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Collei’s day was finally done; at long last, she could rest.
Oh, but if only it were that simple.
As she stared up at the ceiling of her hut in Ghandarva Ville, Collei became all too aware of the more than unpleasant sensations within her body.
Her back was aching horribly (It made her feel like she couldn’t breath).
Her left shoulder felt loose and painful (She tried fixing it but had failed and just given up).
Her hips felt like they were slipping out of their sockets (No mater what possision she was in, nothing helped).
Her stomach was churning sickeningly (She hugged her pillow to it and regretted every meal she’d ever eaten).
Her head felt full of cotton (The exhaustion of the day had built up and it was dizzying, even as she lay flat in her bed).
Her heart was pounding in her chest (It was concerningly fast seeing as she’d been laying down for about an hour and she was sure that if she stood up her vision would go white).
Her finger and wrist joints felt as though they were being stabbed and ripped apart (She’d been practicing her spelling before bed).
Her throat had become home to an uncomfortable lump (She was oh so very nauseous).
All of that and then her foot cramped up.
And people said all vision holders were lucky!?
Wow.
So lucky.
She tried to rotate her ankle like everyone said to do but, as always, it did nothing. After holding her foot at a strict 90 degree angle for what felt like forever, the cramp finally let up.
“Why me?” whispered Collei into the night as she curled up onto her side. She was sure Tighnari had probably heard, but she could care less; he knew about her condition, all of her symptoms, and was aware of how uncomfortable she was all of the time so why even try to hide it?
Of course, sometimes she liked to attempt deception, but he could always tell; if not from her mannerisms and expressions, then because of his inhuman level hearing. In Tighnari’s years as a forest watcher, he’d learned to pick up on the differences in the sounds that came from healthy bodies and those that came from sickened ones.
An example of this- whenever Collei’s heart rate sped up when she stood and her vision went white, Tighnari would tell her to sit down without even turning to look.
He could just tell.
Collei stared into the darkness, her body exhausted but her mind racing.
Her mind never really stopped racing.
She thought of everything from how she destroyed everything she touched to that pretty flower she’d seen on her patrol to how she was probably going to die before the age of 25.
The was probably coming close to when Tighnari would head to bed, and he usually came in to check on her; she didn’t know if it was a blessing or a curse. Collei sometimes pretended to be asleep but she never really was and she knew Tighnari knew that; other times she’d beg him to stay by her side the entire night. The only reason Collei went to bed so early, even if she knew she wouldn’t fall asleep, was because her body was too fatigued to do much of anything else.
Sure enough, Tighnari stepped through the enterence of Collei’s hut and walked up to her bed. “You doing okay, Collei?” he asked as he kneeled by her head, brushing through her hair with his fingers; she shrugged as she leaned into the comforting touch of her father figure. Tighnari took his hand away in an attempt to get up, but she mumbled a nearly inaudible “no…” and reached for his hand so he sat back down.
“I’m just going to get you a spare pillow for your head; I’ll be back soon.” he said with a soft smile, before leaving her and rushing back to his own hut. As soon as he got out, his steps became much quicker- not running as he didn’t want anyone thinking there was anything wrong.
As soon as he arrived in his own hut, Tighnari made a beeline for the linen cabinet. He pulled out one of the softer, more supportive pillows and closed the cabinet before rushing back to Collei.
When Tighnari finally did get back, he gently tapped Collei on the shoulder. “Can you lift your head for me please?” he asked gently, holding the pillow where she could see.
Nodding, Collei moved one hand from where it was holding the pillow to her stomach to support her as she lifted her upper body. As soon as the pillow was placed under her head, Collei collapsed onto it and sighed, still not really relaxed. Tighnari tried to leave, brushing her hair out of the way and whispering a soft “Good night, Collei.”
Before he could stand up, Collei grabbed his hand, looking anywhere but at him.
“Would you like me to sit with you until you fall asleep?” offered Tighnari with a soft smile.
And yeah, she really did want that.
Collei nodded- albeit hesitantly- and so Tighnari stayed.
“Would it help you fall asleep if I rubbed your back?”
Again, she nodded hesitantly, so Tighnari got up from where he sat on the floor to sit beside her on her bed. He put his hand under the back of Collei’s pyjama shirt and alternated gently scratching and lightly massaging up and down the entirety of her back.
“Can you do circle? Up and down is making me feel sick.” She spoke tiredly but the nausea was obvious in her voice.
Tighnari did as requested and Collei was asleep within minutes, but he still stayed for longer. It’s hard to let yourself fully relax when your entire body constantly feels like it’s falling apart, and it’s hard to fall asleep if you can’t let yourself relax.
After confirming that Collei wasn’t going to wake up again, Tighnari tucked her in and kissed her forehead before leaving without making a single sound.
When Collei woke up the next morning, she was ce alone and just as well rested as she could reasonably expect to be. Her back hurt, like usual, and all of her joints felt like they were slipping out. As soon as Collei stood up, her legs gave out and she was forced back down onto her bed. When she finally did get up, Collei changed out of her pajamas and went to Tighnari’s hut to have breakfast with him before going on patrol.
Collei knew, as she ate the food that had been put in front of her, she would forever be safe in Gandharva ville.