Softly warmed sunlight was beaming through the blinds in the hospital, and was casting soft shadows on the sterile walls, when the echoing sound of footsteps down the corridor penetrated the heavy quiet of the room.

Giselle and Ningning entered Winter's room; both were in their school uniforms, and lines creased bright, worried faces, heavy with sleeplessness. But nothing could prepare them for what they saw when they entered.

Karina sat slumped in the chair beside Winter's bed, frail and thin, sunken eyes a testament to her exhaustion. She looked like a ghost of herself, haunted by days of not sleeping or eating properly. Her gaze never left Winter, as if she feared that even blinking would cause her to miss something – some sign of life.

"Karina," Giselle's voice cut through the quiet, even but laced with annoyance.

"You have to go back to school. The teachers said it's a must for your finals. They're set two months from now."

Karina barely responded, her fingers light as she touched Winter's hand, her eyes hazy with aching and hopelessness.

"I'll be fine," she whispered, voice empty, refusing to take her gaze off Winter.

Giselle exhaled a breathless exhalation. Her patience was wearing thin. She took another step closer, frustration spilling over as she slapped hands on Karina's shoulders and turned the girl to face her.

"No, you're not fine! You can't keep this up, Karina. We all love Winter, but this. This, avoiding everything, avoiding yourself—it's not gonna help her, or you."

Karina's lips quivered, and she shook her head. The tears welled up in her already-reddened eyes. She spoke barely above a whisper.

"I can't leave her like this."
  
And just like that, Giselle snapped. Her eyes flared up in fury, sharp words cutting through the room like knives.

"The Karina I knew is gone! You're not even her anymore! You're just, that shadow of someone I don't even know." She gushed out air, her chest heaving in frustration, as boiling emotions spilled out of her.

"I don't know who you are anymore."

That said, she stormed out and the door slammed behind her, as if the echo sounded off in the hollowed space of Karina's heart.

Karina couldn't hold it in anymore. Her body shook violently as the sobs came bursting out from deep within her, tears running down her face. She cried so hard that it felt like her very soul was crumbling before her as she struggled to bear the weight of her grief and guilt and helplessness.

Ningning had been standing there speechless. Her own eyes had been puffy with dried-up tears.

Slowly, she sat down beside Karina who was rubbing her back softly and whispering in a low, barely broken voice, "Winter would hate to see you like this, for doing this to yourself. You need to get up. Giselle senior, she did not mean what she said. She's scared for you, and Mrs Yu is worried about you a lot."

Karina receded, her face wiped clean by tears streaming down from her eyes with shaking hands. She stood, but her knees felt weak, her whole body drained from days of emotional turmoil.

"How… how could I leave her, Ningning?" Her voice cracked, her red-rimmed eyes scanning Ningning's face for an answer.

"No one visits her. Not even her father. She has no other person."

Ningning looked away, biting her lip as she strained to find the words. She didn't have any answers. The truth was Karina was right. Winter has been abandoned when she should be there most.

Taking a deep breath, Karina locked her gaze on Ningning, whose bare eyes were resignated.

"Please leave," she said with a soft but firm.

Ningning slowly got up, her heart aching at the sight of her friend.

"Take care, okay?" she whispered before turning away from the room and walking out.

Karina sat alone, her shaking hands falling back onto Winter's side. The room was too silent; only the gentle hum of the machinery that kept Winter stable filled the air. She was at a moment of desperation in her entire life, more alone than she'd ever felt, with this overall rising feeling of abandonment, failure.

Giselle was angry with her and Winter was still unconscious, and her life generally seemed to be spiraling into disaster.

She let herself down again, putting her forehead against Winter's open palm.

"I don't know what to do anymore," she said softly, her voice cracking under the weight of confession.

It had been two whole weeks since she had stood there by the window, watching for any sign of him. Two weeks since she'd felt that little sliver of hope creep into her heart, two weeks since she waited and watched in quiet hope for something to come about.

The sun painted the room with colours of warm rose and orange, giving it a peaceful glow that seemed so out of place for this time, and with all the silent tension Karina's heart had held long enough. She sat beside Winter, holding her hand tenderly, as always.

But today was different—something beneath her fingertips had shifted.

A slight move.

Karina froze with a pounding heart beating so wildly that it seemed it was going to leap out of her chest. The unbelievable twitch of Winter's fingers barely, yet enough to make her jump up to her feet, widened her eyes.

Her voice got caught in her throat, too overwhelmed to speak. Breathlessly, she went out of the room looking for a doctor.

When they returned, Winter's eyes were open—her beautiful, familiar eyes Karina missed terribly. She stood off to the side, shaking with a mix of anxiety and joy as the doctor scanned over Winter and asked the poor little girl simple questions to which Winter nodded very slowly. Karina's heart swelled with every answer, pumping fast as the doctor ran a series of checks.

''She's stable. She's going to need some scans and rest time, but Winter's going to be fine,'' the doctor said, his face creasing into a warm smile at Karina.

Karina let out the breath she hadn't known she was holding as the whole of the body sank in relief. The doctor left the room, and the silence that followed was deafening but differed from the one that had threatened to suffocate her earlier. Winter was awake.

Now for the first time in an eternity, Karina's eyes met Winter's. Tears brimmed over finally and without thinking she ran to Winter, embracing her tightly. She buried her face into Winter's neck as her entire body began to shake with emotion.

"I missed you," she whispered through cracked crying; tear after tear streamed down faster.

"I missed you so much."

But something was off.

Winter's body was stiff; her arms hung by her sides.

As Karina felt the chill radiating from Winter's, she pulled back slowly, her heart dropping, a feeling of horror growing inside of her. She looked up to Winter's eyes, expecting warmth, love, anything-but there was only a far-off look on the cold face.

Winter's glance, always so familiar, full of life, was hollow. She didn't smile; she didn't utter a single word. She just stared at Karina, her face unreadable, as if she was seeing a stranger.

"Winter?''

Karina's voice was low, laced with confusion and fear, and reached out again to gently brush a stray hair from Winter's forehead, but flinched ever so slightly at Winter's withdrawal, her eyes hardening as she recoiled from Karina's touch.

Karina's chest tightens painfully, the joy she could barely feel moments before now twisted into an ache she can't explain. Winter isn't the same. Something inside her has changed, and she has no clue why or how to fix it.