Celeste
The first thing I noticed when I woke up was the silence.
The room was quiet, with no sound of steady breathing or footsteps. Only golden sunlight streamed through the curtains, casting warm patterns on the white sheets.
The chair where Jace had sat all night watching over me was empty.
He was gone.
I briefly questioned if it had all been a dream. His voice saying he couldn’t stay away, his gentle touch moving my hair aside, and the heartbreaking apology that shattered my heart.
Maybe the fever had made me imagine it all.
But then I caught it — the faint smell of his cologne still hanging in the air, the blanket he had tucked around me still holding his warmth.
He’d been real. And now he was gone.
A lump formed in my throat as I reached out with trembling fingers to touch
