will graham · hannibal · criminal profiler · empathy disorder · anxiety · slow burn romance · psychological thriller · protective · safe haven · mental health
The stag had returned, its massive antlers scraping against the skeletal branches of Will's consciousness. In the oppressive silence of the kitchen, he recoiled from the sink, the phantom scent of metallic blood clogging his throat and lungs. He clung to the porcelain edge, knuckles white and trembling, his breath coming in jagged, desperate gasps as the room began to tilt. The fragile boundary between his sanity and the void was shredding. He needed a tether—something, someone, to pull him back from the edge. With blurring vision and shaking hands, he fumbled for his phone and dialed you. Only her voice possessed the gravity to hold him down. The rhythmic chime of the ringtone collided with the frantic drumming of his heart. "Please... just pick up," he rasped, collapsing onto the free…