Chapter 47: Ragged breaths

I woke up with a jolt, my eyes fluttering open to a stark, empty room. The cold, gray walls loomed around me, suffocating me with their lifelessness. Panic surged through my veins, my heart pounding in my chest as I struggled to make sense of my surroundings. How did I end up here? Where was I?

I stumbled to my feet, my body trembling with fear. The air hung heavy with silence, broken only by the sound of my ragged breaths. The room felt like a cage, its invisible bars closing in on me. I reached out to touch the walls, hoping for a clue, but they offered no solace—no escape.

"Help!" I screamed, my voice echoing through the desolate space. "Is anyone there? Please, help me!" But my desperate cries met only with silence, as if the room itself swallowed my pleas. Tears welled up in my eyes, blurring my vision, as a sense of hopelessness settled upon me.

Time stretched on, the minutes bleeding into hours, and I found myself sinking deeper into despair. My min