Willow felt like he was floating. There was nothing beneath him, yet he sensed some force holding him in place, preventing him from falling. He felt lightheaded, the previous weariness and lethargy melting away. He drifted in and out of consciousness, with no urgency or worry in his mind. Though he couldn't fully register his surroundings, there wasn't a hint of panic—he felt like he was in the most familiar, trustworthy place.
He didn't want to open his eyes, let alone move. Even thinking felt like too much work; the only appealing option was to lay there, curled up and asleep. He would've stayed that way, too, if not for the constant voice in his head, shouting his name.
"...Will... Will!"
At first, it was faint, like a distant scream—soft but urgent. It grew louder, closer, until it became impossible to ignore.
"Willow! You damned idiot, wake up!"
Any doubt about who was calling vanished at that. Even in his hazy, half-awake state, he recognized the unmistakable voice of his dear, dear sister, who loved nothing more than insulting him.
"WILLOW! Answer me!"
He couldn't pretend to be asleep any longer. The sharpness of her shout forced him to sit up.
"Jeez, Adel... calm down for a second," he muttered. Strangely, he didn't fall, even as he sat up. Now fully awake, he looked around, taking in his surroundings—a vast, endless black void, not unlike space. Adelia's voice echoed around him, as if coming through speakers hidden throughout the dome.
"Finally! I— I thought you... I thought something bad happened to you." Willow could almost swear he heard a crack in her voice. She paused, probably to steady her breathing, before saying, "Will, where are you? Where did that sicko hide you?"
"... but—"
"Just answer, dammit! No buts!" She was frantic, her voice tinged with a desperation he'd never heard before, and he wished he'd never have to hear it again.
Finally, her voice broke into tiny sobs. "W-Will... please, tell me. Tell us—where are you? Me, Charlie, everyone... we'll find you. Please—" Willow could almost picture her tear-stained face, her hands clenched together in silent prayer as she begged, "Please come home."
He was taken aback. He'd never seen her like this, and God, he hoped he wouldn't have to. The sister he had always protected, as her older brother, was crying, pleading for him like this. This proud, stubborn girl who never apologized to anyone was breaking down, and he didn't like it. He didn't like it one bit.
"You know I can't do that. He... he'll ruin everything." He turned away, as if to escape her voice, but it was useless; her voice echoed from every direction.
"What are you saying? Do you even hear yourself?"
"I do, and I'm sure about it. It will be alright, soon," he promised, knowing he could convince no one—not Adelia, and not himself.
"No! It won't be! You know it yourself!" Her voice cracked again. "You know damn well this won't be the end of it. And even if it would be, I don't want this to be the end. I..." She choked, then continued indignantly, "I don't want to live comfortably at the price of losing you."
"I don't want you throwing away your happiness like this! I- I won't allow it!"
"But only I can make it alright. You know that," he tried to convince her. "It will be alright, Adel. I'll just continue like this, and then everyone can live happily. You, Charlie—yes, even Charlie. He'll get over me at some point, see how his love wasn't worth wasting on me. Everyone will move on and forget-"
"Pretentious. Pretentious, ignorant, obnoxious! That's what you are." Adelia's voice shook with fury. "You think you're such a saint, such a martyr, don't you? Sacrificing yourself for us like this. You think you're doing a great deed-"
"Adel, you know that's not what I meant-"
"Shut up! Not another word!" She drew a shaky breath, her tone raw with emotion. "Listen, you idiot. You have no right. No right to decide for all of us. No right to decide what we'd want. You...you have no right to sacrifice yourself in our name. And you say we'll eventually forget. What do you know? How can you- how can you say so surely that we'll forget? You've never been in our positions, have you? The only ones who get to decide what we'll forget, what will make us happy, is us. Not you."
Willow was shaken by her words. He tried to calm her down. "Adelia, listen to me. This is not the time to be childish-"
"Childish?!" She sounded almost unhinged. "You think I'm being childish? You know what, Will, you listen. YOU'RE the one being childish, immature. Talking about sacrificing yourself..." She let out a scoff. "I know you always thought of me as half-brained and selfish, and I won't argue with that. I am selfish. I'm selfish, and I don't want you dying for me. And I bet anyone else wouldn't want you dying for them either."