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Beep.
Beep.
Beep.
The sound was faint at first—like a drop in a faraway well. Then louder, clearer, until the rhythm pulsed against his ears and eyelids.
Aiden's eyelashes fluttered.
His throat was dry. His body felt heavy, unfamiliar—as though he were made of stone submerged in water. Slowly, painfully, he opened his eyes.
White ceiling. Sterile walls. The sharp scent of antiseptic.
He blinked, once. Then again. And it hit him—
He was in a hospital.
"Aiden?" a voice cracked beside him.
He turned his head slightly and saw his best friend, Noah, standing beside the bed. His eyes were wide in disbelief, hands trembling as they reached out but didn't quite touch.
"You're… awake," Noah whispered, as if speaking too loudly might shatter the fragile miracle.
Aiden wanted to answer, but his voice came out hoarse and broken. "How… long?"
Noah swallowed hard. "A year. You've been in a coma for a year, Aiden."
Aiden blinked. The words didn't make sense—not at first. Not after everything he remembered. Not after him.
Shinomi.
Doctors rushed in moments later. They shined lights into his eyes, asked him questions, ran their tests. Aiden answered, but his mind was somewhere else. Not here. Not in this body. Not in this world.
He still felt the warmth of the ceremonial robe against his skin. Still heard the sound of wedding bells, the murmur of a royal crowd. He remembered the taste of honey on Shinomi's lips, the way those fierce eyes softened only for him. The ring—he had said yes. Yes.
But he never arrived.
Because he was here.
Because he had been asleep.
When the doctors left and the room quieted again, Noah finally spoke. "We were scared we'd lost you. They said you might never wake up…"
Aiden stared at the ceiling. Silent. Still.
He wanted to believe it had all been a dream—everything that happened with Ren, Shinomi, the kingdom, Celestia, Cassian. But it was too vivid. Too real. And most of all, too painful.
He knew the truth deep in his soul:
It wasn't a dream. It was another life.
A single tear rolled down his cheek, slipping past his temple and onto the pillow. He didn't wipe it away.
"I didn't mean to hurt him," he whispered.
Noah frowned. "Hurt who?"
Aiden bit his lip. His voice cracked. "Shinomi."
Noah blinked, not understanding. But Aiden didn't explain.
How could he? How could he tell anyone here that he had lived another life in another world—one where he had fallen in love with a prince, where he had made a promise at the altar, where he had seen joy in someone's eyes only to destroy it by vanishing on the most important day?
He remembered the smile on Shinomi's face as he waited by the aisle.
He remembered how that smile must have shattered.
Aiden pressed his palm against his chest, right over his heart.
"I broke him," he whispered. "I broke the man who waited for me."
Noah gently put a hand on his shoulder. "It's okay. Whatever you dreamed, it wasn't your fault. You were in a coma, Aiden."
But Aiden shook his head. "It wasn't a dream."
He could still feel the warmth of Shinomi's hands. The way he called him "Wifey" in that teasing, precious voice.
"I wasn't dreaming," Aiden said again. "I left him there."
And now, he feared, it was too late to go back.
Too late to explain.
Too late to fix the pieces of a heart he never meant to shatter.
But one thought refused to let go:
"If he's still waiting for me… I'll find a way back. I swear."
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