Aurelia's POV
The hospital room was quiet except for the steady beeping of monitors as I sat vigil beside Leon's bed. The formal rejection ritual had gone horribly wrong when I'd lost control and actually stabbed him with the ceremonial blade. Now he lay unconscious, pale and vulnerable, while guilt ate away at my insides.
"We didn't mean to hurt him that badly," Luna said softly in my mind.
But we had. In my rage and desperation to be free, I'd driven the blade deeper than the ritual required, nearly puncturing his lung.
Leon's eyes fluttered open just as dawn light began filtering through the hospital windows.
"Aurelia?" His voice was hoarse, confused.
"I'm here," I said quietly, leaning forward in my chair. "How do you feel?"
He tried to sit up and winced immediately.
"Like I
