A dead, chilling silence suffocated the room. Khalid's neck snapping still played incessantly in my ears, ringing painfully. My hand clamped over my mouth, muffling the ragged breaths spilling out my lips. I gawked at his body, my eyes heavy with horror. He lay there limp, lifeless, and scattered in a way that screamed of his finality. I did that. The thoughts hammered in my skull, relentless and shooting. My fingers twitched involuntarily, the painful itching in my palms now unbearable. I wanted to tear my skin apart, to scrape away whatever it was that had pushed me to that moment. I could hear words mumbling from behind me, yet all that registered was the sound of snapping and my thundering heartbeat fastening in my chest. “Oh God,” I croaked into my palm, shaking as my body

