Velvet | Extraordinary love mess

Chapter 9

It was dusk now. Ester was peacefully lying on the hospital bed. I had contacted Ariel and told her that I had urgent work to do, so I'd be late. I also reached out to Aunt Mary to take care of him. He was fast asleep. Only I was there in the room. I wondered where his family was. Did he have nobody? I thought as I held his hand, resting my head on the side of the bed.

I perceived motion and got up to see that he had woken up.

"You got up?"

"Yeah."

"How are you feeling?" I asked, rubbing my eyes.

"Not nice. Why are you here?" he replied.

"Should I go?"

"No, stay," he said quickly.

"Can I ask you something?" I was curious about something. Even though I knew the answer, I wanted to hear it from him.

"Yeah," he replied, still looking at me.

"Why didn't you put up a fight?"

He looked away. "I won, didn't I?" he said.

"How?"

"Don't you understand?"

"No."

"Innocent." He looked away again. Suddenly, he moved and pushed me onto the bed.

"What are you—" Before I could complete my sentence, he was on top of me, his eyes locked onto mine. His locket slipped out from inside his shirt, suspended from his neck, his hair defying gravity.

He grabbed my wrists, pinning them inside his cage. "Don't try to be innocent."

I didn't reply. He was still hovering above me, but deep down, I was enjoying the moment. I didn't know why, but whenever he looked at me, his gaze felt different, as if he were lost in me. The way his jaw tensed and how he gulped—everything about him seemed so perfect. No change was required. He looked like the CEO mentioned in every fanfiction I read.

He balanced himself on one arm and brought his other hand to my chest. He caressed it softly and rubbed my cheek with his thumb in circles. His jaw tensed again, and he gulped, as if something was stuck. The beeps from the heart monitor started to rise, beeping like crazy, indicating Ester was losing control.

"Ester, get off me," I said, but my words went in vain.

"Get off me, Ester!" I shouted as I heard the heart rate spike.

"Get off me, or I won't go to prom with you!" I shouted even louder.

He came back from wherever he was lost and finally got off. I stood up, feeling a mix of relief and frustration.

"Sorry, I just remembered something."

"You should be more careful."

"Ava..." he said, looking down at the crumpled sheets.

I looked up at him. "Yes?"

"I—I just don't know."

"Calm down," I said, wanting to hold his hand but hesitant to face the consequences right now. "I'm listening," I reassured him, a substitute for hand-holding.

"It's so strange. I don't know what it is. You are so good, contrary to my past or my whole life. I don't know what happens to me when I see you. You are something I've never encountered in my life. You are so simple, yet so complicated. You are something I want to explore, make you mine, touch you. Because I have never seen and never knew that someone like you can ever exist. I don't know if you think I'm stupid, but you are special, and I want to protect you," he said all in one breath.

It was difficult to digest. No one had ever said words like this to me. I had never felt so special in the past seven years. I smiled, a genuine one, the most meaningful. A strange feeling developed in me, and suddenly I flinched, as did he, when we heard the door shut.

Someone had entered. It wasn't the nurse; it was a girl, about my age. She wasn't tall or short, with a high ponytail, jeans, and a black oversized T-shirt. Her worried expression told me she was concerned. She looked toward us and swiftly hugged Ester.

"I almost died," she said.

Why is she hugging him? Who is this? I thought to myself.

She cupped his cheeks and gave them a little squeeze. I closed my eyes, a sudden wave of frustration washing over me. I opened them to find Ester struggling with one hand that had an IV attached to it. He was trying to speak, but she wasn't letting go.

Out of my freaking mind, I gripped her hand, and she looked at me. I applied a little force and pushed her away from him, only to find she was too weak and light, so she went farther than I intended.

"What the hell!?"

I folded my arms. "Can you not see? He was struggling in your hold. Don't you see he's in a state where he has been admitted to the hospital, and you are making him struggle? Don't you have a mind?" I said it all in one breath, panting, looking toward the window.

I looked at Ester, only to find his gaze fixed on me.

"Sorry," I said, still watching him.

He looked away and said, "Why are you here?"

"I was just worried about you," she said, sitting beside Ester. Ester shifted a bit because she was sitting too close. I cringed at her movement.

"I told you, I don't like you, but you still cling to me," he said.

"Don't be shy," she replied, while he frowned.

Their conversation continued, with every sentence meaning the same. Ester tried repeatedly to tell her that he didn't like her, but she always responded with something about not being embarrassed.

He sighed. "Ester, I actually have work to do. I'll come to your house in the evening," she said.

I widened my eyes at "Come to your house."

She picked up her bags and left the room with a cringy, "Bye."

I refocused my attention on Ester, waiting to see if he had something to say.

"She's my ex, but she still considers me hers," he explained.

My jaw clenched, and I stood up. I walked to get some water from the table beside the bed. Before drinking it, I asked, "Do you need something?" I clutched the glass.

He chuckled. "You're jealous," he said between laughs. It wasn't a question.

I took a sip of water. "No, I am not," I said, but he just grinned.

He was about to say something else, but I cut him off. "I am going to ask the doctor if you can be discharged now," I said with a straight face.

The smile vanished, and he nodded. I turned and exited the room.

I walked through the long corridor lit with tube lights at every meter. Hospitals sure have a nauseous smell. I was worried. I passed many rooms and saw people sitting with their heads down, hands on their heads, sobbing silently.

"Oh God," I murmured.

I reached the counter and stood in line. After a few minutes, it was my turn.

"Hello, ma'am. How may I help you?" the lady said with a smile.

"Can I know if patient 142 can be discharged at the moment?" I asked.

"Sure, I'll check," she said and started to type. After a few seconds, she looked up and said, "Yes, ma'am. Mr. Ester can be discharged now. I'll send a nurse to help you with it."

"Thanks," I said with a smile and walked past the same positions and cries of people I had seen earlier.

I reached the room and opened the door with a sigh, only to see something unexpected...

Ester was not there.