The first thing anyone noticed...
Was Elizabeth's hand.
Her fingers tightened weakly around Jonathan's.
Not by accident.
Not because of a reflex.
She was holding him.
Jonathan stared at their joined hands, unable to believe what he was feeling.
"Elizabeth..."
His voice broke.
"If you can hear me..."
"...please come back."
A long, shaky breath escaped her lips.
The heart monitor quickened.
**Beep... Beep... Beep...**
The room became impossibly quiet.
Even the soldiers outside seemed to disappear from everyone's minds.
Twenty years.
Twenty years of silence.
Twenty years of waiting.
And finally...
Elizabeth Hawthorne slowly opened her eyes.
---
They were pale blue.
Tired.
Confused.
As though she had awakened from an endless dream.
She blinked several times, strugglin
