The next morning came slowly, filled with the heavy quiet that only hospitals seemed to know. Sunlight pushed through the blinds of Jamie’s room, soft and warm, but no one inside felt calm. Everyone was still shaken, still tired, still trying to understand how everything had changed in less than a day.

Jamie was awake, resting carefully with an IV in his arm, his small body still weak. Maya sat beside him, brushing her fingers through his hair again and again. The motion soothed her more than it soothed him.

He looked better, but the fear of losing him was still fresh in all their minds.

Daniel stood near the...