Zander stepped quietly into the room, the soft glow of the sunlight illuminating Flora as she rested. He moved to her side, his hand trembling slightly as he reached out to brush a stray lock of hair from her forehead. At his touch, Flora's eyelids flickered, and she slowly looked up at him.
"Zander!" she whispered.
"Did I wake you?" he asked as he lowered himself to the edge of the bed.
"No. I wasn't really sleeping," Flora replied, her gaze searching his. "You left earlier this morning... You didn't say much to me."
Zander looked down at his hands with the weight of the hours he had spent waiting in the hall. "Your family was here, and everyone else was crowding the room. I felt you needed them more," he stated simply, though the pain of being apart from her was evident in his eyes. "I didn't want to get in the way of your recovery."
