Craving CEO's Touch - English Version

Chapter 24

Nevin woke up the next morning with a realization that he couldn't continue feeling like these. He is aware that his work will be affected especially and he cannot ignore his feelings. He thought of talking to Zion to let him resign, maybe in the current situation it would be better if he was no longer at the station.

It was a dark raw morning, with the sky threatening rain, and Nevin shivered as he ate his breakfast. He took Ian a cup of coffee, which he drank sleepily, before telling him that he had promised to take Julia out for lunch.

'You can come with us, if you want,' he invited but Nevin just shook his head.

'And what am I? Third wheel?' he replied teasingly to his brother.

When Ian went up to prepare for his walk, Nevin was getting upset. He is overthinking again and je doesn't want to think at this moment. He left a note to his brother in a hurry and quickly went out wearing a thin jacket. He thought of taking a walk in the field behind their house. Nevin mastered the farm behind their house beyond the river. He grew up here and it was their playground when they were young. He took the road to the small hill where he saw the old stone house. It was their playground before, it served as their shelter when it was windy and rainy like today. He was wet and cold and he didn't notice that he had been there for a long time. He didn't notice that his surroundings were very wet and the road back to their house had become slippery, especially the steep road from the river. He tried to climb up there several times but he slipped, in his last attempt he managed to climb it but he fell when he stood up.

As he sat up a sharp pain lanced through his right ankle. Shivering with cold, he tried to move his foot. The pain was excruciating, but he was able to do so, so at least he hadn't broken the bone, he told herself thankfully, but there was no way he was going to be able to walk a mile home. He was shivering, wet and cold, his hair plastered to his skull by the driving rain. He tried to walk faster, conscious that Ian must be wondering where he was. He hadn't realised how long he had been sitting dreaming of the past.

Biting hard on his lip, he managed to drag himself a few yards, but it was hopelessly slow progress, draining every ounce of energy. He tried to stand up, wondering if he could limp slowly down the path, but after a few paces he knew that there was no way he could make it. He tried to remember how far it was to the nearest house. He was too far down the hills to be near a farm, and with a feeling of hopeless despair he acknowledged that he could do nothing but wait for someone to find him. Fighting down his hysteria, he refused to dwell on how long that might be. Ian knew he had gone for a walk, but he had no idea where. Even if he had already raised the alert it would be hours before anyone found him. Cursing himself for being so stupid, Nevin willed himself to keep calm. It would only be a matter of time before he was found; all he had to do was to try and keep warm and as dry as possible. He managed to crawl to an outcrop of rocks which provided some shelter from the wind and rain, but his teeth were chattering fiercely by the time he had done so, and he acknowledged that if the temperature dropped much further he had scant chance of retaining much body heat.

After what seemed like an eternity a hazy sleepiness started to engulf him, and although he knew he ought to fight against it, it seemed much easier and pleasant to give in and close his eyes. He slept, tormented by images of Zion, some so real that he cried out despairingly, begging him to leave him in peace. At one point he even thought he heard his voice calling his name, and he croaked an instinctive response.

Someone was shaking him roughly, rubbing his arms and legs until needle-sharp pains lanced through them. He tried to escape the briskly impersonal hands, but they would not set him free.

'Open your eyes Nevin,' someone commanded.

It was too much of an effort to disobey. Nevin opened them reluctantly, and looked straight into the icy grey depths of Zion's. He shivered violently and was pulled against him, something warm and soft sliding over his cold body. He fingered it absently, smothering hysteria. He started to laugh helplessly, shocked into abrupt silence as Zion hit him with his open palm.