✦ Chapter 39 ✦
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Lucien woke slowly, consciousness returning in uneven waves. His eyes opened to the dim quiet of the room as he pushed himself upright, one hand braced against the mattress while his head throbbed faintly, thoughts tangled and unfocused. For a long moment he simply sat there, staring ahead at nothing in particular, his gaze fixed on the closed door as if it held an answer he didn't yet understand.
What a strange dream.
The thought lingered without urgency, without fear. It hadn't been a nightmare—he knew that much. If it had been, his body would have betrayed him already: lungs burning, breath coming fast and shallow, sweat clinging to his skin as though he had been running from something unseen. Instead, there was only this heavy stillness, this unsettling calm that pressed against his chest and refused to lift.
