Chapter 51: The Morning After

Eirik woke slowly, his mind drifting in and out of the fog of sleep, lulled by the warmth surrounding him. It was a gentle, unfamiliar sensation, comforting and safe. But as consciousness took hold, his eyes snapped open, and he froze.

His heart skipped a beat when he realized he was nestled in someone's embrace, Kaelix's embrace.

Eirik's mind raced. How had he ended up like this? He vaguely remembered fragments of a nightmare, the suffocating darkness, that sickening voice, the feeling of being pinned down… His breath hitched as the memories rushed back. But the warmth, the firm hold around him, these weren't part of the nightmare. This was real.

He felt Kaelix's arm draped over him, holding him close. Eirik's pulse quickened, and panic surged through him. He pulled away sharply, disentangling himself from the prince's hold as if he had been burned.