, Gabriel's firmness… but the words slipped away, out of reach.
The only thing that truly existed was the air refusing to properly fill my lungs.
My fingers were gripping his jacket.
If I let go, I was going to fall.
Or worse.
Disappear.
My body was trembling uncontrollably. Every breath was a struggle—a burn, a tearing sensation.
Tears streamed down my face without stopping.
Calm down.
Calm down.
Calm down.
I repeated it to myself, over and over again.
But it wasn't working.
Then I felt a hand brush across my face, gently moving my hair aside with almost unreal softness.
Gabriel's voice vibrated close to me.
"It's okay now…"
I wanted to believe him.
I clung to those words like a promise.
But something was wrong.
Because even though the pressure was gone…
the fear was still there.
It crawled beneath my skin.
It whispered that it wasn't over.
I closed my eyes for a second.
Mistake.
An image flashed through my mind.
Not the hallway.
Not Gabriel.
A room I didn't recognize.
A silhouette.
White light.
And someone falling.
I gasped, clutching him tighter.
No.
I didn't want to see that.
I didn't want to see anything except the present.
"Gabriel…" I breathed, not even sure the sound came out.
My heart was racing.
Too fast.
Too hard.
As if it were responding to something else.
To someone else.
Then his voice came immediately.
"Yes, Ava."
A small, involuntary laugh escaped me.
I hated the familiarity he used with me.
Usually, it annoyed me.
But right now… it made me happy.
It proved he was here.
Right here.
Real.
"We're going home now," he finally said.
He lifted me into his arms and stood up.
I clung to him instantly, afraid he might leave me behind.
With my head buried against his chest, I felt him reach for something, then head down the stairs.
And step out of the house.
Through the fog in my mind, I thought I heard him speaking to Jackson—whom I had completely forgotten.
The outside air hit me, colder, harsher.
He set me in the passenger seat, then walked around the car to the driver's side.
The moment the engine started, police sirens echoed in the distance.
I finally lifted my head.
Through the window, I caught sight of Jackson behind us, his face tense, caught between worry and confusion.
Then the car pulled away.
And the house disappeared behind us.
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The car kept moving, but my heart refused to slow down.
Sunlight hit the windshield. The streets were alive. People walking, cars passing us, someone laughing on the sidewalk.
The world kept going.
As if nothing had happened.
As if I hadn't almost died just minutes ago.
Gabriel kept one hand on the wheel.
The other rested near me.
Not on me.
Just close enough for me to know he would place it there if I faltered.
I stared at his fingers.
Solid. Real.
"Are you still with me?" he asked softly.
I blinked, coming back to myself.
"Yes…"
My voice was weak. Scratched by panic.
He nodded slightly, focused on the road, but I saw his shoulders relax by a fraction.
Silence settled between us.
Not empty.
Filled with everything we weren't saying.
He had felt it.
I knew it.
And the way he avoided looking at me for too long made me understand that he knew I knew.
I pulled my arms closer to myself.
The cold was creeping back despite the warmth of the day.
"I thought I was going to die," I whispered.
The words slipped out before I could stop them.
His fingers tightened on the steering wheel.
"Not while I'm here."
It wasn't meant to reassure me.
It was a decision.
I turned my head toward him.
The light carved his profile, making his features almost too sharp, too human compared to what I had just seen.
"You can't promise that…"
He exhaled slowly.
"Yes."
A simple word.
Unyielding.
My gaze dropped to his hands, whitened by the pressure.
He had been afraid.
For me.
And that thought sparked a fragile warmth in my chest.
Unexpected.
I looked down.
"Thank you…"
He stayed silent for a moment.
"You don't have to thank me," he finally said, quieter.
"I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be."
My heart stumbled.
Maybe, despite all this chaos…
I wasn't as alone as I thought.
But beneath that thought, something stirred.
A shiver.
A memory of pressure.
As if the danger had never truly gone away.
I stiffened.
He felt it instantly.
"What?"
I stared at the road ahead, swallowing hard.
"I think… I think it's not over."
Around us, people walked, laughed, lived.
Unaware.
The world looked normal.
But now I knew how easily it could break.
And Gabriel pressed the accelerator.
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