Chapter 76

HAZEL

I jolt awake, my heart pounding in my chest, sweat dampening my skin despite the chilly night air. Another dream.

But this one... this one was different. It was more intense, more vivid, and a shiver runs down my spine as I try to shake off the remnants of the nightmare that still cling to my consciousness like cobwebs.

I sit up in bed, the darkness pressing in around me like a suffocating cloak. The room feels strangely oppressive, as if the very walls are closing in on me. I reach for the lamp beside my bed, fingers fumbling in the darkness until I finally manage to switch it on. The soft light casts eerie shadows on the walls, and for a moment, I can't shake the feeling that I'm not alone still.

But I push the thought aside, chiding myself for being so paranoid. It was just a dream, I remind myself. Just a dream.

But try as I might, I can't shake the feeling of unease that lingers like a bad taste in my mouth. The dream had been so vivid, so real, that it's hard to belie