Ethan sat up slowly on the cot, fighting gravity like it personally hated him.

  He heard the final bell ring — ughter and footsteps echoing in the hall.Everyone going home. Everyone going on with normal lives.

  He swallowed.His throat felt like sandpaper.

  Across the room, Alex sat in the visitor chair, textbook open but not reading — he kept gncing up every few seconds, eyes full of worry.

  “You sure you should stand?” Alex asked quietly.

  Ethan forced a weak smile.Lying would be easier.

  “Yeah. I’m fine.”

  That was the st lie he had energy for.

  He pushed himself up.

  The floor tilted.No, the world tilted.

  He tried to take one step—

  His knees buckled.

  His vision cut to white for a millisecond.

  Then nothing.

  His body hit the floor before Alex even processed what happened.

  Thud.

  Alex practically leapt out of the chair.

  “Ethan? ETHAN!”

  Mrs. Hartley was already moving — she caught his shoulder, turning him gently so he didn’t choke, checking his breathing.Her voice was sharp, no-nonsense, but shaking at the edges.

  “He’s unresponsive. Alex, get the emergency kit. Now.”

  Alex sprinted to the cabinet, yanked it open, hands trembling so hard the supplies rattled.

  He smmed the kit on the table and rushed back to Ethan’s side.

  Ethan y on the floor, face sck, breathing shallow and slow.

  Too slow.

  Way too slow.

  His skin looked almost gray under the nurse’s office lights.

  Mrs. Hartley pressed a cool hand to his forehead.

  “He’s burning up and freezing at the same time… what is happening to you, sweetheart?”

  Alex crouched next to her, panic twisting deep in his gut.

  “He hasn’t slept,” he whispered. “Not really. I–I think he’s barely slept at all this week.”

  Mrs. Hartley’s eyes widened with real fear now.

  “Sleep deprivation this severe can cause organ failure. We need medical support.”

  Alex’s heart hammered so hard his ribs hurt.

  Holy shit.

  This wasn’t “tired.”This wasn’t “stressed.”This was dangerous.

  He looked down at Ethan — his friend, limp and unconscious on the tile.

  And Alex felt helpless in a way that made his chest ache.

  “Ethan…” he whispered, voice breaking.“You’re scaring the hell out of me.”

  Sirens weren’t there yet, but Alex swore he could already hear them

  Alex POV“Student down! I need assistance!”

  My stomach twisted.

  I’d seen him tired before. Everyone had. But this…?

  He looked dead. Not metaphorically — corpse-level wiped.Skin cold, eyelids barely flickering.

  I swallowed hard.

  “Is— is he okay?”

  “He needs rest. And probably medical evaluation,” she muttered. “This level of exhaustion isn’t normal for a healthy teenager.”

  That hit me harder than I expected.

  What the hell was going on with him?

  The counselor waved at me. “Alex, go wait outside.”

  I wanted to argue. I wanted to stay.But I couldn’t be that guy right now.

  I stepped into the hallway.

  Heart pounding.Hands shaking.

  He wasn't faking.He wasn’t being dramatic or zy or avoiding css.

  Ethan was breaking.

  And I had no idea how to help him.