Micah drifted in and out of awareness many times after that. Each time he surfaced, it was the same. Confusion. Fear. And the crushing realisation that his body would not obey him.
Sometimes he would wake only halfway, caught between dream and reality. The ceiling above him would blur into strange shapes. The beeping sound beside him would grow loud, then distant. He would try to lift a hand, and nothing would happen. He would try to turn his head, and pain would stab through his skull, forcing him back down.
Every time he realised he could not function normally, panic would seize him.
Once, he tried to open both eyes fully, only to be greeted by that same terrifying blankness on his right side. The world seemed cut in half. He had squeezed his eyes shut again immediately, heart pounding, breath trembling.
