where I belonged

Elena's POV

I had barely slept, my thoughts tangled in an endless web of dread, relief, and… something else I couldn’t name. As I walked down the sterile hospital corridors, Jason’s hand was a firm, comforting weight on my back. I knew Aurora’s plans had finally crumbled, that she was being taken away in handcuffs. Justice, at last. It should have felt like a victory, yet the hollow ache in my chest grew with each step. There was no joy here—only a lingering sadness and the faintest trace of regret.

I could still feel Lucas’s pain, his every grimace, every stifled sigh of discomfort as if they were my own. I had known him long enough to know how much he must be hurting, even if he’d never admit it.

The door to his hospital room was slightly ajar, and I peeked inside. Lucas sat in his wheelchair, his face a mask of stoic resolve. His jaw was set, eyes fixed on some distant point outside the window, lost in his thoughts. Jason’s hand tightened around mine as if sensing my hesitation. H