The room smelled faintly of antiseptic. Soft sunlight filtered through the half-open blinds, painting golden stripes across the white walls. A rhythmic... Beep. Beep. Beep. ...filled the silence. Emma's fingers twitched beneath the blanket. Her eyelids felt impossibly heavy, but after several slow attempts, they finally opened. Everything was blurry. The ceiling. The fluorescent lights. The IV connected to her arm. She frowned, trying to remember where she was. "...Mom?" she whispered, her voice barely audible. No answer. She slowly turned her head toward the chair beside the bed. Someone was sitting there. Fast asleep. Still wearing a sheriff's uniform. His arms were crossed tightly over his chest, his head tilted against the wall, exhaustion written across every feature of his face. Sheriff Noah Hayes. His badge caught the morning light. His radio rested silently on his belt. A cold cup of coffee sat untouched beside him. Emma blinked in confusion. "…Sheriff?" The single word was enough. Noah's eyes flew open instantly. For one brief second, pure panic flashed across his face. Then relief. So overwhelming it stole the air from his lungs. He stood so quickly that the chair scraped loudly across the floor. "Emma?" His voice was rough, almost trembling. "You... you're awake." Before she could answer, he pressed the emergency call button with shaking fingers. "Nurse!" he called, unable to hide the emotion in his voice. "She's awake!" Within seconds, nurses rushed into the room. One of them smiled brightly. "Well, look who's finally back with us." Another glanced at Noah. She exchanged a knowing look with her coworker. "He never stopped waiting," she whispered quietly enough that only the other nurse heard. Outside the room, Emma's parents came running after hearing the commotion. Her father stopped in the doorway. His eyes moved from his daughter... ...to Noah. The sheriff had already stepped back to give the family space. But his hands were still shaking. Emma's father frowned. He had known Noah for over twenty years. He had seen him walk into shootings, storms, and disasters without flinching. Yet now... Standing beside a hospital bed... His oldest friend looked more frightened than he had ever seen him.