I don't know how long I sat there. Minutes. Hours. A lifetime.
Callum's hand was cold in mine. Still. Too still.
Elise's screams rang in my ears, sharp and raw, but they sounded like they came from underwater. Felix's voice broke as he begged Callum to get up, to open his eyes, to wake up from this nightmare. But he wouldn't. He never would.
And it was my fault.
I let his hand fall from mine and forced myself to stand. My legs were shaky, my whole body numb, but I stood. Slowly. One movement at a time. Like my bones didn't belong to me anymore.
I left them there, Elise curled beside his body, Felix gripping his own side and trembling. I walked past the ferals who'd just arrived, the ones who could still move, their faces collapsing in horror as they rushed to identify friends and roommates now lying still on metal slabs. The room cracked open with fresh screams.
But I didn't stop.
