>>Aelin
The water felt so still around me. The warm blood that seeped into it made it feel heavy. It felt like an embrace, one that I hadn't felt in so long. My dress clung to my body, but even that weight didn't seem to matter anymore. I let myself sink deeper, my arms limp at my sides, the sharp sting in my wrist fading into nothingness.
The ripples slowed, the sound of dripping water softening until all I could hear was my own heartbeat, sluggish and distant. My eyes fluttered closed as the world around me turned dim. For the first time in what felt like forever, I didn't feel the ache, the pain, the emptiness clawing at me. There was just… silence.
