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“Ember, you can’t go back,” Mom said once I’d finished.
I wasn’t going to argue with her as tired as I was. So, I just sighed. “I have to rescue Geraint.” That was the most I could say at the moment. I shot a furtive glance at Baz to see how he was taking this. His expression hadn’t changed much.
Apparently, it wasn’t time for Mom to argue with me either. She just patted my hand.
“Ember, a lot has happened since you—” Dad hesitated. “Uh, vanished. You’re officially dead. So are Ash, Casey, Geraint, and Robby. I don’t even know how to go about getting that reversed. Especially in your situation where there’s so much you can’t explain.”
I crossed my arms on the table and rested my head on them. “Yeah. I know.”
“So…” Dad cleared his throat and gestured to the princesses. He was always good at changing uncomfortable topics. “Who are your friends. Ash, do you want us to call Stacy?”
“No, no. There’s too much we have to sort out. I’ll contact her once we’ve saved Dream.” Ash sounded absolutely wrecked, her voice hoarse and cracking on every other word. That she didn’t call Stacy future-wifey was telling. My heart broke for her all over again.
Quickly I introduced my parents to the Dream princesses and Baz. They were polite but reserved. I couldn’t blame them after everything that had happened so far.
“You all should get some rest. Ash, can you help everyone get settled in the guest wing?”
“Of course,” Ash rose, and the Dream princesses followed suit. Baz struggled out of his seat, and this time didn’t flinch away when I offered him my help.
I followed Ash and we headed toward my room. Ash had her own room not far from mine. I had no idea what her thoughts were, but right now I didn’t care.
“Baz, honey, you should stay with Ember,” Esin said. “I know you’re feeling broken, but the sooner you and Ember start actually talking, the better.”
I wondered if she actually meant fucking but was too polite to say it. Still, she wasn’t wrong. Baz and I hadn’t said two words to each other, and while he’d let me help him out of his chair, he wasn’t touching me now.
Baz cast his gaze to the ground but nodded acceptance. Ash glanced at me.
“Yeah, sure.” We did need to have some time to talk. Not that I thought either of us would be up for any discussions tonight.
When we reached my room, I pushed open the door and let him in. No one had touched anything and my things were as I had left them. I glanced at the window ledge. Fortunately, my plant was a succulent and it only looked mildly unhappy. I got it some water while Baz studied the drawings Geraint had plastered all over the walls. I tried not to think too hard about any of that, moving on autopilot as I headed for the bathroom.
“Do you mind if I clean up first?”
Baz sank down into the rocking chair, and my heart clenched in my chest. I didn’t react though. It was the only place besides the bed to sit in here.
“No. Go ahead.” He sounded as tired as I felt.
I kept myself on autopilot as I cleaned up. Not thinking about how the scent of Geraint’s body wash that still lingered in the air, or any of that. Well, I tried not to think about it, anyway. When I caught myself cradling an unwashed towel, I jerked myself back to the present, hung it, and left the bathroom. At least my dream clothing was clean. Benefit one of many of wearing it.
Baz still sat in the rocking chair when I came out. He stared at his hands, not looking up.
“So, uh, do you need anything? There’s a clean towel on the counter for you. Use whatever soap and, uh, I’ll wait up for you to finish. Okay?”
He nodded, gaze still cast toward the ground.
The silence stretched for a moment, broken by the creak of the chair as he rocked forward before standing.
The familiar creak almost broke me. Would I ever hear that chair make its distinctive sounds for Geraint again? Nic? Dio? I knew there was a chance I could save them, and that was the only thing that kept me hanging on right now.
Baz trudged to the bathroom and shut the door behind him.
The sound of the shower broke the silence, and I was grateful I didn’t have to listen to him moving around in the bathroom. I could just listen to the water and hope that eventually everything would work out.
***
When I finally woke up, I lay in the dark, confused. Where was I? Slowly, everything came back. Losing Geraint and the others. My escape from the nothingness storm. Ending up home. Baz.
I sighed.
