Chapter 135
Ellie's POV
I don't need the wheelchair.
That's what I keep telling myself.
Even as I sit in it.
Even as my fingers press against my temple, trying to ease the constant ache behind my eyes.
I can stand.
I can walk.
I can even pretend I'm fine for a little while if I really try.
But the pain doesn't care about pride.
It creeps in slowly.
Settling deep inside my skull.
Dragging nausea through my stomach until everything feels slightly tilted, like the world forgot how to stay balanced.
After days of this...
It's just easier not to fight.
Easier to sit.
Easier to let the chair carry me instead of wasting energy I don't have.
Lucas has been helping.
A lot.
Maybe too much.
He's constantly there.
Always watching.
Always asking if I need something.
And I know he's trying to help, but sometimes it feels like he's waiting for me to break.
Like if he watches closely enough, I'll never actually get better.
So for lunch, I finally sent him away.
Just for a little while.
Just to breathe.
But being alone doesn't make my healer instincts quiet.
If anything, they're louder.
There has to be an answer.
A reason.
Something we're missing.
An aneurysm?
A blood clot?
Some rare illness that slipped past every healer and every scan?
Because I can't even properly examine myself anymore without feeling like my head is about to split open.
And the worst thought...
The one I try not to entertain...
Is dying.
It slips into my mind more often than I'd like.
Because I've felt death before.
That cold, empty pull.
That moment where everything fades.
Where you're there...
And then you're not.
After everything I've survived, there's no way this is how it ends.
Not with some mystery illness.
Not like this.
I stare down at my lunch.
A pathetic pile of crackers.
That's all I can keep down lately.
Then suddenly...
The pain stops.
Not fades.
Not lessens.
Stops.
Completely.
I freeze.
Slowly, carefully, I lift my head.
Like moving too quickly will make it return.
My vision clears.
The nausea disappears.
My shoulders relax without me telling them to.
"What the—"
My chair moves.
I yelp and twist around too quickly, immediately regretting it.
"Hey!"
Dominic.
He's standing behind me.
His hands are resting on the wheelchair handles like this is completely normal.
Like he's done this a hundred times.
No smirk.
No attitude.
No challenge.
Just...
Calm.
"What are you doing?"
My eyes narrow.
"Get off my chair."
It's automatic.
A reflex.
"Relax."
His voice is annoyingly steady.
"Lucas asked me to keep an eye on you for a while."
I stare at him.
"He what?"
"He asked."
Dominic repeats.
"For me to take over."
He starts pushing me forward.
"And honestly? What's going on with you?"
His eyes flick toward me.
"One day you're glaring at me like you want to murder me."
"Now you're in a wheelchair."
"If I knew, don't you think I'd have fixed it already?"
I mutter.
But I don't fight him.
I don't have the energy.
And more importantly...
I'm still trying to understand why my head feels normal.
Suspiciously normal.
Like someone lowered the volume on the pain without warning.
He pushes me toward the lunchroom without saying anything else.
When we get there, he positions my chair beside him.
Then he disappears.
A few minutes later, he returns with two trays.
Soup.
A sandwich.
Actual food.
I stare at it.
"I can't eat that."
He looks at me.
"Why?"
"Because I get sick."
His expression doesn't change.
"You seem fine."
I blink.
Because...
He's right.
I do feel fine.
And somehow...
I'm hungry.
Really hungry.
So I eat.
For the first time in days, I actually eat.
But halfway through, my hand betrays me.
A small tremor.
Barely noticeable.
My fingers shake.
I immediately curl my hand into my lap.
Too late.
Dominic noticed.
Of course he did.
Without saying anything, he reaches over and steadies my wrist.
I stiffen.
"I'm fine."
"I know."
His answer is quiet.
Not sarcastic.
Not challenging.
Just a statement.
Then, like this is the strangest normal thing in the world, he lifts a spoon.
Blows on it.
And holds it toward me.
I stare.
"Who are you?"
A laugh escapes before I can stop it.
He only raises the spoon again.
I roll my eyes.
Ignoring the heat crawling up my neck, I tuck my curls behind my ear and take the bite.
The rest of the day is strange.
He helps me move between classes.
Carries my books.
Keeps pace beside me.
But he's not like Lucas.
Lucas worries loudly.
Dominic worries quietly.
Lucas fills every silence.
Dominic lets them exist.
And somehow...
That makes him harder to ignore.
"Can we stop by the bathroom?"
I ask quietly.
"I haven't... gone in a while."
The second the words leave my mouth, I regret every life choice that led me here.
Why did I say that?
To Dominic?
Seriously?
"Sure."
His answer is completely normal.
Then he turns the chair.
Straight toward the bathroom.
My eyes widen.
"Dominic!"
I nearly panicked.
Every girl inside freezes.
Then screams.
Several immediately turn and leave.
My face burns.
"Take us out!"
I wave apologetically.
"I'm sorry! Sorry!"
Then I turn back to him.
"You cannot just—"
"You said you needed to."
His expression remains calm.
"Leaving you alone would take longer."
"I could have—"
"Ellie."
Just my name.
Low.
Steady.
Annoyingly effective.
I bite my lip.
"Fine."
He helps me stand.
Gets me to the stall.
Then I immediately kick him out.
He sighs.
"Hearing you pee won't kill me."
The toilet paper roll I threw at his head proves my opinion on that.
The rest of the day passes like that.
Classes.
Awkward silences.
Moments when I forget he's there.
Moments where I'm painfully aware of every inch between us.
He doesn't hover.
But he doesn't leave.
When he helps, he does it quietly.
When I snap, he lets it go.
And the strangest part?
I feel better.
Not cured.
Not magically healed.
But better.
Like my body remembers how to function when he's close.
The pain doesn't disappear completely.
But it dulls.
And Dominic...
He's different.
Calm.
Almost unsettlingly so.
This isn't the Dominic who fills every room with anger.
The Dominic who turns every conversation into a fight.
This version of him understands something is wrong.
And instead of pushing...
He adjusts.
He becomes careful.
When he steps away for a moment to get water, I barely notice.
Until the pain returns.
Instantly.
Like it was waiting.
My grip tightens around the armrest.
My breathing becomes shallow.
My vision blurs.
Then Dominic returns.
The pain eases again.
His hand lands gently on my shoulder.
"You alright?"
I look up.
For a second, I forget to lie.
"Yeah."
My breathing steadies.
"Yeah, thanks."
We stare at each other.
Only for a moment.
Then, almost at the same time...
We look away.