Chapter 39

Harper’s POV

Awareness creeps back slowly, inch by careful inch, like I’m drifting toward the surface from somewhere impossibly deep. My body feels weightless, suspended, wrapped in a comforting, warm darkness that hums softly in my veins. Each breath is slow and deep, effortless, and for a moment, I want to stay exactly where I am, in this gentle, floating haze, where nothing can reach me, and nothing can hurt. It's such an intense feeling but also amazing, like I'm free of everything. 

Sounds begin filtering through gradually, distorted and muffled, like voices calling from beneath water. I can barely make out the shapes of words, blurred at the edges, drifting through the liquid cocoon surrounding me. My limbs feel heavy, my thoughts hazy and slow. I’m aware of warmth pressed against my skin, something firm and protective nearby, yet even this awareness feels vague, dis