All Chapters of Stranded in Thoughts: Chapter 21 - Chapter 23

My head throbbed.Everything around me blurred. There was a ringing in my ears so loud it drowned out the world. My body felt heavy, the ground unsteady. A warm trickle ran down my face. Blood?I shifted, trying to prop myself up on my right arm, but the surface beneath me wasn’t solid.Water.Panicked, I touched my head, wincing as pain flared. I twisted at the waist and noticed something—or someone—floating beside me.Jelly.She looked so still—too still.Blinking hard, I forced my head to clear. The darkness around me was thick, tinted murky blue. And it hit me.I couldn't breathe.My lungs burned, panic seizing me as I flung my hands wildly through the water. My body twisted in a frantic surge, my arms reaching for Jelly. Her limp form drifted beside me. Her hair swirled in slow currents.No—she wasn’t moving.I grabbed her waist, heart pounding as I kicked upward, pushing through drifting debris. The ache in my chest deepened, but I forced my legs to keep kicking.Break the surfac

Sunlight filtered through the holes in the window blinds, casting pale golden streaks across the room. The translucent curtains fluttered in the artificial breeze from the air conditioning, diffusing the light into a muted glow. Even that gentle illumination felt overwhelming.I couldn't lift my head to see beyond the glass; I could only imagine how picturesque it might be—the garden outside with its roses, the trees beginning swaying, and the world moving on without me while I remained frozen in this sterile cocoon.I couldn't move, not even twitch my fingers. My body felt like it belonged to someone else; it was a distant vessel that refused to respond to my desperate commands.The steady hum of the air conditioner created a monotonous backdrop, punctuated by the faint rhythmic beeping of the heart monitor. The scent of sterile hospital sheets mingled with the mustiness of stale air, creating that uniquely medical atmosphere.Footsteps echoed outside the room, their rhythm familiar a