"Liam! Wake up!!"
The voice echoed like it was traveling through a long, empty tunnel. It was sharp, urgent—familiar.
"Liam, please… wake up!"
He coughed violently, blood spilling from his mouth and onto the cold floor beneath him. His chest burned like fire, his lungs screaming for breath. Slowly, painfully, his eyes fluttered open, and the first thing he saw was Vanessa. Her face hovered above him, panic and desperation etched into every inch of her expression. Her usually perfect blonde hair was messy, strands clinging to her face as if she had run through a storm to get to him.
His lips trembled. "L-Lana…" His voice was almost inaudible, dry, broken.
Vanessa leaned in closer. "What? What are you saying?"
"Lana… s-she's… I locked her… inside," he rasped. "She's in the last room. Safe…"
