The sky above the school was washed in a soft golden light, as if someone had gently poured honey over the afternoon. Thin clouds stretched lazily across the horizon, delicate and pale like silk pulled too tight. The sun wasn't harsh anymore—it was warm, quiet, almost tender.
A slow breeze moved through the trees near the courtyard. The leaves whispered against each other, a soft, restless sound. The air carried the warmth of the pavement and something sweeter too—the faint smell of fresh bread from the bakery down the street.
Students were pouring out of the building in waves of noise and laughter.
Viviana stopped walking.
She tilted her head slightly toward the sky. Her dark hair moved gently with the wind, brushing her cheek. For a moment, everything else disappeared.
She couldn't speak.
But she could hear.
And what she heard now was beautiful.
The laughter.The wind.The distant sound of a car passing.Life moving.
She looked up again, eyes wide, light reflecting in them.
She raised her hands slowly and signed, her movements soft and full of feeling.
"It's so beautiful."
Luca was standing beside her.
He didn't hear the wind.He didn't hear the students.He didn't hear the world.
But he saw her.
And sometimes, that felt like enough.
He followed her gaze up to the sky. He couldn't hear what made it beautiful—but he saw the gold light touching her face. He saw how her eyes softened. He saw how her chest rose slowly as she breathed in.
He smiled.
"What is?" he asked gently.
His voice was calm. Warm. A little rough, like he didn't use it too often.
Viviana turned to him. For a second, something flickered in her expression—something fragile. She signed slowly so he could follow her lips as well.
"The sky."
He watched her hands carefully. He always did.
When she signed, it was like watching poetry.
"The sky?" he repeated softly.
She nodded.
Then she hesitated.
Her fingers moved again, slower this time.
"It feels peaceful. Like… nothing bad exists right now."
Luca's smile faded slightly.
Nothing bad exists.
He wished that were true.
He looked at her more closely.
She seemed… pale.
Not the normal pale. Not just tired.
Her shoulders looked tense. Her fingers trembled just a little before she lowered them.
"Are you okay?" he asked.
She nodded too quickly.
Too fast.
He noticed.
"Vivi."
She forced a small smile.
"I'm fine."
But she wasn't.
The golden light suddenly felt heavier.
The air felt thicker.
Viviana blinked once.
Twice.
The sounds around her began to blur together. The laughter turned distant. The wind sounded like it was underwater. Her heartbeat felt louder than everything else.
Too loud.
Her vision shimmered slightly at the edges.
She tried to focus on Luca's face.
He looked worried.
Why does he look so far away?
Her fingers twitched.
The warmth in her body shifted into something strange. Cold. Dizzy. Like the ground wasn't steady anymore.
Luka saw it.
He stepped closer.
"Vivi?"
Her breathing changed. It became shallow.
She reached for him without thinking.
Her hand barely touched his sleeve.
Then the world tilted.
The golden sky fractured into white light.
And everything went black.
Luka's heart stopped for half a second.
"Viviana!"
He caught her before she hit the pavement, his arms wrapping around her just in time. Her body felt lighter than he expected. Too light. Like something inside her had shut down.
Her head fell against his chest.
Her eyes were closed.
Too still.
"No, no, no…" he whispered.
Students around them gasped. Someone shouted for help.
Luka didn't hear the chaos—but he saw the panic on their faces. He saw mouths moving. He saw someone run inside.
But all he could focus on was her.
"Vivi. Hey. Look at me." His voice shook.
He brushed her hair away from her face.
Her skin was pale. Almost colorless.
His throat tightened.
Not again.
The thought came without warning.
Not again.
For a moment—just one moment—he wasn't in the school courtyard anymore.
He was nine years old again.
Standing in a hospital hallway that smelled like disinfectant and fear.
Watching doctors move too quickly.
Watching his parents' faces break.
Watching his sister disappear.
He blinked hard.
No.
Not her.
Not Viviana.
His hands trembled slightly as he held her closer.
"She's breathing," someone said.
He watched her chest.
Yes.
Barely.
An ambulance was called. Teachers surrounded them. Everything blurred.
Luka stayed on the ground with her until they gently pulled her away to place her on a stretcher.
He followed.
Of course he did.
He didn't hesitate.
He never would.
The hospital lights were too bright.
White.
Cold.
They wheeled her into a room. Doctors moved around her quickly, attaching wires, checking her pulse, speaking words he couldn't hear.
He stood near the door.
Helpless.
He hated this feeling.
He hated not understanding what was being said.
A nurse approached him slowly, speaking carefully so he could read her lips.
"She fainted. We are running tests. Please wait."
Tests.
The word felt heavy.
He nodded.
Then he sat down.
And waited.
His hands were clasped together so tightly his knuckles turned white.
Please don't take her too.
He didn't even realize he was thinking it.
But he was.
Because once, something had been taken from him.
And he had never gotten it back.