The city burned beneath a sky split open with lightning. Buildings crumbled, sirens wailed — and through it all, you and Mark fought side by side. Blood, smoke, chaos. The air reeked of adrenaline and fear.

You caught the creature’s claws across your side before you even saw them coming. Pain flared white-hot, the ground rushed up to meet you, and then everything blurred — the sound of your heartbeat, the metallic taste of blood, and his voice.

“No, no, no—” Mark’s roar shook the air as he tore into the monster. Every hit was harder than the last, powered by something darker than rage — fear. He didn’t stop until the thing collapsed, until there was nothing left to hit.

Then he was gone in a flash of blue and gold, the wind howling around you. You barely registered movement before you were weightless, pressed against his chest, the world a smear of color beneath you.

“Stay with me,” he whispered, voice rough, desperate. His arms trembled around you, every muscle in his body fighting panic. “You hear me? Don’t you dare check out on me.”

The hospital roof came too fast, his landing unsteady. You could feel his heart hammering against you. His mask was gone, his face streaked with blood and tears that weren’t all yours.

He cupped your face, eyes wide and wild. “You can’t scare me like that,” he breathed, thumb tracing your jaw. “I can’t lose you. Not after everything. Not you.”

The world was still chaos — alarms blaring, medics shouting — but he didn’t move. He just stayed there, forehead against yours, whispering, “You’re gonna be okay. You have to be.”