My heart felt like it was going to implode as I scoured his wide eyes and downturned mouth for any sign of a silver lining. The tension in the air seemed to thicken with each passing second. The weight of my despair was heavy on my chest, like a granite slab crushing me down. Each thud of my heart seemed to echo off the walls, each beat drumming in the fact that hope was draining away. I was almost grateful for Sion's grip on my shoulders; it was the only tangible acknowledgement of how hard the situation was to endure. I felt like my heart might implode from the pressure, our hopelessness now a physical force bearing down on us. My eyes brimmed with tears, my vision blurring until the entire world around me seemed to dissolve into a wave of despair. I gritted my teeth in a futile attempt
