SOPHIE'S POV
Hospitals had a different kind of silence.
It wasn't the peaceful quiet of a library or the comforting stillness of a late night in your own room.
It was cold.
Heavy.
Terrifying.
It was a silence punctuated only by the rhythmic, artificial hum of vending machines, the distant, squeaking rubber soles of a nurse’s shoes, and the muted chime of a PA system echoing down a sterile hallway.
I sat outside the emergency room, staring down at my lap.
My hands were still stained with a little of Landon's blood. It had dried now, turning a dull, rust-colored shade that seemed to mock me.
No matter how many times I rubbed my palms together...
No matter how hard I pressed my skin against my jeans...
It felt like it wouldn't come off.
It felt like it was branded into my skin, a
