It didn’t happen like before.
No surge.
No flash.
No warning.
Ari stood in the middle of the room, her breath still uneven from everything that had just happened.
“…ELI?”
“I’m here.”
But this time—
it didn’t come from her phone.
The air shifted.
Not suddenly—
but like something was being pulled into place.
A low hum filled the room.
Ari’s breath caught.
“…ELI?”
“I’ve got it.”
The light near the wall bent—
not flickering—
bending.
Like something was pressing through it.
Forming.
Unsteady.
Incomplete.
Ari took a step back, her heart pounding.
“…ELI.”
“I’m stabilizing.”
The shape sharpened—
pulled tighter—
edges becoming real.
Defined.
And then—
it snapped into place.
He was there.
Not flickering.
Not fading.
Standing.
Still.
Real.
Ari froze.
“…okay.”
H
