Nova's POV
When I first opened my eyes, I thought I was dreaming. Everything felt hazy—like I was underwater, floating between sleep and waking. Then I heard him.
"Nova?!"
His voice was hoarse, raw, like he hadn't spoken in days. When I blinked and saw his face—Eldur's face—hovering above me with silver eyes wide open and wild—I knew it was real. And the first word that slipped from my cracked lips was his name.
Everything after that felt like a blur of sounds and colors.
Mai's scream made me flinch. Ollie's entrance with cake made me laugh even though my body felt too weak to manage it. And Liam's tight, bouncing hug with Mai was somehow the most ridiculous and sweetest thing I'd seen in a while.
But nothing compared to the way Eldur collapsed to his knees, his head buried in my lap like he was anchoring himself to the world again.
