Chapter 131
Ellie's POV
I wake up with the distinct feeling that someone dropped me into a pool of acid and then forgot to ask if I wanted my body back.
Everything hurts.
Not in one specific place.
Everywhere.
My body feels heavy, unfamiliar, like it belongs to someone else, and I somehow got stuck inside it.
The ceiling above me is too white.
Too bright.
The lights hum faintly overhead, pressing against my skull.
My head throbs.
Not the sharp, stabbing pain from before.
Something worse.
A deep, dull ache.
Like someone filled my brain with wet sand and left it there.
I blink slowly.
Once.
Twice.
Trying to figure out where I am.
"Holy—"
My hand moves instinctively toward my head.
Then I remember.
The infirmary.
The realization settles in slowly.
Along with the soreness in my limbs.
The strange metallic taste lingered at the back of my throat.
I shift slightly.
Immediately regret it.
Nausea rolls through me so quickly I have to stop moving.
"Easy."
A voice cuts through the fog.
A healer steps into my line of sight.
One of my instructors.
"You fainted."
She adjusts something near the bed.
"Try not to sit up yet."
I swallow.
My throat feels painfully dry.
"What..."
My voice sounds awful.
Rough.
Broken.
Like I swallowed gravel.
"What happened?"
The healer doesn't seem surprised.
"We ran a full scan."
She speaks with the calm boredom of someone delivering the same information for the hundredth time.
"No abnormalities."
"No infection."
"No neurological issues."
She glances at the tablet in her hand.
"Sometimes the body reacts to prolonged stress."
Stress.
I almost laugh.
Instead, a weak breath escapes me.
"You're wrong."
Her eyes lift.
"Run more tests."
I struggle to push myself higher against the pillows.
"Because that doesn't make sense."
She gives me a look.
The kind that says she's heard that exact sentence before.
"Stress affects everyone differently."
"But I've been stressed before."
Frustration creeps into my voice despite the exhaustion.
"I've stayed awake for days studying."
"I've gone weeks barely sleeping during exams."
"I've pushed myself harder than this."
"I've never felt like this."
She gives me a polite smile.
A professional smile.
The kind that ends conversations.
"Your vitals are stable."
"You are physically healthy."
A pause.
"Mostly."
I stare at her.
"Mostly?"
She ignores that.
"Try to rest."
And then she walks away.
Just like that.
I lie there, staring at the ceiling.
My thoughts move in circles.
Something about this doesn't feel right.
Stress isn't enough.
It can't be.
Stress doesn't make my legs feel like they're made of stone.
It doesn't make my head feel like it's splitting open.
It doesn't make my own body feel like it's fighting me.
The door opens softly.
I turn my head.
Expecting another healer.
Instead...
Lucas walks in.
Relief and confusion hit me at the same time.
His face changes the second he sees me.
Concern is written all over him.
He crosses the room quickly, pulling a chair beside the bed before sitting down.
"Hey."
His voice is gentle.
"How are you feeling?"
I stare at him.
"Like I got hit by a carriage."
A small, strained smile appears on his face.
"That bad?"
"Pretty much."
He exhales softly.
"You scared everyone."
Before I can respond, the healer returns.
Her eyes move between us.
Then she looks at Lucas.
"You're lucky."
Lucas frowns.
"What?"
"You reacted quickly."
She gestures toward him.
"You carried her straight here."
I blink.
"What?"
Lucas looks uncomfortable.
"Yeah."
He rubs the back of his neck.
"You just..."
His expression tightens.
"You went down."
That's not how I remember it.
Or...
More accurately...
That's not who I remember.
I close my eyes briefly.
The memory flashes.
The training hall.
The noise.
The pain.
A hand under mine.
Dominic's arm.
His voice.
My name.
Ellie.
I open my eyes.
The memory feels unstable.
Slippery.
Like, I grabbed onto it, and it disappeared.
"I thought..."
The words slip out.
Then I stop.
Lucas watches me carefully.
"What?"
I shake my head.
"Nothing."
I force a small smile.
"Thank you."
"For helping me."
His expression softens.
"You don't need to thank me."
He reaches out and takes my hand.
This time, I let him.
Not because I don't notice.
Not because I don't have thoughts about it.
But because his hand is warm.
Steady.
Grounding.
And right now...
I need something solid.
"I just want you to be okay."
The words hit harder than I expected.
"I'm fine."
The answer comes automatically.
Then I glance down at myself.
At my aching body.
A lie.
"I think."
Lucas's thumb brushes gently over my knuckles.
Concern fills his expression.
"Do you need help standing?"
A pause.
"Do you want to get lunch?"
Another pause.
"Can I help?"
I stare at the ceiling.
And slowly realize something.
Something terrifying.
The heaviness in my legs hasn't improved.
Not even a little.
I turn my head toward him.
My pride fights against the reality of the situation.
But reality wins.
"I..."
My voice comes out quieter.
"I might need some help."