Chapter 2Waking up happens slowly, like a heavy fog lifting. That’s when the pain hits him, wave after wave, and he doesn’t know why, what happened. He searches his memory and remembers a party and a fight. He wonders if the pain is from that? Then Arkady opens his eyes, and the room he’s in is much brighter than his bedroom, and he can’t feel the weight of Lou on his feet. His body is screaming, and it takes a long time to realize he’s in a hospital room. There’s a buzzer placed near his hand, and he’s surprised by how hard it is to focus through the pain to make his arm move so he can pick up the buzzer, and there isn’t even a mark on his hand.
Arkady buzzes, and after only a moment, a nurse appears. She’s older, plump, and pretty, perfect makeup, the kind of girl his mother Veronika wo
