JAY-JAY POV
I woke up to silence. Not the peaceful kind. The kind that feels like something's waiting.
Keifer was still beside me. Eyes open. Staring at the ceiling like it had answers.
"Hey," I whispered.
He turned fast. Like he'd been holding his breath.
"You're awake," he said.
"Yeah." My voice was dry. My throat felt like sandpaper.
He didn't say anything else. Just reached for my hand. Held it tight.
Something was wrong. Or maybe everything was just… real now.
"What happened?" I asked.
He hesitated. Just for a second. Then he said it.
"Prep starts today. First dose is at sunrise."
I blinked. Let the words settle. Let the fear crawl up my spine.
"Okay," I said. Because what else was there to say?
I sat up slowly. My body already felt heavy. Like it knew what was coming.
Keifer helped me stand. Didn't speak. Didn't let go.
We walked toward the storm. Together.
They wheeled me in before sunrise. The lights were too bright. The walls too white. Everything smelled like metal and fear.
Keifer walked beside me. Didn't speak. Just held my hand like it was the only thing keeping me tethered.
Dr. Paralta explained everything again. I didn't hear most of it. Just the part where she said, "It'll burn."
They hooked me up. IV in. Monitors on. Keifer sat in the corner, fists clenched, jaw tight.
Then the drip started.
It was slow. Silent. But my body felt it instantly.
Heat. Pressure. Like my veins were being scraped from the inside.
I tried to breathe. Tried to stay still. Tried to be brave.
But it hurt. God, it hurt.
I clenched my teeth. Tears slipped out anyway. Keifer moved closer, but I couldn't look at him.
I didn't want him to see me like this. Not yet. Not this broken.
Then the nausea hit. Sharp. Sudden. Like my stomach was trying to escape.
I gagged. They handed me a basin. I didn't make it in time.
Keifer held my hair back. Didn't flinch. Didn't speak.
I cried. Not from the pain. From the shame. From the fear. From everything.
"I'm sorry," I whispered.
Keifer shook his head. "No. Don't."
But I couldn't stop crying. Couldn't stop shaking. Couldn't stop wishing I was anyone else.
This was just the first dose. And I already felt like I was dying.
I don't remember falling asleep. Just the burn. The nausea. The way my body turned against me like it had been waiting for the chance.
When I woke up, everything hurt. My skin. My bones. Even my eyelashes.
Keifer was there. Of course he was. Sitting beside me, head resting on the edge of the bed, like he hadn't moved in hours.
"Hey," I croaked.
He looked up fast. Eyes red. Smile soft. Like I was the sun coming back after a storm.
"You're awake," he said. Like it was the best news he'd ever heard.
I tried to smile. Tried to make it real. But it cracked halfway through. Fell apart before it reached my eyes.
He didn't call me out. Just reached for my hand. Held it like it was something sacred.
"I threw up on you," I said.
He grinned. "Yeah. You owe me a new hoodie."
I laughed. Barely. It hurt. Everything did.
The door burst open. Loud. Dramatic. Which meant only one thing.
"Is the patient alive?" Percy shouted. "Or do I need to start planning a funeral with glitter and bad decisions?"
"Percy," Jare warned. But Percy was already at my bedside, grinning like a maniac.
"I brought you a gift," he said, pulling something from behind his back.
It was a stuffed celery stalk. With googly eyes. And a tiny cape.
"I call him Captain Crunchless," Percy declared. "Protector of the Weak and the Vitamin Deficient."
I stared at it. Then at him. Then back at the celery.
And I laughed. For real this time. Even though it hurt. Even though my chest ached and my stomach twisted.
I laughed until I cried. And then I just cried.
Keifer pulled me into him. Held me like I wouldn't break. Even though I already had.
Section E, ever the chosen one. Chosen for what? Unclear. Probably destruction.
Ci-n was telling me a joke. Something about a duck, a priest, and a vending machine. I didn't get it. But his delivery was so serious, I laughed anyway.
Percy was trying to juggle IV bags. Jare was threatening to sedate him. Areis was pretending he didn't know any of us. Keifer just sat beside me, smirking like he'd married into a circus.
They were all trying to make me laugh. And they were… successful.
Ci-n switched tactics. "Okay, okay. What do you call a sad strawberry?"
I blinked. "What?"
"A blueberry."
I stared. Then snorted. Then groaned because laughing hurt.
Percy gasped. "She laughed! Mark it down! Victory!"
Jare rolled his eyes. "Don't encourage him."
Areis muttered, "I'm surrounded by idiots."
Keifer leaned in. "You okay?"
I nodded. Then shook my head. Then shrugged.
"I'm not dead," I said. "Yet."
They all went quiet. Just for a second.
Then Percy threw a pillow at me. "Don't get dramatic. That's my job."
I laughed again. Real. Sharp. Painful.
But worth it.