Chapter 235

Orion The shrill ringtone yanked me out of a dead sleep. I was drained. My body felt like it had been through hell, but something inside me was still on. Like I couldn't power down. I sat up slowly, disoriented. The hotel sheets felt weird against my bare skin. Not mine. Not familiar. My head pounded, and my thoughts were everywhere. The only thing in focus was my phone screen lighting up like a spotlight. I squinted. "Dad ?" Then it hit me. Hard. Like getting slammed by a truck. Last night hit me all at once. Her body on mine. Her eyes. Her voice whispering my name. I remembered everything. I shot upright, heart pounding. The room was silent. The bed next to me was empty. Still warm. She'd been here. She was real. It wasn't some fever dream.And now she was gone. My stomach twisted. I stared at the empty space beside me like it might answer something. Shouldn't she have said goodbye ? Woken me up ? Or was that not how this worked ? Was I just... a mistake she needed to walk away from f