When Ningyan woke, he felt like he had been drowning. Like he had been dragged under for hours, lungs burning, body too heavy to move and then forced back up too quickly.
Air hit his chest sharply.
His head throbbed as if someone had taken a hammer to it and refused to stop.
"…what…?" His voice came out hoarse.
He frowned faintly, trying to piece things together.
The balcony. Rong Yue. Their conversation....Then sharp, sudden pain and everything had gone dark.
His brows furrowed.
Slowly, he forced his eyes open and immediately regretted it.
Light. Too bright.
Even with the lanterns dimmed, it stabbed straight through his vision.
A sharp hiss escaped him as his hand flew up, covering his eyes. "…ah—"
Everything felt wrong. Too loud. Too heavy. Too much.
"You are awake." A low familiar voice came from somewhere nearby.
Ningyan stilled.
Rong Yue?
"…mm." He rubbed his eyes slowly, blinking through the haze. His thoughts felt sluggish, like they were wading through water.
