The darkness felt endless, pressing against me from all sides, suffocating and unyielding. My breath came in short, uneven gasps, the stale air around me, only making it harder to breathe.

I kept my eyes shut tight, squeezing them closed as if that would make it all go away. But the cold, hard reality of where I was didn’t vanish, and I felt the rough surface beneath me digging into my skin, a constant reminder of my helplessness.

But even in the dark, I could see him—Xavier. His smile, the way his eyes softened when he looked at me, as if I was the only person in the world. I clung to those memories, letting them light up the shadows that surrounded me.

He was my only light in this awful dark, my beacon when everything else seemed lost. I knew he was out there. I knew he wouldn’t let me down. He couldn’t. It was just a matter of time.

“Xavi…” I whispered, my voice breaking as tears streamed down my cheeks. I hugged myself tighter, curling into a small ball on the cold floor, desperate for any warmth.