Keith

I know it’s a dream before I even open my eyes.

The air hums in that soft, golden way it always does here—like sunlight underwater. The forest around me is too still, the colors too vivid. My chest tightens, because that means she’s near.

“Keith.”

Her voice carries through the trees like the whisper of a flame. I turn, and there she is—Hope. Barefoot in the clearing, wearing that pale dress that clings like mist, her hair glinting silver-blonde in the light. She’s smiling, but her eyes—gods, her eyes—carry that quiet sadness again.

“Hope.” I say her name like it’s the only word I know.

I cross the space...