Raelynn's eyes fluttered open long before the sun had touched the sky. The pale blue of early dawn stretched across the ceiling of the room, casting faint shadows on the walls. She lay still, her body stiff and unmoving beneath the sheets, eyes wide and unblinking as though she hadn't really slept at all.
Because she hadn't.
Not really.
Her mind had barely allowed her a few moments of shallow rest. Sleep had come in short, broken waves—no peace, no dreams, just the heavy weight of disbelief pressing on her chest. She blinked up at the ceiling, her breaths slow and shallow, her hand resting instinctively just below her collarbone. Her heart still felt strange. Not just the condition that had plagued her for years, but something deeper. Something more rattled. As if it didn't know how to beat steadily anymore.
