The computer beside the lab bench chimed.
The university had forwarded an email.
Victor braced himself against the edge of the bench and shuffled over, intending only to see what else they planned to move. But his gaze stopped on the first line.
Project funding reinstated. Auxiliary units scheduled for return.
Victor scrolled down until he saw the notice that the existing equipment would remain and treatment could continue. Only then did he dare read it again.
"Nora."
He turned around, his lips moving several times before he actually smiled.
"The money's back."
The research could continue, and the machines they had taken would be returned. Nora could still wait. He still had a chance to find a way to bring her out.
Victor returned to the cryogenic chamber, eager to tell her the news. He pressed his palm against the lid, trying to touch her face through the glass.
"Did you hear that? We can keep going. Once you're better, we'll..."
A deathly pale face reflected in the glass.
Victor stared at that face, which clearly no longer belonged to a normal human, and could not get the rest of the sentence out.
He raised his hand, and a hand rose beside that face too. The skin below his cuff was frighteningly white. Even he was scared to look at it.
How would he hold Nora when she woke up?
Even the air in the hallway left him struggling to breathe. He did not even know whether these hands would still be able to touch her then.
Would Nora recognize him?
He hurriedly lowered his hand and looked down for his wife beneath the glass. She still lay there quietly, and his skin in the photograph beside her head was still its normal color.
How long had it even