SERAPain wakes me.Dull, throbbing, everywhere pain that radiates through my entire body with every breath.I try to open my eyes but my lids feel heavy, glued shut. It takes three attempts before they flutter open.White ceiling. Fluorescent lights. The steady beep of a heart monitor.Hospital.My throat is dry, tongue thick. I try to swallow and it hurts. Try to move and every muscle screams in protest."Sera."The voice comes from my right. Rough. Broken.I turn my head...slowly, so slowly because moving makes everything worse...and find Darius sitting in a chair pulled close to the bed.He looks terrible. Unshaven, hair disheveled, clothes rumpled like he's been wearing them for days. Dark circles under his eyes so deep they look like bruises. His hand is wrapped around mine, his grip careful, like I'm something fragile that might break.When our eyes meet, his face crumples."Oh thank god." The words come out choked. "Thank god, you're awake."He stands and leans over the bed, p
Read more