Le's Soldier

Part 31

The headache hit without warning.

Lilly was halfway through a briefing—standing, explaining routes, calm and controlled—when the lights overhead seemed to sharpen, like someone had turned the world's contrast too high.

She paused mid-sentence.

Just for a beat.

No one noticed at first.

Then the pressure bloomed behind her eyes—deep, pulsing, violent. Not pain exactly. More like something inside her skull was trying to push its way out.

She swallowed hard and kept going.

"...secondary extraction point here," she said, voice steady by muscle memory alone.

Her vision swam.

The room tilted, slow and nauseating.

Sit down, her medic's voice echoed in her head.

She ignored it.

By the time the briefing ended, her jaw was clenched so tight her teeth ached. She dismissed the room quickly, nodding to the captain, refusing to meet his eyes in case he saw something off.

The corridor outside felt too long.

Too bright.

Halfway down it, her legs buckled.

Not dramatically. Not a collapse.

Just... gone.

A hand caught her before she hit the floor.

"Lil—"

Tommy.

Of course it was Tommy.

He steadied her, eyes already sharp with concern. "Hey. Hey. You with me?"

"Yeah," she breathed. "Just—head spin."

He didn't let go.

"You've been saying that a lot."

"I'm fine," she snapped automatically, then immediately softened. "Sorry. I'm okay. Just need water."

Tommy watched her like he was cataloguing every micro-movement. "You need medical."

"No," she said too fast. "I just need five."

She slipped out of his grip before he could argue, pressing her palm to the wall as another wave hit. The corridor blurred. She breathed through it, counting like therapy had taught her.

One. Two. Three.

It passed.

Barely.

By the time she got home that night, she was running on fumes and stubbornness alone.

Leah was in the kitchen when Lilly walked in, still in her hoodie, boots scuffed, shoulders tense.

"Hey," Leah said, smiling. "How was—"

She stopped.

Lilly's face was pale. Her eyes unfocused. She moved like gravity had increased around her.

Leah crossed the room instantly. "Sit. Now."

"I'm fine," Lilly said, even as she let herself be guided to the couch.

Leah crouched in front of her, hands warm on her knees. "Look at me."

Lilly tried.

Her head throbbed in response.