Wavering Truth

"Is she asleep now?" Takumi asked quietly the moment Tomoya stepped out of the room, his voice barely louder than a whisper, as if raising it would disrupt the fragile peace inside.

Tomoya nodded, his expression a mixture of weariness and relief. "Yes," he murmured. "She needs to recover her strength. Whatever energy she expended earlier took more of a toll on her body than I anticipated."

The memory of Samantha collapsing replayed vividly in Takumi's mind. After their unexpected encounter with her, she had crumpled to the ground, her legs giving out as though the very act of standing had drained her completely. Without hesitation, Takumi had carried her to the spot where Tomoya had been resting earlier, her weight feeling far lighter than it should have.

He sighed, his gaze drifting downward to Tomoya’s hand, where traces of blood smeared faintly around the spot where the IV line had been connected earlier.