Because in her dreams, the island returned.
The heat.
The sea.
The tension.
And Zayn was there, always there, looking at her the way he always had, intense and unreadable, reaching for her just as she tried to pull away, his presence wrapping around her even as she slept.
She woke with his name on her lips and her heart racing, the cruel reminder settling deep in her bones.
Even now, when everything had fallen apart, he was still with her.
And she didn’t know how to make him leave from her mind.
--
Lena fell asleep the way people do when their body finally gives up, not gently, not peacefully, but abruptly, as if someone had switched her off mid-thought, exhaustion dragging her under before fear could pull her back up again.
When she woke, it was to chaos.
Her phone was vibratin
