Pharai
I woke to the weight of someone watching me. Not the sound of breathing. Not the rise and fall of sleep. Just stillness. The kind that presses against your skin.
When I opened my eyes, Suetekh was there, propped on one elbow, his face half-shadowed in the early morning light that cut through the curtains. He wasn't blinking. It was like he thought if he looked away for even a second, I'd be gone.
The first thing I felt was my hair. It was everywhere. Long, black, and heavy, spilling across the pillow and over his bare chest like spilled ink. The second thing I felt was how small I was. Curled against him, I barely came up to his shoulder. Ruthor's body was delicate in a way mine had never been.
I lifted my hand without thinking, and froze. The nails were short and chipped, the gold paint flaking at the edges. Bronze bracelets, thin and cold, circled my wrist. They didn't belong to me.
