Chapter 23: The Physical Toll
POV: Elowen Hart
The days faded into one long stretch of exhaustion.
I woke up tired every morning, the kind of bone deep tiredness that made my eyelid feel glued shut. The alarm rang for what felt like eternity before I finally dragged myself out of bed, muscles aching like I'd run a marathon in my sleep. Work was the same fog: sitting at my desk, staring at the spreadsheet until the numbers blurs in my view, forcing myself through my daily routine.
Then the commute home, standing in the crowded train with my eyes half-closed, only to collapse on the couch still in my work clothes, too drained to cook anything other than instant noodles or cereal.
My body felt so heavy, and sleeping on that cheap, thin mattress that sagged in the middle as I lay down di
