Chapter 304

Serena’s POV I couldn't tell how long I'd been out when consciousness started seeping back into my body. First came the sounds—beeping machines, hushed voices, someone crying softly. Then the sensation—a dull throbbing in my side and a sharper pain at the back of my head. The antiseptic smell hit me next, that unmistakable hospital scent. My eyelids felt impossibly heavy as I struggled to open them. The fluorescent lights above were blinding, making me wince. "She's waking up!" Someone gasped—Maya's voice, thick with tears. I blinked several times, the room slowly coming into focus. My hospital bed was surrounded by people—Maya still in her wedding dress though it was wrinkled now, mascara streaking her cheeks; Ethan beside her looking shell-shocked; my brother Ethan Quinn hovering anxiously at the foot of the bed; and Ryan... Ryan was right next to me, clutching my hand like it was his lifeline. His knuckles were white, face ashen, hair disheveled like he'd been running his fingers th