“She’s awake.” Fallon whispers, scooting her chair closer to the side of my bed. She leans forward and her blonde head pops into view.
“Who—” I start, wincing at the sting in my throat. “Who are you talking to?”
Fal’s expression shifts, and for a second I wonder ifmaybe I am still dreaming. Everything feels a little delayed, like the world around me is still buffering.
Fallon’s eyes cut to something on the other side of the room, and a small smile tugs at her lips. “Your boy’s been here all night.” She whispers softly. “Hasn’t moved from that chair once.”
My heart does that stupid stuttering thing I hate, and I turn my head slowly, following her gaze to the left side of the room. Echo is sitting in a leather armchair by the window, his body completely still except for the steady rise and fall of his chest. His clothes are destroyed, covered in soot and singed in a few places, and his hands are wrapped in thick bandages that are stained with blood.
He looks like he’s been through hell, but it’s his eyes that gut me. They’re red-rimmed and hollow, locked on mine with a crazy intensity that steals whatever breath I have left.
“Hi.” I say weakly, giving him a half-smile.
He doesn’t smile back. He just stares at me and clenches his jaw.
Is he… still mad at me?
Fallon stands up and smooths her hands down her soot-covered jeans. “I’ll go and let the doctor know you’re awake.”
She’s out the door before I can stop her, and then it’s just us.
I look at Echo. He looks at me. And neither of us says anything as silence blankets the room.
Echo shifts, and when his back brushes against the back of the seat, he lets out an involuntary hiss.
“You okay?” I ask, studying his face.
He nods, but I notice him lean forward so that his back doesn’t touch it again.
He must be hurt there, too.
I take a moment to assess my own damage. I don’t have a single mark on me. Not one burn. Not one blister. Not even a bruise. Echo shielded me from everything.
Just like he has been since the day we met. Just like he did with those men in the alley, and with Josh at the grocery store and restaurant. Echo has been trying to protect me, in his own messed-up way, and I hate that he had to burn in order for me to see that.
“How are you feeling?” He asks, his voice rough.
“Alive.” I say, feeling tears brim in my eyes. “Thanks to you.”
Something shifts in his expression, but before I can really process it, it’s gone.
“Don’t thank me, Bambi.” He says, picking at a loose thread on the seam of the armchair. “I don’t deserve your gratitude.”
My brows pull together. “Why would you think that?”
Before he can answer, the door swings open and Fallon and Echo’s brother enter the room with a man in his early sixties. He’s holding a tablet and even without a lab coat on, I can tell he’s a doctor by the way he’s carefully assessing me.
He introduces himself, checks my vitals, and runs through a list of things I should watch for over the next few days. I nod when it seems appropriate, but honestly, I’m not really listening. I’m watching Echo, who’s still watching me.
On the other side of the room, Echo’s brother says something quietly to Fallon. She replies without looking athim, and he says something else that must piss her off, because she presses her lips together and looks at the ceiling.
The doctor wraps up, excuses himself, and leaves.
I’m still looking at Echo and he’s still looking at me, but neither of us are saying anything.
“D.” Fallon says, stepping up to the side of my bed. “We should talk.” She glances at Echo’s brother. “Can you two give us a minute?”
He gives her a nod and heads for the door. Echo exhales through his nose, then pushes off his chair and quietly follows him out. As soon as the door closes, Fallon turns to me.
