Li Wei hadn't moved in hours. The pale light of early dawn crept across the room, glinting off the faint scales still marking his skin. Ren lay half-asleep in his arms, breath shallow, the serpent mark glowing a weak red under the torn edge of his shirt.
At first Li Wei thought the worst had passed, but then Ren stirred and the fever rolled through him again. His skin burned to the touch. He murmured Li Wei's name, not quite conscious, eyes fluttering open to the haze of morning.
"Don't move," Li Wei said softly. "The curse is still feeding."
Ren shook his head weakly. "You said it would stop."
"I said I'd keep you alive," Li Wei replied. He pressed a hand to Ren's forehead, whispering a cooling charm that flickered against the heat radiating from his skin. The fever didn't yield. Each breath that left Ren's lips seemed to draw more of Li Wei's strength toward him, the bond tightening until their pulses matched.
Ren's hand found Li Wei's wrist, fingers trembling. "Don't… go," he whispered.
"I won't," Li Wei answered. He stayed close, lowering his voice to a hum that had once lulled storms into stillness. The sound calmed Ren's shaking for a moment, but the curse writhed underneath, twisting the magic inside him.
Ren's body arched against the invisible pain. The mark flared. Li Wei caught him, murmuring the words of restraint, his own energy bleeding through his skin in bright gold veins. The air grew heavy with heat and the scent of incense and blood.
"Breathe," Li Wei said, more command than request. "Let it flow through you. Don't fight the bond."
Ren obeyed, his breath hitching, the fever making every sensation sharper. Between one heartbeat and the next, their foreheads touched—two lives suspended between burning and peace.
Outside, the first rays of sunlight spilled through the window, cutting across the room like ribbons of flame. Ren's fever eased a fraction, his body finally relaxing into Li Wei's hold.
Li Wei stayed awake long after Ren's breathing steadied, his gaze fixed on the faint shimmer that lingered above the serpent mark. The curse hadn't broken; it had only gone dormant.
He traced the air above it, voice low. "I won't let this take you. Even if it means binding us both."