The world was a blur of heat and shadows, my body heavy and useless under the weight of fever. It felt like I was sinking, endlessly falling into some dark, sticky void. Somewhere in the distance, I could hear murmurs, voices muted and indecipherable, like echoes from another world.
And then, someone shook me.
At first, I thought it was part of the dream, some phantom trying to drag me deeper. But the touch was insistent, firm but not rough, jolting me back into the real world. My eyelids fluttered open, my vision hazy and swimming.
"Alex?" My voice came out cracked, more a croak than anything else.
He was crouched in front of me, his face as unreadable as ever, though his eyes darted around like he was on edge. "You didn't leave," I murmured, my words slurring together, half a statement, half a question.
