Ezra's POV
The morning sunlight, yellowish, soft, and warm filtered through the hospital windows. My body still ached in various places that I could hardly name, but the worst of the pain had gone. I was alive. I was healing. And more than anything, I was not alone.
Layla was sitting in the chair beside my bed, a little curled up, with a blanket draped over her shoulders. A few strands framed her face, with her hair plaited loosely. She was scrolling through the feeds on her phone, her presence made the room feel... complete. Secure.
"You stayed again," I whispered.
She looked up. "Of course I did."
"That wasn't necessary."
She shrugged it off. "I wanted to."
Her simple remark hit me harder than she realized. I had seen people come and go, they rarely lingered.
Bu
