I’m floating on a cloud of warmth, surrounded by the smells of the forest—pine, moss, earth after rain. I don’t know where I am, but I never want to leave. Nothing has ever felt this good. I snuggle deeper into the source of heat beneath me, pressing my cheek against what feels like a very solid wall of muscle. It squeezes me gently in return.
For the first time in a very, very long time… I feel safe.
I try to fight my way toward consciousness, but sleep has other plans. It pulls me back under like a tide.
⸻
When I resurface, I once again have no clue where I am.
The surface beneath me is soft, the air cool and clean. I peel one eye open, blinking against the light until the room around me comes into focus.
The same white room I’d escaped from.
I expect panic. Maybe frustration at m
