My head rested on Oskar's shoulder as I relaxed into him. I groaned all the way back to my room. Every step Oskar took caused my body to move, and every movement ached. It was cruel. My entire body was a discomfort to me, and I couldn't see anything.

I heard the all too familiar release of my cell door opening. Oskar's breath was notably heavy when he laid me on my bed. He had placed me on my side which was uncomfortable so I rolled slightly onto my stomach. I cried out from the pain the slight movement caused me.

Exhaustion overwhelmed me and tears flooded my eyes. They seeped through my bandages and poured down my face. I only felt them once they reached my chin. The numbness in my face was beginning to wear off. I wanted nothing more than to sleep, but laying in the bed was so painful that I was denied that kind of peace.

The sound of wheels on the hard floor was impossible to mistake. Oskar had brought in the cart. He always used it to care for me after visits with the doctor. I shifted in the bed in anticipation and quickly realized I couldn't feel my leg.

"Oskar!" I cried out as my heart skipped a beat.

My chest began to ache as I desperately tried to move my leg. It was dead weight and refused to bend to my will. I clutched at it in the darkness.

"What's wrong?" he asked. His hands were already on mine, moving them away from my leg.

"I can't... I can't feel my leg," I sobbed.

My heart raced as I laid there frozen, too scared to move again. I flinched when Oskar's warm hand touched my side. His other hand was likely on the leg I could not feel. It was rare for him to touch my bare skin, but his warmth did little to comfort me in the moment.

"Just relax," he said as he twisted my body.

"Please stop! It hurts!" I cried out. Every movement of my body was pure agonizing pain.

Oskar ignored my pleas and continued to press my hip towards the mattress while he pulled my shoulder in the opposite direction. A horrid pop in my back sent a joyous pain down my leg.

"Better?" he asked but I didn't reply. Nothing was better. There was absolutely nothing better about my situation. "Wiggle your toes."

"I'm...scared to," I mumbled into my pillow. My leg tingled but I feared movement would only make it worse. Movement was always worse. My fear had me frozen in place.

Oskar sighed. Without hesitation he told hold of my foot and pushed it in towards me. I felt my knee as it curled in towards my chest. The tingling pain made me shriek.

"Please make it stop!" It felt like a million bugs were crawling around under my skin.

"Stop complaining," Oskar said as he pushed on my other foot. He had both of my knees pressed into my chest as I laid on my back. My muscles ached with every stretch. He continued to manipulate my body into various positions. If I hadn't been so weak I would've resisted, but I had no fight left in me.

I bit into my lower lip as I fought back the tears that I knew already stained my face. Why couldn't I just have peace. My heart begged for quiet isolation, to be anywhere else in the world. Fuck I'd even be happy with the sweet release of death. But that was a luxury I wouldn't be afforded. My suffering was far from over.

Oskar rolled me over onto my stomach. He pulled me up so that I was kneeling on the bed. As he pressed my back forward, trying to get me to fold in half, I gave resistance. Even without my sight I could feel the position he was trying to put me in and I had a burning memory of how painful it was.

"Don't fight me." Oskar warned as he continued to push on my upper back. "Lean forward and stretch out your arms overhead."

"I can't," I said. It wasn't even a good excuse, but I didn't want to stretch my back. Not when I knew how much it hurt.

"Should I take you back to the doctor then? I'm sure he could fix you up."

"Please don't," I sobbed. My tears just kept flowing.

Oskar surrounded me with his body. I could feel his chest as it pressed into my back. His legs pressed into mine, forcing me to keep my knees together. When his arms slide down mine he grabbed a hold of my wrists. He was clamped around me and I couldn't move from his embrace.

"Relax and breathe deeply," Oskar whispered into my ear. His breath danced across the back of my neck.

He pulled my hands up off of the bed and forced me to lean forward. My arms extended forward onto the mattress as Oskar's hold on my wrists stayed firmed. I was folded in half on the bed. The stretch in my lower back felt like I was being torn in half.

I tried to breathe through the pain, but it was hard to focus on my breath. Oskar's felt warm as he continued to press into me. He forced me to deepen my stretch with the weight of his body.

We stayed in that position for a long time. Oskar had never maintained that kind of physical contact with me before. It was odd that he had been so close to me for so long, but I was desperate for the warmth his body gave me and I could feel the tightness in my back loosen up.

When Oskar finally moved from the position I found myself wishing he would stay. The numbness in my face was gone and the tingling in my leg had passed. My world was nothing but darkness. I had no idea if I would ever be able to see again.

Tears filled my eyes again. I didn't want to be alone, not in that moment.

"Please stay," I whispered.

In all my years of captivity I had never felt as helpless as I did in the few moments of silence that lingered after I spoke those words. I hated how vulnerable I felt. My chest ached and my heart raced.

Oskar didn't say anything. I heard the wheels of the cart fade into the distance as Oskar removed it from the room. The lock on my room door sealed. The pain in my chest amplified, thinking I was alone again.

When I heard a foreign sound my attention was pulled from the pain in my chest. My bed moved as Oskar climbed into it. He slide under the blanket and pressed into me. I could feel his bare skin against mine. The sound I heard must have been him taking his clothes off.

My body trembled when his arm wrapped around me. His warmth soothed the ache in my body and his nearness staved off the crippling feeling of loneliness. I wondered if Oskar would get in trouble for being in my bed with nothing but his underwear on. My concern faded as the sweet bliss of sleep took hold of me. I let myself relax into the comfort of his nearness.