The pulse thundering in William's exposed throat, and the echoing whisper of it that Gabe could still feel under his little finger, was very definitely starting to slow. William's eyes slipped closed, and his face relaxed. Thank Hermes, it was nearly over. Gabe took a deeper breath of relief and sat back a little on his heels, still keeping hold of William's hand. He started running over the next steps in his head, the checks he'd have to run to make sure this had been successful before he--
William wasn't breathing. Or barely breathing, his chest had dropped, but barely lifted again. "William?" Gabe said, leaning forward again, willing his eyes to open again, to be clear when they did."William!" he said again, louder, laying his other hand on William's shoulder. Would shaking him help? Gabe wasn't sure; this wasn't supposed to fucking happen!