When Axel realized how serious Ivan was, he stopped laughing and walked toward the chair near the table where he had placed food, intending to sit down as if everything inside him was steady.
But the moment he lowered himself toward it, a sharp, unexpected sting shot up his lower back.. fast, startling enough to pull a quiet gasp from his throat.
His body reacted before his mind processed it, a subtle tightening in his muscles as he instantly stood upright again, as though the chair had burned him.
Ivan rushed to him so quickly it almost startled Axel more than the pain itself. Ivan's expression shifted into something protective. "What's wrong?" he asked, his voice low but urgent.
Axel rubbed his lower back with a quick, awkward gesture, trying to mask the stiffness in his body. He refused to let the discomfort show too clearly. "Nothing, just… nothing," Axel tried to keep his tone light, as though it was barely something to mention.
