Sunny's eyes cracked open to a dimly lit hospital room, the sterile scent of antiseptic filling his lungs. His body ached, his limbs sluggish, as if he had been asleep for far too long.
For a moment, he wasn't sure where he was. The last thing he remembered was… the Dream Realm. The Spire. Nephis. Cassie. A cold, hollow feeling settled in his chest.
Then, reality hit him all at once.
He wasn't in the Forgotten Shore anymore. He was back.
A soft beeping filled the air
He shifted slightly, testing his muscles. He felt much stronger, much faster.
The door creaked open, light spilling into the dim space. A nurse stepped in, followed closely by another.
"He's awake," one of them said, a mixture of awe and apprehension in her voice.
The other hesitated, glancing at him. "Awakened Sunless."
The title sent a strange sensation through him. He had left this place as a nobody, a useless orphan, unremarkable, disposable. Now, people whispered his name like it meant something.
The first nurse approached cautiously. "Awakened Sunless, can you hear me?"
Sunny exhaled slowly.
"Yeah."
She nodded, her professionalism returning. "You've survived in the Dream Realm for a while. Your body is adjusting to the transition. Do you remember where you are?"
Sunny blinked up at the ceiling, memories of his time in the Academy before the Winter Solstice surfacing.
"Academy hospital," he murmured.
The nurse checked something on her tablet before speaking again. "Your vitals are stable, but you've undergone extensive strain. We'll need to run a full examination before you can be cleared."
Sunny barely heard her. His mind was racing. The world felt too… soft. Too clean. Too fake.
After everything he had been through, this place felt like a dream.
And he hated it.
He needed to get out of here. Now.
He had somewhere to go, to see a special someone.
The sterile white walls of the academy hospital pressed in on him as Sunny walked through the dimly lit corridors, his steps silent.
He was back. But Nephis wasn't.
That thought gnawed at him like a blade pressed against his ribs.
It hadn't taken him long to learn where they kept the Dream Realm pods for those who had yet to awaken. Nephis had gone in with him. She should have come back with him.
And yet, she hadn't.
He turned to where Nephis's room was and approached the door.
The room was dark, the only light coming from the quiet hum of machines.
His breath caught as he stepped inside.
There, resting beneath the glass lid of a Dream Pod, was Nephis.
She looked… peaceful. Frozen in time, pale strands of hair fanned out against the cushioned surface, her face calm in sleep.
But she wasn't waking up.
Sunny stared at her for a long moment, something unreadable in his eyes.
And then he noticed he wasn't alone.
A presence lingered in the room.
He turned his head slightly.
Cassie stood in the far corner, her blindfold in place, her expression unreadable.
For a moment, neither of them spoke.
Then, softly, Cassie broke the silence.
"I knew you'd come."
His expression turned dark.
"You got your vision back or something?"
The quiet hum of the machines did nothing to drown out the storm raging inside him.
Sunny clenched his fists, his breathing uneven as he stared at Cassie's back. She wouldn't even look at him.
"You told Nephis." He spat.
"You told her my True Name.."
Cassie flinched but didn't turn around.
"I'm sorry." Her voice was barely above a whisper.
"Sorry?" Sunny let out a bitter laugh, one filled with venom and disbelief.
"What do you mean sorry?! You sold my freedom, Cas! You made her force me to leave! You-!" His hands shook. His vision blurred at the edges, rage coiling inside him like a living thing.
"You sacrificed me! What the hell is wrong with you?!"
Cassie's fingers curled at her sides, but she still refused to turn.
Sunny took a step forward, his shadows flickering wildly around him. "Say something. Look at me!"
Finally, she did. Slowly, carefully, Cassie turned her face toward him.
He expected guilt. Regret. Maybe even shame.
But all he saw was pain.
"It was the only way," she whispered.
Sunny stared at her, his expression dark. "The only way for what?"
Cassie hesitated. For the first time, she looked fragile - like a single push would shatter her.
But she forced herself to speak.
"The only way to save you."
Sunny recoiled, disgust and fury twisting inside him.
"You call that saving me?" His voice was raw, almost breaking.
"You took my life away! You damned wretch! I saved you, I cared for you, and this is what you give me?! You—"
His breath hitched.
"You betrayed me, Cassie."
Cassie's lips trembled, but she held his gaze. "I know."
Silence stretched between them, heavy and suffocating.
Sunny's hands trembled. His jaw tightened. He wanted to scream, to demand answers, to hurt her the way she had hurt him.
But instead, he turned away.
He couldn't look at her anymore.
He walked past her, stopping only when he reached the door. His voice was hoarse when he spoke again.
"Well, this was your choice, Cas."
A sad but pained expression appeared on his face.
"I thought... thought that maybe you'd be the one."
....
....
"I hope you're happy, Cas."
And then, without another word, he left.
He left her, like she had left him.
But why... why did it hurt so much to leave her?
'Damn you.. Why does it hurt so much.'
'Why.'
----------------
Cassie stood in the empty room, staring at the door long after Sunny had gone.
Her fingers twitched at her sides, curled into the fabric of her shirt.
She felt cold.
No, that wasn't right.
She felt nothing.
The machines beeped softly in the background, the steady sound of Nephis's slow, artificial breathing filling the silence.
The only sound left after he-
Cassie's knees buckled, and she sank onto the chair beside the pod, hands clutching her arms.
Her chest ached.
Her throat burned.
She had known this moment would come. Had played out the possibilities in her mind, over and over again.
Had tried to prepare herself for the moment when Sunny would finally turn on her.
But she hadn't expected it to hurt like this.
"You betrayed me."
The words echoed in her skull, each sentence like a knife twisting deeper into flesh.
She squeezed her eyes shut. The voices had been quiet lately. But now, in the wake of his absence, they returned.
Whispering, laughing, mocking her.
"You should have kept quiet."
"Now he hates you."
"You knew this would happen. You deserve this."
"You lost him."
Her breath hitched, her fingers digging into her skin.
But she didn't cry.
She wouldn't cry.
Because she had done what she had to.
Because there had been no other way.
Because if she hadn't…
If she hadn't, then he would be-
Cassie's grip tightened.
Nephis lay still in the pod beside her, unaware of what had transpired. Unaware of the weight Cassie had placed on her shoulders. The choice Cassie had forced her to make.
The gamble.
Her gamble.
Cassie exhaled shakily and finally opened her sightless eyes, staring into the void only she could see.
"Please," she thought, a quiet, desperate prayer. "Prove me right."