CHAPTER 18 – Caged Awake
519 Words
Olivia’s POV
Sleep was supposed to bring rest.
But rest never came.
Every time I closed my eyes, I saw her.
The fake nurse. Her cold, expressionless face. The syringe glinting under the fluorescent light.
I felt the stab again. Felt the cold rush through my body. The darkness swallowing me. The voices.
I woke up gasping, drenched in sweat, my hands yanking violently at the IV line.
A nurse rushed in.
“Miss, please—!”
“Don’t touch me!” I screamed, shrinking back into the pillows.
My heart was pounding so hard I thought it would break through my ribs.
“I’m just trying to help you,” the nurse said gently.
I didn’t answer.
I didn’t believe her.
I didn’t believe any of them.
Leo.
The nurses.
The guards.
None of them could stop it from happening again.
None of them had stopped it the first time.
My eyes darted around the room, wild, searching for threats that weren’t there.
But in my mind — they were everywhere.
The door.
The window.
The ceiling vent.
Any of them could open.
Any second.
She could come back.
Or someone worse.
I didn’t even know what was worse anymore.
I was shaking uncontrollably when the nurse spoke into a small mic pinned to her chest.
“She’s relapsing again. Call Dr. Harlow. And prep sedation.”
“No,” I croaked. “No drugs, please.”
But they didn’t listen.
Two more nurses entered. One held my arm. The other carried a syringe.
I screamed.
“GET OFF ME!”
They pinned me gently, but firmly. Like I was a danger to myself.
“I can’t sleep,” I sobbed. “She’ll come again. You don’t understand, she’ll come again—”
A tear rolled down the nurse’s cheek. “You’re safe now. You just need rest.”
“I don’t feel safe,” I whispered.
Then the sedative hit.
The edges of the world dulled.
And I sank again.
But I didn’t go quietly.
Even as I fell into unconsciousness, my fists were clenched.
My eyes were leaking tears.
My body was tied to the bed.
And my soul was screaming.
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Leo’s POV
I watched everything from the hallway.
They didn’t know I was standing there.
Didn’t know I saw her screaming like she was being taken again.
Didn’t know I saw the terror in her eyes when she begged for no one to touch her.
And I’d never felt more useless in my life.
They sedated her.
Because she wouldn’t sleep.
Because her fear was too loud.
And it was my fault.
Every second of it.
I turned away and punched the nearest wall.
A doctor passed and flinched.
But I didn’t care.
Let the building fall.
Let the world burn.
If that’s what it took to make her feel safe again, I’d do it.
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Unknown POV
They drug her.
They strap her down.
They think that makes her safer.
But it only makes her easier.
Easier to watch.
Easier to reach.
She’ll learn soon enough—
Even cages can be opened.
- Writer
