Page 120 of May: Bloom & Bane

She’s running.

My lungs burn with a cold I can’t explain, and my wings feel like a heavy parachute dragging behind me. We’re not in the meadow anymore; we’re in a frozen forest that twists around us.

I can’t see her face. I can barely make out the shape of her through the trees.

“Stop!” My voice cracks, but the sound is swallowed by the wind whistling through the branches. “Just stop so I can help you!”

She’s so close, and yet miles away. I catch flashes of dark hair, the curve of a shoulder, but every time I reach for her, the ground beneath me stretches.

“Is that why you’re here? Do you need my help?”

She continues her sprint through the woods.

“Please. I don’t know why I’m here!” I shout.

She stops. The mist swirls around her ankles as she begins to turn. I see the edge of her jawline, and then a fine, shimmering dust begins to fall through the canopy, coating the dark in gold. The moment it touches my skin, the dread in my bones simply… vanishes.

The woman is gone. I’m alone in the clearing now, and the screaming in my head quiets into a low thrum. The forest shifts around me, skeletal branches smoothing into the familiar warm greenery of my meadow. Panic leaves me, and in its place is peace so complete it makes me want to melt into the moss and never get up.

One by one, I forget the snow, the dark hair, the name that was resting on the tip of my tongue.

I wake up to crickets chirping. For the first time in hours, the pressure behind my eyes is gone. My mind feels still, like a lake after a storm. I roll over, and the sheets catch on my wings. Eden’s watching me from the edge of the mattress.

“How long was I asleep?” I ask.

Her bloodshot eyes meet mine.

“You’re awake!” she exclaims. “You’ve been sleeping for over thirteen hours.”

I brush a stray lock of her hair from her forehead.

“I feel… incredible. The noise in my head is just gone.”

I stroke my thumb over her cheek; she doesn’t smile or lean into my touch. She just watches me with an unreadable expression.

“Did you… did you dream about anything?”

I search my mind, trying to remember, but there’s nothing.

“Just darkness.” I sit up, my wings stretching lazily behind me. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

“You were restless for hours. Tossing and turning, mumbling things I couldn’t make out. So I finally used the tincture Therael brought, and you went still almost immediately.”

I reach for her, wanting to pull her back into the warmth of blankets, but the moment my fingers brush her arm, she flinches. I can scent her uneasiness. The rejection stings more than the headache ever did.

“Eden, did I do something to upset you?” I murmur. “I swear I’m telling you the truth. There was nothing in my dream. Just peacefulness.”

Her eyes search mine.

“I know you think you’re telling the truth. I can feel your sincerity, Sage. It’s loud and clear. But I can also feel something else.”

There’s nothing else. It’s only her. It’s only ever been her.

“Remember how the Horsemen said that our bond didn’t seal fully? Do you think… this is why?” she asks, tears welling in her eyes. “I can’t help but feel like I’m already losing you to something I don’t understand.”

My heart feels like it’s cracking.

“No, Saevúra.” I pull her into my chest and wrap my arms around her.