Toby awoke with a start, drenched in sweat, his heart pounding like a drum in his chest. The nightmare lingered in the corners of his mind, a monstrous dragon's fiery breath closing in on his friend Teddy. Despite the years that had passed, the memory remained vivid, etched in his consciousness like a scar. "Why can't I escape this?" he muttered to himself, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

Toby moved mechanically through his morning routine, his mind still trapped in the past. He couldn't shake the feeling of guilt that gnawed at him every day since Teddy had disappeared into the book. As he buttered his toast, he thought about the job he despised, the life he never wanted, and the burden of a secret he shared with Joshua and Liam.

"Be careful, you don't want to lose a finger," Joshua quipped, biting into an apple as he walked in. Toby forced a smile, but the weight of the conversation to follow was heavy in the air. "You still have those nightmares?" Joshua asked, concern etched on his face. "Every night," Toby admitted, setting down the cleaver. "It's a struggle to forget what happened... how we lost Teddy."

"We did what we had to," Joshua said, placing a reassuring hand on Toby's shoulder. "That book was pure evil. We made a promise to keep it hidden, to protect others from its horrors." "I know," Toby replied, his voice barely above a whisper. "But it doesn't make the nightmares go away. It doesn't bring Teddy back."

Liam joined them at the bar, his face beaming with news. "Hey guys, guess what? I'm getting married!" he announced, pulling them from their somber thoughts. "That's great news, Liam!" Joshua cheered, clapping him on the back. The three friends embraced, the weight of their shared past momentarily lifted by the promise of a new beginning.

Toby lifted his glass, a small smile breaking through the shadows of his past. "To Liam, to new beginnings, and to keeping our promise," he said, his voice steady with resolve. As they clinked their glasses, the nightmares felt a little further away, and the promise of tomorrow seemed a little brighter.